Maggie's Farm

My Maternal Grandfather worked in a foundry pouring molten iron into sand castings for engine blocks almost his entire life - Waukesha Foundry and Iron Works. Did that up until he was 70 years old, then went to supervision, finally called it quits when he died at the age of 94. I am not lying.

He smoked unfiltered Pall Malls - a pack and a half a day, began the day with a Pabst Blue Ribbon and a full shot glass of brandy (except for Sunday - he waited until church was over). He had two Pabst Blue Ribbon's at lunch with another full shot of brandy. After work, he would have another Pabst Blue Ribbon and full shot glass of brandy waiting for my Grandmother to pick him up (he never drove a day in his life). On the way home, she would drop him off at the bar up the street from their house where he would stay for an hour drinking - wait for it - wait for it - Pabst Blue Ribbon Draft and TWO full shots of brandy. He would walk home, sit down and eat, park himself in the easy chair with the paper, a Pabst Blue Ribbon and a full shot of brandy and chain smoke Pall Malls, watch a little TV, until bed with a final...wait for it - wait for it... Pabst Blue Ribbon and a full shot of brandy.

Frankly, I have no idea how he managed to do it. He was an accomplished wood worker and had a very complete shop. I used to go over there on Saturday's to "help" - never once saw him go without at least one bottle of PBR in his hand or nearby while he was building something. And he never, EVER made a mistake. He could build a cabinet to such a close tolerance that you'd be hard pressed to find a join or joint. I'm sitting at a desk he built for my Dad that was refinished two years ago back in CT - solid black walnut roll top. The guy who redid the refinishing offered me a lot of money for the desk - told me the workmanship was perfect. And I watched that desk go together.

Amazing.

On being a Southerner

Interesting and a lot of it is very true. As someone who have lived in the South as a young man in his twenties and an elder in his '60s, I can see the changes made even in 30+ years.

His is wrong on one thing though. There are Confederate burial grounds in the North - several in Maryland, a section of Arlington National Cemetary and a few others scattered around the lower Union states. Arlington also has the Confederate Memorial dedicated in 1914 by President Wilson. The memorial dedication reads: "To our dead heroes by the United Daughters of the Confederacy: Victrix causa dis placuit sed victa catoni (The victorious cause was pleasing to the Gods, but the lost cause to Cato)"

The inscription reads:

"Not for fame or reward

Not for place or for rank

Not lured by ambition or goaded by necessity

but in simple obedience to duty as they understood it

these men suffered all - sacrificed all - dared all - and died"

"Acceptable" forms of inequality

All these years and I just discovered I was in the wrong business - I should have gone into writing vapid, cloying, stupid commentary.



Yes and indeed we have our own example of this inequality right here on Maggie's Farm - not to name names of course ~~ cough - Doc - cough - Mercury - cough ~~

You have permission to make me the aged relic - or was that aged relish?

See what I mean - I screwed that whole thing up.

Help me Doc Mercury - you're my only hope!!

I'm being serious - could you fix that quote for me?