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"Originality is the fine art of remembering what you hear,
but forgetting where you heard it."
-Laurence J. Peter
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"Read not to contradict and confute,
nor to believe and take for granted, nor to find talk and discourse, but to weigh and consider."
-Francis Bacon
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Recently I was sitting in a rather small establishment in Barnstaple (Devon, England), called The Sandwich
Shop. I was musing on the enormous joy one can get out of something simple. I like simple things, you know. They
tend to be so uncomplicated. ;-)
But Iīm getting sidetracked already. So I was sitting there, having a sandwich. A very nice one at that. Again,
the recipe was simple: two slices of whole-wheat bread, some mayonaise,
and a lot of Stilton blue cheese and pineapple. Simple, unpretentious, but it tasted like a definite winner! And
that thought started me on the subject.
You see, there are many people who prefer to get their pleasures and joys from the expensive, the complicated,
the exclusive. They go to three-star restaurants (weīre talking Michelin stars now, mind you!), they go to
expensive hotels, buy famous-brand clothes ... well, you get the picture. Or, on a smaller scale, they make
their meals at home, but with countless ingredients, often with the help of big cookbooks. Many recipes produce food
in which you can hardly recognise the ingredients anymore.
But I like things simple. Take this sandwich I was eating, for instance. The "cook" could have made a lot
more of it, but that wasnīt necessary. (I'm not certain whether using the word "cook" is justified when
referring to the person who makes sandwiches, but I canīt think of anything better. And it makes me think of
my dear friend in Wales who used to say to me, smiling: "My wife cooks the greatest sandwiches!" He clearly
intended the word "cooks" to be a joke...) The cook could have added all kinds of peppercorns, relishes, tomatoes, cress,
lettuce - anything, really. But he didnīt. He knew this combination of four ingredients was effective and
delicious. Thatīs the way I like things - not too much and not too little. And nice.
And of course, the best things in life are not only simple, but come into existence in a simple way as well. The
idea is usually a simple solution to a simple problem. (Just tell me if my use of the "s"-word is becoming
somewhat excessive...) To stay with the sandwich, the history of its invention by an English lord - the Earl of Sandwich.
He was the first Lord of the Admiralty (such an important and accomplished man that the now even more famous Captain Cook
named a Hawaiian island group he discovered after him: the
Sandwich Islands
- is quite famous. A
web site about the town of Sandwich -
the original one in the county of Kent, England. (Not to be confused with
the town of Sandwich in Massachusetts, USA.) It explains: "The word 'sandwich' for an item of food was possibly named
after John Montagu
who was the 4th Earl of Sandwich.
It is said that in approx.1762, he asked for meat to be served between slices of bread, to avoid interrupting a
gambling game." That was an unheard of way of eating oneīs dinner at the time, especially for nobility.
But it was handy.
And - I hardly dare use the word anymore - simple. Moreover, it was very tasty!
By the way, it is interesting to know that although people in Sandwich donīt think the word "sandwich" for a food
item has anything to do with their town, and although the alleged inventor of the sandwich didnīt even live
there, a local road sign would almost make you believe otherwise. 
It says: Ham Sandwich. Unfortunately, if I want to be historically and
linguistically correct, I add that 'Ham' in this case comes from the word "hamlet", which means "small village"
(and also has nothing to do with any play of Shakespeare).
Unfortunately, some people are not so excited about the sandwich. Read, for instance, what
EasyJet Inflight Services says:
"Imagine the horror of someone from the South of Europe when they first experience 'lunchtime' in a British office
and the concept of a 'sandwich run'. To follow the office norm, the sandwich is to be eaten at your desk
preferably while still answering the telephone if you really want to be 'in' with your colleagues." And of course,
they blame the inventor:
"The Brits werent always so sandwich-desk obsessed at lunchtimes. Lunch used to be taken at the Club or another equally
salubrious restaurant. Many blame the Earl of Sandwich, who is said to have devised the sandwich as a way of taking a
meal without leaving the gaming table two centuries ago." In all fairness to the Earl, I have to add that some historians
defend him. They think he didnīt eat sandwiches to stay at the gambling table, but to be able to keep on working at his
desk (he was, after all, the highest-ranking lord of the admiralty).
Orlando Montagu, a direct descendant of the fourth Earl of Sandwich, and the 11th Earl himself,
must have a sense of history and tradition: he is now in the business of selling sandwiches. He
opened a shop in London, seeking the business of the metropole's booming luncheon trade. The name of his
company? Earl of Sandwich, of course!
But whether you buy a luxury sandwich from him, or make a simple one yourself, it is good to savour the flavours
of the bread and of whatever filling you have chosen. Long live the scrumptious sandwich!
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Merriam Websterīs definition of a sandwich:
"sandwich. Pronunciation: 'san(d)-"wich, Function: noun. Etymology: John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich died 1792
English diplomat. Date: 1762. 1 a : two or more slices of bread or a split roll having a filling in between.
b : one slice of bread covered with food. 2 : something resembling a sandwich; especially : composite."
By the way, according to Orlando Montagu there is one more aspect to the definition of a real, original sandwich: you have
to be able to hold it in one hand without spilling any filling!
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Disclaimer
This column is only for the purpose of entertaining, educating or
giving food for thought. Any persons, characters, countries, institutions or groups
mentioned are - as a matter of principle - fictional: any resemblance to existing ones is
purely by chance. ;-)
If the content of this column offends anyone, please accept the
columnist's apologies: no offense was intended.
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column noun
1a: a vertical arrangement of items on a page
b: a vertical section of a printed page
c: an accumulation arranged vertically
d: a department or feature (as of humor, sports,
literary reviewing, or gossip) in a newspaper or periodical, under a permanent
title and generally reflecting the writer's individual tastes and point of view.
2: a supporting pillar
3: a form, structure, or formation shaped like a column
(Webster's Dictionary.)
Relevant reads:
The Book of Sandwiches
The Sandwich Maker Cookbook
Vegetarian Sandwiches: Fresh Fillings for Slices, Pockets, Wraps, and Rolls
Sandwiches
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