Old School: You Scream, I Scream...

By Carol McEwen,

Remember the first day of school, when the teachers assigned a theme on what you did last summer? I liked writing even then, but I hated the assignment because I thought a trip to visit Aunt Mary or our farmer relatives in Ohio boring. After all, I couldn’t write about seeing the pyramids by camel, or riding up the Eiffel Tower. 

I have no idea what I wrote. Maybe I rhapsodized about a Sunday afternoon drive with my mom when we stopped to buy sweet corn — a dollar a dozen – from a farmer’s stand. Or maybe I wrote about sailing down St. Clair Hill on my bike to cool off. To repair my damaged psyche, I’ve invented a variation: “What I ate on my Summer Vacation.” NOW we’re talkin’! Let’s start with the cool treats that made summer special.    

I often chose chocolate-covered vanilla ice cream on a stick, called a “Smoozie.” I liked the contrast between the chocolate and vanilla flavors, and bought it either at the little market a block from my house or from the ice cream truck. Cost: a dime. I was less fond of Fudgsicles, but I bought them sometimes because they tasted like chocolate milk on a stick. 

A sharable treat, and more affordable at a nickel, were popsicles in various flavors. First choice: orange, followed by lime, cherry and grape in that order, but absolutely never root beer. I had the break-apart ritual down pat. I’d place the ridge on the edge of a counter and thwack, ending with two exactly equal pieces. 

I sometimes bought Drumsticks, but they were more expensive and dropped nuts off the top, so I bought those only when I was flush and didn’t care about being messy. Call me crazy, but they also made me thirsty. According to the back of this picture, I was eating said Drumstick in my backyard, probably bought by the more affluent buyer, my mom, one lazy Sunday afternoon. 

My ALL TIME favorite, however, was the Dreamsicle — a combination of orange sherbet and vanilla ice cream. Heaven on a stick, it was less popular with other kids, so it was always in stock. Besides that wonderful not-too-sweet flavor, the marbled colors looked pretty too.  

Now I buy these treats in bulk and keep them in the freezer for my grandkids. But somehow the magic is gone. Those delicacies so long ago were a true TREAT, not an everyday thing. It seems I had something special to write for that Old School essay after all.     

Carol McEwen is a reporter for Sandestin Living, Mirimar Beach, Florida, and authored the weekly Old School column for the Arlington Sun Gazette/Gazette Leader. She may be reached at: carolwrites4fun@gmail.com.