March, all at once

"March 1, 1990:  March came in like a lamb -- but had a sleet storm on 6th and 7th.  We ladies finished my quilt on Wed. March 14.  The last week of March I pieced the 20 blocks for a 9-patch sampler quilt.  Jean and Hank were here Thurs. March 29.  LeRoy P. died of cancer -- was buried March 19.  Shirley F. died of cancer -- was buried March 27."

I am guessing from what she did write, that all of March is condensed in one entry because Grandma was busy quilting and sewing quilt blocks that month.

Jean and Hank.  I must admit I do not remember Hank very well, but from all accounts he was one heck of a good guy.  Not that he minded, I am sure, but it was probably hard to make a memorable impression on a youngster like myself when your other half was Jean.  People talk about someone walking in and lighting up a room; I think Jean made a room sparkle.  I don't recall that she ever seemed nanoseconds away from a good laugh or a good story.  I wish I had written down some of her never-before-heard sayings when we visited in 2004.  The only one I remember is "oh, for crying out the window." 

In a family of quite a few stay-put people, Jean and her sister Marjorie, were adventurous enough to go to Washington DC to work for the Navy when they were young women.  They were there for V-J Day.  The two of them jumped on a street car and went downtown to join in all the celebrating.  After a time the street cars weren't running anymore because of all the people in the streets and they finally got a ride back to their apartment with a Chinese General.  Wow.

Nancy has saved family Christmas letters for some time and told me of a story in Jean's 1994 letter about her putting a plastic plate full of her granddaughter's bars in the oven to save them from a kitten that didn't know yet about staying off of counters.  Hank set the oven on preheat to make a meatloaf.  Well, the plastic plate caught fire.  Jean described in humorous detail her repeated confessions that it was all her fault, how Hank let a "huge black genie" out of the oven when he opened it, and about her son's dashing around finding not one, but two, non-functioning fire extinguishers.  Oh, and the granddaughter's running around crying and scooping up kittens to save from the raging inferno.  Lastly, Jean spoke of her and Hank cleaning up afterwards and busting out laughing often as they did so.  What a bunch!

The picture I have here isn't the best, but Jean has her eyes closed in the other one I have from that trip, so I went with this one.