If you had a dollar for every social media meme you’ve seen since this global pandemic began, you could buy yourself a very nice present. First, it was the toilet paper conundrum, followed by social distancing. Soon the meme themes shifted to hunkering down at home and packing on those pounds referred to as “the Quarantine Fifteen” … now the meat shortage memes have begun to surface. One thing is for sure … those funnies have served the purpose of lightening the mood and passing the time during our stay-at-home daze.
For years, before our eyes ever encountered any pandemic-type humor, I’ll bet your inbox had a few of those vintage-type e-mails that featured a collection of remembrances from the 50s, 60s or 70s.
I got such an e-mail recently that began “you will enjoy this if you are over 60 years old.” Well, I could hold up my hand, since I am in that category. The gist of that e-mail was recounting products we enjoyed back in the 60s. There was a treasure trove of memories in that e-mail and I found myself nodding my head, while scrolling through those trends which ranged from food and drinks to games and clothing.
I lingered for a long time looking at games from back in the day. Oh yes … I played Jacks, Allies (a/k/a Marbles) and Pick Up Sticks.
Yep, I remember shaking the cereal box to see what prize was in the bottom, or begging Mom to let me order “Sea Monkeys” (which she called “plain nonsense”), so I moved on to some other distraction.
That particular e-mail was like taking a trip down Memory Lane. I could recall many of those items, not only because I ate, drank, played with, or wore them, but because of the TV and radio jingles as well.
But, as I scrolled on and on, suddenly my eyes alighted on an image of Evening in Paris cologne, a popular scent back in the early 60s.
That image stopped me in my tracks and instantly resonated with me, as I recalled a fond memory about that cobalt blue bottle with the pointy gold-toned cap.
I was a wee nipper wearing ankle socks and Mary Jane shoes …
Some events in our young lives are easily forgettable, but some have become golden memories. Today I want to reflect on a special Mother’s Day, circa 1962, and a special teacher named Mrs. Deakon.
This is a picture of our Grade One class and the beloved Mrs. Deakon.
I’ve written about this exceptional teacher a couple of times in the past. For kindergarten, a teacher is more or less a babysitter for our first time away from the comforts of home. There was not a whole lot of angst in kindergarten. Heck, school was a half-day session with naptime and cookies and milk. But Grade One – wow, this was big kid stuff. You removed your own galoshes, hung up your own coat and warm woolens in the cloakroom, sat at a little wooden desk and learned the three Rs and French too. Mrs. Deakon was exceptional – she helped us be creative and made learning fun. Like writing this story about our pets.
Of all the teachers I have ever had, Mrs. Deakon was my favorite. (Even though she didn’t give me a 10/10 on my story about Co-Co.) 🙂
Celebrating Mother’s Day back in ’62.
Mother’s Day was just around the corner and with that calendar date creeping ever closer, Mrs. Deakon helped us students create cards for our mothers, which we fashioned from construction paper and a whole lot of love. We drew a stick figure in crayon representing Mommy with a dress, maybe a chunky necklace, (the likes of garb and jewelry worn by TV cartoon character Wilma Flintstone), and, of course, we were standing next to Mommy, a much-smaller stick figure. A few flourishes of flowers and hearts were added, then we painstakingly printed our names and lots of XOXOXOs.
Mrs. Deakon admired our handiwork, then helped us make envelopes for our creations, which we sealed with more Xs and Os and mucilage. (You do remember mucilage from your childhood days don’t you?)
But our good deed for our respective mothers did not end with that simple card. Mrs. Deakon said she would let us “go shopping” for a special present for our Mommies. She wanted us to ask Daddy for a quarter to buy a present at school. I don’t recall if she sent a note home with us to give to him or not.
So, let the shopping begin!
When we arrived for class the next day, Mrs. Deakon had cleared off the top of her desk and set up a collection of small gifts that she had brought in for us to buy for Mother’s Day. When I think back now, I don’t know if our kindly teacher brought in her own gifts (thus she would simply be “re-gifting” them to us for our respective mothers, though I doubt that term was around back then), or, perhaps she had bought this assortment of items with her own money. It’s a sure bet that our classmates’ collection of quarters were not enough to cover the costs for the array of gifts displayed in our classroom, nor the gift wrap and ribbons either.
The only gifts that I recall being on display were one bottle of Evening in Paris cologne, some bubble bath and a slew of knitted items. The latter I recall as Mom loved to knit and often made matching cardigans for my dolly and me (and later, knitted outfits for my Barbie dolls).
Well, I was drawn to that bottle of cologne – perhaps I’d seen it advertised on TV, or on the glossy pages of Mom’s Good Housekeeping magazine. Maybe I just liked that pretty blue bottle, but I decided that would be the gift I chose. I never recalled Mom using cologne or perfume – she smelled of Lifebuoy soap and baby powder. I know money was dear in those days and cologne was probably considered a frivolous purchase. (Yes, I heard my parents talking, even arguing, about money and I was always warned any of their discussions overheard should never be spoken of outside the house.) My parents never went out for social events as they didn’t want to leave me with a babysitter and my maternal grandparents lived 25 miles away. My father only gave Mom practical gifts through the years, like pajamas, or a soup pot – one time he got her a griddle so she would make pancakes for Sunday morning breakfast.
My quarter yielded more than just a pleasant scent to dab behind Mom’s ears.
After we chose our gifts, Mrs. Deakon had even brought in some tissue paper and a little ribbon. She let us wrap our presents, making a bit of a mess as we grappled with Scotch tape and tissue paper that may have torn a little as we struggled to conceal our chosen gifts and make them pretty for the big presentation on Sunday.
On Mother’s Day, I remember I presented my card and gift and Mom had tears in her eyes and gave me a big hug and a kiss, then put my card and cologne on display. But, when her tears had stopped and she could speak again without the emotion of the moment choking her up, she asked where I got the gift.
My father, having witnessed this sentimental exchange, told her the story and I filled her in on the details of what Mrs. Deakon had done.
On Monday morning, after the school bell rang and we sang God Save the Queen, we were permitted a few minutes to tell Mrs. Deakon how our moms liked the cards and gifts. I will never know what possessed this teacher to do such a kind deed, but I am sure I am not the only one in that class, nor their mother, who has fond memories of Mother’s Day 1962.
There is a postscript to this little tale …
I presume I got a small allowance growing up, though I really don’t recall what I would have spent it on. We had no stores that us neighborhood kids would walk to. I wasn’t allowed to eat candy, so I guess I just hung onto it? My allowance was supplemented by the occasional dime from my grandmother, or money left in exchange for a baby tooth tucked under my pillow for the Tooth Fairy … hmm, I wonder what the going rate was, maybe a penny, a nickel or a dime in those days?
Mom’s gift made such a hit for Mother’s Day 1962 and by Christmas that year, I was in Mrs. Jamieson’s class, so there would be no more opportunities for gift shopping at school courtesy of Mrs. Deakon. I saved my money and scraped together the equivalent of a quarter and asked my father if he would take me shopping for a Christmas gift for Mommy. He probably thought it was a dumb idea and what could a kid get for a quarter if you were not relying on the kindly Mrs. Deakon? But I had it all figured out beforehand and told him we could just go to the grocery store. Once in the store, I searched up and down the produce aisles until I found what I wanted … the biggest Spanish onion in the bin.
It’s funny what you remember when you’re a kid – in fact your parents might even have joked that you had “selective hearing” (yes, you’re smiling and nodding your head).
My parents were 30 years old when I was born and I was an only child. So, with no siblings to distract me, I listened and observed a lot. Yes, I was mindful of what happened around me. Before I started kindergarten I trailed after my mom, watching her do what most other housewives did in the late 50s/early 60s … cooking/baking, cleaning, washing and ironing.
One time Mom made us grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup for lunch.
She had a huge onion and carefully sliced it onto the cheese before grilling it. She said “Mommy bought herself a treat when we got groceries. I got this sweet onion besides a bag of cooking onions and I’m going to slice some of it onto this sandwich.” That onion idea didn’t much appeal to me, so when she asked if I wanted a taste, I shook my head “no” then remembering my manners, said “no thank you.”
That conversation stuck with me, like that mucilage … so that is why I asked my father if we could go to the grocery store – that onion would be my first Christmas present I bought for Mom. I asked Mom for some paper to wrap up her present, and, on Christmas morning, when she unwrapped it, just like the bottle of cologne, Mom got tears in her eyes. I’m sure she remembered our conversation.
Mom was never big on flowers as a gift. Oh, I remember picking dandelions or buttercups and thrusting them toward her saying “Mommy, I picked these for you!” She’d be gracious about it, but she really loved oddball things like those onions … or Red Rose Mixed Sweet Pickles and tomato relish. That’s because she grew up in a household where, during the growing season, her parents “put up” green or red tomato relish that they called “chow-chow”. In late Summer, every weekend my grandfather was busy peeling onions in the basement, while my grandmother was stewing tomatoes over a hot stove. My grandmother didn’t like to cook or bake (I have her genes), but she rolled up her sleeves, tied on a big apron and really got into this project, just like her own mother did for years. The result was many Mason jars of green or red tomato chow chow that were lined up on fruit cellar shelves and they could slather it onto ham sandwiches, or eggs, or just plain toast. My mother did no canning or putting up pickles or preserves or chow chow, but she used to talk about how she enjoyed those treats. Whenever we went to a fruit and veggie stand while out on a Sunday drive in the country, she’d always be scanning their wares for a similar product.
One time I went to pick up some holiday goodies at the Honey Baked Ham store and saw they had red tomato chow chow. On a lark I got her a case of 12 bottles for her Valentine’s Day birthday. It made her smile and became a regular staple in this house until they stopped carrying it.
Happy Mother’s Day to everyone to whom this greeting applies.
Let me leave you with this quote: “Everyone has those random memories that make you smile.” ~ Anonymous
[Images from Pinterest. The rest are my own.]
Linda Schaub
WALKIN', WRITIN', WIT & WHIMSY 
What a wonderful post full of tender memories! For the record, I still have a bottle Evening in Paris perfume from my childhood. I am not familiar with Allies. Is that a game?
It’s obvious you loved your mother dearly. Mrs. Deakon was a marvel to help her students have gifts for their mothers. I remember making an artificial rose corsage for my mom in fifth grade. I was so proud of it, and I’ll bet it looked like something the cat dragged in.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks Anne – I am glad you liked it. I remember my mom had that bottle of cologne for years, even kept the bottle with the cap off to scent her drawer when it was empty. My mom kept her birthday and Mother’s Day cards for years and I went through those cards looking for this one, but she only started her collection when I was in my teens – it was the first time I’d gone into that collection since she passed away. We were very close … especially after what happened with my father. I may do a post one day on the card collection. I similarly kept my cards.
Mrs. Deakon was wonderful – we all loved her, but then the next two years I had Mrs. Jamieson … same kids in my class, unless new kids who moved into the neighborhood … so it was like one big happy family. I loved going to school back then.
I am sure your Mom treasured that corsage – we were clumsy in our creative efforts weren’t we? Mrs. Jamieson told us at the end of Grade 2 to save our Popsicle sticks and we made a pencil cup with popsicle sticks all around it and painted it in school. You know I used “allies” which was what we Canadians called “marbles” … maybe I’ll edit it to put marbles in parentheses now. You notice we refer to Grade 1, not 1st Grade. Have a good Mother’s Day Anne.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Marbles! I’m glad to know there is another name for them. We sometimes lose our marbles. Do Canadians lose their Allies?
LikeLiked by 1 person
This Canadian thinks she does lose her allies/marbles sometimes (many times)! I amended my post … come to think of it, I have never heard anyone use that term over here. My mother was adamant she would use all her Canadian expressions when we moved here … she said “chesterfield” for couch, “serviette” for napkin, “toque” for woolen cap – I don’t know them all now. She was a staunch Canadian through and through … and that is why her ashes are scattered in Canada near the water in a natural setting – her one request to me for years. She always resented we had to move here away from her mother and her longtime friends, so my father promised her we’d return in ten years which never happened. He had no relatives nor friends, so did not “get” it as to family ties.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know the Canadian words you mentioned. It’s too bad your family did not return to your relatives. Who knows what happiness you might have had there? Meanwhile, I’d do anything I could to ensure your contentment here now. You are very special to me.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for saying that Anne – you are special to me too and I’ve often told you that I think your family is perfect in every way and I am envious of your relationship with your kids and grandchildren – even your neighbors. I was only close to my mother and grandmother and have missed the whole family clan aspect by a mile. My grandmother had 8 siblings and my mom knew all her cousins as they went to the farm to visit every Summer and long holidays and special events. My mom was close to her grandmother. My father had no relatives as his parents had died – he had an aunt and uncle left, but had no siblings so a loner. My mother insisted on using those Canadian words and got miffed with having to explain herself what they meant and bristled if someone said she had an accent. 🙂 I worked hard to lose the accent as kids made fun of me back then. I wish we had returned there – we could have lived with my grandmother, especially after she was widowed in 1969. Thank you again for your comment Anne.
LikeLike
That’s funny that your mom didn’t like her scent noticed. I gloried in mine. I sounded very different from people around me, and that suited me fine.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I don’t know why and my grandmother loved her lavender – I found a small lavender far which is closer than the one I wanted to go to this summer (same place as the sunflower farm) … when I find that place, I will do a post on lavender and my grandmother … I wish I had a picture of her using her Yardley products. She loved that lavender scent. I was bullied for being Canadian – the teacher made me read in front of the class in sixth grade (right after we moved here) – he laughed at my Canadian accent. Made me stand in front of the class to read aloud and then embarrassed me and the kids would laugh. I had loved school and after we moved here and the taunting, I hated school. Kids beat me up on the way home – bent my glasses, never pummeled my face but knocked me down. I got in trouble for getting my clothes dirty. i didn’t tattle on them as I knew they’d beat me up more – kids are cruel. Bullying is not something in this century … I know many think it is. It continued after sixth grade in middle school. Once again a teacher, only worse – she paddled me … the first 2 paragraphs in a long-ago post tell what happened. When I finally told my parents, it was not pretty at school. They were also livid with me for not opening my mouth sooner and telling them. https://lindaschaubblog.net/2013/06/06/frown/
LikeLike
I am so sorry Americans did those things to you. I was never aware of bullying in school.
LikeLike
Thanks Anne – I feel like I whine sometimes but it was so difficult and 7th grade/middle school was just a continuation of 6th grade/elementary school as to the teachers and kids. I am glad it is all behind me. The bullying of kids in school these days I think is done more on social media. We have at least one teen a year in this area who takes their life due to Facebook friends – a lack of them primarily. They feel like underachievers in the social media world. That is sad. There is a 5K walk to honor a local teen who did just that – it is every Summer at Heritage Park. Each year I say I’ll go to it – it is free as it is corporate sponsored, but you can buy a tee-shirt if you want to contribute to the cause of teen bullying – her parents go around to schools encouraging kids to be kind to one another. It probably won’t go this year like all the other 5Ks due to no gathering/crowds. I did a virtual 5K event on Saturday at Heritage Park for a food pantry but that is the only one I will do this year.
LikeLike
Doing a virtual 5K sounds great.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I knew Laurie had done some – now I have to decide whether to do the post now (in the next week or so) or wait until after I get the tee-shirt and finishing medal which happens after the cut-off for virtual races (June 30th). I usually include the tee-shirt and medal, but I did take a lot of pictures Saturday. I have taken so many pictures on my treks, even with not toting the camera for a month, that I should have enough photos for the next 6 weeks at least.
LikeLike
That’s a lot of photos!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I often take duplicates in case of boo-boos. 🙂 I have to make up for that one month not using a camera, but truly is too many photos. Maybe that should be my New Year’s resolution for next year and make it easy on myself.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I had read about bullying through social media. Some of those teens are monsters.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes they are Anne. I personally think the kids are given smartphones too young these days. I can understand for an emergency but you can get those Firefly phones which just store a few numbers. I see young kids on smartphones at the park or grocery store and it just seems too early to me. Just my opinion and I have a flip phone.
LikeLike
I agree with you.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I knew them as both allies and marbles. My brothers had a big collection.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes and they had colors or distinctions like cat’s eyes or agates, I can’t remember the other kinds off the top of my head though, can you?
LikeLiked by 1 person
No, I remember those two, my mom and I had this discussion recently and she remembers playing with them during the Depression, so they go way back…..
LikeLiked by 1 person
I didn’t know that – I can picture playing allies and jacks on one of the neighborhood kid’s patios. We were in a fairly new sub (we moved there in 1959 right after it opened and my parents said the day we moved in it poured raining and they had not put in grass yet and mud/clay dragged into the house. There were gravel roads and driveways even when we moved. I see from Google maps all that changed. But yes, we hunkered down and played on that cement patio. I don’t know about recess – I know we played jump rope/Chinese jump rope then at school.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I remember playing Double Dutch – jumping robe at recess…not sure why it was called that, but it involved two people at either end swinging the ropes…..
LikeLiked by 1 person
I remember Double Dutch too … two people, and two ropes going at the same time wasn’t it? And you’d stand there waiting for a good time to jump in and start jumping? We were doing jumping at every recess. Wasn’t it called a skip rope – here they call it a jump rope. What did we play that we would chant this: “Concentration … keep in rhythm. Jump!” I think it was Double Dutch. It took coordination. And Chinese jump rope – how high can the elastics go and you jump in and out without getting tangled up?
LikeLiked by 1 person
I can’t remember, just that you had to jump in at a certain time, but if you could keep the rhythm going it was fun. I only remember skipping rope in the early spring once the weather had melted and it was warm enough at recess. Not sure what we did the rest of the year?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, and you’d stand there trying to gauge when to jump in … yes it was fun. All the skipping rope and Chinese Jump Rope but I liked the skip rope games best. That’s a good question what we did for recess in bad weather. I doubt they had us go into the gym as we would have to go in with rubber-soled sneakers as I recall as it was wooden and shiny (at my school).
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wonderful memories Linda, your photos brought back great memories for me also. I still have my marble collection. I don’t know of the perfume. We had the allowance also but I think it was a quarter once a year and we got it when we went to the big town. And we bought penny candy. I do remember that. Great post. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you Sandra – glad to bring back some good memories for you too. I struggle now to think what I did with my allowance or Tooth Fairy money and I haven’t a clue. We weren’t near any stores (within walking distance or to go on our bikes and I don’t think my friends and I were allowed to stray too far from the neighborhood when we were young). I do remember a penny candy store that was in town (Oakville, Ontario). I remember my parents and me going to a Ice cream place,like a Dairy Queen, and this candy store. I was not allowed to eat candy, just a little at holidays and a piece of chocolate occasionally, but at this store they had black licorice Scotty dogs. So I always got some of those. It was the real licorice, black and you bit into it and it was brown inside and not sweet at all. I think my parents paid for that treat. It was next to the place we went for haircuts. Now I’m going to try and go to the River, just to Dingell Park, and get in a walk and look for cygnets and ducklings – hopefully I am successful. Then do housework … not a fan but it is going to rain most of the day and it is long overdue. Have a good day Sandra!
LikeLiked by 2 people
You also Linda.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great memories. I remember that glue with the rubber top that let you spread it and I remember Evening in Paris. During the ’80s one of my best friends was married to a “clueless” guy who did his Christmas shopping on Christmas Eve after work when only drugstores were open. One year she got a Timex watch and one year she got Evening in Paris. By this time this perfume was out of vogue and she was really annoyed. Eventually they split up for reasons other than his lousy gifts. Thanks for the journey down memory lane. Mrs. Deakon was a treasure. Not sure I had any like that.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you Kate – I remember that glue being in our desks at school and we used it for crafts. Now, I guess it would be that Elmer’s white school glue that kids use. Evening in Paris kind of fell out of vogue … the earliest colognes that I still remember the names and were popular were Heaven Scent or Charlie … I even remember when classmates were wearing musk oil, around 9th grade. I never wore it and it had a very strong smell (several people wearing it and you’d have a headache). My father shopped like that for my mom … I had a picture of her opening a Christmas gift of a big soup pot. She lamented her soup pot was not big enough to make soup to save for leftovers and he got her a big pot. I believe I have a picture of that time opening the present as I took a few pictures each Christmas morning. I really like those vintage e-mails- they bring back lots of memories for me. Mrs. Deakon was a real treasure – we thought the world of her.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I wore Heaven Scent for quite a while. I loved it.
LikeLiked by 2 people
My younger brother gavet me a bottle of Charlie for Christmas in my first year away at school…..I hated it but had to pretend to like it as it was very popular then. I hated Musk too…..
LikeLiked by 1 person
There was a model and she was walking and using Charlie. I just Googled or it would have bothered me – it was Shelley Hack. I can picture the commercial. That Musk was terrible and so many people wore it – guys/girls.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes! That’s it….I could picture her and the ad but couldn’t remember her name. I think she replaced one of the original Charlies Angels.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, that’s right Joni. Now I may go downstairs to get something and don’t always remember what it was (have to return upstairs and then I remember) but I can see her walking briskly, blond hair blowing in the breeze and the logo above her head like it was yesterday. I’ll have to look on YouTube for the commercial later. They have lots of sites on YouTube with commercials from years ago. I stumbled upon some when looking for the Fluffernutter commercial a few years ago. I put the commercial into a post.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Your memories made me smile too. The onion was such a precious, heartfelt gift (who would have thought I would ever see an onion that way?) Wishing you a Happy day!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks Ruth – I saw that e-mail with the vintage memories and I knew it would be my Mother’s Day post. All those years ago and she was such a kind teacher. I could have made the onion a separate post, but decided it belonged here … yes Mom loved her onions and she said I’d go big and strong if I ate them. I didn’t eat them like that but grew big and strong anyway – my parents were very short: my father 5′ 3″ tall; my mom 5′ 2″ tall – I shot up as a teenager to 5′ 9″ tall. What happened there? Mom also told me I’d have curly hair if I ate all my bread crusts – it did not work!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s funny – my dad use to say “it will put hair on your chest” about different foods but since he had all daughters that really didn’t motivate us to eat those things. LOL!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ha ha – my father said that too … all the time. I mentioned it in this post about eating peas. I did not like p;eas but never got to “talk back” to or “sass” my parents so I just ate them I mentioned those eating the peas in last year’s post where I likened it to the goslings eating their grass.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I like your memories. I remember playing jacks and marbles. I remember mucilage which I much preferred to Elmer’s Glue. I like knowing that your mother preferred the oddities to flowers. Your school picture is delightful. I have a similar one. Maybe we all do?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Ally – glad my memories resonated with you. I think we each had a bottle of mucilage in our desks for arts and crafts. Yes, my mom never got flowers from me when I got older. The bottles of relish were perfect for her. I had the school pictures from each year in a scrapbook – the story about my dog too and some other memorabilia my mom saved for me.
A few years ago I joined a Facebook group about my elementary school in Oakville, Ontario where I lived until I was 10. I did it for kicks and people post their class pictures there all the time and people will say “hey that’s my class – thanks for posting this!” Then a back-and-forth ensues between former classmates. So, I was scrolling through the comments soon after I joined and recognized my kindergarten teacher and class – I have the same photo at home. The woman who posted it was named Maggie Rust. I responded and it turned out she was Margaret Rust, who had stood next to me in the class picture. We spent an evening catching up on what we’d done through the decades – I even wrote a post about our connection. She is a hobby artist and I have used a few of her paintings in my posts through the years. She decided FB was getting too invasive and risking her privacy after a few breaches so she bailed and I never heard from her again.
LikeLiked by 1 person
How fun to reconnect like that– if only for a short while. I understand MR’s point, I left FB years ago partially for the same reason. 🙄
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes it was fun Ally. I enjoyed the reconnect. I have my FB privacy settings set so only I can see my site, no one can post anything on my wall and they can tag me, but that tag is only visible to me. I occasionally will comment on a public site, but rarely, as that will show up in my timeline. I really use FB mostly for news (I don’t have TV) and info about the parks or nature venues I frequent, but occasional chitchatting too. I do the same thing with Twitter, only I follow the weather there by a few meteorologists. I followed some bird photographers but every time they “like” something, those posts flood my Twitter feed and gets it out of control sometimes.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I go .50 when young. .25 got us into the movies and .25 for candy. We had a lot of stores around us in Melvindale that we could walk to or ride our bikes to. Remember those toys too!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I was trying to recall and could not for the life of me about the allowance. Our subdivision was fairly new and undeveloped at the end of the street – it was a meadow so my friends and I played there. But no stores within walking/biking distance until we got ready to move to the States. I remember when we moved here in 1966, I walked to the Park Theatre – many years before it was a peep show or now the lofts, but whatever money my parents gave me, my friend and I saw two movies, a preview, maybe a cartoon, got popcorn and stopped for sliders, fries and pop at White Castle on the way home. That is a bargain and a half!
LikeLike
What wonderful memories Linda! You brought back my memories too with the Pick up sticks and marbles!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Glad I could give you some nice memories – I love those type of vintage e-mails too. We played with all those toys … I could have put more on that list – slates, Silly Putty, Superballs, Slinkys and Chinese Jump Rope. We didn’t let any moss grow under our feet – that’s for sure.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I have bought the grandkids a slinky, pogo stick, stilts, frisbee, jump rope, etch a sketch, barrel of monkeys just to name a few. What is funny is they love them!
LikeLiked by 1 person
That is great Diane – keep them away from electronic devices. Those were all fun games – I spent hours on end with my etch a sketch. I was commenting with another blogger Joni, who is the same age as me, on jump rope – we all played at recess. I remember we could not get outside for recess fast enough. Those were the days. I never had stilts but had the others.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That was a wonderful post Linda! I have memories of my mother’s Evening in Paris blue bottle too. I wish I could remember what it smelt like – a light floral? It was very nice of your teacher to do that. Is that a photo of your and your mother at the top? She looks very Jackie Kennedyish with her pearls!
LikeLiked by 1 person
PS. Where are you in the class picture? Your class was a big one.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes we were a big class and continued through fifth grade – I left after fifth grade when we moved here. I was in the second row from the front, fourth from the left – easy to spot in my plaid dress with the little black bow. Remember those velvet or velveteen bows we wore on our white blouses?
LikeLiked by 1 person
I had a plaid kilt red, with a matching red sweater top. The hair looks familiar too, esp the short bangs! Going to bed, Linda, it’s late, you should too! Good night!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I had a plaid kilt skirt too with the big gold-colored safety pin (for show only as it had a couple of buttons that kept it wrapped around). Pretty sure I wore it with a white blouse and the black velvet cross-over tie and a red vest. This was a dress I was wearing in this photo. I had the same dress for my kindergarten shot and my mom took pictures my first day of school. This is the dress in a post I did – the picture is not very clear. I scanned it on the printer scanner, then got a flatbed color scanner a few years later and did all my photo albums then. I think I used a better picture later on, but I remembered my “Smarties” post.
I went to bed shortly after you – alarm went off this morning – ugh. I’ll walk but it is not too inviting out there and the grass will be sopping wet and puddles all over from all that rain – did not look to see if we had any snow. I can’t believe I said that on the 11th of May.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It snowed so much last night that it was like the closing scene of White Christmas. I stood at the front door and took some pictures which I’m going to use for Wordless Wednesday….still some on the ground this morning, but most melted…
LikeLiked by 1 person
We got .5 inch of snow according to the weather site that posts by city. It was snowing last night but gone this morning, but very wet out from all that rain. This weather is crazy! That’s a good Wordless Wednesday – who would expect snow in May – April yes, but not May! We are supposed to break another record tonight for cold weather.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Glad you liked it Joni – the e-mail with the vintage images reminded me of this incident. I think it was a light floral – my mom didn’t wear it very much. If we went out for a special occasion like Christmas or Easter to my grandmother’s house in Toronto. Yes, that is my mom and me – she had the dark hair like Jackie Kennedy and they were a strand of pearls (likely not real) – I remember them. I was looking for a photo I had not used before and when I was about the age of first grade, but I couldn’t find one with both of us in it, so I used this one. Hard to believe I was this small. She knit all the baby cardigans, hats and booties – I don’t think I was wearing one of those knitted sets in this photo though. She liked knitting baby outfits, so when I got bigger, she knit them for my baby dolls.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve tears reading this. This is gorgeous…. I can imagine she cried… and that teacher is so gorgeous…..
💕💕💕💕💕
LikeLiked by 1 person
Glad you liked it Ellie – I often get tears when I write a post like this … that teacher was wonderful and very beloved by all of us. I had great teachers growing up and I loved school.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I don’t think I will have a “quarantine 15” but I think my weight might be creeping up. Bill and my son Chris will probably be the only people I know who actually lose weight during the quarantine. Both of them are running and working out like crazy now that they have more spare time.
Yes, I remember Jacks and pick up stix. I remember one time my dad stepped on a jack I left lying around and I got in big trouble!
Here in PA Dutch country, chow chow is mixed pickled vegetables – there could be cauliflower, green beans, red beans, onions, cucumber, carrots, even corn. I have made it several times.
Thanks for the trip down Memory Lane!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I am surprised your weight would creep up since you run so much Laurie, but you were also going to the gym in normal times; wasn’t it the elliptical machine you were using?
I think stepping on a jack would be the equivalent of stepping on a Lego brick these days (ouch!).
Oh my mom would have loved your chow chow for sure. She loved those pickley mixes in a vinegar base. Corn relish too – she would make a small batch of corn relish, but not put it up, just enough for a few days. When we lived in Canada, there was the Red Rose sweet pickle mixture … it was pickled cauliflower, onions and bread-and-butter pickles. Whenever we went to Canada to visit my grandmother, she’d load up on bottles to take back to the States with us.
Glad you enjoyed the trip down Memory Lane.
LikeLike
I remember many of these games Linda!
Cards was another big one for males!. It involved trying to get as close to the wall as possible with a flick! The highly prized position was a “leaner” which leaned up against the wall! The opponent had to knock it down in the next shot or you lost all the cards played.
We played up against window bays that were protected by a wire mesh at school. If someone threw a card and it stuck into the mesh (stickies) It was a guaranteed win because nobody could ever unstick those.
Great tribute to your Mother Linda! How old were you in that first picture?
LikeLiked by 1 person
I did not know about that card game Wayne, but I remember we put cards in our bicycle spokes to make a noise when we rode. Glad you remember the other games – I loved them all and would play for hours. I had no siblings so did a lot of self-entertaining. Allies had different colors of glass as I recall and you always wanted the prettiest or unique ones to play with your friends. Glad you liked this tribute to my mother. A recent e-mail triggered that memory so I knew it would be this year’s topic. I would say my age was a couple of months old Wayne. I was born in mid-April and I’ll bet it was that Summer of ’56 as I had no heavy clothes on. I was only 4 pounds, 11 ounces when I was born and had to stay in the hospital for a few weeks since I was so tiny. Hard to believe now – I used to tower over my parents at 5′ 9″ tall – they were 5′ 3″ tall (father) and 5′ 2″ tall (mother) when I was a teenager and suddenly had a growth spurt.
LikeLike
Ha! I’ve played all those games and (Good God!) that glue… yes, that glue! 🙂
Now they have computer games and look at us as if we are remnant dinosaurs from eons ago… which we are getting to be! But we were virus-free and we did not try to smell the glue to get high.
Keep safe, Linda!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, they were fun to play Tom. As an only child, I had all those games to play when I wasn’t reading. I could play for hours and make minimal noise!
Yes the glue – I laughed when I saw that as I am sure most kids only use the Elmer’s white school glue these days and no, we did not smell the mucilage – just used it for arts and crafts. Yes we were safe back then and us kids could go out and play at one another’s houses without our folks worrying about us being kidnapped or worse. You stay safe too Tom.
LikeLike
Miss Linda………………………………………I enjoyed your story of your old good memories of your favorite teacher, your grandmas and of course your wonderful mom………………………and……………….that’s an adorable picture of you in the car with your mom………………………yes I know what mucilage was……………………………………..when I first started teaching first grade in 1965………………….we used paste and sticks
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Ann Marie – I thought you would enjoy this story since you were an elementary school teacher. Mrs. Deakon was special and after her I had the same teacher for the next two years and she was very nice as well.
But Mrs. Deakon will always hold a special place in my heart. Both had been teaching for many years by the time I had them. Interesting you used paste and sticks – for me this would have been just a few years before, but it was in Canada. I doubt we had Elmer’s White School Glue like kids use now. We used some type of paste made out of flour for paper mache projects which we made from newspaper and that lumpy paste over wire or some type of shaped object.
Glad you liked the picture of my mom and me – it was taken the Summer of the year I was born (1956).
LikeLike
What sweet memories! My first grade gift was a painted rock we did in school. It was the first time I ever saw silver and gold paint. I used a lot of it! She kept that rock until she had to leave her home.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks JP – that vintage-type e-mail sure triggered those two nice memories and I knew it would be the subject for this year’s Mother’s Day post. I think that is nice your mom kept that painted rock all those years so she really treasured it. Did you keep it when you helped her leave her home?
LikeLiked by 1 person
No, it stayed with the decorative wooden box she used to keep it and similar gifts my sister and I made. A nephew developed a love for the box and its contents and were were happy to give him a special thing from his grandma.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s nice that your nephew had an affinity for those memories. I am sentimental and have saved a lot of items – greeting cards is one. My mom saved all her cards from me and I did likewise for my mom’s cards, but there are some other mementos from years ago that I treasure as well.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Beautiful Mother’s Day post Linda
And the onion and cologne were great memories as gifts –
😉
—
My mother n law loves grilled cheese and tomato soup – never heard of it with onion – but sounds good
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Yvette -they are nice memories I have from that year and I clearly remember those incidents due to the sentiment involved. I’ve not made myself grilled cheese and tomato soup though I always enjoyed it. My mom always put whole milk instead of water when making it so it was rich and creamy tasting. She did like her onions and would slice them onto the cheese, flip it over to grill them slightly before putting more cheese on and putting it together.
LikeLiked by 1 person
mmm – I also liked the soup when milk was added – but I guess it depended
funny but now that I think about it – I did have that tomato soup and grilled cheese a good number of times over the early years. I cannot stand canned soup now tho – but my MIL still eats a lot of canned stuff.
and the way you described the adding of the onions was good… felt like I could see her doing it
LikeLiked by 1 person
I eat canned soup Yvette because it’s just me, but I use Amy’s as her soups are organic and tasty plus low sodium. She has other organic products too. I watched my mom cooking all the time (evidently I did not learn by osmosis though). 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
hahah – laughing at how you did not learn by osmosis – so funny
and hey – if there are good products out there and it works for you – I say enjoy 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person