| Seems
almost everyone I meet has a story, joke, old saying or an interesting tidbit.
Here are a few tales retained from a recent trip down south visiting friends and
relatives.
While discussing the current economic problems and banking changes,
one man recalled his grandparents did not trust any bank as they had lost money
during the Great Depression when their bank closed. They stated simply, "We use
the U.S. Post Hole Bank with Mr. Mason (jar) who is president."
While
recalling the times of war when most of our young men were serving in the military,
a story about the only type of help available was told. Applicants were few and
poorly qualified. One boss needed help badly and interviewed several men. He described
them as, "only fit to be wheelbarrow mechanics."
Cousin
Dan Trew, now of Fort Worth but
having been raised in Collingsworth County, told of early days when each spring
arrived, settlers placed a 1-by-12-inch wooden plank across a corner inside their
homes, laid newspaper and straw on the floor behind the board, then drove to Clarendon
and bought four dozen baby chicks.
When the chicks grew large enough to
jump over the board, they moved them to a chicken coop, changed the straw behind
the board and bought another four dozen chicks.
This kept a fresh supply
of "right-sized" frying chickens coming and probably provided a lot of baby-sitting
and fun for the toddlers living at home.
A
tale of hog-killing time after frost each year brought on a serious discussion
about the varied ways of "putting up sausage."
My wife's folks cleaned
and stuffed sausage into the intestines and later casings. Others hung the long
strings of stuffed meat in smokehouses and smoked it with different types of wood.
Some families sewed long cloth sacks, stuffed them with sausage about
the size of a baseball bat then sliced as needed for frying. The recipes for making
the sausage were dependent on what ethnic culture you had descended from.
Our
family made the sausage mix into patties, fried them well done, then packed them
into large-mouthed fruit jars or into crocks. When full, we poured hot lard over
the contents until covered and sealed the tops. When needed for food, we dug out
the patties, heated them in a skillet and served. The lard left in the vessels
was made into lye soap. No one ever wasted any part of any animal butchered, as
I remember.
The
Alanreed Coffee Shop is stumped! We know that BVDs is a name brand for underwear
but cannot remember what the letters BVD stands for. Anyone know?
Seems
an old cowboy's wife took him to a doctor for the first time in his life. He had
no idea what to expect and was scared.
The doctor tried to put him at ease
as he sat him down in a chair and started explaining the procedures for a full
physical checkup.
"Now John, see those little plastic cups over across the room on the shelf? First
thing we are going to do is take a urine test."
The old cowboy studied
the cups a moment then asked, "You want me to try to hit one from here?"
©
Delbert Trew -
"It's All Trew" June
21, 2011 column
Delbert Trew is a freelance writer and retired rancher. He
can be reached at 806-779-3164, by mail at Box A, Alanreed, TX 79002, or by email
at trewblue@centra media.net. For books see delberttrew.com. His column appears
weekly.
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