Re: Where was Big Bird when I needed him?

[Guest guest]

Pre-Seseme Street here. I'm from the Howdy Doody, Captain Kangaroo era.

When I jumped off the treadmill there were many years to come filled with

confusion ... sorting out who I was, and was not. I have never liked yellow

roses, hate those TV 'prize' shows, ruffles, nail polish, romance novels, and

the

color orange; some of the reasons are just returning to conscious memory.

Nada requires yellow roses for every occasion, even to her on her children's

birthdays. Nada would watch 'Queen For A Day' every day; I was never once

allowed to watch 'Howdy Doody' which was on a different channel at the same

time.

From puberty on Nada insisted I wear ruffles on my blouses...to conceal my

underdeveloped chest. When I was young my wanting stylish cloths/hair/nails

were ridiculed; Nada told me I looked like a whore wearing nail polish. She

read romance novels, True Story magazine, and told me that I was conceited

because I didn't like what she liked. One of the most mortifying experiences of

my

life was being made to wear a 'shift' dress she had made for me because I was

too 'fat' for waist bands she thought; she made it in bright orange.

Incidentally...I was a size 12 then. Pre-Twiggy influence. Carol

[Guest guest]

<< " Spilled milk " is one of those vivid memories I have, where

someone (I can't remember if it was me or my brother, we both got

yelled at) spilled a glass of milk and it was as if the world was

ending and it was all our fault. >>

, are you sure you aren't my long-lost sister? You must have

grown up in the same family.

I am too old to have been helped by Big Bird. Besides, we didn't

have TV because it would have exposed us to the outside world and

threatened our parents' divinity.

- Dan

[Guest guest]

>> I am too old to have been helped by Big Bird. Besides, we didn't

> have TV because it would have exposed us to the outside world and

> threatened our parents' divinity.

>

> - Dan

OMG. We wern't allowed tv either. It's kind of embarrassing -- ppl

make references to such and such tv show (anything from the 60's &

70's) and I don't know what they're talking about. Years later, I

would ask nada how televised images of the Vietnam war and the civil

rights movement made her feel. She didn't have a clue of course.

It used to amaze me how clueless she was with respect to the 60's. And

everything else but esp the 60's bcs it was such a dramatic time.

She would always say she had three little kids and didn't have " time "

to pay attention to current events. Yeah right. She was in her own

private idaho. For whatever reason, the only thing she remembered was

JFK's assassination. nothing else.

~d.

[Guest guest]

That's really interesting. In my Nada's house the TV was the centre

of the Universe. When I moved out, I didn't get one. There were a

couple of shows (notably the first run of Star Trek: TNG -- did I

mention I was a nerd?) that friends would tape for me, but otherwise

I didn't miss it, I didn't miss it. In fact, it was relief not to

have it on incessantly. Nada couldn't stand quiet, couldn't bear to

be alone with her thoughts. Couldn't drive without the radio on,

couldn't sit without the TV on. The TV even had to be on in the

living room while she was cooking in the kitchen so she could listen

even if she couldn't watch. But we couldn't get a TV for the kitchen

because having two was " extravagant " .

> >> I am too old to have been helped by Big Bird. Besides, we

didn't

> > have TV because it would have exposed us to the outside world and

> > threatened our parents' divinity.

> >

> > - Dan

>

> OMG. We wern't allowed tv either. It's kind of embarrassing -- ppl

> make references to such and such tv show (anything from the 60's &

> 70's) and I don't know what they're talking about. Years later, I

> would ask nada how televised images of the Vietnam war and the civil

> rights movement made her feel. She didn't have a clue of course.

>

> It used to amaze me how clueless she was with respect to the 60's.

And

> everything else but esp the 60's bcs it was such a dramatic time.

>

> She would always say she had three little kids and didn't

have " time "

> to pay attention to current events. Yeah right. She was in her own

> private idaho. For whatever reason, the only thing she remembered

was

> JFK's assassination. nothing else.

>

> ~d.

[Guest guest]

> That's really interesting. In my Nada's house the TV was the centre

> of the Universe. When I moved out, I didn't get one. There were a

> couple of shows (notably the first run of Star Trek: TNG -- did I

> mention I was a nerd?) that friends would tape for me, but otherwise

> I didn't miss it, I didn't miss it. In fact, it was relief not to

> have it on incessantly. Nada couldn't stand quiet, couldn't bear to

> be alone with her thoughts. Couldn't drive without the radio on,

> couldn't sit without the TV on. The TV even had to be on in the

> living room while she was cooking in the kitchen so she could listen

> even if she couldn't watch. But we couldn't get a TV for the kitchen

> because having two was " extravagant " .

>

>

>

>

> -- that makes sense about your nada having to have the tv

constantly on to drown out the noise in her head. My nada was

different than the typical BP whatever that is. Nothing seemed to

register in her world. She didn't cook. She'd just have this blank

look most of the time. If she reacted at all it was over-reaction or

to split us. We frequently didn't go to school, and she wasn't aware

of it for some reason I don't yet understand. We'd get in trouble with

the school for truency, but not with her. I'm not sure how we

graduated high school. My therapist says we were probably just " pushed

through the system " . I definitely didn't attend any ceremony and

neither did nada, and that didn't seem to bother her. Or perhaps she

didn't notice is that possible? It's all too weird, like Sci Fi. (I'm

a ST fan, too)