Name something that made a lasting impression on you..
I will start. I was kissed by Roy Rogers while visiting his museum in Victorville, California many years ago.
joyful I had a after hours date with Linda Rhonstadt. She was performing with the Stone Ponys and I was up front trying to catch her attention and actually did. Not bad for a geeky college student LOL. I don't kiss and tell but she left shortly for a tour with the band and I never saw her again...……..pretty much all I remember from college LOL.
MK I have a few actually.. My husband and I were down the shore years ago, and we played pool all night at a bar in Seaside with the guy who was the painter on Murphy Brown.. Michael Pastireli ... I can’t remember his name.. We also went on a cruise to Bermuda and Morton Downey JR and his wife were on the ship with us.. They were very nice.. Not the actor , The Tv host... And about 18 years ago , we were at the airport in NY , going to Italy.. And this guy was walking by me, and I was looking at him and he winked at me... And it was Davey Jones from the Monkeys... That was cool....
Havaclue My child just got done with school in may at wccc. He really struggled but his hard work paid off. Took 4 years but now he is off to Rutgers
Help In 1969 I was on the plane to meet my husband in Hawaii on a furlough from Viet Nam. HERMAN AND THE HERMITS were sitting next to me. They were going on a tour of Hawaii also.
Bernie Was having dinner while vacationing in New Orleans years ago, and Jon Lovitz walked by my table with a body guard. He looked rather serious, not the typical comedian persona on SNL.
Most recently was near Times Square deciding what deli to have lunch in. We walked by one where Tony Danza had a table by a window. As we walked in, he walked out and we sat at the same table.
3wbdwnj 
CraftBeerBob Sally Jesse Raphael the talk show host at the Pump House restaurant In Hackettstown with her daughter in the next booth.She was very polite and nice.We did not bother her.
murofVisiting my grandparents in Germany in the '80s we left for a week to visit other family in the Alps. When we returned to Cologne we discovered the power had gone out long enough for the food to spoil. But my grandparents sat at the table eating sour applesauce instead of throwing it away. What l didn't understand at the time was that they had gone through severe food scarcity during and after both WW1 and WW2.
They knew what it was to be hungry, and they weren't about to waste food. That really stuck with me.
Eperot When I was a young girl, while in a ladies room a very elderly lady told me to always get your paper towel before you wash your hands. So when your finished washing, the paper towel is handy and the water wont run down your arm while getting the paper towel out of the dispenser (usually they are very high and you have to raise your arm to get it) To this day I get my paper towel first and have never had water drip down my arms. Just one of those silly little things that stuck.
auntiel Manners ….( please , thank you , and always be kind ) .
My grandmothers was right ...to have manners is priceless for the return from others received !
steven I name that big honking German Shepherd. When he sunk those teeth into me, the lasting impression is still visible a half century later ;-)
StrangerDanger 
Doves built a nest on my tiered planter. The nest's structure was flimsy, and the babies fell through the metal work. Panicked, I lifted the nest pieces and babies into a basket which I returned to the original spot. Not only did the family accept the new home, but doves returned to the basket the following year! They have not visited me yet this year, but I will forever have a basket ready and waiting.
Deborah Almost 50 years to the day that I saw the Beatles in concert, I got to take my then 13 year old granddaughter backstage to meet One Direction before their concert. She got her first kiss from Harry Styles! It was such a memorable experience to share with her.
AnnE I went to a small Catholic school many years ago. The Mother Superior taught our class of 15. There were 6 of us that always got A's. But one marking period, the 6 of us got a B in Self Control. She explained that as soon as she asked a question, we all raised our hands.She told us that we should think before we act. That lesson has carried through into my senior years now. Once in a while, I react first, then I think of Mother St. Eugene.
PBM My father owned a small construction company, just him and one other full-time employee. He was easily one of, if not the, most sought-after contractors in my town. People would wait 6 months or a year for him to get to them for whatever work they wanted done. One of my friends said something once about how long his waiting list was, and my dad said, “The only thing I do different than everybody else is be dependable. When I tell somebody I’ll call them back, I call them back. If I tell them I’ll meet them at 3 o’clock tomorrow, I’m there at 3 o’clock tomorrow. Of course sometimes my schedule changes, or I get behind, but when that happens I tell everybody involved as soon as I know it. But basically, I just always do what I tell people I’m going to do. It really is just that simple.”
I don’t own my own business, but I try to live by those rules. They’re really good rules. (And I wish more contractors would follow them, too.)
Monty Long story short.
Working at a shopping center in the late 70’s early 80’s.-Livingston.
Christmas shopping season.
Break for late lunch.
Bagel shop by exit door to bus stop.
Older woman with young son on line, lots of bags from lower end stores.
Obviously Xmas shopping.
Counting her change from her purse- trying to buy her son lunch.
Counter person gets very snippy with her, asking for prices and holding up the process.
Didn’t really have enough money for anything better than a buttered roll.
Something registered with me—
Her son was me 20 years earlier.
And she was my Mom, also back then.
Completely understood the situation she was in and sacrifices she was making
Though I have no way of knowing, can guarantee that nothing in all of those bags was for her.
I told the counter person ( on the side) to give them whatever they wanted-gave the clerk a twenty ( that I really didn’t have) and told them I’d come back later for the change.
Reflecting on it afterward, I DO believe that that woman was an Angel, and I was being tested.
Not really tested-but given a choice.
I never forgot that day or that lesson that was reinforced.
Giving is so much better than receiving.
Pay it forward.
That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
BTW-
$14 in change was there waiting for me.
Such a deal????
Stymie I used to do a lot of work in urban school districts in NJ...Jersey City, Newark, Paterson. I always appreciated the ride home from the city to the rural area we live in here.
One time stands out more than any others...I was working in a school in Paterson. The school's cafeteria was slightly below ground level, with windows that looked out onto the sidewalk outside the school. Litter was EVERYWHERE on the sidewalks on this street...food wrappers, bottles, etc. This is what the kids looked at every day while eating lunch.
I came home later that day to attend the open house at the recently renovated Mountain Villa school (Allamuchy, next to Rutherfurd Hall). My own children would be attending that school. The view my children would have every day while eating their lunch? A two story wall of windows, with sweeping views of the great lawn and Allamuchy Pond.
Seeing the contrast between the two cafeterias, on the same day, made me really appreciate what we have here!
Jersey Girl For me it is to be grateful for what I have and things can always be worse.. We grew up poor and my parents struggled on many levels.. They made a lot of sacrifices for their 4 children!! Growing up I was jealous of what we didn’t have or were able to do... The older I’ve gotten the more I understand that we were very lucky to have a roof over our heads and food on our plates... A lot of people still don’t have those simple luxuries..
Mr. tone I was on vacation at a N. Carolina beach. Wife me and adult children went to a restaurant. It was busy so we sat outside to wait for our table with other people. I noticed a young man in shorts, he had prostatic leg. He was with his wife and four children. His daughter maybe 12 and the others younger. Somehow I knew he had been in service and asked him. He was an Army Vet, wounded in Iraq, lost his leg. I really didn't know what to say. I couldn't help notice how his older daughter kept watch over the little ones, the mans wife at his side. When we finally got to our table and our waitress arrived, I pointed out the man and his family and told her, when their check came to give it to me. We all ate, the waitress brought our check and the mans check and I paid it all. A few minutes later the man and his wife approached our table, he shook my hand and his wife gave me a peck on the cheek. I told them if it were up to me, they would never pay for a meal again. But the words wouldn't come out, I choked up and just nodded and we all went our separate ways. later when I had a chance to think about it I guess I wanted this man's homecoming to be much more welcoming than the one I never had. I am a Viet Vet. Our service people, especially the ones missing limbs and wounded in so many other ways, deserve so much for what they have sacrificed for us. At one point in my service I returned home from Viet Nam, and me and my family went to a restaurant. Everyone was talking, laughing and eating and meanwhile I felt like standing up and yelling at them there is a war being fought right at this moment. Soldiers are dying everyday. But I kept silent and watched everyone having a normal day in a restaurant. A few weeks later I returned to Viet Nam for my second tour. Maybe that's why I choked up when the wounded vet and his wife approached me. Anyway, I will never forget that day.
Boobalaa 
AJMS 
Living in a 3rd World Country. You have a completely different perspective on the world when it comes to the plethora of non stop complainers. You witness what peoples struggles really mean. You have classmates that are future leaders of the country while others can hardly afford clothes. You tutor future Ambassadors. And even see the Queen of England. (it was a Brit 3rd World Country) It brings home what a real divide between people is.
GC Once I was having lunch with my niece in her school cafeteria, I think it was her 2nd grade year. There was a little boy behind us in line with his little metal lunch box. He turned to me and said "watch this" and he held his lunchbox open across his face "this way no bad people can hurt me" I knew instantly he meant if a shooter entered the school. It took everything I had to hold in my tears. I got in my car and cried all the way home.
A few years ago I was waiting for my pizza at a local place. There was an obnoxious, big mouthed man with a few people at a table behind us. He was loudly proclaiming his brother was... Well let's just say a very important public servant in the local area... I don't remember the exact context of what he was going on about, but he let the *N* word fly loudly and proudly. I was in shock. That party left. Next thing I know an African American man and his 2 young children walked up from the back of the restaurant to pay for their food. I couldn't even hold back my tears. I was sick to my stomach. I have a lasting and disturbing impression of the high ranking official and his family.
Weebiekins This one’s a bit different than most here: The Monkeysphere
The reference was posted by iAnimal more than a decade ago, from a cracked.com article of all places.
https://www.cracked.com/article_14990_what-monkeysphere.html
The key takeaway for me has always been this:
“We are hard-wired to have a drastic double standard for the people inside our Monkeysphere versus the 99.999% of the world's population who are on the outside.“
I just read the article again and It’s just as memorable today as it was then, for me anyway. Might want to give it a read :-)
justintime 
MtBethel 40+ years ago I worked in a very busy butcher shop. My job was to clean the shop at the days end.Most of the butchers were very surly.I was not treated very well.One day I went to work and there were two new butchers who not only treated me well but taught me about their business.I will always remember Bob and Freddie who took the time to teach and encourage me.
When my son was born... he had the cord wrapped around his neck twice and a complete knot in his umbilical cord. It’s a miracle he survived the pregnancy and his birth. God was watching out for him!
Jesse132 
This is one place that I can not forget or do I want to . I was checking out Washington DC and I went to The Vietnam Memorial Wall the noise was gone the air was still I placed my hand on the wall and I could feel them reach back I could hear them calling out that they were there It became hard to breath. I said I feel you I hear you I am here to thank you , I stepped back and moved on to were my wife was, she said who were you talking to I said to them they are here this was the one thing in my life I can never change nore do I want to
Caged Animal It was a starless rainy night as we approached the famous Exorcist stairs in Georgetown just above the dark swirling waters of the Potomac arriving just at the 3 am witching hour. Looking up, suddenly, without warning, we saw.....absolutely nothing. So, we climbed the stairs, found our car, and drove home.
Hey, true story.....mostly...prob. 2am....last crawl....it was a different house too in the movie. But the stairs are still there. And the are creepy.
But truthfully, it was the smallpox vaccine that left a lasting impression on me. Bet a lot of you avoided that little badge of honor, you young whippersnappers.
We lost our future daughter in law in the 9/11 terrorist attack in New York. She worked Windows on the World restaurant as Head Pastry Chef and her name was Heather Ho. Years passed until my son suggested taking me to the 9/11 Memorial in NY...he asked if I was ready to go and I said I thought I was..so we went. While walking outside the museum my son said he would like to show me Heather's name that was etched in one of the walls outside the building. After much walking and not finding it..he said to wait by this one area and he would go to get a map. I stood there and all of a sudden heard his voice..."Mom...don't move your hand"!. There my hand was resting right on her name on the one wall where I was standing. She knew I was there.
Abba dabba bwhaaaaat! One of the Most amazing things I have ever heard.
Did you still go to the museum?
Everything there is so moving. Masterful job.
joyful
That was beautiful. I'm all teary eyed.
I am so sorry for your loss. I am sure she knows you think of her, as your son as well.
Joyful... That story gave me goosebumps!!! I’m sure she knew you were there... That was an awful day.... They are all angels looking down on all of us...
Holy moly, joyful! What a cool but bittersweet story. Definitely made an impression on me, as did that entire fiasco. I know it’s been years, but tell your son that some HLer said “I’m so sorry for your loss.” I am. For both of you.
Guilty-Remnant Joyful- Our family friend was in the restaurant that morning also for a business breakfast. I hope they were able to give each other comfort. We found his name on the memorial almost the same way, by accident. Every year we wait for his name to be read on TV and then turn it off. My prayers are with you.
Jac’s mom Visiting the Memorial Sloan Kettering Children's ward when I was 14 to visit my little cousin who was battling cancer. Learned a very important lesson that day....looking at those parents saying to myself "don't even think about telling anyone you are having a bad day". My cousin lost her battle 2 days before her 14th birthday, but boy did she teach me a lot about life. Don't sweat the small stuff folks.
Love to Sing 
dodgebaal 
Dbelle After my wife and I moved here from Long Island, we were second guessing ourselves whether this was the best place to raise our kids, Are the schools good enough, is the area safe, will our kids be exposed to a variety of sports, clubs, etc?
One early evening my wife and I went to the Middle School to attend a parent/teacher conference. While walking from the parking lot to the school building, I saw about a dozen soccer balls near the parking lot in a mesh bag. Apparently left behind by one of the soccer coaches. As we walked into the building I thought, how unlikely those soccer balls would still be there when we returned later that night.
How surprised we were that the soccer balls were still there. That no one had taken them! Despite a few shortcomings many might think this area and state has, 20 years later, we are glad we chose this town to live and raise our kids.
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