My Favorite Gifts

Gifts under an Oakwood tree. 12/11/23 dwm

When I think of Christmases during my childhood, there a few gifts that come to mind.

I'm not sure old I was, but I think I was seven or eight when we came home from Christmas Eve services at St. Paul to our home on Garfield Avenue. 

When I walked in, I was thrilled to see a bright red Schwinn Stingray.  I loved that bike.  I recall riding it a short distance in the driveway Christmas morning.

Another memory that Christmas Eve was getting hit in the head, accidentally I'm sure, by an empty coffee can that stopped flying when it hit my forehead

A few years later, when we were living on Forest Park Boulevard, there was a Christmas when I unwrapped five large plates of glass.  I was confused until opening a package that had accessories for an aquarium.  I 'helped' Dad put together a very cool 15 gallon tank. 

Another special memory was when I unwrapped a pair of tickets to see the Milwaukee Bucks.  We moved into the house on Forest Park the year I started third grade.  That was the same year the team won it's first championship in 1971.  There weren't many games on TV then but I listened ever night on my bedside radio.

A quick story about the radio.  My bedroom was on the other side of the bathroom wall.  Since you need access to plumbing for the bathtub and shower, there was a panel next to my bed.  I'm not sure where the idea came from, but it was probably hatched one night when Dad was reading a story that the decision was made to take my radio apart and put it in the wall.

The clock and knobs were on the bedroom wall at the height of my bed and I had a small pillow speaker so I could listen to games.

The game we attended was in the Milwaukee Arena (now used by the U.W. Milwaukee Panthers).  We walked close during pregame warm-ups and I met the play-by-play announcer.  I suspect that's one reason I went into radio and was thrilled to later get the opportunity to call high school basketball and football games.

There have been a lot of thoughtful gifts through the years, these gifts stand out.