A Genie In An Old Pop Bottle

CHAPTER 15

A GENIE IN AN OLD POP BOTTLE

“Why doesn’t the past decently bury itself, instead of waiting to be admired by the present?”
D.H. Lawrence,


On my office desk sits a pop bottle that I found several years ago half-buried in a cow pasture in front of the Kasey House. I picked it up, rubbed the mud off, and, took a trip back in time. The perfectly intact 12-ounce Par-T-Pak Pale Dry Ginger Ale soft drink bottle has become one of my most prized possessions.
I was astounded that this precursor to today’s cheap, non biodegradable, non-refundable plastic container endured undamaged in such unfavorable circumstances for almost 35 years. This soda pop artifact has survived decades of harsh winters, heavy tractor tires, herds of cattle walking near and not over it, and, most surprising, the gruesome, non-discriminating bush hog blade. My Par-T-Pak bottle even had my grandparents’ mobile home sitting on top of it for about nine years, but, nonetheless, it has remained in pristine condition, waiting to be found. Only a portion of its base was exposed to the elements. It’s label, though mud-stained, was only slightly faded, and there was a splash of gray paint across its thick white and burnt-orange colored logo.

One Sunday afternoon in 1998, I took my granddaughter, Ashlee, who was three at the time, out through the well-worn path from what had been my parent’s home to see my father’s latest acquisition: a rooster and four pullets. I literally stumbled across what I thought, at first, to be a shard of glass.
As soon as she heard the first “cluck,” Ashlee’s sole interest was to capture the rooster and and she proceeded to pursue him around the Kasey House with a vengeance. So, I was forced to follow close after her to keep her from frightening them out into the highway and to keep her within sight of me. As we turned a corner and entered the front yard, I noticed a piece of dark, green glass sticking up out of the ground where the front porch used to be. Fear of a little girl cutting her knee compelled me to pick it up.
Just part of an old drink bottle, I thought as I pulled it out of its resting place. I was only partially correct. What I found was a perfectly-intact soda bottle, and not a run-of-the-mill, non-returnable variety, either. Instead, I discovered a brand that had been out of production since the mid 1960's.
Curiosity overcame me because I remembered noticing some Par-T-Pak advertisements once in some old magazines from the 60's that were given to me by a friend. So, I went to the Internet to do some research on the Par-T-Pak brand was popular when I was a child about Ashlee’s age. By chance, I encountered a world of soft drink memorabilia that I never knew existed.
My Par-T-Pak bottle is a special memento because of where I found it. Perhaps my parents, while they were courting, shared the bottle on the front porch of the Kasey House under a moonlit sky? Did I enjoy it along with a bagful of Mary Janes or Mint Juleps? The chances are very good that my grandfather used it as a gin chaser. One thing is for sure: the speculation will give me a lifetime of wonder, and that makes it a real treasure. Whoever enjoyed that ginger ale in the Par-T-Pak bottle could been no more refreshed than I am now.