On The Road With Denis & Starr/Day 16 - Long Island

Friday, October 16

Adieu, New York City!

My Childhood Homes

Today, Denis totally indulged me.  We visited all of my childhood homes.  It was a road trip in itself; down Memory Lane!

769 Dauntless Parkway

Elmont, NY

1954-1962

A few memories from ages 1-8:  Dad built us our own ice skating rink in the back yard; Val grew huge sunflowers one summer right on this corner inside the white picket fence that used to surround the house; Mom was the perfect 50's lady in stylish dresses and high heels when she walked the one block over to the A&P for groceries; the house decor was Populuxe  in style - clean lines, amoeba shapes and blonde furniture; I took my first ballet class at the age of 3 from Miss Ann and from that day forward dancing was everything; Mom opened her first dressmaking shop on Hempstead Avenue called STARR FASHIONS.

The Carlisle Towers

Co-op Apartments

138-10 Franklin Avenue

Apt. 1B

Flushing, NY

1963-1966

Ages 9-12:  Wearing my skate key on a ribbon around my neck; lots of bloody knees; having a bus pass and riding the Q44 every morning with Val to go to school at Emmanuel Lutheran in Whitestone; JFK's Assassination; The Beatles Invasion and rushing home from a ski trip to Bear Mountain to see them on The Ed Sullivan show; having the '64-'65 New York World's Fair as our playground (just a few blocks from our building); the Black Out of '65; dancing at The Kaye Gorham Studio and taking my very first Jazz class with Mr. Madison; The Mets!; Mom's dressmaking shop on Main Street called FASHIONS BY JO-ANNE (she just decided to glam up her name one day!)

397 Central Avenue

Bethpage, NY

1967-1968

Ages 13-14:  This house was on a busy commercial street so Mom set up shop right in the living room and called it Jo-Anne's Boutique; Val played bass in a rock band - they rehearsed in our basement - heard House of the Rising Sun & WipeOut way too many times!; Dad would take us to Bethpage State Park every weekend in the winter to ski down the little slope; Sunday brunches at Aunt Jemima's after church; sleepover parties at my friend Sally's house where I pretended to like The Monkees (actually preferred Vanilla Fudge, Cream & Jimi Hendrix); watched the double feature of How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying & Half A Sixpence four times in one day and fell in love with movie musicals.

720 New York Avenue

Huntington, NY

1969-1972

Ages 15-18:  Another house on business property, mom set up shop in the two front rooms calling it NORTH SHORE BOUTIQUE.  With a very loyal clientele that had been following her around for years and a growing business, in 1970 she moved her workshop and showroom to downtown Huntington.  She now featured a line of custom-ready-to-wear.  I worked for her as a cutter and finisher. Dancing at the Jan Martin Dance Studio and becoming a teacher there at 16; Dad teaching me to drive; Peace Rallys at Heckscher Park; traveling through Europe every summer with mom; great times with high school friends.

Bittner Road

Centerport, NY

1973-1974

Ages 19-20:  A little shangri-la called home during my years at Nassau Community College; dad had a rowboat that we would take out on the pond down the lane; mom always had the kettle on when I would arrive home late (very late) from theatre department rehearsals; the most Currier & Ives type Christmases ever!

Long Island

I don't know exactly where it happens, but when Northern Boulevard changes to 25A I know I am back home on the beautiful North Shore of Long Island.  This historic stretch of road has always been a favorite of mine.  Beginning with the classy Miracle Mile in Manhasset, then passing Oyster Bay and its neighboring towns in all of their Great Gatsbyish lushness and on around the bend to the ever charming Cold Spring Harbor, one then arrives in what to me is the epitome of Main Street, USA, downtown Huntington.

We were lucky enough to be arriving on Long Island one day before our friends, Janice & Ed, were leaving their home in Oyster Bay to travel to their winter home in Arizona.  For the last couple of years we have been meeting them in the city for dinner whenever we came to New York, so this was our first visit to their stunning house.  We enjoyed a lovely glass of wine and caught up with all the family news.  Next, we took the tour and were delighted by their eclectic and colorful art collection.  In fact, we were reminded of home when, down in their terrace level, we came upon stacks and stacks of paintings that they were kindly storing for a family member.  Note to ourselves:  Let's make a plan for all of Denis' artwork.  And then I found out that my friend of almost 30 years is as crazy about tea as I am.  Ed designed this two-sided cabinet so that she can view and enjoy her extensive teapot collection from their  kitchen and dining room.  Just look how beautiful....

Before we left, Janice and I looked at some old photos from the summer we had met as camp counselors and giggled like teenagers again.

We bid farewell and look forward to seeing Janice and Ed again, maybe in Atlanta or Arizona next time...

Huntington, NY

When asked where I grew up, I always say Long Island.  If asked for further clarification, I say Huntington, Mostly because my years in Huntington are the ones that are most easily remembered and this is mostly because of my BFF since 9th grade, Gloria.

And now after many years of Gloria coming to visit us at our home in Atlanta, we were on our way to be her guest for 3 days in her house that she has lived in since she was born.  I could not contain my excitement as we turned on to Oakwood Road passing Huntington High School where we had forged our friendship all those many years ago.  Just a few blocks south and we turned on to North Street where Gloria lives.  The house looked the same, cute and inviting.  We pulled down the driveway and Gloria greeted us in her apron - a very promising sign for what we would be enjoying later that evening.

Who gave up her room for us?  Gloria!  Who stocked her house with every possible vegetarian food favorite from vanilla soy milk to our favorite spicy snick snacks?  Gloria!!  Who went out of her way to make sure there were numerous wine choices, red & white, when she is a devoted fan of Zinfandel?  Gloria!!!  Oh yes, we were home.

After settling in and toasting to our reunion (was that like the 4th time this year?) the doorbell rang and Gloria's little sister, Elena, and her husband, Richie arrived.  It had been many years since we had last seen each other, so we caught up on all of the family news.   Gloria said that there would be two more guests for dinner but would not divulge their names.  I tried to guess, but didn't succeed.  I was so surprised and happy when the third member of our high school triumvirate, Janet, arrived with her husband, Charlie (also a member of our class of '72).

 Trio!!!

The yearbooks came out!!!

We were all talking at once and laughing a lot and all the while something delicious was bubbling away in Gloria's oven in the kitchen of which I had so many memories of good food and good times with 4 generations of this loving Italian family.

Mangia!!

We all gathered at the dining room table, beautifully set for a harvest meal.  The wine was flowing and on the menu that evening was Gloria's Homemade Lasagna.  For Denis and I, she had prepared a special pan made with her very own Marinara Sauce.

Crusty Italian bread with dipping oil and a crispy green salad with Compari tomatoes, pumpkin seeds, and cranberries all tossed with a delicious harvest vinaigrette rounded out the meal.

The dinnertime conversation was warm, funny and full of pleasant remembrances of a simpler time when the size of your car's engine and the up-to-datedness of your office's Selectric typewriter were important. We've come a long way, Baby!  And then, Cannolis for dessert!!  Sublime.

We said goodbye to old friends and headed up for bed with big plans for our next day on Long Island.

Aunt Gloria's That's Italian Marinara Sauce

Ingredients

2 (28 ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes (good ole Red Pack, says Aunt Gloria)

1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste

4 tablespoons olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup of wine (Zinfandel, of course!)

Directions

In a medium bowl, blend the whole tomatoes and paste; reserve.

In a large saucepan, warm olive oil over medium-low heat and add garlic; cook for a few minutes, but make sure to not brown the garlic.

Pour tomato mixture in saucepan and stir; cook over medium heat for 10 minutes.  Add parsley, salt and wine; reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens; serve.