Streetplay Discussions
Born in Brooklyn in 1959…
Born in Brooklyn in 1959 and grew up in Sheepshead Bay around Ocean Parkway between Y & Z (Manhattan Court). I moved to Rochester, NY in 1980 after graduating from college to work for Eastman Kodak. I am 39 now with two kids and my boy is 9 years old. We where home (I still call Brooklyn home) this weekend and I played stickball with my son. The school yard (PS 209) I used to play in is under some kind of destruction/construction so this was just an introduction. It was great to be out there again. Can’t wait until I get my hands on a Spalding though. Pensee-pinkie’s where better. The Spalding’s used to crack in half. I still have my stickball bat from the 70’s so I remembered to bring that along. Remember how many sneakers we used to go through because the toes would be gone from pitching. I remember begging my Mom to buy me PUMA’s when they first came out. I never liked those heavy ADIDA’s. They where $20.00 back 25 years ago. After our little stick ball game I introduced him to PUNCH BALL. We then went home and played “HIT THE PENNY”, “5 boxes”, and “Box Tennis”. I even had a chance to grab a Nathan’s frankfurter and a BAG of fries in Coney Island. I think they still use the same grease for the fries.
Correction: “Red Hot PEA’s…
In sheepshead bay Brooklyn,…
In sheepshead bay Brooklyn, in Mellet Park (which we use to call Mellow Park) there was a mean ass game of tag we use to play, we called it “RED HOT PEE’S AND BUTTER” or at least that is what I think it was called. First off, you would need a belt or a switch for a tree, if it was a tree branch, it was better if it had some bend in it. It hurt more that way. The rules are: Someone would hide the belt or branch while everyone closed their eyes. This was strickly enforced. If someone looked and cheated, it was 5 lashes, sometimes even if we thought they cheated, 5 lashes. Anyway, the kid who did the hiding called out the hot and cold as everyone looked for the painful weapon. “Duggy you’re hot, you’re burning, you’re smoking!!!” Now, you had to decide if you wanted to get closer to Duggy, knowing that if he finds it, you are the first to get wacked but you did it anyway. Or Duggy could just be faking you out, looking right at the dreaded thing, just baiting you in, to get a few good shots. Then when it was picked up, everyone had to get to the bese to avoid getting their ass wipped. That was it, just Tag with attitude.The person who found the belt or switch would get to hide it nexts. I think was used to play it just to make it more interesting. It always is, when you have more to lose, like your skin. Maurice
In Montreal, we used to…
In Montreal, we used to call the game, Conkers, which I now realize must be slang for Conquerors. There were very few chestnut trees in our area and, one poor unfortunate soul on Cote St. Antoine Road, had the one tree that all the kids knew about. The day that I decided to seek out a supply of chestnuts, the owner happened to be home and rushed out with his black book. He told us that we had to give him our names and if he ever caught us again, he would report us to the police. Ten-year old that I was, I gave him all my information and left without any chestnuts. Of course, I never went back for fear of being reported to the police. I wonder where that book is now. It might be fun to see all the names. I never knew about the nail polish trick. Wow! That’s like steroids for chestnuts.
The search for the roller-skate…
The search for the roller-skate key was always a rite of spring at our house. If I was lucky, it had been carefully placed in my dad’s tool/ hardware cubby-hole. With growing feet, those expandable roller-skates sure were practical. Many knees were skinned, though, when the front clasps slipped off and I tumbled forward. I think that the skating season probably only lasted for me until I had scabs on both my knees.
In my day the 50’s we played…
Wow, does that bring back…
Wow, does that bring back vivid memories! I can still hear Mary Geary screaming at the top of her lungs “Oh, Car – ol”, from our front walk after school everyday. These days, it would probably be viewed as strange or rude, but in the 60’s in my neighborhood (the suburbs of Buffalo), it was standard procedure.