Three-Dollar Bill

Well folks...after a short hiatus from my blog, I'm back with another story about my Dad, Leamon Riggs.

I've said many times, "My Dad was a ""Jack of all trades"" and master of most of them."  He was a carpenter, real estate broker, income tax preparer, ran a moving and storage business, clerked for an auctioneer, repaired tractors and farm machinery, built utility trailers, ran a used furniture store...just about anything it took to "get the coon"!

The used furniture store was on Myrtle Street, in the building right behind the "R.V Hayes Grocery" on St. Louis Street.  His stock included new and used furniture, appliances and various kinds of wood and propane heating stoves.

Bill lived down the street in the trailer park and got in the habit of coming by to sit and visit with Dad.  Bill was up in years and the years hadn't been real kind to him.  He was quite the story teller and was (in my Dad's words) "kinda windy"!  He was always wanting to buy some article of furniture and would tell Dad he would pay for it with a "Three-Dollar Bill"...So...that's what Dad started calling him!

It was starting into the fall of the year and Bill was needing a heating stove.  He made a deal with Dad to buy one and pay it off so much per week.  Bill made a couple of payments, then stopped and didn't come by to visit Dad anymore.  This went on for a few weeks and finally Dad stopped Bill as he came walking past the store.  Dad asked him why he didn't stop in to visit anymore and if there was anything the matter.  Of course, Dad knew the reason but he just wanted him to "fess-up."  Bill stuttered around and finally got it out that he didn't have the money to pay off the heating stove and if Dad wanted it back he could come and get it.

Well...my Dad didn't have the heart to do that so he made another deal.  He told Bill that he didn't want to lose their friendship over the heating stove....so....If Bill would supply him with turnips out of his patch throughout the fall, he would consider the debt "paid in full!"  This suited Bill just fine and the daily visits resumed!

What a deal!  We had fresh turnips to eat and "Three-Dollar Bill" kept warm through the winter!

(By the way...the "R.V. Hayes Grocery" was most recently the salvage grocery store/antique and used furniture store that burned down on St. Louis Street...which was "Stanley's Thriftway",....which was "Gott's Market"...and it seems like there was another name there somewhere!)

Moten Cemetery

Last weekend Tami and I had to get out of West Plains due to an acute case of "cabin fever" so we decided to go to a cemetery.  Sounds like fun doesn't it?!  Actually it was the Moten Cemetery where my Grandma Riggs' infant sister, Albie, was buried.  I posted about this a few weeks ago in a blog post entitled "You Just Never Know".

We had no trouble finding the cemetery but it was a different story finding the gravestone.  In the picture from the arkansasgravestones.org site, I could see a forked tree and what looked like a road in the background.  We wondered around and found some "Earls" graves and finally found the stone.  It was illegible from a short distance but by getting real close and tracing the engraving you could make out the information.

I know most people find a cemetery a morbid and sometimes spooky place.  I don't like funerals and going to the cemetery when someone passes is sad.  However, I kinda enjoy going to the cemetery and visit some of them quite often.  Certainly every Memorial Day, since it is a Riggs tradition.  I think I can blame Momo Riggs for some of this.  I can remember her taking me to the cemetery when I was a child and just spending time strolling through the gravestones.  She would tell me stories about the people, who they were, how they passed, their children and happenings of their life.  Now she might have been making it up but it made for an interesting outing!  Enough of my rambling...enjoy the pictures below!

I also found two other small grave markers beside this stone (my right in picture above).   They were Jessie C Earls 1913-1913 and William C Earls 1914-1914 and I wondered if these were stillborn/miscarried children of Jesse and Effie?