More from Roberts Street

We lived in the Roberts Street house with Nora and Luther, Helen, Gordon and Linda. Must have been a crowd in a 1200 square foot house.; I think this was from ‘46 until ‘50 or so.

I am about a year and a half old with that frowny lip in this photo. . Grandpa Golden bought me an electric train for my second or third birthday. My dad and uncle Gordon enjoyed it. The story continues with my having plugged one of the train tracks into the wall outlet eliciting a shower of sparks before blowing a fuse. Aunt Helen watched this happen and I think I gave her heart palpitations..

Disney character shirt for a two-year-old little boy

As a 21 month old kid in a house with 6 adults, I was read to a lot. The reading allowed me to memorize The Night Before Christmas. Reciting it for relatives was my circus act.

This photo is on the Bolivar Ferry.

When I was 4ish, I had very blonde, very curly hair. One of my mom’s friends wanted me to be the ring bearer in her wedding – for the cute blonde curls. About a week before the wedding, Linda and I played barber and I was the subject. Mom’s friend was very upset but did not kick me out (to my ultimate chagrin). Mom took me to a barber to try to salvage my hair. My only memory of the wedding is the infinite rehearsal and the boring wedding. The moral, according to DPG, don’t make little kids part of weddings.

Another memory from this period was that we walked about a block and a half to the neighborhood grocery store. I know we walked it every couple of days, good weather or bad. At one point I asked my mom to buy me a roll of 5 flavor Life Savers. She turned me down. In defiance without being obvious I put the roll in my pocket.

We walked home and I treated myself and Linda to a Life Saver. My mom figured out what had happened. I probably got a spanking, but what I really recall is that she had me spit out the rest of the Life Saver and she confiscated the roll. Then she marched me down to the store with a nickel in my hand to pay the storekeeper and apologize. Very character building of her. I bet she and dad ate the rest of the lifesavers.

Yet another memory was when I filled my grandfather’s car with gasoline – from the water tap. He was so mad. I was just doing what I had seen a bunch of adults do. It was a lot of work to purge the system of the water. I’d hate to have to do it. And at that time, ruining a tank of gas was quite expensive. I am lucky I survived.

Before we moved to ‘the north end’ – as it was called, we attended Calvary Baptist Church pastored by Brother Brelin…how do I remember that name? I mostly recall the nursery.