When we were 18 or so, my best friend and I drove two hours down the coast of Georgia, from Savannah to St. Simons Island, to visit my Grandmother. It was a Sunday, and she loved to lunch on Sunday, so she offered to take us to Spanky’s, the restaurant that had recently replaced Shoneys as her favorite Sunday eatery. At Spanky’s we could watch boats on the river from our table.
Before we ordered, Grandma asked my friend and me if we wanted a drink. I knew what kind of drink she meant.
My friend and I looked at each other and giggled with our eyes. “No Grandma, we can’t. We’re not 21 yet.”
“Well, it seems rude of me to have a drink if you’re not.”
I told her, “You go ahead, Grandma, we don’t mind.”
When the waitress arrived, she recognized Grandma, chatted with her, and then asked for her drink order.
“I’ll have my regular please.”
Our server shifted on her feet. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Smith, I can’t serve alcohol before noon on Sunday.”
Grandma did a little shake of her blonde hair and said, “Oh brother. Just bring me a Diet Coke then.”
She rummaged through her purse while the waitress went to get our drinks, and after some digging, she pulled out a prescription pill bottle. After our drinks arrived, Grandma looked my friend and me in the eye and said, “You have to be prepared for situations like this.”
Then she unscrewed the lid on the plastic orange pill bottle and poured the emergency stash of gin into her icy cold Coke.
I have committed to posting every day for a week in response to the WordPress Weekly Writing Challenge: Just Do It. I wrote about my stupid decision to make this commitment, and all my “buts,” here.
Butterfly Mind 
The orange pill bottle and the gin in milk are the two things that I will always remember about your grandmother.
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That makes me giggle 🙂
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Sounds like you have a wonderful grandma! 🙂
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Thank you. She was pretty awesome. I think I will need to write more about her.
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Yes! I would love to hear more stories about your grandma. 🙂
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This is delightful. Mad props to your grandma.
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Thanks Fred 🙂
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I love this post! It makes me miss your Grandma. She was one of a kind.
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That is so funny! Our Grandparents add such amazing memories and interest to our lives! I miss mine. My Grandma Rosie is the only one still alive and she lives way out in California but she is so cooky and funny! She was a snazzy dresser and always had to have her hair-do just right…she was always getting her (many) shoes mixed up and wearing unmatching pairs out to the store and was totally clueless about it. 😉
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Your grandma and my grandma are peas in a pod.
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Ha ha ha… beautiful. My maternal grandmother enjoyed a bowl of cherry vanilla ice cream and one can of cold Budweiser with the evening news every night. A strange combination to some — but it really worked for her. 😉
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