(duplicate Post on You Know Youre from San Bernardino IF page) NOSTALGIA - Fond remembrances of pleasurable events or times -- October to December is a colorful, enjoyable and nostalgic time of year. Halloween, in the 40s, was the beginning of the season of cool mornings in San Bernardino, my home town. Heaters and stoves would soon be turned on. These were when the days grew short and it got dark early and diminished the neighborhood kids play time. The summer shorts and sandals were put away and we got out our zipper sweaters that were rolled up at the sleeves. We dressed warm and cozy when we walked to school, wearing two or three layers as winter came along. The golden autumn days would be quite warm by noon. We walked a little faster coming home and the nip in the air made us wonder why we hated the hot summer days so much. Winter was coming! Getting a crisp, tangy apple upon arrival at home, we managed a couple of cops and robbers and kick the can games before it was too dark. When the street lights came on, we went inside.......we rarely had to be called. We were expected to be inside by dark. I recall walking into the house to the smell of biscuits, cornbread or ginger bread being made, and the warmth of the oven invited me to back up to it. Everyone arrived home to perform their clothes changing rituals and to get ready for dinner. Aunt Meta would be checking the mail and grumbling about The Redbook magazine being late and my brother and I would be complaining about having to set the table. We always had tablecloths as well as cloth napkins. Such a simple task but wed moan and groan! We, of course, were my brother Brooks, (Blackie) and me. Grandpa would wash up after his day at the Santa Fe and dinner HAD to be on the table by 5:00 P.M. . He had that Santa Fe smell that all of you still remember if your parents or grandparents worked there. I can still smell it! It was the smell of San Bernardino! I have talked about having supper before and how memorable it was to hear about everyones day. Those suppers stimulated endless nostalgic memories. Life was LIVED around that table. I talked recently about dishwashing time and the bonding we created and shared. Poignant memories! As winter grew closer, we loved it when our next door neighbor got a cord of pine (I think) wood dumped in his back yard. We thought our neighbors were rich because they had really plush carpets, a car, a telephone and a FIREPLACE. Wed climb around that pile of wood for hours until our legs got itchy and sticky. It was a big annual event. The nastiest events, later on, were the freezes that brought out the smudge pots to warm the citrus trees. There is no way to explain the black sky when the sun was dimmed, unable to shine through the muck.. Everything stunk like oil and our hair, noses and ears would be black and smelly. The smudge even seeped inside the house and the curtains would always have to washed. (Google Calif smudge pots and try to imagine it) Photos posted. This was the time of the year, with Thanksgiving nearing, that wed start planning family reunions at grandmas house. I spent my time after school learning Christmas songs on the piano for the dreaded annual holiday recital. It was a limbo time, just before we started making our Christmas lists and excitedly looking for another holiday time at home. These were the cool, crisp days when wed see the smoke rising from the chimneys and backyard incinerators. We raked the golden, dusky leaves into piles and our dog, Puppo, would burrow down into a pile with the packed leaves as a cozy, cocoon blanket. He would sleep there for hours with his nose just peeking through. We dreaded the annual leaf raking day after day, but I can still feel, see and smell them as I type. I can yet hear the crunch of them under my feet and the sound of them blowing down the street in the brisk, fall wind. . So, these were the golden days of nostalgia when the world was relaxing before it woke up for Thanksgiving and the bright lights and joys of Christmas. I loved those days when grandma added one more of her handmade comforters to my bed! Winter was coming and I was ready. Pure nostalgia!
Posted on: Mon, 03 Nov 2014 01:04:48 +0000
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