The thought occurred to me this past week while trotting along behind Miss Martha as she gathered the groceries, "Where did the old grocery store go?" We all seemed to get along without the Winky-Blinky Food Nova stores that proliferate today. We had Bush's Grocery. A typical grocery buy scripted out like this with Mom on the phone with Mr. Bush.
"Do you have any nice pork chops? OK, send me 4." "How fresh are your turnips? OK send me 5 or 6." The conversation would continue like this for a few minutes and would wrap up with, "Oh, and I'll take a dozen eggs and a pound of bacon. Yes, Valleydale will be fine."
About half hour later, there'd be a knock on the door and one of the delivery guys would be standing there with his hat in his hand and would have a box as per Mom's order. He'd bring it in and set it on the kitchen table. A pleasant, "Thank you, mamm" followed. That was it. No coupons, no buy-one-get-one deals, no clubs to join....just food and stuff at a fair price. Even if we were going to be away, the delivery man would simply enter the unlocked house and put the perishables in the "frigidare". I think there were 4 or 5 full-time delivery guys working for Mr. Bush and we knew them all by name. Dad got paid every Friday and would stop on his way home to pay the "ticket" for that week's buys. Try that at Winky-Blinky.
So what's with the "bunny suit" business? Each year at Christmas time, my folks always had little gifts for the people who made their lives a little easier and convenient; the mailman, the milkman, (oh yeah, they delivered it to the house in the pre-dawn hours) the paper boy, and the grocery delivery men. It might be a pack of handkerchiefs or one of those "books" that were actually a covert carrier for packs of Life Saver mints.
One year, Mom and I had been in some sort of Christmas program put on by the Lions or JCs or some group. In the skit, Santa had fouled up and Mrs. Santa (Mom) was chasing him across the stage with a rolling pin. I was running around after her. I don't remember the outcome, but I assume it all worked out. Anyway, Mom got the idea that it would be a shame to waste that little Santa costume, so she decided that I would wear it and deliver all of the gifts to my friends. And then the bomb dropped. I was going to also deliver the gifts to the grocery delivery men, the milkman, and the mailman. Pissed is inadequate.
No choice...play the game or (possibly) seriously negatively impact my own Santa outcome. I got through it somehow with minimal damage to my 9 year old ego and reaped the rewards on Christmas morning. Many years later, Ralphie and his pink bunny suit gave me flashbacks. I spent the rest of the winter dreading Easter, but thankfully the Lions or JCs had other fish to fry.
5 comments:
Our milkman brought us chocolote milk, eggs, orange juice and doughnuts....and fruitcake and eggnog at Christmas! All we had to do was check off the little blocks on the list. No wonder we only needed one family car in those days. Thanks, Jack. Another great memory and I am really glad you didn;t have to wear the bunny suit.
Ok LMAO at that picture. Can you even IMAGINE Jackson being forced to wear that? OMG I'm cracking up. That is GREAT Dad!
I so wish it was that simple these days for groceries, to me there is little worse chore then taking a very, um, active toddler and a very, um, opinionated and hungry 10 year old to the grocery store.
Great post and I LOVE THAT PICTURE!
I seem to remember Grammy having milk delivered to the house when I was really little. I loved her Egg Nog.
LMAO at little Ralphie/OOOPS! I mean little Jack in the Santa suit. Thanks for bringing up some more good memories.
Oh that it were like that today. I am with Jules, going to the grocery store is one of my least favorite things to do. I always feel so great when I get home and put things away and think, "My family has food", but actually going is a huge PITA! LOVE the picture. And yes, I am again reminded of Ralphie. We may as well change that kids name to Jack. Great post, Dad.
I remember when Bush's closed in the mid-60's. A part of Bedford left that day. I scrounged an old Zenith radio, a flourescent light fixture and a roll-around table from that old store.
Once, Mr. Bush invited me over to his house to see his coin collection. Astonishing.
His store had double screen doors on it that said "Rainbo is good bread"
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