I’ve invented a new verb; to Allotmenteer. I thought it would come in handy for those weekends when I spend more time at mtp than not. When I get back to work on a Monday morning people might say, ‘so what did you get up to at the weekend then?’ and I might say, “well I allotmenteered on Saturday and Sunday but not much else. And they would nod and say, “sounds like fun.” And I would say, “for sure, it was”. Do you think it will catch on?
There must be a few versions of this. I allotment (you allotment, he/she/it allotments etc) rather than allotmenteer. Perhaps it’s a geography thing…
Plus, I do like the idea of your colleagues simply nodding and saying it sounds like fun. Mine all look at me like I’ve just landed from another planet – and they’re supposed to be trained in understanding people.
They call me ‘Lottie’ at work and it’s always the first they ask me when I get back. ‘Have you been on your allotment this weekend’
And the answer is always yes I bet…!
Sorry MTP, you’ve been beaten to it. The OED has its earliest reference for allotmenteer dated to 1920.
I thought you might like their 1959 reference from The Times – “As an ‘allotmenteer’ of over 30 years standing, I must challenge the suggestion… that an allotment cannot be a thing of beauty.”
Damnation!