Sandwich

I love travelling by train. My best ideas came to me while on a train. Best ideas? This is funny! Ok, maybe “least-bad” ideas would be more accurate…

Now about sandwich: some of you might’ve already heard, yes, he was a real person – John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich (1718-1792); he is said to have once spent twenty-four hours at the gaming-table without other refreshment than some slices of cold beef placed between slices of toast. Soon his fellows gamblers started to order ”same as sandwich”.

I wouldn’t be very sure that gambling was the reason he needed bits of bread not to get his fingers greasy; there could’ve been many other reasons to stop him leaving his desk to have a proper meal. A busy schedule can stop you from making your bed, cooking, going to the gym, brushing your hair (I only know these things from my friends’ experiences, of course). So I guess the gambling bit is there only to make the story more exciting. But then I wonder what would cleaning-your-teeth-while-cycling be called tomorrow?

It really fascinates me to find out how words came about. Looking back, I happily notice that no one in my family was either a keen gambler, or an extremely busy person; otherwise, you never know, we could all be having Varbanescus! )