"PUT ANOTHER NICKEL IN"

I've written previously about my brother Bode. He was the oldest of us eight siblings. He married when I was nine years old, but before he was married he would load us younger brats into his car "The Old Gray Ghost" and take us with him wherever he was going. We would often end up at Vic Donohoe's Pool Hall and while the boys played pool, I would timidly stand behind Bode, Neil or Norman and watch; Duke was too young to go and Les hadn't even been born!

Unbelievable as it may seem, I was a very shy little girl. Living in the country we did not have interaction with other kids except at school and I was socially awkward.

Mr. Donohoe would come over and invite me to sing along with the jukebox. My signature songs were "Tennessee Waltz" ala Patti Page and the one I would really belt out was "Music! Music! Music!" by Teresa Brewer. Of course that song was always "Put Another Nickel In" to me. Mr. Donohoe would keep putting nickels in the jukebox. As much money as he made from my father and Bode, he should have been generous! I later learned that was where my father played cards in "the back room".

I was just thinking how much my mother must have appreciated Bode taking us with him and giving her a much-needed break from us!