Hints for Continued Marital Harmony:Mediatrice/Drachenfutter

Hints for Continued Marital Harmony: Mediatrice/Drachenfutter

Last Saturday, after spending the hours between 1:00 and 5:00 PM at the Belgian Beer Celebration at Kendall College (an excellent event), I went with ReneG and Giovanna to Goose Island Shrimp House.

Then we stopped off at the Matchbox for a few Dead Guys ($2.50/ pint special). At this point, I called the Wife who seemed very understanding (as usual).

Then ReneG introduced us to a few delicious pineapple beverages and we discovered Giovanna looks great in a hat.

We talked a lot about this and that but mostly about food.

Then we stopped at Kababish – I didn’t know I was hungry till I walked in the door and saw the vats of deliciously colorful sauces.

After midnight, I had just dropped off ReneG and Giovanna and immediately got a call from The Wife wondering just where the hell I had been for the past day. I had kissed her goodbye in the AM, and it was now the AM again, so I had some ‘splaining to do, but when I walked in the door with a meatball and boiled egg stew in a spicy sauce, fresh chapatti, carrot/cardamom salad and mango drink, all was well. The Wife’s uncharacteristically aggravated expression melted into mumbles of gustatory bliss and marital harmony was firmly restored.

The French have a word for it, and it has been mentioned here before: “mediatrice,” which is the mollifying gift one brings to a spouse after a night of carousing. This term originally referred to an oyster loaf, and in “the Vieux Carre of New Orleans (where) it was known as ‘the mediator.’ It was the one thing a man felt might effectively stand between his enraged wife and himself when he came home after spending an evening carousing in the saloons of the French Quarter. He would buy the oyster loaf for pennies, just before going home, in the French market.” (http://www.recipegoldmine.com/sandwich/sandwich87.html)

The Germans (got to love their humor) also have a name for it: Drachenfutter, which translates as “dragon fodder.” As Oxford explains, “this is the offering German husbands make to their wives - breathing raging fire at the cave entrance - when they've stayed out late or they have otherwise engaged in some kind of inappropriate behaviour. A nice box of chocolates, or some flowers, perhaps to mask the beer fumes.” (http://www.askoxford.com/worldofwords/wordfrom/otherwords/?view=uk)

Anyhow, it worked for me.

Hammond

Goose Island Shrimp House
1011 W. Division St.
312-642-3640

Matchbox
770 N Milwaukee
Chicago
312-666-9292

Kababish Restaurant
939 N Orleans St
Chicago, IL 60610
(312) 642-8622

Makes me want to piss off the CQ!

Great post!

David Hammond wrote:Hints for Continued Marital Harmony: Mediatrice/Drachenfutter

Hammond,

Didn't know there were specific words, but a little something showing you were thinking of her even though you were, as they say in Canada, oot and aboot, goes a long way when one comes in late.

Even though it was only 10(ish) I stopped at


and picked up


the other night on the way home from Davis Street Fishmarket.

Coincidentally, I was talking about your "Ways To Drive Your Wife Crazy" post the other day. I quote "Anyhow, I find that Nixon is an excellent vehicle for driving the spouse to Happytown."

Happy to see you think about the other side of the coin as well.

Enjoy,
Gary

On my way home from Georgia last week, I considered taking I-65 north, instead of U.S. 31, to meet up with Gwiv and the gang at the Davis Street Fish Market and then spend the night and have the JeffB G & G lunch on Friday. If I had, it would have cost me a lot more than a DQ. When I mentioned to the lovely Mary that I had thought about it, if looks could kill I would be dead! For once I made a great decision and marital bliss continues. At least until I take another vacation without her.

I did get to the G & G lunch and had an excellent steak and a taste of Chicago culture in the back booth.