Modern Marvels!..
Long before we had cars that ran on electricity,we had cars that ran on,umm,..electricity.
When I was just a toddlin' lad,and from time to time,my mom would scoop me up and spirit me,along with my big sister,downtown on the streetcar to
Any trepidation I may have felt over the inevitable epic search for that perfect frock,was temporarily assuaged by the boistrous ride to the city on that marvelous conveyance!
I'd sit in my seat,breezing through traffic at the blistering speed of 12 miles per hour,and wonder at the cornucopea of technical whizbangery going on about me while I calculated the advantage of Silly Putty,versus the Slinky.
Bells and whistles,(and not the metaphoric kind),..and the crackling sparks of that doohicky,that connected to the overhead thingamajig,that mimicked perfectly the immense power source that propelled Buck Rodger's space ship across the universe!
Lord he'p me,..I did love it so.
Sadly,the Los Angeles streetcar lines,like milkmen and the Helm's truck,have passed into history.
This was on my mind...
NEXT WEEK: 'If you don't leap off the escalator at Newberry's a split second before you reach the platform,..it will snatch your toes,drag you down into the gears,shut down the entire operating system,and your Dad will have to pay for it!'
Make chex payable to §£ïñg 7:53 PM
17 Bootleggers
17 Comments:
one of the all time great joys of my life is riding on the cable cars in san francisco..i even got to ring the bell...which was due to the very very short skirt i had on and my big titties..sigh*
Oh, those hours spent in fabric stores as a kid were TORTURE! Second only to ceramic shops. It's a wonder I survived.
One of the things I had to do with the kids in San Francisco was take a few cable car rides. Now I live in an area where there is no public transportation of any sort!
Delightful.
I use to have to spend hours in fabric store torture...My brothers and I would go around picking the most bizarre materials and ask our Mom loudly if she would make us underwear out of it. She would then find her way over to us and bop us in the head.
We had electric trolly cars in Louisville, but that was before I moved here 40+ years ago. Shopping with my mom and sister was torture. I never have enjoyed shopping since.
Loved your post and video.
How will the auto companies ever rebound if you get everybody all nostalgic over public transportation? They've got big bonuses to pay out. (wink) A garage for every person and two cars in every garage, that's the American way.....
we have a large fleet of electric trolley buses. the only problem is when it snows heavily things sometimes come to a standstill.
Yellerdawg- If I had big titties,I'd never have to leave the house. :)
JP- I'd rather be waterboarded,than go shopping with my mom and sister.
Secret Agent Woman- We have a bizarre bus system here.
There are bus stops,but there's not really a regular schedule.
You can even flag them down just about anywhere,but I guess you just hope they will end up at your destination.
D&P- Oh thank you my little Puddles. :P
Sage- When my little brother came along,we would make forts in the clothing racks,and spy on the women going into the dressing rooms.
We haven't done that in weeks!
Charlene- I'm here to tell ya,it was all about 'ooohing' and 'ahhhing' for 20 minutes over a dress,and then,'Too bad it's the wrong color',or,'It's a shame they don't have it your size'..I was 5 years old,and if I'd had a gun,..I swear!
Thinker- You've accidentally hit on a true story..The demise of the streetcar system in L.A. came about over the political machinations of General Motors,whose strategic contributions resulted in regulations that eventually forced them out of business.
Billy P- I wasn't sure if there were still electric trolleys operating someplace..Kinda cool!
If it snows to badly,it's probably best just to stay home anyway.
What a fantastic memory. Streetcar stories never EVER get old!
Some of my most favorite times in Budapest were spent on trolleys and trams. They're old fashioned romantic and sexy at the same time - not sure either would've been true if I was being hauled along to go fabric shopping. Ick.
Waaaaait a second. Was JJ Newberry's in LA? Didn't you have a big piece of childhood in Redondo Beach?
I am suddenly SOOOO confused.
Here's what I want to know. Could you get there from here?
Booda Babe- My very first six years we lived in Hawthorne,and used to go to Inglewood to go to Newberry's,Sears,..like that.
Not exactly L.A. proper,but we did have streetcars.
Then we moved to Torrance till I was 13,and then on to Redondo Beach.
We moved out of Hawthorne 'cause the freeway was going in right on top of it,so I guess you could get there from there. ;)
Oh, that is soooo cool, especially for a little chappy! (Well, except for the shopping part. My Mom's friends got wonderfully nostalgic about their various adventures getting to Woolworths to eat at the lunch counters. Like your streetcar & shopping story, they recalled wonderful little details.)
Do you have even the slightest interest in testing out the Metro next time you're down? For some reason, metros have a lot of the same sensual qualities as streetcars to me. I like the echo-y-ness and the clickety clacks and wooshes and anonymous crowds getting close and friendly for a few minutes.
What a nice, nice childhood you had.
Ha ha ha ha bloody ha this is a classic 'If you don't leap off the escalator at Newberry's a split second before you reach the platform,..it will snatch your toes,drag you down into the gears,shut down the entire operating system,and your Dad will have to pay for it!'
thats how we were raised...and "no mum I never did cut my tongue off licking the vegeite off the knife...still do it at 56"
Booda Babe- I scoped out the Metro last time I was down ther,and thought it looked like great fun
I don't know where I would take it to though,'cause I'm already there.
Middle Child- HA!..It works with peanut butter too. :)
u can come to my house any time.
I love the San Francisco streetcars and trolly cars--I didn't realize that L.A. had even had them. Have you ever ridden the trains in L.A.? John & I rode one to the end once--we were excited to ride through Compton. :)
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home