| Notes |
residence jt:
- 20180928HAv-
From: Jeannette Buck
Sent: Friday, September 28, 2018 3:15 PM
Subject: This Week
I made a quick grocery run recently, as I usually do about once a week. I drove to the nearest town, picked up a few of my regular items, which always includes at least one package of Oreos and enjoyed a visit with a couple of friends. As I turned down main street on my way home my mind and heart were suddenly filled with memories.
Since there was a well-stocked general store in Gold when I was growing up, my parents rarely had a reason to go any farther away to shop. However, now and then, Mom would want to look for something at her Uncle Dorr Lehman’s store over in Ulysses and usually Dad was in need of a hair cut.
Aunt Hazel Lehman helped her husband run their store that sat on the corner of Main Street and Rt. 49. Aunt Chloe VanEtten was Aunt Hazel’s sister and her husband Ike was the town barber. His shop and their home stood just up the street. Aunt Chloe worked in the post office, which was right next door to the barber shop.
So, although there were practical reasons for making the trip we referred to as “going over town”, the best part of all, of course, were the visits we all anticipated.
The store that was once filled with a fascinating mix of almost anyone’s wants and necessaries has been a restaurant for years. The home that belonged to the Lehmans was purchased by others. On those long ago visits however, we were welcomed there as we ran up onto the porch with hugs and laughter as well as the fresh cookies that Aunt Hazel always seemed to have waiting in her kitchen.
The barber shop and the house to which it was adjoined has been gone, lost in a fire, for some time. I have no knowledge of architecture, but I suspect that the VanEtten home was one of the earlier buildings in town. The shop was on the right of the building with the living area extended to the left. The front steps led to a broad porch that was as welcoming as open arms. The wide front door with narrow windowed panels on either side opened into a cozy and comforting living room. To the left was a parlor, although it was not as formal or as imposing as parlors in other homes often seemed to be.
To the right of the entrance was the dining room from which a wide staircase led to the second floor. For some reason, it always surprised me as a child that from the kitchen one could slip through a door and enter the barber shop and what seemed to me to be an entirely different world.
The VanEttens had no children of their own and we were always welcomed with warmth and laughter. While Uncle Ike trimmed Dad’s hair in the shop Mom would enjoy the visit with her aunt. Uncle Ike was almost always laughing and teasing as he brought Dad into the living room from the shop.
I can not remember one word that was spoken during any of those visits with either couple. However, I can see each of the aunts as well as the uncles slap their knees with delight when something struck them funny and I can hear their unrestrained laughter.
I took them so much for granted when I was a child. However, as time has gone by, I have come to deeply cherish the memories and the love those wonderful people shared each time we made the trip “over town”.
Issue, jt:
- 20180928HAv-
From: Jeannette Buck
Sent: Friday, September 28, 2018 3:15 PM
Subject: This Week
I made a quick grocery run recently, as I usually do about once a week. I drove to the nearest town, picked up a few of my regular items, which always includes at least one package of Oreos and enjoyed a visit with a couple of friends. As I turned down main street on my way home my mind and heart were suddenly filled with memories.
Since there was a well-stocked general store in Gold when I was growing up, my parents rarely had a reason to go any farther away to shop. However, now and then, Mom would want to look for something at her Uncle Dorr Lehman’s store over in Ulysses and usually Dad was in need of a hair cut.
Aunt Hazel Lehman helped her husband run their store that sat on the corner of Main Street and Rt. 49. Aunt Chloe VanEtten was Aunt Hazel’s sister and her husband Ike was the town barber. His shop and their home stood just up the street. Aunt Chloe worked in the post office, which was right next door to the barber shop.
So, although there were practical reasons for making the trip we referred to as “going over town”, the best part of all, of course, were the visits we all anticipated.
The store that was once filled with a fascinating mix of almost anyone’s wants and necessaries has been a restaurant for years. The home that belonged to the Lehmans was purchased by others. On those long ago visits however, we were welcomed there as we ran up onto the porch with hugs and laughter as well as the fresh cookies that Aunt Hazel always seemed to have waiting in her kitchen.
The barber shop and the house to which it was adjoined has been gone, lost in a fire, for some time. I have no knowledge of architecture, but I suspect that the VanEtten home was one of the earlier buildings in town. The shop was on the right of the building with the living area extended to the left. The front steps led to a broad porch that was as welcoming as open arms. The wide front door with narrow windowed panels on either side opened into a cozy and comforting living room. To the left was a parlor, although it was not as formal or as imposing as parlors in other homes often seemed to be.
To the right of the entrance was the dining room from which a wide staircase led to the second floor. For some reason, it always surprised me as a child that from the kitchen one could slip through a door and enter the barber shop and what seemed to me to be an entirely different world.
The VanEttens had no children of their own and we were always welcomed with warmth and laughter. While Uncle Ike trimmed Dad’s hair in the shop Mom would enjoy the visit with her aunt. Uncle Ike was almost always laughing and teasing as he brought Dad into the living room from the shop.
I can not remember one word that was spoken during any of those visits with either couple. However, I can see each of the aunts as well as the uncles slap their knees with delight when something struck them funny and I can hear their unrestrained laughter.
I took them so much for granted when I was a child. However, as time has gone by, I have come to deeply cherish the memories and the love those wonderful people shared each time we made the trip “over town”.
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