Comments on Chuck Woodbury's Roadside Journal: The flyswatter repairman at the Texaco station

I hate to say it and I was NOT an adult, but in 19...

2009-03-16T17:13:00.000-07:00

I hate to say it and I was NOT an adult, but in 1948 I had my picture published in the Winnipeg Tribune in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada (home of the Polar Bears in Churchill Manitoba).

The caption was "david ingram" has the last 5 cent Coca Cola. a family friend, Henry Kreutzer was a big time Coke Man and that was how I ended up in the paper instead of his son Glenn who became my best friend and died July 29, 2007.

So like the 5 cent coke, may Glenn also RIP

david ingram taxman@centa.com proud possessor of a 1979 33 foot Diplomat made in Lethbridge Albera and a great copy of a 33 foot Apollo - complete with a Dodge M600 chassis with 250,000 miles on an original unopened Dodge 440 IV although it has had 4 transmissions. we call her DE DUCK TABLE amd she has been in 42 states and all ten provinces and one territory from Homer Alaska to St John's Newfoundland, only missed those few states down in the south east corner and they were always going to be next year.

And I have never met anyone who has even seen a flyswatter repairman let alone being inthe same room. What an honor.

The year was two thousand. I was pulling a 1973 a...

2009-03-16T10:34:00.000-07:00

The year was two thousand. I was pulling a 1973 airstream behind a 96 suburban. I had my mom and dad (in their seventies) and my Daniel and Stella (in single digits). I was coming up on Bishop, CA and saw this perfect picture of grassy fields separated by barbed wire fences with rustic posts running perpendicular to the road and toward the big brown hills in the background. Ther was a crow sitting on every post and the sun was coming in at the perfect angle. I didn't turn the rig around and take a photo. Have regretted it for a decade. The other regret was the next summer, same companions, I didn't stop in Tillamook ORegon and visit the Air Museum. It would have been the highlight of the trip for Dad.
But we did alot of other fun stuff.

Everyone is worried about going green, nowadays. ...

2009-03-15T11:32:00.000-07:00

Everyone is worried about going green, nowadays. Wasn't 12-25 cent gas a real green event? I had a "Whizzer" pedal bike, a one lung motor that turned the back wheel with a v-belt. I would "fill-up" with 25 cents once a week. Sometimes I would put in a dime's worth of gas because I was going to see my girlfriend that week. Oh yeah, we used to WALK to the movies!

Take that Al GOre!

Great stories..Thanks.

Hi fellow R VRs I also remer the 5 cent Cokes &a...

2009-03-15T08:17:00.000-07:00

Hi fellow R VRs I also remer the 5 cent Cokes & the frozer candy bars Also the times when you would fill the gas tank for less than a dollar & get free fancy glasses or another gift Wow i am showing my age. Well keep on traveling & have fun.

And now I know the rest of the story....while in B...

2009-03-14T09:36:00.000-07:00

And now I know the rest of the story....while in Branson, MO I saw a baggie of water on the front door of the Dunkin Donuts store, and regretted not asking about it.

Hey Chuck...another thing to wonder is "Was it a r...

2009-03-14T08:43:00.000-07:00

Hey Chuck...another thing to wonder is "Was it a right or left handed flyswatter"? hmmmm
By the way, I remember cokes at a nickel and the coke machines that had that big silver knob that you put all your weight on to push it down and a small bottle of coke would flopped down and we'd empty the caps out and put them all around our home made scooters made out of 2x4's and my sisters' roller skate wheels, nailed down on the bottom. Those caps really 'tricked out' my ride...heh! 57 years young
Great posts here!

Thanks everybody for the great comments! You are f...

2009-03-12T21:45:00.000-07:00

Thanks everybody for the great comments! You are fascinating people and your comments are fascinating to read. -- Chuck

While we remember 5, 10, or 15 cent cokes, and 13,...

2009-03-12T20:57:00.000-07:00

While we remember 5, 10, or 15 cent cokes, and 13, 28 cent gas, one day our grandchildren will be saying, "I can remember when cokes only cost $2.29 and gas was only $6.00 a gallon"
Life moves on and the Corps CEOs get richer!
And RVers keep having fun!!

You young whippersnapper! I remember coke at 5 cen...

2009-02-28T21:37:00.000-08:00

You young whippersnapper! I remember coke at 5 cents. Also, gas at 13 cents - if your gas ration card would allow you to buy. Of course, every now and then the Rainbow gas station on the edge of town would start a price war by dropping prices to 12 cents

I also can remember nickel cokes and one time, cro...

2009-02-28T17:40:00.000-08:00

I also can remember nickel cokes and one time, crossing Arizona on Rt. 66, free gas, you only had to pay the state tax. Wow, what a gas war. Those were the good ol' days.

I remember seeing fly swatters that were made with...

2009-02-28T11:00:00.000-08:00

I remember seeing fly swatters that were made with a light weight wire for the handle (similar to a wire clothes hanger) in a long thin loop and a square of window screen material. The screen square was fixed to the square shaped end of the handle with a material much like hem tape. So the old gent was probably replacing the screen and securing with fresh tape sewn on.
Also, I remember 6 oz coke that cost 5 cents, and I did not have the 5 cents. Yikes, I just discovered that my keyboard has no cents symbol. Proof that a penny isn't so much now?

And even better...
When I was a kid, you had to...

2009-02-28T10:25:00.000-08:00

And even better...
When I was a kid, you had to plunge your hand through ice cold water in a Coca Cola Ice Box to pull out the bottles. The water was from the melting 30 lb blocks of ice to keep it cold.
Oh, and the cost was only 5 cents.

1947 or so.

Chuck, thanks for the Newsletter.

I am not ...

2009-02-28T10:19:00.000-08:00

Chuck, thanks for the Newsletter.

I am not old :) but I remember gas at .22/gal. I think Camels were .25/pack. Geezzzz, I'm depressed now.

When I was a young man working as a Deputy Sheriff...

2009-02-28T09:30:00.000-08:00

When I was a young man working as a Deputy Sheriff in Law Enforcement, we were trained to ‘never pass a crime in progress’. This did not sink in with me until one day, while I was en route to my patrol area outside the city limits, in the County, I noticed some suspicious activity occurring. Because this was inside the City limits, and without thinking about the aforementioned mantra, I got on the radio and reported the suspicious activity to our dispatch and advised the operator to notify the City Police to respond. The matter was forgotten by me until my shift ended and I was in de-briefing at my station. I was the joke of the day with all of the other officers because I had pulled a rookie mistake!

The truth of the matter is that once you pass an activity, even if you return immediately, the event has passed (in this case the thieves had taken off with their booty) and you will never relive the same event again. In this instance, I did nothing to stop the crime in progress and make an arrest, and; the City Police had to respond and take a theft report from the victim.

The moral of the story is that I like you, realize and understand the error of my ways and now take the time to stop and enjoy the small things in life. Life is not a schedule, it is an event to be recognized and enjoyed at every opportunity.

Happy RV’ing!

Chuck,
You and your readers must be younger tha...

2009-02-28T08:57:00.000-08:00

Chuck,
You and your readers must be younger than I am and I don't feel that old. As a kid in Saskatoon, Sask, Canada I would go with my dad to Martens Service station 8 miles north of S'toon. Pump gas with the lever and go inside, get a Coke and an O'Henry bar,7 cents for the Coke and 5 cents for the bar. Today my sugar would be out of whack with those treats. Wish I hadn't sold my Dodge XTC 20' motorhome. Ah well so it goes. Airplane Al

Just to make you feel better, I remember when Coke...

2009-02-28T08:18:00.000-08:00

Just to make you feel better, I remember when Coke was a dime! So, you know some of your readers are older than you are!
Glad to hear that you're feeling better. Love your column!

You missed the opportunity of a life time. Sometim...

2009-02-28T05:46:00.000-08:00

You missed the opportunity of a life time. Sometimes in life turning around pays big dividens.When out side od Branson Mo.I went to a cafe with a friend. A baggie of water was hung on each screen door(2) If I hadn't turned around I would have never known that the baggie of water magnifies the flys eye and drives them away... No fly swatters needed here.Thanks for your unique observations on RV life

Sounds like you could turn this into a great ghost...

2009-02-28T04:43:00.000-08:00

Sounds like you could turn this into a great ghost story for when you are sitting around the fire by your RV. Great story, Chuck! Always enjoy what you have to say! Thanks for the publications.