I've been listening to people describe the endearments given to their grandparents and the stories have been so interesting! Seems everyone has a story. Until I heard these stories, I hadn't thought too hard about Weenie's name. Weenie was always Weenie--our beloved grandfather. Did you ever stop to think about the fact that EVERYONE called him Weenie, so his grandchildren were calling him the same thing the other church usher was calling him? It would be like calling Dad Paddy. I suppose he was really used to it but it never never dawned on me that "Weenie" meant anything other than "My Grandfather".
As you probably know, Weenie had us calling his brother John "Uncle 4-5"--of course, he was actually Mom's Uncle John and I don't remember ever hearing her call him that. Always 4-5. And Fat Aunt Marg. Skinny as Weenie but "Fat Aunt Marg". He must still be smiling about that little joke on his brother and sister in law.
We had Nanny for both grandmothers and Grampie for the other grandfather. Pretty ordinary. Gammy Flynn and Gammy Nevins. I remember Gammy Flynn just barely. I didn't like the way she smelled but as I view the old movies, I see she was fun loving. As Mom would say " Weenie didn't lick it off the ground"!
Cards are a very fond memory of time spent together in multi-generational joy!
Beer, cigarettes, coins and cards. It's all there. These are cherished memories.
1 comment:
I absolutely love that picture of Weenie. I always thought he was a good looking man.
His name, however, did cause me to think often. My friends never understood how my grandfather could be "Weenie". In the sixties it sounded like he was a weenie, which wasn't all that flattering. I always felt I had to explain that he was a small guy playing college football and he got the nickname. That made it sound more acceptable, and I wanted my friends to think highly of him.
Is that how he got that name? Or did I just make it up? He was a great grandfather. We were lucky how he loved to tell stories. I remember the one about the "majic tape" that he kept in the cuff of his trousers. He said he would tape down their trailer in Florida if a hurricane came so he and Nanny would be safe. I believed him... I wanted them to be safe, so it was easy.
The fact that we all played cards and spent time together is another whole subject. We were lucky in so many ways.
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