Oct 30th 2009 07:53 am The last word
Talk about the little things! Was there anything more romantic than a little red caboose? When I was a kid, I conjured up images of railroad men wearing pinstriped overalls and red bandanas, making coffee in their homey caboose and watching the world go by from that perfect cupola above . In reality, they probably were bored to death, but have we lost anything to the name of efficiency greater than the little red caboose?
Posted by jimmyjohnson / Vintage A&J
141 Responses to “The last word”
TruckerRon on 30 Oct 2009 at 8:40 am #
Typewriters! B&W movies! And, all too soon, we’ll be losing drive-in theaters. All too many things of my childhood are becoming obsolete, disappearing. It won’t be long before all the remaining typewriters are in museums, all the films are colorized, and all the old drive-ins are redeveloped into strip malls. We old fogies will all be in nursing homes.
Or worse.
Steve on 30 Oct 2009 at 8:55 am #
Not this old fogie! I’m out there with my guitar singing the old songs (including some American ones).
On this side of the pond we had what we called the guard’s van. On a passenger train he’d guard bikes, luggage and people in wheelchairs (that last one hasn’t changed on some trains); on a freight train he’d have to get out at the top of a big hill and run down the train applying the brakes by hand. Scary, especially if the driver didn’t slow down first.
Ah, the good old days! I used to lie in bed listening to the trains delivering coal to the depot up the road or the power station down the road. We had a canal too, with narrow boats (6′10″ wide) doing the same job.
Dammit Jimmy, don’t start me off like that!!
billinbossier on 30 Oct 2009 at 9:09 am #
Ron,
Do they still have some drive-in theaters where you live? They have been long gone from here, probably 30 years or more. The same with drive in resturants, except for Sonic. Another we have lost here that used to be everywhere are minature golf courses. I guess it is because the price of land is so high.
I have to admit, though, I don’t miss typewriters.
Mark in Boston on 30 Oct 2009 at 9:11 am #
Cabooses are still around, parked here and there, used as tiny little shops and diners.
Search for an image of the “Tooth Caboose”, a pediatric dentist office in Plant City, FL.
Sylvia in MS on 30 Oct 2009 at 9:14 am #
We had 2 drive-ins in Hattiesburg, MS, where I grew up. One has already been torn down by the owner and new businesses are there. The other one, The Beverly, is in disrepair. The owner is trying to sell it to someone who will refurbish, but I think it’s a lost cause. Katrina did a number on it. I have fond memories of both of them.
I don’t necessarily miss the typewriter, but I’m missing the way some things were in the “olden days”. I’ve found that churches are more lax in what clothing is appropriate for church. I cringe at spaghetti straps and even tube-top-type dresses on the younger girls (jr. high and high school age) and dresses that barely cover “possible”.
sandcastler on 30 Oct 2009 at 9:20 am #
Progress and digress both share the root ‘gress’ from the Old English ‘gradi’ meaning to step or to go. Seems some progress, go forward, while others digress or step back. Tis wise to keep an eye on the road ahead but, reminiscing is for the road left behind.
TruckerRon on 30 Oct 2009 at 9:28 am #
sandcastler — So what does “Congress” mean? If “pro” and “con” are opposites, does it mean to go backward?
Connie on 30 Oct 2009 at 9:29 am #
The LaSalle Drive In (LaSalle Illinois, where I grew up) went out of business with R and X rated movies. Hard to show X rated movies when the giant screen faces Route 6. Too many accidents.
So now it is a dirt race track. Far more popular though than the drive in was toward the end of its life. I think the last one went out of business here in the Lansing area about 15-20 years ago. I remember friends going to see Ferris Bueller at one back in the mid 80s.
Nothing more fun for us kids than going to the drive in, buying one of those pics, those little circular thingies that never got rid of anything more than the dollar they cost (mosquitoes were actually attracted to them I think), driving mom crazy getting in and out of the car. Me begging to go swing on the swings while watching the movie (that you couldn’t hear while on the swings. We kids loved it, mom preferred watching television at home.
John in Richmond Texas on 30 Oct 2009 at 9:46 am #
Here is your boring trivia of the day. On the bottom right of both sides of a traincar is a gray or silver hunk of plastic, that sends out an RF signal. I had a job programming those; serial number and left or right, all day long every day. I had to find another job before I became a taterhead. Anyway, instead of cabooses there is a little white tag that denotes End Of Train and they stick it on whatever is the last car with velcro. Unless it’s changed in 12 years.
People used to use the buggywhip analogy; how about phonebooks? I just go to the web to look up business hours and locations and stuff. We get so many phonebooks from different publishers I just toss them right in the recycle bin.
buzz on 30 Oct 2009 at 9:46 am #
Those guys in the pinstripe overalls were brakemen and they used to have to climb out of the caboose and crawl along the tops of the box cars to operate the brakes as the train was going up/down steep grades (their efforts would be coordinated by a series of whistle blasts from the engineer). Imagine doing that atop a speeding freight train a few times in the middle of the night in a driving rain/snow/sleet storm. A lotta brakemen died, but it sure wasn’t from boredom.
Russ in New Port Richey, FL on 30 Oct 2009 at 9:47 am #
My Dad worked for the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad for 30 years. He was, at first, a telegraph operator and later on a station master. A telegraph operator was a high tech job in those days. He would be 112 if still alive. He could listen to telegraphic recreations of baseball games on the radio and tell us what had happened before the announcer could tell us.
Sharon on 30 Oct 2009 at 10:09 am #
I grew up near railroad tracks and we always waved at the caboose. I still do many years later.
Jeff in MN on 30 Oct 2009 at 10:10 am #
The Gull drive-in theater was part of summer up in Minnesota cabin country. It has been closed for decades, but, amazingly, the screen is still there and nothing has been done with the land. If I had a million dollars, I’d run it until I went broke.
Bob, near Mark on 30 Oct 2009 at 10:10 am #
At the Fairlee Motel & Drive-In Theater, in Fairlee, Vermont, you could either drive in to watch a movie, or rent a motel room and watch through a picture window. I haven’t been there in almost 40 years, but their website says they’re still in operation during the summer. The last movie I saw there was 1971’s “The Mephisto Waltz,” starring Alan Alda and Jacqueline Bisset.
http://www.fairleedrivein.com/
Their (very minimal) website says the site is still under construction.
A motel/hotel review website has a current review from August, 2009, so they’re still in operation.
Mindy on 30 Oct 2009 at 10:17 am #
There’s an elementary school not far from here that has a red caboose in the yard sitting on a section of track just large enough to accommodate it. Oddly enough, the kids don’t seem to ever get to play on or in it or to even inspect it. And,yes, Jimmy, there IS an I-Love-Arlo-And-Janis association here. Nothing formal, just a little laugh group that enjoys A&J almost as much as hot chocolate or cheese!
Matthew on 30 Oct 2009 at 11:17 am #
Mostly they were having sex in the caboose. Sorry to disappoint the sentimental nostalgia.
Dave on 30 Oct 2009 at 11:28 am #
Re: drive in theatres, there was one in the town I grew up in. In the 80s it closed. In the past 10 years or so, the land was bought by someone who wanted to tear it down and build a hotel. The community fought this, but lost. The community got the last laugh, though. The screen was made with a LOT of asbestos. They had to build an enclosure around the screen, complete with running water, dismantle the screen inside this enclosure, shower and change inside the enclosure before going outside, etc. The cost to remove the screen was so high that the company that built the hotel learned a valuable lesson. Always check what it is you’re buying.
Bill in Paducah on 30 Oct 2009 at 11:31 am #
My son wins a blogger contest! GO Cats!!
http://kentuckysportsradio.com/?p=32557&cpage=1#comment-981947
Rickmeister on 30 Oct 2009 at 12:02 pm #
RE: Drive-in movie theaters:
There are still a number of drive-in theaters here in Michigan, from what I can ascertain on a web search (as many as nine?). The two that come immediately to mind are the Capri (located in Coldwater) and the Cherry Bowl (near Traverse City). On an ironic note, for 40 years the Crest Drive-in operated just outside of East Lansing on Grand River Avenue, showing only ‘adult’ films in its final years. That was torn down around 1990, and replaced by a large Catholic Church! (Who says God doesn’t have a sense of humor, eh?)
sandcastler on 30 Oct 2009 at 12:20 pm #
TruckerRon…..
Con(g) is middle English meaning to meet or assemble. Gress as I have said is step to or go to. Hence a congress would seem to imply going to meet. I personally think today congress means a place to go where there is no action
John in Richmond Texas…
Seems we get a phone book once every month. Each is some off-size or for some sub-set of the big yearly monster. Rarely do these make it past the recycle bin.
Jimmy, how about letting Arlo be the spokesman for a “no more phonebooks” campaign?
Bob on 30 Oct 2009 at 12:23 pm #
Slyvia in MS - would it be preferable that those young people not go to church? Many youngsters don’t go. Many years ago, church ushers were always in suits; now, they’re just as likely to be in a football jersey or T-shirt. Many churches probably don’t even consider the appropriateness (dress code?) of people’s apparrel; they’re probably just happy to welcome anyone who wants to attend.
Dave on 30 Oct 2009 at 12:58 pm #
There used to be a drive-in near where I grew up that was out in the woods and near the end of it’s life only showed adult movies. (Making things that were larger than life truly larger than life?) It’s gone now as far as I know.
There also used to be one a few miles away in the next state that as far as I know is now gone as well.
As for phone books, once the courts broke up AT&T the phone books began their downward spiral. Now we get them and they have only customers of one phone company in a large number of towns, we get some that are only white pages, but not every public number in town, we get some that are only yellow pages, but not THE yellow pages, and they’re all so limited that they’re all pretty useless. We use them for doorstops, proping up wobbly tables, and to fill our recycle bin as well.
Renae on 30 Oct 2009 at 1:08 pm #
Actually, we are lucky enough to still have two drive in theaters in our town. Both only show movies during the summer. I try to go to each one at least once each summer, as I know that the time will come that they will close down.
Jim in SE Mississippi on 30 Oct 2009 at 2:38 pm #
The retro cartoon takes me back (more years than seems possible) to age eight or nine, when the members of my Cub Scout den rode the caboose attached to a freight train from my home town to the next stop—about twelve miles—where some of the parents met us and drove us back home. My first train ride…and, I hate to admit, my last one.
Steve from Royal Oak, MI on 30 Oct 2009 at 2:40 pm #
I live next to the RR tracks and the trains are basically in my backyard. The Amtrak cars have a locomotive at each end so that they do not have to turn aound.
Personally I like to use the term caboose from time to time. Like, look at the caboose on J-Lo! It is a cuter name than some of the other slang used for that part of the anatomy.
There is a website http://www.driveinmovie.com/mainmenu.htm that shows you every drive-in movie theatre in the U.S.
I have heard of people taking a projector for computers home and shining it on the wall so that the kids can watch a movie outside it they want.
billinbossier on 30 Oct 2009 at 3:14 pm #
Speaking of things nostalgic….work becames that today. As of 4:30 this afternoon, I am officially retired!
Outta beer….outta here!
I will still keep in touch though.
Bob in Orland Park on 30 Oct 2009 at 3:32 pm #
billinbossier….congratulations. You outlasted them. I’ve been retired from Ma Bell for 15 years. Best thing I ever did.
I grew up near the Rock Island RR switchyard in the south burbs of Chicago. Ahhh… steam engines and a red caboose. Now I only see a caboose on display in a park near me.
The local drive-in had a name, I think it was the Starlight but we called it “the pit”, short for the passion pit.
Ted on 30 Oct 2009 at 5:01 pm #
Reminds me of the kid who asked me what a henway was.
What’s a Henway? About 3 or 4Lbs.
Phil in Sugar Land, TX on 30 Oct 2009 at 5:18 pm #
I actually saw a caboose on the end of a train passing through Sugar Land recently. It was one engine, a very long car with about 50 wheels on which sat a large metal container, and the caboose. I’ll bet the caboose was carrying armed guards
John in LA late of PNS on 30 Oct 2009 at 5:44 pm #
“old drive-ins are redeveloped into strip malls”
STRIP MALLS? Sorry they too are all being torn down. Seems like City Centers are taking the place of strip malls and malls in general. Thus the strip mall going the way of the drive-in.
And time marches on.
John in LA late of PNS on 30 Oct 2009 at 5:47 pm #
“What’s a Henway? About 3 or 4Lbs.”
WoW. Seem like the last time I heard that one I stepped in Dinosaur Doo.
John in LA late of PNS on 30 Oct 2009 at 5:57 pm #
Also gone are the “Jumping Jesus” franchise of Trampoline Parks. Thanks Chevy Chase
J-P Chicago on 30 Oct 2009 at 6:04 pm #
Growing up there were 3 or 4 cabooses owned privately by people in my town or surrounding area, they parked them in their yards for kids play houses and other uses.
Brent from Waterloo on 30 Oct 2009 at 6:13 pm #
TruckerRon,
They’ve already tried and largely abandoned colourization. B&W movie viewers are a dying breed, but one that can still be marketed to relatively cheaply. Colourization is an unnecessary expense, as old movie buffs are either strongly against it or somewhat ambivalent… it’s simply not a “must” thing for the target market.
As for growing new markets from the old films, well, the thing is that they can remake any of the old movies in bright digital colour with computer’d-effects and current cultural references and modern actors the kids know and cheesy ironic references to the original and all that other “good” stuff. And if the original movie had developed any name recognition as a classic… that’s just free advertising for the new one (and any damage the new one does to the name will be after it’s already raked in the loot at the box office… it’s all about milking the cow as much as possible until she finally runs dry). This way Hollywood can keep pumping out “new” movies without having to actually come up with anything that’s actually new or even creative.
TruckerRon on 30 Oct 2009 at 6:33 pm #
Brent from Waterloo,
I guess I’m just too old or stubborn for Hollywood’s recycling. I’ve yet to see the remakes of any Hitchcock or Capra classics. I’ve also avoided most movies based on classic TV shows. It keeps the blood pressure down, doncha know, plus it keeps fund$ available for good stuff.
Matt on 30 Oct 2009 at 6:52 pm #
Dave and Connie-
What is it about drive-in’s nearing the end of their days and adult films? There was one like that near me in Maine years ago, which only operated in the summer months. When it shut in the fall, the sign board would read, “clothed for the season”…
Just Jay on 30 Oct 2009 at 8:26 pm #
There is a bed and breakfast in Strasburg Pennsylvania, home of the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania, that is entirely refurbished cabooses (caboosi?)
Maraloon on 30 Oct 2009 at 8:47 pm #
How come I can click on the cartoon again? That is nice! Almost got lost roaming in archives!
Our family grew up going to the drive-in theater. Almost every Sunday night for years my folks loaded 4 kids into the back of the station wagon and off we went, and we all got a hamburger and popcorn. The theater put out a monthly schedule flyer, we kept it hanging in the kitchen and looked to see what gem was coming up next. Daylight Savings Time was what killed the drive-ins, movies started too late, people had to work the next day and couldn’t stay up for a 2 hour movie that started at 10 PM! Because of not getting to go to the show anymore, I have always disliked DST.
Great memories.
spot on 30 Oct 2009 at 9:33 pm #
One thing that we have probably lost out on in the name of efficiency is good wholesome food! I got a slight shock when I saw “organic corn” at the supermarket…what was I eating all this time?
K in ND on 30 Oct 2009 at 9:50 pm #
Hey! There’s actually a drive in in North Dakota! I did not know that.
As far as strip malls go, my nearest “big” town just built a new one. Our main mall is practically empty.
What’s with Gene’s hair? Or lack of…
K
Bob, near Mark on 30 Oct 2009 at 10:01 pm #
Ted,
‘Nother one just as bad as a henway.
“If a loaf of bread costs $1.95, how much does a pound of butter weigh?”
In the old version of the joke, bread was a lot cheaper. :>)
emeritus Minnesota biologist on 30 Oct 2009 at 10:37 pm #
DST is a boon to old folks who shouldn’t drive at night.
Steve from Royal Oak, MI on 30 Oct 2009 at 11:31 pm #
The only thing good about Daylight Savings time is this weekend when I get an extra hour of sleep. With the sun setting so early on Monday, it feels like winter comes overnight.
Tom in Southern Ohio on 31 Oct 2009 at 3:59 am #
The drive-in theater on US 23 between Lucasville and Portsmouth in southern Ohio didn’t open for the season this year…
For those who miss the Golden Years, or at least a lot of the things about them that we now consider classic, check out http://www.thefedoralounge.com. Since retiring from the USAF a bit over four years ago I’ve found I have a tendency to go back to the old ways in some things. I wear fedoras and other styles of hats, use fountain pens, use a brush and shave soap or creme to lather before shaving with a double-edge razor-blade. I do have a manual Royal portable typewriter that my mother bought before I was born, but have only used it to type a couple of letters to her for the fun of it. The last time I used it regularly was in the early ’80s when I used it to type papers for college. Now I write letters with a fountain pen.
Regards,
Tom
spot on 31 Oct 2009 at 6:20 am #
with all the resources that studios have, you wouldn’t think it would hard to make a good remake
Jean from Dahlonega GA aka Trapper Jean on 31 Oct 2009 at 7:43 am #
Jim in SE Mississippi-your question about how tall I am-6 feet tall. I was the tallest girl in my high school and my father, having been in the Army, taught me never to slouch. I was taller than the captain of the basketball team, thereby guaranteeing I never had a date until college. No, I didn’t play vollyball or basketball. I was (and still am) a bookworm.
Bill in Paducah -Congratulations to your son!
billinbossier-Congrats on your retirement! May you enjoy many years of it.
I miss cabooses too. It’s not nearly as much fun to sit at a railroad crossing counting cars if you can’t see the caboose. And on strip malls, the thing around here seems to be to clear a bit of land of it’s lovely trees, build the strip, then let it get covered in weeds waiting for anyone to rent the space. This is progress?
I spent my childhood in Augusta, GA, and we had a drive-in there. During the summer my Mom would load up our station wagon with kids and take us to the movie. By the time it was over most of the kids would be asleep. The parents would meet Mom in our driveway and carry their kids home to bed.
K in ND-I wondered about Gene’s (lack of) hair here, too.
John in LA late of PNS on 31 Oct 2009 at 9:05 am #
RE: Jimmy J’s post but have we lost anything to the name of efficiency greater than the little red caboose?
YES, see Jimmy J’s cartoon of the 31st. He speaks of the OUTHOUSE. Great that Arlo kidded around, as if they high tech kid would have the slightest idea what an outhouse was. He might know what a porta potty was depending on how much time he spent outside.
Well there you go–how efficient were outhouses? One of my favorite authors, Edward Abbey spoke highly of them and FWIW so do I. They were easy to move, efficent, and required no use of water. And when they filled up, what great places to plant fruit trees!
Sylvia in MS on 31 Oct 2009 at 9:23 am #
To Bob,
I said that I cringed at the young girls wearing next to nothing. Coming to church in jeans and t-shirts are preferable to what a lot of girls are wearing today. Just this week in our Southern Baptist state paper, there is a guest article addressing that very subject. When one goes to church their thoughts should be directed toward Jesus, not looking at someone’s almost naked body.
John in LA late of PNS on 31 Oct 2009 at 9:25 am #
Another thing of my childhood that has gone away:
Used to have a job that took me to the back yards of many houses in neighborhoods developed before the mid 1960s. What did I find that reminded me of my childhood?
BAR B QUE pits. The massive concrete, brick, iron icons of the good life. Many had separate areas to cook on, ovens, doors, warming areas. Amazing stuff. Middle Class America at it finest. Look around the older neighborhoods and many are still there. Seems mostly today there are either simply catch-alls or used for the potted plants! Actually saw several next to the deserted bomb shelters that seemed to be built nearby in the early 60s. Some were near the old iron frames of arbors in the back yards that were for cool and shade while cooking and eating outside. And in the summer in Birmingham, w/ the house as warm as they were, we BBQed and ate outside quite often.
Rick in Shermantown, Ohio on 31 Oct 2009 at 10:20 am #
Tom in Southern Ohio:
I invite you to travel up 23 and 22 and come to Shermantown. On 22 East, the Skyview Drive-In is still open and should be open next year, too. The great thing about the Skyview is that it is located just a bit out of town and away from most light sources. It also has a playground to give the children something to do while waiting for nightfall.
93 to 22 West will get you to the Skyview, too, and it’s far more scenic drive.
buzz on 31 Oct 2009 at 11:01 am #
Brent from Waterloo & TruckerRon: Most younger (i.e., born after 1960) viewers dislike old movies not because they’re in b+w but because they are photographed, directed, and edited in a way that seems very slow paced today. We watched ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN again a few weeks back and I was surprised at how long the scenes played out.
re colorization: Most times it is a futile effort, however I can recommend three films where it actually enhances the originals.
The first two are old Republic serials, THE CRIMSON SKULL and ZOMBIES OF THE STRATOSPHERE, while the third is the old British sci-fi classic THINGS TO COME. All three of them were colorized with a garish pulp magazine cover palette which really enhances the fantastic elements (the Martians in ZOMBIES are REALLY green!).
Bob, near Mark on 31 Oct 2009 at 11:56 am #
My grandparents had the last house that had no indoor plumbing in their town. The outhouse was out back, and the pitcher pump was out front. My grandfather did hook an electric pump up to the well pipe, but he only used it to water the garden. One Halloween night, around 1970, one of the neighborhood darlings thought it would be fun to burn the hose down when no one was home. We weren’t allowed to be in the courtroom when he was tried, because he was a minor.
This sort of fits into both the outhouse and the caboose discussions. One of the police officers did tell us that the kid who burned the house down had previously been caught trying to derail a train on the tracks that ran behind my grandparents’ house.
K in ND on 31 Oct 2009 at 1:50 pm #
Speaking of outhouses, someone around here blew up an outhouse in a cemetery in the nearest ‘big’ town. It’s been in the paper several times; I don’t think the vandal has been caught yet. I’m not sure what was used, but there was nothing left of it. I didn’t even know that thing existed, nor do I understand why it was there in the first place.
K
Wayne from NoDak on 31 Oct 2009 at 3:20 pm #
K
I didn’t know it was there either, and I live in the town. I guess I don’t get out to the cemetaries very often.
John in LA late of PNS on 31 Oct 2009 at 3:28 pm #
RE: K in ND on 31 Oct 2009 at 1:50 pm #
Speaking of outhouses, . . . I didn’t even know that thing existed, nor do I understand why it was there in the first place.
I can think of a couple or reasons an outhouse might have been there.
Jim in SE Mississippi on 31 Oct 2009 at 5:29 pm #
This happened on Halloween night last year on Louisiana Hwy 57, just outside of Dulac, a little town over in the bayou country. A Missouri businessman abandoned his disabled vehicle on the side of the road, and attempted to hitchhike. The night was pitch dark in the middle of a thunderstorm. Time passed slowly and no cars went by. It was raining so hard he could hardly see his hand in front of his face.
Suddenly, through the sheets of rain, he saw a 1948 Buick approaching, moving slowly and ghostlike in the rain. It silently crept toward him and stopped. Desperately needing a ride, he jumped into the passenger side of the car and closed the door. Only then did he realize that there was no one behind the wheel and no sound of an engine to be heard over the rain.
Again the old car crept silently forward, and he was terrified, too scared to think of jumping out and running. He saw that the car was approaching a sharp curve and, still too scared to jump out, he started to pray and beg for his life; he was sure the ghost car would go off the road and into the bayou and he would then drown!
But just before the curve, a shadowy hand appeared at the driver’s window, reached in and turned the steering wheel, guiding the car safely around the bend. Then, just as silently, the hand disappeared through the window and he was alone again.
Paralyzed with fear, he watched the hand reappear every time the car reached a curve. Finally, scared nearly to death, he had all he could take, jumped out of the car, and ran to town.
Wet and in shock, he went into bar called Fishermen’s Point. Voice quavering, he ordered two cups of coffee, black, and then told everybody about his supernatural experience.
The room became silent and everybody got goose bumps when they realized he was telling the truth (and not just some drunk).
About 30 minutes later two Cajuns, dripping wet, walked into Fisherman’s Point and one says to the other, “Look, Boudreaux, ders dat idiot that rode in our car when we wuz pushin’ it in the rain!!!”
While this may not be a true story, it’s certainly true that it is a story. Happy Halloween, y’all.
Ghost Rider 6 on 31 Oct 2009 at 6:00 pm #
werewolves howling now
goblins running all amuck
free rides on a ghost
sandcastler on 31 Oct 2009 at 8:38 pm #
Outhouses tipping, burning and blowing-up, cabooses galore, one good ghost story from Mississippi; not one mention of cow tipping.
Bob, near Mark on 31 Oct 2009 at 9:38 pm #
Two cows walked into a bar. The bartender looked at them and….
Oh, my mistake. I thought you said “cow tippling.”
spot on 31 Oct 2009 at 9:53 pm #
cow tipping? rather mean that…i wonder what the cow thinks…how do I make this work? is the view better down here? is it worth getting up? I’m closer to the grass down here…if I get up will they tip me over again? aren’t they ever going to leave? do I have a chance of tipping them over? should I alert the other cows? i’ve heard about this - i just never thought it would happen to me. just wait till I tell my big brother…what’s their licence plate?
emeritus Minnesota biologist on 31 Oct 2009 at 10:05 pm #
Jim in SE Mississippi: Up here, it’s Sven and Ole who hopped into the quiet car.
Others: Former outhouses are a significant source of archaeological treasures. If Mrs. Ben Franklin breaks a plate, where does it go? Into the biff. A century plus later, everything objectionable has rotted away, there’s no odor, and archaeologists can reconstruct colonial society in part from stuff thrown into the outhouse. Ran into this decades at a tourist site near Independence Hall while visiting a former grade/high school buddy in Philadelphia. Neither he nor I are from there, but that’s where he spent his professional life as an electrical engineer, and where he still lives.
Rick in Shermantown, Ohio on 01 Nov 2009 at 8:37 am #
To Everyone in General:
Just the imagine the things that will no longer exist by the time that Gene has teenage children who are “born in the present”: land-line telephones, two-dimensional television images, (probably) gasoline-powered automobiles, personal computers (everyone will keep everything on the cloud, not on a machine that he/she owns), lithium-ion batteries, scalpel-based surgery, corrective lenses for vision, non-regenerative human organs, newspapers made of paper, (probably) radios, wires for transmission of electricity, and more.
Two things that are a sure bet to exist in the future: taxes and corruption.
Rick in Shermantown, Ohio on 01 Nov 2009 at 8:45 am #
Jim in SE Mississippi:
I enjoyed the joke, but it spurred a thought when I read the punchline with the Cajuns and their dialect.
At one time, jokes with dialects of American Natives, West Virginians, Hispanics, African-Americans, Asian-Americans, Jews, New Yorkers, Midwesterners, gay men, and others were common.
Now, about the only dialects I encounter on a regular basis in comedy are those of California surfers, the All-American Redneck, and Arabic Muslim terrorists.
Has anyone else noticed this, or is it my imagination?
Rick in Shermantown, Ohio on 01 Nov 2009 at 8:50 am #
Darn.
Forgot a piece of technology that will most likely not be made in the near future: wrist watches.
Ever notice that, if you ask a male under 25 for the time, he’ll look at his cell phone?
Just as the size of a woman’s purse reveals her true age, wearing a wrist watch tells the age of the man.
sandcastler on 01 Nov 2009 at 12:21 pm #
Rick in Shermantow, Ohio….
Care to wager on your items for obsolescent? Before you answer, look back at all the propheicies that were made over the last 50 years; mankind has a way of making wrong those who forecast the future. Someone once said forecasting is like driving the interstate while peering through a soda-straw.
sideburns on 01 Nov 2009 at 12:37 pm #
I’m a fan of the old serials, buzz, and I hate the idea of colorizing them. (I remember an article, once, about how careful they were to get the colors right, and they had a picture of Stan Laurel, colorized with *brown* hair, and it’s not exactly hard to find out that he was a red-head. Even worse, giving Frank Sinatra BROWN eyes!)
Be that as it may, take another, better look at ZOMBIES OF THE STRATOSPHERE, and read the cast: one of the chief Martians is Leonard Nimoy, in one of his first roles and already type-cast as an alien.
Jim in SE Mississippi on 01 Nov 2009 at 12:44 pm #
Rick, do you suppose that the word’s “clockwise” and “counter-clockwise” will fall out of use as analog clock displays disappear? And what do you suppose might replace them…“hurricane-wise” and “anti-hurricane-wise?”
I’d guess that dialect in most jokes has fallen prey to the PC movement, especially where the dialect portion really adds nothing to the humor. As far as jokes where the dialect is the basis of the humor, as in all jokes (and in A&J), a certain level of knowledge and experience is required on the part of the audience. I hope this doesn’t sound pretentious of me, but I’m not sure very many young Americans these days would “get” this old joke.
Two Cockneys, Bill and Ted, had been friends for most of their lives. When Ted heard that Bill was on his deathbed, he went to visit. After a while reminiscing, Bill said, “Ted, yer’ve been me freund for many years, but I’ve got ter tell yer…yor the bleedin’ most pretentious man I’ve evry met.”
And Ted replied, “Pretentious? Moi?”
Bob, near Mark on 01 Nov 2009 at 1:05 pm #
Sandcastler,
I’ve been reading through early 1940s Popular Science magazines lately (do a Google Book search). It’s fun reading about some of the “amazing” new products that were forecast as being the “next big thing.” It’s also somewhat frightening to read some of the old tips and hints that we now know are downright dangerous - especially all the suggested uses of asbestos products around the house.
debbie on 01 Nov 2009 at 1:27 pm #
Sandcastler: I almost fell off my chair laughing: I thought the post read: forecasting is like driving the interstate while peeing through a soda-straw!
Connie on 01 Nov 2009 at 1:34 pm #
One thing from my childhood that seems to be disappearing, at least in my neighborhood, trick or treating!
I bought 4 big bags of candy to hand out last night, and had 8 kids show up. The last 5 came together. By then I was giving away handfuls of candy bars. They’d have gotten more if they’d stuck around a bit longer.
I figured it being a Saturday and no rain, there would be more kids out and about. I know I don’t pay a lot of attention to the population of my neighborhood, and I know the economy has it Lansing hard, but I was shocked at how few kids were out. Usually, on a slow week night, I get at least enough to finish off one bag of candy.
John in LA late of PNS —-”Another thing of my childhood that has gone away:
Used to have a job that took me to the back yards of many houses in neighborhoods developed before the mid 1960s. What did I find that reminded me of my childhood?
BAR B QUE pits. The massive concrete, brick, iron icons of the good life.”
I got one of them John! So do my neighbors. Mine was done quite fancy (although not a separate area for cooking), but unfortunately age and weather has caused the chimney to start buckling. I don’t use it, I have two big dogs which makes using the back yard dangerous, plus I work full-time, evenings, and usually take at least one class, so I rarely have time to “entertain”. But I have to admit if I had the money I’d get the BBQ fixed. I love it.
Elliott on 01 Nov 2009 at 1:50 pm #
So, what are the chances of an explanation from Jimmy Johnson about why today’s “Arlo & Janis” on comics.com is the same as the 11 Oct 2009 “Arlo & Janis”? Was this intentional, or a mistake? Over at comics.com, somebody was speculating that it was a mistake as 11-01 (today’s date) upside down looks the same as 10-11 (the previous appearance of today’s strip). I understand the need to occasionally run repeats - vacations, missed deadlines, illness, that kind of thing, but running a repeat this fast seems likely to be a mistake.
Steve from Royal Oak, MI on 01 Nov 2009 at 2:00 pm #
How about when you want someone to roll down their window? You crank your hand as if the crank the window. However now, almost all cars use push buttons. What do you do, wiggle your finger?
Stole that from an Ellen standup.
Rick in Shermantown, Ohio on 01 Nov 2009 at 2:02 pm #
Jim in SE Mississippi:
Clockwise and counter-clockwise: That’s a good question. For that answer, I will have to defer to the elementary teachers who can tell us if they are still using those terms in school.
However, I have noticed that fewer people are using “quarter past/before” and “half past.” Instead, I hear “fifteen after the hour,” “fifty-five after the hour,” etc., especially on the radio.
Sandcastler:
I understand your point entirely. All one has to do is to look at various prognostications from the past to see how easy it is to be wrong. That’s why I did my best to select those that are already on the wane and seem to be headed right now for obsolescence, such as pay phones and phone booths.
Also, I was careful not to predict what will take the place of those items that I listed. For example, I did not predict that we will soon flying cars as in the Jetsons or individual mag-levs as in Dick Tracy.
sandcastler on 01 Nov 2009 at 2:28 pm #
debbie….
I use an empty water bottle, NO straw required, when nature calls and I am out on the interstate
sandcastler on 01 Nov 2009 at 2:28 pm #
debbie….
I use an empty water bottle, NO straw required, when nature calls and I am out on the interstate
billinbossier on 01 Nov 2009 at 2:37 pm #
What the heck?
Comics.com didn’t update today. It re-ran 10-11 cartoon.
sandcastler on 01 Nov 2009 at 2:48 pm #
Ran across an article recently saying there are more horses in the United States today than at any time in history. I also noticed that many new music releases (records to the A&J readership) can be had as: CD. Mpeg, or vinyl; seems there is a resurgence of vinyl lovers.
I recall a time in the mid 1990’s when we threw out over two hundred IBM Selectric typewriters; now I hear they are becoming collector items.
debbie: I am typing this while maintain 70 mph on east bound I40
debbie on 01 Nov 2009 at 2:54 pm #
sandcastler: well, that explains the double post or else you’re bragging…but I’m sure you are NOT driving, because your spelling is too good….
Dave on 01 Nov 2009 at 3:31 pm #
If you are ever near Titusville PA. and need a place for the night, they have a motel consisting of rooms created from a number of cabooses and boxcars. We stayed there one night last year. It was great.
Bob, near Mark on 01 Nov 2009 at 5:16 pm #
Rick in Shermantown, Ohio,
But Dick Tracy did predict the wrist radio and wrist TV.
sandcastler,
There are also more deer in the US today than there were before Europeans settled here.
John in LA late of PNS on 01 Nov 2009 at 5:42 pm #
sandcastler,
There are also more deer in the US today than there were before Europeans settled here.
I’d love to know how anyone KNOWS how many deer there were here BEFORE the EUROPEANS settled here? Did the Indians take a deer census? I kinda sorta doubt it.
I am sure there are more deer here now than after the slaughter of them by the settlers.
I’d sure love to see those figures and the source on the 1491 deer population.
Ghost Rider 6 on 01 Nov 2009 at 6:31 pm #
debbie:
Although they don’t involve the use of a soda straw, there are a number of easily portable and/or disposable devices available (marketed under names such as Whizzy, SheWee and Go-Girl) that would permit you to go while standing up, as well as to use a water bottle while traveling, just like sandcastler.
I wanted to pass this information on to help promote the cause of female equality. I feel women should be able to write their names in the snow, too.
Bob, near Mark & John in LA etc.:
I don’t know about any deer censuses, but I do know a lot more deer are being hit and killed by vehicles these days than in 1491.
Bob, near Mark on 01 Nov 2009 at 6:57 pm #
“60 Minutes” did a report on the increasing deer population a couple of years ago. I don’t know who counted them.
Ghost Rider 6,
I think that people with short names find it easier to write their names in the snow. Those of us like Jean from Dahlonega GA aka Trapper Jean would find it more difficult for two reasons - the length of the name, and the latitude. Having to dot an i or cross a t is probably a hindrance, also. :>)
sandcastler on 01 Nov 2009 at 7:05 pm #
Checked my records in the attic; do have a partial deer census of the east coast for 1494. Several sheets are missing and it is in Spanish. Anyone wanting a copy contact me.
debbie on 01 Nov 2009 at 7:14 pm #
Well, GR6, it sounds just like you have done a lot of research on this subject….for myself, I have never been interested in writing my name in the snow…..and I am not interested in female equality, gloria has never spoken for me in anything, and though it sounds incredibly snotty, I am quite capable of speaking for myself. She was wrong in many things, this was just one.
debbie on 01 Nov 2009 at 7:18 pm #
sandcastler, that is a legal document…when the government finds out, you, sir, will be fined.
Steve from Royal Oak, MI on 01 Nov 2009 at 7:31 pm #
Oh man, I just typed that same post Ghost Rider 6 about more deer being killed by cars. Don’t you hate when that happens?
I am not sure of how many people write their names in the snow. First, the person has to be intellegent enough to write their name. If they are smart enough, then they are less likely to do so. Unless they are drunk and then their penmanship suffers.
Mark in Boston on 01 Nov 2009 at 8:46 pm #
Whose woods these are I think I know;
His house is in the village, though.
He will not see me stopping here
To write my name in yellow snow.
Ghost Rider 6 on 01 Nov 2009 at 9:58 pm #
debbie:
Sorry, I was totally being facetious.
Steve from Royal Oak, MI:
“Great minds…”
I agree with you about “snow writing.” I’ve neither done it nor ever seen it done. Maybe it’s apocryphal, or maybe I’ve just not spent enough time in snowy climes…although I do know enough not to eat the yellow snow.
“Penmanship?”
debbie on 01 Nov 2009 at 10:16 pm #
No apology necessary, I knew that…..but I am serious about gloria, I personally appreciate manners but that lady did not and they were not interested in equality they were interested in being a ‘good ole’ boy.’
Ghost Rider 6 on 01 Nov 2009 at 11:14 pm #
debbie:
That’s a relief. (Just when I think I have your writing style figured out, you throw me a curve.) And I certainly wouldn’t argue your point about the “movement.” It most often seems to me to be much more a political movement than an equality movement.
K in ND on 01 Nov 2009 at 11:45 pm #
gloria?
K
debbie on 01 Nov 2009 at 11:49 pm #
GR6:
Breathe deeply, my dear…..I was irritated on the last blog because of the disrespect shown to us….Writing style? Did not know I had one….I’m amazed alll over again.
Jean from Dahlonega GA aka Trapper Jean on 02 Nov 2009 at 5:58 am #
Bob, near Mark-Thank you for thinking of me, but were I capable of writing my name in the show, I’d use the one I’m most known by around here: Mom.
debbie-I’m with you on gloria. There is a place for women’s equality, but for the most part I’ll take good manners.
Speaking of gloria, does anybody remember the tv movie from 1985 “A Bunny’s Tale” with Kirstie Alley as Gloria? It’s a somewhat fictional account of the time in ‘63 that gloria went undercover as a Playboy bunny.
Rick in Shermantown, Ohio on 02 Nov 2009 at 6:00 am #
Bob, near Mark:
“But Dick Tracy did predict the wrist radio and wrist TV.” - Yes, I thought of those as I was typing. I also remembered the stove with the built-in TV that the Plentys had. I didn’t expect to see that one become reality. However, I never envisioned the refrigerators with an LCD TV display that are currently available.
Speaking of things coming true out of science fiction, should we now begin a listing of Star Trek items?
debbie on 02 Nov 2009 at 8:06 am #
K in ND: Gloria Steinem: She thought she was speaking for ALL women. She was mistaken, she does not speak for this woman…and men are still not equal to us. (Just so not to offend, I believe men are wonderful.)
catshoes on 02 Nov 2009 at 9:48 am #
billinbossier:
I am stumped about comics.com reprinting the cartoon. In the comments section, one person pointed out that 10/11 is 11/01 upside down. So, either Jimmy did it as a joke or someone at comics.com goofed. One person wrote in the comments section that in their newspaper, it was not a repeat so Jimmy is off the hook. I hope Jimmy will offer it to us if c.com does not fix it.
Have you ever made a mistake only to wish later you had actually planned it out so you could take credit for it? I put up a church sign. The letters go in a removable tray. One week (long story) I put the letters in upside down and only discovered it when the trays would not fit. I huffed at myself and took the trays back in and left them to be fixed the next day (no time to do it right then). Later I laughed when I remembered the message on the west side trays: “Did you fail or just give up?” So, I put the west side in upside down “on purpose” and got a lot of interesting comments. (The east side said “Love never fails or gives up”.)
John in Richmond Texas on 02 Nov 2009 at 12:21 pm #
11/02 Well, I guess a barn coat is nicer than an eraser shaped like a duck.
Dang, all the papers I’ve randomly googled have the same 10/11 for 11/01, but I shall persevere as long as my in-box is empty. The Sacramento Bee is nice, it has all the strips for a month right on one page.
Mark in Boston on 02 Nov 2009 at 12:26 pm #
11/02 I actually have a barn coat, and it looks like that. It hangs by the back door and in cold weather I put it on when I go out to feed the goats.
I guess the joke is that Arlo has no barn or goats. Just the office. A barn is a lot nicer than an office.
It’s funny, but if Janis had given him a pair of boat shoes instead, that would be sad.
Mark in Boston on 02 Nov 2009 at 12:28 pm #
Re yellow snow:
When Mrs. Smith saw her daughter’s name written in yellow snow she was furious. She knew just who did it too. It must have been that horrible Jimmy Jones. She confronted Mrs. Jones and showed her the peed name.
Mrs. Jones said, “You can’t blame my son for that! It’s your daughter’s own handwriting.”
Elliott on 02 Nov 2009 at 12:34 pm #
@John in Richmond Texas - I’m guessing that the reason all the papers you’ve Googled have had the 10/11 strip for 11/01 is that they’re all pulling A&J from comics.com. If comics.com is wrong or messed up, they will be as well. (Since you talk about Googling, I’m assuming that you’ve been looking at on-line versions, not hard-copy versions.)
sideburns on 02 Nov 2009 at 1:23 pm #
I live in Southern California. Writing my name in the snow is not an option. Going outside in my shirtsleeves on Christmas, however, is.
Ghost Rider 6 on 02 Nov 2009 at 3:21 pm #
Mark in Boston:
Yep, that’s the writing-in-the-snow story I had in mind yesterday when I posted “Penmanship?”
debbie:
By “writing style” I meant trying to interpret your words without seeing your face or hearing your voice…the bane of the Internet age. Although come to think of it, you do have a somewhat unique style. (I guess most of us do.) I could probably pick it out if you were able to post without using a name.
Trapper Jean:
I do remember that movie. What I don’t remember is why I use to think women looked sexy in those somewhat ridiculous Playboy Bunny costumes. Of course, that was quite a few years ago (OK, many, many years ago), when I probably thought most women would look sexy wearing a potato sack.
Anonymous on 02 Nov 2009 at 6:02 pm #
huh, whatta about that GR6: Intrepreting words! Huh. never would have crossed my mind. Huh…..once upon a time, I was a salesperson and I loved it. I try to accept what people say….on this blog (the only one in which I actively participate, by the way) if there is a question in my mind concerning what is being said I read the lines out loud and people can convey their feelings quite well…..such as earlier, I felt you were leading us towards a limerick and I was waiting for the punchline….obviously I was mistaken
werewolves howling now
goblins running all amuck
free rides on a ghost
debbie on 02 Nov 2009 at 6:04 pm #
huh! my post went into moderation, but even I do not see it here, which I always could before.
ursen on 02 Nov 2009 at 6:24 pm #
Back to drive ins for a moment. Many years ago my Dad had another use for Drive-in-Theaters. While on a trip to Fl with 5 young children it got very late on a very long drive and not having money for a motel he pulled into a Drive-in. We all slept peacefully and safely until dawn when the movies stopped playing.
Ghost Rider 6 on 02 Nov 2009 at 7:51 pm #
debbie:
Maybe instead of falling into the “moderation hole,” your post fell into the dreaded “moderation black hole.” Try again.
debbie on 02 Nov 2009 at 9:56 pm #
I just made the comment, when one is in doubt of the meaning of someone’s post, if read out loud, one can get a more clear and more defined ’sense’ of the post i.e. angry, irritated, or of facetiousness.
I am at my other job, and could not post…..but I do not want to hog the whole blog, I wished others would kindly jump in and post, post, post, I like following along and reading the blog, it is very enjoyable (I’m at the end of the day for here.)
and Trapper Jean, I’m sorry, I do not remember that movie at all.
Steve from Royal Oak, MI on 02 Nov 2009 at 10:36 pm #
Trapper Jean:
I remember the movie Bunny Tales starring Kirstie Alley. Let’s pray that they do not cast her in a remake of that role!
I am sorry that is harsh, but something about her never set right with me. I would not wish her weight gains on anybody.
Bob, near Mark on 02 Nov 2009 at 11:18 pm #
Steve from Royal Oak, MI,
“Something about her never set right with me,” either. Could it have been her live, on-the-air behavior (along with some of the other cast members) after the final episode of Cheers? Or could it have been her remark during her acceptance speech following her winning an acting award, thanking her husband for “giving her the big one?”
So many choices.
spot on 02 Nov 2009 at 11:31 pm #
i’m surprised that there isn’t so much more misunderstanding on the internet…even if you read it aloud, isn’t your interpretation clouded by what you are feeling at the time? unless you know someone really well how do you know what they meant? theres alot to be said for old fashioned technology as a means of communication - e.g smoke signals (but not everyone likes morse code, dial-up phones etc)
btw as a horizontally challenged person, and even if I wasn’t, I appreciate Kirstie Alley - very, very funny lady (Q: am I angry, sad, facetiousness, irrated, none or all of the above? Q: is someone game enough to say “all of the above”??)
spot on 03 Nov 2009 at 3:04 am #
my post didn’t work either…
Jean from Dahlonega GA aka Trapper Jean on 03 Nov 2009 at 6:29 am #
debbie- A Bunny’s Tale is an entertaining movie, and Kirstie Alley was certainly prettier than Gloria. Unfortunate;y I don’t think it’s on dvd, so your on;y chance of seeing it is if you catch it on the Late Show some night.
Steve from Royal Oak, MI & Bob, near Mark-sad to say, Ms. Alley’s career has been going down for some time. I tried to watch an episode of her last tv show, “Fat Actress”, and just couldn’t sit through the vulgarity.
Oh, and Debbie, don’t worry about writing style. I think I have one, and it’s rather train of thought. THe problem is that more often than not my train gets derai…oh look-a bunny!!
debbie on 03 Nov 2009 at 7:34 am #
I am easily derailed too….and I will look for the movie…perhaps on Hulu? I do not watch regular TV any more since the company kept jacking my cost but not their service. I think it has been over a year now since I have had cable and I do so love the older shows…..although The Biig Bang Theory is hilarious.
A lot of actors/actresses equate vulgarity with acting. Even now, if something is offensive and I judge the site/paper/book/person/show/movie cannot express themselves without certain words, then I’m gone. (My son says I’m too harsh, I say, I’m just not interested.)
Leary on 03 Nov 2009 at 7:35 am #
Now, every time someone asks to borrow my pen, I’m going to get the wrong image in my mind.
Drive-ins… Lots of fun times there, but I can’t remember one movie that I saw there. Lake Drive-in Theater at Pascagoula, MS. It was more of a social thing. They often had a two or even three (people) for the price of one night and they didn’t even know it. One driving and as many in the trunk as were willing. It wasn’t right, but it didn’t seem so wrong at the time…
sandcastler on 03 Nov 2009 at 8:27 am #
Oh my! The little train that is our blog has derailed. The caboose lies in the gorge wheels-up like a dead armadillo. And, whatever came of that cute bunny, grown old you say? All I can do now is mosey out to the outhouse; hope they have not tipped, burned or bombed it.
Norm in Utah on 03 Nov 2009 at 11:05 am #
Regarding outhouses. I always heard the best prank was not to tip it over but just to move it back about five feet. Just heard, never did it myself.
Sarah in Austin on 03 Nov 2009 at 12:28 pm #
This conversation gives cred to Facebook–people can get sparked by a small idea to have the best, longest conversations, more than if some deep philosophical question were put out there. I love it!
Ohio Betty on 03 Nov 2009 at 1:19 pm #
OK, all you drive-in theater and drive-in restaurant lovers: Pick a day next summer, and you all need to come to my adopted hometown, Wadsworth, OH, and my real hometown, Akron.
Wadsworth is the proud home to the Blue Sky drive-in (http://www.blueskydrive-in.com/). There’s also the Magic City Drive-In in nearby Barberton, and the Gala Drive-In in Akron.
Plus, Akron is home to two of the most wonderful drive-in restaurants in the world: Skyway and Swenson’s. (I’m partial to Swenson’s because of my grandma’s stories of working there as a high schooler).
For dessert, you can come on back to Wadsworth and go to Bidinger’s soft-serve ice cream stand, get a humongous cone for less than two bucks and then walk across the street to watch some teen-agers playing rec league baseball.
Yeah, we’ve got our own little piece of heaven here, and every single one of you are welcome to come and enjoy it with us!
Ohio Betty on 03 Nov 2009 at 1:26 pm #
P.S. If you want some exercise while you’re here, we can hit the Rinky Dink miniature golf course, too. What sort of awful places do some of our poor A&J’ers live in that they can no longer revel in such simple pleasures?
Ed on 03 Nov 2009 at 3:21 pm #
Re: today’s strip. I give; what *is* Arlo doing to Janis’s bubble bath?
Ghost Rider 6 on 03 Nov 2009 at 3:27 pm #
To me, Eddie Murphy’s “concerts” are unwatchable because of the vulgarity. Yet, as I recall, he was absolutely hilarious on SNL, without using any. So what is bad language supposed to add to an otherwise good performance?
This from someone who spent time in a branch of the military where it seemed the only adjective anyone ever used began with an “f” and ended with “ing.”
K in ND on 03 Nov 2009 at 4:09 pm #
Ed -
My interpretation is that Arlo was trying to find Janis amidst the bubbles. He seemed to have panicked when he couldn’t. Although what he was reaching for is beyond me…
K
Mary in Ohio on 03 Nov 2009 at 4:16 pm #
Ed - Arlo is looking for Janis under the bubbles. I think.
OHIO BETTY - you (we - Wadsworth is my mailing address though I live north of Sharon Center) also have a HAUNTED bowling alley near Bidingers. The Western Reserve Paranormal Society will be doing an investigation there Sat. Nov 21 (if that’s the correct date - it is the Saturday before Thanksgiving). I dont think even Shermantown can top that! (I can imagine Gen. Sherman haunting any number of places but a bowling alley is not high on my guesses.)
Hey - from Kristie to Bowling! Talk about Stream of Consciousness!
Laetitia in Australia on 03 Nov 2009 at 5:58 pm #
K in ND - And evidently beyond Arlo, too.
I think all drive-ins in my hometown have long gone, although one (only in my hometown by a stretch of the city boundaries) did hang on for quite some time. It probably survived on nostalgia.
I remember seeing Chariots of Fire, Back to the Future and DARYL or Flight of the Navigator at the drive-in.
What is a drive-in restaurant? I have an image of the drive-through section of places like Macca’s but I don’t think you’re referring to that.
My Mum has always said that if someone has to resort to profanity then it’s a sign that they are uneducated and have a limited vocabulary.
emeritus Minnesota biologist on 03 Nov 2009 at 6:22 pm #
May Arlo be granted the grace to still be reaching for it after they have been married 57 years. We don’t do movies, bubble baths, or sailboats, but those are details. JJ understands the basics.
Bob, near Mark on 03 Nov 2009 at 6:50 pm #
Laetitia in Australia,
A “drive-in” restaurant is one where you drive up to the restaurant and park outside. Someone either comes out to the car to take your order, or you order through an intercom at your parking spot. Your food is then brought out to your car, where you eat while parked there.
That is different from a “drive-through” restaurant, where you pick up your food at a window, and then drive home to eat.
If you do an image search on Google for “drive-in restaurant,” you will find many photos. Would you like chips with your order? :>)
RayRay From MW the place that made Water Famous on 03 Nov 2009 at 7:21 pm #
I have been reading post here from day one but have never commented before. A couple of things worth mentioning now.
Drive in movies there are two within an Hour of me. One in Granbury Texas and one in Graham very nostalgic.
Then the foul language. I am not real old but when I was growing up half of the stuff on TV would have been black balled before they finished reading the paragraph.
debbie on 03 Nov 2009 at 8:43 pm #
First things first: I think Arlo thought Janis may have possibly smothered in all those bubbles. He’s just watching out for her, naturally.
Ohio Betty: I wanna play miniature golf…….and go to a drive-in. what we need here is a convention organizer….we need to pick a date for summertime next year and converge on Wadsworth, Ohio and take a couple of days vacation there……line us some rooms, Betty….get AARP discounts, HeeHaw!
curmudgeonly ex-professor on 03 Nov 2009 at 8:58 pm #
A few dozen miles S of the Akron area lies Dover, OH - site of Warther’s well-known knife museum (they sell ‘em, too, with a lifetime free resharpening guarantee); Warther was an incredible woodcarver, and some of his work is on display. But I digress….
In back of Warther’s - likely on the same property - is a caboose on a small piece of track. I believe it is open to the public. One needs to descend the fairly steep hill from the museum down to the level of the surrounding area for access. I’ve been there several times while visiting my wife’s hometown 9 miles west over the past fifty-odd years.
Rick in Shermantown, Ohio on 03 Nov 2009 at 9:23 pm #
The Barn Coat strip:
I noticed that Arlo was at the office. When was the last time that we saw him there, or even heard a reference from Arlo or Janis about their jobs?
Bob, near Mark on 03 Nov 2009 at 9:36 pm #
Re Arlo’s and Janis’s jobs.
The lack of reference to their jobs just made me think of the old TV serial, “The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis,” and the character Maynard G. Krebs (played by Bob Denver) and his overwhelming dislike of the word, “work.” He would reply, “WORK!!,” with a somewhat high-pitched, fearful squeak.
Perhaps Arlo and Janis would rather not think about it, either; and just daydream of sailboats and grandchildren. Both subjects are approaching possibilities.
K in ND on 03 Nov 2009 at 9:39 pm #
This discussion of drive-in theaters just reminded me of that awful movie “The Pink Flamingo” about a restored or newly-built (I don’t remember which) drive-in next to a funeral home. I think it was a Hallmark movie. Funny in places, but dreadfully sad in the end. That movie made me hate drive-ins.
For restaurants, though, I think I’ve seen one in Carrington (about 70 - 80 mi. away from me), and there’s an old one in Bismarck. However, that one has as a restaurant a combo A&W and Long John Silver’s. I don’t know if the drive in part still functions, but I have seen cars sitting there.
Strange, the things you remember you’ve forgotten.
K
debbie on 03 Nov 2009 at 10:27 pm #
We could hold an Arlo and Janis Convention in a different place every year….Jimmy could wander amongst us incognito….maybe even have a contest: The women dressed as Janis and the men as Arlo…………..quick, someone STOP ME!
spot on 04 Nov 2009 at 5:20 am #
on a completely different note: I wish I could draw - I would totally create my own comic strip
Rick in Shermantown, Ohio on 04 Nov 2009 at 5:46 am #
Bob, near Mark:
Unfortunately, I don’t know if this was my own idea or if I am stealing this from Jimmy.
Another popular sit-com from the 50s that Arlo and Janis resembles in regard to work is Ozzie and Harriet. I don’t think that Ozzie ever went to work.
debbie on 04 Nov 2009 at 7:28 am #
I can honestly say, it sure wouldn’t do anything to holler for help from you guys!
Cris in NC on 04 Nov 2009 at 8:29 am #
debbie
That’s because we’re not sure you actually need help - I think you might be onto something.
How about a theme park - Arlo & Janis World or DayWood? There could be a Ludwig themed rollercoaster where you pass through scenes like the one where he knocked the vase over while the coaster micmics his movements…and, instead of a pirate ship, a swing like Arlo’s dream boat…a funhouse with Arlo’s PhotoShopped pictures. Jeeesh, maybe somebody should stop ME…
Jean from Dahlonega GA aka Trapper Jean on 04 Nov 2009 at 12:55 pm #
debbie-don’t look at me…I think you have come up with a great idea. We could dress as our favorite characters, and JJ could come as Bill from Paducah.
ursen on 05 Nov 2009 at 11:50 am #
Concerning drive in restaurants there is one in Huntington, WV,named Frost Top that has been in operation for over 35 years and still is crowded most of the time. Frost top even serves their root beer in frosted glass mugs still. It even has had the same sign for at least the last 35 years.
Rick in Shermantown, Ohio on 06 Nov 2009 at 5:35 am #
ursen:
Huntington, WV, and Charleston, WV, are two of the most beautiful cities in the mountain states. I always enjoy going to anywhere in West Virginia, but those two towns are my favorites.