On 12/3/2015 8:51 PM, rbowman wrote:
On 12/03/2015 04:31 PM, Don Y wrote:
Springfield was our "late night opportunity" (to purchase packaged liquors;
bars stayed open late but you couldn't buy anything at retail, incl beer,
after 8PM, IIRC)

Springfield MA?

Yeah (figured the MA reference was enough : ). ObTrivia: Springfield is
the most popular city name, IIRC!

I lived in East Longmeadow for a while. Fortunately Gentile's
Package Store was a quick romp through the backyard and across the parking lot.
Or maybe unfortunately.

Heh heh heh... "packy". Such a localized term! Soda? Or Pop?
(Moxie, anyone?)

When I lived in MA my out of state jaunts were to Somers, CT. I worked
six days
a week and the stores were all closed for the sabbath in the Puritan
state so
if i need groceries it was off to CT or Abe's Kosher Market. Abe's was
closer
but he didn't have much in the way of bacon or pork chops.

UConn?

I thought that was Storrs? Somers was just the closest place to E. Longmeadow.
iirc it was only about 10 miles.

Yes, my bad. Been a few decades since I lived in that part of the world.

Alcohol was not sold at retail, IIRC, on Sunday. But, grocers were open
(though not other retail establishments).

As I remember MA in the early '70s major grocery stores were closed on Sunday
but some of the convenience stores were open. My most memorable Christmas
dinner was frozen deep fried chicken from a 7-11. MA wasn't too unique in that.
It took me a while to figure out you could starve to death on Christmas Day but
all the restaurants were open on Easter.

Yeah, amusing, eh? All those Holy Rollers... I guess they worshipped the
God of Commerce!

Oddly the bucket of blood down the street was open so I stopped there for a
little cheer. Got home, threw the frozen stuff in the oven ad forgot about it
until the smoke started pouring out. Great dinner!

I remember first visit to one of the *huge* liquor stores. Like a
frigging supermarket! Packy's had always been little hole-in-the-walls
crammed full of bottles...