Go to Life in the fast lane--where's the on ramp?
- Add a comment
- Go to Paved with good intentions...
I remember my folks playing cards into the wee hours, but I was the city boy, my mothers sisters lived in the small town with their wood burning stoves.
posted by
UtahJay
on August 28, 2012 at 10:33 PM
| link to this | reply
Re: Kabu: I miss the family values that abounded....
I miss them too, Kabu. Mom's Cousin Hazel will always be a treasure in my mind. Aunt Elsie was a tall, gorgeous elderly woman with beautiful silver hair, always perfectly groomed and fond of red suits. A car load of college boys once stopped at the corner where she waited to cross and said, "Woo! Woo! I wish I was twenty years older!"
posted by
Pat_B
on August 28, 2012 at 9:10 AM
| link to this | reply
Re: WileyJohn: My son David lives in Seattle...
Wiley, next time you and Kabu visit British Columbia, take a side trip to the south and visit Seattle. You could even invite David to dinner at Ivar's Seafood Restaurant on the waterfront - or let him choose a good spot to dine. I can almost taste Ivar's creamy clam chowder...
posted by
Pat_B
on August 28, 2012 at 9:04 AM
| link to this | reply
Re: JimmyA: if you tire of the West Coast give the East coast a try!
I'll never tire of the coast, but moved back to the Midwest about eight years ago. Most of my kids live around here and there was a time they needed me here. At times I get seriously homesick for the Emerald City, but I manage to keep busy & happy here. I do think I'd love the East coast - esp. Maine & New Hampshire and the coastal areas.
posted by
Pat_B
on August 28, 2012 at 9:02 AM
| link to this | reply
Re: Ciel -- At least they gave it a try!
None of them moved to Seattle, the family moved to Salem, Oregon which at the time was less than 100,000, a city set in the Willamette Valley. Temperate climate, fairly conservative socially but only an hour's drive from "weird" Portland. Little Bro taught basic math & small engine repair as part of the corrections facility's rehabilitation program. Little Sis married a prison sociologist/superintendent and has been his right hand in a post-retirement consulting business. Mother got her GED at 58, took art classes, began painting & teaching art, produced a couple hundred canvasses, lived to the age of 93.
posted by
Pat_B
on August 28, 2012 at 8:59 AM
| link to this | reply
Re: CCT - I think I would have liked that little Hell in the hills....
As you can see by my previous blog, it wasn't all hellish - there was a lot of open country to explore. We had 'three rooms and a path,' an outhouse, running water in the kitchen, and a huge old cast iron cookstove left over from the house's lumber mill cookhouse days in the late 1890s.
posted by
Pat_B
on August 28, 2012 at 8:54 AM
| link to this | reply
At least they gave it a try!
Did any of your sibs eventually choose the bright lights and bustle of the Big City?
posted by
Ciel
on August 28, 2012 at 7:59 AM
| link to this | reply
And if you really tire of the West coast, give the East coast a try! 
By the way, I haven't played pinochle in years! I doubt if I can even remember all of the melds! 
posted by
JimmyA
on August 28, 2012 at 7:16 AM
| link to this | reply
Love it Pat, everyone smoked,I suppose they take tranks today. Somehow I think I would have liked that little Hell in the hills if it could have an indoor toilet or at least a water closet as my Great aunt would call the appliance.
posted by
C_C_T
on August 28, 2012 at 7:12 AM
| link to this | reply
PatB
Love how you talk about the family and feel almost related to you because my son David lives in Seattle now. He and I don't communicate often but 2 years ago he called and wished me a Merry Christmas. Once in 20 years he came home to visit me for a few hours.Mea Culpa, Mea Maxima Culpa, divorce is hard on the children
posted by
WileyJohn
on August 28, 2012 at 7:04 AM
| link to this | reply
A wonderful write and you tried to improve your family situation bless your
heart. i loved the description of the Aunt
s family life. I miss the family values that abounded, the Happy days life style.
posted by
Kabu
on August 28, 2012 at 7:03 AM
| link to this | reply
my mom is the same way.....she has that smoker's hack and has to have a cig with coffee as soon as she wakes up.....good story
posted by
Annicita
on August 28, 2012 at 4:58 AM
| link to this | reply
Amazing, Pat_B, how you bring us right into your world; we can see, hear, smell the surroundings; the character descriptions have us nodding knowingly, like they have been acquaintances forever. Excellent post!
posted by
adnohr
on August 28, 2012 at 4:53 AM
| link to this | reply