Ice Cream, Oh How I Love You!

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!

I can't remember if I first heard that rhyme from my grandmother or her sister, Inez. Now, I don't know about you but I love ice cream and so did Inez! If it were up to me ice cream would be it's own food group and we would be required to eat at least one serving with each meal.

Last week's stroll down Memory Lane was all about my grandmother and popcorn (Popcorn and Sleeping at Grandma's house), this week is all about ice cream! Ice cream, for me, is more than a delicious cold treat, it is a big part of my life with scores of memories in each scoop. When I was growing up I spent two (2) weeks each summer visiting Inez along with my brother and sister. This was the highlight of my summer and it usually started right around July 4th. My grandmother's other sister, Viola, would host a big family reunion and then we would go from there to Inez's. She lived in a big farmhouse that belonged to my great-grandparents and it had a small, enclosed porch in the back. This porch housed the most important appliance in the house - a large chest freezer! The freezer had three or four compartments and I remember the furthest one from the door was filled with ice cream. All kinds of ice cream! Every night we would get a big bowl of ice cream to eat while watching television - shows like Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Chiller Theatre, Creature Feature and The Twilight Zone - just to name my favorites. I often had butterscotch and maybe chopped nuts on mine. If we had gone out to eat for dinner it is quite possible we had ice cream for dessert but that wouldn't stop us from having it while watching television, too.

It has been more than 40 years since I spent a summer there - my siblings and I replaced by cousins - and the house, unfortunately, is no longer in the family but I still love having ice cream while watching television at night. I don't have a chest freezer (yet) and don't have ice cream every night but when I do I am instantly transported back to Flanders and the green vinyl easy chair that I sat in. When I was little we both sat in the chair together but as I got older the chair became "my spot" when I was there.

Not all of my ice cream memories come from my summers in Flanders and not all involve watching television. I can't eat a Good Humor bar - especially the Strawberry Shortcake - without thinking of church, Dilger's Market and my aunts, Chris and Cindy. I will explain. Most Sunday mornings I would go to Sunday School and then go back to my grandmother's house. There would be me, my brother and sister, and my aunts, who are only 10 and 11 years older than I. On the way home from church we would stop at Dilger's Market where my grandmother would get her newspapers and we would each get a Good Humor bar - I typically got the Strawberry Shortcake. I don't know when the market closed but it has been a very long time and I don't believe any store took it's place; the building is still there, boarded up and long since abandoned but I got a craving for a Strawberry Shortcake Good Humor bar....

Then there is Dairy Queen. My Little League team, the Lions, was coached by Mr. Marks. The Marks' lived a couple houses away from me and Johnny was one of my first friends when we moved there shortly after my 5th birthday. Mr. Marks coached Little League since before we even started playing and everyone in the neighborhood who played baseball played for the Lions. There were no exceptions that I know of. We always had a really good team and won most of the time. When we won we would all pile into a few cars - back then it was okay - and go to Dairy Queen for a celebratory ice cream cone. The big treat was the addition of the hard shell coating that we got on the cones. Years later I worked for a company just a few miles from the same Dairy Queen and would go there for lunch some days. Guess what I had for dessert when I did.... Every time I see a Dairy Queen I think of baseball, Little League and the friends I played with.

My parents used to take us to Carvel for an occasional treat. I remember that my "usual" was a sundae with vanilla soft serve and wet walnut topping. I still love that sundae but there aren't a lot of Carvel's around anymore. The one that we used to frequent is still an ice cream place but it is a privately owned store.

I think this is a good place to stop - I could go on for a while and have more stories but I heard you are supposed to "leave them wanting more" and so I stop. What are your ice cream inspired memories? What is your favorite flavor? I'd love to hear from you.

Do you believe in magic?

So, do you believe in magic? I don't mean the magic in a young girl's heart, I mean real magic. Like stuff mysteriously appearing out of thin air? If you answered, no, then let me take this opportunity to change your mind.

The Magic Sand

This particular feat of magic took place in the late 20^th century in my own backyard. It was the beginning of summer and the kids wanted a sandbox to play in. I was able to find a nice, turtle-shaped sandbox but none of the stores had sand. I spent days trying to find a store with sand, traveling 100's of miles, but there wasn't a grain to be had. I was about to give up when I saw store with a sign in the window reading, "Magic Sand Sold Here." I didn't believe in "magic sand" but I was desperate so I went in.

When I opened the door I immediately saw an old woman sitting behind the counter - she looked to be 100 years old and she turned her head in my direction as I walked in. I told her my tale and that I was desperate for about 200 pounds of sand for my children's sandbox. She held a crooked finger in the air and, with her other hand reached under the counter. When her hand reappeared she was holding a small plastic bag with about a half-cup of sand. I took the bag and laughed! How was I going to fill a sandbox with a half-cup of sand? She told me it was "magic sand", I was to put it in the sandbox, say the magic words, cover the sandbox and the next morning it will be full.

Well... I knew someone was full of something but I was desperate. I paid $10 for the bag of sand and went home to my wife and children. My wife gave me a "look" when I told everyone about the sand and asked if I had any "magic beans", too. It was getting late so we dumped the sand into the sandbox, said the magic words and put the cover on. I'm not sure who was more curious the next morning, me or the kids. We had our breakfast and went outside to check the sandbox. I had already come up with a story about why the sandbox was still empty but, lo and behold!, when we removed the cover the sandbox was full! I know what you are thinking but it's true! You can ask my wife and kids - some time between when the kids went to bed and we finished eating breakfast the sandbox filled up with sand. It truly was magic.

Do you believe now?

Well? Do you?

Let me ask you another question. Have you ever noticed that in the middle of the word "believe" is the word "lie"? I didn't either until earlier this week. Believe me when I tell you that the "magic sand" was a hoax. Yes, that's right! As far as I know, there is no magic sand. I decided to have some fun with the kids. We had already gotten the sandbox and I told them I was going out for sand. I went to Home Depot and bought the 200 pounds I needed and then went to the beach before heading for home. I brought a sandwich bag with me, scooped up some sand and put the bag on the front seat of the car. When I got home I made up the story of the magic sand; we put the sand in the box, said some magic words and covered the box. When they went to bed that night I went outside and filled the sandbox.

The looks on the children's faces when I took off the lid of the sandbox was priceless, unfortunately there are no photos. They truly believed that the sand was magic and couldn't wait to start playing. They spent a lot of time in that sandbox that summer and it always brings a smile to my face when I think about it. It was such a simple thing but the memories will last a lifetime.

Now that I think about it, when I said that the "magic sand" was a hoax I may have been lying just a bit. While the sand didn't magically multiply overnight it did make two young children believe in magic and it gave a family one more wonderful memory. If that isn't magical, I don't know what is.

In Closing

The moral of the story is simple - you don't have to spend a lot of money or go to exotic lands for vacation, a little bit of imagination and spending time together is really what life is all about. My daughter recently posted a meme on her Facebook page that read: "A child is going to remember who was there, not what you spent on them. Kids outgrow a toy & outfits, but they never outgrow time and love." I believe that to be true but would change it a bit. They may remember the expensive gifts or big vacations but they won't cherish them as much as they will time spent together. While the kids outgrew the sandbox (we still have it but it isn't being used) they never outgrew the memory. Children have a way of making us understand what is important in life, if we will only listen.

I hope you enjoyed this trip down Memory Lane and would love to hear from you. Have you done anything similar for your children or your parents do something like this for you? Do you have a favorite family memory that you would like to share? Leave comments below - I love hearing from my readers.

Until next time - enjoy your summer and make sure you are making memories, not just plans!

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Sandbox image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay

"Yellow shovel" image is copyright Joseph S. Valencia All Rights Reserved and may not be used in any way without express written permission of the photographer. If you wish to use the image you may contact the photographer at valencia32photo@gmail.com

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What Is Your Summer Music Playlist?

Summer is here!

It's official! Summer is here. I have to admit, summer is my least favorite season but “summer music” is a different story. There are some songs that just scream “SUMMER!”; like just about anything by The Beach Boys. I enjoy listening to “Surfin’ Safari” in December but might crank it up in July. I have written about music before and how it can elicit memories and long since forgotten or help us get through difficult times in our lives. This post is a little different because I think there are some songs that everyone associates with summer and brighten up your mood – I have links to those posts below. At least, that is how it is for me. There are also certain songs that are not necessarily “summer” songs but remind me of summer, if that makes any sense. When I hear the song it brings me back to significant events or memories of summers long past.

I received a portable reel-to-reel tape recorder back in 1973 or 1974 and used to carry it with me, along with a transistor radio. If a song I liked was played, I will record it. Of course, the sound quality was somewhat less than optimal but a kid had to do what a kid had to do. I remember having the tape deck when I was at my great-aunt’s house one summer, sitting in the backyard listening to the radio. It was then that I recorded the Allman Brothers singing “Ramblin’ Man”. It doesn’t matter what I am doing – when that song is played I am a kid sitting in that backyard under the warm sun.

The strongest summer memories, other than “Ramblin’ Man”, are triggered by “Baker Street” by Gerry Rafferty and “Hot Child in the City” by Nick Gilder. I am automatically transported back to the Summer of ’78, the year I graduated from high school. I have such fond memories of that summer and the songs were still getting a lot of airplay that fall so I also associate them with my first semester at college. It was also that summer that I saw The Beach Boys in concert at Giants Stadium. It was the very first concert held at the stadium and we were on the field. There were three other bands that day but the only other one I remember is the Steve Miller Band. If you look at the album sleeve for “Steve Miller Band Greatest Hits 1974-78” you will see an aerial view of that show!

So, those are songs that remind me of summer by this is about my “Summer Song Playlist” and here are some of the “must haves”, in no particular order.

• Surfin’ Safari – The Beach Boys
• Good Vibrations – The Beach Boys
• California Girls – The Beach Boys
• Surf City – Jan & Dean
• Wipeout – The Surfaris
• Misirlou – Dick Dale and His Del-Tones
• Peter Gunn – Dick Dale and His Del-Tones
• In the Summertime – Mungo Jerry
• Summer in the City – The Lovin’ Spoonful
• Summertime Blues – Eddie Cochran (also The Who)
• Live & Let Die – Paul McCartney & Wings
• Rock Lobster – The B-52’s

I’m sure I am forgetting more than a few and will remember a half dozen as soon as I publish this but I am going to leave the list at an even dozen. I would add that almost any song by The Beach Boys, Jan & Dean or Dick Dale could find a home on this list and I didn’t even go back to the 50’s where I could add at least a few more.

So, I ask you – What are your favorite summer songs? Which ones did I get right? Which ones make you question my sanity and which did I leave off? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Have a great summer!

Here are the previous posts that I mentioned earliers:
The Power of Music - http://ramblewithjoe.blogspot.com/2017/03/the-power-of-music.html
Remember When the Music - http://ramblewithjoe.blogspot.com/2017/04/remember-when-music.html

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All photos are copyright Joseph S. Valencia All Rights Reserved They may not be used in any way without express written permission of the photographer. If you wish to use any of the photos you may contact the photographer at valencia32photo@gmail.com

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