ŚMIGUS-DYNGUS And Palm Sunday: Water and Whipping

There were two holidays when I would hide from my Polish American mother, both associated with Easter. The first was Palm Sunday. When we arrived home from Mass, my mom would whip us with the new set of palms while she chanted in Polish. The purpose of this lashing was to drive the devil out … Continue reading ŚMIGUS-DYNGUS And Palm Sunday: Water and Whipping →

A Family Grocery in Polish Camden: Memories of Leona Burdalska

1545 Mt. Ephraim Avenue Camden NJ about 1950 AUDIO INTERVIEW: LEONA BURDALSKA LARGE Leona Burdalska Large, born 21 October 1931. Left us on 2 January 2023. With daughter Deborah Large Fox Audio File transcript 19 APRIL 2017 L: Leona D: Deborah Deborah: This is my interview with Leona Burdalski Large, my mom, and she is … Continue reading A Family Grocery in Polish Camden: Memories of Leona Burdalska →

Holy Kiełbasa, or Why Mrs. D Ate the Butter Lamb

When I was a child, and for many Polish Americans today, having the kiełbasa blessed by the priest was important on Holy Saturday. We ate kiełbasa year-round--with bread for lunch and kapusta for dinner or plain for snacks--but eating the blessed kiełbasa? Only on Easter Sunday. I don’t know if having the kiełbasa blessed is … Continue reading Holy Kiełbasa, or Why Mrs. D Ate the Butter Lamb →

Snow Day

Snow Day “All clear!” the kid at the bottom of the hill yelled. We trusted that he was not lying about approaching cars because we were sledding down an icy street, no adult supervision. As if hurtling head-first on a wooden Flexible Flyer sled with steel runners sharp enough to slice off a limb wasn’t … Continue reading Snow Day →

Trick or Treat/Smell My Feet

Tripping over the too-long hem of my Casper the Friendly Ghost costume, I elbowed my way past my friends, the Lees Avenue Gang, to the top of the steps and held out my pillowcase. We all chanted: “Trick or treat Smell my feet Give us something good to eat!” “And who do we have here?” … Continue reading Trick or Treat/Smell My Feet →

THOSE WILDWOOD DAYS

Is there any food memory more visceral, more redolent of childhood, than that of eating a melting ice cream sandwich, with a gritty coating of sand, on a hot Jersey beach while sticky rivulets of vanilla ran down your arm? “Fudgy Wudgy Man!” We could hear his call before we could spot him on the … Continue reading THOSE WILDWOOD DAYS →

I WAS A BLUEBERRY THIEF

AUNT JO AND UNCLE JOE “Don’t worry! I know the farmer. He doesn’t mind if we pick his blueberries.” Uncle Joe Siligato waved away my father’s concerns as Jimmy and I jumped into the back seat of the Oldsmobile. Unsafe and unsecured, we held on to the seat rim as Uncle Joe hit the gas … Continue reading I WAS A BLUEBERRY THIEF →

CONFLAGRATION: THE TRAGEDY OF LAURA JAKUBOWSKI

By Deborah Large Fox LAURA During the last week of July 1940, the residents of Camden NJ sweltered in a heat wave with temperatures reaching nearly 100 degrees. The sun beat down on the alleys and brick row houses of the hard-working people, who got little relief from open windows and noisy fans. The employees … Continue reading CONFLAGRATION: THE TRAGEDY OF LAURA JAKUBOWSKI →

Measles, Mumps, and Isolation Memories

While Boomers did not experience quarantines on this current worldwide scale, we endured the mini confinements of pre-vaccine times. Waves of measles, mumps, and chicken pox would spread through neighborhoods and keep us indoors. We had no online social networks, so any contact with friends was reduced to waving from behind doors or windows. My … Continue reading Measles, Mumps, and Isolation Memories →

Uncle Bill’s Stetson Fedora

Uncle Bill and Aunt Katherine Landy visit us at 1127 N. 19th Street in Camden NJ on Christmas Eve, 1956 My job, when company arrived, was to take the guests’ hats and coats upstairs to my parents’ bed. All the men wore fedoras. All the women’s coats smelled of Chanel No. 5 or a popular … Continue reading Uncle Bill’s Stetson Fedora →