Gotta Run… #socs

Stream of Consciousness Saturday 2 Minutes

When I first became disabled, I used to talk about running places, even though running was pretty much out of the question. When I’d catch myself saying I was going to run somewhere, say to the bathroom, I’d tell Mary, "you realize that, when I say I’m going to run, I’m using a figure of speech, right?"

There’s an old expression, "I’m going to blow this Popsicle stand," which announces my intention to leave, usually within the next minute or so. It’s a little more interesting than "I’m going to run," mostly because some people don’t know what a "Popsicle" is. I’ve heard the term "lolly" used for a popsicle, mostly among those of you from Great Britain. Basically, it’s fruit juice frozen at the end of a stick. Or in the case of the "official" Popsicle, frozen at the end of two sticks. The way it’s made, you can break it in half and give it to two kids. Kind of like you see here in this antique commercial for Popsicles, which were originally made by Borden:

They also talk in the commercial about the Fudgsicle, which was a slab of chocolate ice milk frozen at the end of one stick, because you didn’t want to share those. Later, they invented the Dreamsicle (vanilla ice milk covered with orange sherbet on a stick) and the Creamsicle (same as the Dreamsicle, but with vanilla ice cream). All are very tasty, albeit messy on a hot day.

In the old neighborhood (whose slogan was "Man, is this an old neighborhood") we had a sizable Mexican population, and there were several old guys that would sell paletas from these pushcarts that were insulated from the warm weather. You could do two things at once that way: cool off and support local business. A win for everyone! Paletas were like Popsicles without the extra stick, and they sold for half the price.

Now I’m in the mood to run and get a Popsicle…

Stream of Consciousness Saturday is brought to you each week by Linda Hill and this station. Now here’s Bill Bailey for Old Milwaukee beer.

Published by John Holton

Internet disc jockey, lover of old TV (especially the commercials), inveterate wise guy.

Published

31 thoughts on “Gotta Run… #socs”

  1. I love Fudgesicles and Dreamsicles and now I want one! Last summer, in my neck of the woods, we had an ice cream truck come through selling their yummy treats. I hope they come again this year.

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      1. I don’t know! If it comes through again, I’ll take a closer look. They play music as they drive through like the old timey ice cream trucks.

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  4. We used to have homemade popsicles in plastic molds mom put in the freezer with Kool-Aid, root beer or OJ. The root beer ones were my favorite. I’ve always liked that Monty Python scene. It was so relatable.

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  5. I remember the sherbet and vanilla pops as 50/50 bars. This day is warm enough for popsicles! Look what you started. Time to run!

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  6. We get a lot of Mexican pushcart vendors in our area. Not as many come directly into our newer neighborhood since we are a gated community. Sometimes there is a lady who sells stuff out of black trash bags in a shopping cart. Mostly she sells Mexican style corn on the cob that seems to be kind of popular with some folks in the neighborhood. I might be a bit cautious about getting stuff from her. The paletas seem like a safer bet.

    Arlee Bird
    Tossing It Out

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  7. OMW … now I’m going to have to go get myself a popsicle, or a fudgesicle, or a dreamsicle …. darn I can’t choose they’re all yummy. Thanks John for that stroll down memory lane. 😉

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  12. I remember Borden Milk and their ice cream specifically Dutch Chocolate which was the only brand my Mammaw ever bought. I had no idea they made popsicles. I never knew about paletas until fairly recently. Steel street pops who sold paletas was walking distance from my old office. I’d love to have one of those again. Yum!

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      1. OMgee! That’s an oldie but a goodie. We had those glasses with Elsie on them. Great memory. I sure hope Steel Street reopens. And hot July would be perfect timing.

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        1. Those were the days when commercials were actually fun to watch, and had great bonus items, like the glasses. If you still have them, they’re worth a small fortune.

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