Flinging Rotten Organic Tomatoes

Lightning Bolt Tattoo--adding NO PAIN

 
LIGHTNING BOLT TATTOO START SUMMER 2007 - designed by Richard's Dad (R Henry Nigl)

ADDING TO IT 1.3.2011 
NO PAIN 1 
NO PAIN 2 
NO PAIN 3

Christmas Shopping with Grandmom (aka Mom, Laura Ratajczak)

 
Shirleyann Ratajczak’s Family Memories

Laura Ratajczak, always took me downtown shopping at Christmas time. Heck, I was the only child living at home at the time. My brother Stephen was in the Army, serving in Korea, my sister Jackie was already married to a graduate of Girard College, Peter Mutone. My brother’s Don and Fred were still residents at Girard College, a boarding school for Orphaned White Boys. (Of course Girard College is now integrated, but in the late 1950’s, the Trust of Stephan Girard was solid.) At Thanksgiving, Don and Fred would bring the best gingerbread home from school. Don calls them “Hum gingers” and both Don and Fred would bring some home for the holidays. This gingerbread was a special treat for my Mom.

The next week after Thanksgiving, Mom and I, would take the Broad Street Subway from the 16^th Street entrance, down to the City Hall Exit. Our first stop was at John Wanamaker’s Department Store to see the “Festival of Lights”. It was on the first floor, in the biggest part of the Department store, and we always stood at the back of the crowd, so that Mom could make an easy exit.(Remember she was never handicapped, but she did have an artificial leg.)  It was always enjoyable and something that my Mother would never miss, during the holiday season. I certainly enjoyed it too, for the great Christmas music, and the blinking of lights in time to the beat. My mind still conjures up the movement of lights as they dance to “Jingle Bells”.

Each year we would slowly make our way from John Wanamaker’s to the Gimbels Department Store at the other end of Market Street. Mom found great joy in this yearly trip or so it seemed. However, my fun came when I could ride the escalators up and down in every store.  Another special treat was seeing and smelling the Chestnuts roasting in vendors push carts on every corner. Of course, there was the famous Philadelphia Soft Pretzels that we had to take home, but there was one loaded with mustard that I was allowed to eat while walking down Market Street.  I liked to cover my pretzel with lots of mustard, but I don’t remember getting any mustard all over my face while eating it then, but maybe it was because my mother just never said anything about it. Today, I can’t go anywhere without getting something stuck all over my face or spilled on me.

My Mom always made a stop at the Catholic Church in town, to light a candle for my Dad and perhaps take confession. For some reason she never let me go inside the church with her. I always had to wait outside, where there was a little book stand that sold religious material. One time somebody gave me a Catechism Book which I started to read, it did not make much sense to me, because I was not brought up in the teachings of the church, nor was I a very good reader. Mom always said that, “You will never learn how to read.” She also protested the fact that it was Catholic literature and “Steve did not want his children brought up to be Catholic.”

I think that I kept the book anyway, I always keep everything possible, but I never really read it. I did memorize the “Lords Prayer” and I think that was in the book.

Mom came home with two shopping bags full, but I never paid attention to what she bought, I just know that we started out with two bags tucked under her arm, and we filled them up during this shopping trip. To get home, we never walked back to the Broad Street Subway, at City Hall, we just took a trolley home which we caught at 8^th and Market St (So I think.) The trolley stopped closer to our house anyway, and that was better with two full shopping bags to carry.  It went down Germantown Avenue and stopped one block away from our street. Originally called St Marks Square, our row house address was

1605 Rowan Street.
 

Current view of the tiny 6 room row house. Front door above. Back door facing the highway below.

  Mrs. Harris and her nephew are the current residents. They are looking out the back door when I take the picture of the rear of the row house.