Re: New Year's Day Traditions

[Guest guest]

I've always had black-eyed peas as well here in Texas, but just last night

my husband said that for some reason you're supposed to leave one on the

plate. Don't know why, but I did. Also heard cabbage for the first time

yesterday, so we had that, too. One thing we didn't do that my husband and

brother-in-law said they'd both heard was to put a dime in the cabbage.

Supposedly the black-eyed-peas are for luck but the cabbage is for financial

wealth, and whoever gets the dime in their bowl is supposed to be that much

richer.

----Original Message Follows----

To: " accuscript1 " ,nmtc

Subject: Re: New Year's Day Traditions

Date: Tue, 01 Jan 2002 14:00:18 -0500

Here in Eastern North Carolina, the required New Year's dinner is

black-eyed peas and collard greens. A bit of corn bread rounds it

out. Some folks have sweet potatoes with dinner; we'll have sweet potato

pie and apple crisp. My mother always cooked hog jowl with the peas and

side meat with the greens; I don't. NO meat on my table, so living high on

the hog isn't an option <G>.

The legend about the peas is that one would get a dollar during the year

for every pea consumed on New Year's Day. What with inflation and reduced

capacity for consumption, I'd want at least $100 for each pea.

Pork and sauerkraut sounds like a German tradition to me, so the

German-settled parts of Pennsylvania would probably uphold that tradition.

Valeria

At 12:32 PM 1/1/2002, you wrote:

>Does the rest of the US eat pork and sauerkraut on New Year's Day? I

>can't remember doing that where I grew up in land. I'm wondering if

>this is a Pennsylvania tradition (like the old pickle in the tree at

>Christmas)?

>

>There is some saying they have here about what you eat affects your

>year. I'm sure I will " butcher it " (pun intended) but it goes like this:

>

>If the first meat you eat in the new year is pork, you will live high on

>the hog

>If the first meat you eat in the new year is poultry, you will have to

>scratch for everything (scratch like a chicken)

>Beef?

>

>What are your traditions?

>

>Chris

Valeria D. Truitt, Instructor Medical Office Administration

Craven Community College Phone

800 College Court vtruitt@...

New Bern, NC 28562

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