Our Bother

Thanksjuning 2016

Marital bliss improves anyone's outlook on life

As many of you know a house full of girls is a house full of high jinx and noise so when our baby brother was born we were all delighted by the novelty. Peeing straight up! Trisha got the brunt of that! A huge baby who was calm and content.

Being the last of six kids, Bobby got only some attention from the busy parents but he was the recipient of many buggy rides and dress ups from his older sisters. We all doted on him. This huge new brother.

He got a nick name when I went to camp. As a little boy, Bob sent a letter to me and signed it, "your bother Bob".   Hence forth, bother Bob.

Because Bob was nine when I left for college and thirteen when I got married, I wasn't around for most of his young years. What I do remember is this: we were all home for the summer it was hot, we were in the Glencoe house and Bob was maybe ten years old. He, for reasons unknown, decided to dress as "Stupid man". Bob had his shoes on the wrong feet, clothes on backwards or inside out, zippers unzipped. Mom was giving a party and sent Bob down the basement to get a watermelon out of the downstairs refrigerator. As he descended the stairs Mom called out, "whatever you do, don't drop the watermelon." Coming upstairs, KERPLOP! Stupid man must have tripped.

I know Bob had many neighborhood friends and they were endlessly making weapons in our backyard. Some of these now respectable gentlemen are still in touch with Bob and came to Mom's memorial.

No one who cooks cooks alone.  Even at her/his most solitary a cook in the kitchen is surrounded by generations of cooks past, the advice and menus of cooks present, the wisdom of the cookbook writer.     Laurie Colwin

Do not make a stingy sandwich; pile the cold-cuts high; customers should see the salami coming through the rye.                            Allen Sherman

Bob moved out to Hollywood Ca. worked in various restaurants and really honed his cooking skills.
Bob is a great cook and as a matter of fact that was one of the things that enticed his darling wife Senja to marry him. She said, "I was talking about Ricketts who I'd been dating and my girlfriends said, 'marry Ricketts, he can cook'!" Easy peasey.

After awhile he married our lovely sister in law Senja and they eventually bought the house in which Senja grew up. Lucky for all of us because one of the grand traditions in which my siblings and I participate is going to their house in June for "Thanksjuning". This started because Bob wanted us to come for Thanksgiving and we said, "won't work Bob we have these big families." So, Thanksjuning was born and is always a joyous occasion.

Bob does all of the cooking despite repeated attempts from the sisters to lighten the load. We do become sous chefs and we do sing in the kitchen, hopefully being entertaining.

Speaking of entertaining Bob is quite the excellent musician. He and his pal Tex formed "The Groovy Rednecks" which has been voted the best bar band in LA. for many years. He also plays with "Talking Treason" with Laura Smith whom we all love. So entertainment is a constant commodity in their house. When we're there we sing and play and eat, then sing and play and occasionally dance to their juke box. Fun R Us.

That is why we are grateful to have this generous bother Bob in our lives.

susansmagicfeather 2017 copyright Susan R. Grout all rights reserved