Time for a little nostalgia. Time for a throwback to simpler times. Remember when mom and dad would load up all the kids in the Ford Country Squire Station Wagon and head out on our family vacations? If this is not in your memory bank then you don’t remember stopping at Stuckey’s along the way. In between shouting and shoving mathces with my siblings and pre-teen hijinx like throwing mom’s pillow out the window at 75 mph, we all looked forward to stopping at Stuckey’s.

I got to thinking about the impact of an establishment like this on baby boomer’s childhood memories.  Thanks to Wikipedia, I can share the story of Stuckey’s.

^{Situated predominately in the Southwest, Southeast, and Midwest but showing up in states as far east as Conneticut and as far west as Oregon, Stuckey’s, the roadside convenience store, originated in the 30s in Geaorgia. It seems that W. S. Stuckey Sr. was pleased with an abundant pecan harvest and set up shop in a lean-to road-side shed on Route 23 to Florida. Wife Ethel got in the game and started creating and selling pecan candies and confections at the stand.}

In 1937, the Stuckey’s constructed their first building to sell the pecan candies. They quickly added a restaurant. Novelty stores rounded the highway quick stop design. After the war Stuckey’s grew to 350 locations and opened a candy factory to supply all the stores.

As baby boomers started to travel the country by car Stuckey’s success was unstoppable. They soon partnered with Texaco to add gas stations to the properties.  In 1960 Mr. Stuckey attempted to open hotels on his sites but only managed to open four.

So you might ask why engage in this nostalgic exercise on The Bite of Life? I can simply share that my family had an enjoyable evening remembering old slogans. We got a chuckle remembering that Stuckey’s actually used “Eat at Stuckey’s and get gas!” We all agreed that the guy who came up with this one should have lived on our street.