Monthly Archives: February 2019

Fels-Naphtha Soap

Posted on February 27, 2019 by Roger Walck

My mother always had an ancient, orange, swayback bar of Fels-Naphtha soap near the laundry tubs. It always sat beside the box of Rinso. So did my wife’s Japanese-American mother. It was meant for laundry, but we used it on … Continue reading →

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Radio Dramas

Posted on February 25, 2019 by Roger Walck

(This is a recently discovered, old article that was never published.) Do you miss the old radio dramas? You could listen as you did other things: get dressed in the morning, empty the dishwasher, wash the car, whatever. But the … Continue reading →

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Back To Philly!

Posted on February 22, 2019 by Roger Walck

The Old System: (This section  is just for background, so you can skip it if you need to.) For the past several years, I often took the SEPTA train from Marcus Hook into Philly on my own just to explore … Continue reading →

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Antiques Roadshow Thoughts

Posted on February 20, 2019 by Roger Walck

I love watching PBS’s Antiques Roadshow. I love it when the expert says that item picked up years ago at a flea market for a few dollars is an early Tiffany that would easily get $10,000 at an auction. Almost … Continue reading →

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It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

Posted on February 17, 2019 by Roger Walck

I was watching this old movie (four “Mads”) on TV last night. I call such movies Dead People Movies because everyone in it, even the youngest, has long since died. The movie was made in 1963, and I think it … Continue reading →

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What TV House Hunters Find Important

Posted on February 15, 2019 by Roger Walck

Those home-search TV shows are my last-resort shows to watch when I can find nothing else (which is happening more frequently lately). These are the ones where a couple is looking to move to a new location, often a vacation … Continue reading →

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Vocabulary: Pickelhaupt

Posted on February 13, 2019 by Roger Walck

(Vocabulary postings are words or phrases I recently came across in reading, did not fully understand, looked up, and discovered something new.) What is the name of the WWI spiked helmet worn by the German army? A: Pickelhaupt, which literally … Continue reading →

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Auntie and Her Shimmy

Posted on February 10, 2019 by Roger Walck

This title is deceiving. There was nothing provocative about Auntie, not even her shimmy. She was no Auntie Mame. The Auntie I mean was my spinster great aunt, Florence Price, who lived in an upstairs back room of my grandparents … Continue reading →

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Jean Shepherd’s Creeping Meatballism And the Night People

Posted on February 8, 2019 by Roger Walck

I pick a can of Coke from the refrigerator and printed on one entire side is “Share a Coke with your BFF.” Okay, maybe that idea was first presented at some ad agency meeting when “BFF” was a hip word … Continue reading →

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Walking In the Street

Posted on February 6, 2019 by Roger Walck

I have always been surprised to see people in my neighborhood walking in the street when the sidewalk is available just a few steps away. We have many walkers. Some drive from other neighborhoods just to walk in our neighborhood, … Continue reading →

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