Grandpa’s Chairs: Why Nick and I are true Fords
As most everyone knows my Grandma Ford is moving out of her house. She has been there by herself for the past five years and it is time for her to have some more company. She is moving in with our Aunt Karen and this means Grandma will not need a lot of her possessions. What I thought would be a mad rush for things I consider family heirlooms has not been that. I just assumed everyone might be as sentimental as me when it comes to family memories and such.
I immediately went over to Grandma’s house shortly after the “come and get it” announcement to call dibbs on old furniture. I know that I already posses the coveted peanut dispenser, but why not continue to fill my house with memories? I claimed the old recliners and paintings from the basement and the old couch that I know myself and the Banich boys took plenty of Sunday morning naps on. I just hate to see things I have a lot of good memories with disappear.
Grandma also gave me a bunch of old pots and pans and kitchen utensils. These things were more out of necessity of need than memories. They are just things I won’t go out and buy on my own because I can get away with just eating tuna out of a can for dinner and not cook anything because what should I cook it with? Anyway, Friday I stopped by Grandma’s to pick up some boxes and while there she offered me to two old brown/yellow/white lawn chairs that Grandpa would always take to family events. I was on my way to the Brickyard with Nick and thought the chairs would be great. So I threw them in the car.
Those chairs provided to be just as great as I hoped. Not only are the still functional as chairs, but they are also incredibly light. They maybe weigh a pound each, maybe. After a weekend of camping and drinking Nick and I started our mile walk back to his car parked at his Grandparent’s house. Let me paint a picture of Nick and I carrying bags with clothes, sleeping bags, a tent, various other objects, and these two chairs.
We were both exhausted and ready for a shower and clean bathroom when a woman comes running across the street from behind us calling for us to hold up. She comes up and asks if we’d be willing to sell the chairs to her. She told us she’d been chasing us down for 3 blocks after we passed by her because she had been looking for chairs just like those. I assume she meant the color scheme of orange/brown/white. She was holding $20 in her hand and I looked at her and said “Sorry, but these chairs were just giving to me by my Grandma. They have some meaning to them for us (Nick and I), so I just can’t sell them.”
The lady understood perfectly and thanked us anyway. I was glad she didn’t continue to pursue it and try to haggle. As we kept walking I looked at Nick and said, “I bet everyone else in the family would have sold these chairs for $20. Hell I bet some of them would have offered some change after the deal.” Nick agreed and we just laughed thinking that it’s tough to be any more proud of being a Ford than us.
