Taking It To The City (a mini series) Part 2

I left off on my last post with some history of my early recollections that led up to my having the 'fruit truck' and it being one of my happiest times.  This is a continuation of the little steps that helped instill in me this love of being independent and doing something that I always considered awesome and so rewarding.  I left my 'market' days and moved on to high school and eventually a stint in the Army for 2 years.  When I returned I met Ella Mae on a blind date and within the year we were married.  At the same time my brother Jimmy had begun his dream of owning the Pool Hall in Liverpool NY, our hometown, and I joined right in.  The pool hall also was a great place for food, especially the huge sandwiches which were served on a hunk of Italian bread made every morning from Pappas Bakery which was only about 100 feet from our front door.  My Mom made meatballs which accompanied pasta for the Thursday special.  This was another building block in my eventual love of food and the satisfaction of doing my own thing.  After the restaurant was sold I moved on to selling home 'do it your self' products at Top Tile and  than life insurance at Colonial Life, where Ella Mae eventually joined me.  This made us the only husband and wife team doing this in Syracuse.  This also made taking care of our new addition, Lindsay, a family affair as I could make appointments in the evening and EM during the day, which enabled one of us to be home with her.  From the insurance job which lasted until about 1979, I than went to work for Colosse Cheese in route sales and delivery.  See the pattern, I am back to being semi independent and in the 'food chain' again!  This led to my full time move to the produce business.  When I left there I opened a 'fruit stand' on the corner of route 13 and 11, starting on weekends only.  I had a pick up truck and loaded it with all manner of fruits and veggies, a folding table, some paper sacks and a hanging scale.  I still look back some 35 years later and smile at the thought of that adventure.  I sold out and went back to Syracuse to replenish for another day.  The second Friday when I drove in the parking lot I could not even set up as the 'folks' were already there anticipating my arrival. This was becoming too much fun and I was enjoying a nice monetary profit as well.  As my uncle Joe was known to quote regularly, ' what a country'!  I was doing my own thing and having the time of my life.  Now some of you may not know CNY weather but winter can be mighty harsh and Pulaski is in an area called the 'tug hill' which is synonymous with snow or more precise 'lake effect' snow.  So this new venture of mine could only last until mid July, no it isn't that bad, but certainly by the end of September or so.  That fall is when the 'fruit truck' was born.  My dad and I off the back of a enclosed pick up truck began selling on the streets of Syracuse.   Yes, in the winter with bananas, apples, oranges, lettuce, tomatoes, grapes and any other commodity we could find at a cost that allowed for a reasonable profit.  We traveled through the west and south sides with a loud speaker horn mounted to the front fender and with mike in hand began our chant, over and over again,  "bananas 3 pounds for a dollar", "oranges 10 for a dollar", "lettuce 3 heads for a dollar" and on and on.  As you can see our first business model was to buy cheap and sell cheap.  We tried to keep everything within that dollar price point.  This was patterned after my uncle Tony who I worked for in the beginning years, as he was a master at 'huckstering' but he would usually sell only one item on any given day, where we wanted to increase our chance of a sale by offering many more selections. This also kept money changing to a minimum and lets face it who doesn't have one dollar stashed somewhere This first 'fruit truck' was the basis for my 22 year love affair with this most amazing business for which i will always cherish...The astonishing part of this huckstering adventure is that my Grandfather Cosimo (Sam) Felicia did this same West side route both with his Dad & eventually solo with a sled & than a horse & wagon....What a man he was...I not only was named after him but also followed his same journey into this fascinating world of huckstering!.... I think I should insert Websters definition of 'huckster' here:

a retailer of small articles, especially a peddler of fruits and vegetables; hawker.   If you are still enjoying my story please read my next post of this series: 'Taking it to the City'....Thanks to all......