Granny - Hallie Myrtle Large - Bituminous Coal
As I was reading the comments on Life and Death, The American Way, I was reminded that I didn't have a lock on the memories.
My Brother Stan commented on "Granny" as we all knew her. As follows:
"Granny memories-
- fixed calf brains and eggs for breakfast
- warm morning coal stove and coal bin out back in winter
- feather mattresses
- named all her cats after gunsmoke characters; don't interrupt gunsmoke on tv
- cussed the commercials during gunsmoke
- wiggled her dangling hand when she walked
- has a vornado fan for an air conditioner
- had gourd bird houses for wrens and small birds; hated those damn bluejays"
I have invited Stan to be an author here on this site and he has generously agreed to do so. His list of memories above triggered my thoughts to the actual individual items, each seeming to need more development for general consumption. His kids and mine and the rest only have either a vague remembrance of seeing Granny or nothing at all, save the stories we,who remember her, have told. Since Stan is 7 years my younger, I invite him to expand the above bullet list into the narrative going on in his mind on each item, I know what they trigger in me, but those are his memories for development.
Although I never had the brains and eggs, I was privy to the Beef Tongue Lunch on more than one occasion. Usually I or Roger and I were outside playing, exploring, pea-pickin or otherwise occupied and weren't present when the beef slab went into the pressure cooker. We would come into the kitchen through the back porch...Which was a room about 8ft wide and 7ft deep. The roof was pitched from about 8 ft at the back side of the house, to about 5 1/2 feet at the back wall of the kitchen and porch. The doorway couldn't have been more than 5 feet high, as I had to duck when I went in and out since I was probably a 4th grader. On the back porch was a little chest of drawers, some homemade shelves, a #3 washtub, a enamel coated chamber pot, and some other odds and ends. This was the Saturday bath house and the everynight restroom (except in my case-- the never night restroom -- I would shovel snow the 60 feet to the outhouse before I would park my fanny on a 10 degree steel ring, I wasn't about to have to yell to Granny to warm up some water to unstick my bum from the "Pot". As I am noticing, my trip to the lunch table got somewhat interrupted with other items along the way...kind of like the first trip from Kansas to Texas, or Kansas to anywhere...you notice all sorts of new and wonderful sites that get taken for granted with each additional passing of the same path.
When Roger and I would get to the table Granny would already have the lid off the pressure cooker with a platter beside it on the table. Into the pressure cooker went the large fork and out came a cow's tongue. The platter on the table was 14 to 16 inches long and the tongue filled it, stem to stern. Granny would slice off a piece about three inches long ( I swear it still had grass attached), turn it over slice it down the middle and skin out the meat ( sort of like one would fillet a fish ). I have no idea what it was served with, some sort of potato dish and other veggies and maybe sliced tomatoes and cucumbers....I cut off a piece....the size of a dime and put it into my mouth.....It was the most wonderful beef flavor, but it was like I was chewing my own tongue (mostly Freudian in this aspect I would guess). This was my first vivid memory of getting to eat some of what is called the "offels" of animals, not wanting to waste anything. After that lunch, It was ok to have tongue after that, It was really some "good eatin'".
Now I anxiously await Stan's elaboration on the above remembrances of Granny..........Come and Get It Stan........
My Brother Stan commented on "Granny" as we all knew her. As follows:
"Granny memories-
- fixed calf brains and eggs for breakfast
- warm morning coal stove and coal bin out back in winter
- feather mattresses
- named all her cats after gunsmoke characters; don't interrupt gunsmoke on tv
- cussed the commercials during gunsmoke
- wiggled her dangling hand when she walked
- has a vornado fan for an air conditioner
- had gourd bird houses for wrens and small birds; hated those damn bluejays"
I have invited Stan to be an author here on this site and he has generously agreed to do so. His list of memories above triggered my thoughts to the actual individual items, each seeming to need more development for general consumption. His kids and mine and the rest only have either a vague remembrance of seeing Granny or nothing at all, save the stories we,who remember her, have told. Since Stan is 7 years my younger, I invite him to expand the above bullet list into the narrative going on in his mind on each item, I know what they trigger in me, but those are his memories for development.
Although I never had the brains and eggs, I was privy to the Beef Tongue Lunch on more than one occasion. Usually I or Roger and I were outside playing, exploring, pea-pickin or otherwise occupied and weren't present when the beef slab went into the pressure cooker. We would come into the kitchen through the back porch...Which was a room about 8ft wide and 7ft deep. The roof was pitched from about 8 ft at the back side of the house, to about 5 1/2 feet at the back wall of the kitchen and porch. The doorway couldn't have been more than 5 feet high, as I had to duck when I went in and out since I was probably a 4th grader. On the back porch was a little chest of drawers, some homemade shelves, a #3 washtub, a enamel coated chamber pot, and some other odds and ends. This was the Saturday bath house and the everynight restroom (except in my case-- the never night restroom -- I would shovel snow the 60 feet to the outhouse before I would park my fanny on a 10 degree steel ring, I wasn't about to have to yell to Granny to warm up some water to unstick my bum from the "Pot". As I am noticing, my trip to the lunch table got somewhat interrupted with other items along the way...kind of like the first trip from Kansas to Texas, or Kansas to anywhere...you notice all sorts of new and wonderful sites that get taken for granted with each additional passing of the same path.
When Roger and I would get to the table Granny would already have the lid off the pressure cooker with a platter beside it on the table. Into the pressure cooker went the large fork and out came a cow's tongue. The platter on the table was 14 to 16 inches long and the tongue filled it, stem to stern. Granny would slice off a piece about three inches long ( I swear it still had grass attached), turn it over slice it down the middle and skin out the meat ( sort of like one would fillet a fish ). I have no idea what it was served with, some sort of potato dish and other veggies and maybe sliced tomatoes and cucumbers....I cut off a piece....the size of a dime and put it into my mouth.....It was the most wonderful beef flavor, but it was like I was chewing my own tongue (mostly Freudian in this aspect I would guess). This was my first vivid memory of getting to eat some of what is called the "offels" of animals, not wanting to waste anything. After that lunch, It was ok to have tongue after that, It was really some "good eatin'".
Now I anxiously await Stan's elaboration on the above remembrances of Granny..........Come and Get It Stan........
I remember that Granny had the coolest silverware and dishes. I don't think there was 2 place settings that were the same. But why would she need more than one most of the time. Heck she didn't even have a dining room.
Silverware, utensils, pots and pans were pea pickin' treasures. I would look and look to find the right fork or spoon when pea pickin'. Granny didn't care much for the plain ones, she liked the more ornate pieces.
If the pots were not good enough to cook in they were certainly good enough to use to water the flowers or for to plant something, and they were always good to carry some of the smaller items we found.
Her neighbor across the street had a cherry tree that she would have me go "thin down a little". She said the birds would get them if I didn't.
I don't remember the neighbors name down at the end of the lane she lived but I do recall she said he was a real sob and to stay away.
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Across the street lived Henry and Lizzy Matthews (Jeanne Schuberger's Grandparents) At the end of the lane was Harry Laswell, crabby ol' fart.
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My memories of Granny
-I remember her eating a bowl of Grape Nuts and cursing that without teeth it was like eating a bowl of gravel.
-she never "ate" she "et"
-finding a snake inside the house wasn't that ucommon.
-she had the most beautiful glass paper weights. I loved to look at them.
-the front door contained beautiful stained glass. A large pane of ruby red glass in the center, with yellow, blue and pink panes around it. I loved to look through the red glass.
-I remember her watching "Melody Matinee" and singing along.
I remember the brains and eggs, and sliced tongue sandwiches. The bird houses, the cats, the smell of coal, and the "pot".
LOL I'm not Stan, but I had to add my 2 cents worth.
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Thesecomments are bringing back more and more memories of Granny. Thanks so much. Here's some added by your sister... "Did Stan ever hear about Hallie and her sister Bess (?) Large-Sharp? They were playing with a baby blue jay and the mother bird dive bombed Bess right on top of her head."
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