HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all in the hook now and way back when Oh, the glory of it yesterday was Halloween so the candy abounds November 1st, All Saints Day really paved the way to Thanksgivng and Thanksgiving in the hook was the greatest except if you were a turkey, lol november was a great month in the hook yeah, there was school but after school was another story Thank Yor, Mary Hopkin Once upon a time there was a tavern Where we used to raise a glass or two Remember how we laughed away the hours And think of all the great things we would DO Chorus: Those were the days, my friend We thought theyd never end Wed sing and dance forever and a day Wed live the life we choose Wed fight and never lose For we were young and sure to have our way La la la la la la La la la la la la you always wanted a pair of skates the Christmas before so the following Fall we could make a scooter from an old pair of skates, a slat of wood and a milk crate and go down suicide hill in the heights a really steep street (dont tell mom) then there were carpet guns with a piece of wood, a rubber band and, of course, someones old carpet, linoleum then, came election day and back then, we collected wood all day people would actually move their cars for us we had a great fire under the lamp post and did it to the dummy hanging from the street lamp then there was skellsie (corks) Veterans Day was like, if you say “no school”, ill stay home it was like a free holiday we knew our dads were in the big one but we got the day off yipppeeeeeeeeee! a game of two hand touch football was always a lot of fun even with just two on a team the fall was a bit different from the summer as you had to be home for supper family dinner, a great part of growing up and after dinner, since it was dark out daylight savings time ended you stayed in and did your homework after homework we would watch the million dollar movie or a sitcom with mom dad worked nights honorable mention to Father Knows Best, The Donna Reed Show, Leave it to Beaver, (grrr, darn you eddie haskell) I Love Lucy, remember the Vitameatavegamin episode, its on youtube “Faster than a speeding bullet! More powerful than a locomotive! Able to leap tall buildings with a single bound”, George Reeve, Superman (I always wondered how he could disguise himself simply by putting a pair of glasses on, lol) Perry Mason, Maverick then there was always a “abbott and Costello meet frankenstein”, etc on the million dollar movie The Abbott and Costello Show was the best with Sidney Fields “Whos on first, Whats on second, I Dont Know is on Third” and, of course, Americas oldest teenager, Dick Clark got us roclin and rollin on Saturdays with American Bandstand Then the busy years went rushing by us We lost our starry notions on the way If by chance Id see you in the tavern Wed smile at one another and wed say Those were the days, my friend We thought theyd never end Wed sing and dance forever and a day Wed live the life we choose Wed fight and never lose Those were the days Oh, yes, those were the days La la la la la la La la la la la la I remember when I started school we would bring the tuition envelope in every 3 months $5.00 sunday was a mandatory 9:00 a.m. Mass at St. Marys of the Sea of course it was in Latin (they took attendance, lol) some “big guy hanging out” till early 2 p.m. Big pasta dinner maybe a visit to grandpas on Kane street Aunt Katy and Uncle John lived there , too with cousins Rosalie and Paula sometimes, Uncle Tom and Aunt Santa were there, too or grandma would come down stairs for a cannoli and 7:00 p.m. was the Walt Disney hour with Swamp Fox, Davy, Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier (Fess Parker was the best) followed by ed sullivan hour sometimes a sunday snack from reds pizzeria with a giant baked calzone and The G.E. Theather (with Ronald Reagan) then “The Alfred Hitchcok Show yeah, those were the days the Lone Ranger with Tonto, Ozzie and Harriet, Have Gun Will TraveL” with Palladin, Roy Rogers and Dale Evans with Trigger, Sugarfoot I mean, these people were like family members, lol YIPPPPEEEEE!!!!! Bozo the Clown, Mr. Greenjeans, Soupy Sales, Captain (Outrageous) Kangaroo of course, I had my Micky Mouse ears for the Mickey Mouse Club with Annette Funicello Frankie the, I mean, Dennis the Menace, lol drat you, Eddie Haskell of course, there were 8 million stories of the Naked City, good ol, “he had a cane and derby hat, his name was Bat, Bat Masterson” Wanted : Dead or Alive with the coolest star ever, Steve McQueen Sea Hunt, Gunsmoke with Matt Dillion and Miss Kitty, we were good kids, basically pranksters, nothing serious because you didnt mess with Elliot Ness (Robert Stack) and The Untouchables, or Sgt. Joe Friday of Dragnet and the Many Lives of Dobie Gillis with Manard G Kreps not to mention 77 Sunset Strip, (Cookie, Cookie, lend me your comb) and who knew it then? but with the Twilight Zone Marathon on cable now Billy Mumy, William Shatner, Charles Bronson, Elizabeth Montgomery, Peter Falk, Lenoard Nimoy, Agnes Moorehead, etc all starred the closest we got to a reality show was Candid Camera with Allen Funt of course, there is the day I will always remember where I was it was November 22, 1963, Friday, 2:00 pm and our teacher, Brother Claver announced we were being released early but didnt tell us why I was a few steps from home in front of 99 First Place and a friend told me May he Rest In Peace, John F. Kennedy “Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country” Viet Nam Veterans Memorial dedicated November 13, 1982 Washington, D.C., United States so a big shout out to my childhood friends in the service, John S. and Steven S. to all our Viet Nam vets who returned, mias and all out service men and women now and way back then for their commitment to protecting us and our country the wednesday before Thanksgiving was quiet but you knew when you woke up on Thanksgiving morning to the smell of moms cooking it was, like, “let the feast begin” mom always bought bordens canned egg nog (I saw it at pathmark yesterday its now in a regular milk carton) so it was a great way to start the day we had a light breakfast and mom had the turkey cooking, stuffing going, yams with brown sugar we would watch tv go check out the kitchen dad, who worked nights would get up early to help mom the Macys Thanksgiving Parade would be on me and mike would go out front for a while hang out with friends go upstairs to wish grandma a “Happy Thanksgiving” then we would come in about 1:00 pm Rosalie was born 7/1958 Carmela was born 12/1960 and it was such a treat having them at the dinner table you know, with the high chair then they got old enough to sit in regular chairs mom, dad, mike, me made sure the girls got attention (one year, I was, like 21, my sisters 8 and 10 I came in about 10 am and said “come on, were going to the macys parade” it was a great time, I got them to the front to see everything across from Macys we got home about 2 pm just in time for dinner) the Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade would go back on till dinnertime so, move over mcdonalds, bye bye burger king when I grew up, it was a sin to eat out, plus there was no fast food microwave? The only wave we knew was at coney island then we would all sit down Dad would say a Thanksgiving prayer and he would always slice the turkey Mom would chime in with “frankie boy likes the drumstick” then mom would put on the appetizers stuffed mushrooms, Finochio (vegetable), turkey gravy, a whole tray of stuffing, yams with brown sugar, cranberry sauce, biscuits Just tonight I stood before the tavern Nothing seemed the way it used to be In the glass I saw a strange reflection Was that lonely woman really me? Those were the days, my friend We thought theyd never end Wed sing and dance forever and a day Wed live the life we choose Wed fight and never lose Those were the days Oh, yes, those were the days La la la la la la La la la la la la after dinner, it was like, “wow, did I eat all that” and some relax time and some “that was delicious, mom” as she put the roasted chestnuts on the table and besides pastries from cioffis, momteleones, court pastry there was always a homeade pumpkin pie or cheese cake for desert or Moms famous delicious rice pudding it was like treats everywhere chocolate pudding ice cream on a cone “Babes in Toyland” with Laurel and Hardy “March of the Wooden Soldiers” was a treat in the afternoon by saturday, my dad would finish slicing the turkey once he found the wishbone it went over the kitchen entrance till next year8 white meat, dark meat and then he would make his famous turkey salad so it was a great week of leftovers you know a big shout out to “dads who help mom” our dad would always help out mom whether he was dicing celery, doing the dishes, doing the laundry, hanging the laundry vacumming, washing the yard, etc mom and dad were a team frankie boy, i need the parsley, ok, grandma, my grandmother lived on the parlor floor, we were in the basement, so we would use the dumbwaiter to send up what she needed by putting a shopping bag on a string and having her pull it up a big shout out to my Aunt Lu and Uncle Carl you always knew they were here because Aunt LU would whistle on the way in Through the door there came familiar laughter I saw your face and heard you call my name Oh, my friend, were older but no wiser For in our hearts the dreams are still the same... Thanksgiving night was a standard get the dishes done, playing with our sisters some tv, and, of course, a turkey leftover snack Those were the days, my friend We thought theyd never end Wed sing and dance forever and a day Wed live the life we choose Wed fight and never lose Those were the days Oh, yes, those were the days La la la la la la La la la la la la and, wala just like All Saints Day Thanksgiving Friday opened the floodgates to CHRISTMAS and you all know you know, you know, you know there is no Christmas like CHRISTMAS IN THE HOOK
Posted on: Thu, 27 Nov 2014 19:53:43 +0000
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