“Lady, you know what happens at a sale, when two women get hold of the same dress? THAT’s a Rhubarb!”
~ Rhubarb, a 1951 baseball movie
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I chose rhubarb as my letter “R” because, beyond knowing that it’s a tart vegetable with great health benefits, I knew there was a cute old movie about baseball and a cat named Rhubarb.
I remember seeing the movie somewhere along the line, and from that movie I knew that rhubarb was a slang term in baseball meaning a disagreement or a fight.
What I did not know when I started researching rhubarb is that the word is sometimes defined as nonsense. As in you might say: “Jane is talking rhubarb.”
I also did not know that “rhubarb” is the word that extras in a play say while onstage to create background noise.
I also did not know that “on a rhubarb” was WWII fighter pilot slang for being on a strafing mission on enemy ground.
Finally, I also did not know that “hitting the rhubarb” is slang for getting so drunk that you can’t drive without going off the road.
~ ~ • ~ ~
And that, kids, is today’s installment of my A To Z Challenge theme, FOOD: Talking The Talk.
Thank you for providing my “something new” that I learned today. 🙂
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You’re welcome, Dana! Most of this info was new to me, too. Like that WWII link. Who knew?
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Wow! I never heard of any of this. I thought it was something you put in strawberry pie to ruin it.
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Kate, I know! I knew about rhubarb meaning a fight, but the rest was news to me. Fascinating how a benign food can come to be part of sayings like these.
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I knew NONE of this, Ally Bean.
And that’s no RHUBARB!
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nrhatch, happy to have the opportunity to inform about rhubarb. I’m sure that your day is now complete. 😉 Who knew, huh?
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Fascinating! The only one I’d heard of was the nonsense definition. A cat? A movie? Good grief, what have I been doing with my life?!
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joey, I didn’t know the nonsense definition, but I remembered the movie as being cute in an old-fashioned silly movie sort of way. And now, of course, I’m fully versed in all uses of the word rhubarb. For those magic moments when such knowledge is useful! o.0
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Well, I learned that runcible and rhubarb are both nonsense words. I like that part about using rhubarb as background noise during a play.
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Tamara Narayan, I’m doing all I can to keep you informed about nonsense. In fact, that might be one of the things I do best. Of course, my only question is: will you be eating rhubarb with a runcible spoon?
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I have another one for you – Our local farm team named it’s mascot Rhubarb. Now I think that little bit of info beats all the rest 😉
http://www.milb.com/content/page.jsp?ymd=20070611&content_id=41073122&fext=.jsp&vkey=news_t529&sid=t529
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Deb, THAT IS AMAZING. I love your mascot. Well-named. Cute.
I agree, you win the prize with this one. Thanks for sharing.
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Mustn’t grumble apple (or rhubarb, depending on the mood) crumble is one of the phrases my husband uses 😀 Sometimes it drives me mad 🙂
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Gulara, yum… a rhubarb dessert sounds delicious to me. As long as there’s a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top, I don’t care what you call it. A grumble. A crumble. A crisp.
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😀 We actually have rhubarb growing in the garden. Very nice crumble… 🙂 Another great post – though it made me hungry. I love how you bring different sayings and facts together. Great skill.
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Gulara, thank you. I know what you mean about being hungry. I have been since I chose food as my challenge topic. I don’t know how food bloggers do it; it’d weigh a ton if I wrote about food every day!
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I didn’t know any of that! Learn something new, thank you Ms. Bean. It’s very interesting, all the expressive places that rhubarb is used. I don’t actually care to eat it though.
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Zazzy, I’m one of the few people on earth who loves rhubarb… stewed with sugar… or in a pie… or in jam, even. This puts me decisively on Team Rhubarb! 🙂
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My parents grew rhubarb and I loved it stewed with sugar too!
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That’s how I came to know about it, too. I miss that old rhubarb patch…
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I had never heard of any of these, either.
I do, however, have plenty of actual rhubarb coming up at the new house. I supposed I’ll have to find a way to use it all up.
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Sarah, when I discovered all these different ways in which the word rhubarb is used, I was amazed. It always seemed so modest. Enjoy your rhubarb, whatever you choose to do with it.
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I’ll probably make something, remember I don’t really like rhubarb, and then repeat the whole process again next year.
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I have not tried rhubarb, I think the name puts me off, although it’s a fun word to say. Thanks for the new meanings!
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Janet, I like the stuff, but it’s not all that popular. Except when it comes to having various meanings, I guess. 🙂
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I did not know these things either. My grandma used to make rhubarb pies, and I used to eat the rhubarb straight out of the backyard. I’m not sure why, because I never really liked it. I guess it was because I could. Now I find it too tart for my tastes.
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Carrie, without lots of sugar rhubarb isn’t any good. HOWEVER, add some sweetness to it and I adore it. As for all the different ways in which the word is used, who knew?!
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Wow! I never knew! I do love a good strawberry rhubarb pie though. Yum.
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bitsfromheaven, I was fascinated by what I found out, but now am wanting a piece of pie. Honestly, this challenge is making me sooooo hungry. Who picked food as a topic?
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Yeah I was waiting for you to ‘say’ that…especially after yesterday’s post. I’m now making edits to my grocery list.
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I once decided to make a strawberry rhubarb pie from scratch. My friend took a nap as I started cutting the rhubarb. When he woke up an hour later, I was still cutting the rhubarb. Luckily, he joined in. Rhubarb for me is always about hours of slicing it. 😉
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Kourtney, you make a good point. The stuff requires work, no matter which way you slice it. [Pun intended.] 😉
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I’m going to bed with the feeling that the day hasn’t been wasted after all. I’ve learnt a lot from this post! 🙂
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durbadhyani, that’s a compliment. Learning about rhubarb was fun for me, so I figured other people might like knowing about it, too.
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I didn’t know any of that either. I just know that strawberry rhubarb pie is my absolute favorite and that no one in the grocery stores around here have any idea what it is.
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Allie P, I was amazed by what I found with a simple little search on the word “rhubarb.” I like strawberry rhubarb pie, too. Our grocery bakery makes it in early spring, for a few weeks, then it’s gone.
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I make at least one every spring. I love how bright pink it is right before covering it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream… now planning trip to the strawberry patch…
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You’re making me hungry. I NEED SOME PIE. Must make one soon.
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Oh, it’s been a while since I saw of tasted one. Some great quote choices — none of which I knew. Thank you.
Great choice for letter R.
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Silvia, thanks. I like rhubarb but it’s not for everyone. Researching this was fun. Who knew there were so many ways in which the word is used?
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If only I could google like that! But, wow, so many ways to use that word. Good one, Ally. I remember that movie, too.
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In My Cluttered Attic, rhubarb, I discovered, is a versatile word, useful in many ways, but still in need of lots of sugar if you’re going to eat it.
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LOL I agree. :O)
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Who knew rhubarb was such a versatile word? And here I just thought it was something that was cool to say…
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evil, the things you learn, eh? And I’m not just talking rhubarb! 😉
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I’m a huge fan of rhubarb, and I hate when strawberries are added to muck it up. I love making rhubarb crisp, and I’ve even bought rhubarb marmalade from American Spoon Foods. Don’t convert anyone–leave more for us.
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nance, I like the way you think! I agree, let’s keep rhubarb a secret. After writing and talking about it now, I’m adding it to my grocery list. I think a nice crisp is in order.
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When spelled Roobarb, it’s also the name of a dog -> https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roobarb (his frenemy is a cat named Custard, and the theme is instantly recognisable).
:0)
@breakerofthings from
A Back of the Envelope Calculation
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@breakerofthings, that looks like one cute TV cartoon show. Adorable, and with such cleverly-named characters. Thanks for the link.
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You’re welcome!
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This may be my favorite one so far!
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Alice, thanks. The things you learn, eh?
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