My Son Jack's Letter to me on my 90th Birthday

Jack writes me wonderful letters.......

Dear Dad,

For over 90 years, you have always thought of the needs of others before your own and you have always been an example of goodness, charity, and wisdom to all who know you.

As a son, you always came through for Champy and Noma - from working with your brothers to help build the cottage in North Beach, to surprising Noma with a replacement for the ice box, a sparkling new electric refrigerator.

As a brother, you were always there to help out either financially or with a visit; you were a true friend to your four brothers all their lives.

As a husband and father, you made sure the entire family had a circle of support and affection through good times and bad. We all knew that you would always be a rock of stability that we could always depend on.

As a Grandfather, you have earned the love and admiration of your 10 grandchildren. As a Great Grandfather of Austen and now of John Eugenio, you have done a great job.

You have earned an A+.

Love,

Jack

My Thank-you Letters to Blondie #1 and 2

As you know I call my daughter Elsie Blondie #1. I call her daughter Lila, Blondie #2....

Dear Lila,

I very much enjoyed having help you me share my 90th birthday, as they say you are only time 90.

Different times when I was getting over operations you would give me a fast push in the wheel chair from the dining room to my apartment.

I well remember pulling you in the hotel pool at Tallahassee when you were small.

I had a close call on the phone a few days ago. When I answered the phone I thought it was a salesperson. I was saved as I said "Who am I speaking to?" To my surprise it was my grandson's wife Carolina. So we both had a laugh.

As they say "Life can be beautiful at times."

Lots of love,

Great Grand Dad
Johnny Mann

PS My Son Jack is a Grand Dad now.

Dear Blondie,

Thanks for making that long trip from Tallahassee, Florida for my 90th Birthday.

Many times I remember looking out the front window to see you riding a horse on the front lawn with your friend Suzanne Marduez. You and Suzanne would rent them from the local stables for $4 an hour. I don't think the stables ever thought you would ride the horses back to your neighborhoood.

Another time I drove you and the rest of the children to the new John F. Kennedy play ground, where a young boy challenged you. You went right after him with both fists. You were holding your own so I didn't have to defend you, as you had it well under control.

Another time you and Nora had 2 girl friends share our vacation to Ocean City. The station wagon was loaded up, but we had a great time.

So in closing, I have had many happy days with my kids and 2 more for good measure.

LOVE YOU,

DAD

We Miss You Joe

When you were a very young boy, you rode your tricycle through Riverdale all the way to the entrance, and then to the right along the busy road. A very kind woman took you into her home and fed you a bottle of milk.

As a youngster, Joe would run from the front and back of our large back yard.

Joe loved our family vacations. His best vacation was in Miami where we had a large family room with comfortable beds. Kit, Joe, Charlie, Nora and Elsie would swim in the the Ocean or Hotel Pool. We had 2 weeks of great times .

Many nights when Joe was a teen-ager, I drove him and Kit to Jerry's Dance School.

Joe grew up and became a famous ballet dancer in Washington DC, then to NYC, and Bavaria in Germany. He was the lead ballet dancer when Kitty and I went to see him in Jackson, Mississippi.

Kit would take her nephews and nieces to visit Joe in New York.

After Joe's tour of Europe, he returned to New York where he died.

In closing, Joe had a happy life, as he lived it to the fullest.

The very best to you Joe.

From Your Old Dad (who is now 90)

My Last Cigar

When I was in my early 40s, my Doctor said "John, NO more Cigars."

I had started off with a pack of 5 cigars, and kept adding more cigars each week, until it began to affect my health.

So I had a gift of a box of cigars. One morning with a new job as Business Manager of Plumbers Local #5, I decided to quit. It was an exciting day as I smoked them all and have never gone back.

The best jar of fruit

As a U.S. 3rd Army Soldier, Joe Colleto had received a small package from his wife in New Jersey.

His wife had mailed him a jar of fruit that he opened up for us to share, and to our surprise it was a quart of whisky with a single pear floating on top.

Grandma's Dollar Bill

During WWII, Kitty’s grandmother mailed me a letter with an American Dollar Bill. One night I walked into a German Bar with about 8 fellas. Beer was about 10 cents a glass. I held up the dollar bill and told the soldiers “This is Grandma’s dollar bill. We are going to buy some beer with it." Immediately they said “Let’s give a toast to Grandma.”

When I wrote to Kitty’s grandmother on how I spent the dollar bill, she was quite pleased.

Ice Cream Parlor

Tonight I was taken back by surprise. My daughter Kit took me out to eat. We ended up at a very nice place where we ate pizza, the biggest pieces I had ever seen. They were 7 or 8 inches long and 6 inches wide.

After eating the nice pizza, we got started again by going to the ice cream place a few doors down, where they make it front of you on a frozen plate. They put in all sorts of things inside a huge ice cream cone – about 5 or 6 inches wide. The circle part of the cone sits out two inches, so you can chip it off while you eat the ice cream.

Kit said there would be some singing after she put a tip in the jar. And there was all this singing. It makes you feel important. Evidently they must do this all day. The ice cream was delicious, but I could only eat half of it. All in all, I had all I could possibly eat. It was up to my neck.

"Cripple" Pie

During the 1940 years, you could buy a delicious pie for 50 cents from Stevenson's Bakery. For the pies that were broken, you could buy it for ½ price and it was named “cripple” pie. So you would tell the clerk, “Give me 2 cripples”. Sometimes, they only let you have one cripple.

My 90th Birthday Lunch

On my actual birthday, my son Jack took me to lunch along with his four children to the Silver Diner. We had a great time exchanging stories back and forth.

Then the whole staff, including the manager, surprised me with a Happy Birthday song and dessert that was large enough for everyone to share.

It was a wonderful day to share with my son and grand children.