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Friday, November 19, 2010

Grandpa Sam PERRINS loved his beer!

This is a 'fun' story that was sent to me by cousin Barbara Gray Winkler.  Barbara's mother, Freda, was the youngest of eight children of our grandparents,  Sam and Edna Perrins who lived in Albion, Idaho.   In her younger years, Barbara and her older brother Gerald and younger sister Joyce lived  just 'through the block' from Gramma and Grandfather's house. 

"As long as I can remember our grandparents lived on the same street as the High School and Training School, as everyone called it.  [We know it as a Grade School]
Grandpa worked at the Normal School [college].  His favorite pass time was making home made beer.  My dad [Robert aka Bob Gray] told him, the way he was making it and tasting it, it was going to kill him!  Ha!  Grandpa had a cast iron stomach.  In the house, under the kitchen floor, there was a cellar.  You could access it through the kitchen.  Gramma kept her fruit and etc. there because it was cool and kept things from spoiling.  That was Grandpa's hide away for making beer.  It was against everything Gramma believed in.  One early evening after dinner, Grandpa went down in the cellar to check his beer and when he did this, of course, he always had to taste it, a number of times.  Gramma hated it when he did this, because he always smelled like beer.  He never, never abused drinking!  This particular evening, the visiting Home Teachers came by.  Gramma hurried and closed the cellar door which was on the floor and moved the wash stand over it, so grandpa couldn't get out.  She let the Home Teachers in.  Just as the Home Teachers were leaving, Grandpa decided he was through with his tasting and wanted to come back up the stairs and, of course he couldn't get out.  He called to Gramma but, Gramma ignored him, she was thanking the HomeTeachers for coming by and saying goodbye and that took a few minutes.  Finally, yelling wasn't doing any good, so he found a mop in the cellar and started banging on the cellar door, yelling 'Mother let me out' repeatedly.  Finally the Home Teachers left and Gramma let Grandpa out. As you know their marriage still survived. 
A few years after Gramma died Grandpa decided he was going to get baptized.  He told the Bishop that he drank just a taste of beer a day.  The Bishop told him about the Word of Wisdom, Grandpa replied, that just a little beer keeps his kidneys working and he had been doing it all his life. [as prescribed  by his Doctor] The Bishop agreed at his age, he was  81, it would be acceptable if it was just a taste. "

Thanks Barbara, for this memory.  More is yet to be posted!