Believe it or not, I received my refund check from the cable company today. A whole $4.22. Woohoo! I can take the rest of the week off. NOT! What can I get with that? A gallon of gas, perhaps a gallon of milk, four Hershey bars, half a sandwich from my former favorite pizza place, 10 postage stamps, a loaf of decent bread.
I think I’m old. I remember when gas was 49.9¢ a gallon, Hershey bars where 5/$1.00, stamps were 6¢ and people used them to send notes written on actual paper. I also remember when milk was delivered to your doorstep as were chips and pretzels. Where I grew up we had a grocery truck that came around with fresh meats, vegetables and a few staples. Since the driver knew there kids on his route he also stocked Tasty Cakes. Real Tasty Cakes that had flavor, not the kind they mass produce today. I’m pretty sure my $4.22 would have financed one of the impromptu picnics the neighbors across the street had throughout the summer.
Do people still do that? Have spur of the moment gatherings for the surrounding neighbor kids even when they don’t have any children of their own? Do parents let their kids under the age of 10 roam for hours without knowing where they are or who’s feeding them?
Do kids still go outside and play in the sunshine? There was a creek about a mile or so down the hill from our house where we used to hunt for crayfish under the rocks. I even had a pair of sneaker just for wading since we were always splashing around in the muck. To get to the creek, we would cut through another neighbor’s yard. She didn’t mind. More often than not she’d be waiting for us with glasses of lemonade when we came back through her yard.
Yes, I really do think I’m getting old. I must be because I’m sitting here thinking that kids today don’t know what they’re missing.
I think I’m old. I remember when gas was 49.9¢ a gallon, Hershey bars where 5/$1.00, stamps were 6¢ and people used them to send notes written on actual paper. I also remember when milk was delivered to your doorstep as were chips and pretzels. Where I grew up we had a grocery truck that came around with fresh meats, vegetables and a few staples. Since the driver knew there kids on his route he also stocked Tasty Cakes. Real Tasty Cakes that had flavor, not the kind they mass produce today. I’m pretty sure my $4.22 would have financed one of the impromptu picnics the neighbors across the street had throughout the summer.
Do people still do that? Have spur of the moment gatherings for the surrounding neighbor kids even when they don’t have any children of their own? Do parents let their kids under the age of 10 roam for hours without knowing where they are or who’s feeding them?
Do kids still go outside and play in the sunshine? There was a creek about a mile or so down the hill from our house where we used to hunt for crayfish under the rocks. I even had a pair of sneaker just for wading since we were always splashing around in the muck. To get to the creek, we would cut through another neighbor’s yard. She didn’t mind. More often than not she’d be waiting for us with glasses of lemonade when we came back through her yard.
Yes, I really do think I’m getting old. I must be because I’m sitting here thinking that kids today don’t know what they’re missing.
