Reminiscing: Christmas Music

It’s that time of year where Christmas music is everywhere. My kids have the radio playing it on all night while they sleep. Something about sugar plums and fairies dancing. For me, it’s one of my least favorite parts of the year. It’s so rushed and crowded that it drives my anxiety right through the roof. Add the endless loop of Christmas jingles to it, and it adds up to less Santa and more Scrooge for me. But it wasn’t always that way. 

Reminiscing: My Uncle Jerry

This first week of December is usually one of my favorite weeks of the year. My birthday is the 7th, so I generally celebrate “Birth Week” all week long. This week, however, things were not as joyful as normal. Unfortunately, my mom was texting me the plight of my uncle Jerry. He’d been pretty sick for awhile, and things were rapidly moving in a direction that none of us wanted. Then the news came that Uncle Jerry passed on December 3rd.

The Dads Must Be Crazy Ep. 15: Nostalgia & Grandma's House

In this week's episode, we talk a little about nostalgia. We reminisce about our grandparents' houses and some of the great memories of family and tradition at each. Of course Howie hosts the tangent portion of the show and we talk about baseball cards for a little bit, too. Bobby still has the baseball cards his grandparents gave him. Craig was obsessed with Tinkertoys and space.

Reminiscing: Mowing Grandma's Yard, Learning to Drive

Patience & Corliss trying to mow the lawn with the tractor.

My wife usually takes Tuesday afternoons after work to go visit her grandparents to see if they need anything. This became especially vital after her grandfather had a stroke several years ago and needed more help around the house than he cared to ever admit. Now that spring is finally here and there’s a lot of work to be done with her grandfather to help, Wendy doubly makes sure she’s able to lend a helping hand.

Reminiscing: Views From the View Master

Sometimes there are old toys that end up your favorites and can stand the test of time. They transcend generations, bringing enjoyment to children and grandchildren of the original owners. I have one of those toys which my grandmother originally purchased for one of my uncles, and kept around the house for the grandkids to enjoy. It wasn’t a normal part of our toy retinue, but only came out on special occasions.

Reminiscing: Operator. How May I Direct Your Call?

Lockport operators. March 1968

I was sitting at my laptop wondering what I was going to write for an article for Sunday when Jim Croce’s “Operator” started playing on my YouTube feed. First of all, that’s a great tune, and it’s a shame that we lost Croce when he was only thirty. Secondly, how did we think these songs were lame when we were kids? We were definitely wrong. Thirdly, it took me back to when there were actually still operators. Have you ever had to call the operator?

Reminiscing: Moving Out and Moving In

Remember when you first moved out of your parent’s house? How old were you? Some people moved out right after graduation to join the military, or head off to college in mere weeks. Others stayed for awhile longer, while I’m sure there are some who have never actually left. For all those who moved out into the world on your own, where did you go, and who did you go with? Were you flying solo or did you have roommates?

Reminiscing: The Video Game Revolution

I hear it being said all the time about how great kids have it these days especially with the video games they get to play. There are sometimes I think they’re right. It’s usually when I open a new game and load it for the first time. The graphics are intense. However, when I think back to the video games I played back in the mid to late 1980s, I’m reminded how awesome our games were in their simplicity.

Reminiscing: Spiders in the Pantry

I must have been ten or eleven years old when my grandmother, who was going to cook some kielbasa for me, asked me to grab a spider from the cellar stairwell. I had no idea what she meant, but I obediently went to the basement door, opened it, and began walking carefully down the stairs. I was afraid of those stairs since the bottom half were old, cracked wood, with no riser behind them. A young kid could fall right through them into the black hole under the stairs. Plus there were so many spider webs in the basement. Not knowing what grandma was asking for, I went straight for the webs.

Reminiscing: Naming Your Cars

The other day I was taking one of my daughters to dance class and we had to pick up her friend, Bella, to take her to class, too. Right after I turned the corner away from her house, I thought I saw her mother driving towards us. She drives a very distinctive car that I have not seen a lot of around town. I asked her if that was her mom, and she responded with, “No. That’s Uncle Bob’s cousin.” I didn’t think too much of it, but then asked her if her cousin had purchased exactly the same car as her mom. There were so few of the around I just thought it was extraordinarily strange. Her explanation was a bit shocking, but a whole lot of fun.

Reminiscing: Tangible Memories

There are items from my grandmother’s house that are now in my house. Actually, there are things from both grandmothers’ houses now resting comfortably in my house. One of my upcoming articles was inspired by one of those items. In the meantime, as I continue to do some research for that article, I thought I would revisit some of the memories that come with a couple of those other items.

Reminiscing: Some of My Favorite Toys

We all had our favorite toys when we were kids. Some of them stick out in our minds. Some of them we loved so much that we wore them out. Some we remember fondly but we have no idea what happened to them. There has to be a collection of favorite, forgotten toys somewhere, waiting to be rediscovered by old friends. Occasionally, I think of some of those old toys and wonder what happened to them.

Reminiscing: Quick Memories Of Lockport

I was thinking about how so many things have changed around Lockport in the time since I was a kid. There are some things I really miss. Others are simply fun to talk about. I’m sure there are some people who are older than me will remember even more things, especially if they lived through Urban Renewal. Let’s see how many of these things you remember, too.

Reminiscing: If the Thunder Don't Get You...

Is it just me, or has it been quite awhile since we’ve had one of those big time, summer thunderstorms? I mean one of those thunderstorms that seems to go on and on, not the ones we’ve gotten lately that last ten or fifteen minutes. It’s not that I’m hoping for one, but sometimes I kinda miss the adrenaline rush that comes with the flash of light and nearly immediate thunder.

I was frightened by thunderstorms a lot longer than most kids would have been. I can trace that directly back to a big storm that happened when we were still living in Lyndonville. We moved to Lockport when I was five, so that memory definitely affected me quite a bit.

Reminiscing: Picking Those Blackberries

A couple of weeks ago, I bemoaned the fact that I could not find any blackberries anymore. Thankfully there were a lot of suggestions about where I could find some, and a couple of phone calls from family friends who had some on their property. So, the last two weekends, we went berry picking.

Last Saturday, we took all four girls to a friend’s house who has acres and acres of land behind his house with trails running through it all. Along most of those trails, there were blackberry bushes burgeoning with the tasty treats. Of course, the kids complained that the thorns were too much for them. Meanwhile, Wendy and I pushed the thorns aside and made our way into the thickest part of the brambles. That’s where the best berries are often found.

Reminiscing: Wait 30 Minutes Or You'll Drown

It’s summer, and that means pools, beaches, and swimming. With the utter lack of rain and the intense heat so far, this season is shaping up to be an epic one regarding swimming. I’ve been suckered into one pool party already, and I’m sure there are more happening. Meanwhile, the girls have been all over the place at pool parties.

Reminiscing: Waiting for Those Report Cards

This past week, we got all four report cards for the girls. Sometimes I can’t believe that the twins will be going to the high school in the fall. Or that Number Three is heading into junior high. At least we still have Jo, who’s only going into...wait a minute...third grade?!?!? None of them can possibly be old enough for any of this. It sure seems crazy, but that’s not the intent of this article.

Reminiscing: Picking Blackberries

Spring is a difficult time to write. Finally after a long winter, we can get outside and start to clean up what the snow has left behind. Because of that, I’ve been very remiss in getting stuff written for the blog. There’s just so much going on outside, and it’s been so nice, who wants to sit at a computer and write? However, after a weekend of spreading mulch, a story from when I was a kid popped into mind. That is the subject of this week’s Reminiscing.

Reminiscing: New Bad Haircut

Today’s title comes from a song by a local band, Gil Transit. “New Bad Haircut” was summed up quite nicely after seeing myself on Channel 2 a couple weeks ago. I knew I was in need of a new haircut because the one I had was bad. Then, looking through some old photos in yearbooks at the library, I realized that we’ve all had a series of bad haircuts. Most of the blame falls squarely on our parents, but none of us can even pretend we’re innocent when it comes to bad haircuts. At least now, I have a new haircut that is great.

Reminiscing: One of My Early Hobbies

I used to like to draw. I drew a lot. I have several sketchbooks filled with half-finished drawings and some completed ones. My mother tells me a story from when I was in nursery school where the class made autumn trees using our hands as a guide. Apparently, the teacher said I took my time, and mine actually looked like a tree. In my classes at high school, I still liked to draw, but some of the extraordinarily talented people around me had far more drawing ability than I did.