Tales of a Coal Miner's Daughter

2007-03-30T20:08:00.000-04:00

Table of Contents

Background Story

Introduction

Fried Chicken Special_Chapter 1

On Our Own_Chapter 2

Brighter Days_Chapter 3

Transition _Chapter 4

Transition

2007-03-23T11:19:00.000-04:00

David handled the thick, black marker as though he were deactivating a time bomb. He wanted to make sure that each letter and number was exact. He carefully tried not to smudge, as he traced the letters and numbers onto the white piece of cardboard. Recreating a license plate wasn't easy, but he had no choice, since his was smashed beyond recognition.

Nancy placed the tea kettle on the old, gas stove. The end of February was approaching, and she was anticipating the arrival of the baby. David had left early. This would be his last day at Melpar, and he would begin his new job at the Post Office on Monday. They were both thrilled because the job meant security for the family and less danger than working at Melpar building rockets. David's anxiousness over finances was beginning to fade. However, they still needed to pay the March rent, and he wouldn't be receiving his first paycheck from the Post Office for two or more weeks.

The landlord reminded them of a scary, old fencepost, inanimate and erected to keep people out. Although David was close to six-feet-tall, she towered in stature over the both of them. They had paid late before, and she was still already angry over the time they fumigated the cockroaches. Apparently, they had vacated the downstairs apartment, but then traveled to cleaner air–up in her dwelling. She threatened to throw them out if they did it again. "And furthermore, if I get one more late rent payment, I will make sure that you are EEE VICK TED," she emphasized each syllable, as spit flew out of her tightly parsed lips. "Do you understand me?"

"What a hag!" David said after they had left the confrontation. "We need a miracle if we are going to pay this rent on time." He walked to the TV, flipped it on and tuned in to The Red Skelton Show. Nancy tried to feel the same worry as he, but she couldn't. She just knew that things were going to be okay.

It was sometime around noon when the phone rang. "Nancy? It's me. I just wanted to let you know that I was in a car accident on the way to work this morning." "Are you okay? What happened?" He started to chuckle as he replied. "Yeah, yeah. I am, but you are NOT going to believe this Nan. It's a miracle!" "What? David, what are you talking about. You just said that you were in an accid..." "Yes, I know." He interrupted, "I was sitting at a light and someone just rammed the rear end. Nan, the whole back end is smashed in!" He exclaimed with glee. "David, I think that you are really losing your mind." He acted like he didn't even hear her. "Nancy, you haven't heard the best part!" "Oh, do tell," she said sarcastically, but she was becoming extremely curious at her husband's odd behavior. "Well, I called the insurance and told them the circumstances, so they sent a guy to Melpar to check out the car. Nan..." He paused. Nancy's heart was pounding loudly now as she waited. "They gave me a check for a hundred and fifty bucks, right there on the spot. Do you realize what this means?" Nancy's eyes grew moist and she started to smile and then finished his sentence. "We can pay the rent." He repeated her words in a reassuring tone. "We can pay the rent." Then added, "and for a hundred and fifty bucks, we buy groceries too." "What about the car?" Nancy queried. "The car is still safe to drive, although the license plate was destroyed, but we can get the back end fixed after I get my first paycheck."

David hung up the phone and continued to work on his license plate. He wanted the work day to be over, so he could drive home and pay the rent a day early. "I can't wait to see the look on that old hags face when I hand her the check." He laughed at himself as he took one final look at the cardboard masterpiece. "Pretty damn good Dinning," he said with pride. "This oughta hold us over until we can drive up to Pennsylvania in a few weeks. Things are definitely looking up." Little did he know, they would be traveling to Pennsylvania sooner than a few weeks–a lot sooner.

Brighter Days

2007-03-21T20:44:00.000-04:00

February was a cold month. The heating bill was higher than expected and they hadn't anticipated the cost of the doctor visits. David was beginning to worry about paying the rent on the meager salary that he received from Melpar. The joy that he experienced by moving them into a place of their own was beginning to dissipate as the reality of survival set in. Uncle Ronnie had suggested that he take the federal postal worker exam. He was concerned about his ability to pass the thing, but with anticipation, he took his uncle's advice. Now, he only needed to wait for the results.

Nancy, walking around the apartment in a thick, wool sweater, stuck her head out the front door. "Looks like it may snow," she said. "Oh great," replied David, oozing with sarcasm. "That is all we need right now, more snow." She slid next to him on the couch. "You're quite grumpy today. Bad day at work?" He looked away from the TV, into her questioning eyes, and said in a vacant tone, "no, it's just that I still haven't heard back from the Postal Service and I sort of need to know, with the baby coming in less than a month." She thought for a moment, and then said, "David, you know, maybe we should pray about it." He snorted. "Humph. Pray about it? Why? Do you think God cares about our rent money? If there is a God, I am sure that he is too busy to worry about our finances. Besides, since when did you start praying?" Nancy got up and walked over to the kitchen area. She decided to drop the subject because she didn't want to start another fight. Lately, David had been getting angry with her for the smallest comments. She barely had to speak without igniting his anger and sometimes even rage. She didn't understand what was happening to him, to their happy marriage.

Things were really bad two nights ago. David had come home from work, tired and frustrated because their monthly income was not covering the expenses. She suggested that they ask his parents for help. It didn't go over well. He started shouting, and she reacted by shouting back. Before she knew it, he had pulled back his fist as though he would strike her, but pushed her instead. He bolted for the door and sped off before she realized what had happened. Nancy then made her way to the bed and began sobbing into her pillow. Never before had she seen such anger in his eyes. They were not his eyes, not the loving gaze of her David. As she sobbed, she felt as hollow inside as he looked in his eyes. She felt scared, unsure of what to do. She couldn't go home. Her mother made it quite clear that she was now "on her own." She had no money, no job–she was stuck.

She was alone, yet she began to remember a time when she felt very similar to the way that she was feeling now. She was 11 years old, sitting in a church service, in the back pew. She was with her mother and brothers, yet she felt alone–a growing girl, with a widening hole in her heart. A sharp pain had entered her as she listened to the hymns about a God who loved her. She couldn't understand the concept of father. She had lost her dad and was having trouble remembering the feeling of his warm embrace, his smiling eyes, and his love for his only daughter. She started to weep right in the middle of the service, just as the pastor was getting up to preach his sermon. She couldn't stop, the hole felt as though it was growing, and she thought it might even swallow up the entire room. She wanted to hide, as she heard her own voice echoing in the building. It started small, like a whimpering puppy, but grew into intense, body-shaking sobs. Her mother was embarrassed, and chided her to stop, but the pastor left the alter and came back to the pew to sit with her. He prayed for her and as her cries began to subside, she felt a strange peace come over her– a peace that she had never felt before. The pain and the loneliness seemed to be distant now, as if struggling to stay with her, but not finding a home anymore. Then the pastor told her something that she again remembered. He said, "Anytime you feel alone or afraid or anytime the pain returns, simply go to Him and pray. He will help you because he loves you. Jesus loves you Nancy.”

Here she was, seven years later, finding herself alone once again. She felt the old, familiar companions of fear and abandonment, knocking on the door of her heart. She heard the voice of the pastor echoing in her mind. So she did what he had told her to do–she began to pray.

She was startled out her memory of the other night, as she found herself standing in the kitchen, being brought back to the present, by the sound of the ringing phone. She picked it up. “Hello? Uh hum. Yes…yes he is, just one moment please. David? The phone is for you. It’s the Post Office.”

On Our Own: Chapter 2

2007-03-18T20:40:00.000-04:00

Impulsive adventure was the fuel that propelled them from the safe confines of small town life. Neither had ever ventured far beyond the Somerset County line, but David and Nancy packed their few belongings into their ten year-old, 53 Chevy. The faithful, baby blue machine drove them to Manassas, Virginia to live with Uncle Ronnie and Aunt Joy.

David just landed a job at Melpar, Inc., adding components to military rockets. The job required that he wear a white jumpsuit and hair covering. He worked within a glass encased room, which made him feel more like a lab experiment than a rocket builder. Still, he was beginning to feel important for the first time in his life. He was required to know simple algebraic equations–stuff he never understood in high school, that now seemed to come easily to him. He couldn't figure out why this high-tech job would hire a young, so-called dumb kid from the country. The job was a bit dangerous, and maybe that was why, but they desperately needed a decent income.

Within months, David began to feel competent enough in his ability to provide for a family.

This particular day was exciting for David as he arrived home from work. He had been secretly moving them into their first apartment and was going to surprise Nancy with the news. "Come on honey, get into the car. I have a surprise for you." "David, what is it? Tell me," she whined. Reluctantly, he told her the news. "We're moving into our very own place." "What? Why didn't you tell me?" "I wanted to surprise you and move before the baby came. I want to be on our own as a family." She smiled at the sound of the word 'baby.' The pregnancy was unplanned and progressed the future of their budding relationship faster than anyone wanted. They had a small wedding, both looking more like prom dates than bride and groom. "Close your eyes." She rolled them instead. "Why?" She sulked. He emphasized again, "because I want it to be a surprise."

As they pulled up to the building, he hopped out of the Chevy, raced around to open her door, and guided her to the apartment. “Keep them closed,” he chided. He kissed her gently, opened the door and swooped her up into his arms as he walked over the threshold. "Wee," she squealed, with the delight of a little girl. It was a dump, but she didn’t care. She grinned broadly as he set her down, steadying her as the pregnancy sickness caused her to become woozy. David flipped on the lights as they heard, click, click, click, click, click. "EEEEEK David!" Nancy screamed and flew back into his arms for security, as thousands of shiny, tobacco brown cockroaches scurried into the cracked plaster, up the walls and under the furniture. They were falling off of the light fixtures, and one even landed in the spot that Nancy had stood only moments before. "Oh my gosh David! I think this house is already occupied!" He began to chuckle at her squeamishness. "They are only bugs. We'll buy some fumigating spray and get rid of them. Don't worry now, I'll take care of things. Now let's look around. You haven't even seen the place yet.” As they took the five second tour of the 300 square foot room, they heard another strange noise. "David? What is that noise?" Flooosh! Bam bam! Clunk! Drip. Shoooooooooooooo clank. "It's the toilet flushing in the upstairs apartment." His solemn expression made her burst out laughing. Soon they were doubled over, laughing uncontrollably. “Well, regardless of what anyone says, this is still OUR home now,” declared Nancy, still laughing at the hilarity of the situation.

David walked over to an old black and white TV set and turned it on. “Well, it's not all bad. At least we have entertainment. Look at this. I haven't had a chance to try it out yet, but it seems to work pretty good. It was great of my sister to give it to us since it will be years before we can afford our own." He tuned the television set to a news program and plopped down in their solitary piece of somewhat comfortable furniture, a plaid, lime green couch. He pulled his young wife onto his lap. After a few minutes, Nancy turned to him and queried, "Is it just me or is the picture on the TV set shrinking?" Slowly, the image of the anchorman began fading into a tiny, white speck on the screen. David got up and walked over to the set. Bang! Bang! Bang! Nothing. "Hey, this set feels hot. Nan, go and grab that fan in the corner over there." She retrieved the banged up, old fan and handed it to David. He hastily plugged in the fan, flicking the on switch. "If I face it towards the back, it just may work." After about ten minutes, the picture started to return. "How about that!" David exclaimed. Nancy rolled her eyes again. "You're a real genius," she replied, "but what other unknowns are we going to find in this place?" He walked over to her and attempted to melt the ice that was evidently forming around her body. She stood with her arms crossed, glancing around, as if she were daring another surprise to manifest from the tiny room. David had to think of something to say. "You just relax there young lady. Pretty soon, I'll be getting enough extra from my paycheck and I am going to treat you to a dinner out–burgers, fries and milkshakes. Chocolate milkshakes." She wasn't amused. "David, don't you think we should use our money to buy things like…oh, maybe curtains for the windows? Or we could even purchase some real butter," she said rather sarcastically. He grabbed her hand, twirled her around and pulled her in close, as he kissed her forehead. "Someday, Mrs. Dinning, I am going to be rich and if you want, you will be able to bathe in butter." She laughed at his choice of luxuries. "Well Mr. Dinning, I think you are crazy!" The upstairs toilet echoed her sentiments. Flooosh! Bam bam! Clunk! Drip. Shoooooooooooooo clank.

Fried Chicken Special: Chapter 1

2007-03-16T19:09:00.000-04:00

David stood over the piping hot grill at the Howard Johnson’s Restaurant. Sweat traveled through his hair, over his forehead, and down his now baking, ruby-colored face. Greasy smoke bit his eyes, as he flipped yet another burger. He wiped his sleeve across his brow and looked up just in time to see Nancy’s smiling face. He looked down nervously at his grimy work shoes, embarrassed that he had been caught by her playful, garnet-colored eyes. The job was sometimes insufferable, but he sure loved her. He drifted off into his daydreaming world, imagining himself walking through mounds of hot-from-the-fryer french fries, just to be near her. The fact that she was now his girlfriend, made heart beat faster. Even though she told him that she looked horrible in that Howard Johnson’s, standard, orange and brown, waitress uniform, he adored the way her slender figure looked in the knee-length skirt and body-hugging top. He noticed her glancing over her shoulder at him as she took a customers order at the counter. He decided to show off, so he flipped a burger high into the air, catching it, in its bun, on the plate. He slid the plate onto the serving counter, and threw on some fries. “Order up!” he declared with pride. She giggled and grabbed the plate, winking at him as she walked the order to the waiting customer.

The door to the restaurant opened, as Elmer, an old farmer, strolled in. "Hey there Jake," he said to the manager. "Why don't ya order me up one of dem dere fried chicken dinners of yours. That there is the most popular chicken in all of Somerset County." "Oh yeah," said Jake. "Why's that?" "Whadda ya mean why's that?" "Who else do ya know serves a chicken breast with four legs around here?"

As David continued to daydream, his boss walked into the kitchen. “DAVID!” His boss shouted at him. Startled, he looked up from the grill. “Yes sir?” “David, can you explain to me just WHY the frozen chicken dinner bags have only the breast and no legs?” “What?” answered David, now looking somewhat confused. His boss began speaking again, but slower this time, a bit frustrated, and pronouncing each word carefully and precisely, as though he were speaking to a five-year-old. “I just heard from Elmer that you've been serving up chicken with four legs, so I went to the freezer to check it out and I found opened bags of frozen chicken breasts without the legs! What happened to my chicken legs David?” Focusing his attention on his boss, David slowly replied, “I...It...I thought it was their mistake sir.” “What are you talking about boy? Who's mistake?” “Well sir, I mean boss sir,” he stuttered, “I thought they messed up when they packaged those chickens. Every single bag of those frozen chicken dinners had only the breast and two legs. So, I've been taking two legs out of the other bags and frying them up so that the chickens had all four of their legs.” David noticed the eyes of his boss widen, as he continued to explain, “I didn’t want the customers to complain that we were stiffing them!" The face of his boss contorted as he threw his hands in the air and yelled, “you imbecile! Chickens don’t have four legs! They have two! Are you some kind of mo’ron? You live in cow-pie-heaven, farm country and you don’t even know that chickens have and always have had two legs? Lucky for you, your stupid mistake has been drawing in customers!" With that, he turned on his greasy heels, almost slipped, and walked back into the dining room.

By now, customers close by had overheard the commotion. Word spread quickly throughout the restaurant, and soon everyone was snickering and poking each other as they walked by the kitchen. David wanted to crawl under the sink. He was absolutely humiliated. Mostly, he was terrified to face Nancy. What must she think of him now? Charlie, a schoolmate, walked by and made clucking noises as he walked out of the diner. “Jerk!” David sarcastically murmured under his breath. “I’ll never live this down at school on Monday.”

After their shift had ended, Nancy walked out with David to his car. She placed her hand on his arm as he looked down, shuffling nervously. “It’s okay, you know?” she said sweetly. He looked up at her, and with tears in his eyes, he began to laugh. He laughed so hard that she started to giggling too. “I feel so stupid now. You must think I am as dumb as everyone says that I am. At least I didn’t get fired,“ he said. She half-smiled and gave him a little wink, “You are not stupid David. I mean, it is hard to imagine a four-legged chicken and all, but I know you, and you are not dumb. And not only did you not get fired, but you’re going to be busy man.” David looked at her curiously. “What do you mean?” “Well, you’re going to be cooking a lot of chicken. The boss decided to have a buy-one-get-one-free, chicken breast special. He said it would take weeks to get rid of all that chicken in the freezer.” David looked at her and started to chuckle. She teased, “but I think he needs a catchier name.” David took in a deep breath of the cold, night air. “Like what?” he said. “Well," she mused, "something like,‘David’s chicken without the legs special.’ It’ll be famous!” She began laughing again. "I don't know?" he questioned. "I don't think anything could be more uniquely famous than, 'Davie's four-legged chicken special,' Do you?" They both laughed about the episode all over again the entire ride home.

Click here for Chapter 2

Introduction to Tales of a Coal Miner's Daughter

2007-03-16T17:54:00.000-04:00

They met in the first grade. In their class picture, he stood almost directly behind her, a mischievous smirk on his face. She appeared shy, withdrawn–with sad, lost eyes. Who would have ever thought they would one day be married.

Neither had a crush on the other throughout grade school. As a matter of fact, their lives didn’t collide until their senior year of high school; she, feeling alone and lost in a struggling family, filled with poverty, found him–a boy, feeling neglected by everyone–teachers, sisters and brothers, parents. Their love seemed deep and real. Yet, no one thought they would make it. They had nothing. No job. No money. No place to live. According to every one of my father’s teachers, he didn’t have the ability to succeed in life. These two brave, some say naïve and stupid teenagers, set off on an adventure together at the age of 17 & 18.

In this blog, I will unravel a tale of two lives committed to one another, taking leaps of faith, against all odds, mostly because they didn’t know any better. Some choices were downright life threatening, but they were enjoying the ride and not looking back. Granted, the journey was not always amusing, not even close, but the stories that my dad continues to tell of their life together, amaze me. Mostly because many of the stories are about hope, about beating the odds, and about NOT listening to those negative voices in your life that tell you that “you can’t succeed.” “You won’t make it.” “You will never amount to anything.” Readers will not believe some of the tales in this blog. Many may believe they are made-up stories, or embellishments that make the stories seem more extravagant. Except for a few colorful additions and humorous descriptions, the stories are true. They are all based on what I heard as I grew up, living the adventures through my father’s eyes. So follow me on this journey of stories originally told to me by my favorite storyteller, my dad.

By the end of this blog’s history, my hope is that these stories will make you believe that you can accomplish those things in your life that right now seem impossible.

Click here for Chapter 1

Background Story

2007-03-01T15:49:00.000-05:00

My mother’s carefree childhood was cut short at age five. Her father, who had been in a mining accident a few years before had struggled with depression and hopelessness. He was unable to provide for his family as he had before the accident. He felt useless and lost. During this time, people didn’t talk about their troubles and personal deficiencies. Therefore, he had no outlet, no way to express the pain that he felt inside. So he took his own life instead. He did so, in such a violent, finalizing manner. The wound from the gunshot to the head didn’t kill him instantly. Instead, his two eldest sons found him alive. He died later that evening. In those days, no one discussed death, especially suicide. My mom was not told what had happened to her father, how he had vanished from their lives so suddenly. She knew that he had died, but what was death? She and her younger brothers were just left to wonder where their dad had gone. The bullet hole in her father’s head could have been a bullet hole to her own heart. This was a hole that no one could fix. If you look close enough, you can see the hole in that picture–the one from first grade–the one of the little girl with the sad eyes.

Those sad eyes carried her through elementary school, into middle school and even through high school. She became involved in lots of school activities. My mother was a cheerleader, a popular student, a good girl, and everyone liked her. Even though she seemed like a happy, well-adjusted teenage girl, she felt different. Her family was not only poor, they were poverty stricken. They had a home, they had each other, they had just enough food, but like the rumbling of an empty stomach, she felt as though something was missing. She was lonely, as she fought to find the meaning of her life. As her mother and older brothers struggled and worked hard just to put food on the table, Nancy worked just as hard to be good so that no one would reject her, so that no one would ever leave her again.

My dad on the other hand was born into a family with money. They were not wealthy by any standards, but they lived a secure life, lacking none of the basic comforts. His father was a coal miner and eventually the mine supervisor. He had two adult brothers and two elder sisters. His mother was older when she had him, and he knew from the start that he was an “accident." His oldest sister actually had children his age. His dad was busy at work. His mother didn’t spend much time with him, so when she became frustrated with his behavior, she would simply throw a shoe at him. His brothers and sisters will tell you that he was “bad.” He will tell you that oftentimes he was lonely, misunderstood, hurt, and eventually angry.

On left: David as a boy. On right: David's mother holding his nephews in her arms, as David shields his eyes from the sun

At times he felt as though he didn’t exist. Although his teachers believed that he lacked the ability to achieve in school, my dad had an amazing mind. He was able to fantasize about a world of adventure. He would go into his bedroom, hide under the covers and dream of traveling around the world, flying to exotic places, riding with cowboys through the wild west, or exploring underground caverns and lost worlds. He was a daydreamer. Thus, he was not a good student, the opposite of my mom. Everyone knew when the two began dating, they were an unlikely pair, and the romance would never last.

Her brothers tried to talk her out of dating him. They threatened him and attempted to scare him away. He drank, smoked, and swore; he hung out with the "wrong" crowd. He was termed a “spoiled brat” with a jail sentence just waiting in the winds of the future.

Regardless of the predictions made about them, they proved each foretelling of their future wrong. Life played a joke on all of the naysayers, and this unlikely pair went above and beyond anyone’s expectations.

To hear the rest of the story, you must check back often, as the tale unfolds, within this blog. Oh, and tell all of your friends too! Happy reading. Comments welcome.

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