Roller Skating and Skate Keys: A Nostalgic Blast from the Past

Roller skating has been a beloved pastime enjoyed by generations of kids and adults alike. It’s hard to believe that the first use of roller skates was in a London stage performance way back in 1743!

John Joseph Merlin, a London resident in 1760, deserves the credit for inventing the first skates. Roller skates have certainly come a long way since then!

In the United States, roller skating gained popularity as a pastime in 1935. But it wasn’t until the introduction of skating rinks playing disco music in the 1970s that roller skating became a huge trend. It seemed like everyone wanted to hit the rinks and groove to the music!

Speaking of roller skating, let’s take a trip down memory lane. Do you remember those heavy metal skates that you could attach to your shoes? They were quite the fashion statement back in the day. But there’s something else that you might remember if you were a skater before the 1970s – the iconic skate key.

This copper-colored object was an essential accessory for anyone with roller skates. At first glance, it may look like a bottle opener or some kind of tool, but it is actually a skate key. With the skate key, you could adjust the size of your skates by fitting it into the back of the pair. And to make sure they didn’t get lost while skating, most people wore the key around their necks. It was a small but significant part of the roller skating experience.

Skate keys were such an integral part of roller skating that there have even been songs written about them! They symbolize a time when roller skating was a cherished activity, filled with fun and memories.

So, do you remember skate keys? We’d love to hear your skating stories on our Facebook page. Let’s share this delightful blast from the past with others who may have fond memories of roller skating and skate keys too!

Man has been saving up pennies for 45 years – Bank tellers are at a loss for words when he arrives to cash in

“Penny saved is a penny earned” is a saying that people who are good at managing their finances believe to be true.

Otha Anders, a former teacher from Louisiana, had been collecting pennies for a very long time. It all started as a goal of collecting pennies he would find on the street, and it soon turned into a passion he couldn’t say no to. Over the course of 45 years, this man had managed to fill in 15 5-gallon jugs of change before he finally decided to cash the pennies in 2015 when his homeowner’s insurance stopped covering the collection.

Speaking of his achievement which left the clerks at the bank totally stunned, Anders told ABC News: “If I would see a penny when I’m gassing up, on the ground, or in a store, it would be a reminder to stop right there and say a prayer. I never failed to do that. That’s why they had so much value to me.

“I would never spend a penny,” he told USA Today. “I would break a dollar before giving up a penny.

“I wanted to fill five five-gallon water jugs. That was the goal, but I couldn’t stop. … If I hadn’t turned them in yesterday, I was not going to stop,” he said.

Everyone who knows Anders knew of his passion and his collection. Even the kids at the school where he worked. He would sometimes buy pennies from them, but he would never take, not even a single one, without paying for it.

“I never allowed anyone, not even my wife nor children, to give me pennies without being compensated,” he told USA Today. “I wanted the inner satisfaction that God and I acquired this collection.”

When he arrived at the Ruston Origin Bank in Ruston, Louisiana, the staff welcomed him in and were more than happy to assist him. For his stunning collection of pennies, Anders got $5,136.14.