Blind Pig & The Acorn

Appalachian Wart Removal

I've never had a wart before (I feel like I should say "knock on wood")-but I did have some hideous growth on the inside of my thumb when I was pregnant with the girls. I had many complications during the pregnancy-but the weird growth was the most annoying and embarrassing. I don't remember the name of the condition-but the doc who removed it explained it like this: I had injured my thumb in some small minor way-maybe I got a splinter or pricked it on a straight pen. My pregnant body-went into over drive-sending way too many resources to fix my thumb-the result-a growth full of blood that bled all over the place at the slightest touch. A plastic surgeon-took it off for me-he said it might come back-but thank goodness it didn't.

All my life I've heard of folks who could remove warts-most often by rubbing them or by buying them. I have 2 such stories to share with you today.

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Garland Davis shared the following story with me:

I had numerous warts on my hands. Everyone told me that they were caused by playing with toads and letting them piss on your hands. I remember thinking that wasn't right. I knew that I hadn't touched any toads. I remember trying to keep my hands in my pockets so that people wouldn't see my warts. My parents tried any number of homemade potions to no avail. Some things from the drugstore were tried, but again no remedy for my warts. I remember going to the doctor and him telling them that I was too young to have them "burned' off.

We carried my 'Granny' Salmons to Yadkin County one Sunday afternoon to visit some friends. I remember that it was late in the day and Daddy was ready to leave. She told them to wait that she was going to take me to get my warts "witched". She led me for a long distance (probably not that far, but to a little boy, quite a distance) down a path through the woods. We eventually came to a log house. An old (again, old is relative to my age) woman came out and talked with my grandmother.

Granny gave her a sack that she had brought. The old lady sat me down on the stoop to the cabin door and started touching the warts on my hands. She then took a piece of cord and tied a number of knots in it (I later realized that she was counting the warts and tied a knot for each one.) She then hung the cord around my neck and led me by the hand around the yard. She then took the cord and went into the woods. She returned and told me that my warts would leave me to look for the cord. She said if I ever tried to find the cord all my warts would return. We left and went back home. Within a few days, all my warts, except one, disappeared. I still have that one wart on the knuckle of my ring finger and have had it my whole life. I always figured that she missed counting it.

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Miss Cindy shared this story with me:

When I was around 10 years old I had a wart on my left thumb. It was on the side of my thumb at the knuckle. The wart measured about 3/8 inch across. That's fairly large on a 10 year old hand.

My folks took me to the doctor for removal. The doctor burned it off. It wasn't long till it came back, so it was back to the doctor. This time he cut it off but again, it came back.

My cousin, Zoolie also had a wart. Hers was on the thumb also but it was on the side growing partially into the nail. It was about the same size wart as mine. Her folks took her to a dermatologist. They were really concerned because of the way it grew into the fingernail. The dermatologist removed it several times, several different ways. Each time it grew back.

My dad finally said "enough, get in the car, both of you". He took us to an old man in Henson Cove above Canton, not too far from my grandmothers house. I think the man's name was Mr. Hall. He looked at both warts, rubbed them and sent us on our way.

I looked down a couple of weeks later and it was gone, I called Zoolie and her wart was gone as well.

I don't know what to tell you happened.....the warts were gone and never returned.

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When The Deer Hunter and I first met, he had 2 or 3 warts on his hand. After several months of dating-I was so head over heels for him-that I didn't even notice the warts were gone until he showed me. He said he'd grown up hearing about folks getting their warts rubbed by someone with special powers-so every time he thought about it he rubbed his. In a few weeks they were gone. I still tease him about having magical wart removing powers.

Ever had a wart conjured, rubbed, or bought?

Tipper

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Leaves Of Three Let Them Be

 
This time of the year folks start worrying about bug bites-and the dreaded case of poison oak or poison ivy. I know they're different plants-but we always called the itchy stuff poison oak no matter which plant it came from. Growing up I was lucky-I never had poison oak-but that wasn't the case for others in my family.

Granny is highly allergic to the stuff. Honest to goodness-certain times of the year she can walk through the yard and catch it from the wind blowing. When she was pregnant with me she had a horrible case of poison oak-her and Pap always said that's why I didn't get it-that I had built up an immunity to it when Granny was carrying me.

 
Paul and Steve didn't get that same immunity. One of the worst cases Paul ever had was during the middle of the winter. It was in the late 70's during one of the coldest winters on record for our area. We still had gravity water and it had frozen solid. Pap built fires along the length of black pipe that wasn't buried to thaw it. Paul and I loved it-we played in the fires and explored the woods. We inadvertently burned poison oak, and in just a day or so Paul was eat up with the raised itchy patches. Paul's case was severe so Pap took him to a local pediatrician who proceeded to explain to Pap that the boy could not have poison oak-as it was the dead of winter. After the doc left the room her nurse told Pap "she's crazy as a loon that's poison oak if I've ever seen it!" A trip to a different doctor got Paul a much needed shot and medication for his aliment.

Steve's job often requires him to be in weedy brushy areas and he has become an expert at heading his outbreaks off as soon as he notices one-but he's also had to have shots on more than one occasion.

Sadly, my immunity ran out summer before last. I was helping a lady friend work in her flowers and apparently in the process of pulling armfuls of weeds I pulled up poison oak. At first I didn't really know what it was-I went and showed my arms to Pap. He thought it looked like poison oak-but said he didn't know since I'd never had it before surely it wasn't.

To say I was in misery is an understatement. After a few days of the mess Steve came to check on me-he took one look and said "yep that's poison oak." For over a week I tried every home remedy you've ever heard of-from oatmeal to peroxide-nothing helped. Finally on a Saturday afternoon I gave up the fight and paid a visit to a local urgent care center. The doctor who saw me said "you waited about a week too long to come" he gave me 2 shots and sent me back by the hospital emergency room for a couple of pain killers. My own stubbornness made me wait to go to the doctor-and I have faint scars on the insides of each arm to remind me I'm no longer immune to poison oak-and I don't ever want to have that vile affliction again.

A few home remedies I've heard about:

• fingernail polish-Granny swears by this one. At the first little sign of a bump or patch cover it with fingernail polish-supposedly it seals the place off from air and helps it dry up
• clorox to kill the poison
• spread cooked oatmeal on the patches to relieve the pain/itching and to dry the areas up
• mix baking soda with water and put on patches
• use vinegar to stop the itching
• use buttermilk to relieve the itch
• rub patches with peroxide or alcohol to kill the poison and dry up the areas-this one-hurts so bad but feels so good at the same time-make sense?
• several remedies suggest taking a bath in salt, soda, or oatmeal water-while others warn of never taking a bath

 

(Jewelweed)

One of my favorite books on folk medicine-Folk Medicine In Southern Appalachia by Anthony Cavender has this to say about remedies for poison oak/ivy:

"poultices of cooked or crushed leaves of peach tree, jewelweed, ragweed, red oak, willow, or nightshade; juice of a green tomato or milkweed; and topical solutions of red oak or willow bark. Frequently reported nonbotanical remedies include buttermilk, soda paste, Epsom salt solution, cow's cream (sometimes mixed with gunpowder), a biscuit soaked in sweet milk, calamine lotion, salt water solution, and bleach. According to some reports it was believed that one could develop an immunity to poison ivy by eating some of it's leaves. This dangerous and potentially fatal folk belief still circulates today."

 

Ever since I had my horrible case of poison oak-you better believe I've watched out for it-and I've took notice of any remedies I come across too. One mentioned in Cavender's book-is Jewelweed. I've recently read several positive accounts of the use of this native plant. When I was growing up we called it 'wild touch me nots' -because at the end of the summer you can 'touch' their seed pods and watch them explode. Generally the plants grow in shady damps places and can reach 2-3 feet tall. The juice of the plant is a natural cortisone and is supposed to be an excellent remedy for poison oak, poison ivy, bee stings, and bug bites. I hope to never have poison oak again-but if I do I'm going to try jewleweed as a remedy.

Ever had posion oak? What remedy does your family use?

Tipper

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1918 Flu In Southern Appalachia

 
The Blind Pig family has been lucky this winter-none of us have been sick much-I feel like I should say knock on wood-and actually knock-that's what Granny would do. My niece and I shared a lovely stomach bug on Thanksgiving night-I may never want to eat Turkey again-but other than that we've mostly been well.

Some of you may remember-in the winter of 2009 I had the worst case of flu I've ever had-well I've only had the real flu twice-so maybe I should say-I was sicker than I've ever been in my life. I couldn't even let my Blind Pig readers know-I finally had The Deer Hunter let everyone know-I hadn't died although I felt like I might. If you missed the posts you can read about it here:

• Message From The Deer Hunter
• Living In A Separate Place
• Three Girls

 

I remember learning about the 1918 Flu Epidemic in school-seems like it was in Elementary School. I'm sure I thought it was interesting and sad-but 2 things made the stark reality of the Epidemic come alive for me. One was my bout of the flu in 09-I truly did think I was near death's door more than once-and the other was when I first visited one of the old cemeteries that are scattered through out the Smoky Mountain National Park.

 

Proctor was the first cemetery I visited along with the kids from TLC! I was so busy snapping photos I didn't take time to really read the info on the stones-until one of the students pointed out several from the same family who died within days of each other. Right away I thought of the flu of 1918. Check out this video by The Heartland Series that details the spread of the 1918 Flu into East TN and beyond and the casualties it left in it's wake. (stop the music player in the top right of this page before you start the video)

While it was obvious some of the stones in the Proctor Cemetary were from the era of the Great Flu-we soon noticed other mass casualties from the same family occurred in different time frames. Although it had been months since I had the flu-as I looked and thought about the heartache those families endured by loosing more than one beloved to the 1918 Flu or to some other spreading illness-it made me so thankful to live in the days of modern medicine with fever reducers in my medicine cabinet.

In 1918 The NC Board of Health offered the following advice about the Flu Epidemic:

"Influenza and What You Should Know About It," Bulletin of the North Carolina Board of Health, 33:5 (1918), pp. 38–39.

 

How and Where Influenza is Spread

1. By careless spitting, coughing, sneezing, and using the same drinking vessel or towel others have used. The disease germs are carried in the spittle and in the little drops of secretion from the nose and throat.
2. In crowds and public gatherings, churches, schools, picture shows, business houses, fairs, circuses, trains, or in any other places where people congregate. Soda fountains are especially dangerous if they do not supply individual sanitary cups and sterilized spoons.

How to Keep Away From Taking Influenza

1. Keep away from crowds, especially indoor gatherings.
2. Avoid people who cough, sneeze and spit without holding a handkerchief over the nose and mouth.
3. Do not use common drinking cups or towels, and keep away from the soda fountain that does not supply individual cups and sterilized spoons.
4. Keep the bowels open. Snuff Vaseline up the nose three times a day. Gargle mouth and throat and rinse out nose with warm salt water, using a level teaspoonful of salt to a glass of warm water. Sleep and eat regularly. These are very important.
5. Keep in the open air and sunshine as much as practicable and have good ventilation in the home and office. Sleep with your windows open.
6. Wash your hands before eating and never put your unwashed hands in your mouth.
7. Do not give the disease to others—when you sneeze or cough always bow the head and cover both the nose and mouth with handkerchief.

Symptoms of Influenza and What to Do if You Take It

1. In most cases a person taken with influenza feels sick rather suddenly. He feels weak, has pains in the eyes, ears, head or back, and may be sore all over. Many patients feel dizzy, some vomit. Most of the patients complain of feeling chilly, and with this comes a fever in which the temperature rises to 100 degrees to 104 degrees. In most cases the pulse remains relatively slow.

   In appearance one is struck by the fact that the patient looks sick. His eyes and the inner side of his eyelids may be slightly bloodshot or congested. There may be running from the nose, and there may be some cough. These signs of a cold may not be marked; nevertheless the patient looks and feels very sick.

2. If you have any of the above symptoms, go to bed at once and send for a doctor and follow his directions explicitly.
3. If you cannot obtain a doctor at once, stay in bed with plenty of cover to keep you warm, open all the windows and keep them open, take medicine to open the bowels freely, and take nourishing food, as milk, eggs, and broth, every four hours.
4. Allow no one else to sleep in the same room. Protect others by sneezing and coughing into cloths which can be boiled or burned.
5. Stay in bed until a doctor tells you it is safe to get up; or, until you have been without a fever for at least four days.

What To Do After Recovering From an Attack of Influenza

1. Influenza is a treacherous disease. If one is fortunate enough to escape pneumonia during or immediately following the attack, the lungs and respiratory system are frequently so inflamed that tuberculosis develops. The heart is overworked and needs rest. Therefore, do not return to work or leave home until you have regained your strength, whether it is a week or a month.
2. If complete recovery does not take place within two weeks, have your family physician carefully and thoroughly examine every vital organ and function of the body. Follow instructions the doctor may give you after such an examination.

Taken from NC Digital Collection.

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Much of the advice given by the NC Board of Health in 1918 would still be good advice today-I'm not so sure about the sniffing of Vaseline though. It is true sickness can hit you quickly. When the girls were little and a stomach virus infiltrated our home-it would show it's ugly head in both girls within a matter of hours.

Unless folks lived in cities or towns I doubt they would have even heard about the NC Board of Health's advice-much less read it. Families who lived in rural areas of Western NC and beyond-probably relied on oldtimey Medicninal Remedies and a good deal of faith to get through the sicknesses that sometimes blindsided their homes.

Before the Flu Epidemic of 1918 was over-it killed millions of people across the world. On the video above-he infers the flu making itself known in the mountains of TN was proof the outside world had reached one of the most isolated regions in the US. Kinda makes me think about smallpox and other sicknesses that were hand delivered to the Native Americans.

Click here to see some photos from the Epidemic of 1918-none from Appalachia-but still fascinating.

Tipper 

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Entertainment And Fun In The 1930s

 
The Medicine Show by Charles Fletcher

A medicine show consisted of three people: a doc, a pretty young girl, and the very popular music man. The young girl was always dolled up with make-up and wearing a dress pulled up to her knees, with short sleeve bows, a low neck and no collar. Us boys got our ears pulled a lot and the men got a lot of elbows in the ribs from their wives for gawking and trying to get up close to her. The music man would play a guitar, harmonica, and drums all at the same time while singing. He would ask for requests but would just ignore them and sing what he wanted to. The main attraction of The Medicine Show was the Doc though. Doc was the fancy dressed man that owned the truck and the show. After the young girl and the music man warmed up the crowd, Doc would come out for the main act.

We didn't have any telephones back then but news of a show coming to town would spread from one person to another quickly until everyone in town would know. 

On the night of the show, Mom cooked supper and we children got the milking, feeding of the animals, and wood chopping for the cook stove done in a hurry. We rushed to finish eating then started the three mile trip to town. 

"I'll wash the dishes when we get back", Mom said. "Don't want to miss any of the show."

There was always a small platform on the back of the Doc's truck that acted like a stage where everything took place. Doc, as he was always called, strode out onto the stage. 

"Gather up close neighbors and friends. I want to tell you about the Miracle Medicine I've brought you. If you have back problems, sore feet, head aches, lack of energy, sleeping issues, or any other problems, this medicine will have you up and going in less than half an hour. (you children move to the back). It's only fifty cents a bottle and, if it doesn't do what I say, I'll give you your money back. Now step up. Who will be first?"

My Mom took a dollar from her apron pocket and handed it to the Doctor.

"Lady, to let you know how much I appreciate your trust in my medicine I will let you have three bottles for a dollar."

"I'll take it", Mom said.

Then nearly everyone began to step up with their dollar to buy three bottles.

"Better head for home", Mom said. "Got to clean up the kitchen before going to bed. Won't be long until four o'clock in the morning and it's time to cook breakfast."

Back home, Mom went into the kitchen to clean up. Me, my brother, and our two sisters went in the parlor where Dad had two oil lamps burning for light. We were getting our school homework done when Mom began to sing at the top of her lungs.

This little light of mine

I'm going to let it shine

Mom was always humming and singing, but never this loud.

"Better go see why she is singing so loud", Dad said.

She started up again.

I've got a home in Bul-

"What's wrong, Mama?" Dad asked.

"Nothing. Just felt like singing."

Dad noticed that one of the bottles of medicine was sitting on the table, about a quarter empty.

"You been taking this medicine?" he asked.

"Just a few spoons full. Was sort of tired but I feel much better now."

Then she started singing again at the top of her lungs.

In the sweet by and by

In the sweet by and-

Dad picked up the bottle and read the front label.

Cure All Miracle Medicine

He then looked on the back of the bottle.

INGREDIENTS

25% Spring Water

75% Alcohol

Oil of Peppermint added for color and flavoring

Patent Pending

Dad went to the parlor, got his hat, and headed to the door.

"Where are you going?" Mom asked.

"Got to catch that Medicine Man before he leaves town. We need a few more bottles to get us through the winter."

Out the door he went. My Dad was known to like a little drink every now and then. In fact a big drink anytime.

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Hope you enjoyed Charles's story as much as I did-leave him a comment and I'll make sure he reads it.

Tipper

p.s. Hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving and don't forget-if you're in the North GA area tomorrow or Saturday-stop by the Brasstown Valley Resort and see me!

 

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Indian Pipe Or Ghost Flower Either Way It's Creepy

Indian Pipes (also called-Ghost Flower, Corpse Plant, Death Plant, and Fairy Smoke) grow deep in the forest. They are often found near old stumps or rotting logs.

If you've ever seen them growing in the woods-it's easy to see where they got their common names. The white almost translucent look of the spindly nodding plant is eerie enough to conjure up the images of Ghosts or even Death. And the shape of the narrow stem with a nodding head does indeed resemble an Indian's smoke pipe.  

Indian Pipes are typically white-although sometimes they have a pinkish cast to them. The plant's strange white look is due to the lack of chlorophyll-in other words the plant doesn't use the process of photosynthesis that most plants do.

 
Indian Pipes act as a sort of parasite feeding on the the nutrients that have all ready been digested by tree roots or nutrients from decaying plant matter in the form of rotting logs or stumps. Once the plant finishes it's growing season-the pipes turn completely black-almost looking like burnt matchsticks-another part of the plant that adds to it's mystery or creepiness. Also-if you pick an Indian Pipe-it will soon turn black as well.

The nodding flowers of the plant amazingly raise their heads to the sky in a last hurray of sorts-to make sure their seeds are broadcast to ensure the next generation of Indian Pipes are born the following year.

As you would assume-there is much folklore surrounding the strange plant.

• The plant was used in medicinal remedies ranging from curing colds and fevers to removing warts. 
• Interesting in relation to the alternate names of Corpse or Death plant-the plant was said to heal the broken heart of those mourning the loss of a loved one.
• A Cherokee legend tells the story of Indian Pipes being created due to the selfishness of people-you can read it here.

I found the following about the Indian Pipe/Ghost Flower in a book from 1917-it was written and Published by Neltje Blanchan-Wild Flowers Worth Knowing. The author thought the plant was indeed evil:

"Among plants as among souls, there are all degrees of backsliders. The foxglove, which is guilty of only sly, petty larceny, wears not the equivalent of the striped suit and the shaved head; nor does the mistletoe, which steals crude food from the tree, but still digests it itself, and is therefore only a dingy yellowish green. Such plants, however, as the broom-rape, Pine Sap, beech-drops, the Indian Pipe, and the dodder--which marks the lowest stage of degradation of them all--appear among their race branded with the mark of crime as surely as was Cain. No wonder this degenerate hangs its head; no wonder it grows black with shame on being picked, as if its wickedness were only just then discovered! To think that a plant related on one side to many of the loveliest flowers in Nature's garden--the azaleas, laurels, rhododendrons, and the bonny heather--and on the other side to the modest but no less charming wintergreen tribe, should have fallen from grace to such a depth! Its scientific name, meaning a flower once turned, describes it during only a part of its career. When the minute, innumerable seeds begin to form, it proudly raises its head erect, as if conscious that it had performed the one righteous act of its life."

Although I'm not quite sure how plants could be considered backsliders-the quote sounded so old world Appalachia I had to share it with you.

Have you ever seen Indian Pipes? Do you think they're creepy?

Tipper

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Wild Violets Are Edible & Medicinal

Wild violets are not only pretty they're edible and they've been used for their medicinal properties longer than the United States has been a country.

All members of the Viola family are edible-I'm sure at some point you've seen the fancy fragile looking candied violets on a wedding cake-but there are a variety of other edible ways to use violets. Both the leaves and blooms are edible-they can be tossed in a salad, used to make violet tea, violet syrup, violet jelly, and even violet vinegar.

The main thing to remember-if you're going to give eating violets a try-make sure they haven't been sprayed with any chemicals or by the family dog-and make sure what you pick is a violet. 

Violet Recipes

• Violet Vinegar
• Triple Violet Salad
• Violet Leaf Tea
• Crystallized Viola
• Violet Sugar
• Violet Syrup

The Cherokee Indians used Violets for medicinal purposes. They passed their knowledge on to the first settlers of Appalachia who accepted the remedies and made them their own. The Cherokee seemed to use different violets in the same way regardless of the variety. A few examples:

• Violet leaves were used to make a poultice to relieve headaches
• Violets were soaked in water-the water was used to relieve dysentery, colds, coughs, and used as a spring tonic
• Violet roots were crushed and used as a poultice to aide in skin aliments
• Perhaps the most interesting to me-Violet roots were soaked in water-then the water was used to soak corn seeds prior to planting-this was said to repel insects from the corn. (I got my information from the American Violet Society)

Who knew the lowly little wild violet could be so useful? Drop back by to see how to make Violet Jelly. A few of you mentioned it in your comments-so I had to give it a try.

Tipper

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Pulling Teeth In Appalachia

 

Worse than all the old cures mentioned in the toothache post-was the process of pulling the aching tooth or jumping the tooth.

Jumping the tooth-involved placing a chisel or other metal object at the base of the hurting tooth-just under the gum line. While holding the chisel in place-the tooth jumper took a hammer and gave it a good hard tap. If it was successful tap-the tooth jumped out of it's hole.

The process of jumping the tooth sounds so horrible it makes you wonder why anyone would even attempt the method. But if you've ever had a dentist pull a tooth that didn't want to come out (I have) you can kinda see how difficult it would be to pull someone's tooth that hadn't had a shot of Novocaine to numb the pain. Maybe that's where the jumping part came in-after trying to pull a tooth that wouldn't come out. Here is an excerpt on tooth jumping from John Parris in These Storied Mountains:

But them that really knowed how to tooth-jump could pop a tooth out of a feller's head before you could wink an eye. It was just that quick. It had to be. If one lick didn't jump the tooth out it was all-night-ice-'em. For if the tooth didn't come out with that first lick a feller just went plumb crazy and had to be hog tied till the job was finished.

Just as there were folks known for tooth jumping, there were folks known as good tooth pullers. Patti commented on the toothache post: "Every settlement had a blacksmith because he was a very useful member. The blacksmith was also a dentist and he had only one cure for a toothache. He pulled out the tooth that hurt."

Folks would travel miles to get their aching teeth pulled. Matthew Burns said his father is still the go to guy for pulling teeth in his neck of the woods. His tool of choice-needle nose pliers.

While thinking of pulling or jumping teeth without numbing it, is hard to fathom-I do know if you had a severe toothache eventually you'd be willing for someone to help you know matter how bad it hurt.

When Pap was about 13 years old he had a toothache-a bad one that kept him up at night. One early morning-just after dawn he decided to get up because of the pain. He quietly slipped out of the house and headed over the mountain to see his Grandpa and Grandma. As he reached their house the sun was coming up.  Pap's Grandpa said the only way to fix the tooth was to pull it. He got a pair of pliers and tried to pull Pap's tooth. Pap said the tooth just wouldn't budge-but the pain was so bad he couldn't stand it. They had an old sliver of mirror hanging outside where you could see to shave or comb your hair. Grandpa was afraid he'd hurt Pap if he pulled anymore-so Pap decided he'd pull it himself. He got the pliers around the tooth while looking in the mirror. Pap pulled as hard as he could-as long as could-which wasn't long cause he passed out cold from the pain. His Grandpa and Grandma decided they didn't care what it took they were going to get this boy to the dentist-and they did. The dentist pulled the tooth-and that ended the pain.

Ever heard of tooth jumping?

Tipper

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What To Do For A Toothache

Ever have a toothache? In my opinion, a toothache is one of the most aggravating and painful problems to have. Lucky for folks today relief is usually just a phone call away.

Back in the day-things were a little different. Dentists weren't plentiful, it was hard to get into town to see one, and even if you could-you might not have the money needed to pay the bill. As with most ailments-there are tons of old medicinal remedies for toothaches in Appalachia-I've even tried a few myself.

A few years ago, I had a severe toothache. I kept taking pain medication and putting off going to the Dentist. One night when the the pain was pretty bad, Pap told me to take peroxide and swish it around in my mouth-then take a toothbrush and dip it in the peroxide and brush the tooth as hard as I could-all around it. Well desperate as I was-I did what Pap said. Honestly-for about 15-20 minutes I thought I was going to pass out from the pain-it was almost unbearable-but after about 25 minutes it eased off and actually quit hurting.

Appalachian Toothache Remedies:

• hold liquor in the mouth for several minutes-then swallow
• chew ragweed leaves
• put cinnamon oil on the tooth
• put clove oil on the tooth (I tried this one-couldn't really tell that it helped)
• put persimmon juice on the tooth
• place a piece of cloth soaked in kerosene on the tooth
• hold a warm bag of ashes, salt, or water on the cheek (I've tried this with a hot water bottle-it seemed to help a little)
• if the cavity is deep in the tooth-the hole can be stuffed with soda, spider webs, aspirin, alum-that was burned, cow manure, or salt

Now for the really crazy ones:

• take a splinter/piece of a tree that has been struck by lightning and pick the cavity
• get up before sunrise each morning and say a Bible verse for 3 days
• make a hole in a tree trunk a little higher than the toothache sufferers head-cut a piece of their hair and place it in the hole and plug up the hole

Prevention tips:

• carry a hog's head bone in your pocket
• always put your left shoe on first
• wear nutmeg around your neck
• always cut your fingernails on Friday
• never cut your fingernails on Friday

Ever tried any home remedies for a toothache?

Drop back by in the next few days to read about tooth pulling-it'll make you cringe-or in Pap's case pass out.

Tipper

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The Itch And A Witch

Ever hear of someone having the Itch? When I was a kid it seemed there was always a rumor going around about some poor kid that had the itch. I suppose the correct term would be scabies-which is an aggravating skin ailment caused by mites.

In reality-I've never seen anyone who had the itch-only those who scratched due to bug bites or poison oak (been there done that myself). In day's gone by, the itch was a real aliment that folks had to deal with. Whether it was from poor hygiene or just a lack of hygiene-I'm not sure what caused it. Certainly the days of taking a bath once a week and wearing one set of clothes for a week has drastically changed in today's world.

The cures for the itch back in the days before modern medicine took over included:

*boiling poke roots-and adding the brewed tea to your bathwater

*slathering the body with lard-and in some cases sulfur was added to the lard

*rubbing the body with kerosene

I've read accounts from folks who took the poke bath remedy, they said it felt like they'd been set on fire-I'm sure the kerosene method would feel the same. After taking any of the steps I mentioned-it was customary to wear long handles afterwards-to hold the medicine close to the skin.

You may ask-what in the world caused me to write about the itch-well 2 things brought it to mind:

1. A very interesting post by Matthew Burns-about lice so big they were named-you can click here to read it.
2. I woke up with someone on my mind-a girl I haven't thought of or even seen in over 20 years. She was from a poor family-poor kids that were accused of having the itch on a regular basis. She was quite a bit older than me. One afternoon as we were standing in the bus line she looked down at me and said "I know you're a witch-cause your eyebrows are grown together." I didn't take offense to what she said-even then I knew I was blessed with Pap's brows. I'm sure she regretted telling me I was a witch-cause she quickly added "don't worry mine are too-so I'm a witch too." Sometime in the late 80s I heard she was killed by her boyfriend or husband. Who knows why she was on my mind this morning-but it made me wish I could go back and ask her-"who told you that?" "Was it your mother your grandmother?" "What other old sayings did they tell you?" But mostly it makes me wish I could go back and be nice to her-cause I see clearly now she lived in a drought when it came to showers of kindness.

Ever have the itch? Ever heard the eyebrow witch thing?

Tipper

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The Blackberry

 

Blackberry picking time is almost here-the berries are still green on the brambles around my house-but before long they'll be turning that luscious deep dark black color.

Folklore surrounding Blackberries I've heard all my life...

 

Blackberry Winter- a cold snap occurs each spring about the same time the Blackberry Blossoms appear. Happened this spring just like it always does. (kinda like our Dogwood Winter) Medicinal Remedies- Blackberries or Blackberry juice is supposed to help any kind of stomach aliment-diarrhea, dysentery, ulcers. The roots and leaves of the Blackberry are used to make a tea which is said to relieve sore throats, thrush in babies, mouth ulcers and gum irritations.

This morning I Googled Blackberry and found the following info-which totally surprised me.

*Blackberry is often called Bramble in other countries

*Blackberry briars are thought to protect your house from evil-especially from Vampires. Seems if you put the briars around your doors and windows-the Vampires can't cross over without first counting all the briars-which if your familiar with Blackberries, you know is almost impossible. (makes me wonder if the idea for The Count on Sesame Street came from this piece of folklore.)

*Native Americans used Blackberry stems to make rope/twine.

*Some folks think the Crown of Thorns was made from Blackberry Briars-and the berry itself is so dark to symbolize Christ's Blood.

*Some folks think when the Devil was cast from heaven-he fell into a Blackberry patch and therefore the fruit is cursed-and it's black because the Devil spit on it.

 

The eating is what I enjoy most about Blackberries-but coming in a close second is hearing them. Yes, I said hearing them-give this week's Pickin' & Grinnin' In The Kitchen Spot a listen and you'll see exactly what I mean-the tune-Blackberry Blossom-is so catchy you'll find yourself humming it for the rest of the day. (don't forget to stop the player in the top right corner of this page)

Hope you enjoyed the Blackberry lore-and the outstanding picking by Paul and Mandolin Man.

Do you like Blackberries?

Tipper