I missed the heyday of an ice-cream
chain that became famous for having twenty-eight flavors. By the time I
came to the US, it had only a few years to exist before yielding to ice-cream
parlors that offered fewer flavors, and frankly were wise to do so.
The experience of marching into a Howard
Johnson’s was exhilarating. Twenty-eight flavors! Even if you would dismiss
ten of the flavors as less appealing, you still had eighteen to choose from.
There was Banana, Black Raspberry, Burgundy Cherry, Butter
Pecan, Buttercrunch, Butterscotch, Caramel Fudge, Chocolate, Chocolate Chip,
Coconut, Coffee, Frozen Pudding, Fruit Salad, Fudge Ripple, Lemon Stick,
Macaroon, Maple Walnut, Mocha Chip, Orange-Pineapple, Peach, Peanut Brittle,
Pecan Brittle, Peppermint Stick, Pineapple, Pistachio, Strawberry, Strawberry
Ripple and Vanilla. Which would you order?
For one who came from then-modest Israel, this was like going
to an amusement park with so many rides that you would be paralyzed not knowing
which way to turn.
The thing is, invariably after making the choice and sitting
down, one fills with regrets about the flavors not chosen. Especially for a kid
who doesn’t get to decide when a re-do (that would be another trip to the
ice-cream parlor) will be, if it ever will be.
Don’t laugh, but this is a real thing.
Here’s what is empowering about storytelling: you can always
revise, re-tell, change the trajectory, and (at least until the final version
is fixed in print) feel the power of never having to worry about the road not
taken.
But once published, you must let go. FOMO is not good for
writing or life.
Good ice-cream is even better than it was in the Howard
Johnson days. Premium parlors have switched to offering fewer flavors (some rotating,
some fixed) and better quality.
Life isn’t as good as it used to be, and never was.
Oooh, black rasp, burgundy cherry and pistachios. Ice cream was such a rare treat for us, I've never had regrets. As a child, I always chose strawberry (one of the three basic ones). And now, I can't even have ice cream because of a milk allergy. We went to an old fashioned burger place and how I would've loved to have a strawberry shake! Once in a while I enjoy a coconut ice cream made from coconut milk. Delish! Food will always play a huge part in my stories :)
ReplyDeleteUmmm...yum! Fudge Ripple and Coconut are two of my favs. But I like lots of different ones. And you're right about having to let go once something's published. I had to do that today. I got my comp copies of a children's magazine that has my story in it. "My" story at least as far as having my name on it and the gist of the story being mine. But the entire story was rewritten so it doesn't feel like it's mine at all. Very disappointing. But as you said, I just have to let it go.
ReplyDeleteI remember Howard Johnson, but I don't recall that there were so many flavors. That extensive range is what I associate with Baskin & Robbins.
ReplyDeleteYou bring up an interesting point about having so many, often too many choices. I read a book about that issue, how crazy-making it is to have an overabundance of selections, to the extent that it paralyzes people from choosing because they are so overwhelmed. The guy who wrote the book had such an experience, not with ice-cream, but when he went into a store to buy a pair of jeans and was confronted with the salesperson's list of choices and their different details. Trembling, he said, "All I want is a pair of jeans!" The same thing happened when he had "cereal" on his shopping list and found himself staring at entire aisle of cereal boxes, uncertain which to bring home.
MirkaK, here's a bit of food trivia for you:
ReplyDeleteIrvine Robbins and his brother-in-law both had ice cream parlors in California, and in 1946 they formed a partnership and created Baskin-Robbins to sell premium ice cream. The sold franchises, and by 1950 had eight stores. In 1953 Howard Johnson's 28 flavors of ice cream gave them the idea to advertise more flavors: 31 flavors, one for each day of the longest months.
It should be noted the 31 flavors take turns some and all are not for sale every day, unlike the old Howard Johnson's 28.
The company purposely used uncomfortable chairs to discourage customers from lingering in the stores.
25% of Baskin Robbins ('31 flavors') ice cream sales are for plain vanilla.
Orange pineapple is my flavor of choice - something I inherited from my late mum, I guess. But I do think it was easier when there were fewer choices, especially for things like shampoo - all of them promising lustrous tresses, but I have yet to find one that delivers!
ReplyDeleteI've never been to a Howard Johnson's. And when I was a kid, I don't think our family would've gone to such a place anyway because I had (and still have) lactose intolerance. The severity waxes and wanes over the years. But as a kid, I always would get sick after going to birthday parties because they would inevitably serve ice cream along with birthday cake.
ReplyDeleteWhen I discovered Lactaid, the world of ice cream reopened for me. M and I would often go on Baskin Robbins dates. I sometimes liked Raspberry Swirl or something with chocolate chips in it. But my favourite flavour was vanilla.
I don't miss ice cream since I gave it up last year (because of the saturated fat and cholesterol). But my mother was an ice cream maven; it brought back memories of when she was a kid and my grandfather took her and her brother out on Sunday afternoon. It was the highlight of her week.