My 92 year old Mom's 'Baby' brother

Here's a picture of my Mom's baby brother (at 91..) with GREAT granddaughter - PJ. Isn't she just darling? Looks to me a lot like the little girl from the Grinch Who Stole Christmas...

Mom and Uncle Al are only 14 months apart and used to get into a lot of trouble when they were younger - not sure they wouldn't still if he lived closer. But they have some great stories to tell...

Like the time they 'borrowed' Zadie's (my grandfather's) wall papering board. They greased it and used it as a sliding board. Both report that they couldn't sit down for quite a while after being found out.

Or, the time that Uncle Al got in trouble for ducking when a brick was thrown at his head. The brick went through a plate glass window behind him at the drug store 'on the corner.' First time in history a kid got smacked for ducking...

Uncle Al actually introduced my folks. He knew Dad from a Jewish fraternity in Kansas City which used to meet at a Jewish community center on Sundays. Mom says it was the Y-baks.

Uncle Al got to talking to Dad. The Y-bacs were going to have a hay ride around Thanskgiving, 1936. Uncle Al had a date but Dad didn't. Dad wanted to know if Uncle Al knew someone he could take. Uncle Al said 'Well, my sister is going to be in town on Sunday. You might ask her.'

The very first think out out of my (future) Dad's mouth was 'Is she cute?'

Uncle Al's reply was 'Hell no. But you'll have a good time with her.' And damned if he didn't - for the next 70+ years (they dated 5 years before she gave him 'the' ultimatum and he took her up on it and they married). He died just short of their 66th anniversary. True love. Very true love. The truest I know of.