A photo of Roger Bettle of Brockton when he was a child
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Saturday morning, taking a bath in the galvanized tub: two hours to heat the water, five minutes to bathe, fifteen minutes to empty and clean the tub. It is just while lifting the tub up to the kitchen sink that loud voices begin to echo through the house from outside. “Hey! Here comes the five and ten truck!” Oops! There goes the five and ten truck.
Immediately drop the tub; half the water goes into the sink, the rest all over the floor and myself. Oh well, no matter. Ma will clean it up. Right now more important things are happening.
The five and ten truck is on its way to the dump with its goodies. After all, it is the Saturday after Easter and you know what that means. Left-over Easter candy, feathery toy chickens and plush bunnies all the way from Germany, plus God only knows what other surprises are contained in that load from Woolworth’s Five and Ten and all the other downtown stores.
Hurry, hurry or else the rest of the kids in the neighborhood will be there first. Throw on your overalls and sneakers; no time to button the overalls or tie the sneakers. Can do that later after the load has been picked over and all the valuables put in your own private little pile.
Source: Enterprise News
Halloween Happenings
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Death and Dying Cemetery Tours: 3 p.m. Tuesdays to Thursdays and Sundays, and 6 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays through October in Historic Bethlehem. The tour starts in Bethlehem's oldest building, Germeinhaus (1741), the place where the earliest settlers lived. After learning about medical care and the Moravian communal way of life, walk past an original 18th-century death tray, a slab where bodies once laid in wait for burial. Witness the place where the Corpse House once stood, housing bodies while the caretaker waited for warmer weather to break ground. Finish the tour in God's Acre, Bethlehem's oldest cemetery, while hearing about early death and funeral practices. Learn of the unique way Moravians buried their dead. Tickets are $12 for adults, $6 for children age 6 to 12 and free to those 5 and younger. Location: 459 Old York Road, Bethlehem. Information and tickets, call 1-800-360-8687 or visit www.HistoricBethlehem.org .
Haunted! Mysteries of the Beyond: 8 p.m. daily at the Houdini Museum Theater at Scranton's Psychic Theater, 1433 N. Main Ave., Scranton. Reservations required in advance. The seance and paranormal presentation runs 3½ hours and features paranormalist and mentalist Dick Brookz and takes place in one of the most haunted places in Pennsylvania certified by an investigation by a paranormal investigation team. The show is not recommended for the very young, the weak of heart, people with pacemakers, and those afraid of the dark or easily frightened. Tickets are $35 per person by reservation only. Information and reservations, call 570-383-9297 or visit www.psychictheater.com . For more on Dick Brookz, visit www.MysteryEntertainer.com .
Source: Pocono Record