{"id":28554,"date":"2016-02-19T17:44:25","date_gmt":"2016-02-19T23:44:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/?p=28554"},"modified":"2016-02-19T17:44:25","modified_gmt":"2016-02-19T23:44:25","slug":"come-see-the-parade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/come-see-the-parade\/","title":{"rendered":"Come see the parade"},"content":{"rendered":"

By TED ROBERTS, the SCRIBBLER ON THE ROOF<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Ted_Roberts\"

Don\u2019t look for any relationship or correlation in the above three observations. And I can\u2019t explain the first three, but reasoning behind the fourth is simple. We\u2019re all rich now \u2013 simple economics. I\u2019m a grandparent now and I know my fellow grandparents can afford a house, an apartment, a condo, at least a tent. Or maybe an assisted living facility \u2013 our new name for an old folks home. What a song title \u2013 \u201cNobody\u2019s Gotta Live Over the Sto\u2019 No More\u201d.<\/p>\n

When I was a kid growing up in Memphis, everybody\u2019s parents and grandparents \u2013 mostly Jewish – lived over the sto\u2019, which really minimized the morning commute. In fact, the store might be closed, but you stumble on the stairs and lo and behold you\u2019re at work in the store.<\/p>\n

But none of these disappearing trends were as important as the dual residence\/store phenomenon. I could cite a long list (so many friends \u2013 so few houses) of pals who \u2018doubled up\u201d, so to speak. That is, they lived above the store. But I might leave out a friend or two and provoke embarrassment. And this custom was especially prevalent in the Jewish community. We\u2019re talking the late 30\u2019sand 40\u2019s when most of these families only had a single car. We weren\u2019t all rich then as we are now. So, it wasn\u2019t always available to take you out of the \u2018hood to what was called a playground; which meant a plot of green with a tree from whose lower limb dangled a single swing. Compared to the tarry streets, it was Disneyland.<\/p>\n

But the store\/residence trend could have its disadvantages for kids. No front or back yard to play in. Only the concrete of streets.<\/p>\n

But my social standing was mightily enhanced because my grandparents lived \u2013 not only above the store \u2013 but ON MAIN STREET.<\/p>\n

Get it? In that bygone age of no TV and limited entertainment, there were processions called \u201cparades\u201d with colorful floats and marching bands. Looking back on it, I can\u2019t figure out why there were so many parades, except that there was nothing else to do.<\/p>\n

What leverage I had. If you were nice to me, I could invite you to my grandparents\u2019 store, which had four or five windows upstairs that overlooked the parade route. Beneath, the sidewalks were choked with people like a kugel with too many raisins. Not only did we have a box seat, but also our childish hearts were choked with \u201cschadenfreude.” A German word \u2013 hard to spell, too \u2013 we\u2019d never heard of. It means taking delight in the misery of others.<\/p>\n

Because beneath us on the sidewalks standing mobs pushed and jostled each other to get a glimpse of the musical procession parading down the street. We sat in comfortable chairs, which we had pulled up to the windows. Living above the store wasn\u2019t so bad after all.<\/p>\n

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