Adventures with Grandad #3

My dad came to visit for over a month, and boy did we have a good time! I call him Grandad, so if I refer to Grandad then you'll know I'm talking about my dad.
We did a lot of porch sitting and bird watching. The lightning bugs/fireflies were out in droves, and it was enjoyable to relax and watch them light up all around us. Do you call them lightning bugs or fireflies? Grandad says that only Yankees call them fireflies, and sure enough when our neighbors were over, they called them lightning bugs because they are born and bred southerners.
We laid out our bodies as a scrumptious buffet for some greedy-gutted chiggers. That was because we sat on the lawn in our lawn chairs in complete ignorance of the tasty gift we were giving to those little buggers. We paid an itchy price which lasted for about a week.
Grandad and I talked about many family stories from years past. I'll share a few now and save some for future posts. My dad's dad (my Grandpa) had a heart attack when I was a little girl. I remember when it happened and how worried we all were. What I didn't know was WHERE he had the heart attack. Grandpa was a fire sprinkler fitter just like my dad has been all my life. Grandpa had his heart attack while working in the parking garage of Stanford Hospital. I guess if you're gonna have a heart attack then THAT'S the best place to have it. Thankfully, he got emergency care immediately and lived many years after that and did not die from heart disease. He DID, however, put little pills under his tongue whenever he was feeling really stressed. Grandpa used to sit on a bar stool and watch TV preachers on this little TV on the counter, and he'd get so mad at them that he'd spit on the screen and rant and rave, then pop one of those little pills under his tongue. My brother and I saw this happen over the years, and it was really funny to see. We never could understand why he kept watching those preachers if he disliked them so much, but we sure loved watching him get so worked up!
My dad told me stories about a couple of my uncles. Both of these uncles are my mom's brothers. My Uncle Frank told my dad once that he often gets his name mixed up when he writes it down. For instance, if Uncle Frank was writing his name at the top of a school assignment, or writing his name to check in for an appointment, etc... His name is Frank Farmer, and he'd often write his name as Farnk Framer. That just tickles me to death for some reason!! (Cousin Sarah, I hope you are reading this!!)
The other uncle my dad told stories about was my Uncle Paul. Uncle Paul and my dad were on the job once and both were in Paul's work truck. Paul was driving and needed to get by another worker who'd parked his truck in the middle of the driveway with hardly enough room for anyone to squeeze past. Paul said, "Hey! Would you move your truck, please?" The guy barked back, "You could drive a tank through there!" My Uncle Paul quipped, "But I'm not driving a tank!"
The guy moved his truck. (Cousin Becky, I hope you are reading this!!)
Grandad and I visited my dear, Great-Aunt Mabel and her daughter and husband. It was about a four-hour drive to her place. She will be 95 years old in August, and she is quite a hearty lady. She calls my dad Jimmie Don.
In this video which is just over one minute long, my dad had just asked Aunt Mabel to tell about when she first met her husband, Uncle Floyd. This video is a treasure!



If you have trouble viewing the video, CLICK HERE .
Enjoy your Independence Day weekend!! God bless America!!
More Adventures with Grandad to come...