Stop the Clock
My dad was named Lenneaus McKinley Bottom and was said to be born on the day President McKinley was elected. November 3, 1896! My grandfather and his parents and siblings were staunch Republicans no matter what as well as my dad. To the point that it seemed somewhat ridiculous to me. They named another son after a president as well. (Ulyssess Grant Bottom but it would seem he didn't like the spelling and went by Ulyss) Anyway to get back to dad. He was born actually on November the 4th it would seem; as the old grandfather, John, said the baby must be born on the day the president was elected so he proceeded to get up on a chair and stopped the old grandfather striking clock until my dad was born and then started it again. I remember the old clock so well and listening to the striking - it was very fascinating to a little girl!.
It hung high on the north
wall of my grandparent's home above the big table where we gathered around on
holidays, especially, to eat and celebrate and west of the north window
I especially remember having Christmas dinner there and my grandfather saying
grace. He sat at the east side of the long table at the end in his big
high backed chair. He always said grace and it got to be as he got older
you really could not understand the words and when asked late in life what the
words exactly were he could not tell me. It has become a ritual I guess.
My Uncle :Lester and Aunt Dorothy Bottom lived in his home with him until his
death. My Aunt knew what the words were though I believe. He lived
to just over his 92nd birthday and died on my oldest son, Gary's, 15th birthday.
I took many a picture of the four generations which included my two older boys,
Gary and Lenney. Unfortunately I was the only female! I remember my
great-grandmother, Sarah but have no picture taken with her. I lacked
three months being three years old when she died, but I remember her quite well.
And have stories about that also I could tell.
The reason I remember so well celebrating Christmas there is because as a little
girl I was not all that anxious to leave my Christmas doll etc that Santa
brought me. But I remember many a day walking the one-half mile to
granddad's home. I was born and raised one mile north of the Buck's Grove
Church and Cemetery where my husband is buried and also my parents and
grandparents and great grandparents and great-great-grandmother as well as many
other family members. That mile on both sides of the road was owned by my
grandfather except for a little patch on the west side at the south end of the
mile. The land on which the church sits I think had also been owned by the
family. At least I know when the cemetery is increased to the north it
comes from what now is my Uncle Lester's land. Granddad also owned the 5 acres
that our house sat on with a barn and other out buildings and a cave.
This sat on the south-west
corner at the end of the mile to the north. There are many stories I could tell
about my childhood living there with my parents. They are warm memories to
say the least. The house and building are long gone and when my son takes me by
to reminisce only the old pump remains that was so hard to pump. I have
stories about that as well! But is from the old pump that I can tell them just
about where all the buildings were!
My Uncle Lester is the only sibling left of my dad's family. Since I am an only
child I cling to not wanting to face having to loosing him also. I love them
very much. and I seems to feel like the life-line to my past will be broken when
they are gone. I am an only child.. He and Aunt Dorothy still live
there except just across the road in a mobile home which they have made very
nice and their granddaughter and family live in the old house where I spent many
hours. They have modernized the home and built on some but as you drive up
the road from the south the memories flood back as it looks as it always did
when I was a child! It is the only house left standing that ever meant
anything to me!.
If you are still with me thank you for allowing me share my memories with you.
May God Bless each and every one, Addie here
I remember when I was a young married girl
in the war time then and my uncle was across in the military (Holy Land or
thereabouts) and wrote often to me and he would tell about the nomads that
lived in tent type homes and when they got dirty they just burned them down and
built another dwelling place. I remember so well that spring my mother-in-law as
we were in the thick of cleaning, washing the wood work and all that spring
cleaning she said I think that is not a bad idea - be easier to just burn it
down and start over! Those days we papered walls and took all the curtains
down and washed windows and really in-depth cleaning. That house had big bay
windows with two full sized windows on either side. There were three rooms
downstairs like that and three rooms upstairs! So lots of windows and
curtains!
Really got up a sweat!
Just had to throw in another memory that this old lady has! Addie
here
Gloria thought you might
enjoy a job related laugh or two!
I Love My Job - A Lost Dr. Suess Book
I love my job, I love my pay!
I love it more and more each day.
I love my boss; he's the best.
I love his boss and all the rest.
I love my office and its location,
I hate to have to go on vacation.
I love my furniture, drab and gray,
and the paper that piles up everyday!
I love my chair in my padded cell!
There's nothing else I love so well.
I love to work among my peers,
I love their leers and jeers and sneers.
I love my computer and all its software,
I hug it often though it doesn't care...
I love each program and every file,
I try to understand once in a while!
I'm happy to be here, I am I am,
I'm the happiest slave of my Uncle Sam.
I love this work; I love these chores.
I love the meetings with deadly bores.
I love my Job - I'll say it again,
I even love these friendly men.
These men who've come to visit today,
In lovely white coats to take me away.
Adeline here
Yes! I remember very well.
I have some of those doilies tucked away in a drawer somewhere and then came
along the more practical ones and I use them. The old ones were beautiful
though. I remember some of them were quite large and had several points on
more for a table and then the center we would put a quart jar in for it to dry
around. And as for the nail stretching the curtains, I have had many a
bloody finger and so disgusting when a fellow got blood on the curtain!
I still have the big slatted venetian blinds and suppose I will until I croak!
The Mimi ones look so much better but at my age I will let well enough alone.
And all the windows I have that would be a major undertaking. I remember one
time I was having problems with a blind in the back bedroom and my husband came
to help me. Why he didn't have his shoes on I don't remember and as he was
trying to get it to go up and down somehow the thing came out of its brackets
and fell down and sliced his big toe and he bled like a stuck hog!
It cut something in his toe that holds it up as ever after he had a droopy big
toe. Afterward when his mom would see his toe she would laugh and make fun
of it. It was never funny to me because I could still see all that
blood. I don't know that we ever explained to her what happened just let
her make fun of his toe!
Well had to add to your thoughts! God Bless you and yours, Addie
here
I too remember some of these
sayings and said some of them myself. The tree leaves actually do
look like they are turned upside down. We always said they were needing rain and
turned up to receive it. And my husband had so many whether
sayings, I wished that I remembered more of them. I know he always
said when we would see a hawk sitting in a tree while out driving that it
would storm.
I will have to ask the boys what they remember their dad said. Seems like
a wind out of certain direction meant something too. I know when he was
alive I could almost depend on him being a better weather man than the weather
man himself! I sure miss him.
The cattle if they were huddled together and against I think the north fence
something about snow or storm. He could tell you direction and all
of the storms. I sure wish I could recall more but today I don't seem to
be able to.
You know even the scriptures tell us how to tell about weather let me see if I
can remember where .......... ummmmmmmmm. I think it is in
Matt 16 - It says if the sky has a red cast or is red in the evening it will be
fair weather and if is red in the morning it will be bad weather. As I
recall Jesus was using that as a comparison saying that people know these kinds
of things but they didn't recognize Him as the Messiah when He came, in other
words all the prophecies in the Old Testament giving them the signs to go by and
they just didn't get it.
Memories are precious especially to an old lady like me! Thanks for
tickling my memory! God Bless you and yours, Addie here
Subject:
Genealogy
My family coat of arms ties at the back... is that normal?
My family tree is a few branches short! All help appreciated.
My ancestors must be in a witness protection program!
Shake your family tree and watch the nuts fall!
My hobby is genealogy, I raise dust bunnies as pets.
How can one ancestor cause so much TROUBLE??
I looked into my family tree and found out I was a sap.
I'm not stuck, I'm ancestrally challenged.
I'm searching for myself; Have you seen me?
If only people came with pull-down menus and on-line help...
Isn't genealogy fun? The answer to one problem leads to two more!
It's 2001... Do you know where your Gr-Gr-Grandparents are?
A family reunion is an effective form of birth control.
A family tree can wither if nobody tends it's roots.
A new cousin a day keeps the boredom away.
After 30 days, unclaimed ancestors will be adopted
Am I the only person up my tree... sure seems like it.
Any family tree produces some lemons, some nuts and a few bad apples.
Ever find an ancestor HANGING from the family tree?
FLOOR: The place for storing your priceless genealogy records.
Gene-Allergy: It's a contagious disease, but we love it.
Genealogists are time unravelers.
Genealogy is like playing hide and seek: They hide... we seek!
Genealogy: Tracing yourself back to better people.
"Crazy" is a relative term in my family.
A pack rat is hard to live with, but makes a fine ancestor.
I want to find ALL of them! So far I only have a few thousand.
I should have asked them BEFORE they died!
My ancestors are giving me "Bad heir" days.
I'm always late. My ancestors arrived on the JUNE flower.
Only a Genealogist regards a step back wards as progress.
Share your knowledge; it is a way to achieve immortality.
Heredity: Everyone believes in it until their children act like
fools!
It's an unusual family that hath neither a lady of the evening nor a
thief.
Many a family tree needs pruning.
Shh! Be very, very quiet.... I'm hunting forebears.
Snobs talk as if they had begotten their own ancestors!
That's strange: half my ancestors are WOMEN!
I'm not sick, I've just got fading genes.
Genealogists live in the past lane.
Cousins marrying cousins: Very tangled roots! Cousins marrying cousins:
A
non- branching family tree.
All right! Everybody out of the gene pool!
Always willing to share my ignorance...
Documentation... The hardest part of genealogy.
Genealogy: Chasing your own tale!
Genealogy...will I ever find time to mow the lawn again?
That's the problem with the gene pool: NO Lifeguards.
I researched my family tree...and apparently I don't exist. Addie
here
Sara please unsubscribe me
for a while. I am going home with my son to Virginia for a while. He
will be taking me at some point to see my great-grandchildren in Florida and
also my grandchildren. So I am looking forward to that.
Before departing I must tell you a little funny about my little just 5 year old
great grandson! His grandmother was putting him to bed a while back
and that is always story time. He loves the Bible Stories about Daniel and
all those exciting ancestors! He was asking his grandmother
questions about different ones and she at some point told him it would be
wonderful whenJesus comes and takes us home with Him and then Sammy could talk
directly to the different ones he his questions about and ask them those
questions. He got rather excited and said really......... then he said I
thought they were Walt Disney Characters!
Well I could go on and on but will let that do. Addie here
Addie's bit of nonsense - BUTTFIRST
I still get side tracked
even though I can't get around much anymore. Thought maybe some of you could
identify with this. Read or delete - not wanting to clutter your mail box!
grinnnnnnnnn Addie here
Subject: Buttfirst
I have BUTTFIRST SYNDROME, a condition often found in folks of my age. The
scientific world is frantically searching for a cure.
This is an ailment many of us suffer from and may not as yet have been
diagnosed. However, now you may be able to discuss it with your
loved ones and try to explain what really happened to you all those times you
tried so hard to accomplish something and didn't quite get it done. It's called
the "BUTTFIRST Syndrome."
It's like when I decide to do the laundry - I start down the hall and
notice the newspaper on the table. Okay, I'm going to do the laundry---
BUTTFIRST I'm going to read the newspaper.
After that, I notice the mail on the table. Okay, I'll just put the
newspaper in the recycle stack, BUTTFIRST I'll look through that pile of mail
and see if there are any bills to be paid. Now where's the checkbook?
Oops! There's the empty glass from yesterday on the coffee
table. I'm going to look for that checkbook, BUTTFIRST I need to put the glass
in the sink. I head for the kitchen, look out the window, notice my poor flowers
need a drink of water. I put the glass in the sink, and darn it,
there's the remote for the TV on the kitchen counter. What's it
doing here? I'll just put it away, BUTTFIRST I need to water those
plants.
Head for door and Yikes! I stepped on the dog. The dog needs
to be fed. Okay, I'll put that remote away and water the plants. BUTTFIRST I
need to feed the dog.
At the end of day: Laundry is not done, Newspapers are still on the floor,
Glass is still in the sink, Bills are unpaid, Checkbook is still missing, The
dog ate the remote.
AND, when I try to figure out how come nothing got done all day, I'm
extremely baffled, because I KNOW I was BUSY ALL DAY!
I realize this condition is serious....and I should get help, BUTTFIRST I
think I'll read all my email...
I don't know the source of
this. You know how things get passed around. This was passed to Gary's
lady and she got it from a friend so really source unknown. But I
thought it's a chance of a lifetime! What do you think! grinnnnnnnnnnnnnn
Addie here
WERE YOUR ANCESTORS BEAMED DOWN BY ALIENS? NEW DNA EVIDENCE
Scientists at The National Academy for the Study of UFOs have confirmed the
existence of the "UFO chromosome." Working with DNA recovered from the
aliens of the Roswell, New Mexico crash, the scientists have discovered that the
"UFO chromosome" is also present in some humans. This discovery
confirms that aliens have been breeding with humans for centuries and beaming
their progeny back to earth.
For the "low" price of $10,000, they will test your DNA to see if you
have the "UFO chromosome." While the test will not tell which ancestor
had the "UFO chromosome," there are several ways to identify that
ancestor. For such ancestors to conceal their identity:
(1) They moved every few
years; (2)Their surname was unique in jurisdictions where they lived; (3) The
(alien) county clerk ensured that their marriage bonds and other records were
lost, their deeds were set aside and never recorded, and their probate files
would disappear; (4) The (alien) census taker either would not list them or
would
list them twice with slight variations; (5) The family Bible was sent
"west" with the youngest unmarried daughter, who later married a
"Mr. Smith;" (6) The land with the family cemetery was sold to
outsiders, who used the headstones to make a sidewalk; (7) Their church did not
believe in recording vital statistics; (8) They told tall tales about their
relationship to someone famous; (9) They started rumors that they were born in
England and arrived in Virginia with two brothers (one of whom was born in
France, the
other in Sweden). To conceal their identities, one brother moved to Georgia,
another to Maine, and the third stayed in Virginia; and (10) when all else
failed and they were in real and present danger of discovery, the court house
"accidentally" would burn.
If you can prove that your ancestor was beamed down by aliens, you qualify to
purchase a history of the Alien Family, complete with the Alien coat of arms
suitable for display. Addie here
For those who care to
listen, here is wish for you in poem by an
Author Unknown. You never get a second chance! Be kind to each
other!
God Bless you all, Addie here
If I knew it would be the last time
that I'd see you fall asleep,
I would tuck you in more tightly
and pray the Lord, your soul to keep.
If I knew it would be the last time
that I see you walk out the door,
I would give you a hug and kiss
and call you back for one more.
If I knew it would be the last time
I'd hear your voice lifted up in praise,
I would video tape each action and word,
so I could play them back day after day.
For surely there's always tomorrow
to make up for an oversight,
and we always get a second chance
to make everything right.
There will always be another day
to say our "I love you's",
And certainly there's another chance
to say our "Anything I can do's?"
Tomorrow is not promised to anyone,
young or old alike,
And today may be the last chance
you get to hold your loved one tight.
So if you're waiting for tomorrow,
why not do it today?
For if tomorrow never comes,
you'll surely regret the day,
That you didn't take that extra time
for a smile, a hug, or a kiss
and you were too busy to grant someone,
what turned out to be their one last wish.
So hold your loved ones close today,
and whisper in their ear,
that you love them very much and
you'll always hold them dear.
Take time to say "I'm sorry,"
"Please forgive me," "thank you," or "it's okay".
And if tomorrow never comes,
you'll have no regrets about today.
(Author Unknown)
You have all probably seen
this one but talking about cousins etc marrying,
thought it was time to resurrect this one for a laugh or two. Hope you
don't mind. Addie here
If Your Family Tree Doesn't Fork
Many many years ago when I was twenty three,
I got married to a widow who was pretty as could be.
This widow had a grown-up daughter
Who had hair of red.
My father fell in love with her,
And soon the two were wed.
This made my dad my son-in-law
And changed my very life.
My daughter was my mother,
For she was my father's wife.
To complicate the matters worse,
Although it brought me joy,
I soon became the father
Of a bouncing baby boy.
My little baby then became
A brother-in-law to dad.
And so became my uncle,
Though it made me very sad.
For if he was my uncle,
Then that also made him brother
To the widow's grown-up daughter
Who, of course, was my step-mother.
Father's wife then had a son,
Who kept them on the run.
And he became my grandson,
For he was my daughter's son.
My wife is now my mother's mother
And it makes me blue.
Because, although she is my wife,
She's my grandmother too.
If my wife is my grandmother,
Then I am her grandchild.
And every time I think of it,
It simply drives me wild.
For now I have become
The strangest case you ever saw.
As the husband of my grandmother,
I am my own grandpa!