MY LITTLE CORNER

Little corners take a lot of work – especially when you turn the whole Barn upside down to establish them. We have already established the fact that it takes me three days to do a three-hour task. Well, this little task should have been done in a day and I’m on day five and counting. SIGH.

Starting was simple enough and quite exciting. GF refinished the chest and dresser of our old bedroom suite. That meant stripping two facades down to the original veneer. This furniture was purchased from Montgomery Ward in 1956, by DSIL Eva when the family moved to town after GF’s father died. It had a light finish then, I suppose to cover the different woods used. It is extremely well built, all solid wood construction, and I like the varied hues the woods lend as well as the new antique bronze paint on the original hardware. Now think putrid 70’s green antiquing, which was how I lived with it for way too long, and you’ll appreciate my being enamored with the new look!

I’m even more enamored with legitimate storage. We moved to the Barn in 1999, and have been “camping” sans closets or drawers lo these 6-1/2 years (but who’s counting). DSIL Eva said I never complained, but I had to admit that I just didn’t complain “to the whole world”. GF will recall that often of late I have whined about being tired of living out of clothes baskets. I know I am but a pilgrim and sojourner in this land, but enough is enough. No complaints now, I promise! No more clothes baskets either…except for laundry. Ah, life is good and getting better!

The aftermath of adding furniture to the limited floor plan of the Barn is a dilemma of enormous proportion. Isobel can clear a sewing area in an evening…it has taken me all week and I can barely see the light at the end of the tunnel. Guess what we had in here was a tunnel of junk – stacks and stacks and stacks. And you have to live with GF to know a stack when you see one. Not that I can’t make towers on my own…mine just don’t seem to stay around to gather as much dust as his do. Too much stuff!!! But we’re making progress. There are three small stacks of papers on the stove that are GF’s sorting chore. If it were winter I would suggest they go IN the stove. There are about six more stacks of STUFF TO GO in the middle of the living area. At least half of that is trash or Goodwill and the rest will go downstairs…once I redo my storage shelves/clothes rack/bins down there to make room. Let’s calculate getting that done by say…the year 2999. One consolation is that we’ve been cleaning as we go so when it's over it will be over...at least for a little while.

As for the quilt top on the bed, I definitely think it should get another border and become my summer bedspread, don’t you?

MAY MORNINGS

Home is ever lovely when you come back to it – but particularly so in May when you are greeted with lovely weather, peonies and iris in full bloom and a smiling semi-well hubby. Major thanks to DSIL Bill for bringing me here safely, early. Truth be told, I wasn’t so much looking forward to flying home alone.
Getting an easy breath has been a struggle for GF for a while now. He told his brother Tom that he would call the doctor or go to the emergency room Monday morning if it didn’t improve. When Tom tried and got no answer here, he called DS Craig and said I needed to be home. It took us about ten minutes to pack up and be on the road and we fully expected to stop by the hospital first. But you know Nines leaves no stone unturned. After calling the hospital to confirm he wasn’t there, she got the family doctor’s number and tried that. He’d been there and they told her he walked out on his own steam, one less statin R-x (perhaps the Pravachol is causing the chest discomfort) and one extra R-x for ear drops. By then we were more than half-way to Charleston…not that I would have considered going back…talk about major relief!
Imagine GF’s surprise when Nines called and gave him the run down on his morning MD appointment! After an incredulous laugh he says, “You must have spies everywhere!” Craig called later and asked, “Did you beat him up?” to which I replied, “Why no, it wasn’t his fault Uncle Tom got excited.” And, as Bill points out, if it had been more serious, Tom would regret not letting us know. I was sorry to miss the big day at Indiana beach with the Koens, but glad to be home. Hadn’t really been able to put concern for GF out of mind and being here makes that easier – not that my presence changes a little reason for concern.

Despite sad news (two deaths and a divorce among friends), home again settled into normal routines pretty quickly. Yesterday between welcome rain storms, GF pick some poke greens for supper, I heated up the beans and made cornbread. During the storm showers we enjoyed quite companionable silence with our feet up, reading and working sudokus. Perhaps the Lord sends rain to refresh both garden and gardener. Yeah, it's good to be home

TRAVEL LOG

This is like being herded in to the family room and compelled to watch slide shows of someone’s vacation. Only you don’t have to read on if you’re not interested.

Our vacations usually involve time with family for a purpose. In this case GF/I drove to North Carolina so that brothers three – Tom, Wayne, Paul – could do some work around Tom’s house. That house project has been going on for some time…Tom’s had some health issues and the brothers want to do all they can to help him. Well, they would help regardless, I’m sure – and it does make a nice excuse for spending time together. This trip was mainly outdoor projects – running water/electric lines outdoors, underpinning, and framing up a sidewalk around the house with a bit of indoor trim work thrown in on rainy days and when the concrete work was delayed. Good men to have around, as you can tell.

The Koens dropped by and picked me up for a little stay in IN – my ‘time out,’ not punishment, but reward! Sunday in IN was Mother’s Day, GF’s birthday and we celebrated in heart the best possible way when DGS Daniel was baptized. Day of all days, none more significant to a grandson, parents and grandparents – praise the Lord.

Other highlights – Nines and I had a good Mother’s Day lunch (Chinese of course) with a short trip to Jo Anne’s Fabric on the side. A little food and fabric mania is never amiss for a special occasion. The first of the week Nines cleaned out the fridge and freezer and did her once-a-month cooking routine. I hung with the grocery shopping, but had to bow out my weary little feet for most of the cooking. Still, two or three of the boys were lending capable hands as she progressed beyond 30-40 pounds of meat divided into 20 or so entrees. Where does that girl find the energy!

Thursday/Friday Nines and I took a road trip to the Toledo area for a long overdue visit with my twin, Patsy and her husband Greg. Nines thought Pat and I didn’t talk much, but we were all having such fun being entertained by Nines – she can tell a story better than anyone I know. Besides, Patsy and I are content just being together, words or no. She’s always been quiet and I’m likely much quieter than I used to be :). We all took a little trip down to The Door Mouse for a good browse and bit of quilting fabric, then came home to a very special lunch – fresh fruit platter, pinto beans and cornbread and brownie sundae dessert, all presented beautifully. Great cook, that twin sister of mine. It was such a special time – being there as well as coming and going with Nina.

My fluid intention was to stay in IN until this weekend, but plans are made to change, as May morning describes. Though I always aim to do something that will LAST when I visit family, that doesn’t always happen either. In this instance, alas alack, the refrigerator will not stay clean and the laundry will not stay done. So maybe Nines will just have to remember I was there one bright Spring day to go yard-saling with her and the girls, to watch Joe carve the spot for the flower fountain and incredibly, there as an honored witness at Daniel’s spiritual birth.

STRIKING SIMILARITY

GF went on a country tour with Mr. Virgil last week. They went to Leatherwood and Pen Acre to see the old haunts of Marie and Virgil. The Rosses have been lifelong friends of the Teel clan. They’ve ever been a part of the work of the church in Clendenin, though Miss Marie is now bedfast [and my favorite cookie gal…she’s so sweet]. Mr. Virgil used to go up and transport the Teel family to meeting when GF was a child.

Among the sights GF was interested in were home places for both Virgil and Marie. All those rustic, vacant, even run-down houses and barns you see along the roads have a history. This history was back in the WV ridge tops – even more rugged than GF’s home. Virgil’s brother still lives on the Ross home site; Marie’s is now empty.

I was amazed at the similarity of Marie’s childhood home and the birthplace of Loretta Lynn. Years ago friend Casey brought me a snapshot of the Loretta Lynn coal miner’s cabin and I was wholly taken in - so taken that I painted it for myself. Looking at the snapshot, I felt I could just walk up the stairs and sit on the porch…there was something so familiar about it. The painting doesn’t do it justice, but perhaps you can see the similarity in it and GF’s photo of Marie’s home place. Perhaps that familiar feeling for both is a bit of basic country genetics…I don’t know. So simple – and to a WV mountaineer, simplicity and comfort are synonymous.

It's a Frame-Up

But it could be further framed, to make a queen instead of double sized quilt. Took this top to meeting yesterday to show Aunt Margaret – told her it was what I did last week when I should have been doing housework. Guess that leaves the housework for today and tomorrow. Funny how the cleaning I used to do in three hours now takes three days – at least I got a little start on Saturday. When I think of Aunt Carrie’s neat little house, I’m ashamed of my dust and clutter…time to fix it.

Back to the quilt top. If it’s done, its name is “Forever Melancholy.” I’m pleased with the finished top, though the 60-degree triangle strips were not as easy as Nines said they would be. [One of the several areas my daughters outshine me, no doubt!] It tended to stretch more than anticipated with the bias cuts, or perhaps I didn’t take enough time with it. ALWAYS, slow and easy goes together best; and especially when the fabrics are of varied quality. Now if there is ANY of that melancholy fabric left it’s in the 2-inch strip box, so I can dispense with melancholy titles…at last.

Yesterday afternoon at Teelside featured fresh de-caf and a cookie after meeting, a nice nap; new greens salad for late lunch/early supper, and an evening batch of rye rolls. The rolls were sent to Aunt Margaret this morning – GF is going down to try to fix a mower and tiller and he’s to tell her these are birthday buns. She’ll be 85 on Friday and we won’t be around to send them later in the week.

Looks like we’re off to NC midweek…and I’m hoping Nines will let me tag along home to IN with her by weekend. The three Teel ‘boys,’ Tom, Paul & Wayne, have homework of the construction variety afoot at Tom's house and they won’t need me to supervise, I’m sure. Nines and I are also hoping we can drive up to see Greg/Patsy while I’m there.

Meanwhile, back to my homework.

BACK FROM BRANSON

We’re home again. It took only and hour to unpack on Saturday, since most of our clothing was slated for the laundry. But it’s taking a bit longer to get back in “normal” mode. Not implying there’s much normalcy around here, you understand. I decided to break in gradually – did only half the laundry yesterday, mowed some grass for exercise and went online to file for SS benefits. How’s that for an odd mix?

Missouri is a little previous on the spring scale, so it’s like stepping back into season a couple of weeks to come home to WV. It was so warm yesterday that GF couldn’t resist putting some seeds in the ground. It’s hard to think of frost when the air and sunshine bring 70’s to the thermometer. So, corn, peas, beans and beets have been added to the garden. We should be thinning greens and having tasty-tender salads by the weekend. I really enjoy the garden, because GF does all the work! (I’ll do a little share at canning time, maybe.) Isobel and Luanne will want to know we’ve snitched a bit of new asparagus already…I’m thinking it’s almost better raw than cooked!

As for vacations, ours was an atypically touristy one – Branson is a little higher on the price scale, too. Between activities, we had good visits with the GF’s siblings and their spouses. The lodge was luxurious, with turned down beds and ginger cookies to wish us “sweet dreams.” The grounds at Cedar Lodge are lovely with spring perennials and new annuals being planted all around. I enjoyed the steamboat – could hardly tell it was moving and the food was terrific. But even better was our meal at Lambert’s in Ozark MO. Lambert’s must be the original tossed roll restaurant – with country fare to the extreme. I had white beans, greens, okra….yum, yum, yum! Better than steak any day.

We came home the long way kind of -- by way of the Koens. All those hugs sure made the overnight, which was too short, worth it. As usual, Nines had a stack of goodies for me which included a good starting stash for DGS Jonathan’s quilt. I also picked up “Midnight on Mars” all quilted and ready for binding. It has been spread on my bed as inspiration for starting that little job. I like it more all the time…but I won’t make you beg, Lisa. So as soon as the Barn is in order and the laundry done, the sewing machine can come out again and I guess I can hem binding instead of doing Sudoku puzzles on the front balcony. I sit out there and keep an eye on GF in the evening as he can’t bring himself indoors before seven or eight.

Can’t think of an ender, so I’ll just quit and go fix myself a nice round cup of Irish breakfast tea while GF sleeps in this cool, cloudy morning.

ISOBEL'S ORPHANS

I promised Isie I would post this quilt top picture of snowball/nine-patch combination. Try to imagine the snowball with a more distinctive fabric design, Isobel –I was just using up some of the handed down greens from “our” stash. Also, a little smaller squares would work well, making the 9-patch medium/dark and the snowballs light/dark.

Isobel’s “orphans” came to me in 2-yd pieces and as generous as the supply was, I’ve managed to use about all of it up, save a shoe crate of 2-inch strips slated for cabins or pineapple blossoms. Anyway, I like the over all pattern the snowball/nine-patch combo makes. I call this “Irish Sea Shells” since its green and one orphan has a shell motif.

We had a full day yesterday – fixed a little food for Marie/Virgil, dropped by for a visit and then stopped to do a little spring cleaning at the church building. GF does the lion’s share of that job…it’s an old building with limited possibilities; but it smelled fresh and the windows were clear when we left it. Every cat in the neighborhood has been using the back yard as a sandbox…anyone know how to repel them? Would bay leaves work…I hear tell they repel ladybugs? I sprinkled some Comet along under the eave – as a short term measure to cover the stench. It would take a shovel to fix it, which I didn’t have.

Back at home, GF grilled some chicken for late lunch. I didn’t do much the rest of the day, but he went out with the weedeater to trim around some. He came in near dark saying, "The string trimmer ran out of gas before I did, but not by much." We’re to have thunderstorms today and he’s determined to have things ship-shape before we leave. Obviously his vacation syndrome is more productive than mine. Perhaps I should have added ‘breaking you back with yard work” and “blogging instead of packing” to list…..yes, it’s hopeless.

Georgia Fly Boys

Guess this is a sequel to the GA Farmers…same GA, same boy Phil, slightly different mania. Phil and Tim’s dad has been into planes since grade school. I noticed, after he started building his own that the little decoupage cruet he made in middle school has 10+ airplane photos among the other pasted magazine trivia. Should have been a sign!

GF always wanted to build a plane…it must have rubbed off. David has tried to fulfill that dream for GF by letting him work in the GA hangar. And, GF has done a little tinkering there – but is generally content to watch David work and fill in the progress reports from afar. They did go to Mexico, MO together for a few days of instructional assembly as David started his second plane – a memory they both treasure, I think.

Well, it’s a risky hobby…and much more addictive than quilting I’m pretty sure. One time Dave came in from taking GF on a “ride “– commenting that the wind was kicking up so there would be no more rides that day…not that I’d be interested. I promptly told him if he thought I wouldn’t do it, he’d be wrong. The next good weather day during a later visit, I got my ride. [But I didn’t tell Nines ahead of time.] What a thrill!

And I just love the picture of Philip taken a year ago. He was David’s co-pilot as he flew from GA to VA for the Teel reunion. Now isn’t that a memory!


Do I worry? Sure I do. Do I nag? Yeah, I do that too. But it’s like I used to say about GF on the motorcycle – God can take as good care of him there (in the air) as anywhere. I believe that …even when my heart quivers.

GEORGIA FARM BOYS

I think it was GF’s dad that used to say he wouldn’t trade his kids for a farm in Georgia. DS David is getting the farm and the kids…well, as you can tell he’s had the boys a while now. Meet Philip, Timothy and Bob the bull. Isn’t Bob the perfect name for a bull? He’s cute, too.

The boys came to Teelside for a visit last week and were nice enough to bring along their older bro and sis as well as their mom, her sisters and her mom. We had a regular party. It was a perfect spring day so we charcoaled burgers and franks. DDIL with sisters/mom brought fixin’s including potato salad, eggs, beans and buns. It could have been the 4th of July.

At one point I declared, “There are too many cooks in this kitchen!” But it wasn’t a complaint…between Karen, Juanita, Crystal, Beccie and me, the table and counters were well covered yet we were not in each others way at all. I remarked that GF, not a big man, takes up the whole kitchen when he lends a hand. I usually go elsewhere and let him have at it.

DDIL’s family left toward evening after a great visit. They’re all still so pretty!!! The sisters did most of their growing up on a place called Beauty Mountain, near the New River Gorge Bridge…and we always thought that fit.

Beccie and the grandchildren stayed around until just after lunch the next day. I used Nines’ no recipe rolls to make pepperoni rolls for supper and sticky buns for breakfast dessert the next morning. We had the usual entertainment – a woods full of roaming and a video after dark. I opened up ‘barbershop’ and cut four heads of hair (including GF’s) the next morning. Each head is different…Jonathan’s manageable, Philip’s perfect, Timothy’s Teel-cowlick impossible, but I did my best to suit them. I confessed to Philip that I really didn’t like the job, but was happy to do it because it gave me a chance to pat on them a little more than would be cheerfully endured otherwise.

As for Bob, I wonder how he’ll get on with Hannah’s new horse. Probably well – animals like company. I cannot remember the horse’s name (shame on me), but I do believe she is not slated for the freezer as is Bob.

VACATION SYNDROME

Lord willing, we're going on a vacation. When we return these pear blossoms will be blown to the winds - a good thing, because unlike their apple and peach cousins, they don't smell as delicious as their promised fruit.

The time for the Teel Sibling reunion is “upon us” as they say. This trip (our second time to join the others) we are converging upon Branson MO. A short stay – Monday thru Thursday nights. We’ll be sharing a two bedroom suite with Aunt Eva and Uncle Lee. Now won’t that be nice! We’ll see a few shows together and hope for lots of visiting time, apart from or along with tourism.

Neither GF nor I are big touristy people. Our idea of a perfect vacation is a week (or better, two weeks) without radio, TV or telephone in one of the CCC built cabins at the state parks, (preferably Watoga, WV, where we honeymooned.) Second to that might be David’s Arizona desert tent or Nines’ Green Acres camper.

The last Sibling Reunion (and first for GF/me) was September 2001. We flew west the first week airports were open after 9-11. There was plenty of room on the planes! And we had great car tours through Yellowstone, Bryce and Zion. My favorite was Bryce! Someday, we might like to see the Grand Canyon – as time didn’t permit that extra distance south. I just can’t imagine any West Virginian not appreciating lovely scenery…no matter where it’s found. And certainly, we do like time with family, and so we’ll go to Rome to do as the Roman’s do (in MO) this time.

Anyway, back to this travel syndrome. The week before you pack your brain quits. A little voice keeps asking, “whatcha gonna wear” or “do you have those pants hemmed yet” or “why don’t you just make a list”? I dunno. It’s a fluid combination of anticipation and anxiety, so instead of listening to that still small voice you ...
· go searching through corners for something to do – like starting a new quilt or painting or defragmenting the computer;
· try on every shoe you own at least a dozen times without knowing which to take (of course not, silly, you don’t even know what they’re supposed to match yet);
· decide if they don’t match, but are comfortable those shoes are takers;
· resolve that you really need to figure out how to lose 10 pounds in 2 days;
· spend three hours a day trying to talk yourself out of cutting your hair off ;
· put your feet up and do YET ANOTHER sudoku puzzle;
· wonder if anyone would miss you if you went to the library instead; and
· forget about a good night’s sleep – it ain’t a gonna happen.

In the end, you'll pack those old faithful non-wrinklers and since most of those shows are country you'll dress normally – like the hillbilly you are. This effort ends with my last words to GF – “It’s hard to be funny when you’re frustrated” (or brain dead). But no matter - a safe trip will be our only appeal. TOGETHER, it will be fun and games and lots of Teel family stories. No one will even notice that one shoe is black and the other navy…..

....And if it's a family trip, it has to be a vacation...because you work awfully hard getting ready. Right Nines?

Orphans – Bless Their Little Hearts

I’ve been knee deep in a little half-square madness this week. Not at all what I thought would happen with my time, but it was such a pleasant meander that I couldn’t bring myself to put it away. Now that’s a nice way to deal with orphans.

I told Nines that if these ever made a quilt top, I’d have to call it “Forever Melancholy.” Most of the squares, before I dissected them, were remnants from my “Melancholy Mama” quilt. I’m convinced I’ll carry some melancholy trailers to my grave. Once the squares were trimmed, I semi-sorted colors and looked in my 1000 Great Quilt Blocks (Maggi McCormick Gordon) for 4-8 patch variations. These orphans struck a scrappy sampler-like bargain, but I’m pleased enough to be anxious to get it all sewn up. Hmmm...perhaps I can put that on the slate for Monday morning while GF is escorting Aunt Margaret to the doctor. And you know, I might even be able to cast off those half-dozen 3” melancholy squares, if they won’t fit in the border. Sooner or later even orphans get old enough to move along.

But if you’re looking for perfect points, don’t. Like their adopted mama, these little orphan bones are old and their little joints are too arthritic to match perfectly. Besides, perfection could never be as rewarding as this was. My favorite square is the "Balkan Puzzle" - 2nd on top row.

The Perfect Gift

Only Isobel would think to so cater to her DBIL. Here he is, using the banded headlight she sent him for its first chore – a recalcitrant door knob. I can’t count the times over 40+ years that GF has run out of light before he ran out of job. But no more! He came in from weed-whacking about 8 p.m. last night asking, “Can I come in?” Imagine his surprise when I answered, “I don’t think so, I think you need to put your headlight on and cut weeds a while longer.” Just joking! I’d been pining for his company over an hour already.

STOCKING FOR FISH CHOWDER

Every good cook knows it takes special stock for really good soup. Greg’s Fish Chowder is no exception. (See prairiequilts.blogspot, "The Chicago Quilt Show".) And now, just look where Greg stores the stock for his quilting creations! WOW!

A few years back I went for a short visit to Pat and Greg’s and spent some time pressing and color collating their quilt stash. [I say “their” because Pat is good with a needle, too, and not everything in the stash was hand dyed, orange or grey. *VBS*] Greg was a little apologetic as I labored long over the sorting process, but he needn’t have been. Looking through and feeling all those lovely textiles was truly a wonderful experience. I grouped them as best I could into the bookshelf with glass doors that served as a stash cabinet at the time.

Since then that stock/stash has really moved up town! How inspiring it must be to choose swatches from that new cabinet – an absolute work of art! The new storage shed was made by our (Pat’s and mine) brother, Andy. As you can see, he’s quite an artist and woodcrafter. Greg has invited me back to see his new neat stash several times – and someday I won’t be able to resist taking him up on that.

And by the way, Greg knows a whole lot more about foods and cooking than I ever will! We should ask him about fish stock, too.

Plumb Daffy

Spring has sprung. Wow! The birds sing, the grass is green, wind chimes play constant refrains and the daffodils nod their graceful golden heads in gentle April breezes. Dr. Zhivago is one of GF’s favorite videos…and depressing as it is you have to admit it has breathless photography. We are always taken by the daffodil scenes and that likely inspired GF to plant daffodils all over Teelside. He’s still spreading them around.

The loveliest of our varieties came from dear Emma Haid's and Uncle Carl's bulbs. Have you noticed on country drives that former homesteads (sans buildings) are marked with clumps of daffodils or candles of heaven? I like to think our yellow cheer will multiply and bloom after we’ve moved to the latter, better place.

Evabeth is off making here TV commercial debut this morning, butterflies and all. GF asks, “In her stomach?” Well, maybe, but I was referring to the wreath of butterfly or sweetheart clips her mama likely spun into her hair. I know she’ll do well and am eager to hear all about it.

Were I so inclined it would seem a perfect time to start Spring House Cleaning. Would I were…sigh. Noodle city for me instead. I’ve started a little 10 x 12 landscape of Nines (former) barn, and figured a way to handily set it aside (off the kitchen table) briefly. The sewing machine is back out…I declare it has a mind of its own and hops up on the table while I’m dreaming. For lack of other ambition, I’m joining boney half-squares today. I could or should be adding something to my travel wardrobe – GF and I are to go to Branson for a Teel sibling reunion the last of this month – but nothing strikes me as that important as yet. This is definitely a loose-ends season. Either that or my dull wit refuses to be peaked.

The taters and onions are in the ground and this could be a lettuce planting day. The herb garden needs refurbished as well, so there will be lots of room for cilantro. I’ve taken to adding fresh leaves from the grocery to salads for a wonderfully zingy lift! It would be great to have an ongoing supply. Seems we always get a taste for fresh greens well before danger of frost lifts. Maybe the Lord knows the worth of anticipation and hope. I expect so. Think ASPARAGUS, Aunt Luanne.



As for double images...it was a downloading error I chose to keep. First it wouldn't download and then it pasted twice...suits the daffy title, at least.

ROOMMATES

Aren’t baby pictures wonderful! (Only an insecure teenager could disdain them.) So often they show much of later, more obvious personality traits. This is a perfect example. I can just see Patsy’s sweet, albeit timid, soul in that baby pose.

Pamela Joan and Patricia Anne Brady – known to family as Penny and Patsy. We were roommates throughout our childhood. And we were also womb-mates; but, as you can see we were never identical. She was the red head; I was the brunette. She was shy; I was probably obnoxious. Still underneath all the external differences we are alike in many ways. Last year’s Miller Family Paper featured a snapshot of us unconsciously standing in an exact arms loosely folded position. Funny.

Back to childhood days – it’s so nice to have a playmate for every childhood memory. Patsy was better at play than I. She learned to ride a bike far sooner; I still can barely wobble on the smoothest of surfaces. You almost have to know how clumsy I am to appreciate how much I admired her agility and energy. She did lovely cartwheels all across the yard. Cousin Gene has a slide of her straight-as-an-arrow headstand…with all that beautiful red hair fanned out on the grass. [I did learn to do a walk-over, but – pride goes before you know what – in an effort to do just one more fell straight down mid stride and broke a collar bone.] Did I mention being clumsy? Anyway, Patsy never was.

DH thinks shyness can seem a curse to a child. I’m sure it’s painful, but it always seemed sweet to me, too. Patsy still has a quiet way about her that my children find restful. And perhaps it is goodness and generosity coupled with that calmness. And practical – I think my twin sister invented careful practicality. She’s a nurse and a superb one. One evening before surgery I looked up to see her standing in the hospital doorway. She’d driven six hours to cheer me up beforehand; to clean me up and show me how to get out of bed without hurting so much afterward. She took a leave of absence from her nursing and came to live with and care for our mother the last months of her life. Pat worked in oncology for years, so she knew better than we what Mom would face and how to make her days most comfortable. (After Mom’s passing, I discovered a frock hanging in the closet with a large circle missing from the skirt. Patsy had used the satin in that skirt to make a donut cushion for Mom. It could have been an heirloom – her maid-of honor dress from my wedding - but I’m glad she saw fit to use it more practically!)

Pat still nurses at a Hospice facility near Toledo. Her patients (including home-bound husband Greg) are so blessed to have her. Some would think working with terminally ill patients, as Patsy has done most of her career, a struggle. I think she looks at it as a gift to give…to make her patients’ last days as dignified, comfortable and well-cared for as possible. It was that same precious gift that she gave to our mother and for which we owe her an eternal debt of praise and gratitude.

There is a difference with twins. In many ways we grew up about as close as other siblings. Our adult lives have kept us largely separated, but there is a bond – some indefinable connection – that circumvents all outward distance. Do I love her more? Well, maybe. Yet love aside, she is that part that completes me as no other family member can. My dear treasure … that only a twin may know!

The glamour shot was taken on our 50th birthday. That was nearly 12 years ago, now; so we’ve changed a bit…not that glamour shots much resemble the shootee, anyway.

P.S. About the names...‘cause some of you will be curious. Mom wanted to call the twins Penny & Patsy. Dad didn’t care for Penelope (I probably wouldn’t have either as a child, but I think it a very sweet name now), so I became Pamela. I started spelling my nickname “Peni” about age 13 – I was laid up for three months after walking out in front of an auto and was a bit stir-crazy, ready to escape a bed-bound personality. Today I spell it both ways (Thelma Sue) and might be tempted to revert entirely to Mom’s P-e-n-n-y version were it not for a lovely little namesake, PeniJean. ;c) Some signs of adolescence stick around and prompt endless explanations.

MORE RATTLIN' BONES

Nines thumb-ectomy tale rattled some bones in the Family Album closet. I looked in a file and found this verse, which explains itself if you've read Nines' account.

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A FATHER'S CARE

Who will dry a father's tears
For harm that cannot be undone,
For pain come to a precious son
So suddenly? Who understands
The depth of love within this one whose
Heart is torn more with this hurt
Than with his own? A lifetime spent
Protecting them in deed and prayer
Will not prevent upon this plane
Realities of mortal man...
As much as he would wish it.

When they were babes he kissed
Their scrapes and made them go away.
No more. And yet, he feels no less
Their anguish. The grown child
Bravely sheds no tears, but I was near
Enough to touch his father's e'er they

Found his pillow – to hear him speak
Of cruel heartaches met within a sense
Of helplessness at needless hurt
And breathe a prayer for strength
From the Almighty. How dearly held
Are each of you within your Papa's being!
Remember, then, when words are stem,
How great his heart and firm his plea –
Delivered, not for lack of trust…no, rather
Simply because he cannot bear
To see his children suffer.

(6/1/89)

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[Funny, but that sweet man up there just doesn't look like the type who would be pickin' his nose with his thumb....;o)]

BACK HOME

I’m glad to be home again – though we had lovely visits on both sides of Florida. We split the week up between SIL's at Ormond Beach and DD1's family in Tampa. It was short but sweet .. we kept the 3-day company rule and slipped out before we wore out our welcome. (Not that we could....) Back in WV it took over 24 hours to reheat the Barn and catch up on laundry, but we’re making progress. I made a big pot of vegetable soup today to compensate for the snow on the homecoming stairs. After a week’s spoiling in the Sunshine State, I’m thinking I’ll be glad when those balmy temps turn north. They must be coming because the daffodils are up and at ‘em and the fruit trees a poking little bud noses through their branches.

Today I have had difficulty getting beyond the picture of Evabeth that I placed on our desktop. She’s looking so good, isn't she! (Thank You, Lord.) When GF saw it, he started singing John Denver’s “You’re so beautiful…I can’t believe my eyes…” Indeed. Indeed.

While I was at it I decided to crop/add a few other recent grandson photos. It doesn’t take a genius to tell that these boys are related…at least in good looks. Give me all day and I’ll tell you how especially they differ as well. Like siblings, cousins have their individual traits … and a few common genetic markers. Stare hard and you’ll see (shown in opposite order) Jonathan’s humor, Luke’s charisma and Josiah’s earnestness. How Grandma Jessie would love them all!

GF was reading an article from the gramps and granny insurance company about keeping brain cells active as you age. One of the no-no's in the item was heating food in plastic containers or Saran wrap. Somehow the heated molecules affect brain function. So, says he as he pops a serving of creamed corn in its plastic storage container into the microwave, "I gotta keep doin' this, if I give it up I'll have no excuse." He might be right. :o) Now where's mine?

Sister Stories

A bit of weather and delayed flights kept us from taking off to FL last night. We could get out of CRW, but would miss the next leg …we spent a night in the ATL airport once and that was not an experience we wanted to repeat. SO, I may get to keep my ‘threat’ to talk about Isobel sooner than I thought. Our dad always called a lie a "story." This isn't that kind of a story.

About the picture – she may want to skin me alive, but I love it. Now think THINNER FACE, because she was diagnosed with diabetes just last year and has worked faithfully with diet and exercise since. Otherwise, it seems to me this snapshot is a great character pose.

Isobel, as you can tell by her writing, is a nurturer and a natural teacher. She taught elementary school grades with devoted gladness (said gladness tarnished a hair the year one little imp bit her and drew blood, maybe) and has a way of making everything easy to understand. Anytime we’re together, I know I’m going to learn something useful. She’s always busy, has tried and succeeded at so many creative things and excels at sharing her knowledge for such experiences. It’s a “you can do this, it’s simple” proposition with step by step to-do instructions. Hey, Isie, I’ve been thinking I might want to learn how to carve spoons…:o).

Back to the picture. Isobel’s dear friend Nancy has twin grandchildren who adore Miss Isobel. In this shot, Isobel was playing pretend with them and gladly donned the princess crown to do so. She once took our Laurie to live with her for a couple of weeks where she attended Isobel’s kindergarten classes. She keeps up a running correspondence with Nina’s son Jak. Like Uncle Gale and Aunt Ruth, she takes each child into her attention and lets them know how special they are – and I can imagine every child thinking they are quite favored, in a good way. That’s a gift, especially so, because her favor is sincere.

Isobel has a great sense of humor, but don’t think she’ll put up with any foolishness. She doesn’t have time for that – living is too important. And did I mention what a good cook she is? We might give our Brady genes part of the credit for that. And Isobel is so generous – GF says he has to be careful what he says he likes around her, because next thing he knows she’s handing it over. You wouldn’t want to take advantage of such a giving spirit. But, I confess, I knew no shame in snitching my favorite of her carved spoons right off her wall.

Well, it’s time for me to get ready to head for another try at the airport. I doubt this hurried little post does her justice, but it’s a start. Love you, Isobel...and I don’t think it counts when you brag on a sister. Besides, doesn't she look smashing in her tiara?

YOU CAN’T KEEP A GOOD MAN DOWN

With Spring quickly approaching the border, GF is gearing up for gardening. Like a kid with a date at the candy store, he was off to Greene’s Feed and Seed and back with fruit trees in 7-gallon buckets – two Fuji and one gala apple and a plum. The bank for fruit trees we loosely call the orchard is full, so the new trees found a place in the meadow. They’ll get lots of sunlight there and hopefully the wide wire cages will protect them from deer.

If I were looking at that job, I would plan to plant two trees one day and two a couple days later. After all, they require holes 18” deep /wide. But not GF – the deer were waiting to come out and eat before he was finished, but it was a one-day deal. Like moving 12 asparagus plants a few days earlier (12” holes this time) – 6 a day , no way! Do the whole dozen and water them by moon light. Corn and beans will be the no different when the ground warms enough for planting them. But, truth is he’s so happy to be working his socks off that he’s almost giddy. Working in the soil just makes his soul sing, I think. And how I thank God that he is here and able to do what he most enjoys – hard work!

Chilly days call for chili soup. That cabbage/beef variety made a few days ago is a take off from our old Shoney’s soup and salad bar favorite. Like its vegetable cousin, by the time you get all the ingredients combined it’s a hefty pot (that would make maybe two meals with the kids home). So, some of this will be freezer bound. Nice thing about GF is that he doesn’t mind eating the same thing over… and over … and over … until it’s all gone. Maybe comes from eating beans and cornbread most days as a kid?

LIFE’S LITTLE CHALLENGES

--making a two-person pot of soup,

--closing eyes, ears and MOUTH to the heart patient’s tiller, shovel and hard working garden agenda,

--cleaning house when you’d rather be sewing, painting, reading…any number of other things,

--playing barber in the dim light of the Barn after sundown,

--taking that healthy walk when it’s less than 60 degrees – (guess I think the outside temperature should at least equal my age),

-- getting three little pictures in the right order/space on a blog page

--blogging sans bragging or complaining….

Little challenges, indeed they are comparatively. Kinda keep life interesting, though, to say the least. (..and maybe less said would have been better...:o)

AUNT AND UNCLE CAPS

This snapshot was taken at the Miller back porch. My dad is the first on the lower left, my mom is the last on the upper right.


For those of you following MarylandMama.blogspot story lines, I’m here to add these little caps of memory. As “matriarch” (her term) of our family Isobel knows more family history than I; and she likely spent a little more time with those special folks. I love her stories. Perhaps everyone finds a special quality to childhood memories, but it seems our heritage is rich with anecdotes of the kind that are vanishing all too quickly. Shows our age – and as our brother Andy recently wrote, “It puts things in perspective when your little sister is a grey haired grandmother.”

Community courting – could be limiting but they managed well. Not only did Uncles Gale and Bon marry sisters, but Aunt Carrie and Uncle David married siblings Bonnie and Dane. Both the oldest (Aunt Minnie) and youngest (Uncle Bly) married Normans – only in this case I think it was uncle/niece, not siblings. Our Mom and her first cousin Vera Miller married two of the Brady brothers, too. That made for a lot of double first and second cousins, but didn’t seem to tarnish the gene pool – I don’t recall any of those cousins being other than smart and good looking.

Vance was one of my favorite cousins and I made a pest of myself to visit with him at Aunt Minnie and Uncle Coy’s house. Before or when she was first married, Aunt Minnie taught her younger siblings at the one room schoolhouse on Tanner. One Sunday after meeting I tagged along for lunch – she fixed a hamburger skillet (innovative for the 50’s) by making a doughnut ring of a pound of hamburger (to help it cook quickly?) and covering it with chopped onions and a quart of home-canned tomatoes. Later she made what I always called ‘biscuit cookies.’ Soft vanilla mounds…a Sunday dessert that appeared especially because a niece had come to call. While they were baking Vance took my first boyfriend’s bracelet out to the shop and buffed away the scratches. (Don’t panic Nina – I was only in junior high, but a ‘steady’ only meant talking on the phone a couple times a week. Even so, don’t let my grandchildren do that! No chance.)

My most vivid memory of Aunt Carrie involves berries, too. Not strawberries, though. I don’t know what kind they were, but these little red berries grew close to the ground and were best eaten fresh – I probably ate more than got to the buckets. While picking berries a host of chiggers snuggled beneath the waistband of my skirt. The next day I wore a fiery red chigger belt. Arthritis notwithstanding, she was the best housekeeper I ever knew. Many years later I visited Shock for Sunday services and a sweet postcard followed from Aunt Carrie. She wrote on the margin, “you have your mother’s hands.”

In adulthood, every time I dropped by to see Uncle Bly he’d hug me and ask, “How’s my favorite niece?” He likely said that to all the girls, but I loved him no less for it. When he and Aunt Mavis lived in South Charleston (again, in the 50’s) they introduced us to pizza. Only in those days it wasn’t “Pizza,” it was “Piz-z-za PIE.” You need to lean on the z-z-z’s so they tilt like the tower.

Now I’ve gone on and on and still haven’t told about Uncle Bon and Aunt Janet letting me soak all afternoon in the pond and feeding me home-canned chicken for lunch; or Uncle Gale and Aunt Ruth prompting us to be a very young story tellers, (seemed we weren’t at grandma’s more than 15 minutes until we were begging to walk up to Uncle Gale’s); or Aunt Luanne’s story book romance. Another day - another story or two.

Thanks for the memories, Isobel!

My girls are celebrating…

Happy, Happy Birthday Evabeth & Rebekah ! Can they really be 7 and 5? I wish I were close enough to collect some ‘strawberry’ kisses!

It’s good that they were born in March – when Florida/California strawberries start rolling into northeastern markets. But, if I know Nina, she’d find a way to have strawberries at the North Pole in December if that was a birthday wish. Such special girls! Such a special Mama!

It’s snowing in WV today…big lovely flakes that won’t tarry long. GF has been gardening already - moving asparagus, tilling the rest of the garden in hopes of planting potatoes soon. I think he’s overdoing it a bit; I check on him occasionally, but he’s having so much fun I haven’t the heart to nag. It seems to me a hard chore to let your man go at his own pace, regardless. Guess I’ll leave it in the Lord’s hands…and maybe pray for rain a few days a week? :c)

The birds think its spring already! It’s good to have their songs bringing up the sun again. In the fall there comes a day – all at once – when morning is quiet and you realize of a sudden that most of the birds have flown on. We have a lot of wintering birds, but they don’t sing much in the cold. Perhaps it takes all their energy just to eat enough to keep warm, or they need a little respite, or we need to be reminded to treasure their songs.

Made some half Splenda cookies yesterday and told GF they were the last try - fine flavor, light texture, but dry and crumbly. GF says, "weird cookies." Big Fours come as close to a healthy cookie as is possible. From now on a cookie is a cookie and to be eaten in moderation. I think rolls with oat bran and sunflower seeds are on today’s bread agenda. I bought some fresh seeds yesterday, so maybe these won’t go to the birds. (I mixed the other flopped rolls with peanut butter, raisins and oil and filled trays for the suet holders. They’re tucked in the freezer until needed.) What is it with me??? The same ole quilters’ syndrome: can’t throw it away - have to add to it and put it to some use. Sigh…no hope for changing at this stage.

I printed Bonni's Prairie Braid Border instructions yesterday. Maybe I'll give that a try today while the rolls are a'risin. Or ruffle up a couple of slips for my birthday girls. That sounds about right to me.