December 30, 2008
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the sunday paper
Growing up, from about the ages of 6-13 I always had a paper route with my two older brothers. Six days a week we would rubber band and deliver the papers ourselves, rain or shine, in sickness and in health, uphill both ways...you get the picture. And I remember how the rubber bands would sting if they broke on your hand and how the ink would blacken your hands after rolling up a dozen or so papers. Six days a week we'd do the paper route ourselves, yet Sundays our dad would usually help us out. Apparently there wasn't a lot of news in our town until the weekends, as the Sunday paper was always guaranteed to be huge. Because of this, our dad's help was always appreciated as we sat in the foyer together, puffy-eyed and tired, adding inserts and stuffing the forty-some "Daily Courier" newspapers into weatherproof bags. Then we'd load them into the back of our old, beat up yet reliable Oldsmobile station wagon. The back door of the station wagon could fold down so we would sit on it, and as he drove slowly down the street we'd hop off and deliver the mountain of Sunday papers until it had gradually disappeared. Sitting on the fold-down door like that probably wasn't safe or even legal but the paper route was finished in record-breaking time. Afterwards we'd almost always drive to Rollin' Donuts and relax a bit after the early morning of hard work. To this day I still haven't had a better apple fritter. It's amazing to me how moments like this, when I was a child, seemed like they would last forever. But now, twenty years later, I sometimes wonder where the time has gone. I am thankful for these memories and the things I learned from them as rmembering them helps me to appreciate the time now that I get to share with those I love.
What's one of your childhood memories?
Comments (67)
I used to run under a tree at my summer camp and the other day I was remembering playing under it and looking at the leaves..
@RamblingAngels - Nice ah i remember summer camp for sure.
I remember freezing to death on top of the hill waiting for those yellow blinking lights to come signaling the bus was arriving.The bus was late 45 minutes one time. We arrived to school sometime during first period.
to a fellow paper boy that ink infuses ino the blood the smell of ink and paper..of mine a large metro area then off to the country on saturday, dad ,me the 100's of papers..serene and the best smell i knew.. ha thanks for the memories ignited peace
great post and a great new year to you!
@MCTCanadian - ah sounds freezing! Happy New Year friend. Pete
@jstickmann - With newspapers dying these days I think the paperboy may be a thing of the past. Kinda sad in a way, but things change. Happy New Year! Pete
what a lovely memory.
my sister and i made blanket forts when there was a blizzard. we'd bring in our stuffed animals, flashlights, pillows, and a lamp, and start reading under the blankets. my mom would come into our fort with a mug of hot cocoa for each of us and begin telling us her days as a child.
i had a paper route too. i would give out the sales papers on saturdays instead of sunday cause it was too big if i didnt. im sure the people liked seeing the sales before they happened so they could plan ahead anyways =] good times
That's incredibly sweet, Pete.
I bet you'll carry those memories till you cross over into Heaven. 
@lovesporks - That's an awesome memory as well.
Happy New Year! Pete
@bella_esperanza@revelife - Thanks much for the kind words. Happy New Year! Pete
@Viewtiful_Justin - Happy New Year my friend.
@A_Kick_In_The_Face - haha nice. I'm sure they appreciated that!
Funny how the memories from the past that involved work are some of the most memorable. It's being together with the ones you love that are so special.
@ilovemy2babyboys - I agree. Thanks for stopping by my site! Pete
Aw, that's a cute story. I'm only 19 so my childhood memories aren't so old yet.
The last day of eighth grade, we "revolted" at recess and did everything we could think to do that would have been non socially acceptable our eight years at that school. It started with us sampling every activity the playground had to offer, every sport we'd ever participated in at recess. When we ran out of those kinds of things, we did rediculous things like joining hands around trees and singing or sitting on the tether ball and pushing each other around the pole. A bunch of the "little kids" started copying us until the whole school was pretty much running wild. It was a great culmination of 8 years in grade school.
Pete, what delightfully nostalgic memories you have! Your work as a paper boy must have given you great work habits which will stand you in good stead all your life long. And you learned the great secret of teamwork with your brothers and your dad! During my teen years we had a dairy farm in the Fraser Valley. With my two brothers nearest in age to me, we also had an unbeatable team milking cows first thing in the morning and again when we got home from school in the late afternoon. I also have nostalgic memories and recall my dad saying years later that he never could have "made a go" of the farm if it had not been for us boys!
Thank you so much for sharing your own priceless memories!
I distinctly remember asking my parents for "Call of Duty" on the PC. I had no clue if it was going to be any good, but the trailer looked good so I took a lucky guess. I didnt have a computer of my own at the time, so I got my sister's permission to install it on hers, and it ran without a hitch even though it was an old POS. I remember it being one of the best single player campaigns I've ever played in a videogame. Nowadays, the newer Call of Duty games just dont compare with the quality of the story presented in the original Call of Duty game. I cant even run the newer games on my own gaming computer unless I turn all the settings down.
lol, in all seriousness, I have plenty of my own nostalgic memories from when I was a kid. Thanks for this post, it certainly brings back memories.
aw that's such a cute memory! i have soo many childhood memories i can't even begin to write about them.
@Grampa_David - Thanks as always for the kind words and encouragement. Happy New Year to you and yours. Many blessings.. Pete
@jesusmoshes2 - Thanks for the feedback! Love your screen name by the way.
@kaitlyn_in_wonderland - Thanks for stopping by.
@cApNhOwDy - No prob. Thanks for the feedback. The new Call of Duty is great, btw.
@pedrothepoet - Agreed, I love the multiplayer. The 4-hour single player campaign bugs me though.
great details
@RaccoonEyed - Thanks! Appreciate it.
As a cynic, it's easiest for me to remember the time my mother tied me to a tree so she could garden without worrying about me wandering off or a host of other repressive acts forced upon me. If I fairly reviewed my early childhood, though, I'd remember long summer days of following in my older brother's footsteps. He was four years my senior, but tolerated me well enough to allow my participation in softball games, King of the Mountain, and countless variations of tag. He taught me how to play like a boy, so that I wouldn't always hit like a girl. Truthfully, he had a large part in shaping who I am today. We don't talk very much these days, but he never misses an opportunity to remind me what an annoying little sister I have always been.
This is a really sweet entry. One of my childhood memories is climbing my neighbor's fence to get to the weeping willow. After I finally managed to get there, I'd grab some vines and swing into my yard. My siblings and I always tried to see who could land the furthest.
that's a nice memory
one of my favorite memories is going to the beach in the morning with my grandparents when we lived in hk
Nice memory. (:
For me, it would be... sitting around gazing at the clouds with school friends. Boy do I miss them.
@Automaton_Emotion - Some of my memories weren't so fond growing up as well. But some definitely stand out as being positive, as you said. Thanks for the feedback!
@DreamBoxx - Very nice. Thanks for readin'
@TiRocKiinPiinK - Ah I remember those trees. Though I got a tick from one of them and it scared me to swing anymore haha.
Every Sunday, after church, we would run thru KFC and pick up a bucket of chicken and head up to the local retirement/assisted living home for the elderly and disabled. My papa (grandfather) would preach a sermon and me and my sisters would sing songs for them.
I was a paperboy from the ages of 6-15. It is funny because I thought I was the only one who started that young and did it for such a long time.
I remember taking a spur of the moment drive with my dad. We eventually ended up eating ice cream bars at a small-town store's food counter. We didn't know ourselves where we were going but somehow my mom did, and called us there. Mom radar!!!
Great story! I used to go sledding every winter on the golf course across from my parents' house... good fun.
i am a child
@MCTCanadian - that happens to me like every other week.
its pretty annoying, especially when its raining and i straightened my hair :[
Wish we had paper routes over here.
what i most remeber about my childhood is where i lived. i loved africa more than anything and was sad to leave at age six. i loved the smell of the mapel trees in our backyard/ the forest. going to the club at night and ordering drinks by the pool. never having to worry about how cold it was, it was always the same temprature all year round. a specif memory would be when our maid kidnapped me but thats not a good one. a good one would have to be how Rosie was so fascinated that everytime i'd fall i'd start laughing not full out blow crying like other kids. falling down two flights of stairs was always entertaning becasue i'd usually laugh after.those were some good memories.
great post and a great new year to you
@duckliy543 - Thanks for the feedback. Africa sounds like a beautiful place.
@TheTheologiansCafe - U beat me by 2 years haha. Yeah that is a young age to start for sure, though I had the help of my older brothers initially..
My mom always asked me to take my afternoon nap as a kid...and I seldom took them. How could I sleep? The most fun part of the day was the afternoon, what with all the sun and warmth, and my mom hanging up the clothes to dry, leaving me unsupervised to do whatever I want!
WISHING YOU ALL WHO VIEW THIS SITE A VERY VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009,AND MAY YOU BE BLESSED ABNDANTLY IN THE SPIRIT OF OR SWEET LORD JESUS CHRIST.
WITH LOTS OF LOVE FROM SELF AND FAMILY....
HAVE A GREAT YEAR 2009
Congratulations Pete on Xanga Front Page! One of my favorite childhood memories was when my dad would take me rollerskating on Saturdays. I HATED it and was terrible at it, but he kept making me go till i loved it, then he bought the rollerskating business and we ran it from when i was in third grade till i was in college!
I work for a newspaper company where I live as a manager to the newspaper carriers.
I love reminiscing. I think a favorite memory of mine was going to my grandparents' house and knowing that they'd always have a pack of Clorets gum and/or Certs for me to eat while I was there. I don't think I've ever eaten either besides what I got from their house..
This is such a sweet post. What a great childhood memory.
Man, the idol time I spent growing up in Shanghai has given me so many memories that I can hardly begin to describe them.
But thank you for sharing =]]
I remember making 'cakes' out of dirt water sand and the berries we picked off my cousin's trees.
I have so many childhood memories. I was an Air Force brat, so I travelled alot! I remember when I live in Nebraska, my dad and I used to sit and watch the thunderstorms. My dad and I are really close and I always treasure moments like these. I don't talk much, but I love the prescence of just sitting and being with someone you love.
@derektb - Nice man! Thanks for sharing. Happy New Year. Pete
@Barroba - Thank much! Happy New Year and belated Merry Christmas to you as well. Pete
@VanillaIceShavings00 - Thanks for the kind words.
great post, great memories. :]
my favorite memory is sitting on my Grandma's back porch, sitting in the hot summer sun, and getting all sticky from sweating and eating fudge sicles. I just remember talking and talking and talking to my Grandma, for hours on end, about anything and everything. It's the one memory I have tucked away, and I don't want to forget.
You know, I always wanted a paper route, but never did have one...
I grew up on the outskirts of town and we had chickens, so it was always fun going out back and hanging out with my chicken brethren. Henry, a Rhode Island Red, was king of the barnyard, until the younger, cockier Sylvester (or Sly) came into the picture. Sly got into a fight with Henry and Henry was too "chicken" to go back into the barn so he slept outside in the evergreens until he eventually died. My favorite was Jamal. He was never really "accepted" by the other chickens, but he always seemed to enjoy my company.
I remember my brother coercing me into playing astronauts with him... we used walkie talkies to communicate and I was mission control & he was always the one going on space walks. No fair! Still makes for a good memory though
Great blog
Great entry. I never did anything grueling like that in my childhood to look back upon.
Getting raped.
@youngvan - Thanks much
@PsychedelicBreakfast - Nice story! Thanks for reading. Pete
@hannuuuuh - Great memory, thanks for sharing! Pete
Great write Pete. Nice childhood memory. Judi
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