I come from a family of many cousins, Aunts and Uncles. Made for wonderful family gatherings during the holidays. Great memories. Recently the realization of how my family is shrinking is hitting me hard. Of 9 Uncles, one remains..and I last saw him at my Dad's funeral, 13 years ago.
For some reason I'm thinking of my Uncle Arthur tonight. We called him Uncle Artie. He passed away many years ago. He had a wonderful laugh..his whole body shook and his shoulders would bounce up and down. When my family would drive into Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn to visit my cousins there, we would often go to a favorite ice cream parlor of his, Jahn's. (pronounced Jannes)
http://www.forgotten-ny.com/SLICES/jahns/jahns.html
Jahn's had awesome ice cream. You could get huge concoctions of flavors to feed a large group. I think there's only one Jahn's left now. Last time I went with my Dad and Uncle Artie and my cousins was maybe 30 or more years ago. I remember my Uncle saying I disappointed him because I didn't eat my usual quota. I was on a stupid diet.
One of the last times I saw Uncle Artie was at his office at the World Trade Center. He worked for the City of New York. I remember he was involved with arranging locations for one of Woody Allen's early movies. I went into the city with a friend to shop and hang around. I paid a surprise visit to my Uncle. I remember clearly walking into the huge room and he was sitting at his desk near a window. He was surprised to see me. He exclaimed: "My nephew came to visit me.", and he really was surprised. It was a short visit, he was busy. I think that was the last time I saw him before he passed. It was in the '70's. I'm glad I saw him one last time. I miss him.
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