Monday, August 29, 2005

More Golden Oldies


More golden oldies to see; the top left is a pic of some of my family members at one of the summer reunions we used to have at my great-grandmother's house. I am the child on the left (about age 6), the girl to my left is the cousin I recently visited in Tennessee and her brother is on her left. All of the adults are deceased; my mom on the left, her dad beside her, my uncle and aunt on the right.

The top right is a photo of the farm house, from the opposite side of the creek, and a good shot of the rickety swinging bridge we had to cross to get to the house. Scary stuff, that bridge, especially when my older cousins thought it was a hoot to wait until I was in the middle and then shake the heck out of the bridge by running onto it. I imagine it to be like walking near the epicenter of an earthquake. I died a thousand deaths there!

The buff guy on the lower left was one of my mom's three brothers. This photo was taken in Ohio on the shores of Lake Erie. He always thought he was a lady-killer! A policeman when young and a master electrician later, he died shoveling snow to help some people whose car was trapped in an icy ditch. When he died, my grandmother was 90. She mourned his death terribly and it was my first noted lesson in parenting. No matter how old your child is or how old you are, it hurts horribly when they die. She kept wailing...."A mother is not supposed to outlive her child".

The matinee idol in the middle was my dad, circa 1930-35. He wore Homberg hats until the 1970's, when men's hats became passe. He and my mom eloped after only six weeks of dating, and she was buried on their fiftieth anniversary.

On the right is my mother's mother, standing in front of her rooming house. This was in the 1940's, as you can see from the old jalopy on the street. She swept the sidewalk in front of her house nearly every day of her life. After she left her first husband - he of the flicking chalk fame - (see the first golden oldies post) - she married a man called Bucky, who became a judge and later was the mayor of their city. I knew him much better than my real grandfather. He was not very good with children, but he tolerated me and her many other grandkids. When I was visiting at their house, and he came home from the office, he would stomp into the front hall and shout..."Fee,fi,fo fum, I smell the blood of an Englishman. Be he live or be he dead, I'll grind his bones to make my bread." Now you may think a small child would be terrified of those words, but I must not have realized what they meant because I thought it was great fun, and I would run and hide (under the big four-poster bed) and he would always find me and give me a big kiss. The other thing I remember about him is that he would always read the funny pages to me whenever I asked. I hope you have rested in peace, Bucky.

11 comments:

srp said...

I just love these. I am still trying to get my mom to go through her pictures and write out captions about who these people are. She was an only child but both her mother and father's families had lots of kids. She said the other day that there had been at one time over 100 cousins on her dad's side. Now there are only 26 still living.

And the bridge....no way would you get me on that thing. Looks sturdy enough, but swaying and bobbing over a large drop...I'd like to keep my stomach out of my throat if you please.

Anonymous said...

Great pictures and associated stories and details to go along with them. Thanks for sharing it all. You are blessed above many who do not have such treasures or memories.

Anonymous said...

Cool pictures. You've inspired me to scan some old pics into my computer. Technology is just amazing these days.

Here from Michele's (a bit late, but oh well!) Have a good week!

Erin

OldHorsetailSnake said...

Memories of Mayor Bucky are indeed something to treasure.

Anonymous said...

How important for all of us to do just what you are doing...writing memories. It is so great to have photos to go with them, too. Thanks for sharing.

Anonymous said...

I love these old photo's, there's something timeless and perfect about them. My parents have some kept safe of family members and I love to pull them out and sift through them.

Anonymous said...

You have a goldmine of photos here.

Jamie Dawn said...

That bridge must have really been scary as a kid. It's funny to look back at things that really terrified us in our childhood. As adults, they usually don't seem as scary.
A parent outliving their child has to be the most painful thing in all the world. She had every reason to wail.

yellojkt said...

Old pictures are great. You never realize how young and vibrant people are when their lives are just beginning.

yellojkt said...

...and Michele sent me.

Weary Hag said...

My gosh. Your stories of the family are just so wonderfully refreshing. As you know Judy, I've just discovered tons of old black and white photos as well. The picture in your last post (your great grandparents) could almost be a photo of my grandparents!
Excellent memories you have and thanks so much for sharing them with us.