The morning is cloudy, and it is 74°. Rain is a possibility. I like dark summer mornings. They keep the sun at bay. It is quiet in my neighborhood. Saturdays when I was growing up were always bustling.

Back when I was a kid, there were no school busses. Most everybody walked. The nearest school to my neighborhood was the East School, but it was far away. My school, St. Patrick’s, was far closer. The public schools had only six grades. St. Pat’s had eight. I remember three of the public schools were named after directions, unimaginative choices, but, whatever the reason, there was no west school.

My favorite ice cream changes. Vanilla is never on the list. My father loved vanilla ice cream drowning in Hershey’s syrup. He’d bring the filled bowl into the living room, sit on the couch, watch TV and eat. He used to give my dog Shauna her own bowl of ice cream without the syrup. He always shared his food with her. My favorite ice cream right now is coconut.

Santoro’s Sub Shop was just down the street from my school. On the Friday of pay week, my mother would often give us enough money to buy a small sub and chips for lunch. We’d walk down the street and usually have to wait in line. I loved the smell of Santoro’s. I always ordered a tuna sub, no meat on Friday’s back then, with pickles and hot peppers. When I was older, I added onions. I never eat tuna anymore. I had more than enough growing up.

My mother used to make English muffin pizza for Friday dinners, a break from fish sticks and French fries. She also made fried dough. We’d slather it with butter and add salt. She could never fry the pieces fast enough. I remember watching the dough fry in the electric skillet on the counter top. My father used to smelt fish. We’d sometimes have his catch for dinner.

I don’t get why people drink from cups or bottles holding their little fingers in the air. It always seems a bit pretentious to me. Other weird things bother me. Why, when older couples travel together, do the men have to sit together in the front, women together in the back? For many people, old ladies are the girls. I have mentioned it before, but I still keep seeing women hiding their mouths when they chew. Do they not chew with closed mouths or is chewing not ladylike? Why do many people use their blinkers only when they are stopped ready to turn? I really hate gawkers on the roads. They slow down to look. I want a cow catcher on my car.

This entry was posted on June 6, 2026 at 1:22 pm and is filed under Musings. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. You can comment below, or link to this permanent URL from your own site.