I would like to enter our neighborhood "ice cream truck man" for "scariest man alive"

[battlemaiden]

Seriously.

 

Have you ever just seen a guy that belonged on a wanted poster? He's disgusting.

 

As if the rusted out, clunky sounding van wasn't enough to deter me from allowing my children outside when I hear that ice cream truck sound, the 400lb, unshaven, dirty man in the undershirt with holes, has sealed the deal.:eek:

 

Someone beat me... I dare ya' ;)

 

Jo

[Laurie]

The scariest man in your neighborhood could be the clean-cut clergyman around the corner. Looks can be deceiving...

 

As a newly hired teacher, I was required to attend workshops with other new employees about professional ethics and sexual abuse. The priest who was leading these workshops apparently didn't practice what he was preaching to the rest of us and his misconduct made the papers.

[Unicorn.]

I think that is so sad. The dc and I really miss the ice cream truck from our old neighborhood. They ask all the time why we don't have one here, and I have to tell them "Because there are two many stupid regulations in town." (our old neighborhood was outside the city limits) We loved our ice cream truck! I'm sorry your dc won't have that same experience as we did.

[Needleroozer]

I have noticed this myself- in both my neighborhood (not in the best part of town), and in my mama's suburban area. Thought it was just me who thought they looked creepy. I have to admit, for some reason, I usually have instant distrust about men in ice cream trucks. I really don't know why, and I am not proud of the fact that I am stereotyping, but I do it none the less. Your ice cream dude sounds particularly scary to me. I would be sure to buy lots of popcickles from the freezer section of the grocery, and let someone else buy his ice cream. I know, I am a bad mama.

[Anne in Hawaii]

Truly, I think we have the same one! On the windward side?

[battlemaiden]

Truly, I think we have the same one! On the windward side?

 

ROTFL!

 

Yes. We're in Kaneohe. Thank you for a wee little bit of validation for my "ick" factor. ;)

 

He goes down our street at least twice a week, and people do buy from him. :001_huh:

 

I never knew you were on the Windward side, Anne. Sebastian thought we might run into one another since we are PCA. Oh well, at least we share the "scariest ice cream truck man alive" award. ;)

 

Jo

[Guest Virginia Dawn]

I don't have a scariest award, but the best ice cream man ever was my grandfather! The kids loved him.

[Plaid Dad]

This might be overkill, but could you call the ice cream company and mention the unprofessional appearance of the driver? Not to get him fired or anything, but to get him to clean up a bit. I can't imagine the company would approve of an employee wearing a holey shirt to work. He can't go out and lose 200 lbs. overnight, but at least he can bathe, shave, and put on a decent shirt, no?

[Kelli in TN]

You have an ice cream man? Gosh, I miss the ice cream man. Not yours, of course, but in general. When I was a kid living in mid-town Aurora Illinois the ice cream was so dependable and nice. And when you heard that music kids just went wild!!!

 

I thought they had gone the way of the dinosaur.

[PrairieAir]

Don't all ice cream truck guys look like that or some version of creepy? It's a joke among our family. Whenever we hear that music someone yells, "No, not the ice cream man! Run!" Even the music is creepy.

 

Heh heh. It's cheaper at the store anyway.

[KarenNC]

I'm still trying to figure out the marketing strategy behind having our local ice cream truck play "La Cucaracha" (if that's the way it's spelled).........

[DollyM]

At our house "scariest man" was The Creepy Orkin Guy. This was a man we hired to come take care of our ant infestation. Bug Man. Comes into the home, crawls thru all your undersink cupboards, has total access to your entire home, and brings along with him a creep factor of at least 89 on a scale of 100=creepiEST. Ours had thick glasses that made his eyes look ennormous. Wierd haircut like his wife (IF there was one ... big IF MNSHO) had not yet fully mastered the FlowBee. Fashion challenged way beyond the confines of the Orkin uniform ... sort of a failure to understand where the waistline should hit on a pair of khakis. Girls socks with men's oxfords (not really the kinds of girls socks that have the little dingle ball on the back, but similar with a lime green border - NOT a color that could be confused for masculine. ) He came several times before I just had to call the dispatcher and ASK for another guy. Got a woman the 2nd time. She was a bit better.

 

As for the ice cream guy - who suggested "calling the company?" 'Round here the ice cream guy IS the company - he owns his own delapidated truck, and buys his stock from a wholesale food distributor - he is certainly NOT the front man for the Good Humor Ice Cream Novelty Company.

 

I got around this for many years when my kids were litte by insisting that the "Cucaracha" music came from something called "The Music Truck!" When we heard the "music truck" in the neighborhood it was "Cookie Time" in the kitchen. This worked pretty well - even if they were out playing, when the Music Truck came near, they'd run INDOORS and insist on their cookie ration. It's a family joke now, as properly socialized homeschool kids they eventually learned the truth from the neighborhood children, but it worked for many years. DD says she was 9 before she learned the truth (and only 10 before she understood WHY I shielded her all those years from the overpriced and creepy ice cream truck guy.)

 

:lol:

[Jenny in Atl]

What's up with this? I don't think I have ever seen an ice cream truck dude that was not scary. Even as a kid, I can remember handing the guy my money at distance. I almost wanted to throw it at him and run. Our Good Humor man was creepy in that "father knows best" way. Like if you did not have the right change, he might yell at you. The Hood guy looked like a HOOD, greasy hair and unshaven. I guess the lure of the ice cream was enough for me to face my fears of these weirdos.

[OnTheBrink]

When I lived in San Diego, the ice cream vendors were creepy. I never let ds buy from them. However, in the subdivision I just moved out of here in IL, there was an ice cream truck that would come around regularly. The truck was clean and well-maintained and the driver was clean-cut and appropriately friendly to the kids and the parents. I was still very guarded and watched dd like a hawk when she bought ice cream, but at least the creep-factor was very low.

[5kidsforME]

I have noticed this myself- in both my neighborhood (not in the best part of town), and in my mama's suburban area. Thought it was just me who thought they looked creepy. I have to admit, for some reason, I usually have instant distrust about men in ice cream trucks. I really don't know why, and I am not proud of the fact that I am stereotyping, but I do it none the less. Your ice cream dude sounds particularly scary to me. I would be sure to buy lots of popcickles from the freezer section of the grocery, and let someone else buy his ice cream. I know, I am a bad mama.

 

I am the same way, I have no rhyme or reason for it but there ya go. :glare:

[Guest knitcindy]

Our ice cream man is nice enough, but it's his PRICES that send me running!!!!! When we lived in a big city, we could get away with spending under $1 for 1 item. Here in a little town, the cheapest thing on the truck is OVER $3!!!!!

 

We won't be spending any $$ at our truck anytime soon!!!!!

 

knitcindy

[AndyJoy]

We lived in Las Vegas when I was a small child, so I got used to hearing the ice cream truck and asking for ice cream. When I was 4, we moved to Okinawa. One morning, I woke up at 6:00 am to the sound of the ice cream truck! I ran into my mom's room excitedly. It turns out that the garbage trucks played music there!

[Sarah in FL]

We have some sketchy ice cream people down here (not to mention an ice cream truck that sounds like it is shrieking...my kids say it is supposed to be a horse neighing :confused:). Anyway, when we lived in Ohio, we did have a very nice ice cream man who also was a homeschooling dad. I appreciated the fact that he purposely didn't come around our street every day, just maybe once or twice a week, so I didn't have to be the mean mom. It's tough to resist peer pressure when your kids run in and say "everyone else is getting it!"

[mcconnellboys]

And ours used to visit the homes of young girls when he knew their parents were out, luring them out by feeding popsicles to their dog, etc. The kids would ask how much a cone cost, and he'd tell them different prices, depending upon their age, to try to see how much money they had in hand and how much he could get out of them. Beware ice cream trucks, I say!!!! I believe they require convicted criminals and pedophiles as staff!

[LisaNY]

I remember the Good Humor truck would come, with bells jingling. Our ice cream man wore a white shirt, white pants, white hat, and a tie!! Am I dating myself, or what?

[Cindyg]

Oh, I once knew a HORRIBLE ice cream man! I didn't know him in the context of an ice cream man. I knew him in another area of his life. He cursed and used foul language nonstop. He spoke terribly of women, in the context of "all they're good for." He had dozens of variations on that theme. He was constantly bitter, angry, loud, and agitated. And there was the ice cream truck parked behind his garage! Good grief!

 

Now that I think about it, I doubt anybody monitors those people to make sure they're the sort we'd want in constant unsupervised contact with children. Yikes!