Damn Yankees! June 28, 2011
Posted by nrhatch in Humor, People, Word Play.trackback
Wikipedia ~ Hammer Throw (in Public Domain)
My great-grandmother lived in the Scottish Highlands.
Her son, my maternal grandfather, emigrated to the US in his 20′s.
There, he met and married my grandmother. My mother resulted from their union.
Like many Highlanders who climb the hills, my great-grandmother remained agile and spry well into her 90′s.
During a visit in autumn, my grandfather walked into her kitchen one morning and started shivering.
As he rubbed his arms to warm up, my great-grandmother snorted in disgust, jumped up on the counter, and slammed down the window.
Turning to my grandfather, and using her strongest Scottish brogue, she declared:
Och, ye damn yankees . . . ye cannae stan a wee bit of fresh aire!
What a bonnie highlander!
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Spirit Lights The Way 
That’s what dopey Red Socks fans say every day. LET’S GO YANKEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES !
Go team!!! 😀
sounds like a real spitfire! I have a feeling my goddaughter is going to grow up just like that!
Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind. ~ Dr. Seuss
I should remind her mother of this quote but she is not a fan of Dr. Seuss as I am…I jokingly tell her I can not possibly be friends with anyone who does not adore Seuss!
I adore all things Seussical
He sees the usual as unusical
Singing fish with chimes
Bright colorful rhymes
Let’s write a Suzical musical!
Here in New York, the word “Yankee” can only mean a member of the greatest baseball team of all time!
I remember the classic team of the 1950’s, with Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra and the Manager Casey Stengel. That was the time in this Country, when things were the way they should be. We had peace, prosperity and the Yankees always won the World Series. Like I said, the way things “should” be.
I’m not sure that I would return to the 50’s . . . but peace and prosperity sound good.
GREEN before GREED.
PLANET before PROFIT.
Go Team! 😀
I would love to be able to spend a little time with my Grandfathers, both of whom I never had a chance to get to know. One died 12 years before I was born and the other when I was two.
This is one of the little comforts of being spiritual/religious, whatever we want to call it.
The belief that in time, we will have the chance to meet that family that we miss.
Many call it silly self-delusion, but I’m not sure I’d think too very much of this human existence if I was convinced that THIS is all there is.
— Judson
I’ve heard of many people who, as they “let go of life,” are met by loved ones “on the other side.”
I do not believe that THIS is all there is.
Too funny. Such a beautiful part of the world too.
She must have been a hoot!
Oh, ye take the high road
And I’ll take the low road
And I’ll be in Scotland afore ye . . .
Aye, lass, a true spit-fire, an’ that’s th’ truth of it.
I’ve feisty ancestors on both sides ~ I emulate them whenever possible.
There is a stubbornness about me that never can bear to be frightened at the will of others. My courage always rises at every attempt to intimidate me. ~ Elizabeth Bennet, Pride and Prejudice, ch. 31.
Family stories are valuable. Thank you for sharing this story about your great grandmother. May you live to be as old and spry.
Thanks, Clar.
I only want to live as long as I remain “happy” to be here ~ if my happiness dissipates, I want to leave. 😀
There is something very hardy and practical about the Scots. If they weren’t so much fun we would all be wise to be terrified of them!
Your comment reminds me of my maternal grandmother ~ if she hadn’t been such FUN . . . she would have terrified me! 😀
Nancy! I think you have met her. Look in the mirror! 😀
Thanks, Amy!
I am delighted to emulate the forthright nature of most of my many ancestors ~ on both sides of the pond.
You’re a chip off the old block all right, but with a take all your own. Hope you get back there to see Scotland again someday soon.
Actually, I’ve never been. 😦
Someday, perhaps.
lol! What a great woman. Loved this story 🙂
Thanks, Tilly.
I know a fair amount about my grandparents on both sides from tales told me as a child, but less about their parents. Just a tasty tidbit here and there.
Hehe, love it, Nancy! Especially with my Scottish ancestry too; my paternal grandfather emigrated to Zambia from Scotland 🙂
Have you ever been? When I get there, I want to visit the lochs and glens, the Hebrides, the Orkney isles, and wander the hillsides. Oh, yes, and meet Nessie!
That is so funny! I can even hear her saying it with such derision… LOL! 🙂
It’s one of the few stories I remember my grandfather telling me about her. It must have stuck with him too.
Me too 😉
Nothing like a wee Scottish brogue! 😀
I do believe my daughter is letting her Scottishness shine all over the place!
Och . . . the wee lass has a full head of Scottishness! 😀