Share a Memory

The idea for this post came to me in the Who Sang thread.  James had mentioned something about Frank Sinatra being born in Hoboken, New Jersey, and the thought that immediately entered my mind was a memory of my uncle taking us to New York when we were children a hundred years ago.

I think it would be fun that if each POEster posted one word, and the next person would then share a memory triggered by that word.  It could be something special, from a holiday or a trip; something joyful or sorrowful; something your children or grandchildren said, something from your school days; it could be recent or long ago; personal or something from current events or a book or TV show; something from a special occasion (those are the ones that seem to stick) or from an ordinary occurence in your everyday life that others might find interesting or amusing or touching.  Anything that springs to mind.

I'll start.  The word is "box."  Share a memory triggered by the word, box.

I am sure that this is by no means unique but it immediately sprang to mind with Ruth's "box" word.

Small children seem to equate bigger with better!  So one Christmas when my son was probably around 5 my husband decided to wrap a gift for him.  (I didn't know anything about it at the time!).  On Christmas morning my son's eyes were huge when he was given this enormous parcel, it was almost as big as he was!

He avidly unwrapped the box, paper flying in all directions, and opened the box.  Inside was another wrapped box and so it went on - box after box inside each other, until we could barely see him for torn off wrappings (by this time it was newspaper wrapping).  Finally there was a tiny box to unwrap, which he did - and found a matchbox, with a peanut in it!

I am not sure how pleased he was at the time, there he is sitting in a mountain of newspaper, boxes everywhere, covered in printer's ink and a peanut in his little hand! 

Is this a man type practical joke or have the ladies done this too?

However, he did enjoy his real gift when he got it!

And guess who got left with the boxes and newspaper??? lol

What memories are stirred with the word "balloon".

Great idea for a thread, Ruth!

About ten years ago I attended the birthday party for a girlfriend's then three year old little girl (Mia).

I wracked my brain trying to think what to bring to a three year. I remembered that Mia was really fond of the teletubbies and her favorite  was Tinky Winky.

Long story short, I bought a large Tinky Winky cuddle toy and had it put inside of a purple balloon. When I walked in to the party with it Mia's little mouth literally fell open and she was speechless for the next hour. All she could do was sit there and stare at Tinky Winky in the balloon. I am sure she was trying to figure out how that big toy got inside that balloon. When her mother suggested they take Tinky Winky out of the balloon Mia would have none of it. She wanted it just the way it was.

 Eventually, they did get Tinky Winky out and everyone agreed that it had been by far the most captivating gift on the table. :-)

Next word: Bowl

Ruth..how old are you...... or is 100 years an mentfor for time?Post above..... (my uncle taking us to New York when we were children 100 years ago) Diana...my cat looks like the cat I have now was named "Mia" only female..cat I have now...was named "hobie" by the Animal Control Center when we adopted him...said "found in an field".

Putting that aside...bowl....Only memory I have of  an "bowl" is watching the movie of Steve Martin and Lily Tomlin...where she's an wealthy lady and decides to switch body/souls with another unfortunate gal and the young gal decides to get her body and live to the hilt being she's with money galore...and he comes in and saves her...comedy. They use an east Indian type "religous bowl" ritual to switch souls back and forth. I thought it was an delightul funny movie at the time it was released...I'll be darned if I can remember the name of it right now though.

Word....first kiss.

It was All of Me, Shirley.

Jeff M. - dreamy....(sigh). 

Nation's capital.

Shirley - Lol! The only part of that movie I remember is the scene you are talking about where the guy keeps saying in his Indian accent, "Edwina, back in the bowl, back in the bowl, back in the bowl." It was very funny indeed! :-)

Nation's Capital - the first thing that comes to my mind is 9/11 when the Pentagon was hit and rumors were flying that The White House was next. Scary time.

Garage

I've been back there an couple of times, plus...my first impression was the barred windows on the houses an couple blocks away from the core area of the National buildings. We stayed at "College Place, in Maryland in our camper, my sister, myself and young son...and before we left "D'C" flew my hubby into meet us and spend his two week vacation with us...this gave us two weeks to get back visiting relatives on the way...meeting up with my dad in Nebraska on vacation also then...he went back to stay with his sister "Velda" and her husband Richard. Never saw Richard much as he farmed with his boys about 10,000 acres. While we were at "DC" though is where I met some young kids seeing the sites along the eastern seaboard by "pop" top Volkswagon...they went on bus tours during the day and slept in thier van and an tent at night, in our RV Park..they talked with sometimes, they had an nice easy set up for traveling...we had good weather while there...only one afternoon thunderstorm.  We went into "DC" by bus the first time an learned our way around and then took the camper off and drove in.Second time I got more chance to see the sites then the first time... I was there was more business oreintated....third time I was there was with my friend "Ann" and it was all sight-seeing.  By the time we had to load the camper up again my husband was there to help me and we left there and went to Disneyland and came back to Oregon.. stopping at his sister's house...one that just recently passed on. We worked her yard over for her..as we visited...you know hubby...an his nursery career He took thet time in "DC" to go to the "new".. "Vietnam Wall" you know and see the names of his unit, and reflect on it, talk about memories, he pointed out the guy's name asked him to keep some money for him as he knew he was going into an battle.. for his wife and his kid...and he did...later he added $20 along with the rest of the money back home state-side to her. He said he really liked the guy...he was an decent kid. Yes he was killed...most the troop was defending my husand's "operations" center.. along with the Green Berets..as they had the operations of all our troops with them where they were at, they were not hit by an small band of rebels...they were hit by the "Regular" North Vietnamese Army. I could see it going through his mind..the grabbing the army  records as they picked them up by helicopter, he'd been sending me pictures all the time of un-detonated missles they shot into camp everyday trying to get rid of them...great big tape around them until the proper people showed up to nullify them. He has always said that he owes his life to those that gave their's.. to get him out. The office crew and their Commander were the only survivors...I knew before they left Ft. Lewis they had given them needles to kill themselves if captured...so Green Berets guarded them...and the rest of the unit was their back up..daily operational unit...until ths happened.  They sent them to Green Beret headquarters for debriefing and since there was no more "Unit" he finsihed his time out there in North Carolina. My entire Christmas that year was sending them out boxes and boxes of food and snacks and cookies to share with everyone....thanks to the "Black Market" they acutally received about half of it though. My next trip back there was with Ann...kind of all sight seeing...we went to Arlington National Cemetary and we went to where they had made this huge "Quilt"...every state of the union represented was folded out on the lawn....with Ann, I was back there when we were celebrating our Cenntenial and they had the fireworks that were in New York...we meant an lot of people going there.. they told us to go to "Jersey" for the best seat...but we had to move on... and were at Colonial Williamsburg July 4th...sitting in Bruton Parish Church with names of relatives all over...we got an chance to see the fireworks show though an bit, I walked the night behind an group comprised of an cripple child in an wheechair, my son, Ann's daughters, and an drume, fife and flute and some riflemen in the vintage sense of the area, with fireworks going off all around us...before we went to Yorktown.. Thomas Jefferson's home and on to Disneyland in Florida again. Some of our older boys in" Scouts" earned their own money...still do... and try to go to the National Jamboree back there....while we out here are doing an week of "Scout Camp" for them locally. My trip with Ann was 6 weeks long From Oregon to Massachuetts to down the eastern Seaboard to her relatives house in Missouri to back to Oregon...I was home one week for Scout Camp and we left again for Canada and the World's Expo that year..and came back, had one week in which we went to the coast and school started again. Most rememorable..I wore out an pair of shoes every week....after the Itailian sandles I bought in Boston...I gave up later on and bought heavy duty thongs and just threw them away. Funniest episode...we were caught during rush hour outside New York with miles of traffic ahead of us and behind us...waiting...trucker behind us,..we could hear him on our "CB" radio as he talked to those ahead of him and behind him...and one trucker behind us says...there's an guy coming along side on his motor bike...looking smug... guys..one of ya open your door ...and everyone started laughing..by then we'd been on the hot payvment melting for an hour as it was. Naturally no one did as we watched him pass us by. anyway..I can say I've been for sea to shingin sea...but not completely north and south, though have been to California many times also. If my health and my finances had not gone sour on me, I would like to gone to the Grand Canyon and over along the southen states along the gulf.. but I think it's to dangerous now with the border troubles down there.

Next word...hiking.

I'm sorry about that Diana..I didn't scroll down to see the word Garage..so I though it was Nationa's Capital....back in those days we had no garage...it was an extra kids' "family room" and party room/pool table room anyway. Little kids could ride thier trikes in there on rainy days... later  the foreign exchange students use to come here...we had Nintendo game unit out there...I did make it into an interesting "jungle" for my son's birthday one time. Complete with tiny pipe-cleaner bumble bee's holding toothpicks for "killer bee's" one year. Jungle tape in the background of birds...and all kinds of stuffed animals and wooden carved ones they had to find in an "game". Once again my hubby's nursety as well as my fake silk trees were part of  the jungle around the edges of the room, with an path winding through the area. In the center of the room an small kiddi  pool were gold fish they had to catch and take to our pond, or keep if they wanted. ."live" ones.. after crossing the bridge over this  pool. We had an " luau" for the food..mostly fresh fruit..birthday cak...did you know that is when I learned that "snow sleds" of the round disc variety make for excellent centerpeices. They ate on pillows on the garage floor. What do I remember about this, my little neighbor boy..Spencer...my son an him were best buddies, and he was moving and it was the last time we'd see him...he would grow up to fall from an balcony at an "party" (where he was underage) an apparently drinking...at Portland State College and die. At my kiddies party he won an blow up canoe from the games we played...he did not want to go to his house afterward either. I had to talk to him and convince him we'd come and visit him...which we did once...he lived an really long ways away though back then. My next contact was sending his mother an sympathy card. I think maybe his grandfather died not shortly after that also...he was an Judge... in curcuit court downtown Portland. I have now no parties in this garage...it's an storage room that needs cleaned out...I work on it from time to time.

That's okay, Shirley, no need to apologize. :-)

New word: Toothpaste