There's Something About That Bell......
Well, NOW spring is officially here. Sure we've had 70 degree temperatures here in NY, baseball started almost a month ago, and the flowers have started to bloom. Tonight it became official as I saw the ice cream man pass the house for the first time this year. There's something about that music or that ringing bell that lures us from whatever we are doing.
Remember when you were a kid? The Ice Cream Man was like a living legend. You suddenly developed a bionic ear and could hear him about four miles away. Everything came to a halt when you heard that bell, baseball games, kickball games, hide and seek, you name it. As soon as that bell rang or music was heard, kids scattered in every direction to head home for money. The ice cream man is a kid's version of a crack dealer. People go ape shit for ice cream. In my house growing up, we ALWAYS had a freezer full of ice cream, yet there was something about getting it from the ice cream man that was special. Suddenly the five gallons of ice cream in the freezer at home was not good enough. The shitty stuff the ice cream man sold was suddenly better.
The ice cream man was usually an older dude. He at least wore something that said "Good Humor" on it. Now the ice cream man is like a 20-something dude in jeans and a wife beater. What the hell is that all about? The prices are insane too. A chipwich is like $5 now. I love the Chipwich, by the way.
I used to love to torment the ice cream man. The standard abuse was to yell "STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" at the top of your lungs out your bedroom window when he'd pass. He would jam the breaks, not knowing where the voice came from. His truck would buck and come to a stop, where he'd sit patiently and wait for his $1.00 sale, but I'd never go out. I would test him to see how long he was willing to wait. As he started to drive away after the four minute wait.....I'd yell, "STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!!!!!!" again and the moron would stop and wait again until he finally caught on that we were fucking with him. Those were the days. I may actually try that again this year from my deck...just for old time's sake.
6 comments:
hecks yea the ice cream man was great! I was a push up gal! Or a screwball. But i didnt eat the gum ball cus that's just gross! If mom took too long giving us money we had to run through yards to catch him the next block up.
loved the ice cream man when i was young, hated the ice cream man when my sons were young...what a difference 25 years makes on how you view things.
the best part of my visits to the beaches in sag harbor were the ice cream man parked in the lot...choco tacos on the beach is as close to heaven as it gets.
When my niece was 5 she got so excited one day when she heard the ice cream man she yelled out"Rings Belling"! She's 26 now and we still say to her "Rings Belling"
Does yours play a tune or just ring a bell? Growing up, our ice cream man just had a bell. I think it was something he had to pull to ring. Now a lot of them play little tunes. Progress is not always a good thing.
I always got the Strawberry Shortcake!! Remember those?
As far as the criteria to be a ice cream man, I think they have lapsed on the standards a bit.
There are two kinds of ice cream trucks that drive through my neighborhood. The real one with the soft ice cream, ice cream sandwiches, and all the good stuff. That one rings a bell.
The imposter ice cream man plays this song that sticks in your head for hours and sells popcicles and clown heads with bubblegum noses. Don't be fooled by the imposter.
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