Oh my darling, Clementine

For whatever reason, when my sister and I were kids, we picked up on an old folk song with some rather depressing lyrics, dating from the Gold Rush days:

In a cavern, in a canyon,
Excavating for a mine
Dwelt a miner forty niner,
And his daughter Clementine

Chorus:
Oh my darling, oh my darling,
Oh my darling, Clementine!
Thou art lost and gone forever
Dreadful sorry, Clementine

Light she was and like a fairy,
And her shoes were number nine
Herring boxes, without topses,
Sandals were for Clementine. --Chor.

Drove she ducklings to the water
Ev'ry morning just at nine,
Hit her foot against a splinter,
Fell into the foaming brine. -- Chor.

Ruby lips above the water,
Blowing bubbles, soft and fine,
But, alas, I was no swimmer,
So I lost my Clementine. -- Chor.

But this really isn't about a morbid song, but I invariably think of the song every time I hear the name of the fruit. Perhaps that's why I never tried clementines until a week ago.

Oranges are not a favorite of mine - too messy to eat and you never know if you've gotten a good one until you eat the first piece. If you didn't, all that work to peel and segment it went to waste. Tangerines are a special treat, eaten only in early December (probably a result of getting them only once a year, in our St. Nick stockings, when I was growing up). But even the sweet juiciness of the tangerine was marred a bit by the seeds. No one looks good spitting out tangerine seeds.

But those darling little clementines? Oh, heavens. Easy to peel, seedless, sweet and just the right size for a quick snack. I'm in love.

There is one problem, though. I've only been able to find them in five pound bags. That's an awful lot of fruit for one woman to eat before it spoils.

But I'm willing to give it a try.