Like the rest of the East coast we have had a lot of rain ! First Irene, and followed by storm after storm. Truly remarkable. There has been some flooding. A local contractor asked me if I had time to assist an elderly lady here in town. He was so busy with all his trouble calls he just didn't have time for everybody. It was to be a simple task. Replace her sump pump which had failed. No problem, I took the job.
I met this lady, Mrs Todd. She is a kind lady and all alone. Her husband had passed away eight years ago and her children do not live near by. As you can imagine she was quite upset. Her basement had flooded as a result of the pump failure. She is on a fixed income and was concerned with the cost off repairs. Her additional problem was the basement was full of stuff. Most of this stuff was now wet and worthless. Her husband used to go to auctions and buy lots of stuff. For what purpose I did not ask. All this stuff needed to be removed and thrown away. I couldn't just walk away from this so I agreed to help with that problem as well. Payment would be, " whatever you think is fair,Mrs. Todd. " I'm a push over for the elderly. Arrangements were made and the cleanup began. She did say if there is anything you want,you can have it. She pointed out the items she wanted to keep and the rest is up for grabs. Most of this stuff was in cardboard boxes. The boxes were wet. Every item had to be picked up piece by piece and put into trash bags or another box. Ninety eight per cent of this stuff was just junk. Items left at the end of the auction that nobody wanted. It was bundled together and sold in a lot to Mr. Todd. Used playing cards,bingo chips,candles,empty jars,novelty kitchen timers,paper back books and the list goes on and on.
As I was sorting through this pile of stuff, there,in the back corner was an old lunch box. I opened it up and to my surprise the thermos bottle was still inside. All the pieces are there. Even the glass liner is intact. Memories came flooding back. I immediately thought of my father. He carried one that looked exactly like this one to work at the factory. When I was little he worked for the Smith Meal Company. This factory processed fish for various industrial uses. Locally,for reasons I do not know, it was called promise land. The area were this plant stood is still called that today. The smell associated with that operation came back as well. It is a smell that if you ever experienced it, you will not forget it. That's a promise ! Maybe that is why it was called promise land.
I asked Mrs. Todd if I might have that lunch box. She said I certainly could. I brought it home as a treasure. The adage one mans junk is another mans treasure applies perfectly in this situation. It is a treasure to me. Just holding it and seeing it brings back so many good memories. I remember my Mom making coffee to fill the thermos with. She would make it in a sauce pan on the kitchen stove and carefully pour it into the thermos bottle. This was way before Mr. Coffee so instant coffee was used. Grandma used a percolator but Mom did not. It was instant Maxwell house until Mr. Coffee arrived on the scene.
Also the smell of waxed paper and tuna fish come to mind. Dad must have taken tuna fish sandwiches I guess. An apple or banana might also be found in there. All that was fifty years ago. Holding that old rusty lunch box, Dad always called it a lunch bucket, transported me back. I figure it is my reward for helping out an elderly lady. All rewards are not monetary. Money is soon gone but good deeds last forever.
The job is done. The basement is cleaned out and the new sump pump doing its' job. Mrs. Todd is pleased with the work that was done and the price was a fair one. I got a treasure out of it. This lunch " bucket " is on display in my kitchen. A reminder to me of times gone by.
I met this lady, Mrs Todd. She is a kind lady and all alone. Her husband had passed away eight years ago and her children do not live near by. As you can imagine she was quite upset. Her basement had flooded as a result of the pump failure. She is on a fixed income and was concerned with the cost off repairs. Her additional problem was the basement was full of stuff. Most of this stuff was now wet and worthless. Her husband used to go to auctions and buy lots of stuff. For what purpose I did not ask. All this stuff needed to be removed and thrown away. I couldn't just walk away from this so I agreed to help with that problem as well. Payment would be, " whatever you think is fair,Mrs. Todd. " I'm a push over for the elderly. Arrangements were made and the cleanup began. She did say if there is anything you want,you can have it. She pointed out the items she wanted to keep and the rest is up for grabs. Most of this stuff was in cardboard boxes. The boxes were wet. Every item had to be picked up piece by piece and put into trash bags or another box. Ninety eight per cent of this stuff was just junk. Items left at the end of the auction that nobody wanted. It was bundled together and sold in a lot to Mr. Todd. Used playing cards,bingo chips,candles,empty jars,novelty kitchen timers,paper back books and the list goes on and on.
As I was sorting through this pile of stuff, there,in the back corner was an old lunch box. I opened it up and to my surprise the thermos bottle was still inside. All the pieces are there. Even the glass liner is intact. Memories came flooding back. I immediately thought of my father. He carried one that looked exactly like this one to work at the factory. When I was little he worked for the Smith Meal Company. This factory processed fish for various industrial uses. Locally,for reasons I do not know, it was called promise land. The area were this plant stood is still called that today. The smell associated with that operation came back as well. It is a smell that if you ever experienced it, you will not forget it. That's a promise ! Maybe that is why it was called promise land.
I asked Mrs. Todd if I might have that lunch box. She said I certainly could. I brought it home as a treasure. The adage one mans junk is another mans treasure applies perfectly in this situation. It is a treasure to me. Just holding it and seeing it brings back so many good memories. I remember my Mom making coffee to fill the thermos with. She would make it in a sauce pan on the kitchen stove and carefully pour it into the thermos bottle. This was way before Mr. Coffee so instant coffee was used. Grandma used a percolator but Mom did not. It was instant Maxwell house until Mr. Coffee arrived on the scene.
Also the smell of waxed paper and tuna fish come to mind. Dad must have taken tuna fish sandwiches I guess. An apple or banana might also be found in there. All that was fifty years ago. Holding that old rusty lunch box, Dad always called it a lunch bucket, transported me back. I figure it is my reward for helping out an elderly lady. All rewards are not monetary. Money is soon gone but good deeds last forever.
 |
| circa 1950-1960 |
No comments:
Post a Comment