ALICE'S BRICK HOUSE
Mary Ellen and I lived with Aunt Alice for awhile. Mom was getting started in Lexington and took our younger brothers with her. They lived with Lila and Doug and their 3 children in a small 2 bedroom cottage off the University of Kentucky campus. Eventually Mom got her own apartment. In the meantime, Mary Ellen and I got to live with Aunt Alice which meant indoor plumbing!!
We walked with Aunt Alice to work and then went on to school every day. Then after school we'd come back by her office and hang around until it was time for the walk home. Alice walked everywhere in Stanton. Sometimes on the way home we'd stop at Grandma Baker's to say hello but we didn't waste too much time because we had homework and supper and baths. Aunt Alice let us have vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce almost everyday for an afternoon snack. And then she always made a great meal. One of my favorites was swiss steak.
We went to church with Aunt Alice every Sunday and Wednesday nights too. Sometimes she'd race home with us but we usually outran her. At the time (in the mid 1950's) there was a vitamin liquid called Homacebrin. It was thick and yellowy gold and smelled very vitaminy. Aunt Alice wanted us to take it every night but she hated the way it smelled. We liked to tease her by taking a dose and then kissing her.
Mary Ellen remembers that Aunt Alice had a time with my hair. It was always so tangled and Alice couldn't understand what I did to get it that way. Mary Ellen would help with my hair a lot; so, what Aunt Alice didn't know was that it could have been worse. I think I must have been a little "trying" for her at times. - Patricia
Here's one of my trying moments:
THE TRICYCLE STORY
I wished we had a bicycle so bad. There was this huge oversized tricycle but I really wanted a bike even though I hadn't learned how to ride one yet. Our cousins Elmer and Delmer had a bike and some of the other kids. They would let Mary Ellen practice on it for a few minutes every now and then but I never got any time on it. I think they thought I was too young or something. Anyhow, I would ride the big trike and pretend it was a bike. I would even push back on the pedals and it would stop just like the brakes on a bike. I did this a few times, going a little faster each time but not fast enough to keep it from working. I was so into it that I really thought I could stop it by pushing back on the pedals and decided to go to the top of the incline towards Alice's house. I started down the hill and the trike picked up more speed than I thought and the pedals started turning so fast that my feet slipped off and of course I couldn't stop it. Alice's house was the last house with a sidewalk in front and there was a sizeable drop off. I decided to go through the grass across her yard hoping that it would slow me down. It didn't and I whizzed past her house and landed in the sewer ditch. Later as she was washing me down in the bathtub all she could say was "Why did you do that? Why did you do that?" and I just couldn't tell her I was pretending I was on a bike with brakes. - Patricia
What I remember about Aunt Alice is the big tree in her back yard that all the kids would play on. Oh, and of course, going to visit once a year and that meant walking to the ice cream store! I still want ice cream whenever we go to Stanton. I also remember that she still had a party line on her phone after most people had gotten rid of that and all the cousins thought that was fun to play with. She always brought over mini biscuits with sausages when she babysat us. I say ALWAYS and it could have only been one time, but whenever I see those sausage and biscuits in the store, I think of Aunt Alice.
- Stephanie
I just read the blog and it made me remember a lot about Aunt Alice and my Mom (Ann) in their later years. Aunt Alice finally got her drivers license. I swear I think she might have been close to 70 then. Anyway, she drove this huge station wagon down from Stanton to visit people here in Lexington. Mom was my babysitter back in those days and I think not only was I working full time but also part time and Mom was living at my house . So if Aunt Alice wanted to visit Mom, she had to come to my house. I especially remember one of her arrivals at my house because when she wheeled that station wagon into my driveway, she almost hit the front porch on my house!!!! I even said "Aunt Alice, You almost hit my porch!!! And she said, "But the point is I didn't". I think she was probably a bad driver but I really can't say that for sure because I was afraid to ride with her and never did. I can remember feeling sorry for Patsy and Richard because I knew they would never get those keys from her and they had to be worried to death.
I also remember Mom and Aunt Alice playing cards at my house. They would play for days on end. I would leave for work after getting the kids off to school and they would be sitting at the kitchen table in their pajamas playing cards already. When I came home for lunch, they would still be playing cards in their pajamas and more than once they would still be playing cards when I got home from work (still in their pajamas). I guess my kids were probably running wild for all I knew. Didn't bother them.
And, they both talked about each other behind their backs. Aunt Alice would whisper to me," I think your mother cheated, but I'm not going to say anything." And Mom would say, "Your Aunt Alice can't add but I'm not going to say anything." This all depended on who was winning or losing. I began to realize that they were both sore losers.
This could go on for days. It was really funny and it makes me still laugh to think about it. I was talking to Patsy Wilson about it one time and she said laughed and said "better your house than mine". She knew what characters they were and how their card games took precedence over any and every thing. Now that's some serious card playing! - Mary Ellen
I married into this family and did not grow up with the memories that everyone else has of Alice, however my favorite and the one I share with our kids the most is: Your Mimaw was the most amazing woman of strength that I have had the honor of meeting. I would sit in awe of this woman's mind. She could remember more in her later years than I could remember my entire life. I loved to sit and listen to her quote a wonderful poem that was more like a book than a poem. I cannot remember the name or any of the words (told you her memory was better) but would love to find this delightful poem to share with my children. She quoted this poem for my fascination just about every time I saw her and with such joy. I loved this amazing woman. - Renee
Alice did have quite a memory. There were poems she could recite on request. Here's one submitted by Amy D.
KENTUCKY BELLE by Constance Fenimore Woolson
Summer of 'sixty-three, sir, and Conrad was gone away--
Gone to the country town, sir, to sell our first load of hay.
We lived in the log house yonder, poor as ever you've seen;
Roschen there was a baby, and I was only nineteen.
Conrad, he took the oxen, but he left Kentucky Belle;
How much we thought of Kentuck, I couldn't begin to tell--
Came from the Bluegrass country; my father gave her to me
When I rode north with Conrad, away from the Tennessee.
Conrad lived in Ohio--a German he is, you know--
The house stood in broad cornfields, stretching on, row after row;
The old folks made me welcome; they were kind as kind could be;
But I kept longing, longing, for the hills of Tennessee.
O, for a sight of water, the shadowed slope of a hill!
Clouds that hang on the summit, a wind that is never still!
But the level land went stretching away to meet the sky--
Never a rise, from north to south, to rest the weary eye!
From east to west, no river to shine out under the moon,
Nothing to make a shadow in the yellow afternoon;
Only the breathless sunshine, as I looked out, all forlorn,
Only the "rustle, rustle," as I walked among the corn.
When I fell sick with pining we didn't wait any more,
But moved away from the cornlands out to this river shore--
The Tuscarawas it's called, sir--off there's a hill, you see--
And now I've grown to like it next best to the Tennessee.
I was at work that morning. Someone came riding like mad
Over the bridge and up the road--Farmer Rouf's little lad.
Bareback he rode; he had no hat; he hardly stopped to say,
"Morgan's men are coming, Frau, they're galloping on this way.
"I'm sent to warn the neighbors. He isn't a mile behind;
He sweeps up all the horses--every horse that he can find;
Morgan, Morgan the raider, and Morgan's terrible men,
With bowie knives and pistols, are galloping up the glen."
The lad rode down the valley, and I stood still at the door--
The baby laughed and prattled, playing with spools on the floor;
Kentuck was out in the pasture; Conrad, my man, was gone;
Near, near Morgan's men were galloping, galloping on!
Sudden I picked up baby and ran to the pasture bar:
"Kentuck!" I called; "Kentucky!" She knew me ever so far!
I led her down the gully that turns off there to the right,
And tied her to the bushes; her head was just out of sight.
As I ran back to the log house at once there came a sound--
The ring of hoofs, galloping hoofs, trembling over the ground,
Coming into the turnpike out from the White-Woman Glen--
Morgan, Morgan the raider, and Morgan's terrible men.
As near they drew and nearer my heart beat fast in alarm;
But still I stood in the doorway, with baby on my arm.
They came; they passed; with spur and whip in haste they sped along;
Morgan, Morgan the raider, and his band six hundred strong.
Weary they looked and jaded, riding through night and through day;
Pushing on east to the river, many long miles away,
To the border strip where Virginia runs up into the west,
And for the Upper Ohio before they could stop to rest.
On like the wind they hurried, and Morgan rode in advance;
Bright were his eyes like live coals, as he gave me a sideways glance;
And I was just breathing freely, after my choking pain,
When the last one of the troopers suddenly drew his rein.
Frightened I was to death, sir; I scarce dared look in his face,
As he asked for a drink of water and glanced around the place;
I gave him a cup, and he smiled--'twas only a boy, you see,
Faint and worn, with dim blue eyes, and he'd sailed on the Tennessee.
Only sixteen he was, sir--a fond mother's only son--
Off and away with Morgan before his life had begun!
The damp drops stood on his temples; drawn was the boyish mouth;
And I thought me of the mother waiting down in the South!
O, pluck was he to the backbone and clear grit through and through;
Boasted and bragged like a trooper, but the big words wouldn't do;
The boy was dying, sir, dying, as plain as plain could be,
Worn out by his ride with Morgan up from the Tennessee.
But, when I told the laddie that I too was from the South,
Water came in his dim blue eyes and quivers around his mouth.
"Do you know the Bluegrass country?" he wistful began to say,
Then swayed like a willow sapling and fainted dead away.
I had him into the log house, and worked and brought him to;
I fed him and coaxed him, as I thought his mother'd do;
And, when the lad got better, and the noise in his head was gone,
Morgan's men were miles away, galloping, galloping on.
"O, I must go," he muttered; "I must be up and away!
Morgan, Morgan is waiting for me! O, what will Morgan say?"
But I heard a sound of tramping and kept him back from the door--
The ringing sound of horses' hoofs that I had heard before.
And on, on came the soldiers--the Michigan cavalry--
And fast they rode, and black they looked galloping rapidly;
They had followed hard on Morgan's track; they had followed day and night;
But of Morgan and Morgan's raiders they had never caught a sight.
And rich Ohio sat startled through all those summer days,
For strange, wild men were galloping over her broad highways;
Now here, now there, now seen, now gone, now north, now east, now west,
Through river valleys and corn-land farms, sweeping away her best.
A bold ride and a long ride! But they were taken at last.
They almost reached the river by galloping hard and fast;
But the boys in blue were upon them ere ever they gained the ford,
And Morgan, Morgan the raider, laid down his terrible sword.
Well, I kept the boy till evening--kept him against his will--
But he was too weak to follow, and sat there pale and still;
When it was cool and dusky--you'll wonder to hear me tell--
But I stole down to that gully and brought up Kentucky Belle.
I kissed the star on her forehead--my pretty, gentle lass--
But I knew that she'd be happy back in the old Bluegrass;
A suit of clothes of Conrad's, with all the money I had,
And Kentuck, pretty Kentuck, I gave to the worn-out lad.
I guided him to the southward as well as I knew how;
The boy rode off with many thanks, and many a backward bow;
And then the glow it faded, and my heart began to swell,
As down the glen away she went, my lost Kentucky Belle!
When Conrad came home in the evening the moon was shining high;
Baby and I were both crying--I couldn't tell him why--
But a battered suit of rebel gray was hanging on the wall,
And a thin old horse with a drooping head stood in Kentucky's stall.
Well, he was kind, and never once said a hard word to me;
He knew I couldn't help it--'twas all for the Tennessee;
But, after the war was over, just think what came to pass--
A letter, sir; and the two were safe back in the old Bluegrass.
The lad had got across the border, riding Kentucky Belle;
And Kentuck, she was thriving, and fat, and hearty, and well;
He cared for her, and kept her, nor touched her with whip or spur;
Ah! we've had many horses, but never a horse like her!
THE TRADITION OF MEMAW'S CANDIED CINNAMON TOAST
A tradition that my family has is that every other week or so on chilly Saturday mornings my mom makes my Memaw’s special candied cinnamon toast. So far almost every year my mom has made Memaw’s candied cinnamon toast for holidays like Christmas and for my birthday in October when it’s cold outside. I love it when my mom makes the great recipe because it makes the house smell sweet for many days. It is an overwhelming smell that just cheers you up. My mom learned this recipe when she was growing up visiting her grandma’s house. When you make the cinnamon toast there are two styles, crunchy or chewy. When you cook the toast a little longer it is like hard candy right when you take it out of the oven. But, if you take it out a little earlier, then the toast is warm, doughy, and moist. That is my preference. It is very enjoyable with a tall glass of milk. When my mom cooks it she always cuts the toast into triangles. I think it’s because her Memaw did it that way. This is the tradition that I personally would like to carry out for generations because it is a great recipe that deserves to be passed down. - Matt (Amy's son)
MATT'S RECIPE FOR MEMAW'S CANDIED CINNAMON TOAST
Serving size 2 per person, 6 total for this recipe
Ingredients:
12 pieces of white bread
12 teaspoons of butter or margarine
½ cup of white sugar
3 teaspoons of cinnamon
Instructions: Heat oven broiler to 500 F. Place toast on cookie sheet, toast under broiler 20 seconds or until golden brown. In one small bowl mix butter, cinnamon, sugar to a gray creamy paste. Spread paste on uncooked side of toast. Place the toast face up on the cookie sheet and heat under the broiler for 20 seconds until the paste bubbles. When the paste cools it should be caramelized.
Final production: Enjoy with milk and friends. The candied toast should look like toast with a layer of browned candy on top.
ABOUT PATSY AND RICHARD
Just as Renee wrote, I also married into this family, but have never been made to feel like an outsider. I have always been welcomed and included without question. Growing up, I had little family connections, and as an adult none on my side. That's the price for a small family. But, I have been so blessed with this family, extended and immediate. Mom and Dad Wilson (aka Patsy and Richard) have been "Mom and Dad" pretty much from day one. They have loved me unconditionally, even when it looked as though Carl and I may not stay together. I am happy to report that we will celebrate 19 years of marriage in Aug. 08!!!
Patsy is Mom and friend. She is the rock of this family. I turn to her for advice and encouragement, and at times constructive criticism. I know she loves me. Richard Jr. (Big Rick as we call him now), has been the big brother I never had , and yes in every way. He is aggravating and pesters, but when the storms hit he is there with a "big brother" strength and presence. Also, he did an amazing job of finding the right girl to put up with all his shananigans and I got 5 adorable nieces and nephews!, not to mention a sister! I'm a pretty lucky girl to have grown up an only child.
When we had to say good bye to Dad, five years ago now, it was the darkest time in all our lives, and remains so. He was an adoring husband, loving father,and doting papaw. I can still hear Mom call out "RICHARRRRD!!" , to his reply " WHAAAAT!" , "FIX IT!" any time something would need fixing. He really loved to take care of Mom and he was Mr. fix it. We all miss that. He adored his grandkids. He loved for all of us to be together as much as possible, especially holidays. He would make every child feel special, and take an interest in what they were doing. Julie remembers that he always had gum. It was the simple things. He was an involved papaw. When Carl and Rick married, Mom and Dad got the girls they always wanted and Dad made a point of spoiling us rotten. We knew we were loved. We all miss him immensely to this day. Although it gets easier, it will never be OK without him. I guess everyone can relate as all of us have loved and lost at some point.
I'll add one more note before I close. Dad made his peace with the Lord before he left this earth. He and I would talk a little bit about heaven and what it would be like. One day we even made a date. I'm gonna meet him on the beach and he's gonna have an ice cold Diet Pepsi waiting for me. Although we probably won't need to diet in heaven, it was just something he and I shared a liking for. He also told me during one of our talks that he was gonna miss me. I told him, "No you're not, you're gonna see the face of God." His reply was "It's gonna be extraordinary." I believe it was, and I can't wait to see him for myself, and walk on the beach, drinking my DP.
- Laura Beth
Patsy and Richard were a center point for our family. When they lived on Highland Park Drive, family members often gathered at their house for croquet in the summer (sometimes at Lila's house on Carneal as well) or cards in the winter. The hill on Carneal was great for sledding when it snowed and Richard and Patsy were like kids and joined in the fun. I remember when I was a teenager going back to their house for waffles after we played in the snow.
Ann, Lila, and Patsy and Richard got together a lot and the children were always a part of things. Over the years their home and yard at the old and new addresses were a gathering place for lots of family activites.
One thing I remember about Richard . . . it was Christmas Eve (sometime in the late 50's) and lots of us had been to Stanton and were on our way home. The weather was really cold, roads were icy and there were 3 cars leaving Stanton as I recall - the Rileys, Harrs, and Wilsons. Mom was worried about Lila driving because of the slick roads but felt pretty confident because we had new snow tires on our vehicle. Needless to say snow tires don't work all that well on ice. We were singing "The First Noel" and started sliding but kept singing. It was the old road too. There was a drop-off on one side and a big hill on the other side. As we swerved first one way and then the other and kept singing, I secretly prayed we wouldn't slide off the drop-off. My prayers were answered. We hit the hilly side. I was always one to get hysterical and this accident was no exception and Mom was having trouble breathing (it was before her heart surgery). Richard and Patsy stopped and we rearranged people so that Patsy could drive and Richard could drive. I sat by Richard and he calmed me down. He drove with one arm around my shoulders and one arm on the steering wheel. Somehow that comforted me. It was his way of showing me that things weren't really that scary after all.
When Kenny and I got married, Patsy jumped in and helped a naive girl with her wedding reception (thank goodness). Kenny and I really looked up to Patsy and Richard. We'd drop by to see them (without even calling!!!). That's the way you did things back in the 60's. We played a lot of cards at their kitchen table, talked, philosophized with Richard, and enjoyed Patsy's compliments, hospitality, and humor.
We enjoyed singing around the piano at their house and at Lila's. Patsy loved to sing tenor. It seemed that everything we did didn't cost money. We even played poker with toothpicks or pennies.
Patsy, my mom (Ann), Kathy Harr, and I were on a bowling league for a few years. We had a blast (the nite-owl league). Patsy was working at McAlpins and always had on cute clothes. She pulled her hair back with a scarf and always looked so fashionable even at the bowling alley. One time we decided to get in a tournament. It was very exciting (at least the first few frames). Ann started having heart palpitations and we all went home.
A lot has passed since bowling with Patsy. Now we play tennis! Late bloomers that we are, we both learned the game from the same lady and play doubles in the warm weather when Patsy isn't having a heart attack!! - Patricia
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