Cape Breton's Magazine

cerned. Of course. Mother gave me a slap on the face. I said, "I'll take that," I said, "but I'll still say it. I'll say it as long as I live." (It's remarkable.) Remarkable--it threw me. You know. That's a true story. (You couldn't make that up.) No. No, no. I've seen some situations in my day, you know. I drove buses up through the country for Mike Sullivan. And I met every caliber of people that you could come across. That was one of the worst situations in my es? timation that I ever heard of. (Good for you. I think you're right.... So your mother, do you feel she did or did not have an inclination to encourage you to stay in school?) No. Well, it was a matter of survival, you know. We wanted her to stop working. So my two brothers and myself, when I started working, then she was able to quit. got married. Bertha came in, and Mother was still here. Andy, my second oldest brother, he died very young--in his 30's or some? thing like that. And Lawrence, the older brother, he got married and got a place of his own. But Andy was never married. He was still here when Bertha and I got married. But he got sick and got pneumonia or some? thing, and bang, bang, bang, right quick. He was in the hospital a couple or three months, and didn't come out. But Mother lived to be, oh, close to 80, I'd say. (Where did she die?) Up in St. (Did you ever visit the convent?) This is going to throw you: I'm the only male that ever lived in the convent! She got her hand caught in the ironing mangle. Did you ever see an ironing mangle in a big operation? Like two big-- your hot-water boiler in the house--put two of them together, and one is going one way, and the other. They run the clothes through, to iron. She got her hand in it, up to her wrist. And it burned. She was in the hospital-- her hand was always like that from then on. (Sort of like a claw.) Yeah. But she kept using it, and she kept working after it. But she was in the hospital 4 months. I was 4 years old at the time. So, I don't remember the details. But a couple of Sisters came up here in a taxi and took me, and I was down at Holy Angels Convent for 4 months. They looked after me. 'Cause the other two (boys)--(Mother) had a sister who was working in Boston. A lot of Cape Breton women, not mar? ried, took off for Boston 'cause they could get jobs working in housework in Boston anytime. So when she wrote her and told her about what happened to her--she didn't write her--somebody did. She came home and looked after the two older fellows. And kept house. Four months, while she was in the hospital, I was down in Holy An? gels Convent. (Another mark on the wall for you!) I had a strange life. (Did you continue to live with your mother all her life?) Oh, yeah. I was the last one. After I Cedar House Bakery and Restaurant 674-2929 OPEN DAILY FOR BREAKFAST, LUNCH & DINNER bread • scones • oatcakes • cookies • pies TRANS-CANADA HWY NEAR SEAL ISLAND BRIDGE SUMMERTIME PRODUCTIONS SOCIETY presents FEATURING: Richard Burke Steve Gaetz Berkley Lamey Fred Lavery Bette MacDonald Max MacDonald Doris Mason Maynard Morrison Krista Touesnard Tara Lynn Touesnard DIRECTOR: Sandra Balcovske MUSICAL DIRECTOR: Leon Dubinsky ANEW MUSIC & COMEDY SHOW JUNE in NOVA SCOTIA Sydney (Centre 200) • 2-5 Pictou (DeCoste Centre) • 7-9 HaUfax (The Cohn) • 10-15 Truro (C.E.C.) • 17 Antigonish (St.F.X.) • 18-20 Port Hawkesbury (S.A.E.R.C.) • 21-22 -GlaceBay (TheSavoy) • 24-26 JULY in ONTARIO Ottawa (National Arts Centre) • 8 Marldiam (Markham Theatre) • 9 Brampton (L. B. Pearson Theatre) • 10 Kingston (The Grand Theatre) • 12 Brantford (Sanderson Centre) • 13 London (Aulthouse College) • 14 Windsor (Cleary International Centre) 'IS Cape Breton Island I CANADA/ NOVA SCOTIA COOPERATION AGREEMENT ON CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT j| Canada ~: TICKETS ON SALE AT EACH VENUE