northbeaumont

You'd now better make certain that you come to a complete stop before turning right on red. The front page of today's Chronicle says that you'll get a ticket if one of those red light camera films you making what they call a "California Stop."

To me, those membership department stores such as Sam's Club and Costco are good for big families who live in big houses. What couple with only one or two kids would need to stock up on such bulk?

On page D3 in today's Houston Chronicle, there's a photo entitled "Not your parents' cafeteria." It says that it's a new Luby's prototype and that there will be 50 of them in the next five years. It looks to me like both a cafeteria and a drugstore soda fountain. Hey, that's pretty good. Sometimes I prefer sitting at a counter or vice-versa.

The prices of the good old days. You could walk right next door to Globe from Frizzell's. I remember us having a Pontiac Tempest. It might have been the one in the ad. I looked on GlobeExplorer.com (no PUN intended). The present Home Depot is up the road from where Globe Department Store was.

I just remembered something from the old Texaco SERVICE stations. Do you remember over the bay door the words "Marfax Lubrication?" I'll never forget the Fire Chief and Sky Chief grades of gasoline, and on the side of the pump the words "Contains Lead." Gulf was the orange disc. I remember back then Gulf had three grades of gasoline and Texaco had two. My dad refused to buy Gulf's basic grade called Gulftane because he said that it made his car run bad. He would always buy the middle grade called Good Gulf. He would never buy the premium grade called No Nox. Back then here in Texas were ENCO stations. ESSO stations were over the border in Louisiana. Now all of them are called EXXON today. ENCO, like Gulf, sold three grades of gasoline. Do any of you personally remember ENCO/ESSO?

Luby's and Wyatt's did serve good liver & onions and fried fish.

I don't remember the mule. I do remember some full-service gas stations gave out trading stamps. But I have no knowledge of trading stamps existing anymore.

Vending machines. The farthest back I can remember, you could get a 10-ounce bottle of Coca-Cola for a dime out of a vending machine. My parents told me that they can remember when you could get one for a nickel. They said that many people complained when the price was raised to six cents because they had to add a penny. Lance/Tom's/Morton's snacks, I remember their vending machines mostly in company breakrooms. The farthest back I remember is a dime for their chips, cookies, etc. In stores, I remember seeing a Lance/Tom's glass jar on the counter where you'd life off the lid and get out a bag of peanuts.

I don't have a major credit card (VISA, MasterCard, Discover, etc.). Sometime I plan to stay one night at the Hyatt Regency or some other hotel. When I go to check in, will the desk clerk call the police if I hand him/her cash?

Wow! You're just as fast as Subdude is in coming up with things real quick.

Nowaways the Frito Bandito would be looked at as either racist or politically incorrect.

Yes, it did. And there was another time when Gulf came up with a stupid, failed slogan which went something like this: "Gulf...the gas with guts." Now admit it. Doesn't that sound just plain stupid? It's no wonder that it failed. It might have contributed to Gulf's demise.

The was a Trivial Pursuit question about who started the first department store mail order business. I thought it was Sears & Roebuck, but the answer was Aaron Montgomery Ward. I thought that the whole MW chain went out of business. The one at Parkdale Mall closed down several years ago. Maybe I heard wrong.

When I was in school, naturally I was too young to know about the kinky desires that I would develop as an adult (spanking, whipping, enemas, etc.). If I had those desires when I was a kid, I would have looked forward to getting paddled.

Here's the inside and the outside of a 1963-64 Park Place Elementary School kindergarten report card:

Land value is something that I'm a pure imbecile at understanding. I read that one of the main reasons why drive-in movie theatres bit the dust was because of rising property values. Maybe someone can enlighten me on what all of that means.

To be honest, there are some billboards that I don't understand. I mean, why would someone driving on an interstate be interested in getting a vasectomy reversal? Upon seeing the sign, would him make him exit to get "clipped?"

Maybe cafeterias in general have "seen their better days." Perhaps they're fated to fade away like roller rinks and drive-in movie theatres.

I think that the doll belonged to the photographer and he told the girl to hold it. This wouldn't download. Maybe it's the ISP of this computer.

Without billboards, how would you know what is at the upcoming exits? Yes, I'll admit that some of them are unattractive. What I really like are the interstate logo signs with a blue background with contain several logos of restaurants and other businesses at the upcoming exits. Maybe someone has a photo of one or of some that he/she can post.

Many years ago there was a Finger's furniture store here in Beaumont on the corner of IH-10 and North Seventh Street. All abandoned and boarded up now. Here, Dillard's became Foley's, and Foley's became Macy's. In Houston on IH-610, I remember a Levitz furniture store. But someone on this forum told me that it closed down long ago.

I found my kindergarten class photo from Park Place Elementary School, class of 1963-64. Maybe someone out there recognizes some of these five-year-olds from over four decades ago.

I could picture someone trying to ride this on Gulf Freeway during rush hour.

Oh, yes! Memories of Americana. Going with my mother to buy groceries at Weingarten's. I remember their generic brand was Food Club. If it was on Friday, we'd then go to Burger Chef for the Friday fish sandwich special. We sometimes would go to Wyatt's whenever my dad had some overtime pay. I remember every food item being put in its own plate/saucer, even if it was just one roll. The chocolate pudding with the whipped cream and cherry on top in the fancy-shaped glass. What was the name of that old folk song, "Where have all the flowers gone?, Where have all the good times gone?"