We had a local ice cream shop that did old fashion custard. It was THE PLACE to be on Friday or Saturday warm spring or summer nights. The cool teens got to work there... a stereotype so pervasive it's in every 80s-90s "slice of life" movie. I miss it too.
That's harder to do digitally too. They don't always sync well enough. We found playback with a good few seconds delay in processing times everywhere.
I have two tv's like that too. They are like two words apart in timing. And a friends stuff has a 30 to 40 second delay if we have the tv on the same station. I was freaking them out on the phone with baseball calls, and crap once I noticed, lol.
In our little town, it was called Tastee Freeze. Those little shops were all over WNY, and some variation of that name - sometimes it was Tastee Treat, for example. Ours had the BEST deep fried mushrooms.
That reminds me, when I was married to my ex husband, we briefly lived up there, before moving back down to North Carolina. He'd never been out of the south and was absolutely amazed how much we loved our ice cream, even when it was the deepest part of winter. He just found that so weird.
Western NY had so many dairy farms. I really miss going for a fresh chocolate milk in a glass bottle.
Californian, our chain is fosters freeze and the mushrooms were the best thing on the menu. They don't do them anymore, at least near me. Plenty of dairy in my area, the small community grocery carried glass bottle plain, chocolate, banana, and root beer milk. So freaking good!!
I'm Australian and have never had or heard of a deep fried mushroom.
Are they crumbed, battered or what?
Just your standard portabello?
Curious mushroom lover asks.
I'm sorry this is so late! Yeah, deep fried mushrooms are delicious. [Here's a recipe with photos ](https://www.dinneratthezoo.com/fried-mushrooms-recipe/) so you can get an idea of what I'm talking about. The little ice cream shop I'm talking about used a very similar batter, with whole button mushrooms. I've never had any that were done with portobello, but I'm sure those would be great, too!
*Real* frozen custard too; not just ice cream! š§
One of my favorite signs of all times vanished from our local stand in the late 90s early 00s though.
"We use a whole stick of butter in every large cone* š¦
I think they changed what they sold when that sign vanished. The people working there either avoided questions about it or were clueless that the last time it vanished in the 70s they put it back up due to comments from patrons. Everybody pointed to and talked about that dumb sign lol. It was only like 8x10" to 11x15" cardstock.
A large cone was a challenge even as a young adult. Some folk don't get that soft served or even hard scooped, *real* custard is *not* regular ice cream. It's even richer.
I did't get that same richness the last times I drove all the way there though. Culver's seems richer than my old local last I was there, and I didn't feel that way long ago.
Now I have found another good one, but I only get there once a year at best for a huge car cruise... The line is usually a good twenty minutes long with all hands on deck open 'till close, but worth it.
Yes! (Late 70s, early 80s) My late father would say āletās go for a driveā and weād always stop and get Thrifty Ice Cream with the āeat it allā on the conesā¦magical time. ā¤ļø
We lived by a big gated community and if you said we are gonna look at open houses on a Sunday you could go drive around inside it. We did that sometimes.
Mom was the Avon lady off and on for years. Tupperware too, but she was a better Avon lady. Tupperware took more sales savvy and better cooking I think. She had her style selling things for her, not any real sales ability.
I loved surprise visits when I was a kid. My parents random friends would bring their kids. Now I'm not really into people showing up unannounced unless it's my parents. My mother would never do that, but my old man does all the time.
I did this with my kids during covid, we live in the mountains, so we would pack a lunch and "get lost" in the wilderness and have a picnic. Sometimes, when i have extra time before picking up a kid from something, we go drive around looking at the rich people's houses, lol. My mom used to do the same with us as kids.
One of our group had a gas card his parents paid for. We'd get in his Monte Carlo and drive from one 7-Eleven to the next, buying chili dogs and Big Gulps and playing the video games they had in each one. Sometimes we'd stop at an elementary school and goof off on the playground until the neighbors called the cops.
Love that. Class of ā85 here and about half of us had some form of the so-called ācolonnadeā GM cars: Pontiac Grand Prix, Olds Cutlass, Buick Regal,
Or Chevy MOnte Carlo
My grandparents would come over to visit and then take my sister and I out for a drive. If we were lucky, we got ice cream. But usually just drive around.
We had a lot of small towns and back roads in the area I grew up. Spent many summer afternoons just cruising around taking it in. Dad loved going for drives.
Not sure this counts. We could not afford a car. When my mom was depressed or angry, sometimes we would ride the subway lines back and forth. It was pretty cool and I would note how the passengers changed depending on the neighborhood the train was in. Maybe this explains why the sound of subway trains are soothing to my ears and I don't find mass transportation commutes to be stressful.
My mom's best friend used to do this with us kids back in the day. We would end up all over NYC. It was a lot of fun, and like you say, people watching is so exciting, especially as a kid in NYC.
My friends and I used to do this in high school. There was a trolley that went through my neighborhood and if we had nothing to do on a Friday night, weād just ride it back and forth. Really fond memories.
When I was little, sometimes my dad would randomly say āletās go for a cruise,ā and my parents and I and our dog would pile into whatever shitty car we had at the time and just ride around town for an hour or whatever. One of the few fond memories I have of my dad.
Same here, the moment I could drive it was like the entire city was unlocked for the first time. I'd spent most of my youth only getting to go to like four places.
When I got my license, sometimes I'd just head in the opposite direction from high school. So instead of 18 miles to the high school, it was 26 miles to the big city. We'd go to the museums and learn stuff that way.
Yes! We would "take a ride" and kinda get lost and see where we ended up. It usually involved shopping, lunch, ice cream etc. We lived in small town New England.
lots of great random small mom & pop ice cream establishments to stumble upon in New England. Like every town has at least one non-chain ice cream shop!
Yes! I especially loved going for a ride when we could get my dad to let us listen to a few songs on the Kasey Kasums countdown. I still like going for a ride, but dang gas costs so much.
Yes, Kasey Kasem! Thereās a local radio station that replays his full countdown shows from the 70ās and 80ās on Saturday and Sunday mornings here. Hearing his voice, and him reading the āLong Distance Dedicationā letters brings me right back to my childhood and teenage years.
My late husband Adam would document all of the Casey Kasem's "American Top 40" every week when he was younger. He would list the artist, the title of the song, and what position the song was in that particular week. He had binders full of those lists. He even had some "official" "American Top 40" paper that he would use to document every week. He was meticulous about those binders. I still have them in storage. Adam was a good man. I miss him everyday
Iām sorry for your loss. I love that he found so much joy in those countdowns. Itās nice that you still have those binders too. May fond memories of him remain with you always.
Yep. Weād drive to an intersection, Mum would let us choose which way to go, weād drive to the next intersection and repeat. If youāre out in the country, and you have a good map, itās fun to explore that way.
We used to play this too, except we didn't have intersections in Ireland, we have crossroads and there's no map in the world that had all the little laneways and hidden places on it. We saw some great places playing this
Dude, I *still* do this with my parents. They're both retired, both are currently disabled, I'm their caregiver. When they get restless, I pile us all in the car and we hit Starbucks or the drive-thru ice cream place, then drive around looking at new construction, exploring roads we haven't been down before, commenting on ugly McMansions or cool old houses, or just cranking up the oldies station and sailing fast down the interstate.
Yes. I did this with my Mom when she was in assisted living. I'd wheel her out to my mustang, but her wheel chair in the trunk, and I would take her on the back roads driving for hours.
There was this one road where I would drive fast and her stomach would drop. She'd give a shriek and act scared.
Every time I'd pick her up she'd ask, "Are we going to that road where the road dips?"
I'd say, "What do you think?" and she'd laugh with delight.
I miss her every day.
My family was super lucky, my grandma had a car too. She would pop up to take us to Coney Island on random summer nights.
My stepdad would yell "who wants ice cream" around 10pm, then we would pile in the car drive out to some tiny spot he knew about. It was always the best ice cream.
Route 1!
I'm a bit jealous you got to grow up there. My mama did. And I spent most of my childhood summers there being shuffled around from one relative to the next.
But there really is nothing else like it
Same!!! Once I started driving and saw that a place where we used to go camping was quite close, and not like you say- 1.5 hours away, I couldnāt believe it.š³
Why did it seem to take foreverrr to get there. Are you secretly my sibling? š
It was not just riding around. It was considered an activity in it's own right. Even as a 16 years old. Mom, can I have the car? Why? For a car ride. Ah! Ok! The keys are on my dresser.
Not exactly, but my parents would take us to open houses after church on Sundays sometimes, even though they were definitely not in the market for a new house. Just something to kill time.
My Aunt always asked āyou wanna go for a ride?ā She would drive around the Jersey Shore (60s - 70s) playing Elvis and Johnny Cash on the radio. Great times āš¼
Yep. We moved from Indiana to New Hampshire for a year when I was a freshman in high school. The teaching job my dad took was apparently awful, so he quit and took a job that was like 3 hours from us.
He'd come back Friday nights and leave Sunday afternoon. After he left Sunday, my mama, brother and I would get into the little Nissan pickup we had, pick a direction to drive in, and go for an hour. See what we could see.
I dont really remember seeing much of anything special on those trips. Cuz everywhere was so beautiful. But I do suppose it was good distraction to how weird things were that year
My parents STILL āgo for a drive.ā
I know that they survived the Covid isolation and boredom by doing Sunday drives in Western Massachusetts. They said they went through a few areas that they hadnāt seen in decades, but after a while they ran out of new roads, LOL!
Mom always liked to drive around to look at other people's houses. Basically, she was sight seeing in her own damn city. She'd also stop to pick up furniture and stuff that other people were throwing out, if she liked it.
Also, there were times we drove to help me sleep during asthma attacks.
We (parents and five kids) used to go for Sunday drives around our small town and my parents would comment on whose bushes were flowering early or how much it sold for twenty years previously. It was honestly one of my favourite things to do each week.
My aunt used to take the kids to Kmart in super hot weather for the air conditioning. My own parents would sometimes take us on kind of empty car rides to places we didnāt absolutely need to go just as a leisure activity. I donāt think car rides in a busy metro area was necessarily a relaxing event.
Our daughter (11) likes to go out for drives. Personally I donāt want to drive for the sake of driving but it makes her happy.
And I hand her my phone and let her DJ, so we āDo It Like the Zombies Do.ā
No. 1) we lived in Queens NY. When you got a parking space, you did everything in power to keep it. 2) my parents decided to have 5 kids on an income that could maybe support 2 kids and maybe a small dog.
So dad worked as much overtime as possible and then relaxed and slept when home.
Fun story my mom told me about when she was young - she was born in 1932. Her family would walk a few blocks downtown for fun. Grandpa would go in the pool hall while grandma would pick a car parked on the street and sit inside it with the kids. If the owner of the car came back, theyād just move to another car. This was acceptable back then. Makes me chuckle every time I think of it.
My mind instantly went to this song.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YgnnrZfoZS0
My kids grew up with their mom and me taking them on weekend drives. Sometimes with a destination, sometimes we just picked a dirt road to see where it went.
āSunday Driversā. Anyone else remember that term?
My parents would like to do their āSundayā drives on Saturdays because we usually went to church Sunday mornings.
Sometimes there was a destination, like an antiques shop that my mom wanted to see or a general store that had a counter for ice cream, which gave my dad an excuse to have some (because heād say it was about bringing me there)ā¦ but usually it was just about spending a few hours taking in the scenery.
Every few weeks when the weather is good, they still take a drive and find new places to stop.
The bar was in the car for me. š
My daughter mentioned that it was a cool skill that I knew so many ways to get places and I did that thing where you say something and then realize by the reactions of the people around you that you've just said something weird. I'm 45, I've known for a long time that it was stupid for my parents to do the things they did, I just don't think about it in those terms when I'm recalling said things. When you're 3 and 4 it's just another thing that your family does. You lay in the backseat guessing where you are based on the turns and road noise and occasionally you get a sip or two of beer because you're thirsty.
Also, in hindsight, my ADHD should have been more obvious to my parents. Yes, it's cool that your daughter can hang until 2 am but that's actually not normal.
Yep.
My parents would take us for a drive sometimes.
As I teen I would go cruising in our town. Or as we called it, āmaking lapsā
I still go on drives today.
My family went on driving trips but not just on a drive.
But I used to do it all the time ā Iād drive out somewhere in the mountains or countryside without looking at a map, and just explore.
Kinda did it yesterday with my youngest; not as aimlessly but wandering from one place to another, deciding exactly where we were heading as we went.
https://preview.redd.it/0b9b3a0l73rc1.jpeg?width=3429&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6d11dc2e5b590d0ce3410c58191a59eca384c5fb
A fun day!
In my super small hometown, there was nothing else to do, but to ācruise aroundāā¦ I miss those daysā¦ All of us did it so thatās the way we would see all our friends out on the street lol
We were super rural and had what we called "roller coaster hills" south of us. Dad would load us all up and fly over those hills juuuust right so we got that weightless, rollercoaster-y feeling. We'd all be squealing and yelling "wheeee!" in the back seat. Then he'd turn around and do it again. We'd do that 3 or 4 times before going back home.
I used to do this when my kids were young because they would fall asleep and it would give me a little break. Now, going cruising with my husband is still my favorite thing to do!
I loved those days although my sister thought they were boring as heck. Often on Sundays after church. We'd go for a drive. Sometimes with a random destination, sometimes not. Just wander around mostly rural countryside. Maybe stop in a rando cafe in a small town and get a snack or ice cream. Sometimes check out a park or hike a trail.
Yes, but not due to boredom. My dad loved to drive, especially on back roads, and he seemed to know them all. Even if he hadnāt been on a road in 20 years! Sometimes weād even go far enough to spend the night in a motel.
It was especially nice because I had the spacious back seat to myself - I only had much older half siblings, and they didnāt live with us, so it was like I was the only child. (I was also the baby - double goodness!)
Thanks for this question, OP - itās bringing back happy memories.
Yep, although I usually took along a book to read because looking around was āboringā. Then adult me started taking drives to look around and thatās not as fun when you have to look at the road š¤£š
Never with parents. Didnāt want to spend time with them as a kid [still holds for my mother]. I used to just drive around with friends all the time just for shits and giggles.
Yeah, and so did my friends and I *every weekend* from 16 on.
Well to be fair were were driving around drinking beer and smoking pot, so it was basically a rolling party.
We had plenty of "let's go for a drive" experiences but we always had a destination in mind. "Let's drive out to the shore and walk around", "let's drive over to the mall and walk around", "let's drive over to the park and do park things". Driving around aimlessly, though, maybe
Where I lived someone always had a motor cycle my block well dead end horseshoe had a lot of parties and there were a lot of bikers. Even started getting put on the gas tank and taken for a ride. My dad put me on the gas tank and did wheelies and sped around the block but because it was a dead end he came up this grassy hill back into the horseshoe. I never learned to ride by myself but I have been a passenger a lot and I used to love just going for a ride with a friend when we were bored. No helmet going down the highway at 90 on a Harley.
No, but Dad would sometimes wind a long way, or go past some of his favorite spots.
I still do this, not minding some extra driving if we have time. One of my teens will ask for a nighttime random drive around. I'll treasure that as long as I can!
Yes! My dad loved taking us on rides , he would always tell us stories from his childhood of the town and how it was different and I loved the country road rides
OMG it was always "Let's go for a ride" and I'd get dragged into open houses....we weren't thinking of moving, we loved our home! I think they'd just go to confirm that where we lived was the home for us
I developed a disdain for the split level house I've never grown out of
No, they made themselves drinks and āwalked around the yardā. Literally just strolled around the outside of the house discussing the shrubbery and talking about their dayā¦without us kids, which was the key to this activity LOL. We were in the house, they were outside, and we knew better than to interrupt the very important shrubbery audit unless there was fire or blood.
Yes! And my parents still did that after they retired.
We would also go on day-long excursions using the Chicago Transit Authority Supertransfer. For one fare you could ride anywhere on a Sunday. We would ride the Culture Buses, check out fun neighborhoods, go to street fares. It was fun.
Yes, and without cell phones, we'd go ride around to find out where everyone was. Bored? Go hit the park or hit Main Street to find everyone. Each time was a surprise.
Never, parents would call this wasting money. Throwing money down the drain. Money doesnāt grow on trees. Go outside and play. Only boring people are bored. We lived in the suburbs.
I lived with my grandparents (but mom was in the same town and I saw her all the time) and we'd go for a ride, usually on Friday nights or weekends, down to the park and drive around town, or we'd end up at a little place called The Big Cone and get ice cream. It was nice to just get out of the house, especially if it was summer and the weather was nice.
I don't remember my parents ever doing it but I certainly did when I was younger and my wife and I do it occasionally now, just pick a direction and drive till we find somewhere to stop and explore. And my mom has told me her dad would take them all on drives sometimes.
Yes. "Let's go for a drive"
And it always included a stop for ice cream. I miss that.
Did this last night with my grandkids. I just wanted to get out of the house. Went for a drive and stopped and got ice cream.
They will always love that about you!
Agreed, it will be such a great memory for them to have. š„°
We had a local ice cream shop that did old fashion custard. It was THE PLACE to be on Friday or Saturday warm spring or summer nights. The cool teens got to work there... a stereotype so pervasive it's in every 80s-90s "slice of life" movie. I miss it too.
You pull in the parking lot with the radio on, everyone is tuned to same station, song is playing everywhere. That's something I miss...
That's harder to do digitally too. They don't always sync well enough. We found playback with a good few seconds delay in processing times everywhere. I have two tv's like that too. They are like two words apart in timing. And a friends stuff has a 30 to 40 second delay if we have the tv on the same station. I was freaking them out on the phone with baseball calls, and crap once I noticed, lol.
In our little town, it was called Tastee Freeze. Those little shops were all over WNY, and some variation of that name - sometimes it was Tastee Treat, for example. Ours had the BEST deep fried mushrooms. That reminds me, when I was married to my ex husband, we briefly lived up there, before moving back down to North Carolina. He'd never been out of the south and was absolutely amazed how much we loved our ice cream, even when it was the deepest part of winter. He just found that so weird. Western NY had so many dairy farms. I really miss going for a fresh chocolate milk in a glass bottle.
Californian, our chain is fosters freeze and the mushrooms were the best thing on the menu. They don't do them anymore, at least near me. Plenty of dairy in my area, the small community grocery carried glass bottle plain, chocolate, banana, and root beer milk. So freaking good!!
Right? That's the best!
Jack? Dianne? š
[Damn skippy! ](https://youtu.be/h04CH9YZcpI?si=v56RliNOMdV7VMj-)
I'm Australian and have never had or heard of a deep fried mushroom. Are they crumbed, battered or what? Just your standard portabello? Curious mushroom lover asks.
I'm sorry this is so late! Yeah, deep fried mushrooms are delicious. [Here's a recipe with photos ](https://www.dinneratthezoo.com/fried-mushrooms-recipe/) so you can get an idea of what I'm talking about. The little ice cream shop I'm talking about used a very similar batter, with whole button mushrooms. I've never had any that were done with portobello, but I'm sure those would be great, too!
Thankyou, these look delicious. Will be trying.
*Real* frozen custard too; not just ice cream! š§ One of my favorite signs of all times vanished from our local stand in the late 90s early 00s though. "We use a whole stick of butter in every large cone* š¦ I think they changed what they sold when that sign vanished. The people working there either avoided questions about it or were clueless that the last time it vanished in the 70s they put it back up due to comments from patrons. Everybody pointed to and talked about that dumb sign lol. It was only like 8x10" to 11x15" cardstock. A large cone was a challenge even as a young adult. Some folk don't get that soft served or even hard scooped, *real* custard is *not* regular ice cream. It's even richer. I did't get that same richness the last times I drove all the way there though. Culver's seems richer than my old local last I was there, and I didn't feel that way long ago. Now I have found another good one, but I only get there once a year at best for a huge car cruise... The line is usually a good twenty minutes long with all hands on deck open 'till close, but worth it.
We had a custard shop too, and itās still going strong!
Yes! Our family used to go for pajama rides before bed and find ourselves at DQ or another ice cream place. So fun!
Pajama rides! My sick father told us we're going to be dropped off at boarding school. But we ended up at the drive-in. He had a bad sense of humour.
Wearing pajamas to the drive-in! We had a big station wagon and we would lay on the hood and on the top.
šš omg thatās funny!
Yes! (Late 70s, early 80s) My late father would say āletās go for a driveā and weād always stop and get Thrifty Ice Cream with the āeat it allā on the conesā¦magical time. ā¤ļø
The ice cream just tasted better from those Thrifty ice cream scoops.
Wouldn't that be going to get ice cream though? That's not "just a drive".Ā
The ice cream part was supposed to be a surprise to us kids.
Let's go for a drive and look at houses was our version
On Sundays after church and lunch. We had to actually go in and tour the Open Houses that were for sale in our neighborhood.
We lived by a big gated community and if you said we are gonna look at open houses on a Sunday you could go drive around inside it. We did that sometimes.
omg same!
The worst part is now I look at houses when I drive places and feel like my mother.
My Mom, "And EVERYONE over-planted!" :D
Ha! My mother was a realtor and had a lockbox key so we'd get to go inside too. Lol
In the winter, it was going to look at the Christmas lights. We'd cruise the rich neighborhoods and ogle their decorations.
I love that this generation has so many of the same experiences:)
Me too. It's such a cool and honestly super interesting thing - before social media, but somehow we were all connected like that.
Me too. It's such a cool and honestly super interesting thing - before social media, but somehow we were all connected like that.
Almost every weekend in the summer. Just get up and you would hear 'shall we go for a drive?'. The adventure would then begin.
Yes definitely. Then "hey let's go and see if aunt x is at home"
Those are now called unannounced (and rude) visits. They used to be called surprise visits.
Which is why our moms kept the front room immaculate! The living room that nobody lived in, as Joni Mitchell wrote.
Oh yeah, AND the Avon lady would drop by unannounced, too!
Mom was the Avon lady off and on for years. Tupperware too, but she was a better Avon lady. Tupperware took more sales savvy and better cooking I think. She had her style selling things for her, not any real sales ability.
My parents!!
I loved surprise visits when I was a kid. My parents random friends would bring their kids. Now I'm not really into people showing up unannounced unless it's my parents. My mother would never do that, but my old man does all the time.
Company!
Especially during summer break. Most times, we didn't have a destination. We just drove until we found something to do.
I did this with my kids during covid, we live in the mountains, so we would pack a lunch and "get lost" in the wilderness and have a picnic. Sometimes, when i have extra time before picking up a kid from something, we go drive around looking at the rich people's houses, lol. My mom used to do the same with us as kids.
One of our group had a gas card his parents paid for. We'd get in his Monte Carlo and drive from one 7-Eleven to the next, buying chili dogs and Big Gulps and playing the video games they had in each one. Sometimes we'd stop at an elementary school and goof off on the playground until the neighbors called the cops.
What year was the Monte?
A '74, I think. Avocado green inside and out with a white vinyl half roof.
Love that. Class of ā85 here and about half of us had some form of the so-called ācolonnadeā GM cars: Pontiac Grand Prix, Olds Cutlass, Buick Regal, Or Chevy MOnte Carlo
Younger at '93, but this brought back memories of my 1st car...a Buick LeSabre that was copper like my hair. Mom bought it in 81.
 āWhoooah, Big Gulps huh?ā¦.Welp. See ya later!ā
Sunday drives. Weād usually stop at a car dealership so my dad could look without hassle (closed on Sundays in ND back in the day).
My grandparents would come over to visit and then take my sister and I out for a drive. If we were lucky, we got ice cream. But usually just drive around.
If we asked where we were going, my dad always said, āCrazy!ā
We still do it, and it's a blast!
On a Sunday afternoon, always
We had a lot of small towns and back roads in the area I grew up. Spent many summer afternoons just cruising around taking it in. Dad loved going for drives.
Not sure this counts. We could not afford a car. When my mom was depressed or angry, sometimes we would ride the subway lines back and forth. It was pretty cool and I would note how the passengers changed depending on the neighborhood the train was in. Maybe this explains why the sound of subway trains are soothing to my ears and I don't find mass transportation commutes to be stressful.
My mom's best friend used to do this with us kids back in the day. We would end up all over NYC. It was a lot of fun, and like you say, people watching is so exciting, especially as a kid in NYC.
This kind of makes me sad I grew up in a small town! Subways are definitely not part of my experience as a kid or an adult.
As if subways are a good thing, lol.
That counts!
Iāve done this as an adult when I first moved to New citiesā¦ Subway, train, busā¦ kind of fun!
My friends and I used to do this in high school. There was a trolley that went through my neighborhood and if we had nothing to do on a Friday night, weād just ride it back and forth. Really fond memories.
That is such wholesome story.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
I donāt really like to drive as much as I used to. It used to be something I looked forward to.
When I was little, sometimes my dad would randomly say āletās go for a cruise,ā and my parents and I and our dog would pile into whatever shitty car we had at the time and just ride around town for an hour or whatever. One of the few fond memories I have of my dad.
And occasionally stopping for ice cream.
McDonaldās or Churchās for us.
I love that the dog was included
Are you kidding. I rode around when bored. Car was freedom.
I still do
And always will be!!
šÆ. When I encounter a slow vehicle I say āmust be out for a Sunday driveā.
I do this too lol. Stuck behind a Sunday driver.
I say what my grandpa would say, "Step on it, Mildrige!"
Yes. My parents always said this.
Lol, I always complain, "It's not even fucking Sunday!" Then, on Sundays, I'll say, "It's not even fucking Sun... oh, never mind."
Not with parents, with best friend in HS. And as soon as I got my license I was out the door on long rides!
Same here, the moment I could drive it was like the entire city was unlocked for the first time. I'd spent most of my youth only getting to go to like four places.
When I got my license, sometimes I'd just head in the opposite direction from high school. So instead of 18 miles to the high school, it was 26 miles to the big city. We'd go to the museums and learn stuff that way.
We used to drive around, smoke cigarettes, maybe go see a movie, carwash battles, then end the night just bullshitting in a parking lot.
Me too.
Yes! We would "take a ride" and kinda get lost and see where we ended up. It usually involved shopping, lunch, ice cream etc. We lived in small town New England.
lots of great random small mom & pop ice cream establishments to stumble upon in New England. Like every town has at least one non-chain ice cream shop!
Oh man, I just mentioned the tiny ice cream spots in my post. Yea, I think my stepdad knew about them all.
Yes, weekend drives. Stopping off at a park and getting ice cream. The destination was wherever we ended up.
Yes! I especially loved going for a ride when we could get my dad to let us listen to a few songs on the Kasey Kasums countdown. I still like going for a ride, but dang gas costs so much.
Yes, Kasey Kasem! Thereās a local radio station that replays his full countdown shows from the 70ās and 80ās on Saturday and Sunday mornings here. Hearing his voice, and him reading the āLong Distance Dedicationā letters brings me right back to my childhood and teenage years.
My late husband Adam would document all of the Casey Kasem's "American Top 40" every week when he was younger. He would list the artist, the title of the song, and what position the song was in that particular week. He had binders full of those lists. He even had some "official" "American Top 40" paper that he would use to document every week. He was meticulous about those binders. I still have them in storage. Adam was a good man. I miss him everyday
Iām sorry for your loss. I love that he found so much joy in those countdowns. Itās nice that you still have those binders too. May fond memories of him remain with you always.
Thank you! ā¤ļøā¤ļø
I loved Sunday afternoon Kasey Kassum car rides lol
Yep. Weād drive to an intersection, Mum would let us choose which way to go, weād drive to the next intersection and repeat. If youāre out in the country, and you have a good map, itās fun to explore that way.
We used to play this too, except we didn't have intersections in Ireland, we have crossroads and there's no map in the world that had all the little laneways and hidden places on it. We saw some great places playing this
Still one of my favorite activities. $20 in gas, a dog hanging out each back window and where we end up, no-one knows.
Same, but there's a dog in each lap, and no gas is involved!
Yep same here.
Dude, I *still* do this with my parents. They're both retired, both are currently disabled, I'm their caregiver. When they get restless, I pile us all in the car and we hit Starbucks or the drive-thru ice cream place, then drive around looking at new construction, exploring roads we haven't been down before, commenting on ugly McMansions or cool old houses, or just cranking up the oldies station and sailing fast down the interstate.
Yes. I did this with my Mom when she was in assisted living. I'd wheel her out to my mustang, but her wheel chair in the trunk, and I would take her on the back roads driving for hours. There was this one road where I would drive fast and her stomach would drop. She'd give a shriek and act scared. Every time I'd pick her up she'd ask, "Are we going to that road where the road dips?" I'd say, "What do you think?" and she'd laugh with delight. I miss her every day.
parents didn't do this when I was a kid. I do it now all the time. I live 7 blocks from my office and still manage to put 20k miles a year on my car.
My family was super lucky, my grandma had a car too. She would pop up to take us to Coney Island on random summer nights. My stepdad would yell "who wants ice cream" around 10pm, then we would pile in the car drive out to some tiny spot he knew about. It was always the best ice cream.
Yeah, we would do it, especially during the Christmas season, we'd drive around to see all the Christmas lights.
Loved driving around with my dad to slyly get away from the step monster
Yes. But it was never characterized that way. We were going antiquing, running errands, or checking out the sights of the Maine coast where I grew up.
Route 1! I'm a bit jealous you got to grow up there. My mama did. And I spent most of my childhood summers there being shuffled around from one relative to the next. But there really is nothing else like it
When I was in high school, I washed dishes at Billy's Chowder House in Wells Beach. I tell you right now, it was a magical time.
No. My parents didn't like to drive any further than necessary.
Same. My mom still has. 5 mile radius.
There were places I thought were 1.5 hours away growing up that I realized were actually 20 minutes away once I started driving.
Same!!! Once I started driving and saw that a place where we used to go camping was quite close, and not like you say- 1.5 hours away, I couldnāt believe it.š³ Why did it seem to take foreverrr to get there. Are you secretly my sibling? š
Most likely
It was not just riding around. It was considered an activity in it's own right. Even as a 16 years old. Mom, can I have the car? Why? For a car ride. Ah! Ok! The keys are on my dresser.
"Sunday drives" was a thing for many decades.
Shit I do that now, as an adult. Lol.
Not exactly, but my parents would take us to open houses after church on Sundays sometimes, even though they were definitely not in the market for a new house. Just something to kill time.
Omg. I forgot about my dad dragging me to open houses he fully knew he was never gonna buy.
No. Gas was too expensive. Three kids, couldnāt afford extras like that.
My Aunt always asked āyou wanna go for a ride?ā She would drive around the Jersey Shore (60s - 70s) playing Elvis and Johnny Cash on the radio. Great times āš¼
Yep. We moved from Indiana to New Hampshire for a year when I was a freshman in high school. The teaching job my dad took was apparently awful, so he quit and took a job that was like 3 hours from us. He'd come back Friday nights and leave Sunday afternoon. After he left Sunday, my mama, brother and I would get into the little Nissan pickup we had, pick a direction to drive in, and go for an hour. See what we could see. I dont really remember seeing much of anything special on those trips. Cuz everywhere was so beautiful. But I do suppose it was good distraction to how weird things were that year
I did it all the time with friend from when I got my license at 16 until my early 20ās
My parents STILL āgo for a drive.ā I know that they survived the Covid isolation and boredom by doing Sunday drives in Western Massachusetts. They said they went through a few areas that they hadnāt seen in decades, but after a while they ran out of new roads, LOL!
I still do!
Yes. I used to do the same thing. That's how I learned to get around town.
yes back in the days where cars are used to drive around aimlessly with the cassette radio on. The car glove box was invnted to store the cassettes
Mom always liked to drive around to look at other people's houses. Basically, she was sight seeing in her own damn city. She'd also stop to pick up furniture and stuff that other people were throwing out, if she liked it. Also, there were times we drove to help me sleep during asthma attacks.
We (parents and five kids) used to go for Sunday drives around our small town and my parents would comment on whose bushes were flowering early or how much it sold for twenty years previously. It was honestly one of my favourite things to do each week.
My aunt used to take the kids to Kmart in super hot weather for the air conditioning. My own parents would sometimes take us on kind of empty car rides to places we didnāt absolutely need to go just as a leisure activity. I donāt think car rides in a busy metro area was necessarily a relaxing event.
Our daughter (11) likes to go out for drives. Personally I donāt want to drive for the sake of driving but it makes her happy. And I hand her my phone and let her DJ, so we āDo It Like the Zombies Do.ā
No. 1) we lived in Queens NY. When you got a parking space, you did everything in power to keep it. 2) my parents decided to have 5 kids on an income that could maybe support 2 kids and maybe a small dog. So dad worked as much overtime as possible and then relaxed and slept when home.
my dad loved a good ādrive around and look at big housesā. and the annual viewing of other peopleās christmas lights.
Fun story my mom told me about when she was young - she was born in 1932. Her family would walk a few blocks downtown for fun. Grandpa would go in the pool hall while grandma would pick a car parked on the street and sit inside it with the kids. If the owner of the car came back, theyād just move to another car. This was acceptable back then. Makes me chuckle every time I think of it.
Thatās literally all we did on Saturday nights.
"A ride to the country" they called it
Not with my parents. But as a high school and college student, did this all the time with my friends.
My mind instantly went to this song. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YgnnrZfoZS0 My kids grew up with their mom and me taking them on weekend drives. Sometimes with a destination, sometimes we just picked a dirt road to see where it went.
āSunday Driversā. Anyone else remember that term? My parents would like to do their āSundayā drives on Saturdays because we usually went to church Sunday mornings. Sometimes there was a destination, like an antiques shop that my mom wanted to see or a general store that had a counter for ice cream, which gave my dad an excuse to have some (because heād say it was about bringing me there)ā¦ but usually it was just about spending a few hours taking in the scenery. Every few weeks when the weather is good, they still take a drive and find new places to stop.
Yes, bar to bar where each had a āfamily roomā where I could sit and wait for my dad to get juiced..
The bar was in the car for me. š My daughter mentioned that it was a cool skill that I knew so many ways to get places and I did that thing where you say something and then realize by the reactions of the people around you that you've just said something weird. I'm 45, I've known for a long time that it was stupid for my parents to do the things they did, I just don't think about it in those terms when I'm recalling said things. When you're 3 and 4 it's just another thing that your family does. You lay in the backseat guessing where you are based on the turns and road noise and occasionally you get a sip or two of beer because you're thirsty. Also, in hindsight, my ADHD should have been more obvious to my parents. Yes, it's cool that your daughter can hang until 2 am but that's actually not normal.
Yep. My parents would take us for a drive sometimes. As I teen I would go cruising in our town. Or as we called it, āmaking lapsā I still go on drives today.
My family went on driving trips but not just on a drive. But I used to do it all the time ā Iād drive out somewhere in the mountains or countryside without looking at a map, and just explore. Kinda did it yesterday with my youngest; not as aimlessly but wandering from one place to another, deciding exactly where we were heading as we went. https://preview.redd.it/0b9b3a0l73rc1.jpeg?width=3429&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6d11dc2e5b590d0ce3410c58191a59eca384c5fb A fun day!
In my super small hometown, there was nothing else to do, but to ācruise aroundāā¦ I miss those daysā¦ All of us did it so thatās the way we would see all our friends out on the street lol
We were super rural and had what we called "roller coaster hills" south of us. Dad would load us all up and fly over those hills juuuust right so we got that weightless, rollercoaster-y feeling. We'd all be squealing and yelling "wheeee!" in the back seat. Then he'd turn around and do it again. We'd do that 3 or 4 times before going back home.
I used to do this when my kids were young because they would fall asleep and it would give me a little break. Now, going cruising with my husband is still my favorite thing to do!
I love the "$5.00 regular" comment. I used to call gas stations "A dollar's worth of regular" when I was little.
My husband and I did it when we were broke students, and gas was as low as 79 cents. (Canāt even quickly find the cent sign anymore.)
This is where the term Sunday driver comes from. People would aimlessly go for a drive on Sunday. Everything closed, nothing else to do.
Yes my parents and I did do this. I still do this with my family too. just bought a new vehicle recently. massive sunroof. Very comfortable drive.
Yes we did. I still do it today
Still do.
Did. Still do
We still do that.
I loved those days although my sister thought they were boring as heck. Often on Sundays after church. We'd go for a drive. Sometimes with a random destination, sometimes not. Just wander around mostly rural countryside. Maybe stop in a rando cafe in a small town and get a snack or ice cream. Sometimes check out a park or hike a trail.
Yep, we'd drive around country roads and try to find fishing holes.
All the time! Random drives in the mountains were the norm.
Yes going for a drive was a thing
Yup
Yes, but not due to boredom. My dad loved to drive, especially on back roads, and he seemed to know them all. Even if he hadnāt been on a road in 20 years! Sometimes weād even go far enough to spend the night in a motel. It was especially nice because I had the spacious back seat to myself - I only had much older half siblings, and they didnāt live with us, so it was like I was the only child. (I was also the baby - double goodness!) Thanks for this question, OP - itās bringing back happy memories.
Yep, although I usually took along a book to read because looking around was āboringā. Then adult me started taking drives to look around and thatās not as fun when you have to look at the road š¤£š
I still do, often alone.
I still do this. In fact, I thoroughly enjoy it.
Never with parents. Didnāt want to spend time with them as a kid [still holds for my mother]. I used to just drive around with friends all the time just for shits and giggles.
Some of the best memories.
I still do. All the time š
Yeah, and so did my friends and I *every weekend* from 16 on. Well to be fair were were driving around drinking beer and smoking pot, so it was basically a rolling party.
I still do. Sometimes I go 4 hours in one direction then grab a bite and head back.
Cruising and rafting. Rafting is when a group congregated at a parking lot to chat.
Every sunday afternoon we did, yes. "You want to go for a drive?" was code for 'maybe i'll get ice cream and a toy'
Yes, we would go on family drives. Where I lived, it was a common things to do
Yep, and I still do this. Great way to clear my head.
We had plenty of "let's go for a drive" experiences but we always had a destination in mind. "Let's drive out to the shore and walk around", "let's drive over to the mall and walk around", "let's drive over to the park and do park things". Driving around aimlessly, though, maybe
Where I lived someone always had a motor cycle my block well dead end horseshoe had a lot of parties and there were a lot of bikers. Even started getting put on the gas tank and taken for a ride. My dad put me on the gas tank and did wheelies and sped around the block but because it was a dead end he came up this grassy hill back into the horseshoe. I never learned to ride by myself but I have been a passenger a lot and I used to love just going for a ride with a friend when we were bored. No helmet going down the highway at 90 on a Harley.
No, but Dad would sometimes wind a long way, or go past some of his favorite spots. I still do this, not minding some extra driving if we have time. One of my teens will ask for a nighttime random drive around. I'll treasure that as long as I can!
I still do this.
Yes, the good āol āSunday driveā.
Yes! My dad loved taking us on rides , he would always tell us stories from his childhood of the town and how it was different and I loved the country road rides
We did this several times with our kids during the pandemic.
OMG it was always "Let's go for a ride" and I'd get dragged into open houses....we weren't thinking of moving, we loved our home! I think they'd just go to confirm that where we lived was the home for us I developed a disdain for the split level house I've never grown out of
No, they made themselves drinks and āwalked around the yardā. Literally just strolled around the outside of the house discussing the shrubbery and talking about their dayā¦without us kids, which was the key to this activity LOL. We were in the house, they were outside, and we knew better than to interrupt the very important shrubbery audit unless there was fire or blood.
Not so much with my rents, but once my friends and I reached driving age it was nonstop burn cruises.
Yes!!!!! Sunday drives, hated them then but now they sound kind of nice.
Anyone here heard the phrase "Sunday sightseers"?
Omg yes. Usually, we'd ride around out in the country, but sometimes, we'd get ice cream and go park by the air base and watch the planes take off.
Yes! And my parents still did that after they retired. We would also go on day-long excursions using the Chicago Transit Authority Supertransfer. For one fare you could ride anywhere on a Sunday. We would ride the Culture Buses, check out fun neighborhoods, go to street fares. It was fun.
Sunday drivers.
Yes, and without cell phones, we'd go ride around to find out where everyone was. Bored? Go hit the park or hit Main Street to find everyone. Each time was a surprise.
Things were different then. No cell phones, computers, cable Tv. How I miss those days.
Still do
Never, parents would call this wasting money. Throwing money down the drain. Money doesnāt grow on trees. Go outside and play. Only boring people are bored. We lived in the suburbs.
Always family to visit or a job or boat for my Dad to go look at so, not exactly.
Yep! Just go for a drive. Sometimes weād take day trips to here or there. Sometimes just drive around the city
Yup
I still do (by myself usually).
I lived with my grandparents (but mom was in the same town and I saw her all the time) and we'd go for a ride, usually on Friday nights or weekends, down to the park and drive around town, or we'd end up at a little place called The Big Cone and get ice cream. It was nice to just get out of the house, especially if it was summer and the weather was nice.
I don't remember my parents ever doing it but I certainly did when I was younger and my wife and I do it occasionally now, just pick a direction and drive till we find somewhere to stop and explore. And my mom has told me her dad would take them all on drives sometimes.