Along the Susquehanna River! Such a pretty place. The area has its own beauty that only a person growing up there can appreciate.
Our sleepy, little town with a Main Street, did have its pros. Growing up, someone living there may have wished to live in a bigger city with more action. There are many “Main Streets” in our beautiful country. Quiet little towns that still “take in the sidewalks” at nine p.m. Living today in the large city of Atlanta, makes me appreciate my roots even more.
Let’s talk about football and the local high school. During the season you would find much of town at the football game on Friday night. If you couldn’t make it to the game, just tune into the local AM (we had no FM) radio station for play by play action. There was a special football buzz in the air. Our team was good, and rarely lost a game.
Of course, we had our rivals. Arriving at those rival towns, the windows of the bus would come down, and we would be screaming cheers for our team. The Bobcats are the best! Those poor bus drivers. There were Saturday mornings I woke up without a voice!
Being part of the band, we would congregate at the high school, walk over the “overhead bridge”, through the practice field, then take our seats at the stadium. The cheerleaders would get the crowd going. Game time folks! Purple and white was everywhere. Our players would run out of the dressing room, and the game was on.
So, so many good memories of cheering for the team, and performing on the field at half time. Our band wasn’t great, but it it was ours. We did our best.
As we got into November, the weather would get colder. I even remember going to an away game that had snow. Brrr! Those fall games are hard to forget. Till this day, I think of them when the weather changes to that particular season. Deep down I yearn to be back in those stands and rooting for my team!
I thank Karen who explained the game to me. At least I know what a first down is, and how to get it. Karen’s dad played for the high school team in his earlier years. Each week I would ask her for his prediction. Serious “stuff” at that time! We had a need to know who we were up against, and what the odds were that we would win. The workers at many places of employment even ran a football pole. Just a bit of gambling. Take a chance on the home team, and you might win!
Being part of the band meant participating in various parades, and marching up Main Street. There were the Halloween Parade, Christmas Parade, Memorial Day Parade, and the Firemen’s Parade. The various volunteer fire companies would meet for a weekend and have a good time. I remember their parades having the Shriners’ clowns and cars.
October would take us to the Flaming Foliage Parade in a small town called Renovo. This little town was further in the mountains than we were. One parade we marched in the snow. Those were the days my friend with purple pom-poms on my boots! Loved it. Yes, our high school queen won as Flaming Foliage Queen. Carol was beautiful inside and out. She deserved the title.
Thinking of the band, makes me think of my mom saying, “Don’t twirl that baton in the house!!!!”. I did.
Did you have city playgrounds growing up? Great memories at the playgrounds. We had a few that were staffed by high school and college kids. The playground would be open Monday through Friday, in the mornings and evenings. You could swing, twirl on the merry-go-round, go down the slide, or play games till you hearts content.
Checkers were a tournament game. The winner of the tournament from our playground would compete with other playground champs. My younger sister was Checker Champion of the city.
There was also the game of jacks. I suggest you google this game. Every now and then I come across a jack set. Really I should buy the game and give it a try. I bet I will remember how. Our playground even had archery.
Dime Day would be one day a week, where we could make something special; for instance, a keychain made out of plastic gimp, a popsicle project, such as a basket or birdhouse, made from popsicle sticks that were purchased in bulk. Going to the playground leaves special memories. I am glad I could attend them.
Yes! We had a beach behind the YMCA, and it had sand. You could dig till your hearts content. The lifeguards would keep an eye on everyone — including the baby pool which was a fenced off area that wasn’t too deep. Nothing felt better than a dip in the river on a very, hot, summer day.
Swimming lessons were provided for free. All you needed to do was get your parents to sign you up. We started out in the baby pool and worked our way out to the main swimming area. It was marked by a buoy rope around the perimeter. When you got really good, it was off to the dock and diving board in the middle of the swim area. You had arrived. You were now a big kid.
The one memory that comes to mind were the five cent, frozen candy bars that could be purchased. I can still taste the chocolate on the Milky Way bars. The candy bars were sometimes frozen on a popsicle stick. They were hard, but with the summer heat, the bars would melt enough that you crunch into them. Yum!
I hope you enjoyed a walk down memory lane. At the time I didn’t think much about our little town. As I am growing older, I think of all the good times we had. “Those were the days my friend, I thought they’d never end”. We can keep them alive in our mind, and pull them out when we want a bit of de ja vu.
Blessings from The Blogging Grandma!
