From the journals:
Fallin’ weather – just what does that mean? It is an old expression that folks used when
they were more or less trying to predict the weather. If you heard a train whistle close to Preston
or Olympia and you were in Owingsville, it meant to an old-timer that rain or
snow was imminent.
When someone would observe smoke from a chimney hovering
close to the ground and not rising, then he or she would predict rain or snow.
These days, there are no C&O trains running through the
county, but if you do not live far from
I-64 or other busy highways, you may make your predictions based on the volume
of the sounds emanating from these thoroughfares. If the sounds of cars and trucks increase
substantially in volume, it is a good indicator of ‘fallin’ weather’ – so they
say.
On a side note, everyone in my family was saddened by the passing of Mr. Tom Turner. He always had a smile for everyone he met, and I think he was one of those people who deliberately chooses happiness and kindness and what a blessing that is when a person like that is a part of your life and community.
When my oldest son, Jacob, worked at the IGA while in high school, Tom would talk to him there and tell him stories about his (Jacob's) great-grandfather Jeff Darnell (father-in-law of William Burl Kincaid, Jr.). Tom would also tell my husband these stories. In a very real way, my husband and sons got to know "Mr. Jeff" just a bit better because of Tom Turner, and when you think about it, that's what small town living is all about - weaving those kinds of threads that make everyone a bit closer. - Ginger
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| Jefferson Lee Darnell ("Mr. Jeff" to most folks - when he was vice president of the Farmer's Bank, he kept a loaded shotgun by his desk when word got to him that banks in neighboring communities were being robbed. I don't know if that's a story passed down in the family or one from Tom Turner - probably both.) |