Ice cream, Christmas lights:Take A Ride in Wendel's WorldDecember 19, 2004
I'm sure most of you know all about the family ride. You've probably been on a few yourselves.
Think back to when your Mom and Pop would herd all you little scalawags into the car (to SUV owners: Remember cars?), and just drive aimlessly throughout the town. Or maybe you took a quick tour of the countryside so Pop could get the vehicle out on the road and "blow the cobs out"
When I was a youngster, there were two occasions during the year that called for my dad putting a few extra miles on the Pontiac Catalina after supper. One was in summer when we'd "go get ice cream/"
We'd ride to the Dairy Queen or whatever our town's version of the Dairy Queen was, and order ice cream cones. Then Dad would drive us through the affluent areas of the city and we'd gape at the mansions of the community's wealthier citizens while melted ice cream dripped down the soggy cones and onto the Pontiac's nifty plastic seat covers.
There were six of us when those rides began for me. My sister and two brothers always sat in back and I stood in the front seat between my parents.
Those were the days when seat belts were uncommon and a child restraint was having your mother protectively stick her arm out in front of you when Dad dropped his ice cream in his crotch and wildly hit the brakes.
Eventually, as my sister grew into a teenager, she wisely grew out of being seen in public with her family. So she asserted her independence and stayed home.
It wasn't long before my oldest brother followed suit and copped out on the family rides as well. It was about that time, too, that the rides became noticeably shorter. I suspect that my parents wanted to get home and see what my brother was up to. More often than not, we got home to find my brother not at home.
The other big event that got the family into the car and out onto the streets was the Christmas season. Even my brother joined us for these trips. We all enjoyed the holiday displays of festive lights and nativity scenes and plastic smiling Santas waving from their sleighs.
Today our family still gets out a couple of times during the Yuletide to view the Christmas decorations that adorn so many houses and yards.
And the amazing thing about these modern times is that you can drive to your nearest Dairy Queen in the middle of December and still get ice cream to eat on your Christmas decoration tour.
That was unheard of when I was a kid. In my day (I can't believe I'm using that expression) ice cream cones were rarely available anywhere after September. As a matter of fact, I think there was a law against selling them over the winter. Nowadays there's probably an enterprising Dairy Queen franchise in Barrow, Alaska.
One thing I've noticed on our Christmas jaunts about town is that the family ride continues to be a strong tradition. Along each block we travel we always seem to meet dozens of slow-moving cars filled with families like us, enjoying the beauty and spirit of the season that twinkles forth from every colored light up and down the street.
This a tradition that I hope will never be broken. However, I'd just as soon trade the ice cream cone for a cup of hot chocolate -- as long as I don't spill it on my crotch.
Merry Christmas from Wendel's World!
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