Well spent childhood

COLD AND SWEET                                        

 

I scream, You scream. We ALL scream for Hendlers' ice cream.
Except I didn't usually have to scream.  Mommie and Daddy were well aware that Hendlers ice cream was rich in milk and fat so I could have my treat almost daily.

Across the street car tracks and a few doors from the Easterwood Democratic Club was a small ice cream shop. It didn't have a lot of customers but the lady behind the counter recognized me as soon as I opened the screen door and walked towards her. However, she was never sure, nor was I until the last second, if I would have a cup of butter brickle or pistachio. The wooden spoon sometimes let the ice cream go down my chin instead of into my mouth, but I was able to lick it back where it belonged.

On my side of the street, there were some choices to make. At Weltners Drug store, on the far corner, all kinds of goodies were available. At first it was hard to get on the turning high stool at the counter, but I wiggled, held on and eventually could see over the counter. A tan cardboard cup sometimes was already in the soda jerk's hands. He'd look at me and I'd say one of several things, 'Vanilla, please, with lots of fudge, whipped cream and a cherry,' or 'Chocolate, pineapple –wait–put dry nuts on it and then a lot of whipped cream.' A lid went on my prize and off I'd go to maybe sit on the curb and enjoy it. My sundaes only cost 10 cents as Dr. Weltner got business from my daddy as well as from his patients who sometimes needed prescriptions.

A few blocks away was an Arundel's Ice Cream store that had strange flavors, mint, peanut butter, strawberry, coffee, but there I was more interested in quantity than flavor so took chocolate or vanilla. Later on I learned from my new brother-in-law, who was lucky to get a job there, that soda jerks were taught how to scoop the ice cream out of the large containers so there was a big hole in the middle which fooled the customers into thinking they got large portions. I never went back there after that.

Right in the middle of my block was Bridge's grocery that also sold Mello Roll ice cream. The ice cream was wrapped in white paper and put into a cone. I had to be very careful taking the paper off or the whole thing would fall on the pavement. It happened once and that was the only time.
But, the very, very most enjoyable ice cream of all was the simple vanilla cone my Zadie bought me. When he would stop by, sometimes he'd see me playing outside, gently take my hand and walk me to Weltners for a vanilla cone. I'd lick it slowly while still holding Zadie's hand.

And to this day I'd gladly give up Bridge's, Weltner's sundaes, Arundel's, the flavors, whipped cream, nuts, cherries, all of them, to once again walk with my Zadie.