Active Child

An Active Child Learns Much

A lesson about moderation

Here is where and why my smoking habit never had a chance to take root.

Behind the concrete steps to the front porch seen in the picture at the right, I tried a carton of Marvels cigarettes (20 packs) with my playmate Lois McGrath and got very sick.

Pause cursor on steps.

Great house for a year or two for our family

A lesson about letting people know
Another adventure was when I went to play in the storm sewer pipes installed under Clifton Heights. The pipes were big enough for a little guy to stand and walk. There were many alternate places to explore. I was gone for hours. The entry to this system was about one mile from home near the trolly tracks. When I got home, everyone was a mixture of angry and happy.
A lesson about "Trust Me"
A very unpleasant adventure was when the Barlow's gardener enticed me to try a big shiny red pepper with the promise that it was better tasting than a tomato. I took a big bite rather than a cautious little taste. I swallowed it quickly before I really tasted it. Before I knew it my mouth was really burning. My whole body was hot. The doctor came and covered almost all of my body with peanut butter. Gradually my fever went away.
A lesson about being careful
Another tough day was when my dog Skippy wanted to follow me to the ballfield across Springfield Road. It was my fault that he was hit by a car. I tried to throw a ball toward our home for him to fetch BUT the ball went across Springfield Road instead just as a car was coming. The car ran over Skippy's nose when he chased the ball. I carried him home for a burial in our back yard next to the garage in the above picture. Pause cursor between house and garage.
A lesson about taking my punishment
One of these or maybe some other event resulted in my dad getting very angry with me. He took off his strap for a corrective moment. To "get away" I ran upstairs to my bedroom. He came up after me. I got under my bed and grabbed on to the springs to hold my body off the floor. When he swung his belt at me, it missed because of gravity. I had no clue about such a phenomenon at that time. I just wanted to avoid pain. He got so frustrated that he took the bed apart so he could nail me. I got it extra that time.
Some good news
I have two very good memories of life at that house.

1. My Halloween costume that my mother made. I was one of the seven dwarfs, Dopey. I loved it.
2. My summer camp days at Smedley Park near Media that required a short bus trip on Baltimore Pike. With the windows open we would ride along singing the "John Jacob Jingleheimer Smith" song as loud as we could.

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