Some Things Never Change

This baby's name is Ricky Gill. It is written on the back of the last picture posted. I don't know who his parents are.

My Parents

This is my dad, probably right before he joined the Navy.
This is my mom and dad, Bill and Betty Brennan

Church in Appalachia

I recognize my great aunt Evangeline Salyers (Van)and my great aunt Ermalee Meade standing with her husband Junior Meade in this picture. They were my Granny Brennan's sisters. This was always a very religious family. My Granny and Van and their mother Buryel Salyers were ministers in southern West Virginia for as long as I can remember. I always thought this was very "women's lib" of them, because many people where I am from think that women shouldn't lead a church. They would not have approved of my thinking since they still feel that men are the head of the household; however, they loved the Lord and wanted to serve him, so they did.

Even though these pictures were taken in the 50's, church still looks much the same today around here.

Really Really Old Appalachian Pictures

My great great grandmother Lola Collins (adopted name) and my great great grandfather Harold Spradlin

My Great Grandmother Salyers and her brother Jimmy
The back of the this picture says "Eugene Collins"





I am not able to identify the other pictures at this time.

Appalachia 1940's and 50's

That is my great aunt Van in the bottom left picture. I recognize her from another picture my granny showed me once. Doesn't she look like "Clementine"?

That is Van again (4th. from left on bottom)

I love a parade

When I was in high school my friends and I decided to build our own float for the homecoming parade instead of helping one of the clubs. We stayed up all night for about a week making those paper flowers and covering the top of a Limosine with them. It looked pretty cool and we made signs for the side that said "A Touch of Class".

We took a vote and I won. I got to be the "Wildcat" who rode on top throwing candy to all the kids. Everybody else rode inside the limo during the parade. (there were 13 of us) We had to seal everbody in the limo at my house and then drive to the parade. (so it would look good, of course) I rode on top of the limosine all the way from my house to Logan (about 5 miles).

Dummy me decided to play a joke on them when we rounded a very sharp curve in West Logan. Delana was driving about 15 mph and I banged on the roof loud once and then a couple of little thumps and screamed like I fell off the top. She slammed on the brakes and I almost really DID fall off! Thankfully I held on.

We had a great time in that parade. The kids loved the candy and my friends loved riding in the limo and I loved riding on top. It was a great day!
Posted by damnpamn at 11:25 AM

My Beautiful Nephew

This is my nephew's graduation picture. His name is William Arnold Brennan IV. I begged my brother not to do that to him! I was joking and told Billy and Lisa that we were going to call him Arny to be different - I guess it stuck.

I used to call Arny, "Pedro", just to get a reaction from him. He would always laugh and smile and scream, "my name's not Pedro!"

The best part of having my beautiful nephew were the flying hugs that he used to give me. It didn't matter how far away he was, he would come running as fast as he could when he saw me and leap into my arms and I would spin him in a giant hug.

Pam and Bobby

We took this picture for our 10th. anniversary. We had just had our first litter of greyhound puppies and everything in our professional lives was coming together.

I was furious with the woman who took the picture because she kept walking by and flipping my hair back over my shoulder. I guess she was jealous because she had ugly hair.

Soon after this I talked Bobby into shaving his head. He looked much better bald. We went to work and told everybody that he had come home drunk and I had shaved his head to teach him a lesson. They believed it!

Laddie O

Before some of ya'll start lecturing me about this story, please remember it happenned in the 70's.

Laddie O was an adorable little cocker spaniel mix that showed up on our doorstep one day. He was sooo cute. He was a solid blond color with the same color eyes. He enjoyed tromping through the river mud and he kept getting us in trouble because he would get it all over us and the patio and porches. This was NOT his biggest flaw.

Laddie was hit by a car seven times (actually 6 - I will explain).

After he was hit by a car the fifth time (making a total of four broken hind legs and one broken shoulder) my mom decreed that if he ever got hit again, she would not pay the vet bills. We were instructed to keep him in his pen or tied up. As usual we felt sorry for him and let him out to play.

Laddie was lying in the back yard eating a bone. Rusty was in the front yard mowing grass. Rusty hit a piece of iron pipe and it went flying through the air (I witnessed all this taking place). The iron pipe hit Laddie O in the in the shoulder and broke his leg in the exact same place. The cast had only been off for a week.

As poor Laddie lay screaming on the ground beside his beloved bone, my mom comes out and looks at him with dismay. All of us kids are crowded around him begging her for another chance. After all, what happenned wasn't his fault. It was just plain, old, bad luck! So once again mommy loads Laddie up and takes him to the vet. That was trip number six.

One day she had just left the house and a neighbor comes over and tells me Laddie had been hit by a car again. He was lying in the middle of the road. I rushed out with Billy and Rhonda and we scrape him off the road - but he is alive. I go to the payphone and I call my dad crying and begging to take Laddie to the vet again. He tells me it is ok to take him. (I had just passed my driver's test)

We hurriedly loaded Laddie up (partly because his condition was so serious and partly because we knew that as soon as my mom found out that she would be furious). We rushed to the vet's office and they start to administer emergency care. My mom comes in about five minutes after we get there and tells them to stop everything. She would not pay for anymore treatment.

My brother points out to her that she might as well let them finish because she was going to have to pay for what they had already done. She agreed - under one condition. The vet had to keep Laddie and find a home for him when he was well. He did.

I heard once that Laddie had been running through our junior high school and they had to chase him on all three floors before they ran him out of the building. About 3 years later, I was working at Burger Chef. I looked outside to see Laddie bumming food in the parking lot. By the time I called my mom and received permission to bring him home he was gone - never to be seen again.