Simpler times without video games.
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| Dad & Mom at Couples Club! Mom made the dress & tie! |
It seems like our kids think the only way to be happy is to have the latest technology and my son is right there leading the pack. I have tried to convince him that there are other things out there to do but it must be the electronic pull of the internet that pulls them back inside. It's just not the same world I grew up in as a child. We didn't have video games or computers growing up but I certainly remember keeping busy. Things were different for adults back then too. My childhood was pretty simple and we didn't have a lot of money but I never knew it. My dad worked all the time and my mom made the most of what we could afford. I remember her making a weeks worth of meals with just one package of ground beef. As a treat every once in a while we would go to Winky's Hamburgers. "Winky's Makes You Happy to be Hungry!" Check out this video montage of the history of Winkys.
We also kept ourselves entertained with different activities. When I was about 9 or 10, I remember my parents belonging to Couples Club at church and I had fun tagging along with them while they rehearsed little plays and musicals they would put on. I would always sing along and remember distinctly learning the song "Day by Day" from Godspell. I also remember the pastor of our church, he was an albino with platinum blonde hair and virtually blind which for a young boy was kinda creepy. Reverend Goff must have also had hands made of asbestos as I remember him pulling strawberry pies out of the ovens during the strawberry festival at the church, oh did I mention he didn't use pot holders? Crazy!
I have fond memories of making the
entrance hall at home into a stage and entertaining my parents friends when they would
come over to visit. Our neighbors Ron & Ruth Cummings
would come down to visit a lot back then and Ruth to this day reminds me of my singing “Sugar, Sugar” by the Archies. About 20
years ago I recording the song while doing Karaoke at the Big Butler Fair and gave her a copy of the
tape, she loved it.
One time my mom told me that kids always seem to remember bad things more than good things and I after my own experience with my son I have to agree. One memory that really stands out is when my mom was
painting our kitchen a bright teal blue! The reason I remember it so well is because I had walked into the
kitchen just as she was trying to move the ladder (while the tray of paint was still hooked
onto it). The ladder tipped and the tray of paint hit the floor and shot in every conceivable direction. I said, “I didn’t do
it!” She screamed, “I know. Just get out of the kitchen!!!” She was so upset and I was scared.
What a mess! But as always she cleaned it up and by the time I thought it was safe to come out the kitchen was painted, clean and dinner was cooking. She was such an amazing woman.
Vacation Bible School was a
lot of fun while growing up. Every summer our church along with two other churches in the area would join together and have a huge Vacation Bible School. My mom was in usually in charge alongside Mrs.
Lynn and Mrs.Moore was in charge of the music. Mrs. Moore took a special liking to me knowing I loved to sing and when I started singing Barbershop Harmony she would often come to the chapter shows at the old Syria Mosque in Oakland, PA.
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| Tim Hartman |
I still remember the music of Vacation Bible School. Singing “Onward
Christian Soldiers” to this day brings me happy tears. There were a lot of kids at the Bible school and the days went fast as they were filled with music, learning about God and about giving. We were also fortunate enough to have the amazing talent of Tim Hartman and his brother who would put on Christian based puppet shows with characters like the muppets. Tim has continued his love for kids and acting and is now a well known and amazing actor and performer in
the Pittsburgh area. You may have seen him as Fezziwig in A Christmas Carol every holiday. He steals the show every night and I'm proud to call him my friend.
I had some issues with
school. I didn’t like it. I was scared to death of my 1st grade teacher Mrs.
Lepant. She was very stern and I got sick to my stomach just thinking about
going to school every morning. My mom
and dad took me to the doctor to get something to help calm my stomach down and
deal with the pressure I was putting on myself. Later on in life I found out that
Mrs. Lepant loved me dearly. I also found out that the pills were a placebo.
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| Joe's Rusty Nail |
Christmas shopping when I
was young consisted of walking about a mile down our hill to catch a bus with my friend PJ Downs and going a couple of neighborhoods down to a town called Bellevue. We’d
have breakfast at Joe’s Rusty Nail restaurant where PJ would use almost an entire bottle of ketchup on everything
he was eating. I'm surprised they didn't charge us for using all the ketchup. Several years later I
worked at Joe's Rusty Nail as a line cook. I
learned how to make marinara sauce there and many other tricks of the trade.
In January of 2013 we had a family lunch there for my mom’s
funeral. It was a comfort to be in a place I felt comfortable in and my old boss Joe Elbicki took great care of us. It made a horrible time just a little better. It’s wonderful when places like Sir Pizza (39 years), Joe’s Rusty Nail (35 years) are able to hang around and continue to be successful through all these years.
Bellevue had a a bunch of stores to shop at but my favorite was Murphy’s Five &
Dime. It was also the home to the Bellevue Cinema where
we’d often go to the movies. PJ's cigar shop
next door sold penny candy and we’d stock up before the movie. I took Judo (well until I got my
yellow belt) at the Bellevue YMCA. I
didn’t learn a lot but it was enough to get a bully off my back! That’s a story for another time.
As kids we also loved to bowl. We spent a lot of time at
Bellevue Bowl, which had both 10 pin and duckpin bowling. My friend Dan Farrell
was as smart as they come, but didn’t bowl very well. Making fun of him I
suggested that he read a book about it. He did, and then he kicked our
butts. Let me remind you that we went there by ourselves without our parents. When we were older our parents
would drive us out to McKnight Lanes. Both bowling alleys were featured in the
movie King Pin with Woody Harrelson. Unfortunately they’re both gone now.
McKnight Lanes became Bed, Bath and Beyond.
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| Lincoln Bakery, Bellevue, PA |
It’s so sad to see time pass
and things change. They’re all gone, the Bellevue Theater, Bellevue Bowl,
Murphy’s Five & Dime, all gone. We had such great times back then, I miss
those days so much. There's one other long time establishment that is
still in business in Bellevue, Lincoln Bakery who is celebrating 69 years in business. They have expanded through the
years but still maintain the amazing quality I remember from years ago. They make great cakes and other delectable delights so give them a try. I had them make the birthday cake for my mom’s
76th birthday which was a Hawaiian theme. The cake was beautiful (just like her) and delicious. Little did we know it would be her last birthday. I'm so glad it was such a special day.
The perfect combination, coffee & cookies.
As I've done for my first few posts I wanted to continue to share some recipes for wonderful holiday cookies. Today it's all about the "coffee lover" so if you like coffee flavors these are for you!
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First is a twist on the old peanut butter blossoms kicked up a notch. Cappuccino Blossoms feature Instant Espresso, Coffee Liqueur, Cinnamon, Salted Almonds and Dark Chocolate Kisses.
The second cookie is an Irish Cream & Coffee Cookie. This cookie packs a lot of flavor with Ground Coffee, Coffee Extract & Cream Cheese topped with Bailey's Irish Cream & Coffee Extract Butter cream icing and a Chocolate Espresso Bean.
As always the links below the pictures will take you to the recipe. Happy baking.
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| Irish Cream & Coffee Cookies |
Here's a baking tip
According to a good friend of mine who is an appliance repair man after you preheat your oven allow it to warm up another 10 minutes to actually reach the proper temperature. Also use the window and light in the oven to peak at the cookies while they are baking. Every time you open the oven it changes the temperature and that can play havoc on baking times and the quality of your cookies.
How did we ever survive?
Through the years I have been asked to act as a Master of Ceremonies for Barbershop Shows in the area and I was always on the lookout for filler which I thought would be entertaining. I'm sure you might have seen something like these on Facebook but I thought it would be a fun way to end my blog today.
Our baby cribs were covered with bright colored
lead-based paints.
We didn't have childproof lids on medicine bottles,
locks on doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we didn't have helmets.
We would ride in cars without seat
belts or air bags.
We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from
a bottle.
We shared one soft drink with four friends, from
one bottle and NO ONE died.
No one was able to reach us all day by phone and we were
O.K., and we didn't head home until we heard our mom or dad yelling our name.
We would spend hours building our go-carts out
of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes.
After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.
We didn’t have a Playstation, a Nintendo Wii, an X-box,
video games, endless channels on cable TV, VHS & DVD movies, DVR, cell phones, personal computers, Internet or Internet chat
rooms.........WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!
We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and
teeth and there were no one ever thought of lawsuits.
We made mud pies and sometimes ate worms and the worms didn't
live in us forever.
We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays,
made up games with sticks and tennis balls and although we were told it would
happen, we very rarely injured our eyes.
Little League had tryouts and not
everyone made the team. Those who didn't had to learn to deal with
disappointment and try harder the next year. Imagine THAT!
Ron
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