Memories of Uncle Parnell…

I have many fond memories of my Uncle Parnell…as a teenager he hired me to deliver bread on Saturday mornings at $2/day …  eventually earning $10/day… started our deliveries in the early hours of the morning & dropped bread at grocery stores from Pembroke through Rolpton, Camp Petawawa, Round Lake & across the river on the Quebec side.  He enjoyed driving & made a lifelong career of it… as he drove we chatted about life & current events of the day.   He always had his thermos of tea & sandwiches …it was an adventure for me and I enjoyed sharing this time with him …he loved fishing & on one occasion, Uncle Parnell, my Dad Howard & myself drove up to Bellows Bay with the intention of catching some barbuts.…it was daytime, Uncle Parnell said there is no way were going to catch even one fish during the day…we’d fair a better catch in the evening “cause they only bite at night”.   Lo & behold we didn’t have enough containers to put them all in…he had to eat his words but had a big grin on his face never the less…another memory was Uncle Parnell asking me to clean out his chimney…he assured me the fire was out and as I commenced cleaning out the chimney I pulled out the brush and the nylon bristles had melted, he put his hands up in the air & walks away as I shake my head…..some years ago he ordered a load of logs & my Dad, Peter Ruddy & myself showed up to give him a hand cutting & splitting the logs…he had taken it upon himself to  start splitting these very large logs on his own & unfortunately a log rolled over his foot, split it open, ended up on crutches…  we three  proceeded to cut and split the logs while he supervised …(I guess that’s one way to get out of a hard day’s work) …Electrical repairs were not his expertise and at least he knew it most of the time and would get on the phone to Mom…”where’s Kevin…I need some help here”.

Bats visited their home often; terrifying poor Aunt Joan and if he couldn’t clear them out himself, I would get a call to rid the house of their presence…

His memory never failed him especially when it came to money… right till the end…he was good to me & I will always cherish our times together…till we meet again Uncle Parnell…

Your loving nephew, Kevin