Searching for food and got memories too!

 Cars in memorial:

 The First motor vehicle ever. 1886

On January 29, 1886, Carl Benz applied for a patent for his “vehicle powered by a gas engine. Daddy's mother and dad were married 3 years before that!

For today:

I was taking my sweetheart out for breakfast, but found ‘Giorgio’s’ closed. We were just enjoying riding and drove a few miles to ‘Greens and Grits’ down town Lowell. It is a ‘café’ where locals gather. I have grandparents and other kin buried a few blocks from the restaurant. This little town brought up memories. Leaving, Sherry said, “Let’s drive by your Grandma’s old house. Lowell is a little town you can do a ‘U-turn’ on Main Street. So I did a U-turn and headed out to the Art Cloth mill village.

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My mind went quickly back to 1945, I was 5 or 6. I was in a 1941 Chevrolet in the back seat. HWY 74 runs 2 miles from Grandma’s house. I can still hear dad say, “I should go by and see mama, but we need to get to Burlington.” (About 70 miles away).

When we reached Burlington Dad ran into the house to catch the phone that was ringing. It was one of his brothers telling him their mama was dying, to get there as soon as possible. WE headed back immediately. We did get back before the final breathe.

Dad was the oldest of 9 boys and 3 girls. That old mill house is vivid in my mind, seeing all 12 grown siblings around the bed of their mother who was married around 1884. All crying, some praying; as a kid I still remember feeling the loss and love.

I had never until this morning associated dad’s death and grandma’s death and similar circumstances. At the time we lived in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba (GITMO). The USN would have flown the family back together upon his death. I wanted to be there at his leaving for his eternal home, so I flew out leaving Sherry & the boys to follow later.

The similarity of the deaths; when I reached Charlotte the plane was not allowed to land due to severe weather. I circled Charlotte as dad died in the hospital below.  Close but yet so far. The difference was, I was not there to say goodbye.

So yes, Sherry & I drove by Granny Darnell’s home. We also went by the homes of Uncles: Sam, Doyle, Fred (2 of them). All moved from Georgia to work at “The Art Cloth”

Sorry, I’m getting too old, memories fill my mind.

Nite Shipslog.

PS: Kitties for fun:

BTW, as y'all said, They took to the litter boxes in less than two whole days, I was pleasantly shocked.