Family proved role of great-uncle is serious business

"You can tell your uncle stuff that you could not tell your dad."

- Dusty Baker

With last week's arrival of my great-nephew Andrew, I have added a new family title to my rsum: great-uncle. As with most of the previous family jobs I've been assigned - son, brother, cousin, uncle, dad - I plan to grow into the role.

My own great-uncles were a friendly fraternity, handy with tools, comfortable with the technology of the day - reliable men valued by their neighbors.

Unlike my numerous younger uncles, my great-uncles were less likely to play and more likely to teach. I remember them as patient observers who always seemed to find amusement in my efforts to hammer a nail, guide a tractor or chase chickens. They were great explainers, whether it was weather, carpentry or Sunday school behavior.

I am now down to one. He's nearing 100 but still on the job, occasionally sending me e-mails with a joke I might use.

They all took this great-uncle business seriously, and so shall I.

l

MORE MAIL: Paul and Betty, of Augusta, send a postcard from St. Andrews in Scotland, where they "saw Jack's swan song - very emotional ."

The Barone family sends a card from Plymouth, Mass., where they are "enjoying the cool breeze" on their annual trek.

Jan Menger, of Belvedere, is in Iowa attending a 50th wedding anniversary for an aunt and says, "One reason I made the trip was so you could get a postcard from this state!"

Doris White, Rhonda, James, Sandra, Stephen, Taylor and Mikey are having a great time in Orlando, Fla., visiting daughter Sharon. Bill and Fran, of North Augusta, say Philadelphia is a "great city." Belle LeRoy is having a cool time in Michigan.

Pauline and John Holleran say it's cold and windy in Alaska. Kevin (3) and Aaron (18 months) enjoyed the Akron Zoo while visiting their grandparents in Ohio.

And 76 people from the Hephzibah and Kilpatrick Baptist Associations are on a mission trip in West Virginia, teaching vacation Bible school and having a blessed vacation.

TODAY'S JOKE: Everett Fernandez shares this one.

A man goes to the doctor with a swollen foot. After a careful examination, the doctor gives the man a pill big enough to choke a horse.

"I'll be right back with some water," the doctor tells him.

But the doctor has been gone a while, and the man loses patience.

He hobbles out to the drinking fountain, forces the pill down his throat and gobbles down water until the pill clears his throat. He hobbles back into the examining room.

Just then, the doctor comes back with a bucket of warm water. "OK," he says, "after the tablet dissolves, soak that foot for at least 30 minutes."

Reach Bill Kirby at (706) 823-3344 or bill.kirby@augustachronicle.com.