1. Granny and Pap’s house has three bedrooms—just like our’s.
Since I was the only girl I got to have a room all to myself while Steve and Paul had to share.
After I moved out Granny turned my room into her sewing room and in later years her bedroom. It’s closer to the heater in the living and stays warmer than the backrooms.
The other day Granny laid down to rest for while. I went to her room to ask her something and noticed the old sticker I put on the door when I was just a youngun. I don’t remember how old I was but would guess about nine or ten. I’m not sure why Granny’s never removed the sticker, but I’m glad she hasn’t even though my order is being broke every day since she sleeps in the room 🙂
2. A few weeks ago The Deer Hunter, Chitter, and I were mowing and weedeating the yard and garden areas. We sat down to rest about half way through and get a drink of water. I noticed something white in Chitter’s hair. On closer inspection I realized it was the least little white blooms. When she was mowing she must have run her head through the elderberry bushes. I told her it looked like she’d been to a fancy hairdresser.
3. Granny keeps animal crackers well stocked for her two great granddaughters. I’m positive Chatter, Chitter, and me eat a whole lot more of them than the sweet little girls.
4. I enjoy a lot of the music Sturgill Simpson makes. One of his most popular songs is “Long White Line.” A few months back the girls and I were traveling over to Gainesville, GA. When we go on car rides of any length we discuss all sorts of things. On this particular trip one of the girls said “Do you ever think about just taking off and never coming back? You know I wouldn’t never do that but some people do just walk away from every thing and start a new life somewhere else.” Without missing a beat I said “Yeah I’ve thought about that. I’ve always wanted to see what was at the end of that long white line.”
For about thirty seconds the car was silent. I was smiling to myself wondering if they’d figure out where I got the line or if they’d think I was really clever. Suddenly Chatter said “Hey that’s part of some song I’ve heard!” I said “Yeah it’s from a Sturgill Simpson song I’ve been listening too” 🙂
To hear the song go here.
5. It’s hard to believe Sunday made a month since Miss Cindy passed away. We’re still missing her every day. About dinner time I often catch myself thinking it’s about time for her to come by on her way home from the gym.
Last night’s video: Come Sit on the Porch and Catch Up with All the Goings-On at Our House.
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I have tried to find your recipes you do on utube so I can make sure I have all the ingredients and direction but I never can fine . Would like to try the recipes. I enjoy watching the girls and you. Love watching your utube channel. Thank you all. joy
I remember as a child in the 60s, getting a box of animal crackers sometimes when we went to town. It was the little circus train boxes that had tigers & other animals in their
cage-train cars . The handle was a white flat woven string.
Tipper I told my husband you like Sturgill Simpson because he listens to him and he wanted to know if you have heard the album The Ballad of Dood and Juanita? If you haven’t he thinks you’ll really it. Has a blue grass folk sound to it.
Summer-thank you I will check it out 🙂
what a cute sign and has your name on it to. I think about granny alot. I’m a true softy for elderly since I’m a caregiver. The little woman that I had taken care of passed and already starting a new job next wk. She’s 87 yrs old. Ok Tipper I git to get off here and go to church. God bless granny. Prayers for her.
Love a lot of Sturgill Simpson’s stuff, especially the older more country style. Got to see him in concert in Indianapolis when my son lived there.
Looks like Granny at least tried to remove that sign, Tipper . . . must have thought better of it.
I saw an interview on YouTube w week or so ago with Sturgill Simpson and John Prine. That was the first I’d heard of him. I wasn’t overly impressed with his interview or the song he sang, but I didn’t think much of Elvis in ’54 or ’55 when I saw him at the late show at the Ambassador Theater in Raleigh.
From all I’ve seen and read coming from you and the girls, Wilson Holler is about as far as any of you ever want to go; so I was surprised to read about thoughts of just driving off and never coming back. I still want to do that at 81.
I think I got wanderlust in ’55. That was the year that the interstate highway system got its start. Eisenhower was President. In June of that year I rode non-interstate highways from Wake County to the Pacific Ocean and back with a brother and brother-in-law, both WWII combat veterans. The reason for the trip was to meet 2 other brothers, twins, who were being discharged from the Army at Fort Huachuca, AZ. There was not a single chain restaurant encountered the whole trip . . . at least one that we knew was a chain. That era was, I think, the golden era for our nation and the world. It’s a shame that kids today cannot experience those years and the country as it was back then.
God’s Blessings to all, especially Miss Louzine . . .
Hallelujah, praise God, God bless Granny with healing and health and love care and protection in Jesus name
Tipper,
That sign on the door may be Grannie holding on to a bit of her little Tipper! I sure miss those little boys of mine; they grew up, just as they were supposed to. I love the men they all became but I’d sure like to hold those little guys in my arms again. Even more now that one is in heaven!
I saw Sturgill in Wichita a few years ago when he was the opening act for Dwight Yoakam; I could have listened to him all night long. I can’t figure out why he hasn’t had a lot more success than he’s had?
It’s hard to see the worry about Grannie on all of your faces; thanks for sharing what’s happening with her. I’m sure you are blessed to know so many are praying for you and with you; I’m praying too!!
Tipper, I loved the pictures and the comments about each one of them, how you made a statement with the sign on the door, the flower in Chitter’s hair looks perfect, and I can’t tell you the amount of animal crackers that have been eaten by little folks and adults alike here at home. I enjoyed the song also. The last picture is just beautiful. It’s hard to believe that Miss Cindy has been gone a month and I know you miss her so much. Prayers for Granny, all of your family and her doctors. God bless you all.
Loved reading this! I will have to check out the music from Sturgill Simpson Gainesville is 15 miles away from me! 🙂
That reminded me of the stickers I put on the door and my dresser drawers! They are still there too!
We lost my husbands Mother in April this year and I still expect to hear from her every Sunday night.
I am like you in that I wouldn’t actually do it but I have often wondered what it would be like to just sell out and move to Italy! We watch videos about the country all the time. We got to go 20 years ago and it was so beautiful and of course the food was delicious! Just dreaming though while I cool off from working in the garden. I don’t think I really want to start over. Just thinking about all that would involve makes me tired! Lol
Randy, you take care now with this heat. Nobody cares if the grass is a little taller than usual but they will care if you pass away suddenly. Just saying.
I remember after I was married my mom handed me a box of my childhood things that were in the attic and in my room. She was on a cleaning binge and told me she wanted them “gone.” I recall feeling a little hurt that my “stake” in my parents’ house was no more. As long as those things were there, a little piece of my history was still there.
JC, I had been letting it go for almost 4 weeks. most of us country folks don’t have pretty yards of grass, we yards of weeds and weeds will keep growing when nothing else will. I cut about 6 acres or more, 3 of the yards belong to either my sister or my wife’s sisters. I cut these yards without any charge. It just a way for me to show my love for them and help them out because the ones that were married husbands are now dead.
I think most of us had signs like that going into preteen years. I know I did, but mine was just written on notebook paper put up with tape and only was up long enough for my mom to see it. My mom quickly took it down and informed me this was her house so she had access to all rooms, and I was just living in it until I got old enough to get married, then I would have my own house to live in. I’m impressed your sign was an actual sticker. I’m thinking either Pap or Granny got it for you, or possibly Steve to humor you. My daughter did the same as I but I left it up just so she would feel like she had a space of her own. She had to have known I went in her room when she wasn’t there because I cleaned it and put away all her laundry. If I had to do over again I’d let her put up her own laundry, clean her room and just require a monthly inspection to ensure she was being responsible in keeping up with her own room. Oh well the could’ve, should’ve, would’ve in life can’t be changed now, so no since in thinking about it. Chitter’s hair does look pretty like she’s been to a hairdresser! My husband and son in-law love Animal Crackers too. I buy that giant container of them from Sam’s Club to split between them. They eat them so quick over the couple of months that one year I bought them each a giant container. My son in-law ate his in two months. My hubby got tired of eating them so they last for six months and I ended up having to toss them out, so I won’t do that again for him. I had never heard that song so I clicked on link to listen to it. He sure does have a good voice. I guess at some point in our lives some of us might feel like we want to get in our car and just keep on driving, but we never do. All the pictures you posted are interesting, well done and beautiful. Time goes by so fast. It is hard to believe Miss Cindy has been gone for a month now, but she will forever be in all your hearts and memories. Sending you hugs from across the state. Tipper you’re not just a great writer, but a great photographer too! Thank you for sharing with us your talents.
We have three bedrooms in our little cabin also. We have two children, one boy and one girl, so they each had their own room. Of course they are all grown up with families of their own now. The funny thing is, you can still look in their rooms and tell whose rooms they were. We still call them the kids rooms and they have mot lived at home for a long time. My sons room still has baseball pictures hanging on the wall and his hunting clothes are still in one of the drawers in the dresser. The pillow toy he slept with when he was young is still in the closet. My daughters room still has her many board games in the closet, along with books she read and dance recital costumes. I love that there are still many signs of their childhood. My grandchildren have enjoyed many toys that we kept in the attic— just in case we had more kids, I guess. My extra bedrooms are mostly for sleepovers when my grandchildren come to stay. These are some of our happiest days. It’s like having your babies all over again, only you have lots more time to play!!
I enjoyed this post, each of the thoughts and the picture that accompanied it. The white flower in her hair looked pretty! Grandma’s have the best treats : ) ! The “Long White Line” is definitely a catchy tune.
Those people that leave us behind sure do leave a hole don’t they. I’m praying hard for granny, she’s always one of my favorite parts of celebrating appalachia and we share a birthday too. I love seeing all her crocheted creations and her speed on doing them. Your garden is crazy full I know you love it but trying to keep up with it is a job for sure. You’ll have to show us canning green beens on the camp chef I have one and want to use it this year for canning too. Sending prayers to you and granny always. ❤️
Sometimes when I’m out by myself I do chase that long white line. I love to take day trips!
Doesn’t seem like a month since Miss Cindy passed but time is slipping away for some of us.
Prayers for Granny to get good reports and strength for you Tipper.
If I lived anywhere near your book signings, I would be there. To meet you all in person would be a joy! You are so blessed to still go to the home you grew up in. I’m sure there are many memories. I’m so glad Granny is able to can her some beans. She is remarkable and so blessed. Praying for all and I know our Lord will carry you through. Go quietly on and trust Jesus. Take care and God bless ❤️
My father in law’s home was small but had three bedrooms and ONE bathroom. He had 5 girls and no boys. Three girls in one room and the two oldest in the other room. He passed away 10 years ago this month, the bushes around the edge of his backyard are just now beginning to come back out and look healthy. Some of you city folks may have to think about that. He would have been up the creek without a paddle if had lived in town and there is very little privacy.
Here where I live the long white lines have long since worn away. The NCDOT is severely underfunded. It’s gotten so bad that they have to buy their own shovels to lean on. Why some of them don’t have their own truck! How humiliating!
We, the people, have been trying to help by scraping away the brush that has grown half way out into the road. It’s a little harsh on the right side of the automobile but it’s better than having a semi truck remove the entire left side in one fell swoop. Right side mirrors here are not common on cars and trucks but can be found for free on the sides of the roads if you dare crawl back upinunder the brambles and brush to retrieve one.
One good thing about having the brush encroaching from both sides is that we have no posted speed limits here. We actually do but the highway patrol can’t charge us because they can’t find the signs either.
Ed, a lot of the roads around here have patching on top of patching, especially the secondary roads. There has been such a huge increase in traffic caused by the number of people moving into the area and from all of the housing developments being built. Sometimes it seems like I now wait 5 minutes before I can pull out on, HWY 25- one of the main highways. Back in the late 70’s or early 80’s I would drive 17 miles one way on this same highway around midnight either going or coming to or from work and would see less than 10 other cars on the road and now it is 4 lanes instead of the 2 lanes I drove on during that time. Once the highway tried to paint white lines on the backroads I live on but ran into a problem, the paint lines were wider than the road! Concerning underfunding, there is probably a lot of truth in that, but I know for a fact from close friends that worked for either the Highway department or county maintaining the roads that there is also a lot of money wasted. One spoke of sometimes being told to ride around in the truck all day and make people think you and the other one with you are working.
Tipper, I find the door sign interesting. I noticed TIPPER is outside the box and the skull and crossbones, you were serious.
One of my favorite things to do is take a road trip with my daughter, it is amazing the things you find to chat about.
Great time for prayer too!
Have a blessed day
Tipper, I think Sturgill Simpson has got it going on! “If somebody wants to know what’s become of that so and so” that’s pretty funny right there… anyway thanks for Sturgill and how do you hear of all these wonderful songs? Your old door sign is pretty funny. The fact it’s there after all this time is ironic, especially since it’s Granny’s “sweet spot” nowadays. I stuck stickers on EVERYTHING for a few years in the early 80’s- my dresser, the bed, the door posts and they either stayed forever or daddy pried them off… I’d love to “put her in the wind and head off into the unknown,” but I’m a bit too fond of my home and a bit scared of what creepy crazy people might be looking for a victim right now. I’ve been all over this western hemisphere and West Virginia is as good or better than any of them! I reckon I will finish out here and die here. It ain’t sad, it’s just reality and if I’m nothing else, I’m a realist. Life is great and getting better!!! I say the white flower in Chitter’s pretty lush dark locks was simply lovely! She should put those blooms all through her hair!!! Just beautiful! Miss Cindy has been home with the Lord for a month and I know you miss her. To that new and perfect home is where we all want to go ( although not in a hurry.)
One of my earliest memories is of my grandfather Sikich. He always kept a box of animal crackers for me. He hid them in a cabinet in his coffee table. Mom said I used to make a beeline for those crackers when we visited his home. I knew right where they would be and that they would always be there.
I love how you notice and take in all the little things in life that are so special. It’s funny how we’re just always rushed and busy in our lives that we don’t slow down enough to take it in. God has been working on me a lot about that for a while now and I have so enjoyed taking in all the little things. It brings you so much joy. Love that you’ve captured it in photos too. Continued prayers for Granny ❤️
Tipper, have you heard sturgull sing all the gold in California? I seen the video on tiktok the other day and man he killed it
Russ-I haven’t heard that one will have to check it out 🙂
I can relate about wanting to stop off & visit a spell. Took months for that urge to call my Dad to subside. And when I forgot, at that moment, and with the ringing phone in hand was answered, had a lovely talk with my step-mum instead.
Hope to see you at the book signing Saturday. Praying for your mama.
Tipper, I sure enjoyed the “snapshots ” from your life today, and also Glenda and Randy’s good comments. We’re all moving forward toward the end of that “long white line” but isn’t the journey great! I wouldn’t trade a day of it…good or bad! The Lord is sufficient to carry us through.
when I visited my sisters a few weeks back, I got something out of the hall closet and stopped to read the writing on the inside walls. You see, my sisters live in the house I grew up in and that inner wall was used for graffiti. You know stuff like so in so loves so in so 4 ever (you always use the number 4 instead of four), of course I don’t remember who it was I was going to love 4 ever, lol. I asked my sisters, when they converted the closet to shelving from a coat closet, why didn’t they paint over it. They said they just couldn’t do it. At one time or another all of my 6 siblings recorded something in that closet wall. It holds precious memories. Tipper, you are my sister in Christ and every time I read your blog and vlog I just feel so close to your family. My prayers for beloved Granny and you all.
Never heard of Sturgill Simpson but love his style and the song. Will look for more of his music. Also praying for Granny and you and your family as you work through your grief after losing Miss Cindy. God Bless all of you.
I had never heard that song til you mentioned it. I didn’t realize he was so new to the country scene, very catchy. I have missed seeing the girls a lot lately but that is what happens the more they grow and go on their own ventures The wonderful part is when they and Matt go with you on your book touring. I so wish I was closer. Still doing a lot of praying for Granny and am looking forward to seeing her more. Please give her my best God Bless you guys.
When my aunt and uncle were still alive and living at Chattanooga,Tenn. I would cut up through Gainesville,GA and across the mountains when I went to visit. I went this way to stay out of Atlanta. Notice the time of my comment I have already woke up twice tonight after going to bed close to midnight thinking of my wife, it has been 2 1/2 years since her death but it seems like yesterday. Tipper just like you looking for Miss Cindy, I still catch myself looking for her or think about telling her something. I continue to pray for your family and Granny. I still have stickers or others things on the doors or refrigerator that were put there or give to us by our children or grandchildren, they will remain there as long as I live.
Your mentioned of cutting grass, I got the 4th yard cut yesterday. I feel fine now after my heat exhaustion experience on Saturday. I appreciated the ones that showed concern and commented , yes I have first hand knowledge of the dangers of this, my daddy had either heat exhaustion or heat stroke in May of 1981, within two weeks of this he had a heart attack. The same hot dry forecast for the rest of the week with feel like temps of 105-110 degrees by the weekend.
Randy, you need to go to a cardiologist and get checked out. That “heat exhaustion” might be a embolism somewhere in your heart or lungs that might seem to correct itself but is just waiting to do some serious damage.
I have been wearing a heart monitor for 2 weeks because of a situation similar to yours. It comes off today, thankfully. I’ll mail it off later today and somebody somewhere will analyze it and send the result back to my cardiologist. I go back to the doctor in 2 more weeks to find out what he thinks.
I pray your episode isn’t anything serious but don’t ignore it. God can work through doctors hands too!
Ed, I didn’t see this earlier, I know this is not the same as the test you are referring to, but I had blood work done and they also listened to my heat and lungs about 4 weeks ago and everything checked out to be good. Heart problems is something I need to be very concerned about, it is in my genes, my daddy, his daddy (my grandaddy) and his two brothers (uncles) all were dead before they reached 70 years old. All but one were 68, 69 years old and died from heart related problems. I am 69 1/2 years old. I know this is being stupid, ignorant, dumb or whatever else you want to call it, but as long as I am able to wiggle a little bit I won’t go to the doctor. There was a good many test ran last August when it was thought I had a stroke, nothing wrong showed up and I was finally told they thought depression and anxiety had had a lot to do with what was going on at that time. Right now I feel as good as I every do, I did a few things this morning and with the actual temp being around 95, as we would say at work you can stick a fork in me, I am done. I do want to water the little bit of garden I have left later on today, we still have not had any rain.
Take Ed’s advice, Randy. And stay in out of this Dog Days heat.
Reminds me of the old British song, “Only Mad Dogs and Englishmen Go Out in the Midday Sun.”
Stress and anxiety can cause the same kinds of symptoms you seem to carry with you. Talk to your doctor about something to help you through the night. A good nights sleep is vital to a healthy mind and body. Call them drugs if you want to but if you had a bad infection you wouldn’t hesitate to take an antibiotic. Call it an antibiotic for your mind. Anxiety and stress are no less an infection than Strep, Staph or Mrsa, they are just sneakier and potentially more deadly.
It’s 1:30 PM here right now. At 2:00 PM I’m taking this monitor off and heading for the post office with it. I’ve been wondering if it has been attached to a Chinese spy balloon all this time and they are monitoring my every move. If they have been tracking my moves I’ll bet they are pretty much bored to death by now.