“In America, there are two classes of travel: First class, and with children.”
The sun is shining, the day has a breeze and breakfast was delicious. I had dropped eggs on toast as we used to call them when I was little. It had been so long since I’d last had them, I enjoyed every bit. From there on the day got miserable. I won’t go into a description lest I put you off your feed for days, but I will say the best part of the rest of the morning was finding cat throw up in two places, including the couch. Let your imaginations soar for the rest.
Today I have a couple of errands, but I won’t go until later in the day when the crowds are lounging on the beach catching rays.
I remember best the tartan jug which always came with us on family outings. It came with us to the beach, the drive-in and on long rides anywhere. I can still see my dad tipping the jug to get the last of the bug juice. Once it was gone, all of us being thirsty at once was inevitable.
Needing to go to the bathroom was a mortal sin on any drive. It irritated my father beyond description. Once he’d stopped, we were all forced to go whether we needed to or not. Beware my father’s wrath if any of us had to go within an hour or two of the last stop. Moaning and crying that we didn’t have to go then made no difference. A pit stop was a family affair.
We seldom stopped at other than picnic areas. My parents packed most foodstuffs because a food stop was too expensive. Once in a while we’d stop for ice cream, and that was always a huge surprise. We’d stop at stands to buy fresh corn and tomatoes, but they never counted. They were vegetable stops. I’d look out the window at all the places along the road. Their big wooden signs advertised hot dogs, hamburgers, candy and popcorn, and I’d wish we could pull into the parking lot, but we never did; instead, I’d reach into the picnic basket for a bologna sandwich and a couple of Oreos.
Explore posts in the same categories: UncategorizedTags: Bug Juice, Pit stop, rides, tartan jug
Both comments and pings are currently closed.
keepthecoffeecoming.blog 
July 10, 2011 at 12:09 pm
Our car trips as a child were all very long distances. We would drive from Texas to NYC, to visit family, then on to Miami for vacation and back home. We went to LA in the summer of 1955 because Disneyland had just opened. On the way back we spent a couple of days at the adult Disneyland, Las Vegas.
My father allowed us to stop to go to the bathroom in between meal stops to prevent us from having an accident, and he would stop along the side of the road when we became car sick to expel the earlier meal. We never brought food along because eating the local fare was part of the adventure. Many times the local fare was Howard Johnson’s.
Everyday at four we would stop in a motel so that my sister and I could swim until dinner. It was his way of getting our energy out so we could all sleep through the night. He would never stop at historical sights or tourist traps because making good time, and not spending money on foolishness were important to my father. He was a clild of the great depression and saving money was more important than educational value.
It was always fun to drive in NYC in July. In those days we had one of the few air conditioned cars. When we were stopped in traffic or at red lights people sweltering on the sidewalks would point and laugh at my mother sitting in the shotgun seat wearing a sweater with all the windows rolled up. My dad liked to keep the car’s interior temperature like a freezer.
July 10, 2011 at 8:09 pm
Bob,
We never traveled that far. Niagara Falls was the furthest we went. It was an exciting as we stayed in a motel for the first time and ate out at restaurants. My family couldn’t afford to take the six of us very often. A dinner out was a rare and wonderful treat. On that trip we ate in restaurants several times.
My dad did stop at historic sights. I especially remember the Eisenhower Locks and the walk around the falls wearing those yellow raincoats, and we even went to Madame Toussard’s Wax Museum at Niagara Falls. I don’t know how my parents afforded that trip, but it was the best one we ever took.
How I wish we had your car’s air-conditioning!
July 10, 2011 at 9:08 pm
In those days, unless you bought a Cadillac, air conditioning was an after market item. The one in my dad’s car had the cooling coil mounted in the trunk and the air came out of the package shelf through two clear plastic tubes at warp factor 7. The twin blower motors must have come from a NASA wind tunnel and the unit could cool a three bedroom two bath house with a den. If the car sat out in 100 degree heat, you could hang meat from the rear view mirror in twenty minutes. The air conditioner was so expensive, that my dad had it removed and transferred to his next car which was a 55 Buick Century.
July 10, 2011 at 1:08 pm
We´ve had wonderful weather here today! Not sunny all the time but just enough cool to make it nice to have the kitchen door open all day. I put up the mosquito net yesterday and I´ve killed most flies indoors so now life feels good 🙂
We too always had food with us when we hit the road, except for when we travelled so two of my half siblings could go to their father for a couple of weeks every summer. We always met at the same taverna and it was there that I fell in love with french fries 🙂 🙂 🙂 but we called them pommes frites here and most of us still do. I don´t think I´ve ever eaten better ones and those few times I drive pass that place I think of stopping and buy some, but I´m afraid that I´ll be very disappointed 🙂 🙂 🙂
But when we went to the ocean we always had a cooler bag with lemonade, cheese and sausage sandwiches for us kids and the adults had coffee 🙂
Have a great day!
Christer.
July 10, 2011 at 2:12 pm
Whenever relations between the US and France become strained over some issue we change their name to ‘Freedom Fries’.
July 10, 2011 at 3:30 pm
🙂 🙂 🙂
July 10, 2011 at 8:13 pm
Bob,
I remember that. I think it was the inspiration of two congressmen, and it was darn silly.
July 10, 2011 at 8:12 pm
Christer,
We too had the most beautiful day, cool and sunny.
We always had a full picnic basket at the beach as we usually spent the whole day there. I still can remember the sensation of sand in my teeth from gritty sandwiches.
Have a wonderful week. Keep enjoying your vacation!
July 10, 2011 at 1:16 pm
We always traveled with hard boiled eggs. Once at a pit stop in Alabama, heading to Florida from CA Dad hussled everyone into the car only to hear my sister in the middle ask “where’s Elise” the oldest of us kids. She got left behind in the ladies room and 18 miles out my Dad could have killed. He raced that old station wagon back to the gas station and there was Elise sitting on the side of the road crying her heart out. What an experience. Henceforth the famous or infamous head count.
July 10, 2011 at 8:15 pm
Z&Me,
We had them once in a while at the beach, and I’d forgotten that until you jogged my memory.
I can’t imagine being left behind. I guess overtime it became a great family story, but it sure sounded traumatic.
July 10, 2011 at 8:44 pm
Hi Kat,
I’d forgotten about the tartan jug. Ours wasn’t tartan but it was the same sort of jug. Ours was green and silver. It usually had lemon-aid in it but sometimes it would be Kool-aid. The cover had a dent in the top edge. The spicket sometimes dribbled. It went on picnics, to the beach, to afternoon play sessions at my cousins’ house.
We usually took trips to Maine and New Hampshire and stayed at a cottage. Sometimes we spent summers on my parents’ friends’ farm. We frequently went on the Kancamagus Hwy because my dad was in the CCC and helped build the thing. He liked to show off his handywork and tell us how he was lost on Chocorua for three days. Anyway, the jug was there too.
July 10, 2011 at 10:11 pm
Hi Caryn,
Ours always had Zarex. I think orange was the favorite.
I was surprised to find it was till sold as I hadn’t heard much about it in years. It used to come in a glass jug with a handle.
Some of our vacations were all day trips, and they were a favorite. We went to a lot of museums and that’s the reason I love museums now. Another day we’d go to the beach and sometimes the drive-in on a week night. My parents varied the days so we had lots of fun.