Conversation Shakers

Christmas of 2017was almost upon us when I remembered the Publix Mr. and Mrs. Claus salt and pepper shakers on the top shelf of the cabinet behind the flour and sugar canisters. I retrieved them along with the Publix turkey salt and pepper shakers and the Publix Mr. and Mrs. Snowman shakers.  All six of them on the dinner table made me smile. And at the next meal, Mike asked what turned out to be the question of the season, how does one know which in each pair of shakers is the salt, and which is the pepper?

I shared my logic: it has to do with the number of holes in the top – one has three holes and one has two – and I figure that we all over-salt our food, so I put salt in the shaker with two holes to slow down the pour, and pepper in the shaker with three holes. Since Mike is someone who feels nothing can be over-salted, and since he is naturally suspect of my logic at any point in time, he googled the question.

And the first thing that came up in the search was the Salt and Pepper Shaker Museum. And which shaker is salt and which shaker is pepper? is listed as the site’s most frequently asked question! Who knew there was such a museum and that there was such an interest in which shaker is which? The museum is in Gatlinburg, and of course it is now on our list of places to go. The answer to the question is – it depends on preference and availability which goes in two holes and which in three.

Isn’t it so refreshing to know that in today’s politically divided world – there is still an issue out there where it is okay for the experts to sit on the fence? We can accept that some people put salt in the two-hole shaker and some put it in the three-hole shaker, and there is still peace in the land! Not at all like the question of which way to hang the roll of toilet paper!

We took a selfie with the six shakers and posted it on Facebook with a Merry Christmas message and the question of how to tell which is which? Oh my gosh, did that picture and comment get a lot of attention and fun responses! Who could have guessed?

My brother Clark was most succinct in responding “Guys, the fun is guessing which has which.” And so it is!

The shakers reminded Facebook friends of the television commercial of a few years ago starring the Publix Pilgrim salt and pepper shakers, which then brought back memories of Publix holiday commercials over the years which are so sweet and sometimes tear-jerking.

And that got me to remembering salt and pepper shaker gifts from the past. When we lived in Oklahoma, some friends were moving away and other friends were hosting a going away party for them. I found salt and pepper shakers in the shape of cowboy boots that said Oklahoma up each boot. Gaudy enough for the friends to remember their days in Oklahoma always! And when my nephew, Ben, was getting married to Caitlin, I wanted to get them something unique. After much head scratching, I remembered how Ben would giggle over Grandma Mary’s Garfield books whenever he visited her in St. Augustine. I googled, and came up with a Garfield and his girlfriend, Arlene salt and pepper set. I don’t know which is salt and which is pepper, but they were magnetized such that Arlene is kissing Garfield when the shakers are placed close enough. Again, quite gaudy, but I hope they bring a smile at the table!

      We brought the question of which is salt and which is pepper up at the different holiday tables we frequented this past week. The discussions were lively and somehow comforting! The shakers of the Christmas of 2017 added flavor to our food, spice to the conversation, memories of holidays past, and maybe even a glimmer of hope of peace for the future!

Welcome to the first entry of my Sharper Stick in the Eye blog. It is a sequel to Sharp Stick in the Eye, a blog which consists of three hundred sixty-five memories – a memory of mine was posted for each day in 2015. I am a storyteller whose favorite story form is personal narrative. I share stories from my own life and stories passed down from family members. Sometimes people tell me they don’t have many stories from their lives, and I wanted to prove through the blog that if I can come up with 365 personal memories, surely others could have many memories too, some of which could be developed into stories that might shared within the family or told to others to entertain, empathize, and better understand the human condition.

Writing Sharp Stick in the Eye was a rewarding experience. I learned a lot about myself fleshing out memories that had only been on the surface of my consciousness. My family members who read the blog understood me better. To quote my daughter, Amanda, “it explains a lot.” And beyond family, I’m not sure anyone read any of it. And somehow, that’s okay with me. It’s there.

 When the project was finished, I thought of more memories, and I missed writing the blog. So I decided to do a sequel – three hundred sixty-five more memories, if I could come up with that many more. However, the goal of posting once a day is a bit much. Scrambling around with my brain mostly in the past so as to meet a deadline is not much fun for my family. Living in the present is something I’d like to do with them.

 And with all that in mind, the sequel, Sharper Stick in the Eye, will be written as memories come to the surface in my daily living (and I hurriedly scribble down a note), and I’ll post when I get the chance, and the blog will be finished after 365 entries, and that may take years. Let’s find out together.

001 20180101 Conversation Shakers