Sunday, September 6, 2009

Ice Cream Man

No, it's not the Tom Waits song. Although I do, indeed, love that song.

Today, I was sitting in the backyard while the kids were playing in the inflatable pool (in their wetsuits so they wouldn't freeze in the coastal breeze), and all of a sudden I registered a sound--a tinkling, musical sound. I sat forward in my chair and said, "Is that? Oh my gosh . . . "

The kids stopped at looked at me, "What, Mommy, what?" said my quick-to-become-concerned son. I said, "I'll be right back." I ran to the front yard and out to the street, and I'll be damned if it wasn't an honest-to-goodness absolutely for real Ice Cream Truck.

My children have never see an ice cream truck, so I grabbed the wallet, ran to the backyard and said, "Come with me!" They were a bit alarmed, but they were game, so they followed along, barefoot, freezing in the breeze. They were pretty excited, but since they couldn't appreciate the nostalgia of the moment, I'm not sure they were as excited as I was.

I guess the truck's been coming around for a couple of months, but since we've been gone so much, we haven't seen him. He was talking about getting his business license in a nearby town and said it took two months because the official didn't know how to do it: No one had applied for an ice cream truck business license in the town for fifty years.

The boy got an ice cream sandwich. The girl got a Pink Panther ice cream pop. My husband got some kind of crunch thing, and I got shaved ice.

The kids were too cold to get back in the pool.

5 comments:

TKW said...

We have one that comes around a few times in the summer, driven by an ANCIENT dude.

I sprung for treats this summer and was a little horrified that treats for 5 were 20 bucks!

Still, it's the memories...

loveskidlit said...

Hi, came here via Inktopia. Your post sounded intriguing! OK, so I won't be so quick to curse our ice-cream truck driver (in the vein of animal trapper guy cursing plastic moldsmen, in Over the Hedge). Ours drives around the vicinity forever, and when he finally, finally arrives on or near our street, is traveling at the speed of light. The kids have failed to stop him several times... But still, there's nothing like the sound of summer!

Anonymous said...

That is so fun! You are cool.

I have always discouraged the kids from wanting to frequent ours (mostly because our ice cream truck is dilapidated and the driver unspeakably creepy), but maybe I should get over myself.

The Thirty-Something Bride said...

I did that too! I heard him and went running (instinct, I suppose), but couldn't find him. Running all around my neighborhood, frantically looking for the ice cream truck. Weird. It was weird.

Good Enough Woman said...

Ink, You may be onto something since it was quite pricy. But like the TSB said, I think it was instinct. And TKW, our guy is old, too! But not too creepy, I don't think. Sounds like I should keep an eye on him though . . .

loveskidslit--thanks for stopping by! I'll be coming over to your place . . .