Reviews from

The Peacock Brothers

Who knew a plumbing company could offer so much?

25 total reviews 
Comment from aryr
Excellent
Not yet exceptional. When the exceptional rating is reached this is highlighted

The picture was perfect because they present the idea that he was 'thinking inside the box', Tom. You choice to address the importance of 'The Playboy' because it was. I was impressed. Very well done and greatly enjoyed. Blessings n Peace!!!

 Comment Written 10-Oct-2023


reply by the author on 10-Oct-2023
    Hello aryr,
    thanks so much for the wonderful review and comments. I was fortunate to find that picture. I could probably have found a peacock or two easier, but I didn't think about it. If I recall, I don't think Playboy is even published anymore. Too much free stuff online I guess. They were mild compared to some of the more graphic magazines that came out later. They were groundbreaking at the time though.
    Have a blessed day.
    Tom
reply by aryr on 10-Oct-2023
    You are so very welcome, Tom.
Comment from Pam Lonsdale
Exceptional
This work has reached the exceptional level

Thousands of other neighborhoods, including my own, Tom. Playing hide and go seek until it was time to come in and get ready for bed is one of my fondest memories of summer:-)

Collecting pop bottles for money - I think we got two cents a bottle in the 60s? Steady income for a kid with nothing else to do.

I have just finished reading "Portnoy's Complaint", so I'm quite familiar with nude magazines and the fantasies of young boys. But you and your friends had your "dreams" stolen - boohoo! I'm sure your memories sufficed.

This was a real trip down memory lane (except for the Playboy magazines) for me. Thanks for sharing, Tom.

xo
Pam

 Comment Written 10-Oct-2023


reply by the author on 10-Oct-2023
    Hello Pam,
    thanks so much for the generous review and the great comments. There's no two ways about it, we lived in a much different time. No one worried about where their kids were. I used to go off exploring new neighborhoods on my bike that took me miles from home.

    Did you grow up in Florida? I wish I would have; more opportunities to fish.

    If I took the bottles in to Mac's Trading Post, he would only give us two cents. If I happened to go to Vine Street Market, I got three cents. One person gave a friend and me about a hundred or more pop bottles that had been collecting in their basement. Talk about finding a treasure. We felt rich.

    Honestly, memories are good, but they were nothing like having the real thing in front of you. It didn't register at the time that the little, skinny, flat chested neighbor girls would one day mature into shapely young women. It was kind of a magical transformation.

    I've never read that book. I should see if I can get it at the library. I just finished Dean Koontz's latest novel, so I'm in the market for another book to read.
    Have a blessed day gal.
    Tom
reply by Pam Lonsdale on 10-Oct-2023
    Yes, I did grow up in Florida.

    You probably don't want to read Portnoy's Complaint - I believe it was a banned book back in the 60s and is pretty raunchy. I read it because it is considered a classic, and I'd never read it before. I read half of it and quit - way too much raw sex. A little sex in a story is great, but when that's all there is it becomes tedious and boring.

    Have a good evening.

    Pam
reply by the author on 10-Oct-2023
    Thanks for the head's up Pam. I agree. I find that I can't really enjoy a movie any more that has more than a little graphic sex scenes. When there is no tenderness involved, you may as well satisfy yourself at a peep show.
Comment from LJbutterfly
Excellent
Not yet exceptional. When the exceptional rating is reached this is highlighted

This story isn't long. It's delightful, and reveals how a young boy's thoughts and interests develop from finding soda bottles to thinking about girls. Growing up in the late 50s and 60s, I thought about the boys in my neighborhood, who I never paid attention to. They were boys. They couldn't jump rope, play jacks or make doll clothes. Reading this story made me feel like you gave me an opportunity to look behind the scenes. Thanks for the memories.

 Comment Written 10-Oct-2023


reply by the author on 10-Oct-2023
    Hello LJ,
    It took awhile for the interest in girls to grow. Even though curiosity about the opposite sex occupied a good bit of my time as I got older, I spent at least as much time thinking about fishing and how to catch more fish. I bought all the outdoor magazines at the time, which were a lot easier to come by than Playboy, and I didn't have to worry about them being stolen.
    Have a blessed day.
    Tom
Comment from Thesis
Excellent
Not yet exceptional. When the exceptional rating is reached this is highlighted

It certainly reads like a much more stable childhood and upbringing than what happens in this day and age. Everything was simpler then. I miss those days of innocence and just having fun, wherever you found it or created it for yourself. Thanks for sharing.

 Comment Written 10-Oct-2023


reply by the author on 10-Oct-2023
    Hello Thesis,
    thanks so much for the fine review and comments. I had a sandbox when I was young, and with a few blocks of wood, some plastic army men and some marbles, I could entertain myself for hours. Everyone in the neighborhood had a toy gun or two or ten, and no backyard was off limits as we chased each other around, getting shot and miraculously healing shortly thereafter to continue on. It was a very good time to grow up. I wish kids today had as stable of a life to enjoy.
    Have a blessed day.
    Tom
Comment from damommy
Excellent
Not yet exceptional. When the exceptional rating is reached this is highlighted

This story is what pre-adolescent boys are all about. I loved reading your battles with the Gebbys. Just the think I'd like to have done, but being an only child, I was treated like a hothouse plant. I think that's way I enjoy my boys' antic. One was famous for tp-ing houses.

 Comment Written 10-Oct-2023


reply by the author on 10-Oct-2023
    Hello Yvonne,
    a hothouse plant? My mom was an only child as well. She had a lot of cousins though to play with though. I never put TP on anyone's home. I was afraid of getting caught and having my dad to deal with. Of course that didn't keep me from doing a thousand other things that would have gotten me spanked had he known. We used to go to Mrs. Fetter's house on the next block. She was pretty much blind. She had an apple tree for green apples and also a big grapevine that had concord grapes. We would sneak in and eat grapes while she stood at the back door yelling at us. She knew someone was there, but couldn't see us, so we'd stay there stuffing our greedy little faces until we were tired of eating them. Depending on who was asked, I was either a rotten kid or not so bad. I guess I was somewhere in the middle.
    Have a blessed day gal.
    Tom
reply by damommy on 10-Oct-2023
    One time, there was a big bunch of kid wrapping a house of someone they didn't like. The parents came out and when everyone ran, they parents got in the car to go looking for them. While they were gone, the kids finished wrapping the house. Now, that's funny, I don't care who you are.
reply by the author on 10-Oct-2023
    That is funny! I agree. That sounds like a Chevy Chase movie or something.
Comment from barbara.wilkey
Excellent
Not yet exceptional. When the exceptional rating is reached this is highlighted

Yes, it did need to be posted all at once. There's really no good place to break it up without disrupting the story. I remember those carefree days of our youth. I worry about the kids of today. They are missing out on so much. I enjoyed reading.

 Comment Written 10-Oct-2023


reply by the author on 10-Oct-2023
    Hello Barbara,
    thanks so much for the great review and comments. I also worry about today's children. When I was growing up, I don't believe I knew anyone whose parents had been divorced until I was in junior high school. Of course we didn't have computers or cell phones. We used to go on a Sunday drive almost every week and we always ate supper together. There has been a lot lost in the name of progress. It's unfortunate.
    Have a blessed day gal.
    Tom
Comment from Ric Myworld
Excellent
Not yet exceptional. When the exceptional rating is reached this is highlighted

I think most of us boys can relate to your story in some manner or another, as those days of transitioning from a boy to a man, can cause us to take notice. LOL. Thanks for sharing.

 Comment Written 10-Oct-2023


reply by the author on 10-Oct-2023
    Hi Ric,
    it was an exciting time for sure, but one of frustration and confusion as well. I wouldn't ever want to repeat it. Once was enough. At that age girls were both interesting and scary. Thanks so much for the great review.
    Have a blessed day.
    Tom
Comment from BethShelby
Excellent
Not yet exceptional. When the exceptional rating is reached this is highlighted

I didn't even notice it was long. I always enjoy non fiction stories. Your story reminds me that boys will be boys and more of the find playboy magazines to be facinating. Girls like reading True Romance and True Story and other publications that were always in beautyshops. We learned a lot of information we were too young for in those magazines.

 Comment Written 10-Oct-2023


reply by the author on 10-Oct-2023
    Hello Beth,
    thanks so much for the great review. I think a lot of guys got an education from reading Playboy. I was always torn between Outdoor Life and Sports Afield prior to running across my first one. At least I could bring home my hunting and fishing magazines without fear of discovery.
    Have a blessed day.
    Tom
Comment from Dolly'sPoems
Excellent
Not yet exceptional. When the exceptional rating is reached this is highlighted

What a shame someone only gave you two stars for this post Tom, that was a bit below the belt I must say, especially as it was a mistake. I was entertained and I enjoyed your fun post, I am still laughing, love Dolly x x x

 Comment Written 10-Oct-2023


reply by the author on 10-Oct-2023
    Hello Dolly,
    thanks so much for the support, but it was really my fault. There really wasn't anything to rate when he reviewed it. I tried to save my work so I could run up and eat supper, but I must have hit the preview button or some such thing. Anyway, no harm done. I'm so glad you enjoyed this gal.
    Have a blessed day.
    Tom
reply by Dolly'sPoems on 10-Oct-2023
    I would ask him to re-review your post now that it is completed and he can upgrade your stars, I feel sure he will do that for you Tom x x x
Comment from Tom Horonzy
Exceptional
This work has reached the exceptional level

You wrote: "There was nothing special about it." I disagree. Everything about those days was filled with adventure. We never knew what was over the hill ahead, or at the bottom of a snowy descent. They were the best days of my life, and obviously yours as well.
I also recollect collecting bottles, even through my senior year of college to add coins to the coffer, so I could eat a fun-filled meal rather than eating at the cafeteria.
and then I recall the nudes in magazine. My first sight was in an issue of Sunrise ( I think) a magazine celebrating the pleasures of a nudist colony.
The gals therein were far more mom-like than Bardotish.
You get a six star rating here for no reason than reawakening my memories.

 Comment Written 10-Oct-2023


reply by the author on 10-Oct-2023
    Hello Tom,
    thanks so much for the generous review and entertaining comments. When you're young, everything is new I suppose. When Playboy first came out, they were very discreet in always hiding the lower portion of the lady, sometimes having her sit at a table or some such thing. I usually was able to scrounge up a few cents with pop bottles or small jobs around the neighborhood when I was young. When I got older I delivered newspapers. Of course I never saved any of the money from that. I wish I'd hung on to the comic books I'd bought back then, I could really supplement my retirement.
    Have a blessed day.
    Tom