CITY BEAT: BURMA-SHAVE SIGNS OF THE PAST PROVIDED ENTERTAINMENT FOR TWO BROTHERS

     This week, in our “Scrapbook” feature on pages 4 and 5 of the print and online editions, Tom Emery takes a look back on the era when Burma-Shave signs attracted a lot of attention by motorists and their passengers.
     Back when my brother, Sam, and I were kids, mom and dad took a one-week driving vacation to other states most summers.
     Of course, cellphones didn’t exist back then. Dad’s car either had no radio or only a few AM stations and the car didn’t have air-conditioning, except the kind that came from rolling down the car windows and letting the wind blow through (which was usually hot air).
     So, how did two brothers survive hours of riding in a car each day in hot summer weather?

     Well, we took turns reading out loud the messages on Burma-Shave signs that appeared every once-in-a-while as dad drove his Chevy down those two-lane highways (before the interstate highways came into existence).
Sometimes, when a considerable amount of time passed before another batch of Burma-Shave signs appeared we would forget who read the sign the last time and would argue over whose turn it was to read the signs!
We had a few other distractions while traveling. My brother liked reading hot rod magazines (he was so into car even though he was to young to drive) and I collected stamps.
     Working on my stamp collection in the back seat of dad’s car as we were traveling the country on vacation proved not to be a good idea.
     That’s what I learned when I had my stamp collection spread out on the back seat and dad opened his car window to get some air!
     Several of the stamps became “air mail” and flew out of the window and tiny bits of them probably remain somewhere in a farm field!
     After several of my stamps took flight that day and disappeared I figured working on a stamp collection in a car with the windows open (or opening) was probably not a great idea, so I went back to reading Burma-Shave signs for entertainment.
     My parents and my brother have passed on, but whenever I see a reference to a Burma-Shave sign, like the “Scrapbook” article this week, I recall those hot summer vacation trips in dad’s car and reading those signs aloud with my brother, Sam.
     Looking back, the memories of those days are fond memories because I was with my parents and brother.
I’m sure that many of you have very similar memories of the times you read those Burma Shave signs.

     • IT WAS great chatting with Shirley Moore, who stopped by the office last week to pick up some extra copies of an edition of the Trib.
     Shirley, and her late husband Dan, a local attorney, were deeply involved in serving this community for many decades.
     Dan served on the Decatur School Board and was active in other organizations, and Shirley was on the Decatur City Council, the Decatur Public Library Board and about as involved as a person could be in working to make Decatur a better place.
     Both were very involved in my campaign to be elected Mayor of Decatur. They even came down to the newspaper office and stuffed envelopes with campaign materials. The photo in the print and online editions shows Shirley and Dan marching in the St. Patrick’s Day Parade to support me in my mayoral bid. Dan passed away several years ago.
     Over the many decades that I have been editor/publisher of this newspaper, and involved in community projects, I’ve met so many people and have been so blessed by the support of people like Shirley and Dan and their involvement in making Decatur a better place to live.
     When I see people like Shirley, it is always an extra blessing to my day — and reminds me of the good people in the Decatur and Central Illinois communities.

     • ROUGH ROADS! — I know the highway of life isn’t without its bumps but, by my estimation the streets and roads in Decatur have never been in worse shape!
     Potholes, big cracks in the roads and some places on major streets that are so rough that people could use them as washboards for their clothes!
     Maybe that’s the reason some people drive so fast — so they can fly over the holes and cracks in the road!
     Anyhooo, I am tired of paying a road tax of nearly 50 cents a gallon to keep our roads in good shape and then most of the money being shipped off to Cook County.
     Maybe we need legislation that stipulates every dollar of the road tax should be used in the county where the tax is paid.
     Surely, there are enough residents of Cook County, and visitors to Chicago, to pay their own way to improve their transit system and roads.
     Just a thought that shook my mind after hitting the last pothole on my way to the newspaper!
     No doubt that, if Elvis was alive and visited our city, he would be singing “All Shook Up” after driving on our streets and highways.

     • SAFE MEDICATION — State Senator Doris Turner (D-Springfield) sent out information stating “People need to be able to trust that the medication they are taking is safe. By placing a centralized recall information source directly where people can instantly find answers, we are empowering patients with details about their health and safety.”
     Thanks to Senator Turner for a solid proposal.
     Turner is spearheading a measure to ensure patients can receive instant access to medication recall information without adding new mandates or responsibilities on pharmacists.
     The proposal would require licensed pharmacies in Illinois to post a clear and conspicuous sign near their pharmacy counter and drive-up window that includes a QR code informing patients of the ability to sign up for medication recalls via the FDA’s website.
     Senate Bill 3223 passed the Senate with bipartisan support.

     • I REALIZE that I am not a member of a younger generation which has grown up with computers and, for the most part, never experience “personal service” in most of the restaurants where they eat.
     However, there are generations still around who long for the simplicity of the “old days” when “eating out” was a lot simpler and enjoyable.
     How do I know? Subscribers to this newspaper can pay either online at our website, or via check.
     Guess what? Nine out of ten subscribers pay by check — and they want a “paper newspaper” to read.
     Thank you for supporting this newspaper — either the online edition or the paper edition, or both!

     • I WILL be back on WSOY’s Byers & Co. on May 7 at 7:00 a.m. as I am most Thursdays during the year.

     FOR MORE stories and more “City Beat” and editorial comments, SUBSCRIBE to the print or online editions of the Decatur Tribune by using the “Subscribe” prompt at the top of this page.  You will find many stories and columns about Decatur and Central Illinois each week. The print edition is $50 for 52 issues (one year) and the online edition is $30 for one year.  The combo rate (both print and online editions) is $65 per year.  You can also subscribe to the print edition via USPS by sending $50 to: Decatur Tribune, P. O. Box 1490, Decatur, Illinois 62525-1490.