What an excellent thread! I too remember the milk deliveries, the coal bin in the basement (we called it the "cellar") and the days they would deliver a truckload and shovel it onto a chute which bridged from the truck to an opening in the basement wall. I also remember the vacuum truck that could be seen sucking all the soot out of the coal furnaces in the neighborhood. How about the guy with the little cart who came through the neighborhood sharpening knives and scissors?
We played baseball all summer, in vacant lots and at the high school field. I can remember the balls coming apart so badly we had to wrap them with friction tape. A new bat or glove was a gift from heaven.
We would play until after dark and - as somebody mentioned in an earlier post - we would hear the moms standing in the doorways shouting, "David"..."Joey"..."Andy"...etc. and we each responded by heading home. One big difference also was that, with all the neighbors sitting on their front porches and talking about families, recipes, politics, etc., there was no room for predators to come sneaking around. Any stranger who came through had a thousand eyes on him. One guy once touched a kid. Mr. Pacileo, Mr. Mondocki, and Mr. Savilli "detained" him until the police arrived, and their arrival was welcomed by the perpetrator..!
Growing up through the 40's and 50's was the absolute best. I wish there was a way to share the experience with today's kids.
