9 June 2023

Published June 7, 2023 by rochellewisoff

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The next photo is the PROMPT. Remember, all photos are property of the photographer, donated for use in Friday Fictioneers only. They shouldn’t be used for any other purpose without express permission. It is proper etiquette to give the contributor credit.

PHOTO PROMPT © Lisa Fox

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Genre: Hysterical Faction
Word Count: 100

CHILD’S PLAY

The TV shows I loved as a kid are now retro footage on YouTube.

When did Paul McCartney, the cute Beatle, become an eighty-year-old, albeit nice-looking, grandfather? Man from U.N.C.L.E.’s heart throb David McCallum is pushing ninety.

My favorite toys such as Chatty Cathy and the little red spinning wheel are considered vintage and are available on eBay for three times the original price.  

Somewhere along the line I stepped through Alice’s looking glass. Help me! I’m a child trapped inside an old woman’s body.

“Age is only a number.” I shrug. “Growing older is inevitable. Growing up is optional.”

I had the blonde version. My mom once sat down with her and wrote down all eleven of her sayings. 😀

67 comments on “9 June 2023

    • Dear Mr. B.

      I’m so pleased to know you listened to the audio. 😀 That ending line has been my motto now for many years. You might notice it’s the banner at the top of my page. My inner child is still quite active. Thank you.

      Shalom,

      Rochelle

      Liked by 1 person

  • I feel the same way. Maybe because I missed out on childhood altogether and/or have little memory of it. I have a few Barbies in a glass case, same for a few porcelain dollies. Wouldn’t know “how” to “play” with them, but I do enjoy looking at them… oh, and making clothes for them.

    Liked by 1 person

  • Time keeps on slippin’, slippin’ slippin into the future… I guess I show my age by knowing that song 😉 I have no idea where the time has gone, and I will quote another song, one day you find ten years have got behind you… Yeah old toys are part of it, as is nostalgia 😉
    I’m with you about growing up. I may be older, but…

    Liked by 1 person

  • When someone says they don’t want to get old, I tend to tell them it’s better than the alternative. I suppose we don’t know that for sure though! I’ve sent my Mum your link, she would agree heartily about Paul and David.
    Mind you, I think the strange thing about celebrities is they are many ages all at once. My Mum watched the Man from U.N.C.L.E. when she was young, showed it to my brother and I when we were young, and I recently shared the A Team / U.N.C.L.E. corssover with my own kids. However old David gets, Ilya will always be 30ish.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Dear Jen,

      What can I say? I was definitely “Team Ilya” back in the day. Napoleon who? I still enjoy Beatles music and have just about every album on my iPod.
      In retrospect, U.N.C.L.E. was pretty cheesy and the acting not all that great. I still watch David McCallum on NCIS. His acting has greatly improved.
      Thank you for sharing. Hello to your mum. 😉

      Shalom,

      Rochelle

      Liked by 1 person

    • Dear John,

      So great of you to drop by with a comment. It makes me smile to know an old friend is reading my stories. 😀 Hard to believe my class is pushing 70. Okay…more than pushing it. 😉 Thank you.

      Shalom,

      Rochelle

      Like

    • Dear Nancy,

      Oh David McCallum. His was one of the pictures I hung on my wall. For the most part I didn’t care about acting or plot…just watching him. I think he’s still adorable. 😉 I got my Chatty Cathy for my 6th or 7th birthday. Thank you for coming by to read and comment. Happy to have you aboard.

      Shalom,

      Rochelle

      Liked by 1 person

  • My mom or my aunt had a Chatty Cathy. Coincidentally, I was just researching TV shows from when I was a kid yesterday, searching for details for a story I’m setting back then. The originals will always be superior to the endless stream of reboots, revivals, resurrections, regurgitations, and rip-offs they use to squeeze money out of our nostalgia.

    Growing up is overrated. I will never do it.

    Liked by 1 person

  • Dear Rochelle,

    A fun trip down memory lane. TV now is just not what it was back then and that’s unfortunate. I’ve been binge watching Peyton Place, the TV series. I had no idea that it even existed. I was looking for the movie on YouTube and stumbled across the series.

    I’ve never watched U.N.C.L.E but I’ve seen David McCallum in other shows. Growing up I had the Tressy doll, and of course, Barbie. I even had a Ken doll. And paper dolls. It was fun growing up back then and growing old doesn’t have to be a drag. In fact, it’s a blessing to live to be old. Not many people do.

    Shalom,
    Adele

    Liked by 1 person

    • Dear Adele,

      I have the boxed set of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. Kind of silly and not the best acting. But then, when I was fourteen couldn’t have cared less about the acting. It was all about the eye candy. 😉

      I had a Barbie but never a Ken. As for paper dolls, I loved making clothes for them.

      I’m with you. In retrospect it was a good time to be a kid. Thank you.

      Shalom,

      Rochelle

      Liked by 1 person

    • Dear Plaridel,

      I see that I visited this story before. Well said, my friend. Sadly the results of women trying to reverse the aging process with Botox or plastic surgery end up looking unatural and downright creepy.
      As for me, I’m still cute. I just content myself with being “older cute.” 😉 Thank you.

      Shalom,

      Rochelle

      Liked by 1 person

  • Oh, my old heartthrobs. Never had a Chatty Cathy but did have paper dolls galore. We didn’t have a T.V. either, so watching television at Grandma’s house meant Lawrence Welk or at the neighbor’s ~ Bonanza. Thanks for the memories.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Dear Lish,

      I loved making clothes for my paper dolls. 😀 Oh Bonanza. Little Joe was such a cutie. For me there was no Lawrence Welk but Ed Sullivan every Sunday night. Good times. Thank you.

      Shalom,

      Rochelle

      Like

  • Dear Rochelle,

    I was never into dolls, myself. But my mother told me the story of searching for this darn doll for the neighbour’s daughter. She went all over Montreal only to find it in this little store in OUR town!

    That said, I, for one, am not gonna grow up 🙂 Always a fun read, my friend.

    Shalom and lotsa Chatty love,

    Dale

    Liked by 1 person

    • Dear Dale,

      Somehow it doesn’t surprise me you weren’t into dolls. 😉 I was more of a girlie girl. As for sending mom around town, there was the quest for a black turtleneck sweater like Paul McCartney’s.

      Nope, not growiing up. Too much out there to learn and experience whilst I still can. Thank you.

      Shalom and lotsa retro hugs,

      Rochelle

      Liked by 1 person

  • Working in aged care, I hear this a lot. ‘Aging ain’t for sissies’. I think if we stick to you mantra of growing up being optional, we all stand s chance of staying young at heart. Seeing our TV heros getting old makes the ’80s feel like eons ago!
    I love your story, it’s very true!

    Liked by 1 person

  • My Nana still says that you gotta laugh at life rather than be miserable. She laughs more than anyone I know and she’s 96. My poppa used to say something similar too. Best way to live life. Be a kid… have fun… find the fun. Love this little musing, Rochelle

    Liked by 1 person

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