Historical picture:
Annie Oakley a pioneer among women!
Today's blog tale:
When I was eleven years old in 1950 boys were into ‘the fireball.’ If you found a baseball without a cover, you could make a fireball by soaking it in kerosene all night. Then the next day at about dark, with at least two boys you would light it and throw it back and forth. Sometimes it would last for up to 4 nights. We threw dirt over it to put it out.
The trick was to catch it with the left hand and switch to the right and throw it back without getting burned. It actually wasn’t hard to do. As it fell the wind put out some of the flame. When it was caught just for a second most of the fire went out from impact, giving a second to switch hands to throw as it caught back up. No one ever got seriously burned. Once it hit the ground and wasn’t picked up immediately to throw the game ended, because it was impossible to pick it up. Time to throw dirt. For us boys, it was a lot of fun. I had the fireball ready the day me ‘n Ace went looking for Ray Sides, and ended up at the fire station. Of course ‘fireball’ was exciting, but not like TV and Howdy Doody.
This was doubly exciting to me because some people at dad’s church thought watching TV (the devil’s box) was a sin, akin to those sinful shows (Movie houses). At 11-12 me ‘n Vondale were good at sneaking to see a movie. Once there was a movie called ‘The boy with Green Hair’. The movie house announced anyone with green hair got in free. We ‘borrowed’ a bottle of green food color, colored our hair and got in free. My dad wouldn’t have cared that I watched TV, but he wouldn’t have liked me sneaking off to the show.
The movie about green hair would not be unique today. LOL
After the movie, green hair was no problem. We washed it out using a service station water hose. It came right out. Mr. Morris, the service station owner got a kick out of it.
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Now about this wonderfully made body of ours:
Right-handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left-handed people do. (I don't know how that works when you are ambidextrous.)
Nite Shipslog
My daddy had this car at the end of 1950.
funny thing I thought the neatest thing was that radio antenna in the center above the windshield. There was a knob on the inside that would lay it down to either side. I do not know the reasoning, but I thought it was cool. LOL
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7 comments:
I never heard of a fireball, but love the idea! Can you imagine all the to-do an over-protective someone or another would make of that today?
That's a real bummer about right-handers getting extra time. Are those researchers implying we're uncoordinated? Hrumpf!
I too have never heard of a fireball but seems like fun. I don't like the color red people are using now days. I do like natural red hair.
Interesting story about the fireball! Glad no serious injuries occurred while playing it. Too funny about the green food coloring hair, but getting in free to the movie was worth it back then for sure :) Glad I'm right handed!
betty
Fireball sounds kind of dangerous to me. glad nobody got burned playing.
Interesting game Jack! I have never heard of fire ball. This made me think of a post idea. Soon.
I cringed when you said yall used food coloring in your hair. Glad it came right out. Bet yall were something!
It didn't take much to please a kid back then. The kids now day dont know how good they could of had it.
From freezing Gtown
Lisa
I'm glad my sons never heard of fire balls. That game would turned my hair gray faster than it did. Sounds like you guys made your own kind of fun for sure ! My DDH was a lefty and sad but true, I have lived a lot longer that he did. Hope you all are having a great weekend. Today is our family feast!
The good old days. Love them. But I would never 'let' Andy play with the fire ball!!!!!!!!!!!
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