As two people who grew up on either side of a big ocean, my wife & I have a number of differences. Which is a good thing, as long as I acknowledge the difference & defer to her. (I know she reads these, so I have to be extra nice). It dawned on me this year, though not sure why, that my wife opens a banana from the opposite end that I do. Strange, at least to me. Why would anyone crack open a banana from the bottom? I, as most people I believe do, crack open a banana from the stem. Simple & direct. But she insists that I have it backwards. A banana -must- be opened from the bottom, as far away from the stem as possible. Why? Not sure, other than that is what she learned as a girl in the tropics. I may be inclined to believe her, but…
She is a serious banana connoisseur. Actually, serious isn't strong enough. Banana obsessive. Banana crazy. She picks each bunch by hand & examines them for any flaws. By hand, I mean that each is touched & great care given to assessing its worth. I am not allowed any longer to buy bananas. I'm more mechanical - 5 in one bunch? Great, in the basket they go with nary a further thought. For her, they are prized possessions that require to be gingerly bagged & brought home.
The Gulliver's Travels reference is lost on my wife. Where she is from, such classics are not read by students (so as not to pollute the minds of the children). But we do have our own big endian / little endian debate ongoing in the house. It would be funny, but for the fact that each of us is serious in proving to the other the proper banana opening technique. As there is an average four bananas consumed daily by us, there is ample opportunities to dig in our heals & mock the other.
But what to do? Slice it in half? You are still left with the stem & not-stem ends. Which half first? One would think that such issues can be resolved without mocking of the other party. But it seems only natural to denounce the other side as backwards (or reverse end-wards).
So its stem first!
-Mike M.
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