Monday, March 1, 2021

White Rabbits, leeks, and St David's Day

 White Rabbits, everyone!  And a Happy St David's Day to us all. I scouted outside in case of daffodil spears, not yet.  The daffodil is the national flower of Wales. So I did the nearest I could to leeks, the other symbol of St. David, Patron Saint of Wales, and here's a bag of leeks chopped ready for soup.  I might make a pot of leek and potato soup in honor of the day. 

The leek story goes that the Welsh forces, led by St. David, now Dewi Sant, who I guess was then just David, or maybe Dafydd, Dai to his pals, advised his troops, in a battle against the Saxons, this is ancient stuff, to wear a leek in their hats, as a way of distinguishing them from the enemy.  

The Welsh won, though history doesn't record if it was the leek effect.  Evidently they didn't use uniforms, probably all the combatants in those homespun rough dress things, looking alike, and no doubt covered in mud, given the climate and the season when leeks are available.

Considering how exciting it is when the first daffodils open, I really think that in this kind of region where winter is a serious season,  they should open their trumpets in spring with a noisy flourish,  and all the other spring bulbs should have musical sounds, too.  It could be a wonderful chorus as you wander about in late March around here. Daffodil  trumpets, flutes for the crocus,  oboes for tulips, drums for the aconites, tympani for the hairy bittercress.  Who do I talk to about this?

Just to show how fraught it is around NJ to get anywhere near a vaccination, when my doctor's office called me this morning with test results, just baseline stuff, I told nurse Christine, and she screamed with excitement!  Loudly congratulated me. Even all the medical group support staff haven't got it yet.  It illustrates what I've been talking about.

And I've been in touch with various helpers, and with unhelpful inquirers, to let them know. The first group to thank them warmly, the second to pacify them.  But the work goes on, now helping two friends track down opportunities to go for.

All's good.  And I now have that book recommendation from Ellen, The Lake etc., on my Kindle, ready for this afternoon's reading delight. I had tried it in audio by the author, but was not happy with his sound, so I'll hear it in my head instead by reading it.



15 comments:

  1. Leek and potato soup would be a perfect celebration!

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  2. Leek and potato soup is a favourite here. Must remind Resident Chef that we like it and see what can be done. Alas no grocery shopping for another three weeks so the procurement of leeks will have to wait. As for the orchestra flower thought - who are we to say that they don't? Maybe they DO make music, heard only by themselves.

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    1. Now that's a very good thought about the music of the flowers.

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  3. I haven’t made leek and potato soup in a while. After lockdown...

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    1. Do you grow leeks? I seem to remember you have a garden.

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  4. What a beautiful meal a bowl of leek and potato soup must have been!
    As to the vaccine- things are so different here in Florida- they have announced that they will be starting to give the shots to people under 65 who have risk factors. Another step forward. Unless, of course, the variants popping up render the vaccines useless.
    Sigh.
    I love your trumpeting idea. A chorus of blooms!

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    1. The variants are in fact not a game changer for the current vaccines, according to epidemiologists, that's just a scare tactic by anti vaxxers for the most part, so we can be easy on that one.

      Here, people cry with joy when they can get through. It's about starting in onsite waiting rooms at 4 a.m. at the latest and staying online refreshing for at least three hours, and then maybe, just maybe.

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  5. Love leek an potato soup :) There is no hope of seeing daffodils around here for a bit. It's a balmy minus 13C at the moment but the snow has gone because we have had rain which is promising. Not to say we couldn't get a blizzard tomorrow.

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    1. Daffodils are still a dream here, too, snow everywhere, rain helping wash it away.

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  6. Wonderful image - a garden full of musical flowers!

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  7. Congratulations on getting a vaccination appt, everything is in disarray here. 80+ were able to register for an appt starting yesterday, but on line registration was a total disaster, people having to apply over and over again. And Husbands and wives could not apply together, had to have separate appts.
    My age group won't be able to get an appt until April I think, fingers crossed..
    Yes I said Rabbits in the middle of the night.... not white ones though.
    Hope it was a happy St Davids Day for all Welshmen and women.
    When we first had a TV we could only get a Welsh channel, it was interesting.

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    1. It's such a cruel system where old people are forced to learn how to get online and then navigate a lousy website. I'm so sorry to hear this.

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  8. I considered buying some leeks (to make soup with) earlier in the week when I was at the store, but I didn't. I think I'm going to remedy that next time I go - thanks to you. :) I am reminded about this time every year that I hardly made any soup all winter. I know there is still a month or two of chilly evenings ahead, but somehow as spring approaches I always bemoan that I didn't make soup all winter - except for a pot of ham and beans, and maybe a pot of chili once. I should really give up the notion, once and for all, that soup is winter food.

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    1. I like soup any time really. It's a quick hot lunch.

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