Bedfordtimesregister.com - The Way It Was #1,067: A review of 2008 columns continues

by John Straka
This is part two of a review of The Way It Was columns from 2008. It consists of a brief direct quote from each week. Since some of last year's columns were only in the Maple Heights Press and the Bedford Times-Register, I hope new readers will get a hint of what they missed.

Why?: "Drunken drivers kill many people every year and we have no effective way to keep drunks out of the drivers seat of a car. Why?"

Fireworks: "There were at least two kinds of cap guns. The more common ones used a roll of caps, and the other kind used a disc and a cylinder that rotated much like a real revolver."

Remember: "There is much I don't know about my Mom's family. When did her parents come to the United States? Where in Czechoslovakia did they come from? Were they U.S. citizens? How much English language did they know?"

The Cap Gun: "I wrote a column about the fireworks I enjoyed long ago and wondered if cap guns are being made and sold. On Saturday a friend surprised me with a real old-time cap gun."

Customs: "Men often tipped their hats as a greeting and to show respect for ladies. Men also tipped their hats when passing a church."

Early TV: "As she wiggled her hips and swayed her grass skirt, the camera moved in closer until the wiggles and swaying filled the screen. At that point Godfrey said, 'How's that for movement, Bill?'"

Photography: "I learned if I posed a subject in front of a black background, I could do a double exposure showing someone sitting next to a second image of themselves."

Welcome New Readers: "Nearly every time I write I am reminded of how things are today and the way it was and what I remember from the past."

Geauga Lake Park: "Small two-seat gasoline powered boats, just big enough for a boy and a girl to squeeze into, were rented for romantic cruising on the lake."

Words: "Some words have changed meaning over time. To have a gay time or to be gay did not mean what it means today. The Gay Nineties were good times."

Grandma: "In a time when labor unions were trying to organize little shops, the girls at risk of being attacked by union organizers were loaded into a truck and brought out to a farm in Maple Heights where they slept in a hayloft."

Mail: "I like to get mail. When the mailman comes it's often the highlight of my day, except when he or she fills my box with bills and junk mail."

School Bus: "One little girl was running late and almost missed the bus. She managed to get one hand and one foot on the bus when the door closed and the bus dragged her along."

The Store: "When I was between 9 and 12 years old I was a kid in a candy store. My parents operated such a store at East 55th and Broadway."

The Store II: "I remember selling Jim Scrap, Mail Pouch and Havanna Blossom chewing tobacco and Prince Albert pipe tobacco in a can."

The Store III: "Dad had a radio in the store with a big loud speaker on top of a box with several dials."

The Store IV: "Mom was alone in the store and this drunk seemed to be blaming her for insulting his wife with a cheap box of chocolates. She had to do something before he became violent."

The Depression: "There were not many jobs available. Factory work paid less than 50 cents per hour and sometimes as little as 15 cents."

Door to Door Sales: "Perhaps the most well known salesman was the Fuller Brush man. He sold a wide variety of different kinds of brushes."

Depression II: "I remember stepping into an abandoned patch of cucumbers growing among the weeds where some absentee gardener had planted them and never returned."

Fads: "The weirdest fad was the Epsom Salt coal garden. A few small lumps of coal were put in a bowl, Epsom Salts and water were poured over the coal and a few days later a white crystalline substance would grow on the coal."

Drive-ins: "You parked your car, flashed the headlights and an attractive young lady came out in a flashy uniform to take your order with a smile. Flirty car hops meant more business and bigger tips."

Christmas '08: "As a child our family tree appeared like magic on Christmas morning and it would be in place until the feast of Three Kings in January."