Living with grumps, I learned certain things. As a rule, grumps are not morning people. After an entire night stewing in their own juices, they need to seriously adjust their chemicals with caffeine, sugar or a good long session in the shower. My youngest sister, a grump who can grouse with the best of them, would come to the breakfast table at the age of 4, head held high, with her green blanket draped over her head. A grump needs to know when to be alone.
Grumps are also fun to annoy.
The stimulus-response relationship is at times almost enchanting. Harassing a grump without sustaining personal injury is good sport. A number of the sources nominating valley grumps did so with the caveat that their grump had many redeeming characteristics. Indeed, many grumps seem to have a kinder, gentler flip side. Grumps are often irascible, curmudgeonly and much-loved.