Monday, August 8, 2011

Window Toys

I had great fun growing up, and toys were a part of it. A few jump out at me in the old memory bank. There were fun-filled summer days playing with Scotty and his many Tonka trucks on Lawn Avenue and those winter days on Stevens Avenue with the whole gang crowded in our kitchen with the that table hockey game. We had teams and tournaments that went on literally for weeks. My old trusty Teddy survived me dumping most of the contents of Mom's bottle of Chanel No. 5 on him. For years, he was the sweetest smelling teddy bear on the block. He's still with me today, riding shotgun in a box of J's stuffed animals in the attic. My bike, although maybe not a toy, was with me every step of the way, it seemed, in those formative years. And there were the assorted games, books, little green army men, the Roy Rogers Stage Coach, my cowboy outfit, skates, the orange and blue football helmet, a transistor radio, the paint by number kits found under tree on Christmas mornings. Did we get every toy we wanted? Are you crazy? We were typical kids. But as Mom and Dad would say as we got older, " Did we ever not give you anything you really needed?" And of course, the the answer honestly was always, "No." Sure there were things I felt I needed to survive and could not last the day without, but for the life of me, I can't remember what they were. I guess it's true, our brain can't remember pain.

28 comments:

  1. oh, birdman, what a complexly comforting feeling you must get each time you catch a hint of someone wearing Chanel No. 5.

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  2. Kitty, I'm laughing right now... too funny! No wonder I hang around older women today!

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  3. There's even a sign about me in the window - Klutz!

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  4. I had a huge Breyer horse collection when I was little and played with those horses endlessly, not to mention all the Barbies and Barbie paraphernalia I had! But we were outside pretty much every day of the year, riding bikes, roller skating, skate boarding, neighborhood hide n seek games...such fun! So cool that you still have your teddy! I have a couple of horses left from back then too :)

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  5. Wow! You have brought back memories. It was secondhand toys we used to get in the children's home but they were still important to us. I seem to recall that we swapped things a lot. Not always advantageously either. I think I'll spend a little time thinking about toys today.

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  6. Your, "leave it to beaver," childhood is sure different than the childhoods of today. I vote for the one you had. -- barbara

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  7. How do you remember all this stuff. I mean, I can recall some things from my childhood but you've got all the details. Maybe it's 'cause you stayed in one place and I moved all over the country.

    Thanks for your comment today on Ocala. Some people have called me the flower of our family. Well, that's not exactly how they put it. I think what they said was that I was a bloomin' idiot!

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  8. Well, I've also been told I was full of crap! :-)

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  9. Ya Jacob- Lots of manure is good for 'blooming idiots'! hahahaha

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  10. I remember getting a chemistry set that I really, really wanted.

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  11. So many memories, I grew up in the middle of Africa, it was fantastic although I guess we didn't get all the 'latest' toys, but I never remember feeling ill done to. Makes me laugh now though when my daughter and I go toy shopping for the babies in the family we have great fun checking out all the latest gadgets.

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  12. What an unusual sight nowadays: a small, (apparently) locally owned toy store. Love it! (And, the story about you, Teddy and Channel no. 5)

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  13. ca fait petite maison artisanale d'un temps passé ;)

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  14. ..Again you make us dream of those years.
    With your memories and photographs.
    Costas

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  15. I like the sign on the door "14,000 things to be happy about".

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  16. Oh boy, should I ever meet you I'll not wear mine! :-)

    (My teddy is at my Mum's! :-))

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  17. My bike, although maybe not a toy, was with me every step of the way

    Did you put baseball cards in your spokes? They make a great "brrrp" sound when you ride. Thanks for bringing back some memories.

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  18. Another great picture to bring back more wonderful memories! My Barbie doll was my favorite toy and now I watch my granddaughter playing with hers and it makes me smile.

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  19. Hey MOJO, I did forget baseball cards and all the games and uses. For sure, cards in the spokes. Ah... great memory.

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  20. I want to know how you remember all this stuff. Aside from the complete roster of the 1955 Boston Red Sox, which was really really important to me, I can't remember a thing from the 50s.

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  21. This post brought up a lot of memories. I wonder if kids today will recall their hours spent with video games with equal fondness.

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  22. I grew up on air force bases and my bike was my best possession. Took me everywhere!

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  23. I thought that it was cigarette packs in the bike spokes - we would never have destroyed a hockey card in a bike wheel. I had a Davey Crockett hat that I loved!

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  24. Hi There, I remember that horrible perfume, Chanel No. 5. Yuk!!!!! Do you remember Aqua Velva????? Mercy Me!!!!

    I had a Roy Rogers outfit --complete with holster and gun... AND--I had a Roy Rogers lunchbox.... Mercy Me!!!!! Such great memories..
    Hugs,
    Betsy

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  25. Such a good story (and what a great name for a toy store). It brings memories: my first transistor radio for my - 8th? not sure - birthday, and the first thing I turned it to was a Yankees spring training game. (And it's still in the basement.) My erector set. The battery-operated army tank. The table-top knock-hockey game. This could go on a long time.

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  26. Looks like a great store. I still have a Tonka Cement truck that my father bought for me when I was 7yrs old. Its a little beat up but a treasure.

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  27. Such warm memories of a childhood richly lived.

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