Thursday, January 28, 2016

A Guest Post From Abby's Grandpa


Abby Lab here.

The picture above is my Grandpa, who turned 90 a few months after this photo was taken with Barkley.  Before you think that Barkley was Giganto dog, my grandpa, a former golden glove boxer is fairly small of build.. He's 95 now, still living on his own with a full time nurse during the day that Mom gets for him to help him with things between her visits.  When he had hair it was red, so like my Mom, he can be a bit stubborn and doesn't want to leave the house he's lived 70 years in and the West to live with my Mom in Chicago after her Mom and Stepmom and Brother passed away.

Born in Helena MT, my Grandpa went off to serve in WWII as a Captain out of the U of Montana. He came back to Montana, married his high school sweetheart and settled in. He adopted Mom and the one that became her redheaded brother when his friends were having grandchildren. He drove and played golf weekly until he turned 93.Even though he and his wife moved to Oregon, and later Washington after the war, he still considers himself a native Montanan, even after all the folks from Hollywood moved up there and built houses the size of Vermont. When Mom's Mom passed away, he married a widow from Montana and they'd still visit from their home in Washington.

When my Mom mentioned being really busy this month with her new job he offered to write a post, and she got this carefully typed on a typewriter older than she is.


Moving to Montana

September 14, 2010 - Moved to our new home up north in Montana. It is so beautiful here. The mountains are so serene and picturesque. Can hardly wait to see them with a covering of snow. God’s country. I love it here.

October 14 - Montana is the most beautiful place on earth. The leaves are turning all different colors. I love the shares of red and orange. Went for a ride through some beautiful mountains and spotted some deer. They are so graceful. Certainly they are the most peaceful animals on earth. This must be paradise. I love it here.

November 11 - Deer season will start soon. I can’t imagine anyone wanting to kill such elegant creatures. The very symbols of peace and tranquility. Hope it will snow soon. I love it here.

December 1 - It snowed last night. Woke up to find everything blanketed with white. It looks like a postcard. We went outside and cleaned the snow off the steps and shoveled the driveway. We had a snowball fight (I won) and when the snow plow came by we had to shovel the driveway again. What a beautiful place. Mother nature in perfect harmony. I love Montana.

December 12 - More snow last night. I love it. The snow plow did his trick again (the little rascal) A winter wonderland. I love it here.

December 19 - More snow last night. Couldn’t get out of the driveway to get to work this time. I’m exhausted from shoveling. I need a snow plow.

December 22 - “White Christmas” my busted butt. More of that friggin snow. If I ever get my hands on that son of a *(#&@ who drives the snow plow, I swear I’ll castrate the moron. Don’t know why they don’t use more salt to melt the (#)@& ice,

December 28 - More white crap last night. Been inside since Christmas Day except for shoveling out of the driveway after “Osama Bin Snowplow” comes by every time. Can’t go anywhere; car’s buried in a mountain of white. The weather man says to expect another 10 inches of this *(#* tonight. Do you know how many shovelfuls of snow that is?

January 1 - Happy (#)@  New Year, The weatherman was wrong (again). We got 31 inches of the white crap this time. At this rate it won’t melt until July 4th. The snow plow got stuck up the road and the dumbass driver had the balls to come to the door to borrow my shovel. I told him I’d broken six shovels already from shoveling the crap he’s pushed into my driveway. I broke the last one over his head.

January 4 - Finally got out of the house today. I went to the store to get food and on the way back, a damn deer ran out in front of the car and I hit the little bastard. Did $4000 damage to the car. Those ()#*@ beasts are a menace.

March 8 - Took the car to the garage in town. Would you believe the thing is rotting out from the *(#*@ ice they keep dumping g all over the road? Car looks like a piece of *(#(.

June 1 - Packed up and moved to Arizona. I can’t imagine anyone in their friggin right mind would ever want to live in that God-forsaken state of Montana

- Love, Grandpa

19 comments:

  1. BOL BOL BOL! That's tooooo funny! *ear licks* Noodle

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  2. Love it! Abby, your Grandad is a hoot!

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  3. LOVE this, what a fun post, and what a gem and family treasure Grandpa is!!

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  4. Hari OM
    BOL.. OMD..... (stops to catch breath from the gigglyfit)... I was in love with grandpa - then he shot me between the ribs with his 180' on the state of Montana!!! Now I'm besotted... Hugs and wags, YAM-aunty xxx

    (pee ess; hope grandpa is doing okay and that mum isn't getting overwhelmed... a little bit of POTP going down this side for you all.)

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  5. OMD OMD OMD WE LOVE your GRANDPA.... We ADORE HIM... this is the bestest writing we have EVER read... we LOVE HIM.... OH how thingys did Change.... going from the land of Milk and Honey to the land of Shovels and S*#@ !!

    ABBY Dear.... could I (your Frankie) call your Grandpa MY Adopted Grandpa...??????? I want his SOOOOOOO badly.... he is MY KINDA GUY!!!

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    1. Frankie - he would be honored. Mom had a wiener dog when she was growing up that he picked out for the family, named Pepper.

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  6. Hey Abby!
    Wow, this is toooo funny! We have a song on the radio here about the snowplow guy. Always filling in the driveways, burying the cars along the street and the last straw is totally covering the mailbox...then they realize their shovel was leaning against the now vanished mailbox. BWAR HAR HAR Thanks for the chuckle today!
    Grr and Woof,
    Sarge, Furiend

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  7. Ha roo roo roo! Your grandpa ROCKS! We're expecting a blizzard Tuesday - Mom likes his line about moving to Arizona!!!
    Yours sincerely,
    Margaret Thatcher

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  8. Thanks everyone. Dad's a hoot. 95 - I have him at the grocery. He sees the checker use a mic to get a price check. When she puts it down and isn't looking he picks it up and in his best voice says "This is Elvis - Open up the Bakery".

    LB

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  9. BOL! Love it and we believe every word of it. Montana is very beautiful!

    Keep Calm & Bark On!

    Murphy & Stanley

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  10. My, how winter changes our minds!

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  11. OMD,
    Everyone should be so lucky to have a grandpa like yours!
    Having a sense of humor is a blessing,!
    Can wait to see the letter about how he loves Arizona lol
    God bless your grandpa.
    xo Cinnamon


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  12. Haha! What a great post to meet you on. Awesome Grandpaw Barkley!

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  13. oops, I am sorry, I mean Abby!I got distracted reading about the book below the comments section. :)

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  14. thatn
    was a super post... I'm with your grandpa... that snow is awful :o)

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  15. I read my Dad the comments and they just made his day. I do wish he'd come live with us, but I understand wanting to stay in his home and do all I can to make sure that happens. He gets weekly letters, Chicago cheesecorn and caramel corn, and I fly out every couple of months for a long weekend, and my husband and I spend our vacations with him. hugs LB

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