Tabla de contenidos para June 2023 en Good Old Days

FAMOUS QUOTE “Dad taught me everything I know. Unfortunately, he didn't teach me everything he knows.” -Al Unser Do you remember … What was the name of the television dad in the hit show Father Knows Best? Find the answer on the next page. Advertising Flashback The kids rush out the door to enthusiastically greet their dad every day when he comes home from work in this 1952 ad from the Philadelphia Electric Co. Things My Parents Used to Say Whenever Judith Lidgus of Brookings, Ore., would complain about something not working out as planned when she was young, her mother would remind her that “it's a poor tradesman who blames his tools.” An avid fan of strawberries, John Stottle of Ormond Beach, Fla., remembered his mother would often say, “God…

I got my first pet in 1966 when I was 19, married and living in West Philadelphia. It was a seal point Siamese cat that my husband and I bought from a pet store. We named her Kwan Yin after the Buddhist goddess of compassion-a name she never lived up to, given that she had a bit of a mean streak. Having no children at the time, she became my child. I showered her with all the love and affection of a new mother. At night, she slept on my pillow next to my head. In the morning, when I opened my eyes, I would see her blue ones a few inches away, staring straight at me. When she was a little over a year old, we took her to…

Growing up in Lancaster County, Pa., I noticed my Mennonite mother had a lot of men in her life. None of these men competed with Daddy though, and there was no jealousy between them that I could detect. Mom didn't have a driver's license, but all she needed—bread, produce, home-care products, even groceries—came to our door in the early 1950s. The Stroehmann Bread man walked into our house with his baked goods like bread, doughnuts and cookies arranged on a flat tray fastened with a strap around his neck. Once a week, the greengrocer's step van swung by the Longenecker house, huckstering produce of every description: lettuce, radishes, potatoes, eggs, etc. When I stepped up onto the metal treads behind Mom, I noticed his hand scale shaped like a scoop…

It was another sweltering-hot summer Sunday in Crane, Texas, in 1964, and we had just gotten home from morning worship service. I was 12 years old; my sister, Dollie Sue, was 14; and my brother, Norman, was 16. My dad, Cecil, like most every day, was at work in the oil field. We were eager for lunch as my mom, Annie, always fried chicken on Sundays and made biscuits and gravy. We looked forward to this meal all week long. Mom always fixed Dad a big plate and kept it in the icebox for whenever he got home. We quickly changed out of our good church clothes and put on our rags—that's what Mom called our playclothes. There was an endless pasture next to our house where we played all…

Do some of you recall how an old barn smells? It's not unpleasant at all, but rather a warm mix of rotted manure, alfalfa hay, grain and animals blended into a homey nostalgia that no one could ever duplicate. If you aren't fortunate enough to possess such a memory, just search for an old barn, step inside and take a deep breath, and then you'll know what I'm talking about. Our barn was quite useful in its day. I think we usually had about six cows, so there were that many stalls. Our motley herd consisted of various breeds and temperaments. They each knew their own stall and stomped right in and took their places, ready for milking. I'm not sure, but I think there was a little hay and…

Back in the late 1940s, I always saved my allowance to buy a gift for Father's Day. Gifts for a grown man were tricky. First, I needed to guess whether my dad would like the present I chose. Or would he just pretend to like it? Then came an even greater problem: money. My allowance was 10 cents a week. Good gifts for a father often cost more than 10 cents. The men's counter at the five-and-dime store on 13th Avenue in Brooklyn, N.Y., offered several items that were affordable for a little girl with only a dime. For example, a small black pocket comb cost 5 cents. Unfortunately, my father did not have much hair. Mom described Dad's hair as “thinning.” Pocket combs were just one of the items…

Old School Days I just finished reading the September/October 2022 issue of Good Old Days, and I have to stop and write to tell you it was an exceptional issue! I really enjoyed the stories about the old school days. Larry Scheckel's “Building Bonds” says it all, and his opening statement about the quality of the one-room education was right on. I couldn't agree more! How valuable the school system was in raising up children. I understand the world was much different back then, but in our journey to progress we lost something along the way. And I really enjoyed “The Sparkling Jewell” by Kathy Padgett. What a legacy her mother left her. Who would believe one woman could do so much good for so many children? To care that…

When I was young, I navigated my Chicago neighborhood using my senses of smell and hearing. To the east of where we lived, there was a large bakery with ovens that provided breads, cakes and other sweets to consumers through supermarkets and the on-site company store. A big cookie factory was about four blocks north of our home. A local manufacturer to the west spewed a scent bouquet of banana, pineapple, cinnamon, clove and wintergreen into the air—commonly recognized as the smells of bubble gum. The smell on the wind would tell me the direction it was coming from. Given my impairment of not being able to determine one direction from another, God was very generous in allocating me a sizable nose to compensate and help sort things out in…

When I was 11 or 12 years old (in 1961 or 1962) I trapped rabbits in the woods and along the banks of the Connoquenessing Creek, just over the hill from my house in Ellport, Pa. I used big green box traps provided by the Pennsylvania State Game Commission. They paid me 50 cents apiece for live rabbits, which they relocated into state game lands so there were plenty of rabbits available for hunters. I had a fair number of traps, and my friend Andy asked if he could borrow a few. He wanted to try to make a few bucks also. Every morning we would get together and run our traplines before school. There were lots of rabbits that year, and we got rabbits every day. We would slice…

Every neighborhood had a grocery store. It was the time before supermarkets made their debut. The Great Depression was still in full swing, and my mom was left a widow with four children to raise. Providing food for her children was a serious issue that she had to face day in and day out. Our corner grocery store was run by a friendly grocer by the name of John Zieminski. Luckily for all of us, he had a soft spot for my mom. He saw to it that our family had food on the table. A home-cooked meal once a week was all that he required for payment. A deal was made, and John the grocer became a very familiar part of our everyday existence. When groceries were needed, I,…

May is National Pet Month. Our house is one of the 80 million in the U.S. that is home to one or more pets. If an animal decides it wants to adopt you, it is futile to protest. Their needs are simple: food, shelter and affection. Pet parent requirements are few: infinite patience, a sense of humor, and an endless source of income. No matter the species, pets will destroy property, rack up vet bills, and steal your heart. We have cared for all kinds of feathered, furred and hooved animals, but our dogs and cats are most firmly tucked into our hearts. Waffles, Sausage and Augie-Doggie are the family dogs I remember from childhood. I was 15 when I finally had a dog of my own. He was a…

OUR GRADUATION DAY Submitted by Sharon Robinson Spalding of Ashland, Ore. From left, Delores “Frenchie” Frechette Burian, Sharon Robinson Spalding, Gloria Wiley McCullough and Shirley Lamb Golden stand together before graduating from Citrus Union High School in California in 1953. CANDY KITTY Submitted by Deborah StuckeyKurylo of Falls Church, Va. Deborah and her family enjoying their backyard. Deborah has her most favorite cat. Candy Kitty, with her. SHOWING OUR BEST Submitted by Julee Shetley of Greer, S.C. Harrison Shetley shows the horse he had been training, Banner's Manhattan, at the Cleveland Park in Greenville, S.C., in the early 1960s. NOSE TO NOSE Submitted by JoAnn Schueller Cooke, of Prescott, Ariz. JoAnn's 7-month-old son, Patrick, goes nose to nose with the family dog, Shadow. SANDS OF TIME Submitted by Carol Hagerty…

At 8 o'clock on a Sunday evening sometime between 1948 and 1971, where were you? If you were like a lot of Americans, you and your family were sitting in front of the television watching Ed Sullivan present a wide range of talented performers from all over the world—musicians, actors, comedians, puppeteers, acrobats, you name it. As it says in the song Hymn for a Sunday (aka The Ed Sullivan Song) from the movie Bye Bye Birdie (1963), “We'll be coast to coast, with our favorite host, Ed Sul-li-van, Ed Sul-li-van…” When the hour-long show began on CBS in 1948, it was titled Toast of the Town. The announcer introduced the host as “the nationally syndicated newspaper columnist, Ed Sullivan,” which was how he was best known at that time.…

“Hildas in labor!” yelled Mr. Davis. I leaped off the porch, ran next door, and watched Hilda strain as five milk-chocolate-color Dachshunds slowly wriggled their way from her belly. The first was a runt who immediately captured my heart. I giggled, watching it and the other four bundles of energy squirming beneath Hilda's tummy, all begging for lunch at the same time. But the magical moment ended when Hilda nudged her runt puppy away. The runt inched his way back, but she shoved him away, pouncing on his tiny back and breaking his tail. “She's hurting him!” I screeched. “Make her stop!” Mr. Davis scooped up the injured pup and placed him in my hands. “Run, kiddo. Get a shoebox and put dat pup in it!” I darted inside, gingerly…

Many people have a fascination with cars and can identify make, model and year of just about any car they see. During the late 1950s, children in our country neighborhood in North Carolina fell right in line with car enthusiasts when we attempted to identify cars and other vehicles as they passed down the road. On lazy summer afternoons at our grandparents’ home place, we rocked in big white porch chairs and made a game of watching cars. We waited for cars to pass on the busy country road and took turns at “taking ownership” of the cars. We celebrated when we got a fairly new car and were ecstatic if we could accurately identify the make, model and year. Each car-watching session had its own rules, which we established…

Puppernutters Kitties are not keen on homemade snacks, but dogs love them! Use a 3½ x 1-inch bone-shaped cookie cutter and there will be enough to share. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium mixing bowl, combine whole wheat flour, oats, flour and cornmeal. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, combine water, oil, eggs, peanut butter and vanilla. Stir dry ingredients into wet ingredients until dough forms a ball. If too dry, add water 1 tablespoon at a time; if too moist, add flour 1 tablespoon at a time. In a medium mixing bowl, combine whole wheat flour, oats, flour and cornmeal. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, combine water, oil, eggs,…

Following America's entry into World War II, the Defense Department decided to set up an all-star entertainment radio program. It would be broadcast on shortwave on the Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS) to U.S. troops stationed overseas to lift their spirits and remind them of home. Command Performance was produced in Hollywood's radio studios with an estimated $75,000 weekly budget. It broadcast the best American talent to every corner of the globe. Soon after the premiere, the producers began honoring requests from troops to hear everything from the sound of a sizzling prime rib to a kiss from the glamorous Betty Grable. Each week, the master of ceremonies, Ken Carpenter, introduced “the greatest entertainers in America as requested by you, the servicemen and women of the United States Armed Forces…

The Long Summer Joke My father, Basil, was a hardworking West Virginia coal miner, so as a form of relaxation, he would do anything to make people laugh. For example, when my mom, Rachel, my sister, Brenda, and I prepared dinner, we all wore aprons that tied in the back. As we worked, Dad would rush through the kitchen, grabbing the apron strings and untying each one. He would laugh as the aprons fell to the floor. Before we had an electric kitchen stove, we still cooked on an old coal-heated cookstove. In the summertime With no fans or air-conditioning, this made for a very uncomfortable day. One very warm summer day I was complaining as I did the supper dishes. My father came into the kitchen to get a…

The smell of chicken frying takes me back to when I worked at Gold Crown Drive-In restaurant, in Tiffin, Ohio. It was 1966 when I handed over my paper route delivering The Advertiser-Tribune to my younger brother. After turning 16, I was old enough to get a work permit. Friends of mine at Columbian High School told me about a job opening at the burger joint where they worked. Out front, Gold Crown's towering double-sided yellow sign in the shape of a crown practically shouted, “HAMBURGERS 15¢!” I started out working weekends. My dad drove me to work since I didn't have a car. I learned to do everything. I began with chicken. After cleaning it, I coated the pieces in breading mix, put them on trays, and rolled them…

It was one of those long Idaho summer days that started out good and ended well, but it was not so good in the middle. We lived a long way from town, and every week or so, the folks needed to take our cream and eggs to town for trade. The items in Mom's larder were enough for the simple, good meals she cooked, but it was getting pretty sparse by then. By the time they'd loaded up the cream cans and the egg crates, there was no room for children. We stayed home. The old Chevy had barely chugged out of the yard when we kids got the candy kettle out! We all had a lively sweet tooth, that's for sure. The first step was getting the old woodstove…

It was a quiet spring day in 1960 in Great Falls, Mont. There were about 10 of us sitting in the living room, and it was a sad day for us. The kindest, sweetest grandfather—we called him Bumpa—had passed away, and we had just come from his funeral. At 16 years of age, I was the oldest of the five children in our family. As we sat there remembering Bumpa, a quick fluttery movement went past the large picture window. We all jumped up to look out the window just as a small white bird made a second pass. The little white bird flew by several more times. We thought it might be a dove or a small pigeon. My 8-year-old sister, Debbie, ran outside to see if she could…