In My Peas

            My reading varies widely, from fiction to history and biography, and I sometimes follow reading trails through curiosity over what I find in the last book or books.

            With all that, I’ve come across an intriguing phrase which I haven’t been able to define through a dictionary, encyclopedia, or through Googling. I have found no explanation in the readings I have found the phrase in. The usage is always vague.

            The phrase is ‘In his/her/their peas.’

            I’ll provide some examples.

            It was in a biography of Napoleon where I first found the phrase. Hugart’s biography is comprehensive, but, when compared to Bosset’s, there’s not near enough Josephine. Early in the volume, Hugart refers to Bonaparte’s academy days.

            ‘Bonaparte did well in most subjects, and all agreed that he was a fine cadet. Most said, however, that he lacked social skills and, when not on march, or in class, he rarely strayed from his peas.’

            I asked around, and did some research, and I didn’t find the word ‘peas’ referring to either a cohort, state of mind, or dormitory. Always a vegetable. Nor was Napoleon a fan of peas, as far as I’ve heard. I’d heard about the anachronism ‘in his cups’, but this didn’t seem to be an extension of it. Then there’s ‘in a pickle’, but it’s obviously not the same. At first, of course, I considered the phrase in a literal context. Lounging about on a pile of dry, split peas wouldn’t be an ordeal. It may even be an experience that the character ‘Amelie’, from the movie of that name, would seek. However, if the peas were fresh or frozen, that would be uncomfortable. After a while, things would become mushy, and couldn’t help but begin to smell a bit farty.

            But, that’s ‘the visual’ that comes to mind when coming across the phrase. Nothing is in peas except the subject. That was all I had to go on. It is certainly some sort of metaphor, then; a figure of speech. With most figures of speech, an explanation can at least be gleaned, either through source or context. There are plenty of figures of speech out there, and they are quickly internalized. But, ‘in his peas’ is a phrase that I’m finding hard to crack. Here’s another instance, which I found in fiction:

            ‘…of course, that was published in Fringes [a magazine], when Erton was still very much in his peas.’

            To which Gerald replied, ‘Yes. But even then, here and there, he was showing flashes of brilliance.’

            Of course, and you may recognize it, that is from the final, elegiac chapter of Humbert MacReady’s Jazz Age novel ‘Rumble The Brilliantine Road’.

            You may think that the phrase is only applied to the young, and that it points to a lack of development or maturity. But that doesn’t always seem to be the case. I still admit to some confusion here. This is another instance I found, in a biography of musician Janie Marsden. (‘Agnostia Flicknail’, of ‘The Akron Horde’, and, later, solo.) The reference comes from an event in 2013, when she was either in her forties, or early fifties, depending on who you believe.

            ‘After combing all of her haunts in Times Square and Hell’s Kitchen, the current entourage found Janie in the company of Louie Quartermeister. Both were well in their peas by then, but Gnashly [keyboards] found no reason to take her back to Teaneck at that time.’

            One may think that this indicates that they were found face-down in peas which they were trying to eat. And, as far as I know, that might be true. The reference is, like all I’ve found, excruciatingly vague. Your guess is as good as mine. And I can’t speak for Louie, but early in the work the biographer made clear Janie’s preference for carrots. This fact, found early, saved me from jumping to conclusions, but otherwise led nowhere in discovering the true meaning of the phrase.

            The reference in the Marsden bio was a bit of a clue, though. I thought that, perhaps, a ‘pea’ is a type of place or a reference to some very strong drug.

            I have an acquaintance who orbits the 8^th avenue shelter for the 30 (Green) bus, and who in past encounters has been most friendly and offers to provide substances, the names of which I’m not able to put my finger on, but which he is certain that I am very much in the market for. In exchange for his staccato offers, I give him cigarettes, which he never seems to have for himself. I asked this man, one foggy morning, (no names were exchanged) if he knew what ‘peas’ were. Of course, the helpful acquaintance went immediately through the ‘Peas=Green=Marijuana’ route, but I cleared things up right away. Pot is seldom a reason to flee to Teaneck, and, sadly, Agnostia Flicknail had a reputation for using much stronger stuff. And, after it was established that I wasn’t referring to the vegetable, (dry, creamed, fresh, frozen, snap or canned) the man fully admitted that he didn’t know what ‘peas’ were, but was certain that he could take me to a source just a few blocks away. I declined, and the overall information I obtained in the interview was otherwise thin.

            But, I may have been on the wrong track in thinking that being ‘in peas’ had to be a negative thing. That would be a result of my stilted upbringing. Being ‘in one’s peas’ may be a state of enlightenment, or self-realization. And the seeming fact that abiding in peas isn’t limited by demographic may be a clue in itself. Perhaps we all go from peas to peas. I think that a search of ancient documents should be conducted, but, frankly, I refuse to take on the task.

            I’ll leave you, though, with one last example, out of the many I have found, where ‘in peas’ seems vague and out of context. It comes from a history of street art I read, and a chapter on the artist ‘Watch’, which led, convolutedly, to another clue. ‘Watch’ is known for muraling derelict buildings with 18^th century style landscapes, and, conversely, plastering retaining walls in tourist areas with heroes, cherubs, and the embannered phrase: ‘Caveat Emptor’. His work can be seen from Bridgeport to Sedona. He is inspired by things rococo, going into the Enlightenment Age, and the history made a brief mention of his own research into periods and movements. Through this, there is an odd reference to peas in relation to a man known only by the name Theodore, who, after a stint searching for Rousseau in the Alps, (and avoiding the family bast manufacturing business) found himself holed up in a Basel rooming house and smoking way too much. It was in a poem left behind to his infatuation, a less-than-interested widow named Julia, where the reference to peas could be found.

            Out of tossed figures, totals granite clear.

            Why from Earth does bounty

            rent and writ appear?

            But, now, just horizon, and illumined perfection

            near.

            In our peas and world’s embrace.

            Together, with no fear.

            In my judgment, this doesn’t refer to a pea farm. It’s an unlikely place for such a poem to be set, and, even if it existed, Theodore wouldn’t be claiming joint-ownership. This is the earliest reference I found. The poem takes the phrase all the way back to 1760 something, and I give up.

            I leave my search to others who have further reach and better minds. Even though I found no meaning to this exasperating phrase, I realize that no research is futile. Through all this, I may have wound up ‘in my peas’, and perhaps that’s a good thing. But I would have no way of knowing.