Sunday Scribblings #95 — Miscellaneous

A couple of months ago, I was knitting and just kind of letting my mind run. It found all of these memories of living with my grandparents lurking in the corners that I hadn’t thought about in a long time. It’s strange how one memory can piggyback another. After 3 or 4 memories had passed and it seemed that more were coming, I started writing them down before I lost them again. The prompt from Sunday Scribblings this week seemed to be the perfect backdrop for these miscellaneous memories. Please pardon any sentimental sighing that you might hear.

…There was a very old three section freezer in the woodshed which was attached to the back of the house. . The center section was the one where Nanny froze her apples that she would use during the winter to make apple betty. I also remember my sister eating the apples frozen. UGH!

…Nanny would make red jello in clear glass footed dishes as a treat for us when we got home. There were four of them. If she put the dishes too close to the square freezer section in her fridge, the tops of the jello would ice over.

…My sister liked to eat oleo and sugar sandwiches. Also crushed ice, because she had tonsillitis often as a child. I remember Nanny putting 2 or 3 ice cubes into a washcloth and then pounding it with a hammer on the floor of the pantry.

…After watching cartoons all morning, our Saturday lunch was always pancakes spread with oleo and sprinkled with brown sugar, then rolled up into a tube shape and eaten.

…Grandpa had a ham hanging in the woodshed. He had a special saw that he woulduse to cut off a steak or two for supper. At least I think hope it was a special saw.

…Nanny had a little egg poacher saucepan. I was pretty sure she was the only person in the world with this kind of saucepan.

…Grandpa had a small milk can (about a foot tall) that he would take to the farm (owned by our uncle) and fill with raw milk. He would also bring home eggs in a special basket that was used just for that purpose.

…Nanny brushing her teach with baking soda — there was a spot on the corner of the sink counter in the pantry where she would sprinkle it, then tap her brush bristles into it.

…Sunday night shower — standing on the toilet seat cover after and being powdered with a poofy powder puff, then having our fingernails cut with Nanny’s little cuticle scissors.

…Nanny’s red dish drainer. Also, her vacuum cleaner that she kept in a cupboard in the kitchen.

…The smell of Grandpa’s pipe and how it made his clothing smell.

…Grandpa’s cud of chewing gum that he would chew for a bit almost every night, thenput it back on the chair rail of the wainscoting beside his chair in the living room. Yeah, I know — kind of gross to think about.

…My sister and I taking turns sitting in Nanny’s blue speckled enamel colander and spinning in it on the linoleum in the kitchen.

…There was a small hot water heater to heat water for the kitchen and pantry. If you wanted to take a shower, you had to light the heater behind the stove that was attached to a big silver painted hot water tank in the kitchen. When the water was warm half way up the tank, it was warm enough to take a shower.

…Nanny and Grandpa had a small morning stove in the kitchen, next to the gas stove. It had two grates on top that could be lifted off in order to put wood inside. Grandpa put a big piece of wood in first, then some crumpled up newspaper, then some thin strips of cedar, then lit it.

There are more, but I’ve nattered on long enough about the good old days of the 50’s and 60’s. But such good memories!!! And of course, there are a lot more that I could list, but I’ve held you hostage on this subject long enough for one day. Thanks for sticking with me through to the end of this little blurb.

After re-reading this, most of these memories seem to center around food. Anybody know what that might mean? I’d be interested in hearing any ideas.

If you would like read more about any and all things miscellaneous, click here for Sunday Scribblings.