Name: Kevin Mandoske
Born: Washington D.C.
Married: Indira Mandoske
Children: Laura and Hoang
Grandchildren: Ray Ray, Maddox, Olivia, and another on the way
I am from a home in constant disarray, with clothes piled high in great heaps waiting to be laundered.
From beds un-made, and trash ever flowing from a brown grocery bag lined Rubbermaid can.
Dust trails, and bunnies abound. Irish lace fill the corners of each and every room, waiting for a broom that never comes.
I am from lawns in need of mowing, gardens in need of weeding, fruit trees in need of pruning, and dog poop.
I am from a home where parents seldom dwelled; chained to the business that was our livelihood.
From long hours and even longer eastern winters filled with despair over the seasonality that is our business.
I am from parents that loved us, but seldom had the time to show us, in the ways our friend’s parents seemed to enjoy.
I am from a mother whose mind ebbed and flowed with the seasons. From winter despair, and “the willies”, to the incredible highs of prosperity that the summer brought to her.
I am from phrases that I still do not understand like “nutsy fagen”, or who that might have been. We lived every child’s dream you see, ice cream was that name, “the business” as we all called it, and it was the place we came together to be a family.
I am from summers on the farm, or at the shore. Summers spent with grandparents and cousins, and our time to be children.
From grandpa’s and nana’s. From immigrants to Ohio, not far from the lake, to New York City by the sea, that brought them all here.
I am from small town America, a village by The Point, a simple village with a movie theatre, two men’s and women’s shops. Main Street and general store for sure, and an ice cream shop.
I am of carhops, and Friday night outdoor dances by the lake. It was burgers, fries, and doo-wop, and stacks of 45 RPM records.
I am about the Beatles, and Stones, and who we wanted to dress like. Greasers, and jocks. About teen clubs and midnight drinking in the woods. About first love.
I am about the Yankees, Ford, Mantle and Maris. It was about shoeboxes full of cards. Trading, flipping and clothes pinned to your spokes.
I am about West Point, the Army team, and football in the fall. Leaves changing, rivers and ponds freezing in my Hudson Valley home.
I am Rip Van Winkle, the Catskills, the Valley, and The City to. I am Grant, Lee, Custer, and Eisenhower. I am a Mustang, Apollo, the 60’s, Kennedy, and King. I am about freedom and rights. About prosperity and disparity. I am about you and I, and we.
I am the past, the present and the future. No regrets, no blames.