Growing up, we always showered using (what my Italian mother called) a straccio. It wasn't until I was old enough to shop for myself that I encountered the plastic "shower puff", known also as a loofah1.

That word – loofah – occupied a very singular place in my mind (synthetic shower accessory) until a few years ago, when I discovered a loofah growing in my garden.

The crazy part was… that cucumber-like fruit turned out to be exactly the same thing.