Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
This memory may not be easy to explain, but here goes. Rose Bauer lived across the street with her husband, George. George fixed TVs in his shop and also had a shop at home; I learned a lot about electronics from him.
Rose worked for Mattel Toys. Rose knew Mom was a creative person, so one evening Rose came over with a large box of “bells”. We are talking 600 bells! (Mattel had finished production of the clock and had these parts remaining, which were headed to the trash!)
Rose said, “I know you will do something with these!” The bells were half-round, bright silver plastic balls, placed on top of the clock!
Mattel produced clocks for kids to help tell the time, and of course, they needed to have ringers on the top!
These bells were plastic and silver-colored, about 4 inches in diameter. The bell/ringer was used on Mattel’s new “Tell-The-Time” clock. The picture above is NOT the exact clock I remember, but you might get the idea about the half-ball bell on either side of the top of the clock.
So Mom immediately went and got some black string and a big bottle of glue. She put glue around the edges of the ringers and formed them into a beautiful silver ball, complete with a built-in string that would easily attach to a tree limb.
Mom made hundreds of these ornaments and gave them out as presents. She put them on the UGLY aluminum tree. For twenty years thereafter, I always found one or more of these decorations stashed away in the Christmas box. Side Note: My ex-wife tossed the remaining decorations out because she disliked ANYTHING my mother did.
Today, we’re kinda relaxing after Friday’s whirlwind events! Today we are having lunch with friends at the American Legion, and then mid-afternoon Robin and Bob are joining us for dinner at Chez Liles with Head Gourmet Chef Robert Duda.
But first, we paid the bills, did some laundry, hung up clothes that somehow magically end up on the back of office chairs, and gave little gifts to the gardener, postman, and others. We can never understand how two people can make such a mess.
Off to the ocean we go!
After lunch, we made a beeline for Ralphs to get champagne and other last-minute items.
Robin and Bob came in about 4:00 pm, and the frivolities began lasting well into the night! They brought dessert, potatoes, and all the fixin’s. All we needed to get was the dinosaur.
Robin demonstrates the Happy Dance.
Chef Bob went to work making a delicious dinner with steaks, twice-baked potatoes, and sauteed bell peppers.
The Chef was busy!!
Paul watched from a distance, and the girls giggled and laughed all evening long!
Getting the horns adjusted!
After dinner, we settled in for an extended game of crazy eights while I regaled the group with stories from yesteryear. Mary brought out her “Caribbean Drink Cards,” and we had fun reading the names of these 52 concoctions.
Eighty-one is a good number!
I can count it on my hands (with a little help!)
After we parted, we settled in the TV Room to watch the last of “Christmas In Connecticut,” but alas, our eyes closed with 9 minutes remaining, so tomorrow morning we will finish it off.
The Dudas head for home!
