michaelman2
Well-known member
The mention of RIT Dye in another thread made me recollect a funny life story from my childhood:
In the 1960s RIT Dye was in grocery stores and always on an upper level of the detergent/laundry product aisle. Out of reach for a five year old kid. The display was filled with colorful boxes displaying the vivid dyes available.
I was fascinated with these displays (and all of the detergents and laundry items) on the aisle. I was five at the time and would beg my mother to buy a box of RIT for me. Of course she would say "no" to a five year old kid. Each week, I would look up at that display and be enthralled with the boxes displayed.
Then one fine day......we visit a convenience store and I made a beeline to the aisle with detergents and low and behold there was a RIT Dye FLOOR DISPLAY filled with the boxes of the brightly colored dyes. My Holy Grail was right there!
I promptly took a box of the purple RIT and hid it under my shirt and walked to find my mother. I was so smug and sneaky and thought I was really happy about my theft.
Got home went to my room and pulled out my contraband. Then decided to go into the bathroom, start the bathtub and open the small packet of dye that was contained in the vividly decorated box.
I had a bathtub full of purple RIT Dye. Then began to splash and play with the dye water. I was towheaded as a kid and that white blond hair was now a bright shade of purple and of course my hands, arms, and parts of my face...purple!
My mom came in and as you may imagine freaked the hell out. She rinsed my off and I think the parts that the dye did not make purple, she did when she spanked the hell out of me. She dried me off and made me go into my little savings bank and pull out a dollar and off to the convenience store we went. Me looking like a Smerf, purple skin, hair and hands.
We walked in and the man working the counter looked like he was seeing something crazy (he was), and my mother said " tell this man what you have done". So of course I tell him something to the effect of " I took this box (I had to bring the opened outer box ) of RIT dye and I am sorry.
The man was looking at my mother and kind of shaking his head and I remember him saying " oh it's fine, no problem, don't worry about it". My Mother on the other hand tells him " NO, it is not okay, he stole from you and I think you need to have him pay you for the item and if you wont call the police, maybe he can come take out the trash or some other chore for you". Of course then the water works begin and I am crying and begging him not to call the police. I also ended up taking out his trash and sweeping around the crime scene once or twice. My sentence was finally served after one or two sweeping and cleaning sessions.
Of course years later my mother and I were laughing and recounting this "traumatic" day in my life and she admitted that it was hard for her and the man at the store not to burst out laughing. She said, she knew that she had to impress upon me this was wrong (and she did). I think the weeks of purple hair and having to explain the odd look of lavender skin and purple hair when people would ask became an indelible ( pardon the pun) image in my memory.
To this day, I cringe when I see a box of "RIT" anything! Also, that ended my life of crime. I vividly (again,pardon the pun) remember that day! Fifty some odd years ago.
In the 1960s RIT Dye was in grocery stores and always on an upper level of the detergent/laundry product aisle. Out of reach for a five year old kid. The display was filled with colorful boxes displaying the vivid dyes available.
I was fascinated with these displays (and all of the detergents and laundry items) on the aisle. I was five at the time and would beg my mother to buy a box of RIT for me. Of course she would say "no" to a five year old kid. Each week, I would look up at that display and be enthralled with the boxes displayed.
Then one fine day......we visit a convenience store and I made a beeline to the aisle with detergents and low and behold there was a RIT Dye FLOOR DISPLAY filled with the boxes of the brightly colored dyes. My Holy Grail was right there!
I promptly took a box of the purple RIT and hid it under my shirt and walked to find my mother. I was so smug and sneaky and thought I was really happy about my theft.
Got home went to my room and pulled out my contraband. Then decided to go into the bathroom, start the bathtub and open the small packet of dye that was contained in the vividly decorated box.
I had a bathtub full of purple RIT Dye. Then began to splash and play with the dye water. I was towheaded as a kid and that white blond hair was now a bright shade of purple and of course my hands, arms, and parts of my face...purple!
My mom came in and as you may imagine freaked the hell out. She rinsed my off and I think the parts that the dye did not make purple, she did when she spanked the hell out of me. She dried me off and made me go into my little savings bank and pull out a dollar and off to the convenience store we went. Me looking like a Smerf, purple skin, hair and hands.
We walked in and the man working the counter looked like he was seeing something crazy (he was), and my mother said " tell this man what you have done". So of course I tell him something to the effect of " I took this box (I had to bring the opened outer box ) of RIT dye and I am sorry.
The man was looking at my mother and kind of shaking his head and I remember him saying " oh it's fine, no problem, don't worry about it". My Mother on the other hand tells him " NO, it is not okay, he stole from you and I think you need to have him pay you for the item and if you wont call the police, maybe he can come take out the trash or some other chore for you". Of course then the water works begin and I am crying and begging him not to call the police. I also ended up taking out his trash and sweeping around the crime scene once or twice. My sentence was finally served after one or two sweeping and cleaning sessions.
Of course years later my mother and I were laughing and recounting this "traumatic" day in my life and she admitted that it was hard for her and the man at the store not to burst out laughing. She said, she knew that she had to impress upon me this was wrong (and she did). I think the weeks of purple hair and having to explain the odd look of lavender skin and purple hair when people would ask became an indelible ( pardon the pun) image in my memory.
To this day, I cringe when I see a box of "RIT" anything! Also, that ended my life of crime. I vividly (again,pardon the pun) remember that day! Fifty some odd years ago.
