Down at Schubert’s, daddy built mom a sink safe (or cabinet). He never painted or varnished it. The pump was green and the pipe went straight down into the cellar. At Schubert’s, the cistern was kind of right outside the cellar somehow and we need to ask Vernon how daddy managed getting it into the cellar… I don’t remember. We could pump water into the sink and it didn’t freeze up like the outside pump in cold weather. The pump outside was a chain device like ours was on the Stressnor place. The cistern was under the porch room, so the water was usually cold. And when the summer heat melted the butter and soured the cream, we put them (I don’t remember how) down into the cistern to keep them from spoiling. That was before daddy bought mom the coal oil refrigerator. I remember the frige was full of gallon jars full of cream before we made butter on Friday. Daddy would get ice at the Schubert service station to put around the butter on Saturday while we peddled it. We also had cooked cheese made on Friday. The cheese curds were soured and allowed to ferment on a shelf in the kitchen. It stank very badly. If someone came, Mom took down one of the pans of cheese and stirred it in the presence of the guest so that they didn’t think the smell was of baby diapers. Mom was a very resourceful person…bless her soul!
Aunt Lolly says
It was my job (when I was little) to keep the ice box full of coal oil. Mother’s wash machine also ran on coal oil. She had to start it like one would start a motor cycle. Sometimes it gave her trouble but most of the time she got it going. Later on (when we got electricity) the kids must have bought her a new maytag ringer washing machine. It was wonderful!
Danny Sommerer says
Thank you Aunt Bea for the neat story, please keep them coming. Someone in this family should write a book of all these stories and others.
We are all thankful for each of you.
Danny, Denise, Whitni, Chance, Lance and Hance
Danny Sommerer says
Grandma used to tell me (to get me to eat her homemade cottage cheese) that I should stir it into my mashed potatoes cause thats what Uncle Lloyd did. She said “look how big he got by doing that.” I always wondered if any of that was true??
You know, Grandma sure could tell some whoppers, ie., the hobo in the upstairs so the kids wouldn’t go upstairs. She used to say (to get us to do something we didn’t want to do) “When I was a boy I would do that….”
Can anyone else have any good whopper stories that Grandma told them?
Danny
Julie Baker says
Your right! She did used to say she was a boy!!! I always wondered about that too!!hahaha
Jane says
Uncle Lloyd says you started the washer with your foot. The new motor cycles you don’t start with your foot. When David and Glenn Miller had motorcycles you pumped them with your foot but the newer models you don’t do that to.