My First Job at Lerner's in Downtown Providence

You had to be sixteen to be officially employed in a store in the early 60's. I took my first step in the working world at a department store in downtown Providence, R.I. I felt so grown up, dressing up, riding the bus, walking into a store that would open me up to the world of shoppers, hagglers, spenders, and fashion focused ladies.  Occasionally a gentleman would venture in, usually for a gift or on an errand for his wife. Men were always bigger spenders.  They just seem to want to buy and get out as quickly as possible.
It was a time in history when silk nylons came in square boxes, wrapped in tissue, sorted by size and color, all with unsightly seams down the back. They were attached with garter belts which had metal clips for fastening the top of the nylon. Every women who wore a pair of nylons asked the same question to her friends, "Are my seams straight?" Heaven forbid they looked like a curved highway.
I loved people and I loved selling. In fact I was somewhat of a star. There was one three fourth length checkered coat that came in and I fell in love with it. My passion translated to so many sales they they had to keep going to the back of the store  in the lay-away area and pull them out, just to keep up with me. I sometimes wonder if my long career in sales and marketing started right there in Lerner's Department Store.
I was the youngest on the staff, and quite green behind the ears. Since the older ones had in addition to their pay, a commission, they did not take kindly to my pursuit of a sale. Unlike them I was non aggressive and really wanted the customers to be happy. I think my co-workers came around and stuck to their regulars while I looked eagerly for fresh faces.
I met my first "foreigner" in the store. A lovely young girl from Columbia. She spoke little English and I was all to happy to help her. Another portent for my future of being around people from many countries and cultures. I developed a lovely friendship with her and met her family. Such nice people, like so many immigrants, starting a new life in the land of opportunity. There was opportunity every where you looked. You didn't have to "look" for a job, you just had to want one. There were signs in every window that read Help Wanted. With hard work you could start off as a worker bee and rise to the top. It was a time of great work ethics, and benevolent bosses. Corporate greed did not have it's nasty choke hold around everyone's life.
The first paycheck I received was so thrilling that I wanted to buy something special for my mom. I walked the downtown streets looking in the windows and feeling wealthy as a Rockefeller. My eyes fell on a beautiful, pink, crystal looking rosary bracelet displayed in a store window. That was the very first thing I bought with my new found wealth. I learned early the great joy of giving and my heart was singing all the way home on the bus. The gift was laid out stylishly in a delicate box and wrapped with tissue and a bow.
I ran into the house with my gift for mom. Her eyes lit up like a sky of diamonds, and her smile was like a blast of warmth from the oven of her heart. I was so elated and then looked around at all my siblings with their mouths opened and wondered how long it would take me to get through the list.

Louie's' Lemon Freeze

We were living in the small rural town of Harmony. The provincial village which dates back to the beginning of the 19th century was adjacent to a busy highway that started in Gloucester and ran to Putnam, Connecticut. It was called the Old Putnam Highway or Rt. 44. There was not a lot of traffic in those days so when my one sibling and I were playing in the yard we could hear a car coming from a long way, it's tires growling at the surface and then fading into the distance. We wondered with our little minds what was off in the distance. Our imaginations could conjure up all sorts of things, but we didn't take long to get back to playing in the wooded yard and listening for the next whisk of tires. I particularly remember that along side the road were tall wooden poles that had electric wires strung from one to another. There were small posts that were markers for people to find your house since addresses could be a pole number. Life was uncluttered then, few cars, few neighbors, and lots of trees.
We did have a neighbor who lived in a trailer across the way. His name was Louie. He lived alone, wore old dungarees, a checkered shirt, and always smelled like pipe smoke. He tended a small garden which grew copious amounts of tomatoes and cukes which he generously shared. On occasion  he would  bring us over the most delicious treat called Lemon Freeze. He made it in ice cube trays and our taste buds exploded with happiness when he shared his special recipe. I'm guessing he was lonely since I never saw any body visit him but our family always gave him a big welcome and enjoyed his visits as short as they were. It was a win win situation all around. Today he would probably be looked at askance but back then kindness and sharing was the order of the day.
When company came, mostly family, mostly unannounced, it was a treat. The car pulling in the driveway, the crunching sound beneath the wheels,aunts and uncles piling  out with cousins right behind them, ready to play and explore in our country setting. It was really a small rented house, my parent not long married and only two of us to share our toys and adventures. The old folks would sit around the "parlor" talking about the cost of bread, state of the union, and the latest Hollywood gossip. There always came a point in the conversations where they would discuss their aches and pains which amused us to no end, thinking to ourselves 'I'll never do that when I'm old.' Huh!
Families visited often then, partly because they lived in close proximity, there was far less formality, and adding another few meatballs in the sauce was no big deal. Family was important, it was tribal identification so inborn in all of us, it was the safety net for rainy days. We got to know our aunts, and cousins and they got to know us. Most families stayed in the same area because there were jobs to be had. What a difference a half century has made. People go were the jobs are, families are scattered all over the states and world. Aunts and Uncles have become sporadic names brought up in conversations and the connections that were so dear and constant are disappearing. The 50's decade was one of family dinners, family gatherings, cousins playing, spontaneous visits and a sense of community. I miss it. My children miss it, because now the Aunts and Uncles are all over the globe. Their children have to be very careful of strangers and dangers. A different world today, a different time.

#Comic Books, #50'S heroes

How well I remember the joy of Comic Books. Our first foray into the world of super heroes, fantasy, and wanna be adults. The girls were very partial to Betty and Veronica and we would lie face down on our beds, feet crossed in the air and study the clothes, hairstyles and lifestyles our our imaginary friends. It didn't stop there, the comic books were piled up in a corner, shared with friends in exchange for others like; Archie, Superman, Mega Man, Bat Man, Popeye, Jessie James, Toy Guns, and Sea Monkeys. Clearly the writers were geared to the male population but that was alright back then. It was in the days before equal opportunity, and sexual discrimination, and whatever other rights were being trampled upon.
For our part, young and guileless, we sucked everything we could out of these out of home stories. There was no hidden messages, or Sunday Sermons, or parental lectures embedded, just pure make believe.
I was always drawn to the back cover where offers of wonderful prizes were there for selling subscriptions to the magazine or some other product. It was truly the beginning of my career in sales. There was a microscope that I thought would make a great gift for my sibling so I signed on to sell the prescribed amount of Christmas Card boxes with thinking of the euphoria  when you are going to give something special to someone you love. I loved all my siblings and surprising them was like kindling for the fireplace of my heart. In our family there was no doling out of money to buy a gift for the family. You earned it, made it, or faked it. So much thought went into the process because each of us had our own interests and unique personality. One brother loved books, another building ship models, one was for physical activity, and my sisters were all into dolls, and toys. Mom and dad suffered the usual tie and cheap perfume gifts which they received with a great demonstration of happiness. After all is said and done that is what it was about, making others happy. Comic books gave me the possibility to enter into the world of earning prizes and rewards. Nothing has changed in the world today, we still prey fall to prizes and rewards from airline tickets, to credit cards, and numerous other offers of a free lunch.  I am not sure though, that we derive nearly as much satisfaction as before the days of good and plenty.

#Playing in the Woods #50'sChildhood play #Hide and Seek

There was nothing more thrilling than to leave the confines of the house and run into the woods outside of our home. To  us it was a veritable forest, but in truth it was probably a few acres of trees, brooks, and untrod-en paths. It meant for the Gabriel siblings adventure with a capital A. Most of the time I went barefoot, sometimes alone and sometimes for the sake of games, usually cowboys and Indians, with my brothers and sisters.
Alone I was an amazing Indian woman who could walk without making sounds. I could feel the gnarled roots of the giant trees underneath my feet. I could curl my toes to prevent from slipping on the green moss that grew abundantly by the brook. The brook was strewn with large rocks which I could step upon and reach the more remote areas of the woods. Oh yes, adventure everywhere I turned and my mind conjuring up who I was, and how nature was at my beck and call. I sometimes would find a grassy plain with occasional lumps of grass grown tall. I sat on them and imagined I was a queen on a throne. There was a copse of trees that bordered a river. One of the tree branches extended out over the river. I became a Columbus climbing up the tree and perusing the distant lands. Sometimes I would lay on the ground and watch the parade of clouds go by. There were trains, there were animals, there were ships and there were menacing dragons sticking out their tongues. I could handle it all because I was all powerful.
When all of us entered the woods we played hide and seek. I was clearly the most clever, in my mind of course. One person would close their eyes against a tree and the rest of us would scatter, finding the best hiding place we could. I remember once climbing a tree and after every one had been found they all conjured beneath the very tree I was hiding in. I was thrilled with my ingenious hiding place when suddenly a beast of prey hiding in the tree made a loud noise. I screamed and jumped down. "We won", they all shouted, "because you didn't stay put."
I looked at them and would not let it go. You all definitely did not win. That big bird in the tree did!                    

#Work Ethics and #Lemonade Stands #Childhood in the #50's. #work ethics, #lemonade stands, 3

Our work ethics were planted at a tender age. We siblings all had responsibilities and chores to perform every day. My own included washing dishes, washing clothes, hanging out clothes, bringing in clothes, and most of all baby sitting. My brothers' were more into the lifting, and yard work, and assisting dad in the more "manly" chores. I was a worker bee, although my creative nature and senior status allowed me to delegate to the younger ones while making them feel they were very lucky to have been "chosen". My oldest brother, on the other hand, was a money maker from the word go. He started a lawn mowing business and even hired a couple of kids from the neighborhood which he supervised. He supervised and they worked. A beautiful business formula. His pockets were always full of money. It was a precursor of what was to come. Looking back the elements of our future were all there. M, K and G all doodling and drawing with raw talent. R starting up businesses and making money, K loving drama, and me, always telling stories and creating plays with my siblings forced to act out. L was the youngest and she was probably trying to find her own niche in the power wielding forces about her. What I remember of D was his brute force. He was the muscle guy.
We certainly were a tribe, each vying for their own identity and power. I remember I was a bit of a general, because I was the eldest. That worked beautifully until my brothers were stronger than me, then I had to step back from my leadership position.
Between the chores, the little lemonade stands, the grass mowing business, selling for prizes on the back of the comic books, we were all learning the meaning of hard work and the value of money. Good lessons that fared us well in our adulthood. Lessons that not all of us passed on to our own children whom we wanted to  hand everything to on a silver platter. The pendulum swings both ways. Our children's generation were not so motivated and eager as we were. Let us see how this will influence their offspring. Every generation leaves its mark. Our parents generation was a good mark.

Childhood and the Elements #life in the 50's, #memories from the past

Childhood was a period when you spent a lot of time out in the elements. Walking to school, rain or shine, you stuck out your tongue to taste the rain, felt the splash of water on your face, smelled the moisture in the air, and delighted in stepping into the puddles, not around them. The yellow slickers with their clip buttons and the fireman hat were our uniforms for a wet day.
All your free time was spent outdoors so you became very familiar with the different hues of a single day. The sunny days offered you warmth or light, depending on the season. In summer you could smell the grass and the wild flowers that lined the roads and woods. You could feel the sun on your back when you played in the yard, or in the woods like we so often did. There were places that were considerably cooler because of a gurgling brook camouflaged with many trees, and then it went warm again in the open fields where the trees were sparsely scattered. You took that all in, but not in a conscious way, you felt it. It made you happy. It was childhood unencumbered by intellect.
Fall offered us as many sights and smells as the rest of the seasons. We would kick the leaves that fell lazily from the oak and maple trees. We would rake our big yard and make piles; then we would run at a fast clip and jump in. Laughing, rolling, picking leaves and twigs from our hair and mouth, we were always smiling.
My fondest memories were the winters. The arrival of a coming snow is announced with the wet smell of the air. You take big gulps willing the snow to appear then and now. It does. Big fat flakes, falling from the sky, from the big bucket above, coating everything white. It's all you can do to contain your excitement. Snow means snowmen, snow angels, forts and igloos, it means snowball fights with your brothers, and big footsteps in the snow from your boots. It means hats and scarfs and mittens. It means frozen toes, and wet socks, and red cheeks and noses. Your oblivious to the discomfort because you have not yet entered the world of element resistance. It's all there for you to enjoy, and taste and feel. When you finally come in, it's hot cocoa, mittens on the radiators, and tired bodies. We worked very hard at our play.
Childhood was magical no matter what the season. Our minds were uncluttered. We lived in the elements and loved every minute of it.

#Valentines Day in the #50's

Who could forget Valentines' Day in the 50's, I was in the third grade. It was dead winter. The steam radiators where hissing like a room full of cats. The windows were all steamed up and we sat at our polished wooden desks with our eyes glued on the two boxes at the front of the room. One was decorated with hearts and cupids and frilly lace. That was the box for the girls. The other box was less blatant but the hearts and cupids were there in out loud color. We had been filling the boxes for the past week and now the day had arrived when the cards would be delivered. In those days popularity played a big role. There was no mandate that everyone in the class should give everyone a card. That could cause some trepidation and angst for the less well liked students. 

What do you know about life in the third grade. Only that you want lots of cards, and each message has enormous significance to you. Just as you chose the card with the the right message for your friends, you suspect they put as much due diligence in choosing your card. Each packet of Valentines came with a teacher card. My third grade teacher was not nice, and in my child's perception, she was downright mean. I found a card that stated on the front "I think you are awful, awful and so on all over the card until you opened it up and you were to paste in a heart that said "awful nice". Oh, how I was tempted to leave that summation off, but even then I knew the power of a teacher versus a little tot. I succumbed to a higher power. 

When the cards were delivered to our desks we put them into our satchels to take home. Cupcakes with vanilla frosting and little sprinkles on top, candy hearts with messages, donated by the parents, were passed around and the school bell rang loud and shrill as we vacated our desks and headed for the doors. The wood floors were as gleaming as a pond of ice on a starry night, and our footsteps sounded like a herd of buffalo on a western plain. Images, sounds, feelings all stored up in some back closet of our minds.

Once home we took out each valentine and read the message over and over looking for a hidden meaning, a secret admirer or real pal. It was all mysterious and we were amateur sleuths putting the clues together. At the end of a sweet day we looked around for the heart shaped box of chocolates that was mom's booty and shared in her good fortune.