Only bits and pieces of how the grandparents I knew best met; but apparently her family had very recently arrived from "back east." They came from the same general area as his family, who had moved somewhat earlier, and apparently the families "knew (of) each other."

Shortly after her family arrived there was a "visit" at which the families attempted to introduce the two - kids of about 10 years old or so. He "resisted" the attempted introduction due to the matter of a rather large hole in the seat of his britches. His parents (possible with assistance from her parents and numerous "cousins"), in a blatently unsympathetic manner, presented his britches to the "young female child" who was given the task of patching them.

How they got his britches wasn't related in detail, although methods were suggested...

An apparently long period of overt hatred coupled with covert "interest" intervened, but eventually (about 10 years later) the two married.

Grandpa was known to comment "couldn't stop her tryin' to tease me, so I thought maybe if I married her she'd shut up." He may have been "partly serious," but obviously had noticed it didn't work.

Much much later, I can recall her saying something to the effect of "shoulda known better than to pay 'tention to a kid that couldn't afford a whole pair of britches," but I think that was no more serious than his comment.

John