On the Moraine, Part XXXI

By Jim Thompson
HCP columnist

It was the winter of 1964-65. Living in the “barn” of a house on the Beaver Farm, I never liked winter. It was cold and dark. The wind howled through the window cracks. Now 75, I still don’t like fall, for it portends winter.  

When we had moved to the farm, Mother and Dad left Mother’s washer and dryer behind in Troy. This pair was a 1955 vintage Westinghouse set with sloped fronts. Such a style seems to be coming back in now.

Anyway, and for a reason I never understood, they left these behind and bought Mother a used “Easy Spin Dryer.”  The concept of this machine was that instead of a wringer, it had an auxiliary basket that spun to get the water out of the clean clothes.
 
It was a piece of junk.

After some time, Mother and Dad decided she needed a new wringer washer. Since Dad had evenings in Troy after work, he told her he would buy one and bring it home some Friday night.  

He did, and it fit in the trunk of the 1956 Chevy. Of course, Mother was anxious to see it when he got home.  We opened the trunk and the first thing we all noticed was that the levers and so forth had no knobs on them.  They were obviously made for knobs but there were none.  

Almost simultaneously, we asked Dad where they were.

Dad’s answer, “They were extra, so I didn’t buy them.”

I could see the disappointment in Mother’s face.  

The next week, when Dad was gone to work, I went to our shop and turned some wood ones on the wood turning lathe.  

This got me some brownie points with Mother, but she said that really wasn’t necessary.

You knew the day of the week by looking at what my Mother was doing. Monday was washing day. In the summer, she hung the clothes outside; in the winter, they were hung in the kitchen.

Tuesday started ironing. My Mother ironed everything – socks, underwear, sheets, etc. Wednesday was dusting day unless it was summer when canning was going on. (She always canned 100 quarts of green beans and 25 gallons of tomato juice plus other miscellaneous things).

Saturday was kitchen floor mopping and baking. Mother would put newspapers down on the floor while it was wet. She always baked at least two pies and one cake every Saturday. Nothing was from a mix or pre-prepared from the store.

If Mother had to go shopping for groceries, she would usually go on Wednesdays, the day Dad was home from his job and working on the farms.

Did I mention I loved my Mother deeply?

Jim Thompson, formerly of Marshall, is a graduate of Hillsboro High School and the University of Cincinnati. He resides in Duluth, Ga. and is a columnist for The Highland County Press.