Saturday, August 16, 2008

The Ice Cream Man

My hubby and I were giddy the first time we heard the Ice Cream truck drive through our neighborhood, music tinkling happily along playing the theme to The Sting, drawing the kids out to the street with money in hand.

I'm so happy we live in an area where this sort of thing is still done. I don't remember the ice cream man in my neighorhood when I was growing up, but I do have memories of one coming around at different times to pools or some other places I happened to be at when I was young.
It was always fun to grab some change, run out to the truck, and see what he had to offer. I used to love banana popsicles and fudgesicles. Still do as a matter of fact. I just bought some fudgesicles that were on sale at the grocery store and I sure have been enjoying them.
Summer and the ice cream man....the kids sure do love to see him coming
Bye-bye for now Mr. Ice Cream Man...please come back soon! Does the ice cream man visit your neighborhood?


Me and Mary, my designer friend, worked all day in Tuscaloosa on Friday. It turned out awesome! I don't think I'll be able to share any more pics though from those redesigns, cause the homeowners have to agree and it's sort of awkward asking for permission. It was fun though!


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Blogger said...

Ohhhhhhhhhhh, I remember the Ice Cream Man on my street as a child! EVERY NIGHT! I would get $.15 for a 7-Up popsicle! We had so many kids on our street, I swear he would be there 10-15 minutes every night! It was so much fun!

I really don't see many of them around anymore, in any of the homes we have lived in. Things are really so different nowadays than when I was growing up.

Thanks for the memories!

Bella

Missy Wertz said...

Yeah! It is great to live where we have the ice cream trucks! DD does not get to enjoy it b/c of our busy street. But if we are at the park... :-)

I wanted to work one of the trucks while in college. For a young kid at home, the pay is great! B/c of my age, my mom had to sign a waiver, purchase a rider on her insurance and the owner wanted me to carry a gun. I was under 21. My mom said, 'No way!'. My uncle was so mad at her. LOL! I was being handed this job/route and would make enough in one-two summers to finish paying for my college education. He was giving me the gun. LOL!

Screaming Meme said...

I love that! I was at the beach two weekens ago and they had a Ice Cream Truck who drove down the beach and another one who walked with a cart...both had the music...I loved it and thought what a good idea that was! Screaming Meme

Kathryn said...

Oh, yes! The "Ice Cream Man" still makes his rounds on my parents' street. You can hear that music from blocks away! My daughter's ears were finely tuned to it; she and my mom would not even wait for him to drive down our street. They would hop on their bicycles (or jump in the golf cart!) and chase the poor man down.

My daughter is a little too old to show that unabashed delight now, but we are getting to relive it through my niece and nephew!

Bo said...

This post really took me back to a much more carefree time. I didn't always get to buy anything though because I wanted to save my quarter allowance to go to the "picture show" on Saturday for 15 cents and buy a candy AND a coke with the leftover dime...LOL
;-) Brown-Eyes

nikkicrumpet said...

SOOOOO what kind of icecream did you get us????? I LOVE ICECREAM!

Jen said...

Yes...our ice cream man comes every Sunday between 2-4 we love him...we can here him from the other road and we go running for change...it's alot for fun for the kiddos.

Tiffany said...

The ice cream man comes to our neighborhood nearly every day. He even comes during the nice days over the winter. He must do well here. :)

Tara said...

Hi Rhoda

We have the ice cream man here...love hearing his bell!

Rue said...

Hi Rhoda :)

We have an ice cream man in our neighborhood too. The kids love it! I didn't grow up with one, so it's neat to have it now.

I loved the pictures from that shopping trip you took with Judy, especially the food ;)

I can't wait to see what you do with your guest bedroom. Great inspiration piece!

hugs,
rue

Beki - TheRustedChain said...

We have one too but he's sort of scary so my kids have never bought ice cream from him. haha!

When they see him, though, they get all excited (hearing the music) and then I get them a cone from inside the house. So they're not too deprived...

Twice as Nice said...

We have an ice cream truck that comes through our neighborhood. I liked the one that we had when I was a child better though because they had soft served ice cream. The ice cream truck is a great childhood memory for any child.

Adrienne said...

I love to see the ice cream trucks around town. And I especially enjoy watching the faces of the children as they run to buy a sweet treat.

A few years ago, in a neighboring town, a man was arrested because he shot the tires out of the ice cream truck. His reason? He got tired of hearing the same song over and over and over every day when he got home from work. Where did it get him? In jail. With a fine. The ice cream truck people decided to do a variety of songs that would change from time to time. Don't know if that made the man happy when he got home from jail.
~Adrienne~

Elaine said...

We still have an ice cream truck...my kids love it still. They are 12 and 17 - if they're home they will get something even when we have ice cream treats in the freezer. Our 'truck'is a teeny tiny little thing though...a little bigger than a SmartCar! LOL

Julia @ Hooked on Houses said...

When we first moved into our neighborhood and saw an ice cream man come down our street for the first time, we were so excited! We made a bee-line for it and bought the kids some treats. They were thrilled.

Then the ice cream truck came back the next day...and the next day...and then another one started coming earlier in the day, and we had two making the rounds. And--you guessed it--every single time the kids heard the music, the begging and pleading would begin.

Clearly, we were known as suckers for ice cream on our block. Word had gotten out.

When a third, broken-down ice cream truck started making the rounds, I couldn't take the daily begging any more.

Now I keep the ice cream well stocked in the freezer to avoid paying $3.95 for one popsicle. I'm still trying to convince the kids that they're just as good coming from out kitchen as the ones from the truck, tho. Ha. -Julia :-)

Anonymous said...

YES we do (and I too love banana popsicles)....... it makes me think of when I was little, he always came after dinner and we'd run like heck so he would stop for us. Now Mr. Ice Cream Man comes in the afternoon, late afternoon, needless to say he does not get much business ~ too close to dinnertime.

I was just reading an article in the paper about Drive In Movies, remember those, we loved them as kids too.

Have a great week-end,
Kathy :)

The Quintessential Magpie said...

Yes, I do remember, Rhoda! Oh how I loved running to the truck to get a treat when I would visit my cousin in the city (we lived in the country). I also remember getting ice cream sandwiches and Nutty Buddies at the store and at the picture show. What sweet memories!

My mother liked the banana popsickles, too, Rhoda, and I liked the strawberry. Back then I loved everything pink from the pink rose on a birthday cake to the pink cabbage roses on my wallpaper to its coordinating pink phone I had to beg and beg Santa for one Christmas. But that musical sound from the "Pinky Dinky" man was just the best!

I'm glad to see he's alive and well in Birmingham! Thanks for sharing...

Sheila

Sometimes It's Good said...

We had an ice cream truck come by when I was a child. We would say the "Good Humor" man is coming. It was Good Humor ice cream. We have trucks now too on our street. They come after school and in the early evening (dessert time). On the weekends they come by several times a day. I like hearing the music, too.

Bonita said...

We have a funny memory of the ice cream man at our house. When the kids were younger we attended a big 4th of July hoopla and the ice cream man came around and parked nearby. Just as my kids approached to order ice cream he drove off. I wish we'd had a video camera because it was hilarious and we still laugh about it to this day.

Anonymous said...

No ice cream man in my neighborhood, but there was when I was a little girl. I loved orange push-ups.

Anonymous said...

This summer has been the first summer the ice cream man has been in our neighborhood. Never thought we would hear that sound out here, since we are 4 miles out in the country, from town.

Anonymous said...

Besides STONE RABBITS and antiquing and having fun with family,friends, and pets--ice cream is what I really, really adore! We have a little truck that hits our neighborhood once in awhile. The sounds from the truck do bring back delightful memories.

Thanks for your nice comment on my post today. You were right, I was a speech therapist working in the public school setting off and on for 20 years. I worked part-time so I could be with my kiddos as they were growing up. Dana

Justabeachkat said...

Hi Rhoda

I've enjoyed "catching up" with you tonight. My Mom and Aunt left this morning, so I'm working hard to visit all of my blogging friends.

You've been a busy busy girl this last week while I've been busy doing nothing but playing.

Oh yes ma'am...I remember the ice cream man. We begged our Mom for the money and ran to the street jumping up and down until he got to our house. Great memories. I haven't seen one in years and years. It's wonderful to know they're still around.

What a great find on the king bedding. Beautiful!

Today is my blog's 3rd birthday! Amazing! Thanks for being such a sweet blogging friend!

Hugs!
Kat

Ms. Tee said...

Yes, I remember! We called him the "snowball man", though. And we'd run so fast to get 25cents from my mom so we could get one. :)

Rattlebridge Farm said...

I've always loved your blog! Thank you for adding me to your wonderful list--I've added yours, too. And now I'm off to eat some ice cream!

Unknown said...

We don't have one in our neighborhood. It seems that so many of the parents both work, and the kids are not home much in the summer! But I think the ice cream truck idea is wonderful, Must be a great neighborhood with young families!
diane

Juri said...

I am new to your blog and have spend a while "catching up" and reading some of the older posts! What great pictures and posts! We used to have the "Good Humor Man" come by our neighborhood when I was a kid...what an exciting time when we would hear the bells ringing! What memories!!! I don't live in a neighborhood anymore (live on acres of wooded farmland), so the Ice Cream Man is a thing of my past! Love your blog!

Juri

Caren said...

Oh Gosh! I remember waiting for the Ice cream Man wearing my change purse that was like a necklace around my neck. I made it in summer camp out of leather and lanyard lace. I was so happy with it and would wait for HOURS. We don't seem to have an Ice Cream Man around here and he'd probably make a killing if he came to this neighborhood!

Deborah aka Miss Bee said...

About the ice cream man...Many times during the summer while at our daughter's home, we could hear the ice cream truck on the street behind theirs. (He just never came down their street.) Daughter and her husband never told the children what it was - only that it was a music truck. You see, son-in-law doesn't care for them having many sweets.

Well, this past week, the ice cream truck came down their street and they happened to be in the front yard. Daughter says their eyes grew big as saucers when the truck stopped. ...so happens that at that same time, son-in-law comes around the corner on the way home from work.

Anyway, he bought ice cream for them - after many mind changes. Five year old granddaughter called me to tell me about it all - she said "Grandma, I thought that man was going to give us a CD!" I guess they really believed it was a music truck.

Distybug said...

I loved the Ice Cream Man too. He comes to our neighborhood on Sunday afternoons. You have to be fast to catch him though. We only have our circle and then he's gone!

Anonymous said...

Aw, brings back some memories:) Who wouldn't love the ice cream man?