Jeremy Gutow is a Cleveland-based male nanny and private chef. He also manages a beauty salon.

Showing posts with label Homer Price. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Homer Price. Show all posts

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

DOUGHNUT DAY!!! Part 2.

     Page One Hundred Forty-Seven.
     So, now we know the story of Homer Price and the doughnuts. Fast forward a couple of decades. A fellow Cleveland Heights resident named Tom tells his wife and children that Homer Price was his favorite book as a child. And, the story of the doughnut maker was his favorite chapter. Tom and his family live in a very pleasant and neighborly section of Cleveland Heights. Everybody in the area knows everybody else and all know what each and everybody are up to.
     So one day, around the year 2000 or so, Tom's neighbor across the street had a garage sale. That neighbor, Chuck, owned a small diner here in Cleveland Heights and was selling a never-used, automatic, industrial doughnut maker that he purchased for said diner, but never ended up using. (I worked as a bus-boy in that diner for a couple of months in 1986. I ended up getting fired. You had to be really, really bad to get fired from Chuck's. Separate story. Chuck now lives in Oregon, where he moved in 2005 or so. I ran into him often until his move and occasionally reminded him that he once fired me. It was a big joke among our crowd. We're now friends on F-Book.)
     So anyhow, Tom's wife, Cindy, and children saw this doughnut maker and decided to buy it as a surprise and give it to him for Father's Day, a couple of weeks later, in remembrance of his Homer memory. He was thrilled. But what does one do with an industrial size/quality doughnut maker when one doesn't own an industrial restaurant? He built a beautiful wood and plexiglass stand for it and began using it at church gatherings. Also, he  let anybody and everybody borrow it just so that it wouldn't go to waste. Additionally, he began inviting friends and family to come over on a chosen Saturday morning each October to look at it and marvel at it's beauty.
     His annual October doughnut soire gathered steam and size and eventually caught the eyes and ears of the Plain Dealer reporter who lived down the street.
     Can you guess where this story is going?
     To be continued...

Monday, October 7, 2013

DOUGHNUT DAY!!! YEAH!!!

     Page One Hundred Forty-Six.
                                                         

      Next Saturday, October 12th is Doughnut Day, here in Cleveland Heights, Ohio and I'm so exited I could just spit. Let me explain.
     Are you familiar with the stories of Homer Price as written my Robert McCloskey in the 1940's and '50's? McCloskey is most famous for writing the book Make Way For Ducklings but he also wrote a number of other lighthearted, high-quality children's books. Homer Price and the accompanying book, Centerburg Tales, told the story of this preteen boy living in the fictional, small Ohio town of Centerburg and the humorous adventures that he got himself into. The books are still in print and remain quite popular for American children. I have both of them which my mother bought for me when I was the appropriate age. (Though I admit that I still read them every few years.) They're quite enjoyable.
     One of the most famous stories tells the adventure of one Saturday evening...
     Homer's Uncle Ulysses owned the town's coffee shop and while Ulysses was away at the movies, he put Homer in charge. Business was very slow but Homer decided to make a batch of doughnut batter for the "after movie crowd" and brand new automatic doughnut maker. Just as he was getting ready to prepare, Centerburg's wealthiest lady walked in, saw what Homer was up to and announced that she knew the world's best doughnut recipe. She proceeded to make way, way, way too much batter. But she poured it all in to the doughnut maker anyhow. The machine proceeded to get stuck in the ON position and the next thing they knew there were hundreds and hundreds of fresh, hot donuts. The rest of this story tells how they got rid of the doughnuts and how they found the woman's priceless diamond bracelet which somehow got lost. 
     To Be Continued In Next Blog...