The Ice Cream Man

In The Adventures of Pete and Pete, I remember the character of Mr. Tastee - an ice cream mascot, who symbolized summer for the kids in the neighborhood - and his ice cream truck, the Tastee Mobile.

Watching these episodes, I'm reminded of my own experiences with the neighborhood ice cream man.

During the summer, my friends and I spent a lot of time playing outside with the other kids on our block. I don't remember the first time I experienced the magic a kid does when the ice cream truck comes pulling up the block, but I remember the truck visiting our neighborhood at several points throughout the summer. Every time during the summer that we were outside playing we would be sure to keep our ears on alert for the music from the ice cream truck.

They always offered Sno Cones and wrapped frozen snacks, such as ice cream sandwiches, Firecracker popsicles and Good Humor bars - I actually got hooked on those and we would buy them from the store during the time between the ice cream man's visits.

We often looked forward to the visits from the truck too (what kid wouldn't?!) and sometimes my friends and I would ride our bikes around the neighborhood, in hopes of hearing the truck coming up one of the streets.

One day we were successful!

Standing on a side street, we spotted the ice cream man and his truck coming up one of the busy streets that borders our neighborhood and were able to flag him over into our neighborhood. He stopped and somehow we talked him into following us to our block, as a lot of kids lived near it and would be excited that we brought the ice cream truck! I remember one of my friends rode on ahead of us, to spread the news to all the other kids that the truck was coming, while myself and my other friend stayed with the truck, huge smiles on our faces, guiding him to our block.

Whatever happened to the days of the Ice Cream trucks?

I lived in the same neighborhood from the time I was nearly 3 until I went off to college, and not since the late 80s/early 90s have I heard the truck come around! It's sad that most kids of today will never get to experience the excitement of the ice cream truck visiting the neighborhood - for me and the kids on my block, those visits made our summer days that much more memorable.