Tuesday, June 29, 2004
OOPS !! I FORGOT SOMETHING....
Somehow I got derailed in my writing after I took a day off to go to the dentist. When I picked up my storyline I totally skipped the rest of 1964. So !! Before I continue with 1967 I shall first clear up the problem. John has a plan to help make the switch……so here goes and I promise it is worth taking the time to read.
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The summer of 1964 was our first long family trip. Aunt Inabelle and uncle Tom lived in Fairfax, Virginia which is just across the river a ways from D.C. We had been wanting to go for a long time but now had a dependable station wagon and a little extra cash. We wouldn’t be able to afford much other than the trip in itself but that was enough to get us on our way.
To help on expenses I had a cooler full of sandwich material and some soft drinks. When anyone got hungry I bailed out of the front seat and climbed to the rear of the station wagon to set up my lunch counter. I had a few little treats hid here and there to break up the monotony of sandwiches. Actually it all went rather smoothly.
The children were anxious for a change other than our Mid-West scenery. They had seen pictures in their geography books and thought upon entering each State they would see a definite difference. That happened about the time we were East of Zanesville, Ohio. Before we knew it we were in mountains with steep and crooked driving providing scenery unlike anything the children had ever seen. On one in particular it was so high up that the clouds had settled on the road. I told them if they would open their windows and put their hands out they could touch a cloud. It was fun for all of us to “feel” the cloud. This part of the trip was in West Virginia, a very rugged and pretty area.
We were all pretty tired by the time we got to Fairfax but the love of family and the excitement of being there erased most of our discomfort. Uncle Tom and aunt Inabelle couldn’t take time off while we were there as they had to save their vacation time for their trip back to Nebraska in August. My cousins, Tommy and Mary were teen-agers so we took them with us each day of sight-seeing. Oddly enough, they hadn’t seen many of the things we drove so far to see. Sometimes living close to an area people put off looking at the things around that make it so unique.
Each day uncle Tom would clue George Sr. in on getting to the Memorials, White House, Capital and all of the historical buildings we wanted to see. When we got to the White House the lines had already formed from the left of the front door all around the driveway and sidewalks to the right of the building. We were hours away from being able to take the tour. Even for George and me the time seemed to drag. We chatted with each other, chatted with other people in line and chatted ourselves out. We were finally just standing there quietly when I heard a funny buzzing sound. For some reason I instinctively knew this was not a normal thing. My eyes fell behind us a step or two….and by the edge of the sidewalk was a fire alarm. My eyes then fell on John who was trying to look inconspicuous. When the realization of what happened hit my brain I went ballistic. “GEORGE,” I said, “someone has turned on the FIRE ALARM !!” My eyes fell on John who was trying to become invisible….and as I looked our immediate crowd over, I saw Tommy and Mary walking a safe distance away so as to look like they weren’t with us.
When I asked John if he turned the alarm on he said, “I thought it was a mail box and I just pulled the lever like I was going to mail a letter.” He looked scared out of his wits and frankly we were all looking the same way. A dignified lady and her husband from New York were in front of us and she turned and said, “My dear…in New York City the Fire Department charges $400 for a false alarm.” By now we were hearing fire trucks bearing down on all sides of us and 17-hook and ladders and pumpers came to a screeching halt taking up 2-blocks.
A large burly fireman with a Chief’s badge on came walking up to the area where the fire alarm was and shut the alarm off. George Sr. walked up to him and said he thought a little boy in the crowd had turned it on. The fireman looked directly at George for one of those moments that seems like a lifetime…..didn’t say a word but put his arm up in the air rotating his hand in circles and walked off. He was quite impressive with his big boots, hat and coat………he had looked at John with his coke-bottle glasses and apparently decided the scare had been enough for one day. Whoever he was I am grateful that we weren’t given a ticket…or worse. Seeing the wave of the hand the firemen responded and the massive equipment moved out of the area. As for our little family……we’d just had the shock of our lives. Poor John was wiped out with the incident, fearing fierce retribution.
Eventually we made it around to the building and were shown the interior of the White House. While we were waiting in the driveway before entering there were several large signs telling everyone that no cameras were allowed. John previously bought a little cheapie from one of the sidewalk vendors and was eager to take pictures. While we were waiting and I was getting over the earlier event of the fire alarm thing John broke from line and walked up to a very tall, very serious policeman. He stopped a few feet in front of him and aimed his camera at the policeman’s upper body. I came racing out to grab him but to my surprise the policeman just smiled and said, “Have a nice day………..”
The next morning uncle Tom was reading the morning paper and said, “Well…. here is an article telling about some tourist waiting in line at the White House who turned on a fire alarm and emptied the two Fire Houses in the area to the scene.” The article was complete with a picture which uncle Tom gave us to keep.
Now you have to wonder…was the president inside looking out the window to see what was going on? If so, he probably never knew that a little family from Shawnee, Kansas was the center of the activity and just created a little excitment for the day.
More of our 1964 trip tomorrow…so until then,
Essentially Esther
………………………………...............................................................................................
The summer of 1964 was our first long family trip. Aunt Inabelle and uncle Tom lived in Fairfax, Virginia which is just across the river a ways from D.C. We had been wanting to go for a long time but now had a dependable station wagon and a little extra cash. We wouldn’t be able to afford much other than the trip in itself but that was enough to get us on our way.
To help on expenses I had a cooler full of sandwich material and some soft drinks. When anyone got hungry I bailed out of the front seat and climbed to the rear of the station wagon to set up my lunch counter. I had a few little treats hid here and there to break up the monotony of sandwiches. Actually it all went rather smoothly.
The children were anxious for a change other than our Mid-West scenery. They had seen pictures in their geography books and thought upon entering each State they would see a definite difference. That happened about the time we were East of Zanesville, Ohio. Before we knew it we were in mountains with steep and crooked driving providing scenery unlike anything the children had ever seen. On one in particular it was so high up that the clouds had settled on the road. I told them if they would open their windows and put their hands out they could touch a cloud. It was fun for all of us to “feel” the cloud. This part of the trip was in West Virginia, a very rugged and pretty area.
We were all pretty tired by the time we got to Fairfax but the love of family and the excitement of being there erased most of our discomfort. Uncle Tom and aunt Inabelle couldn’t take time off while we were there as they had to save their vacation time for their trip back to Nebraska in August. My cousins, Tommy and Mary were teen-agers so we took them with us each day of sight-seeing. Oddly enough, they hadn’t seen many of the things we drove so far to see. Sometimes living close to an area people put off looking at the things around that make it so unique.
Each day uncle Tom would clue George Sr. in on getting to the Memorials, White House, Capital and all of the historical buildings we wanted to see. When we got to the White House the lines had already formed from the left of the front door all around the driveway and sidewalks to the right of the building. We were hours away from being able to take the tour. Even for George and me the time seemed to drag. We chatted with each other, chatted with other people in line and chatted ourselves out. We were finally just standing there quietly when I heard a funny buzzing sound. For some reason I instinctively knew this was not a normal thing. My eyes fell behind us a step or two….and by the edge of the sidewalk was a fire alarm. My eyes then fell on John who was trying to look inconspicuous. When the realization of what happened hit my brain I went ballistic. “GEORGE,” I said, “someone has turned on the FIRE ALARM !!” My eyes fell on John who was trying to become invisible….and as I looked our immediate crowd over, I saw Tommy and Mary walking a safe distance away so as to look like they weren’t with us.
When I asked John if he turned the alarm on he said, “I thought it was a mail box and I just pulled the lever like I was going to mail a letter.” He looked scared out of his wits and frankly we were all looking the same way. A dignified lady and her husband from New York were in front of us and she turned and said, “My dear…in New York City the Fire Department charges $400 for a false alarm.” By now we were hearing fire trucks bearing down on all sides of us and 17-hook and ladders and pumpers came to a screeching halt taking up 2-blocks.
A large burly fireman with a Chief’s badge on came walking up to the area where the fire alarm was and shut the alarm off. George Sr. walked up to him and said he thought a little boy in the crowd had turned it on. The fireman looked directly at George for one of those moments that seems like a lifetime…..didn’t say a word but put his arm up in the air rotating his hand in circles and walked off. He was quite impressive with his big boots, hat and coat………he had looked at John with his coke-bottle glasses and apparently decided the scare had been enough for one day. Whoever he was I am grateful that we weren’t given a ticket…or worse. Seeing the wave of the hand the firemen responded and the massive equipment moved out of the area. As for our little family……we’d just had the shock of our lives. Poor John was wiped out with the incident, fearing fierce retribution.
Eventually we made it around to the building and were shown the interior of the White House. While we were waiting in the driveway before entering there were several large signs telling everyone that no cameras were allowed. John previously bought a little cheapie from one of the sidewalk vendors and was eager to take pictures. While we were waiting and I was getting over the earlier event of the fire alarm thing John broke from line and walked up to a very tall, very serious policeman. He stopped a few feet in front of him and aimed his camera at the policeman’s upper body. I came racing out to grab him but to my surprise the policeman just smiled and said, “Have a nice day………..”
The next morning uncle Tom was reading the morning paper and said, “Well…. here is an article telling about some tourist waiting in line at the White House who turned on a fire alarm and emptied the two Fire Houses in the area to the scene.” The article was complete with a picture which uncle Tom gave us to keep.
Now you have to wonder…was the president inside looking out the window to see what was going on? If so, he probably never knew that a little family from Shawnee, Kansas was the center of the activity and just created a little excitment for the day.
More of our 1964 trip tomorrow…so until then,
Essentially Esther
