Not Pic of the Day 6-20-08 Sew what?!
Moderators: ViolaAnn, redcrx, Chris_W
Not Pic of the Day 6-20-08 Sew what?!
Compound words are great, especially when they contain alliteration, assonance, or some sorts of reduplication.
And they make great names! I once knew a guy. His parents, Mrs. And Mrs. Knack, named him Nicholas. Yup – he was Nick Knack. And my college roommate whose playful parents baptized him Christopher, giving him a lifetime of charming pickup lines revolving around his name, Chris Cross.
These words are just fun to say. Think mishmash, riffraff, shilly-shally, ship-shape, tip-top…
and there’s chit-chat, wishy-washy, doo-dad, klip-klop, knock-knock…
and sing-song, ding-dong, ping pong, King Kong…
and flim-flam, hip-hop, fiddle-faddle...
even cuscus, deadhead, bed-head…
Often there is something about these words that seems to give some indication of what they mean. Zig-zag just seems to describe what it means - to go one direction, then sharply switch directions by a sharp angle. In this political season we will hear way too much about flip-flops.
Today’s hosta name is a reduplicative that was based on the appearance of what it names. Back in the 1800’s a kind of clothing ornamentation became popular. It was a kind of zig-zag decoration tediously crocheted with hooks and threads. By the 1880s it was possible to make this product by machine and the popularity of “ric rac” boomed.
In the 1950s, when American homemakers were expected to clean, cook, and sew, with a sewing machine in every home, sewing “notions” had a place of honor in every five-and-dime store in the country. Among the most popular products were the 15 cent packages of the flat, braded, waving decorative edging called rick rack. It went on everything - towels, aprons, blankets, pillows, and the hems of skirts, shirt sleeves… Brightly colored, wavy, zig-zagging – what could be cooler than rick rack?!
Of course, familiarity breeds contempt. Overuse made rick rack a cliché… one might even say it became ticky-tacky.
Words can be tricky… and compound words can be really tricky-dicky… so in 1999, when it came time to name her small, green, ripple-edged hosta, Eleanor Lachman obviously thought about the decorative edging trim – but she used the non-standard spelling and it became H. Rickrack. Nice hosta, nice name… why don’t I see it in more gardens?
(Scene: Hospital Obstetrics Department
Dr: “Mrs. Rache… are you sure you want to name your son Richard?)
And they make great names! I once knew a guy. His parents, Mrs. And Mrs. Knack, named him Nicholas. Yup – he was Nick Knack. And my college roommate whose playful parents baptized him Christopher, giving him a lifetime of charming pickup lines revolving around his name, Chris Cross.
These words are just fun to say. Think mishmash, riffraff, shilly-shally, ship-shape, tip-top…
and there’s chit-chat, wishy-washy, doo-dad, klip-klop, knock-knock…
and sing-song, ding-dong, ping pong, King Kong…
and flim-flam, hip-hop, fiddle-faddle...
even cuscus, deadhead, bed-head…
Often there is something about these words that seems to give some indication of what they mean. Zig-zag just seems to describe what it means - to go one direction, then sharply switch directions by a sharp angle. In this political season we will hear way too much about flip-flops.
Today’s hosta name is a reduplicative that was based on the appearance of what it names. Back in the 1800’s a kind of clothing ornamentation became popular. It was a kind of zig-zag decoration tediously crocheted with hooks and threads. By the 1880s it was possible to make this product by machine and the popularity of “ric rac” boomed.
In the 1950s, when American homemakers were expected to clean, cook, and sew, with a sewing machine in every home, sewing “notions” had a place of honor in every five-and-dime store in the country. Among the most popular products were the 15 cent packages of the flat, braded, waving decorative edging called rick rack. It went on everything - towels, aprons, blankets, pillows, and the hems of skirts, shirt sleeves… Brightly colored, wavy, zig-zagging – what could be cooler than rick rack?!
Of course, familiarity breeds contempt. Overuse made rick rack a cliché… one might even say it became ticky-tacky.
Words can be tricky… and compound words can be really tricky-dicky… so in 1999, when it came time to name her small, green, ripple-edged hosta, Eleanor Lachman obviously thought about the decorative edging trim – but she used the non-standard spelling and it became H. Rickrack. Nice hosta, nice name… why don’t I see it in more gardens?
(Scene: Hospital Obstetrics Department
Dr: “Mrs. Rache… are you sure you want to name your son Richard?)
Lovely hosta! You kept me guessing...thought it was going to be Lakeside Knick Knack!
Also reminded me of someone I hadn't thought of in a while. I went to college with a Grace Mercy (we added Peace and Love to her name.)
Also reminded me of someone I hadn't thought of in a while. I went to college with a Grace Mercy (we added Peace and Love to her name.)
Denise
MY HOSTA LIST
MY HOSTA LIST
I wasn't sure where you were going with this one either, but it was sure fun getting there. I'd have Rickrack in my garden if I'd ever found it for sale anywhere. I always loved the look. Yours looks to be the nicest I've ever seen in pics. I've heard that it can be slow to develop. Did you find that to be true? About how long have you had your plant?
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Being a word fan, I particularly enjoyed this NPOD . . . and you introduced me to a hosta I'm not familiar with. Very pretty! I may have to search this one out . . . I probably need more solids to rest the eye between flashier ones.
One of my kindergarten teaching years, I had an incredibly beautiful little red-haired girl whose name was Delilah Duck. Brother: Donald. Poor dears.
One of my kindergarten teaching years, I had an incredibly beautiful little red-haired girl whose name was Delilah Duck. Brother: Donald. Poor dears.
Got Rickrack in a trade with a friend last summer. It never got out of the pot until it was put into the garden temporarily for the winter, but now has a place of honour and is growing well. I can hardly wait for it to look like yours.
BTW, I've also seen if as Rick Rack (two words). Do you know definitively which is correct?
Ann
BTW, I've also seen if as Rick Rack (two words). Do you know definitively which is correct?
Ann
Ann
Pictures of Ann's Hostas:
http://violaann.smugmug.com/Garden/Host ... 361_qL3gHS (SmugMug gallery now updated for 2016)
Pictures of Ann's Hostas:
http://violaann.smugmug.com/Garden/Host ... 361_qL3gHS (SmugMug gallery now updated for 2016)
I realized this morning that I can play the 'name game' too. [And I wasn't even awake yet when I thought of it.] When I worked at a flower shop in So CA, there was an auto dealer across the street. One of the salesmen had a string of girlfriends & would send them bouquets. His current girlfriend was named ~~~ Sandy Beach. When one of us commented, he said her brother was named Rocky.
But I'd take Sandy Beach or Rocky Beach any day to Delilah Duck or Donald Duck...
But I'd take Sandy Beach or Rocky Beach any day to Delilah Duck or Donald Duck...
Well, ViolaAnn... it appears that the most common spelling of the word, and the name of the product, is Rick Rack...
but it was definitely registered as one word, Rickrack... that's straight from the AHS Hosta Registrar page - a great resource, BTW
http://hostaregistrar.org/
but it was definitely registered as one word, Rickrack... that's straight from the AHS Hosta Registrar page - a great resource, BTW
http://hostaregistrar.org/
I had a great chiropractor in Elk River named Dr Howard Johnson.
Love the ruffles on the hosta!
Love the ruffles on the hosta!
Spider's Hosta List There are photos there too
"I gotta have more cowbell!" SNL
"If your gecko is broken you have a reptile dysfunction."
"If you don't talk to your cat about catnip...who will?"
"I gotta have more cowbell!" SNL
"If your gecko is broken you have a reptile dysfunction."
"If you don't talk to your cat about catnip...who will?"