Thursday, December 01, 2011

DAY 1

Old Friend From Far Away...

I am going to begin with "I Remember...." and see where it takes me.

I remember a time when I did not worry about a thing.

I would get up in the morning after my Mother yelling at me from the bottom of the stair case to GET UP! Threats would finally have me roll out of bed after a night of listening to the radio, positioned above my head on the small twin bed that was made for me by (I believe) Elwood House. It had a book shelf behind that was perfect for filling with paperbacks and lots of crap (I had lots of crap even back then), but the radio...oh how I loved that radio. Mom and Dad gave it to me as a gift after my sister Kitty was born. I helped around the house with everything while Mom recuperated and rested from her birthing ordeal.

The radio had an AM and FM dial. Which was fantastic in the mid-sixties! I found the first ever FM station out of Louisville that I listened to at night, imagining myself up on the stage performing with Dusty Springfield, the Beatles, Lulu, Diana Ross and the Supremes. It was a portal into the rest of the world. I stayed up as late as I could, listening to the radio fade in and out on the wave bounce until sleep would overcome my most valiant efforts to stay awake.

It made for a tough morning.

I remember being the last person to jump in the car as my Dad revved the engine in the drive way, the car filled with my brothers and the other two. We car pooled to the High School in the city, a Catholic High School that I hated going to.

But now, 40 years later, am so happy I did.

I had the best of both worlds. Living in a small town where everyone knows you and the opportunities of a large new circle of friends in a different city.

I remember hating the fact that back then it was long distance to call this other city so I never got to yak with my gal pals from Lexington for all hours. I remember the phone on the wall in our basement that I would perch myself on the old ripped up red bar stool from our upstairs "snack bar" and yak yak yak on the phone for hours with my Small town friends.

I remember one of my best girlfriends running from her house across town to my house to tell me to put the phone back on the hook that John Paul was trying to call me and the line had been busy for an hour! OMG!!  

JOHN PAUL!!  and not the Pope, y'all.

We use to take the phone off the hook so that Omega's nap time was not interrupted.

I remember that was how it was back then. Running or jumping on a bicycle to quickly get to someones house to deliver an important message. Ask our Mom's to drive us somewhere!?!! Surely you jest. It just was never done.

I remember everyone being very skinny. lol.

2 comments:

TARYTERRE said...

I can relate to everything you said. But especially the parts about your radio. I loved my RED transistor radio with the leather case and AM/FM dials too. I listened to it day and night singing my heart out. If only there had been an American Idol back then, I would have aced the auditions with a little help from my friends on the radio. LOL

sunflowerkat said...

A lot of this sounds very familiar!
:)

Oh, the HOURS on the phone! And I got almost everywhere by foot or by bike!