The Seaside Delivery Boy
by G. A. Lawson
During the 1950's it wasn't uncommon for a kid with a bicycle to deliver groceries to a few of the elderly folks around the Seaside area. In return for the deliveries, they usually received a quarter or fifty-cent piece and repeat customers kept the "small business" thriving. During one overcast rainy morning, a young man was pedaling up one of the many "alphabet" avenues with an order when a drunk driving a pick-up truck ran into the back of the kid's bike with unfortunate consequences (sad). It was said that the delivery boy had a habit of announcing his arrival with an order with a rrrring,rrring of the thumb bell on the bike's handle bars which preceded a knock on the door. If you haven't guessed by now, yes, his (arrival) could still be heard along with a rap on the door of any one of his customers (or whomever occupied the house) who then would open the door to find no one there! |
