Really?

I confess to being a little puzzled by this one - it is February after all. Naomi, the artist, lives in Northern Ireland, and I'm pretty certain the weather there isn't too brilliant right now[but I know some of you, like Bless, are enjoying sun, and blossoms]
There are a few flowers [snowdrops, daffs...] but not a lot of blooms and I haven't seen any butterflies lately.
I think of February as a time for sowing,  time to prepare my garden for the summer, and prepare my heart for Easter [Lent begins on 17th Feb] 

The calendar picture is attractive, but it feels like the wrong month!
Blooming confusing if you ask me! I can only think that in these cold wintry days, Naomi has been singing songs from My Fair Lady to herself
Oh, so loverly, sitting abso-BLOOMING-lutely still
I would never budge, till Spring crept over me winder-sill

 

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang?

Do you say chit or chitty ? what does this word mean ?

Ian Fleming's car got its name from a 1920s racing car nicknamed "ChittyBangBang" and built by Count Louis Zborowski. And that name came from a lewd WW1 song, referring to the chitty given to soldiers allowing them out of camp to visit brothels! At this point, I wondered if I should continue my research into this word chitty, or stop before things got too vulgar! [in the book CCBB actually flies to Vulgaria]

But it was OK - chitty  comes from the Hindi word chitthi which means a note, receipt or slip. It is now often just called a chit.

But chit itself has three meanings - two are nouns, one a verb

1.  a slip of paper - as mentioned above - particularly referring to money owed or paid.
2. an insolent or arrogant young woman
3. to encourage a potato to sprout by placing it in a cool, light place

I am attempting to chit potatoes on my kitchen windowsill. They are set out in eggboxes behind the sink.

This year I have five varieties [they came from Suttons Seeds]

1. King Edward
2. Pentland Javelin
3. Maris Piper
4. Desiree
5. Charlotte

A mixture of earlies and maincrop,with different properties. There was a chit in the parcel explaining this Some will go in the raised bed, others in tubs. I hope I have success with my spuds.

King Edwards were first developed in England, at the start of the 20th century, and in 1902 named in honour of King  Edward VII who was crowned that year

Pentland Javelin [Scotland] Maris Piper [Ireland] and Desiree [Netherlands] all came to us in the 1960s.

Charlotte are the newest variety in my selection, and good for salads. They were developed in 1981 in France by a breeder named Roger Salaun. He wanted a name which could be recognised across Europe, and a number of the European Royal Houses have had a Princess Charlotte or two.

Which segues nicely into our British Princess Charlotte - aged 8 she is third in line to the throne. She's a little older than Rosie, and I get the impression she's a bright, sensible child.[definitely not a chit] But she's certainly got a lot on her plate* right now - Grandad's ill, Dad's extra busy, and Mum's recuperating from an op. 

Being royal doesn't guarantee that family life will run smoothly, does it?

* do you think Buckingham Palace only serves King Edward and Charlotte potatoes - Duke of York probably off the menu nowadays?