To appreciate the freshness of spring, a salad is in order. But while shopping it is important to keep calm and stay as cool as a cucumber. Especially if you get to the till and realise you left your money at home, that you, as the French say, ne pas avoir un radis.

In this case, make sure you don’t turn as red as a tomato from the shame of it all. Just say “I’m sorry!” with the kindest smile you’re capable of and les carottes sont cuites– the matter is closed. But the problems really start went you come home empty handed – da hast du den Salat, as you say in German: now you have real problems.

Maybe you should stop off on your way home to get an olive branch, and you can escape the worst of the punishment. As we say in Bulgaria: ot `vseki li`mon `mojech da si nap`ravich limo`nada: out of each lemon you can make lemonade!