Poison Gloves and Giants

Winter has been long and hard with very little sunshine to brighten my day. So when a few sunbeams did grace us with their presence we were thrilled. Except that there was a strange noise that accompanied the sun. A jittery metalic noise that would fade in and out each time the sun shone or went behind a cloud. Barry got quite anxious that some terrible thing was loose in the walls and that the house would self combust at any moment .. no, not really, but it was pretty irritating. He turned around to me and said, 'I have no idea where that noise is coming from.' Looking up from my laptop and a mountain of editing, I said, 'Oh that is the solar powered cockroach on the window sill.' .... why do we have a solar powered cockroach? Well it seemed a great idea at the time. We thought it might amuse the grandkids ... or the older adults. I think it was a gift in a Christmas stocking a few years back .. Oh by the way, its 100 days to Christmas. Time to start buying those gifts. Okay, back to noisy stocking fillers. Every Spring time we wait for the cockroach to start jittering to know if Summer is on its way. Its no good looking to the daffodils or tulips in the garden to herald Spring. They are too easily fooled by an errant sunbeam or warm breeze and often flower well before the frosts end. The garden is wall to wall Spring flowers but if you dare go outside without a jersey, two pairs of socks and a raincoat, you are in serious trouble. It will not only be the cockroach that is jittering, but your teeth will sound like casternets as the chill bites. The cockroach is quiet again for the moment and we are watching the skies eagerly for the next appearance of the sun. Come on cockie, jitter jitter away!

I am descended from a Medici ... yes the famous family of Florence. They supported Michelangela, Botticelli and Galileo and even Leonardo da Vinci, as well as having descendants who became popes, queens and dukes. Legend says the dynasty descended from a giant slaying knight. This first Medici was a knight named Averardo and worked for Charlemagne. He was riding through the area of Florence when he came across a giant frightening people. As they fought Averardo's shield was dented by the giants iron mace ... creating a design of red balls on a gold shield. This symbol is still used by pawn shops throughout the world .. because the Medici family were all into money-changing .. or banking. My lineage comes through Catherine who was mother to three french kings. She was considered a sorceress and was known for lacing gloves with poison. In those days leather was treated with animal excrement to soften it ... so a bit of perfume was required if you did not want to smell like a rotten carcass ... Catherine decided she would replace some of that perfume with poison to get rid of unwanted rivals. Naughty girl, but then maybe it was her only way of protecting herself against vicious forces of evil. Well, that is what I tell myself anyway.

So why am I so pleased to be related to someone like this? I quite like the giant slayer bit, but the poison stuff is not so nice. Do I ever want to poison anyone, well not intentionally. Sometimes I cook things that others might consider noxious ... or tasteless maybe, but poison? No not really. I was watching a programme on TV about how sugar is poison ... maybe that is my way of poisoning people. I usually make a sugary treat when asked to bring a plate to a party. Chocolate hedgehogs .. quick and easy, lemon syrup cake .... yummy, and even a few attempts at steamed puddings have gone down a treat. In fact people often ask me which offering on the table has been made by my hands and then demolish it in no time flat. If Barry and I want a taste, I have to make us a small piece which I leave at home. But now that folks know that I am a Medici in disguise? Will they really want my cheese cake? Or pile their plates with my carrot cake? Time will tell.

So beware of my attempts at sugar poison folks and I will let you know when our jittery solar powered cockroach is really dancing on the window sill so that you can break out the Summer clothes .. or consider dumping the winter stuff to the back of the closet.