Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Thursday Thirteen #2!




Recently my friend told me that she had given her niece a Visa gift card for her graduation from 8th grade. Her niece shared where she went and what she spent the $100.00 on…well, to be precise: spent the $98.44.

So I began to think about my 8th grade graduation and where that money would have gone:

1. Kroch and Breantano’s Book Store...for tons and tons of books. Heaven. Just heaven. I wanted to be buried in there.
2. Marshall Field’s….for Frango mints. That beautiful green logo is now replaced with a red MACY’S and Chicago is still in mourning.
3. E. J. Corvette's….for crap. Morphed into K-Mart. I remember them covering John Lennon’s “Two Virgins” album with a white cover (I peeked), only to eventually bow to public demand and ship them all back to Apple Corps.
4. Lemon Tree…for records. I bought Meet the Beatles (mono) there for $2.99 in 1964. I still have it, but no record player to play it on.
5. Cock Robin…for a hamburger and shake…for probably $1.00. (Please, no comments about the name – they were referring to a MALE CHICKEN named Robin. They are still in business, but a buck won’t get you anything but laughed out the door)
6. Kerry’s Custard…..major delicious. The first soft serve ice cream in the entire area.
7. Guy’s…..penny candy for the kids; liquor and cigarettes for the adults. Your parents would drop $2.00 in your pocket and send you on your bicycle to Guy's for a bag of candy (for you), a pack of cigs and a 5th of whiskey (for them). If you were really lucky (and quick) you got to keep the change.
8. Chas A. Stevens clothing store for a cute little something for the swingin' junior miss. Was sort of a fancier JC Penney. Also had its own hair salon.
9. National Bank of _____________ (please insert your hometown name). No longer available anywhere thanks to the likes of JPMorgan Chase megaultrabankingconglomerates, however, I would have deposited a quarter or two in the old savings account.
10. Ben Franklin – for little packages of angora yarn to wrap around the backs of any ring that didn’t fit – to make it fit. Color was a decision akin to a final chess move. And they had rows and rows of great junk. You could come home with a grocery bag full of stuff for .75 cents that would keep you occupied for months. I purchased Barbie doll clothes there too. In my day you got ONE Barbie, ONE Ken, ONE Skipper and then bought clothes. Now if you want a certain outfit, you have to buy ANOTHER doll. What marketing genius came up with that?
11. A&W Drive Up. Great root beer in a frosted mug….and you didn’t have to get out of your car to get it. They plopped the silver tray on your window that you had to roll down to the perfect height to support it. Their hotdogs were mighty fine too.
12. Stan’s Meat Market. Where they MADE ground beef for you right there, from a hunk of meat you chose from their store window. Then they put a nice big slab of butter on top of the freshly ground beef, so when you unwrapped the plastic wrap, you slapped it butter side down in the fry pan. Hmmm hmmmm good.
13. Kanak’s Pharmacy for Tiger Beat and Fave magazines, with a quick trip through the cosmetics aisle, wondering if you had enough money to buy some Bonnie Bell.



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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!



17 comments:

Joely Sue Burkhart said...

What a trip down memory lane! Happy TT!

Suprina said...

Awesome Thursday Thirteen!
Happy TT!

Anonymous said...

Boy, oh, boy! I bet back in the day, we could have hit all those stores with $100 (and still have $1.56 left over). Cock Robin is still there and Becky loves it -- but I don't think they accept plastic. Kerry's Custard not only had soft serve, it was one of the few places we were allowed to go to escape the gaze of our protective moms. I don't remember Guy's, though. Did they have Mary Jane's?

Anne

Anonymous said...

What a TT!

:)

Jennie said...

Great list! I would also have spent a TON of money on books :). Happy TT!

2nd Cup of Coffee said...

Hey, fellow Cardinal! Muncie is my hometown; I'm still here. The question is: What brought you to BSU?! I could relate to Ben Franklin, A & W and the teen magazines, but I was born in '62, so I was past the Beatles prime when I was a teen. Thanks for the memories. Clever post.

Susan Demeter said...

Great list idea! I remember Tiger Beat! I wonder if it is still around? Happy TT!

Special K ~Toni said...

Great T13!

Denise said...

Wow! I had to wait till 12th grade for any money from anyone. Nice! Happy TT

Danielle said...

What a great idea for a TT. I did John Lennon quotes after seeing the movie last night Imagine: John Lennon. Now I'm here off to read your previous posts.

Be well and enjoy the day.

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Anonymous said...

Good list!! I should do one like that sometime! Happy TT! :)

Joan said...

Those were the days, my friend! I loved thinking about what I would have done with $100 when I was that age! Thanks for coming by my blog.

pussreboots said...

I would have spent $100 in a similar fashion as a kid. Happy TT.

Susan Helene Gottfried said...

I'd have spent it all on books and music. Nothing else. What more is there in life?

You were blessed to have some great store names. I might need to steal a few for my fictional city of Riverview... Hmmmm....

Nicole said...

Um... I wouldn't have made it past the first two. Doesn't matter how far the $100 would have stretched "back in the day." If you give me a bookstore and Frangos, that's easily $100. :)

(You're not the only one who mourns Frangos. They were a highlight of visiting my Uncle in Seattle.)

Ann said...

Great list. For me the money wouldn't have made it out of the bookstore *g*, and I didn't discover the joys of Ben Franklin until college.

Anonymous said...

OMG! You took me back in a time machine! Though we didn't have all the same places, I was buying all the same things in little stores in Texas...whoot! I found an old Bonnie Bell lipstick tube in a box of childhood junk the other day. What a fun TT.