Thursday, May 1, 2008

You Can't Eat Ice Cream When You're Mad!



I've discovered that it is almost impossible to eat ice cream while you are mad. Well, you can't stay mad when you eat ice cream. Something about that gentle coolness, the creamy texture, maybe a chocolate chip or two, that just deflates that anger in moments! We become children again, on a hot summer day, perhaps with a cone of our favorite flavor. Lapping up the drizzle as it melts before it hits our hand. Savoring the delicious taste, sometimes with just a hint of a different flavor from the previous scoop....
Ice cream was a big treat for us when I was growing up. It was an after dinner/before bedtime treat at home. Once or twice a month in the summer, we would all pile into the back of my grandfathers pick-up truck and take the ride to Four Seas Ice Cream shop. (No, we never fell out, nor got hurt by riding back there. Of course he didn't drive much over 25mph) Back in those days, my favorite was Butter Crunch, my mothers was Peppermint, my grandmothers was Pistacchio. My brother always got something different, and you never knew if he was going to like it or not. We would have ice cream licking contests and contests to see who could make their cone the smallest without destroying it. It was a time for stories, laughter, and a time for connecting with family. For a few years, my mother made ice cream in an old churn style maker, it was the sweetest vanilla ice cream I've ever eaten. Now I'm partial to Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia. Whenever the stresses of the day weigh too heavily or perhaps I'm a bit bent out of shape over some minor upset; you can be sure to find me with my bowl and spoon, peering into the depths of my freezer, in search of a scoop of medicine for the soul!

5 comments:

  1. Do you ever read any Luanne Rice novels? She writes about your area of the country and makes it sound so wonderful, beautiful and magical. She mentions some place where everyone goes to eat - including ice cream, although I cannot think of the name of the place. Your picture reminds me of the mental image I get when reading her stories. Your memories just add to my need to visit the East Coast.

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  2. Oh Yes Ice Cream the great memory reviver. I love black walnut.Rick

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  3. Ah! Ice cream therapy... WHAT a concept! ;-)

    I have a VERY small freezer, which is part of the territory that comes with living in an RV. That said, there's still (a) a half-eaten pint of Cherry Garcia, (b) an unopened (as yet) pint of Chunky Monkey, and (c) two Drumsticks in said freezer. And not much else!

    Yum.

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  4. I love all of it. Some of the best memories I have of my childhood was on Sunday's my dad would make homemade Ice Cream. I would help him hand turn the Ice Cream Maker. Those were the days!

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  5. I'll never forget that when we were kids, my Dad used to think that he had to help us out if our ice cream cones were dripping. He would take them away from us long enough to lick the sides clean again. The worst though was if we got a soft serve from Dairy Queen with the little loop on top & he took the first bite before handing it to us & ate that loop right off!! That was just WRONG!

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