Dancing at the Edge-Introduction Written By Ed Ames
Hello Ladies,
When I removed the Introduction to Dancing at the Edge that Paula put up a while back, I said that I would try to contact the author of the book and seek permission to post the Introduction. I have succeeded. Mr. Lieberman has not only given his permission to post the Introduction written by Mr. Ames but to also post one of the stories from his book.
At the moment I am inclined to post the story “The Furies” which seemed to have had an impact on Mr. Ames as you will see when you read the Introduction that follows my comments. However, the more stories that I read in “Dancing at the Edge,” the more indecisive I become as each story has a different affect on me. One story “Potatoes and Point” took me back to the summer days I spent on my Grandmother’s rural northern Wisconsin farm which had no running water, or electricity. It is where I learned things about real life, such as how the chicken dinner gets on the table, that I did not know living in the city of Chicago with all the modern conveniences including grocery stores.
If you have the book and have read any of the stories, please add your comments. The book is available online at IUNIVERSE and other vendors. I highly recommend it.
Mr. Lieberman has visited our site and finds it to be very interesting. I have invited him to come back and add his comments.
Dancing at the Edge
By Joe Lieberman
Published by IUNIVERSE.COM
May Be Purchased online from IUNIVERSE
Free Shipping
Introduction
Some time ago I received a note from a friend advising me that Joe Lieberman was trying to get in touch with me. I assumed he wanted me to sing at a political or social event. But no!
The Joe Lieberman who was reaching out to me was Joe Lieberman, the educator, columnist and writer from Virginia. That was fine, but do I know him? Suddenly, the thought flashed through my mind. Could it be? After all these years, these decades
Could it be Joe Lieberman from Browning Avenue in Dorchester, Massachusetts? Boston Joe Lieberman? It was and is!
After all these years my mind raced back to those childhood days in Boston. The poverty, the war scares, the hunger. The fun! We didn’t know we were poor. Everybody was poor. We were kids and full of energy. We didn’t have Pac-man and slick high tech toys.
If we wanted a gun, like in the comics, we hand-carved a block of wood and stained it with iodine. For a machine gun, all we needed was a two-by-four, a nail, a clothes-pin, and some rubber bands we cut from an old auto tire inner tube.
In winter the Massachusetts snow-drifts became balustrades from which we hurled our snowballs with deadly accuracy. For Disneyland we had Benjamin Franklin Park where the trees became our “jungle island.” We would clamber through the foliage and swing from branch-to-branch like miniature Tarzans.
Once we were experimenting with homemade parachutes and finally were satisfied with some raggle-taggle, multicolored “schmates” tied together with string. Who volunteered (somewhat queasily) to be the first to leap from the third story porch? Who else but dare-devil Joe? How he survived the fall without broken bones or worse is a mystery. The “patron saint of boys” must have been looking out for him.
Back to the present! Is this venerable, sagacious teacher and writer that same wild kid, the young Joe Lieberman? I guess he is! He explores subjects most fear to tread. He writes about the human heart, the problems of aging, the secret fears that reside in the human soul, both real and imagined; the tragedies that lie in wait for us all. Yet all this with humor and wit, with compassion and wisdom.
When Joe asked me to write a few words about his forthcoming book of short stories, I was pleased and honored. At the same time it was daunting, as I was quite busy at the moment.
However, I dug into the pile of manuscripts figuring that I would read a few each day, but once I began I simply couldn’t stop. Page by page, I devoured them.
My interest never flagged. The range of themes is broad and variegated from the occult tales of the Hudson Valley to the sweet tale of “Ben and Eddie,” from the childhood awakenings of : Old Goose,” to the stirring drum-beat of the “The Tory Spy.”
To name just a few of my favorites; “The Furies” is recalled with a surprising surge of blood coursing through my veins—the boyhood rage against the bully whom I confronted then and even now in the haters of this world. “Mama’s Boyfriend,” “Dancing at the Edge,” “Jacob and Sarah” are insightful examinations of love between man and woman; the wild and humorous tale of the Skirmishers is absolutely hilarious.
In short they are all my favorites. Joe has compiled a group of wonderful, engaging and unforgettable tales that provide a rich reward for any reader.
These two raggedy boys from Boston have done well for themselves, in their chosen fields. As for Joe, I couldn’t be more proud of him.
Ed Ames
thanks suzy for getting the ok to bring back ed ames introduction to dancing on the edge.cathy
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Thanks Suzy! And thanks to Mr. Lieberman!! I'd like him to know I'm buying a copy his book!!!
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LOL. Sounds like the Bowery Boys (aka Dead End Kids), 'cept a little farther to the East!
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Hi Keats,
We did the same things in rural, mid-central Illinois. My dad made "rubber guns" for us one time. Just like Ed Ames said, they were made of wood and used circles of rubber cut from bicycle innertubes to make the triggers. The rubber was also used as the "bullet". We jumped out of the hay loft in the barn and onto the tin roof of the shed below. Just like Joe, we never broke any bones, even though we should have. We moved into a house in town that didn't have running water in the kitchen ... there was a hand-pump in the porch that was just off the kitchen. We had to pump water, heat it on the stove, and wash the dishes in a large metal bowl until we finally got hot and cold water installed in the kitchen. My grandfather's farm had huge trees out in the pasture that we could climb all over and use as a playhouse. I was still quite young when my uncles let me shoot a .22 rifle at the big washtub out in the field. My other uncle milked the cows and squirted us with the milk. And we used to chase the chickens off their nests to get their eggs ... Granny said we should gently reach under the hen to carefully get the eggs ... yeah, like that old bitty wasn't going to peck at us. And one day, Granny brought a bunch of live chickens to our house in town, and she and Mom killed them, then we had to did them in boiling water and then pull all the feathers off. Yeah, those were the days!
Ellen
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It sounds like a fun childhood, (although a place perhaps frozen in time.)
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Okay, I've just come home in "total anarchy" traffic. Can I go to the Farm now and milk the cows or something???
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Hi Ellen,All the details that you cited are what I experienced on my Grandmother's farm but you forgot about cleaning the chicken coop, the Saturday night baths in a big metal washtub on the backporch and having to go out to the "out house, or use the chamber pot at night."
Suzy
Thanks for telling almost all of the details of putting a chicken dinner on the table. I did not want to gross out our reader.
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Hi Suzy,
Well, I did leave out the details of how those chickens met their deaths! I continue to be amazed when I go to the grocery store where one does not have to purchase the entire chicken! Wow, that is real progress to me ... being able to get just the boneless, skinless chicken breasts!
We did not actually live on the farm, but lived in town about six miles away. Thus, we never had the thrill of having to clean that chicken house. By that time, my grandfather had installed a real bathroom with running water. My father's parents had lived on an "old style" farm with all the wonderful features like a path to the bathroom, however, they had given up the farm and moved into town when I was still rather young.
Did you take corncobs and put chicken feathers in one end to make a "helicopter"??
Take care,
Ellen
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We used to make corncob husk dolls. Does that count?
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That counts as talent! Send me a private note and tell me how you made Hollyhock dolls! I doubt that you would want to make those dolls and then throw them at the chickens ... Granny used to yell at us so much for doing that!
Ed Ames didn't mention this, but I bet he had a lot of fun, standing around outside and eating watermelon ... no plate, no fork ... just hold it up to your face and start chomping on it. It sure help to cool off a really hot evening.
Ellen
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wow. That's a little more "country" than I was referring to. Here's a link for info on the Bowery Boys for anyone interested: http://retrovision.tv/freevideo/dead-end-kidseast-side-kidsbowery-boys/
These young actors were really from the "streets" so it was interesting to see how life was really lived in big cities the 30's.
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I loved watching the Bowery Boys and East End kids when I was young. They were always on on Saturday, don't remember though if it was morning or afternoon. I think I saw every episode they ever did. Althought I don't remember them now. Humphrey Bogart actually appeared with them in a movie called 'Dead End' in 1937. Marjorie Main and Clare Trevor were also in it. It was a pretty good movie.
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Wow, Suzy, that's great! I look forward to reading the stories here until I get a copy of the book myself. Thanks! Mr. Lieberman sounds like a wonderful man.
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Thank you so much for posting this introduction to Mr Joe Lieberman's book. I certainly look forward to reading the book. I never know how the posters to this site find such great items to post but I really do look forward to them and truly appreciate everyone. thank you so much!!
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Hey, this is educational too! I learned a new word: clamber. I'll try to work that into my conversations about the squirrels this fall...
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You never heard the word "clamber" before?? And you're the one who uses that totally obscure word "Yupper"?? I bet if we sat down together, we could find all sorts of regional words that are unique to each of us. My Granny used to use the word "hain't", as in "I hain't heard that word before now". She was the only one I ever heard use it. Her grammar was generally quite correct, except when she used "hain't".
Ellen
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Hain't was used in the midwest, especially in Wisconsin. Suzy
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Don't forget -- in the rural South, a "haint" is a ghost. Even in DB, a mountain lion is referred to as a "painter", and in the Great Smokies, there is a "Painter's Cove". Paula
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I have heard 'hain't'...Come on guys, didn't you ever hear Festus Hagan talk on Gunsmoke?! Clamber means to climb clumsily.
In Pittsburgh we have 'Pittsburgheze'..I don't use it and when I talk people cannot believe I'm from Pgh, but some place else. Right Keats!?!. We have 'yunz' (encompasses you all, etc) 'slippy' (slippery) and 'Sliberty' for East Liberty and Pittsburgh itself is often referred to as 'The Burgh'. Every area has its own dialect and some are just very foreign to some of us. This is a great forum for us to learn some of the slang from other areas of the country!
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Yes, for Barb being born and raised not that far away(one state away), I was suprised she sounded differently! Not drastically of course, just nuances and some lingo. (But as bubbly and happy as I'd imagined!
Here's some phrases we use regularly: "So hungry I could eat a raw dog backwards." "So small you could't cuss the cat without getting hair in your teeth." (as in a room or a house). "Just rub a little on the side of the house." (like only put a little garlic, it's potent). "Prit near" ...
On a another note, it's a shame so many young people stay inside with their computers or video games. A couple of years ago, I purchased The Daring book for Girls and the The Dangerous Book for Boys for my niece and nephew. They offer novelties and traditions, and information that give a small taste of what it was like to be young before, say, the 1980's. Check them out:
http://www.daringbookforgirls.com/
http://www.dangerousbookforboys.com/
And thanks for visiting us Mr. Lieberman!! I can't wait to read your book!
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Down here in the sultry South, we say "I'm gonna snatch you baldheaded!" (as in, "If you don't knock it off --") and there's the wonderful "runnin' 'round like a fart in a whirlwind!" When we met Susie C. the first time and spent a few days with her, we had her saying "Y'all" this and "y'all" that, while Carly and I began saying "DIDja?" Haven't picked up "yuns" yet.
And BTW, I have used copies of both "Dangerous Boys" and "Daring Girls" for sale CHEAP in my eBay bookstore. Hugs, Paula
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Hi Keats,
My father was in the Army, so we moved about every two years, mainly living in several locations in Illinois and Virgina, with three years in Germany when I was in First Grade. Thus, I didn't really spend enough time in any one place to pick up the local dialect with any degree of fluency. I had a guy named John who used to work for me, and he grew up within 50 miles of my grandparents' farm in mid-central Illinois. He used some phrases I had never heard before ... "It's raining harder than a cow pissing on a flat rock." and "It's raining harder than Chinese arithmetic" (Note: you have to use "arithmetic" and not "math", otherwise it isn't funny!)
I still crack up when I use those phrases!
The word "humongous" is not commonly used across the country, at least it wasn't back in the 70's when I was in college. I think I picked it up from my Chicago friends. They have interesting phrases up there ... instead of saying "Do you want to go with me?", they say "Do you want to come with?". Even if a Chicagoan has lost the distinctive Chicago accent, they still use that phrase.
Here in Shenandoah County Virginia, the true local people talk about "going up to Harrisonburg and down to Winchester" ... Harrisonburg is south of us, but they still say "go up" and Winchester is north, but they say "go down". When I asked people why they use these phrases, they said, "Well, Harrisonburg is up the mountains, and Winchester is down lower as compared to Woodstock where we live." Well, I realized that the phrase probably came from way-back-when and people mainly traveled up-river to get to Harrionsburg and down-river to get to Winchester.
I still have not heard anyone other than you use the word "Yupper". I guess I just don't get out and about enough!
Ellen
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Hi Ellen,
Apparently you never lose all of your accent. A number of years ago, a gentleman (a total stranger) behind me in the checkout line overheard me speak to a friend that was with me. He asked me if I was from Chicago. I said yes but how do you know. He said that I had the Chicago "A" sound in my speak. I never knew that there was a Chicago "A" sound. At the time of this encounter, I had been away from Chicago for over thirty years.
Suzy
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It is a very distinctive accent! I have also noticed that people who were originally from Wisconsin and Michigan tend to retain portions of those distinctive accents, despite having lived in other regions for quite some time. A lady I used to work with had grown up in Chicago, but did not retain any noticeable accent, other than using the phrase "want to go with?"
Since I moved so much, I have a very flat American accent, although I do tend to pick up some of the more leisurely southern vowels if I spend too much time in the south. I lived just south of Richmond my last two years of high school, and then went to Illinois to go to college. I didn't think I had an accent, but my brother-in-law recognized it immediately. Given that his mother was originally from Wales, I suspect that his ear was more tuned to differences in accents than the average person.
Ellen
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My hubby is from up around Osceola Mills PA. It really grated on me the first time I heard him say "The windows need warshed" - I of course would say "oh, you mean the windows NEED to be WASHED?" When that extended to "the dog needs brushed" and "the porch needs swept" I decided to let it go. You can take the man out of Pennsylvania...
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My parents were from Pennsylvania, and my mother ALWAYS said "warsh". She also called tabby cats "taggers". Ever hear that one? Paula
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You're not far from me Ellen - I'm in Fairfax VA. A military transplant, not a native. I find it amazing to see just how much the VA accent differs from Alexandria to Shenandoah; the couple of times I've been down (Up? Over?) that way I can barely understand what the natives are saying!
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Hi Ladies,
I seem to drive my friends crazy with some of my 'local' talk....I asked one friend if her 'larder' was full and she just stared at me! Then there is the question," does it suit your copperosity?" They swear that I make these up!!!! Nah....I'm from the Glorious South!!!!! Where black-eyed peas are treasured!!!!!
In Fun,
Rebecca
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Rebecca, though not born in the South (I was bred and buttered in Massachusetts), I've lived here for nearly forty years and have certainly eaten my share and someone else's of black-eyed peas. I have never heard "does it suit your copperosity". Translation, please!
And Mr. Lieberman, what a pleasure to meet you here on Mingo Women! I am enjoying "Dancing at the Edge" very much. Hugs, Paula
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Hi Ladies,
I just received an email from Mr. Lieberman that I want to share with "you all" to quote Paula. He has visited our site and read our chatter. He thinks that you ladies are terrific, and that you have intellect, knowledge, curiosity and wit.
Suzy
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This is so neat! I saw this book on Ebay for a long time but was very hesitant as I found someone else using the name "Ed Ames" but was talking about someone else. Thank you, Suzy, for sharing this with us! Mr. Lieberman sounds quite the gentleman himself! Ahhh, too bad we don't get those kinds of men these days.
My sister and I used to make bow and arrows out of wood and rock. We also enjoyed countless hours of outdoor kitchens. You know; mud-pies, weed soups, etc.
Well, gotta get supper read! Thanks again! A nice treat before I start a busy school semester tomorrow.
Inahlee
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How about REAL outdoor kitchens? Many farmhouses had what were called "summer kitchens" that were either not attached to the house per se, or were isolated at the end of a tunnel (hallway really, but I like the imagery of a tunnel). That way the house didn't get all heated up from the cooking. Only Mom and "the girls" got heated!
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Hi Cynthia, The food that was cooked on the old wood stove was great. The summer nights in Northern Wisconsin were cool,and as kids we slept community style in a big room in the attic, waking up to the smell of cinnamon rolls coming through the vent in the floor. All this reminiscences has me hungry for the cinnamon rolls and swedish coffee that my grandmother fixed.
Suzy
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We made mud pies, 'food' out of crushed up rocks served on rock plates! I made bows and arrows out of thin branches and twine and the arrows out of other branches with the ends sliced sharp (I think as sharp as a rock could get them!) Then there were the 'army games' we would play with our garages as our home base. Good times.
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Mornin' y'all: In case anyone is interested, there is a wonderful magazine out there called "Reminisce" filled with photos and stories contributed by ordinary people (you might call them "oldtimers"). They go back to the early 1900's, and are in turns, fascinating, charming and nostalgic, hilarious and heartbreaking. And Cynthia, there was indeed a story from a man whose mother used to set up a cast iron stove outside every year to keep the kitchen from heating up! Old issues are frequently sold on eBay, and you can occasionally find it at Wal-Mart. Paula
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"Reminisce" is neat. They have a great web site where you can read a lot of the articles and see the pictures. www.reminisce.com.
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I have often wanted to record my parents stories from the 30's and 40's. I am inspired to do so. They are fantastic!! My father remembers trollies from when he was young, and my mother lived near the train tracks and my grandmother would always make sure the hobo's were fed. They had a way for marking a signpost or the porch to let others know they had gotten a meal there. (Although my city was known as the city the depression missed!) I have subscribed to Reminisce for years, but for even longer, we've gotten the Good Old Days. It's not all slick and shiny like Reminisce, but I've found it much more entertaining. I originally started getting them for Mom and Dad, but got hooked on them myself! I might also suggest, for anyone that is feeling charitable, to order a subscription to either of these magazines for a not-so-wealthy nursing home in your area.
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Oh, here's the link:
http://www.goodolddaysmagazine.com/
PS And how many of you out there consider the Vermont Country Story catalog bedtime reading?
If you don't get it:
http://www.vermontcountrystore.com/browse/Home/Customer-Service/Request-a-Catalogue/D/10200/P/1:300:3020:30170
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English is a living language. New words are created almost daily in some part of our country. Some become adopted nation wide. Some fade away.
During Desert Storm the word 'hooah' meant I'm alive and well
;Trippin' meant fooling around, acting silly
'Smoke 'em' meant get there fast
'Dog out' meant to criticize
'Homes' or 'Homeys' meant friends
I have enjoyed reading your comments
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Hi Suzy,
Thank you so much for posting this wonderful introduction by Mr. Ames. What a delightful insight into their childhood, what fun they must have had. And, to Mr. Lieberman, I shall look forward to reading those tales of real life! Happy to have you with us!
Rebecca
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Thank you, Rebecca. I am tempted to call you Becca.
Yes, we had little of money or material possessions. All our toys and clothes were hand-me-downs. We made toys, varts using old carriage wheels and the gleanings we could get by climbing the junk yard fence.
In the summer evenings we created our stories together sitting in a circle - each boy adding imagination, content, drama, mystery as the story grew. It is interesting tio me now that most of those ten boys were creative in some way when they matured.
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Mr. Lieberman, and Ladies,
Sir, you may call whatever you wish..I am sure that it will be a marked improvement over what my brother and his friends called me! I believe that "boney macaroni" was one of their favorites!! I was tall and kinda thin, so I got picked on a lot. It was those disparaging remarks or, "Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm"!! So... "Becca" is very refreshing!! I have wondered since reading Mr. Ames' intro, whether the guy that bullied him now sees what a success he has become and regrets his attitude? But then, perhaps even he made something of himself also. Your other book sounds like a walk back in time--I would love to find it also. It is a shame that we cannot combine the best of today with the simplicity of bygone years! It seems that children today lack imagination. I grew up in the late 60s and we always played outside until way past dark, never wanting to be inside! I am so glad that we have gotten to know you and to enjoy your delightful writing talent!
And, Miss Paula, for a definition of "copperosity", I will say that it means to suit ones' fancy or taste. My best friend is from PA and she just shakes her head when I talk, she says I have an accent, can you imagine??
Oh, and Mr. Lieberman, what part of the glorious state of Virginia do you reside in?? You do know that the "Mother of Presidents" is referred to as "Gods'Country" don't you? Beautiful southwestern VA is my home, Roanoke to be exact, the "Star City of the South". Have a wonderful evening everyone!
Fondly,
Rebecca
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Hi Joe,
Great to have you come for a visit. Do you have any other stories you can share?
Suzy
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Hi Suzy,
Yes, there is one story I must share with you all. It is about the hot August night that the Urick bros. and two others of the gang saved my life.
Ther story is in Sentimental Journeys. We have company now so I'll give you an overview of it tomorrow.
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Hello Joe!
It's certainly nice that you 'stopped by for a chat' with us! We'd love to hear what it was like for you growing up in the depression. My dad is from that era as well.
Barb
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I loved both of Joe Lieberman's books and the memories they brought back. I am so proud of Joe and so happy that we have been good friends for many years.
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Thank you Barb, Thank you Natalie
Nat is a friend of many years. She mentions two books. One of my previous books is Sentimental Journeys. It describes the Great Deperession very well. Read especially The call of the Street Vender. I asked nat to say a word or two about that book.
It is out of print but used copies can be obtained chesply on Barnes or Amazon
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You're welcome Joe.
I'll run over to the used book store, possibly I can find one of your books over there. They sound very interesting!
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hi joe its wonderful for you to join mw and talk to all of us about your book and the deperession like barb my dad and mom where born in the great deperession. i enjoyed what i heard about your book and please tell ed that we would love to have him join in so we could all let him know how many fans he has.thanks for joining us.cathy
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Thank you Cathy. I have learned afew things from you mw gals I love the humor mixed with intelligence.
To laugh, to sing, to dance is to live. And to write, as I see you all do, is to recreate.
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Hi All,
Late as always, I have enjoyed reading about all the childhood "daze" on MW. And may I also say thank you and welcome to our first "special Guest" on MW. Mr. Lieberman, it is a true pleasure to have you here, a real author who writes of life and its ups and downs.
Growing up in Bradford, PA (Home of Kendall Motor Oil and the Zippo Lighter) in the mid-50's, I am happy to say there were no chamber pots or outhouses in my childhood. Baseball bats, and cap guns ruled the day. I was a bit of a tom-boy and in the summer played sandlot baseball with my cousins when we weren't riding the range. I was every bit as good as my cousins. The hardest part was they were boys and they were in Little League. We'd play ball in the school yard all day, then they would get to go play baseball on a real field, with real bases, not rocks, and got to wear really neat uniforms, and they got to KEEP their caps. While I got to watch only from the bleachers....girls couldn't play Little League in those days.
Back then Bradford was known for some of the highest grade oil in the world. The smell of crude oil in the air was a perfume which filled the Allegheny Mountains that surrounded us. My Dad worked on an oil lease, pumping the oil wells. Any day I got to go to work with him, was a really good day.
Mine is like all of the MW stories that I have read here, times were hard, but they were also precious. Simple family values, trusted and long-lasting friendships, everyone was part of the neighborhood....that's the reality of life that none of those so-called "programs" of the same name will ever be able to portray.
Now grown up and on my own, I'd give anything for one of those Saturday nights, when Dad got out the big kettle and wooden spoon. By the time the theme song to Gunsmoke started to play the platter of fudge was ready to be cut. We all gathered around the TV set and watched Matt Dillon.
It sure is good to have memories and someone to share them with like our little group here.
Thanks, Mr. Lieberman for sharing your stories and comments with us. It has sparked a Sentimental Journey of our own. Gee,now what is the name of that fellow who sang Sentimental Journey with his three brothers back in the 40's and 50's? It's right on the tip of my tongue. :o)
Take care All,
Susie Coffman
Erie, PA.
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Hi Susie,
It happens we are selling our home and taking a small apartment in what is essentially an assisted living complex with an excellent nursing facility if and when either of us will need that. Our physical problems warrent such a change.
This caused me to gather up for discard old papers some saved for forty years. What memories they stirred up, what joy, what tears, old loves , old pain. I guess that is why I found your site so appealing. Thank you al, ladies, for being the people you are.
I write every day - one thing or another. I learned a long time ago that for me keeping several writing projects going at the same time keeps 'writer's block' away. This morning I wrote somethoughts and then realized I should share them with you.
I see you each write stories. Writing is a pure joy, a re-creation of life. I give talks to writer's groups on occasion and am preparing one now.
We need to understand that each writer is very diffrent because we are each so different in our God-given beings and our life experience. Our words, our phraseology, our imagry, our mental connestions from which springs the next scene, the next dialogue, the next dark cloud of portending crisis, even the next word we choose differ, sometimes greatly, from writer to writer.That is why it is so important to write about what you really know well and have emotional content for. The writer can and must then embellish with fertile imagination. Mark Twain was asked one time after a lecture, "Mr Twain, is everything in your stories true?"
Mark Twain paused for a half minute and finally said, "Well, if you can't tell a few stretchers you'll never be a writer you'll never be a writer".
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Suzy. Thanks for going to so much trouble to get us this introduction. It's beautifully done.
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Hello to all...especially to you Mr. Lieberman! What memories you must have of growing up in the time you did, and knowing the Uricks as well. All of us here admire Mr. Ames so much, not just for the talent and music he has given us, but for the successful individual he is and always will be.
By the way, I remember making machine guns out of two pieces of wood, clothes pin and a rubber band! The pop would sting like crazy!!
Respectfully.
Heather
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Yes, it could sting if fired from maybr 10 feet away or less. Some boys made a repeater by storing extra rubber bands around the length of the wood. After they shot a band all they had to do was pull the end of the next one tight under the split clothes-pin.
For those who never had the fun of making these - The rubber was cut from old auto tire inner tubes. This made a rubber band about 7 " long and up to 1/2 inch thick. We fought wars; cops caught the bad guys, or we'd have distance shooting contests.
When we got psst the Great Depression why didn't society take along and keep the creativity of the Depession Kids?
Joe
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Mr. Lieberman,
You know, I think society DID maybe take a lot from what it learned in the depression. Where else would we have gotten the ingenuity to create the weapons we did to combat WWII? Or the fortitude to realize we all had to ration for the greater good while "our boys" were fighting "over there?" America emerged from the depression and then the war as the leading power for freedom in the world. Necessity WAS the mother of invention I think. That is what made yours, the "greatest generation." ~Keats
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Actually, Joe, a lot of the creativity that Depression era children experienced was carried forward to their own children ... some people remembered; some chose to forget. One time my dad fixed the bicycles, so we had several bad inner tubes left over ... I think it was back in 1966. And that's when he made the rubber guns for us ... we thought that was really nifty, as my brother had had store-bought pistols before. There is only so much fun one can have with a cap pistol as compared with a wooden gun that you could use to shoot rubber bands at your teenaged sister!
I think a lot of people who grew up during the Depression wanted a better life when they got to the point where they could afford it. My parents were both raised on farms in Illinois, so they had plenty of food during those difficult years, but didn't have so many store-bought things like shoes and books. My dad's sisters all married "city boys" from Chicago, so they could get completely away from the farm life. I remember especially my Aunt Lola's husband, Uncle Erv. He had been raised real poor in the city during the Depression. We went to their house for lunch one weekday in the mid 1970's, and Aunt Lola had fixed a big meal ... sort of like a Sunday dinner type meal. While we were in the kitchen cleaning up the dishes, Aunt Lola asked Mom to take the leftovers home ... she said, "You know Erv won't allow leftovers in the house." It turns out that Uncle Erv's ambition had always been to get as far away as possible from the poverty he had experienced during the Depression, and he absolutely refused to eat leftovers as an adult. My parents never experienced that extreme level of doing without.
I suppose that Inhalee sometimes reads my notes and wonder what my life was really like "back in the good old days"!
Ellen
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Hi Mr. Liberman and Ladies,
I don't have the memories of the Depression like so many of you, but my Daddy did live through those days. I have a Journal that his Mother, my Grandma kept in 1934 and it is so interesting to read. They had a small garden and wound up with most of the family living together to make ends meet. Grandma was always making 'rag rugs' out of old shirts and things. They never had much, but it appears that there were some good times, fun times too. Daddy always said that there was a pot of beans on the wood stove for days----he became a good cook later--I loved his 'fried apple pies'. The neatest toy my brother and I had was a pair of stilts that he made for us. He would stand on the porch and step out onto the stilts and go down the street--he was 6'1" tall and the neighbors would laugh at this very tall man ambling down the road!!! We got pretty good at them too--maybe I should get my husband to make a pair for our Grandson!!! My Grandmother started painting when she was 75 and did pictures of places she had lived and events she remembered. Locally, she was called "the second Grandma Moses" and had many showings at the local Museum. I have a few of these treasures and am always on the lookout for more. The meaning of these ramblings is, our Daddy was 50 when we were born and my brother and I were very protective of him as teenagers----none of our friends dared to refer to him as "our old man"! We were children of the late 60s', but loved the stories that he would tell us!
So, Joe keep up the great writing! I have just ordered both of your books and can't wait to receive them!!
In Friendship,
Rebecca
P.S. The Spell Checker doesn't like my name---it keeps wanting me to change it to Rebekah!!!
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Dear Mr. Lieberman,
Please accept my apologies for mis-spelling your name. I am so sorry---I shall slink off now and hide!
Respectfully,
Rebecca[take that Spell Checker!}
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Don't concern yourself about mispelling my name, Rebecca. Typos are common to us all, it seems. But I do love reading all the experiences and memories we are sharing.
Hey! And I still lke Becca.
Joe
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Hi All,
I never played marbles, growing up in Derrick City, PA. But anyone remember Mumblety-peg? We had some rousing games of that. I got to be pretty handy with the old pocket knife. We also had something called "apple flinging." I don't think you will find that in Wikipedia.
We had an old winter apple tree in the back yard. In fact it's still standing to this day, minus a branch or two. The apple blossoms were so fragrant and beautiful the bumble bees stood in line to have a taste, but the apples. They were not fit for human consumption; deer, opossum, foxes yes, but not kids.
What they were good for was "flinging." We would cut ourselves a good sturdy branch from the tree..using of course our pocket knives that we had won the Mumblety-peg tournament with, earlier that day. Sharpen a point on the smaller end of the branch, then find just the right size apple. These apples never got much bigger than a golf ball, if that big.
Placing an apple on the pointy end of the "flinger," back, and with a snap of the stick, see how far we could "fling" that apple through the air. If you had just the right snap, you could fling that apple a fer piece.
Then being the 50's multi-taskers that we were, we would save that "apple flinger" and use it to roast marshmallows later that evening while the fireflies lit up that old apple tree like it was Christmas and not June.
Thanks, Joe, for bringing back the memories.
Take care,
Susie C.
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How'd you play Mumblety-Peg? I heard it once on an old cartoon show I used to watch.... lol, it was a recording. My mom and dad always enjoyed the older, simpler movies so I guess I got more into the older movies than the new.
Inahlee
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That's a good story Susie. The visual was so clear I could 'see' it all
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Hi Joe and All,
Thank you, Joe, I'm glad you liked my little recollection. I hadn't thought of apple flinging in a long time. Sorry to be so late to thank you for your kind words, I was out of town and away from my computer.
Take care,
Susie C.
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You know, my Dad keeps all sorts of odd things, "in case he needs them." Much of his life he often DID end up using those odd things. "I knew that would come in handy" he'd say. Dad is on overnight Oxygen, as is his older cousin Bill. Dad tries to keep all his old "tubing" from the machine and nebulizer. Which is a no-no and I throw it out. The lady at the Franciscans respiratory place told me all the seniors do that. Instead of getting new parts for their equipment, they wash it and keep it. Something they learned in their youth when times were hard. So Dad and I go visit Cousin Bill, older than Dad at 89. He lives in a nice house, has a nice car. But his O2 tubing is turning brown. I say "I think you need to change your tubing Cousin Bill." He says, "Oh no, I just wash it and save it. Might need it. Comes in handy to syphon the gas out of the mower in the fall!" I was agasp!! Dad nods his head and says seriously, "That's a good idea."
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I guess that to receive the business loans from creditors you should have a great reason. But, once I've got a secured loan, because I was willing to buy a building.
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