Things That Are Gone From My Life

I got to thinking the other day as I drove by the building that still has, “Frank, the Pizza King,” on the sign. It’s not Frank’s anymore. In fact, it has not been Frank’s for years. His daughter took over the business when he passed.

My family of five were his customers. In addition to pizza, the menu included deep-fried shrimp (my favorite), as well as other specialities. Daughters grew up and moved on to other events in their lives, but Larry and I continued to patronize Frank’s.

The building will soon be gone. The parking lot paved over, again. And, a car lot will be installed. This happens a lot – car lots taking over existing businesses on South Broadway in my city. Gone are the businesses that produce taxes for the city coffers; taxes from the sale of vehicles go to the city of the buyer.

My city’s fire department is gone. The current fire department serving my community is not owned by my city. Rather, the service is purchased from the largest city in this metropolitan setting. So, we no longer have a fire department or emergency response  team. There are times when I think that the government of my city wants to have it be a borough of that larger city, such as is found in New York. The fire fighter in charge of our station has decided that the sign from Frank’s is to be installed inside of the fire house – preserving some of the heritage of the history of my city.

Eighty years ago, the one telephone we had in our house was a  phone connected to other phones by a telephone operator. The rotary dial phone replaced the operators. Then, came touch-tone phones, taking over from the clicking of the rotary, with more one or more extension telephones in many homes. Now, of course, many homes do not have a landline. I have one; its only purpose for existing is so I can find my cell phone when I misplace it!

The Farmer’s Almanac, not to be confused with The Old Farmer’s Almanac, will cease publication after the 2026 edition. The Old Farmer’s Almanac is the one that is still publishing and growing. 

Using The American Heritage Dictionary. I love – LOVE – to read The American Heritage Dictionary. I have always found it to be so informative with illustrations (photographs, artwork,  and drawings) that explain the definitions found there. It has a wealth of information; sections on English language rules and construction, in addition to the spelling and definition(s) of words we need to use. As great as this reference is, I find that I no longer take the very large book from the shelf, search the pages for the desired word reference, and spell a word correctly; then, replace the book. Rather, it is now my custom to go to the web, put in what I think is the spelling of the word I need, and be done. If my guess at the spelling of the word is incorrect, the web gives me the correct spelling, the definition, and the proper usage of the word. Another plus in using the web for this purpose is that the print in the dictionary is so small that I really can’t use it without my lighted magnifying glass.

So many brick and mortar establishments have “bit the dust.” The GEM store (the Government Employee Mutual) is gone; the original discount store. Larry worked at three locations of this business. Tortilla Flats is gone. Larry remembered that the mom of the Estrada family that owned Tortilla Flats often gave time to the local school kids to teach them how to make tortillas. “Mexican Food” restaurants – a brand new concept in those days – today they abound throughout our community. Also gone are The Drumstick restaurants. Children were entertained watching the train that circled overhead at each location. Azar’s Big Boy restaurants no longer sit in the metro area. Each one with a huge statue of “the Big Boy” atop the building. I think my biggest restaurant loss is all of the Broker restaurants. Larry, Daughter #1, and I often had our Thanksgiving Day meal at the Broker located in the bank vault of a metro bank. The huge bowl of shrimp to be peeled and dipped in a sauce was spectacular.

As a high school student, my first experience with a metro area “restaurant” was the Rocky Built (hamburger stand) located next to my city’s only movie theatre – that was in the 1950s folks. A group of us from the Future Teachers organization traveled north from our town to the metro area for a conference. Our sponsor took us to the Rocky Built for dinner. Surprisingly, I have lived for years in this same town as the location of that Rocky Built.

Also as a high school student, I learned to type using an Underwood typewriter with the visible half circle of letters activated by striking the keys. I remember renting this kind of typewriter to complete my homework (I really didn’t like the Royal typewriters). Of course, we were using those typewriters to learn to type. In high school, we didn’t use them to communicate with others. We learned to type! I remember the IBM Selectric – a favorite of mine for years. I bought a portable typewriter when I went to college. Not only did it serve to prepare my own lessons, but it made money for me by typing the assignments of other students. IBM Selectrics continue to be used. Part of the business of a good friend is to supply parts sending them wherever in the world they are needed.

Now, of course, most of us have computers. We have keyboards, not keys, with little or no sound. We see no working parts. Have no need for ribbons (black or black/red combinations). Don’t need “typewriter” erasers to correct mistakes. Now, we just need to back up the sentence and put in new words! Computers operate with programs. And, unknown to most of us, someone who thinks they know better change the operation of those programs without telling us or asking if we really want the changes!

We no longer have “Decoration Day.” The day when we went to the gravesites of loved ones and placed flowers at the headstones. Today, we have Memorial Day – a day to formally remember those who are gone. I wonder how many people actually spend any time remembering those folks. Or, do they go to the malls to take advantage sales for that day?

The flowers that we took on Decoration Day were “flags,” because they were often the first flowers to bloom in the spring. Today, the same flowers are called iris.

I try to imagine living in an apartment building and having the view from my window be rooftops, parking lots, other high-rise buildings with narry a green leaf in sight. We know that overcrowding in mice living quarters causes a rampage of destructive actions. This overcrowding leads to severe social stress in the mice. The mice in these situations experience a breakdown of social behaviors; often leading to extreme aggression, as well as other problems such as increased disease and increased body fat.

What, then, is happening to the human residents living in such conditions. Driving a street with such high-rise apartments is like driving through a canyon. The sun no longer gets to the street level. I have not experienced this overcrowding. I live in a ranch-style, brick home, surrounded by greenery – green grass, green trees, green flowers. I do not ever want to be confined to such living quarters and have to miss the greenery. Creating such living spaces is touted as making residential ownership more affordable. This does not seem to be the case, however.

Kids don’t seem to play kick-the-can or hide and seek, any more. Rather, I seem them with their noses stuck into cell phones, fingers tapping away.

Recently, the tree on the corner was taken down. Truth be told, it was looking pretty poorly. But, now, it is gone. Will another tree be planted to green up that corner? Only time will tell.

Perhaps, the most difficult loss that I’ve noticed is that people don’t talk with each other. Do we “pass the time” with another person in a grocery store? Do we say, “Hello,” to people we pass on the street? If we use public transportation, do we even recognize that there are other people there? Are we afraid of each other?

Be Safe and Be Well.
The Cranky Crone
Thoughtful comments are always appreciated.