Me and my cupboard
Here comes Santa Claus. Here comes Santa Claus. Da da da-da da daa. Actually I just googled this song from my childhood and the last part is really “Right down Santa Claus Lane.” My actual favorite Christmas song when I was a little kid? Probably “Little Drummer Boy”. Which, if Wikipedia is right, wasn’t written until 1958. Pah rump-a pump pum… baba dum baba dum. Me and my drum. I have a clear memory of my dad driving us down Kimball Street with that song on the radio. By 1958 I was old enough to eat four-year-old straight pickles. Yeeee. Now that I re-read that, it sounds, well, not appropriate for a four-year-old but really, it was just dill pickles sliced lengthwise. Little Drummer Boy is still one of my favo-rite songs and I think that the Roches have carried it on into the future very well.
You are lost. It’s okay. I am probably lost too. Christmas was magic for me when I was a small child. There was a whole month of snow and Christmas carols on the radio and Christmas crafts at school and snow and singing Christmas carols at Sunday School and snow and driving around (through the snow) to look at all of the beeyootyful Christmas light displays around the very snowy town of Sault Ste. Siberia. On Christmas Eve, we would attend church at our mainstream protestant (Methodist) church and I would sing my heart out through all of the pageantry and then we’d maybe drive around to look at the lights again and then we would go home. And open just one present. Then to bed to wait for whatever else Santa might bring.
I don’t exactly remember receiving this cupboard but I kind of remember wanting a place to put doll clothes and doll blankets and things and I kind of remember being reeeaaalllly happy about getting this cupboard.
What do you remember about Christmas from when you were a kid? I mean, if you celebrate it, that is. I hang around with quite a few Jewish folks and Christmas is just another day for them, don’tcha know. Chinese restaurants for some and Fiddler on the Roof sing-alongs for others. Or maybe both. I think if I were Jewish or whatever, I would take advantage of the huge Christian holiday of Christmas to start some new family traditions. Like my friends are doing.
Er, edited the morning after to add that nowadays all I want for Christmas is a big dumpster in my driveway! 😉
December 13th, 2010 at 8:50 pm
We went over to my grandparents’ in Eastern Washington, over a scary snowy mountain pass to get spoiled by the grandparents. It must have been horribly stressful for my mom; I still remember my dad getting under the car to chain up. And we kids fighting in the back seat, of course. 🙂
December 13th, 2010 at 10:42 pm
Christmas when I was a kid. The Courtois Family was large. All of our gifts came from Santa and we received them on Christmas morning. Christmas 1958. My mom decided that we were going to be an organized family that year. We all got up early and she ushered us out of the front door of our house in Royal Oak to attend Christmas Morning Mass at the Shrine, our Church. After Mass, we had to go back in the front door and go to the kitchen and eat breakfast BEFORE we could go in the family room (seperated by a closed door fron the main house) We had to wait until everyone was fiished eating. Some of the little kids like Liz and the stupid Twinnies were taking their time. (Only 7 kids. I don’t think Jim, Susie and Joanny were born yet) They did not understand that this was important! I was sooo excited. Finally, we were able to line up and my dad was already in the family room to photograph the moment that we all ran into the room. Shortly after we got in the room, I threw up all over the floor because I was so excited. That was the last time my parents made us wait. – I still have the Shirley Temple Storybook that I got for Christmas that year.
December 13th, 2010 at 11:31 pm
My favorite Christmas song has always been Little Drummer Boy. My mom said when I was very little (probably 2, which would have been 1958)) I’d completely stand still when it came on the radio. To this day it’s my favorite (and the Bing Crosby/David Bowie rendition is really nice, too). Also? We had a TV that looks almost exactly like the one in your picture! :o)
December 13th, 2010 at 11:56 pm
We had Christmas in A2 or Christmas at Grandmas (with you – kind of), depending on the year. There was even the year that Mom & Dad went to Mexico and we flew to the Soo – with Sandy I think. Sledding at whatever the hill was, skiing at Mission Hill, and blowing up plastic ski-doo snowmobile models with Jim.
The present I seem to remember wanting so much – and it cost alot ($8) was a Barbie Dream House. Cardboard, kind of like a suitcase that opened up. With cardboard furniture. This is interesting in retrospect because I was not a big “doll” kid. But I think my friends were, and I did have a Barbie and a Ken (fuzzy hair).
December 14th, 2010 at 9:02 am
Blowing up plastic snowmobile models? Do I really not remember that or am I blocking it? :-0 But yes (Jay), you did spend Christmas more or less with us (and the grandparents) and we went sledding at Cotey’s Hill (I do NOT know how it was spelled and no amount of googling is turning it up). And skiing at Mission Hill — ski school in the mornings! I remember when you flew in on Christmas Day. VERY snowy that day. And I *think* Sandy was with you too.
I had that Barbie Dream House too. Grandma bought it for me for Christmas. It was pretty cool actually, much cooler than the monstrosity that my kids had. I only had one Barbie. I don’t even think she existed until I was about 8 and received one from somebody on the MacMullan side. The Comm and I sewed clothing for her.
Love everyone else’s memories too 🙂
December 14th, 2010 at 9:15 am
I remember one Christmas in the Sault at Grandma’s house when we were fairly young. We had these balls, ~5″ in diameter, which were actually made of paper strips, wound like a ball of yarn. As you unwrapped (and unwrapped…) the paper, you would find various small toys that had been wound into the ball. It was a lot of fun taking apart the ball.
Regarding the time we flew a puddle jumper to the Sault, via Flint, Saginaw Tri-City, Petoskey and Alpena, (or something like that), I believe that was the time that NPJ came down with the mumps! Makes my ears and throat hurt just thinking about all those climbs and descents for baby NPJ. (She wasn’t really a baby, as I believe I was in high school.)
December 14th, 2010 at 10:04 am
There was a pinata one year too, I think.
December 14th, 2010 at 1:32 pm
I was not in high school for that trip. I was in elementary school. although not a baby.