They scream for ice cream man to shut it

[Gina]

Dienne wrote:

<quoted text>
How does one know when to be waiting for the ice cream man if he doesn't make himself known? Or do children in your neighborhood spend their afternoons/evenings standing by the road holding their money?

That's what I was thinking.... That entire comment was strange.

[Pony]

Knowing when the Ice Cream Man was coming had to do with things called "scheduling" and "consistency."

We knew the Ice Cream Man would be by at a certain time every day, kind of like we know the letter carrier will be by at a general time.

We listened for the bells. Even on the North Side of Chicago, you could hear the distinctive jingle of the Good Humor Man's bells from blocks away (kind of like the sound of bells ringing at Mass.)

You'd go and beg your mom for ice cream money, then wait at the curb with the other neighborhood kids until you saw the GHM turn the corner.

Excitement reigned supreme, and it was a wonderful ritual of childhood.

The annoying, repetitive "music" coming from the trucks today (made more irritating by the doppler effect and the bratty spoken "Hell-OOH" at the end of the song) is unnecessary and only contributes to noise pollution.

Less is more, folks. Once we learn that, maybe we can bail out of this overblown consumeristic economic mess we're in.

[Joe]

Give me a break! I have fond memories of the ice cream truck and the music it plays. Its a part of childhood. What is wrong with these people?

[masart]

Shoeless Joe wrote:

<quoted text>
And just how would someone from Austin, Texas be that familiar with the demographics of this part of Michigan or is it something that you "heard" one day?

he is correct though

[rob]

Ice cream truck music's OK, just not too loud.

Happy memories of Good Humour Trucks in the late '60s here. Toated almond bars. Best. Treat. Ever.

[RamRod]

"Dienne" & "Gina" -

What's strange?

Do you know when the mailman is likely to be hitting your mailbox, every damn day?

Do you know what a FedEx truck looks like and do you know what it means when you see one in front of your house?

Combine the two and you have OUR ice cream man? We had an approximation of what times, on what days the ice cream man was coming and knew what to listen and look for.
Of course, what has changed is that there is no common brand, for these vendors now, and they aren't slowed by the kids buying ice cream down the block.
There's nothing more constant than change, so it's nothing to cry about, but allow me to miss a gentler, simpler time.

[Mike]

Dienne wrote:

<quoted text>
How does one know when to be waiting for the ice cream man if he doesn't make himself known? Or do children in your neighborhood spend their afternoons/evenings standing by the road holding their money?

It was pretty easy to hear those bells, because the children actually played outside... if the kids were inside, they weren't glued to the TV, computer, XBox or Playstation either. Maybe you dont believe it, but there was a time not too long ago when people opened their screened windows, too, and bells were plenty loud enough.

[bah humbug]

Don't these people have anything better to worry about. Something is really wrong here and the rest of the country.

[noise hater]

I find those LOUD sirens on police cars and fire trucks annoying!

[Kamden1130]

Dienne wrote:

<quoted text>
I don't know what kind of whack neighborhood you lived in where ice cream trucks didn't play music, but I grew up in the 70s and 80s and ice cream trucks back then were playing loud music. That's kind of the whole point. The loud music gives you time to hear it, run home to mom, beg for money and get back outside just in time for the truck to pull up.
I also don't know what neighborhood you live in now, but in our neighborhood the truck goes plenty slowly. Again, that's the point. He wants to make sure that every child has the chance to come buy his product.

Apparently my neighborhood (Harlem and Belmont)was "wack" as well. My Good Humor man used to ring the bells 3 times every few houses in his white truck that he actually got out of to get us our ice cream from the back.

We could have a freezer of ice cream at home, but the kids think the ice cream man is better. It's a right of passage as a child to run up to the ice cream man with their money in hand. It's sad that it has come to this.

[Broccoli EAT ME]

What the wrote:

<quoted text>
Well since we are on the subject of nostaglia: I'm nostalgic for the days when kids got run over in the street buying ice cream. There's nothing to quiet down a noisy bunch of brats like a little bloody corpse in the road.

Here's a thought, how about you teach your kids to stay off the damn street? Or is that too much to ask? I know its easier to expect everyone else to parent your kid for you and stop doing what they are doing in the event that your idiot brat is playing with the yellow lines... but perhaps you can take a moment of your time to be a parent and tell him to get his idiot butt out of the street, since typically large pieces of metal called cars and trucks like to hang out there? Sheesh!

[T-man]

The ice cream trucks should play patriotic ditties for the benefit of the Dearbornistan residents.

[Kamden1130]

What the wrote:

<quoted text>
Well since we are on the subject of nostaglia: I'm nostalgic for the days when kids got run over in the street buying ice cream. There's nothing to quiet down a noisy bunch of brats like a little bloody corpse in the road.

Wow. Apparently, you have some other issues to address besides the ice cream man. Remember, you were probably once a part of that "noisy bunch of brats". Ok, so only the quiet good children are allowed to go to the ice cream truck. Bad kids, stay on the sidewalk. Would this make you happy?

[daeviant]

I love hearing the ice cream truck music. It brings me back to my childhood.

[daeviant]

Wait a minute... the ice cream trucks play hip hop or nursery rhymes? Ice cream trucks here play canned instrumental music. I guess that's the difference.

[Laura]

I live in Dearborn Heights and I agree the volume on the ice cream trucks is to loud something is need to be done to quiet them.

[MAKE ME LAUGH]

Kamden1130 wrote:

<quoted text>Wow. Apparently, you have some other issues to address besides the ice cream man. Remember, you were probably once a part of that "noisy bunch of brats". Ok, so only the quiet good children are allowed to go to the ice cream truck. Bad kids, stay on the sidewalk. Would this make you happy?

Now you've got it: well-behaved, respectful children get ice cream. The bad kids get sent to bed without dessert.

[Peter]

I had no idea ice cream trucks played more than "The Entertainer". When I was growing up we heard the ice cream truck coming along, but he was moving so quickly it took my friend three blocks on his bike to catch him. He just blew by so quickly we didn't even get the chance to flag him down. The trucks should be limited to slower speeds when vending and the music should be turned off/down when they are serving. They are to loud when you are standing next to them and it is really quite annoying when they are stationary out infront of your house, but once they are down the block there are other noises to cover them.

[K Schuurman]

UNBELIEVABLE!!!
The people complaining need to get a life!! There are so many other "major" issues, and THIS is what they want to do with their time...complain about the ice cream truck?? Pretty pathetic if you ask me.

[Good Humor]

<quote>When I was a child, there were 3 different ice cream vendors cruising our neighborhood: the Good Humor Man in his classic white roofless truck, the soft-serve vendor in the converted panel truck, and the guy pedaling a 3-wheeled bicycle with an insulated box between the front wheels. </quote>

I remember the Good Humor trucks and trikes. A GH truck came around my neighborhood. My cousin drove a GH trike in NYC to save money for college. I assure you, the jingling bells were plenty audible, I can't stand these obnoxious carnie bullhorn systems & 1000-watt boomboxes they use now. Of course, the bells actually required some effort on the part of the driver.

Believe it or not, the Good Humor driver wore a white uniform and hat, and kids begged him to let them ring the bells. Yeah, THAT was long ago in a galaxy far away. The drivers I see today mostly look like stars of "America's Most Wanted".