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From:
Subject: Re: [APG] APG Digest, Vol 3, Issue 144
Date: Tue, 26 Feb 2008 10:02:13 -0800 (PST)


Elizabeth said:
And, yes, I did *carry* it. I didn't *tote* it, like folks in Northeastern
Alabama. But never, in the Mississippi Delta, did I *warsh* something, not
even when I used a wash tub and a rub-board. In case anybody's interested, I
also used that old galvenized wash tub for a cooler on hot days, but I
didn't fill it with bottles of pop or soda. I put it under the pump, filled
it with water from the well (water, not warter), and then lolled in it with
my pet duck.

This discussion reminds me of visiting my aunt in OK. She moved to her first house with electricity in 1954 (the year I was born). My dad installed indoor plumbing for her in 1969. I have fond memories of pumping water into the bucket and carrying it into the house and losing most of it before I made it to the "warsh" stand in the kitchen. My aunt would bathe in the galvanized tub every Saturday morning before we drove 10 miles to "Tish" (Tishomingo, capitol of the Chickasaw Nation). She washed her hair in rain water she collected in barrels. While in town we always visited the dime store and I could usually talk my aunt into buying me a small toy. I was mortified as a big city girl to learn I had to use the chamber pot at night (we developed very strong bladders in those days) and during the day we would go to the outhouse with a warning to watch out for the snake she saw out there last week! Potato peelings went in the slop jar and my aunt
would pour the flour out of the flour sacks (which she used to make aprons) into a deep drawer. The flour had to be readily available because we ate biscuits every morning.

The other thing I remember most about my aunt's house was the cold at night. She was afraid to leave the space heater (which used propane) on at night so we piled on the quilts until our toes bent under the weight. Your hair would feel like ice because it was the only thing outside of the cover. The lights were bare bulbs hanging in the middle of the room with a long string to turn them on and off. I couldn't reach the string and being independent refused to ask for help. I climbed on the bed and jumped for the string to turn the lights on! It's a wonder I didn't pull the whole thing down on me!

I also have a memory about ice cream sodas. They weren't a float because they weren't made with soda pop (or coke as we call it in Texas). It was made with ice cream, chocolate syrup and soda water. Every first day of school my mom took us to buy supplies and she bought us a chocolate soda at the drug store. I think it was as much for her as us. She missed us during the school year and needed cheering up herself! Ahh those were the days!

Kay Armstrong
Texas Native

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