I am testy. Small things which I usually don’t notice or just ignore have me yelling, bats in the belfry crazy yelling. The dogs run away. It’s the weather. I am so tired of clouds. I can deal with the cold by dressing accordingly, but I can’t take any more cloudy days. Oh sun, where art thou?

When I was a kid, I either went to the early mass with my father, the usher, or the late mass by myself or with my brother. It was the Latin mass. The church was crowded every Sunday, both the church upstairs and the smaller one downstairs. Back then, women had to wear dresses or skirts. Women also had to wear hats. I was never one for hats so I wore a mantilla, a lace head covering, I could stash in my pocket. I’d sit upstairs in the last row, all the easier to escape. Once I heard go in peace, I was out the door. 

I thought a nickel or a dime was wealth. Most times I’d head for the white store to spend it. Their penny candy was in rows in a wooden case with a glass front. Choosing penny candy took time. Mostly I wanted candy with a long life. I liked Fire Balls or chewy candies that hurt your teeth like Banana Splits and Mint Juleps. Sometimes I’d buy a Bull’s Eyes. I’d unwrap the caramel and eat it first. The best part, the white middle, I’d save for last. 

I’d sometimes take hidden candy to school. I always choose candies with no wrappers. That was the key to a successful sneaky candy move. Every day, a metal lunchbox filled with candy bars was delivered to each classroom. They were nickel bars. I was partial to Welch’s fudge bar covered in chocolate. 

My dance card now has a few entries, all ukulele.

This entry was posted on February 2, 2025 at 1:48 pm and is filed under Musings. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. Both comments and pings are currently closed.