LL-L "Etymology" 2013.04.30 (04) [EN]

[Lowlands-L]

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 L O W L A N D S - L - 30 April 2013 - Volume 04
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From: Heiko Evermann <heiko.evermann at googlemail.com>
Subject: Etymology

Dear Lowlanders,

maybe you can help me find the etymology of a phrase. It is an expression
that my wife uses, when the kids are asking whats up for dinnner. The
tradition in several families seems to be to avoid this answer. Kids can be
picky when it comes to food and avoiding the confrontation up to the last
possible moment seems to be a frequent move employed by parents. Often
accompanied at the table with the (in)famous German proverb "es wird
gegessen, was auf den Tisch kommt", which roughly translates to "you eat
whatever is on the table". But I doubt that this can fully express the
heavy burden of the German expression, as in German it is not about "you"
but a passive construction: Whatever is on the table is eaten, no
discussion, period. You are not involved in the decision.
In my native Holstein (as I have heard) the canonical answer for Topfgucker
(pot-lookers) is "Swienschiet mit Dill", though we did not use that phrase
at home as my mother's mother came from Saxony. My wife, however, uses a
different expression and that is the one I would like to ask about:
My mother-in-law comes from Königsberg/Ostpreußen. Born in 1944, the family
had to flee to west Germany a few months later. She grew up in an east
Prussian family and some words of their dialect have remained in use in
our family. Here the answer for Topfgucker is "Apfel(l?)agatschla(g/ch) mit
Mollebeeschen". This phrase was intoduced into the family by an aunt
who came trom east-Ostpreußen and who passed away a long time ago.
Those still using this phrase have no idea about the origin.  But as
"Swienschiet mit Dill" has an understandable meaning in Plattdeutsch, I
thought, maybe even this family heritage from Ostpreußen had a meaning in
the original dialect?
Recognizable at the beginning seems to be "Apfel" (apple) and Beeschen
sounds a bit like "Beeren" (berries).  The rest is unrecognizable to me.
Any ideas about this phrase? And any other standard responses  for
Topfgucker around Lowlands land?

Heiko Evermann
Ellerau/Germany
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