Irish Mouth Music

My Grandma Fitzpatrick, and my Mom Harriet, both would sing and whistle a lot as they performed their work during the day. It was a way to make the work less a drudgery, and help pass the time in a more pleasant way. A long tradition in many cultures, my Mom and Grandma would sometimes do it in a very specific manner known to many of Irish heritage; they were a kind of Irish 'mouth music', with much 'diddly dee'-ing and other sorts of amusing sounds. I always loved to listen to them and have attempted to recreate them, but I think I am a poor reflection of how they did it...

Corny and Proud of It

"Yeah, Man!", my Dad used to say, when he was expressing delight, especially about a meal he was about to dive into. My sister Sharon also has been known to say that, and sometimes I hear myself saying it, and immediately think of them, that it is _so_ 'us'. Our family has many little sayings, way of talking, of relating, and little rituals (as opposed to traditions, which we also have...) We would probably be called corny and quaint by many, but those same people probably secretly envy us corny people. They see how happy we can be doing simple things like having a good conversation, breaking bread together, etc. We don't need fancy cars or guns or motorhomes, although the more affluent our family gets, the more junk we _have_ admittedly accumulated. However, I still see very thankfully an acknowledgement, even among the younger generations, of what is truly important: Each other...