As Father's Day approaches, some thoughts I had forgotten about Dad came back to mind. Does anybody remember when Dad came home from work and read the newspaper he would pop his slipper or shoe half-way off and let it dangle from the end of his foot? I can distinctively remember it. Sometimes he would tip his foot up and down as it dangled. He did this as he read his favorite section of the paper - the "funnies". He would chuckle as head read some of them. I know he used to read Beetle Baily and Blondie, but I can not recall some of his other favorites. Anyway, I just wondered if anyone else remembered this. The dangling slipper is not something I ever picked up from him.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
The Dangling Slipper
As Father's Day approaches, some thoughts I had forgotten about Dad came back to mind. Does anybody remember when Dad came home from work and read the newspaper he would pop his slipper or shoe half-way off and let it dangle from the end of his foot? I can distinctively remember it. Sometimes he would tip his foot up and down as it dangled. He did this as he read his favorite section of the paper - the "funnies". He would chuckle as head read some of them. I know he used to read Beetle Baily and Blondie, but I can not recall some of his other favorites. Anyway, I just wondered if anyone else remembered this. The dangling slipper is not something I ever picked up from him.
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Yes, I have fond memories of this. He would bob that slipper up and down as he read the paper. When I was little, he gave me "horsey rides" on his foot. Other comics he enjoyed was the Wizard of Id and the Lockhorns...and Peanuts of course. I remember a lot of his sayings and mannerisms and sounds...like the drinking the invisible bottle of pop or the way he would rapidly smack his lips when he anticipated eating something good (usually something sweet). Mom always kept Little Debbies for dad...Jess told me that now that I'm a grandma, I have to get a Little Debbie container.
Oh yeah, the horsey rides. That IS one thing that I picked up and did with both of my boys. I did it until I couldn't lift them anymore with my foot. Then I started them riding on my knee in much the same way.
Thinking of Dad, remember how he liked Limberger cheese? Man that stuff had a smell! Wiki says Limberger is now made mostly in Germany, but is also made in Monroe, WI and Linwood, MI (18 miles north of Bay City). But the same source says, "the cheese produces its notorious smell because the bacterium used to ferment Limburger cheese is the same one found on human skin that is partially responsible for body odor." Then later it says, "a study [showed] that the malaria mosquito is attracted equally to the smell of Limburger and to the smell of human feet." To that, Dad would have either replied, "You bet!", or, "Hogwash!"
Wow! I had forgotten the shoe balancing trick! Some of his early favorite cartoons were: Mutt and Jeff, There oughta be a law, They'll do it every time, and, I think his favorite used to be Pogo, the original political satire strip. Another comment he might have made to the stinky feet comment (and I also think that Parmesan smells a little like dirty socks) he might have said, "Horsefeathers!"
I remember that this time of relaxation before dinner was sacred to him. I think it probably gave him some time to transition from the "plant" atmosphere to the hectic home life. He loved the funnies and I especially remember Lockhorns making him chuckle. I also remember him watching TV, mostly on Sat. night--The Honeymooners and sometimes Motor City Wrestling on Sat. afternoon, I think. That always surprised me that he liked to watch "theater wrestling".
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