Moonshiners' Regrets

 

 

CNN 

Pamela had always been a gregarious child, her grandma said with just a bit of pride.  Grandpa called her “Munchkin” which made her laugh, because she was anything but small or weak.  Tall as a man and just as strong, Pamela could handle just about any physical challenge.

Wikipedia, God bless 'em

 

The moonshiners in the back woods often tippled back a few samples of their work, which set them carousing and singing bawdy songs at the top of their lungs.  One afternoon, Grandpa mentioned that he wished them ne’er do wells would get their comeuppance someday.  Pamela considered his words.

When dusk was just dipping, Pamela wrapped herself in a burlap sack and darkened her face with charcoal.  Gazing about the barn, she noticed some ancient tools and buckets.  There in the corner was a rusted bed pan that Aunt Pitty had used before she died.

 

 

Armed with the pan, Pamela crept silently up to the camp where the carousing men were staggering around.  She leapt from the brush with a roar.  Stunned, the men were speechless as Pamela battered them with the bed pan until some fainted. 

“GET THE HELL OUTTA HERE!” Pamela roared.  They ran.

Pamela destroyed the still and jars of moonshine.

There would be no more carousing near Grandpa’s farm. She did keep one jar for Grandma's Christmas pudding.

P.S.  Oh, Delores!  You were messing with our minds! 

        The underlined words had been given to bloggers by Delores. She created Wednesday Words challenge for bloggers to expand their genre.  Delores passed the baton onto Elephant's Child and  River.  Please check those sites for contributions. 

 

This is from 2012. My mom said that her dad had a still in the woods, which made Grandma really mad.

Teach your children well

 

                                                Crosby, Stills, and Nash

You, who are on the road
Must have a code that you can live by
And so, become yourself
Because the past is just a goodbye

Teach your children well
Their father's hell did slowly go by
And feed them on your dreams
The one they pick's the one you'll know by

Don't you ever ask them, "Why?"
If they told you, you would cry
So just look at them and sigh
And know they love you

And you (Can you hear?) of tender years (And do you care?)
Can't know the fears (And can you see?)
That your elders grew by (We must be free)
And so, please help (To teach your children)
Them with your youth (What you believe in)
They seek the truth (Make a world)
Before they can die (That we can live in)

And teach your parents well
Their children's hell will slowly go by
And feed them on your dreams
The one they pick's the one you'll know by

Don't you ever ask them, "Why?
If they told you, you will cry
So just look at them and sigh
And know they love you

What  do you think when you hear this song ?

M is for Molasses

God bless Wikipedia.org

When the cornfields had been flooded by heavy spring rains and over-flowing creeks, Dad would drive slowly down the road looking at the fields.  Yellow stalks meant that the corn would either fail or the crops would be minimal.  

He would sigh, shake his head, saying "Sorghum this year".

To salvage the money loss, Dad plowed up the fields as soon as the mud dried enough, planting sweet sorghum which had a shorter growing time.  Ground and chopped up, the cane oozed a green sap to be boiled down to make molasses..  the video below shows Roy and Doris Moore of Tennessee making molasses the old-fashioned way.  

This wuz how it wuz done...about 6 minutes long...fast forward? Go get a cup of coffee and just listen?

After all the time, work, and patience spent, deep black sweet molasses emerged, pouring from the tap, glugging all the time.

People from all over the county somehow knew the molasses was ready. They just showed up with jugs, jars, and even vats.  The molasses maker was a man named Daniel Boone.  Honest--his name was Daniel Boone.

Molasses was a substitute for sugar in WW2, and was even used to make hair products (? yes).  Perhaps the least talked about use for molasses was that it could produce excellent rum.  All that was needed was a still.

My Grandfather Cardiff had a still.

My Grandmother Marie did not know this.

There is a great story to be told about that time, a post in the future on  my other blog site:http://susankanewriter.blogspot.com

M is for Molasses.  ***

Marvin "Popcorn" Sutton in Tennessee, in 2007, the year of his arrest

***In England, molasses is called treacle.

Wednesday Words: Pamela

Pamela had always been a gregarious child, her grandma said with just a bit of pride.  Grandpa called her “Munchkin” which made her laugh, because she was anything but small or weak.  Tall as a man and just as strong, Pamela could handle just about any physical challenge.

Pamela had always been a gregarious child, her grandma said with just a bit of pride.  Grandpa called her “Munchkin” which made her laugh, because she was anything but small or weak.  Tall as a man and just as strong, Pamela could handle just about any physical challenge.

Wikipedia, God bless 'em

The moonshiners in the back woods often tippled back a few samples of their work, which set them carousing and singing bawdy songs at the top of their lungs.  One afternoon, Grandpa mentioned that he wished those n’er do wells would get their comeuppance someday.  Pamela gave thought to his words.

When dusk was just dipping, Pamela wrapped herself in a burlap sack and darkened her face with charcoal.  Gazing about the barn, she noticed some ancient tools and buckets.  There in the corner was a rusted bed pan that Ol’ Aunt Pitty has used before she died.

Source: freepages.history...

Armed with the pan, Pamela crept silently up to the camp where the carousing men were staggering around.  She leapt from the brush with a roar.  Stunned, the men were speechless as Pamela battered them with the bed pan until some fainted. 

“GET THE HELL OUTTA HERE!” Pamela roared.  They ran.

Pamela destroyed the still and jars of moonshine.

There would be no more carousing near Grandpa’s farm.

P.S.  Oh, Delores!  You are messing with our minds!

        The underlined words have been given to us by Delores @thefeatherednest.  Please visit this site to read what some have written in the comment section.  Also take a look at the participating sites in the right sidebar.  Fun reading.