pancake day

[Sky]

I forgot about it too, guess once your away from your country traditions it just kind of doesn't matter

[ina]

Something to do with using up all your goodies before the fasting in Lent begins - I have never actually known any Christian to fast for lent, but there we go

See, this is the bit I've not managed to understand yet (after 14 years in this country!): why pancakes? You need eggs for them - and this is not the time of year that hens are laying terribly well!

[red]

my hens have only just starting to lay properly!

but its about using up your eggs milk etc before lent.

[ina]

That-s my point - most folk won't have eggs and milk at this time of the year!

[Millymollymandy]

Well you have a good point there Ina. Pancakes don't really use up a lot of anything - for two people's worth it's only one egg anyway!

[ina]

Well, I suppose the origin of this custom may be lost in history...

But pancakes are nice, eaten at any time of the year - whatever the excuse for them!

[marshlander]

It's to use up eggs, butter and so on before fasting for lent. It's very early this year as the date is worked out the same way as Easter by some 'some many weeks before x' method.

[red]

i suspect pancake day has older origins, as Ina says - most old customs etc were taken over by more modern religions...

my personal theory is that lent is to stop the peasants eating the eggs until Easter... allowing the hens which willhae just started laying again (like mine have) to lay a clutch of eggs, and hatch them, all in spring time, thereby keeping the flock going. however.. its just a theory.

lent is strange if you look at it properly.. the 'fasting' means no eating meat, and eggs and dairy are counted as meat.. yet fish is allowed. but on Sundays you *can* eat this stuff.... then strangely, these days people who 'give up for lent' tend to not have chocolate or sweets or something..

as it goes.. in our house we do celebrate pancake day, but don't take part in lent

[hamster]

Ooh, that's a good theory.

I'd always suspected that Lent was like what some people call 'the hungry gap' now - that period where it's starting to feel spring-like, but you've still got hardly anything to eat except cabbage and turnips... So you had a bit of fasting and enforced deprivation to see you through till there was more around...

[ina]

Ooh, that's a good theory.

I'd always suspected that Lent was like what some people call 'the hungry gap' now - that period where it's starting to feel spring-like, but you've still got hardly anything to eat except cabbage and turnips... So you had a bit of fasting and enforced deprivation to see you through till there was more around...

That's what I always thought, too. However, what with the religious celebrations coming in the way and dictating the times and length of the fast, it doesn't necessarily make sense any more: it's really a bit later in the year that is the "lean" time - ask any veg grower in the UK, particularly in the North! At the moment, there is plenty of stored root veg around; once that is gone, there is a short period of not much at all (at least not outside - different if you have plenty of tunnels or greenhouses).

[Helsbells]

I am one of those giving up chocolate and sweets etc for lent, I am a Christian, although not all Christian sects believe in it, but I have always done it cos I like to challenge myself. Anyway it was only this year that it really seemed to make sense to me. In our house we have pretty much used up all the stuff we grew over last year, and just beginning to plant some new seeds, so its that space inbetween finishing all the old stuff, and waiting for the new stuff to grow. It also made sense to me in terms of being rather fat from overeating at Christmas, and so hopefully will lose some weight over lent and then begin eating again when spring comes and there is lots of lovely food to harvest.

[red]

my mum says as kids (they were Christian) they used to give up sweets for lent, but her mum would still use the sweets ration each week and set the sweets aside.. the come Easter Sunday, they got to binge.

It makes more sense than now, which is kids eating lots of sweets then even more at Easter..(those Easter eggs everyone felt obliged to buy before Christmas )

hellsbells: I do a similar thing to you -but before hand, I give up chocolate for 2 months before Christmas, sort of cutting down, eating less before the excess. The interesting thing is.. if I stop eating chocolate, after a while its not as nice anyway.. must be addictive...

[Helsbells]

ed, I wish that would happen to me! The longer I go without chocolate, the more I want it!! Absense makes the heart grow fonder...for me anyway!!

[red]

yes well - unfortunately I always teach myself to like it again

[hamster]

I wasn't giving anything up for Lent, but was going to make a real effort to go out with the conservation group more. Drastically failed on that one on Sunday, though.