Hooray for Saturday! When we were little kids that was the greatest day of the week. Time to run around barefoot, ride bikes, play ball, do whatever we wanted.
Saturday, or Sunday for my friends who went to temple, was just the most glorious day. We could sleep in, linger over breakfast, ignore homework, and head outside for a long day of happiness.
My best friend Sarah and I would spend endless hours exploring our neighborhood creek with all its treasures. She was always picking up a beautiful rock and telling me all kinds of things about it.
It might not surprise you to learn that she went on to study geology, and now works in a national park teaching kids how great nature is. For her 50th birthday she asked her husband to take her to see where the monarch butterflies winter over in Mexico, how cool is that? We live hundreds of miles away but have kept in touch over the decades.
So I got to thinking how fun it would be to ask you guys about your best friend when you were little. Who was your friend and what did you love to do?
Big shoutout to Christy, we know you’re peeking! Have a great vacation and see you back soon.
Now I want to hear all about you and your friends and the joy of Saturday. I especially want to hear from you readers who have yet to make a comment. Come on in and pull up a chair…
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Zed is my new Saturday morning friend.
Good Morning egregious
Hey Millineryman!
I’m no longer friends with my best friend from growing up. He morphed into a self righteous, selfish, egotistical winger when he went off to college, and this was during the Raygun era.
Saturday morning was a late wakeup day with the tv cartoons blaring in the living room and siblings in pajamas hanging off furniture while I made myself toast with butter and honey (white bread of course) enjoying the warm melting butter and dripping sweet honey- double slices popped down and up over and over and over- just the warm feeling-enjoying sitting alone in the kitchen in a dream-fog chomping away-
I just reread my comment, what a buzz kill so early on such a positive and life affirming thread.
eg -
Is that a pic of you and your best bud?
Mornin’ to all the firepups heading in to the Lake.
Millineryman @ 5
As your friend, I forgive you. Now tell us what you guys like to do when you were little :)
Mabel’s Wig Shack, how could I forget the cartoons? And toast…excuse me, be right back with some toast.
Belated best wishes to the birthday girl — girls if Siun shows up.
Thanks egregious.
Well we would play a lot tennis and basketball, Ah yes the cartoons, and
let’s not forget
The Banana Splits
Friends from childhood? Left them behind.
Off today to the regular Sat. morning Peace Vigil in West Chester (It has been peacefully going on for 5 years!) The past 3 weeks the Gathering of Eagles thugs have shown up with their flags, their Harleys and their bad attitudes. It was in the Philly Inquirer on Thurs. top of page one in the B section so the ante has been upped. This week the cops will be there along with legal observers. Got my video camera recharged and loaded.
We’re not going to let the thugs take over. Period.
Will report back later in the day.
Go RevDEB! Sorry I can’t join you this am.
Oh my yes, basketball. We lived only a few miles from the Indiana border and basketball was king [at least when it wasn’t football season]. Jerry Lucas was from our town. To this day I find the sound of a bouncing basketball soothing.
Mabel’s Wig Shack -
Wish the toobz could handle some honey I’d love for you to taste…….real live honest to goodness sourwood and not the garbage that usually gets labeled and sold as such. Got it from the beekeeper cousin-in-law of the lady who cuts my hair. He carries his hives to a certain area of the NC mountains at exactly the time the trees are in full flower…..pure unadulterated gold!
Here’s a funny story about being a kid. My name is Jeffrey, and instead of Jeff, my nickname was “frey” or pronounced free.
So when it came time for the inevietable teasing, the joke was “His name is free because that’s how much his mother paid for him.”
Waccamaw, that sounds heavenly. May I please have some of that honey for my toast?
how could I forget the cartoons? And toast…excuse me, be right back with some toast.egregious
now you’ve reminded me….
He carries his hives to a certain area of the NC mountains at exactly the time the trees are in full flower…..pure unadulterated gold!
Waccamaw
mmmm…… I think there’s a dulcimer song in there somewhere!!! :-)
****************************
well, off to work. have a great day everyone!
eg -
Will give it a try……….but don’t sic the mods on me if things get kinda kluggy in the toobz. ;-)
Good morning, pups. I slept in late today, and feel positively decadent! Gail Collins has some snark about the Republican candidates’ pilgrimage to the Values Voters Summit.
http://mgpaquin.wordpress.com/
I’ve got coffee and tea ready for anyone who needs some (my heart won’t start without tea) and I picked up some lovely buttery croissants. (There are even chocolate croissants because I couldn’t resist…) Have a wonderful Saturday.
My father was a big collector, he had just about anything and everything you could imagine.
On a lot of Saturday’s we would load up the car and go selling at flea markets. Or just go and walk around.
Lovely post and pic, greej. You carry Christy’s pull-up-a-chair vibe wonderfully.
On Saturdays I like listening to French pop radio that my young Belgian pal turned me on to
For me Saturdays as a kid usually involved playing in Central Park or, if it was rainy, playing and reading at home. Mother wouldn’t have a TV in the house so it was toys, books and games for this kid. About once every 6 weeks or so we’d make a voyage across the park to the American Museum of Natural History — paradise!
Good morning Marion, may I thank you for always being here to greet us early risers and give us breakfast and food for thought.
Oh yes, the all day marathon board games…that really brings back some memories.
Hi, egregious! Thanks for the kind words. It’s good to see your name on posts!
I’ve had this amazing ability of acquiring the most dear friends, only to have them move away after 1-2 years. It continues today. Anyone that becomes a good friend at work gets laid off or finds a more stable job somewhere else.
Trust me, the rest of this is really on topic…
Without trying to make this a real downer of a post, those of you on Facebook received an event invite in the past 24 hours to attend a fund raiser for the Ellie’s Fund. Ellie Zaidel died as the result of a tragic accident, and all money raised (100%)goes to charitable work in our area.
If you were able to ask Ellie who her best friend was, she would say her grandpa and grandma. Read the 2nd link, and you’ll understand.
Ah, well, Saturday mornings for those of us older than dirt did not include television. Radio programs. Smilin’ Ed’s Gang. Plunk your magic twanger, Froggie (the Gremlin). BOING! I’m Buster Brown, I live in a shoe; that’s my dog Tighe, look for him in there, too. And so forth.
Even after all these years, I’ve maintained some contact with a kindergarten friend and a few that came along later. No neighbor friends, though. And I am flat-out amazed at how conservative my “old” friends are.
A bummer aside, but we sure can use all the prayers and hoping we can get. My mate, David, has just been diagnosed with esophageal cancer. Beginning the long, hard walk down that path. Fortunate to have Mayo Clinic not far away. HMO not likely to help. So facing some humongous challenges.
My best friend was Patty Jane, a real tomboy and always getting into trouble. She got married at 22 and had 4 children. When the kids were ages 3,4,5 & 6, her husband left her for his secretary. She couldn’t afford day care to get a job, so she did the next best thing: delivered newspapers with all of the kids in the car. She did this for many hours each day, stopping to change diapers and hand out bottles. I remember one time her house burnt down and she had the property cleared and lived in a camper for about 3 years. She sent me a picture of her very small xmas tree (which she named our mini-me xmas tree).
Each of her kids went to college and each graduated in the top of their classes. Hat tip to my best bud PJ!
Sharkbabe @ 21
Sharkbabe, so good to see you here. We miss having you around on a regular basis, hint hint!
And thanks for your words of encouragement, I want to be like Christy when I grow up.
My best friend Iris and I explored life on Irvine Avenue in Bemidji MN in the ’50s. Where the worst horror was some swamp movie at the local theatre. And in summer there was the lake, and Paul Bunyan and Babe standing guard, and the Water Carnival where we rode the ferris wheel but shied away from the twister. And always, the beautiful Carnegie Library perched on the lakeshore downtown, where I met best friends forever, books.
At 12 we moved to Fargo and I lost track of Iris, and I grew up to meet my now best friend. He and I will be watchin’ NDSU’s Bison kick *ss against the Big Ten’s Minnesota Gophers later this morning [gametime 11 CT on DirecTV]. Keep an eye on our Bison–you’ll be hearing about ‘em more and more.
Marion in Savannah @ 22
Oh Marion! I wish I grew up in Manhattan. What a treat that must have been. I always wanted to go to a PS in the city. I was in Longgg Island.
(((((noonan)))))
(((((barbara and david)))))
barbara @ 26
Many of us have walked the path you’re starting on…take heart and know that we’ll be here for you when that path seems more than you can bear.
Marion -
That *is* some good snark from Collins; one of the best lines:
(Social conservatives, having been so successful in appropriating the word “life” are now trying to commandeer “values.”)
A pox on their version of “values”!
barbara @ 26
Challenges indeed, Barbara. You can count on my prayers and best wishes. My family has two cancer survivors, and their joy in living and determination, I think, played a big role in their recovery. Keep us posted if you can.
For me, the best television memories were The East Side kids (Satch & Slip Mahoney)
My childhood best friend must have been my sister. As I think back, she’s in most of the memories. But Saturday mornings here were a bit different. It was ‘clean the house day’. Every nook and cranny was dusted and vacuumed. Mirrors were shined and bathrooms glistened. Then we could go out and play.
Sorry I couldn’t resist. Bold mine.
Senator Dodd’s campaign communications director Hari Sevugan tells me that $150,000 in small contributions have poured into Dodd’s campaign in the past 24 hours, since his announcement that he will put a hold on–and may even filibuster–a foreign intelligence surveillance bill approved yesterday by the Senate Intelligence Committee.
Chris Dodd; The Netroots Show The Love
ccmask @ 30
It really was wonderful having 800 acres of Central Park as my back yard (only a block and a half away). Even as an adult the park was a joy — I still miss free concerts by the NY Philharmonic and free opera in the park. Also, being 4 blocks away from the Metropolitan Museum of Art wasn’t too shabby. I’d go in regularly to visit with favorite pieces. (I’m a PS 6 kid.)
I have kept in touch with only one childhood friend, we chat online on almost a daily basis. Our youth was spent trying not to get in to too much trouble – which was difficult at times given our propensity for mischief.
Back then, time went slowly. Not so much anymore.
solai @ 36
Og, geez, solai, I forgot that part. Same here. Me & my sister were slave-driven to do the housework before we could begin our weekend. Then, after that we had to go to Irish dance classes and then we were free to run.
When I was a child, we lived on a dirt road. My best friend lived about a quarter mile away, and we would ride our bikes, find interesting things in a small, nearby stream, pick and eat wild plums from the bushes alongside the road (the green ones were eaten with salt), play in the woods behind the house, pick blackberries and, occasionally, watch television.
In 4th and 5th grade, Frankie was my best friend. We both lived within walking distance of Comiskey Park (now US Cellular Field) and on Sundays, back when baseball still played double-headers, we’d sit in the right field upper deck section (cheap seats) thru both games.
We’d get there before the gates opened to watch batting practice and stayed till the last out of the second game. Then we’d go home and played softball until it got dark.
His mom would make us bologna sandwiches with mustard on white bread which we washed down with red Kool-Aid. Yum!!
Baseball, Frankie, and I have all changed and we’ve lost contact, but this is what your post made me think about. Thanks for reminding me of those more innocent times.
Marion in Savannah @ 38
I met Jackie O at the little diner next door to the MMA. My middle finger was severed in an accident and re-attached. And, while it was healing, I worked as a hostess in that diner. I met so many stars there. I ended up moving to East 86th street not long after.
Barbara and all caregivers, remember to take good care of yourself so you can stay strong for the times ahead. It’s not selfish…it’s how you’ll best be able to take care of your cancer survivor.
Now, in the survivor’s success kit, I strongly urge loads of laughter. I do believe that’s worked for us. Family jokes, old tv sitcoms, whatever will trigger your laugh button. It’s good medicine.
And Vitamin D seems to be coming on strong…. I’m a believer in supporting excellent medical care like your David will get at Mayo with wellness practices…green tea, exercise even if it’s slow walks when you’re used to active workouts.
See? There’s lots of us here who’ll help you get thru these tough times. With advice, encouragement…and bundles of love.
Birthday hugs to Christy and Siun…who just keep on gettin’ better and better.
twolf1 @ 39
Good to know you’ve outgrown your propensity for mischief, twolf.
My best friend Sal:
dollstuff, ballet class, swimming pool, climbing around the creek, roaming the neighborhood, hangin’
still my best friend ever!
egregious @ 45
I never said that.
We would spend Sat. at the Greyhound Bus Station making up stories about the different people getting on and off the long haul Buses. He was the first person I personally knew who contracted and died from AIDS. I think about him and wonder what he would be like today alot.
I am so lucky to be healthy, but the decades keep piling up, must do something about this smoking and drinking.
Fourth grade, Ithaca NY, finally a real friend, Gail (she lived right next door!) damn we had teh fun. We also couldn’t understand racism and Playboy titty objectification of women and started our own pissed-off club against it and even made a flag.
The crude beginnings of my feminism, gayness, and love. Oh, and we discussed endlessly what the F word and sexuality might be about. Damn we had some funny ideas, based on all the lack of information around us, plus all the disinformation from our equally clueless older siblings. Kids hungering for truth. Doesn’t really change with age, does it?
Good times.
Prairie Sunshine,
Those are all such good ideas. And I especially like your reminder to think about who is taking care of the caregiver.
I’ve kept in touch with my best friend from junior high and high school, and he’s a wingnut. Actually he always was– he came from a wingnut family. We didn’t talk about that stuff much back then. But I remember he told me about JFK’s screw-up at the Bay of Pigs and I was really stunned that someone would badmouth JFK. But it was the 60s and the wingnuts were a lot quieter back then.
secularhumanizinevoluter, not sure if I’ve seen you around before. Nice to meet you!
Ah, Saturday morning… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYTWETp2srE Now back to youtube for some more Bob Clampett cartoooons
Saturdays were for play
secularhumanizinevoluter @ 48
I’m sorry you lost your friend. Sometimes I forget about AIDS, almost like I’m getting numb to it.
It just occurred to me that Dennis Hastert has announced his retirement, the same week as the whole Turkey-Armenia genocide vote bruhaha.
If I recall, there were implications that he had received some funny money from the American Turkish Council in order to shelve a planned Armenian genocide resolution in Congress.
And then the Turkish Parliament authorizes an invasion of Iraq, in an almost identical manner as our own U.S. Congress authorized the use of military force back in 2002.
Any thoughts?
dannyM @ 56
Interesting. I heard a rumor (I think it was from linda at the Swamp at Time) that Hastert has long been suspected of being gay and that Larry Craig was about to out him.
Maybe it’s a combination of things. Either way, it couldn’t happen to a nicer douchebag.
My Saturdays involved sleeping in, breakfast, and cartoons. In colder weather, I’d go with my father to the downtown YMCA to run and shoot hoops. Piano lessons were next at 3:30. But the real treat was right after dinner was the Muppet Show. Highlight of the week.
So what was your fave Saturday morning show? For me it was stuff like The Lone Ranger and Sky King….ohhh, and Hopalong Cassidy….
As an adult, I still hold my Saturdays as sacred. I try to at least dabble in all of the following activities: sleep in, stare at the Lake (both the website and the body of water outside my window), play some piano, ride bike to the gym, go to yoga class, take a swim in the Lake (both), and maybe host a friend later on.
It now occurs to me that I haven’t really changed that much from childhood.
Prairie Sunshine @ 59
Tarzan movies with Johnny Weissmuller.
Damn, I had forgotten about that!
the little rascals
the three stooges
If there was a professional team for Kick the Can, I would have been a star. Hours and hours we would play Kick the Can. Annie Annie Over was the second choice. Barnabus Collins on Dark Shadows. Sandlot softball games for hours. Building brick houses and catching crickets, grasshoppers and toads so we could house them in our new lavish toy hotel.
We moved away from southern Iowa when I was 14. Years later I met a mother from the area. Everyone had gone to prison or a juvenile detention center. Arson, grand theft auto, robbery. Guess there was a lot of undiagnosed ADHD and Fetal Alcohol Syndrome in the neighborhood. But it was a lot of fun while we were young.
I think we all stay pretty close to our childhood selves. I still love Westerns. Particularly partial to Eastwood’s body of work.
Morning, Egregious. Lovely post.
When I was a kid we lived so far out in the desert, my closest friends were my siblings and things with more than two legs.
Now I’m off for the Saturday morning coffee with my grown-up women friends. Look forward to it all week.
Rocky and Bullwinkle
I think most of us have had the since that you actually live through several different lives, or phases, in the course of one lifetime. I lost contact with all of my early childhood friends.
In the days before central heating, I remember waking up on Saturday morning with my face cold, climbing from under the covers into a cold, bright room, shoving my legs into cold blue jeans and running for the living room. There, a space heater provided warmth and my parents, cheerful with two days off, drank coffee, smoked, and talked. Those mornings were, for me, the epitome of warmth and security. I tried to provide such memories for my children and hope I came close.
Ok I have send mad props to Bugs, Daffy and the one, the only Foghorn Leghorn.
And the Road Runner.
I’m going to see my grown-up women friends this evening, for one who is moving away.
any ideas for an appetizer to bring?
Millineryman @ 37
And yet, Hillary and Obama don’t commit to the filibuster. $150,000 must be chump change compared to TeleCom donations.
Replace the Speaker of the House.
lahoma.
Elliott @ 69
I don’t know how good you are in the kitchen. Me, not so good. So I go to the grocery store, buy a bag of frozen ready-to-serve jumbo shrimp, a container of cocktail sauce (extra horseradish), put it on a pretty platter and everyone thinks I’m the greatest.
solai @ 72
I could do that.
For me, it’s either that or bring the beverages.
Oklahoma kiddo @ 71
And the majority leader in the Senate.
solai @ 74
*g*
My squeeze beat me to it. I support Rep. Pete Stark.
Oklahoma kiddo @ 71
And, the Senate Majority Leader.
Riesz Fischer @ 75
And Hillary Clinton.
LizH @ 63
Ringalevio was one of my favorite games.
Don’t forget Crusader Rabbit and Rags.
The word here is that John Edwards will win the Democratic primary in Oklahoma.
“Speaker Pelosi rebukes fellow Bay area liberal over war comments” “You don’t have money to fund the war or children,” Stark accused Republicans. “But you’re going to spend it to blow up innocent people if we can get enough kids to grow old enough for you to send to Iraq to get their heads blown off for the president’s amusement.”
Here’s the kicker from
PelosiDenny Hastert wearing a skirt and red lipstick: “While members of Congress are passionate about their views, what U.S. Rep. Stark said during the debate was inappropriate and distracted from the seriousness of the subject at hand…”http://www.mercurynews.com/bre…..ck_check=1
Someone throw Pelosi a pillow, her knees are sore and bruised from bending before thy King. Her bowed head is in need of neck brace so she may see the horizon once again. And a bone density scan of her spine is highly recommended. A brave and honorable Rep. Pete Stark hath reminded Madame Speaker’s first obligation is to the citizens and our forefathers to preserve and protect our constitutional liberties and freedom. The weak-minded, knee bending, bowing heads of Congress before thy King have betrayed “We The People”. She has become nothing more than the King’s court jester.
My best childhood chum came from a very poor family. He didn’t have a bike. I taught him to ride on mine.
This year, some fifty years later, he called me from his home thousands of miles away and suggested we ride RAGBRAI. We did.
He had a shiny new bike.
Oklahoma kiddo @ 81
here’s a pic
AP – The Iranian government announced Saturday that its top nuclear negotiator had resigned, a move seen as a victory for hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad that could bring about an even tougher stance in ongoing talks.
Riesz Fischer @ 66
Yes!
“Hey Rock, watch me pull a rabbit out of a hat.”
“This trick never works”
“Nothin up my sleeve”
ROWR
“And now here’s something you’ll really enjoy”
Did I get that right pups?
Personally, I think Stark crossed the line with that ‘for the president’s amusement’ line. That said, too bad. I’m tired of all this bull about apologizing to the repubs. The dems get battered constantly and no one says a word. Let the repubs apologize for the lies and the accusation that dems support terrorists etc.
Well, and for cartoons let’s not forget Mighty Mouse.
Oklahoma kiddo @ 71
I emailed both Reid and Pelosi that for the good of the country and the Democratic Party they should do the honorable and patriotic duty and resign their leadership positions. If you are not going to lead you have no business in that role.
egregious @ 87
sounds right to me
on MM “here he comes to save the day!”
Wacky Races
Hong Kong Phooey
old gold @ 84
Great story, thanks for sharing with us.
Saturday morning TV: Mighty Mouse, Sky King, Fury, Mr. Wizard, Heckle and Jeckle………..
twolf1 @ 92
Muttley!
Heckle and Jeckle. Gawd I loved those birds.
OT – Orionid Meteor Shower Peaks Sunday Morning
Morning, hung over Firedogs! My best friend was named Larry, and he was my next door neighbor. His dad was a wingnut before anybody knew what they were, but we had lots of fun anyway. Watching the 4:30 movie, playing Dungeons and Dragons or Atari, sleeping over on a Friday night. He’s a big wheel with NASA now I think. Cheers to you Larry!
Lets not leave out “Fury” and “The Cisco Kiddo”
solai @ 88
I disagree. The president had no problems with the comedy routine of “where’s the WMD” gag at the press dinner. And the countless smirks, idiot grins, and inappropriate laughs throughout his reign. The “out of line” republican administration’s of hiding soldiers caskets, back door draft, lying WMD’s, firing of public officials who disagree with policy, demotion/retirement of military who counter policy, and restraining of liberty and freedom of the people is what’s “out of line.” It’s about time that someone such as Stark has stood up and spoke the TRUTH. Political Correctness is nothing more than handcuffing the truth.
twolf1 @ 97
I’m pretty sure that qualifies as on topic. Going out to watch shooting stars…
egregious @ 101
OT stands for On Topic in this case then.
twolf1 @ 102
Outerspace Topic
Orionid Topic
ElectraWoman and Dynagirl
Popeye
Betty Boop
Beaky Buzzard
I spent this Sat. on the Lake on late nite pimping pro-sox comments and suggesting a Sox-Lake reunions if we do win the title that shall not be named until we win it.
just finished making vanilla/apricot puree ice cream for a community pot luck.
not forgetting to rejoice on the progessive blogosphere’s victory yesterday in Arizona.
which is subject of next post, with links.
As for childhood Sat. A.M.s they were spent devouring the pile of books we brought back from the public library every Friday in a shopping cart, cause my mom did not drive.
One of the most memorable was by Thomas Paine. Maybe Common Sense. Guess it was influential on my supporting the free expression of unpopular public opinion.
Go Sox, go Pups.
Someone throw Pelosi a pillow, her knees are sore and bruised from
bendingkneeling and groveling before thy King.Fixed the error
solai @ 88
Actually, I think we need to keep stepping on their toes until THEY apologize. Of course, it’ll probably never happen, but at least they’ll have sore toes. After decades of maintaining a high level of phony outrage, you’d think they’d be tired.
RockPaperScizzors @ 100
‘xactly so! [visualizing Pacino…you’re out of line, you’re out of line….Justice for All…]
for you kiddo
lahoma
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v…..search=Big Spring Jam
Lindy @ 109
Last night Stephanie Miller said if Bush apologizes for bring America to war under false pretenses then Stark should apologize. I agree.
Arizona victory!!
http://www.azcentral.com/news/…..s1020.html
thanks to the web and blogosphere with a little help from Slate and the NYT, soon it will be bye bye arapaio co. sherrif and DA.
both under bar ethical investigation.
AZ paper publishes calls for their recall.
com’on guys, share the good news that the blogosphere won one. Don’t let MSM say they did it. Kossacks were all over the story yesterday, and the guy Art Martin was blogging under his own name out of outrage and full knowledge of putting himself in danger because the subpoena demanded the names of everyone who visited their site.
I kid you not.
Arizona firepups be sure to stick around for Blue America today. Howie’s got a great progressive AZ candidate for us.
We need a lot more Pacino righteous indignation in our politicians…. No, you’re out of line, Repervs.
Corrupting and debasing our democracy. Enough already.
Demand better. Be better.
~ one p*ssed-off Constitutional Democrat
Around 8 yrs old, I’d play Calvin & Hobbes-ish stuffed animals games with David (now a R&B pianist in Boston). A few years later in a different neighborhood it was long bicycle chase games that often involved flat tires and scraped elbows. Lucky that’s the worst that happened.
No TV – we didn’t have one and most of my friend’s parents had very strict rules.
egregious @ 89
Huckleberry Hound, Inspector Gadget, Garfield Goose(WGN), Bozo Circus, Kukla, Fran, and Ollie, and Flinstones. And nothing like commercials to start the kiddies down the road to smoking….
Flinstones Winston cigarettes commercial
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZvHiiWFbBU
Glorious Saturday. We’re having unheard of warm weather up here in Quebec this morning. Going down to the country to see if the snow geese have settled in for a stay on our front lawn. It’s still quasi-summer up here. Calm before the storm.
It’s good to unwind. It’s been a rough week politically on all of us, and more to come.
Courage, all.
BlueStateRedHead @ 113
That is good news. I was following that at DKos and it was astounding.
RockPaperScizzors,
“I’ll get you next time, Gadget, next time!”
Prairie Sunshine @ 110
Gotta love Pacino in Scent of A Women and his speech about Baird Men…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dH4p9BQ3V9o
That’s ‘my girl’.
He was also impressed with her Israel agenda that was released a couple of weeks ago. All in all, he said, she seems to be trying to be a realistic centrist on issues related to Israel. And he thought it was time for that to be reflected in his rankings.
“…this month presented us with a temptation that’s very hard to resist (we will resist it, though). Hillary Clinton’s sudden rise to second place in the monthly ranking deserves explanation. Alas, this explanation must involve some transparency on our side. Clinton was always second, or a fairly close third, in the eyes of some members of the panel. The difference of this month reflects a change of heart for a very few panelists, especially one who ranked her very low so far and has decided to upgrade her marks dramatically.”
A new phase in the race: Clinton is now second
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/p…..mNo=914892
Iran is capable of firing 11,000 rockets into enemy bases within the first minute after any possible attack, state-run television quoted a top Revolutionary Guards Corps commander as saying Saturday.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/S…..e/ShowFull
I think I moved around too much to have a best friend. Jackie was my best friend when I was 4. She had a Baby Alive and I wanted one too, but my mom told me the food would rot in its belly and so she wouldn’t get me one. Sherry and I moved to the same places at the same time (our Dads worked together), but we weren’t that close because we didn’t live that close.
Marcy!
Great to hear from you.
solai @ 88
Perhaps “amusement” was a poor choice of words. But had he said “vanity,” I’d claim that he was right on. The only reason we’re fighting this war is to spare GWB the embarrassment of acknowledging that we cannot win and are therefore defeated. Soldiers are indeed getting their heads blown off so that he can save face.
Knut Wicksell @ 118
After tornados with 3 deaths it’s warm and sunny today. Tornados used to be a spring phenomenon but weather patterns are changing.
Vigilance!
I can no longer resist. A voice is calling me out back for me to make a couple of virgin Mary’s and for a swim. It’s going to be in the eighties here today. This is Indian summertime.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4a31FyBS_o
Good morning, egregious…
Saturday mornings?
Exploring countless miles of remote central FL woods…climbing insanely high in trees, often times miles away from home…riding our bikes to town…using my chemistry set to mix up homemade fireworks…finding a secluded spot in the woods and reading a book…Bugs and all the rest of the Looney Tunes gang, on right after Abbott and Costello.
Hi egregious!
I grew up in a smallish suburb north of Seattle. The neighborhood I lived in had a huge wooded area we explored almost every day. When we weren’t in the woods, we rode our bikes, walked to the elementary school playfield to see our friends, or waited for the Popsicle man to come around in his truck in the summertime.
The biggest memory I have was freedom — I could lie in the grass in my parents’ yard and look at the sky. I could walk six blocks to the 7-11 (in those days, it was called the SpeedeeMart, if I remember correctly,) for penny candy with my friends and as long as my parents knew where I was going, it was fine. I could be outside from first light until after dark, and that was what you did as a child where I grew up.
My best friend was Kari. We were inseparable until she moved away when we were in junior high.
Just like everyone else here, I watched cartoons on Saturday morning. I loved my bowl of Quisp, too. (Did anyone else eat Quisp?) When my niece was very young, she liked staying overnight with Auntie Strategerie so she could get me out of bed at the crack for cartoons and cereal.
Some things never change.
-S
Bluetoe @ 127
Al Gore for president.
i moved around a lot as a kid… but i still have one dear friend (the closest thing i have to a sister). her mom was my mom’s best friend when they were pregnant at the same time with us.
my mom died 15 years ago, and it is beth and her family that remind me of my fondest memories of mom.
Good morning RonD, Strategerie! Glad to hear your stories.
Oooh, climbing trees. Good one.
wigwam @ 126
I wish he had said ‘vanity’ or ’stubborness’. Then, his statement might have opened the eyes of the last few still supporting this pres.
Yes Saturday and another Happy Birthday to Christy.
I have never been one to sleep (go to bed early yes). Growing up in a military family and with a mother and father who required chores, Saturday morning was a chore morning, (mowing, sweeping, dusting, cleaning up after animals, other yard work etc.) a few hours required of every kid taught us all that a family is a community and when everyone contributes the bulk of responsibility does not become overwhelming.
After chores it was always riding bikes with a pack of friends, hiking, exploring etc.
One funny thing that one of my best friends Patrice and I liked to sit to do in the fourth grade was sit on a bench on Third street(a very busy street) and watch how many people who would stop at a red would start picking their noses when they came to the stop.(lots do) This would set us to laughing so hard that we would be bent over with delight and sometimes fall off the bench laughing hysterically.
You remember the third grade and how things like this would set a kid off into ballistic laughter.
I thought the universal rule was “When the street lights come on, get home”
My best friend from age 6 was Julie Stanley. We lived way out in the country, so we climbed trees and built forts in the woods behind our houses (and learned our mothers really didn’t appreciate us taking scissors to their sheets to make our own curtains). She was an only child and loved my big family – where I loved the quiet of her book-filled house. We shared our clothes and books, and she taught me how to put on eyeliner. We went to Girl Scouts each week and shared a hut at GS camp every year.
When we were 14, two weeks after we got back from camp, I called her to come see my brother’s new puppy. Julie was riding her bike to my house, was hit by a car, and died instantly.
I’ve lots of good friends, some I’m especially close to, but never another best friend.
Not really off topic but in this week’s Sports Illustrated (dated 10/22 with Tom Brady on the cover), Jack McCallum has a very poignant story about his best friend growing up who was killed in Vietnam and a concurrent story of of a young man who was killed in Iraq a couple of years ago and HIS best friend, covering the sports they played while kids/teenagers.
Suggestion from Lambert Strether in Time’s Swampland comments:
That would be Jay Rockefeller’s number.
egregious @ 133
Good morning, egregious! It’s nice to be here!
I remember my mom flipping out when I climbed the cherry tree in my grandparents’ backyard. It seemed logical to me — if I got up there, I could pick more of the cherries, couldn’t I?
There are still scars on my elbows and knees from skinning them so many times when I was a kid.
-S
solai @ 136
My mom said if we came zooming home as soon as the lights came on, we would get a “Street Light Treat.” Worked great.
Did anyone listen to Torre’s presser yesterday.
He has respect for the reporters and it was such a joy to listen to his truth telling.
Bush on the other hand, does not respect anyone and Stark’s comments are appropos…
Why has this nation put up with that fucking
brat?
I’m thinking of switching from Edwards to Dodd.
Pelosi and Reid have failed miserably… and
that candidiate for AG… he can’t say
waterboarding is torture? Vote no, on that
alone…
Step up to the plate Dems
The more I think about it, the more I wish Stark would call a press conference to apologize. He should say he’s veerrry sorry for what he said about the president. He mispoke. Then let him clarify his remarks and nail the bastard.
Steet lights…that would have been nice. We were so far out in the woods, our closest neighbor was a half mile away. No street lights, but very nice to wake up early and listen to a whippoorwill in the woods a mile away.
About two inches of snow overnight here outside of Palmer, Alaska. but the big chill is down in Juneau, where the state legislature has convened to deal with the bribery-tainted fee schedule charged to big oil for their extraction of that mineral from state property here. It was last year’s special session of the legislature changing that fee to one where the oil companies were even able to deduct expenses for events caused by their own negligence, and to not have to share with state auditors how they had come up with their expense deductions, and the virtually on-the-legislative-floor bribery scam that has led to a series of searches, indictments, arrests, trials and convictions of top GOP and big oil functionaries up here.
Now the legislature has convened. They know they’re being watched closely. They’re more paranoid than Larry Craig passing through an airport. GOP Speaker of the House John Harris:
“Every bit of our action is being scrutinized to this day. There very well could be wiretaps, there very well could be bugs in this building or anywhere else.”
Some of the more corrupt of those yet untainted by the scandal, like my local Senator, Lyda Green, are unrepentant about the current fee. “I think the cloud has been vastly overrated. I’m sorry, I just don’t think you have to go back and change anything.”
Big oil, with their cutout, VECO, eliminated, has had to step up to the plate themselves this time, with open threats against everybody in the state, to pack up their rigs and get out of the state if we don’t play their game, openly referring to Governor Palin as “Sarah Chavez.” Wingnut GOP Rep. Bob Lynn said “This is not Venezuela.”
PA_Lady @ 137
PA_Lady, I’m so sorry. I know you’ll never forget Julie.
-S
(((((PA_Lady)))))
RonD @ 144
Sounds very familiar. I loved falling asleep to the sounds of crickets and owl “music.”
PA_Lady @ 137
Tears..Bless Julie, bless you,that had to be devastating. I know friends of mine who have lost children like them to be mentioned and talked about. I remember hearing Elizabeth Edwards bringing this up during her incredible interview with Diane Rehm about the loss of her own beloved son. She said that many parents who have lost children want them to be talked about …to not be forgotten.
I’m old enought to remember getting up to listen to “Howdy Doody Time” and “Big John and Sparky” on the radio on Saturday mornings. We didn’t have a TV until I was about six. We lived in Seattle, so the event that finally got us to get a television set was the hydroplane races.
ET
707!
I’ve been waiting for Saturday AM to throw in a question that had little too do with anything else except the Saturday book topics:
I have a couple of books I’ve written and would like to read into audio file format, then make available for download. Recouping my costs and then a little would be welcome.
Do any FDLers do this? Can anyone provide tips on how it is done: the recording, the announcing, the hosting of a download site, and so on? Is it really becoming popular to listen to books?
selise @ 132
Lots of tears and I am only five comments into this blog (almost always read from the bottom back up) and I am all ready crying. Selise I am so sorry for your loss.
I have lost too many friends to cancer (I am 55) and many of these folks had children. They like their parents mentioned. Do you?
behindthefall @ 152
I think it’s becoming more common. I have a coworker with a 1-hour commute who listens to audio books in his car. He downloads them from a website.
Pelosi’s appropriate response to the
pressrepublicans should’ve been, “Rep. Stark was exercising his first admendment rights. Last time I checked, it had’nt been repealed, gagged, or retracted under the Patriot Act, FISA, or a signing statement. Once again, when the democrats critized Pres. Bush, the republicans act as if someone yelled “fire in a crowded theatre.” and demand a retraction if not more restraints on the freedom of speech.”The owls were NUTS! Every now and then we’d get a bunch of ‘em cackling and singing and talking, this weird, laughing, almost like voices…I can remember laying on my bunk bed, looking out the window into the dark, with all this crazy owl noise in the front yard, calling out the window, trying to talk to ‘em…and suddenly having a huge owl crash into my bedroom window.
my best friend will be arriving this morning with her family to my new (first!) home.
born two weeks apart, lived two doors apart, spent no time apart the first 13 years of our life. our summer days spent hopping the back fence to the field behind, up trees, playing imagining.
(reminds me: i have to go find the box of barbies for her first to enjoy.)
And who could blame them?
Oklahoma kiddo @ 123
Saturday morning chores. My sister and I had a lot to do before we could go out to play. I thought my mom viewed us as the slaves. She always said we had to learn about hard work. Ha! Even now, looking back, I think we worked harder than she. I always preferred to help my dad with the yard work. He was the Nice Parent and a Joy to be with.
I was pretty easy on my kids. Maybe take the trash out or something like that. Never in the bathroom scrubbing the tile.
My mom still has my sister and I do the hard stuff, like all the stuff we took care of for my dad before and after he died.
Strategerie @ 146
what S said. and thank you for sharing that special memory.
Prairie Sunshine @ 110
Much to my parents’ initial consternation & then seeming delight after they generously acknowledged my passion, I somehow became “one who listens to horses” as a kid. (a la Monty Roberts, model for the woefully misnamed – according to Roberts himself – “Horse Whisperer” movie). I didn’t fit in too too well with other people-types as a hyperactive kid, long before that was fashionable, but I somehow wormed my way into the horseyworld and mostly worked with Arabs and Arab/Welsh pony cross. What joy we had together! One fave experience: winning a local “Western Pleasure” class dressed as a more “original” westerner, bareback hoss & single rein from a loop around my Arab lady’s jaw – poor hapless judge didn’ know she’d also did quite elegant Dressage in that crazy giddy-up outfit; but the powers that be tightened up the requirements in succeeding years. Still, I’ve got the blue ribbon & pictures to prove what we pulled on ‘em at that one show, heh. ;->
Long boring story to assure, as “one who listens to horses” and politicians too these days, I think Stark and all those who agree with him are right on the money, fwiw.
Quoting dear Molly Ivins (iirc): “The boy ain’t right in the head.”
I think this is the best thread I’ve seen.
Do girls/women form closer friendships than boys/men?
So sorry for the bummer, but I just realized that’s why I still prefer yard work to house work.
The up side of Saturdays was that I lived in a fairly rural part of LA and some of my friends had horses. Even when we were in elementary school, we’d ride for hours out in the Big Tujuna Wash. Does anyone remember the show that had Jay North and another guy an elephant in it? My friends Elaine and I would pretend we were those two boys and we were in India and the horses were elephants. Fun times on Saturdays.
Riesz Fischer @ 162
Wow. Thank you.
As to closer friendships, I think it takes guys a lot longer than us to get to a certain level of trust. Gentlemen of the thread?
Goodness, where are my manners!?!
Good Morning egregious and pups!
If I may be so bold, I think some internet friends are just what the doc ordered.
Thanks guys. I was pretty mopey before I found the Lake some time ago. ;->
Strategerie @ 146: No, forgetting her would be like forgetting my own name. As horrible as it was – and is – I think she’d be pleased to know how her life, and her death, taught me so much.
I learned at a young age about suffering, and learned that love makes a difference in alleviating that suffering – in our friends and family, in our communities, and in the world. Material possessions, power, etc are worthless without it. It’s love that makes us want to give all children decent schools and healthcare and to lift poor children and their families out of poverty, even when our own lives aren’t affected by those issues.
egregious @ 147: Thank you.
Kathleen @ 149: This is so true. People are uncomfortable with strong emotions, and seeing a bereaved parent makes them remember that it could happen to them. So, they’re afraid of “upsetting” the bereaved parent and avoid the topic or avoid the family altogether.
Julie’s death was my first personal loss, and I remember going back to school, and everyone was just…silent. I wanted to scream and cry and pound on furniture – and I did a lot those first few months – and here were these people acting like she’d never existed.
I wanted them to talk about her, laugh at the funny things she’d done, cry. Just say her name.
Riesz Fischer @ 162
I think that there are too many variables to state that…. I think it depends on circumstances and the person’s attempt to keep that contact years later….
My mother was one of those, who kept up with childhood friends, high school and college friends clear up to the 75th reunion of her HS. My boyfriend keeps in contact with my friends from his childhood but for myself this was all lost with a childhood moving every couple of years[at least my excuse]. I do better as an adult to keep in contact with old friends and it is email that has helped me do that.
Kathleen @ 153
i suppose, by people who knew and loved her – like beth and her family. but i was all grown up when she died (she was 56) and most of the people i know now never knew her.
RonD @ 156
LOL. That whispering sound! I had the creeps for a long time, until I found out owls didn’t just “Hoo-hoo.” I thougth I was hearing ghosts in our house.
RockPaperScizzors @ 155
Excellent.
selise @ 160
Thanks, Selise.
If someone had invaded my land and killed my women and children I would do everything in my power to eject the occupationers.
RonD,
I love to fall asleep to the sound of crickets. And, you know, it’s kinda funny how we view things based on our relationships. I’m not all that into bugs and spiders and yesterday I was doing some deep cleaning on the front porch (before I did the Halloween decorating) and found a bunch of crickets under some pots. I was so happy and thanked them for the summer serenades.
Kathleen @ 158
I certainly don’t.
Demi
Hey, my sister and I compared notes a few years ago and realized why we could never quite finish doing the dishes, now, as adults.
She would balk at putting the dirty ones into the dishwasher, which is very sensible, and I would procrastinate about taking out the clean ones. Hey, they’re not hurting anybody sitting there.
So we had such a good laugh remembering that loading was my job, and unloading was hers.
I support Putin when he warns Bush against attacking Iran.
Egregious,
That’s a wonderfully inciteful story. Oh, the things we learn when we take the time to share.
ps…we used to beg my dad to buy a dishwasher. He said he already had two of them. He was a funny guy. And, I still miss him a lot.
I wonder how long Putin has realized George W. Bush is a maniac?
Oklahoma kiddo @ 178
Hi OK. Regards to you and lahoma. ;->
How long? Ever since he 1st looked into his eyes & saw his soul. Easy. Molly told us, in so many words.
Bush and the fascists are trying their best to reignite the cold war.
Good morning Adie,
Enjoyed hearing your tales of riding and caring for horses.
egregious, my sister and I have some of the same stories….
one is that my mother always complained that I just never get to washing the dinner dishes when it was my turn… one evening one of her friends was over after dinner probably planning one of their political things and I was in the kitchen trying to wash the dishes…. every few seconds sneezing, scratching my ankles and wiping the tears from my swelling eyes…… my mothers friend of course knew about the katymine hates to do dishes story but put up the theory that maybe she is allergic to the dish soap.
GUESS what, found out that I am allergic to most soaps….. so much of my life changed from that ding ding ding discovery.
My thoughts are this nation is need of a little more socialism and a lot less greedism.
Question…
Is BlueAmerica today? What time?
Oklahoma kiddo @ 176
Yes. And will SOMEONE PLEASE take the man seriously. After all, he is one of the people on earth who has the weapons that can ruin your whole day.
katymine @ 183
11 pacific, 2 eastern
egregious @ 181
don’t get me wrong, egreg. i should have added: the horse-link helped this aging kid finally to connect with people, way back then. That was indeed a wonderful time.
Thanks for this thread, and for all the good works you do in this hard-pressed world! You’re very special. ;->
egregious @ 186
Thanks….. Please everyone show up today……
This thread will be open all day. Hope to hear lots more stories from people just joining us especially from the west coast.
However, to be fair, I will tell you that Phoenix Woman is here with a terrific new post:
Blackwater Did What?
egregious @ 175
In my house, my mother washed, my brother and I dried. My brother (2yrs older and apparently much smarter) proposed a game to see who could dry the most dishes. I won. Every night.
Oklahoma kiddo @ 180
I read somewhere that the White House had the author(s) of the ‘Left Behind’ books in to give a seminar on foreign policy. (*headsmack*) If our Deciderer and crew are closet Armageddonists, they may be planning to skip the whole ‘cold’ part and go directly to ‘hot’. There is little they do that looks like containment. It is confrontation, unilateral power, pre-emption, … on and on.
Katymine,
You might be the only kid in the nation who actually got away with the reason “but I think I’m allergic to soap!”
Oklahoma kiddo @ 123
Also expect major guerilla actions behind the “lines” in Iraq and the other Gulf States. The former have almost a million militiamen affiliated with SCIRI and Moqtada al Sadr…along with their followers.
In the Gulf States there are large numbers of Shiites. These remained relatively quiescent when we were basing there to attack Saddam, but they would rise up and threaten the security of the Sunni monarchies if we attack IRAN.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/…..76125.html
The population of some of these States contain significantly large numbers of Shiites. Bahrain is 70% Shi’a. Kuwait has a 30% Shiite populace. The UAE is 16% Shiite. And even Saudi Arabia has 10% Shiite tribal identity. In the 1980’s…when the Shiites in Saudi Arabia rose up the Government almost collapsed.
Yet the US Military is only talking about whether they have the force capability of ATTACKING IRAN. They aren’t saying whether they would have the intelligence capacity to actually suceed in their IMMEDIATE mission, nor dealing with the consequences of THAT ATTACK.
This is the same sort of short-term “Get to Baghdad, and worry about everything else later” strategic thinking that led to the chaos in Iraq.
These idiots have replaced “strategic” thinking with TACTICS.
pma @ 67
Our house had a wood furnace and heat ducts only to the first floor. The upstairs got cold during our PA winters. Still, regardless of how much snow was on the ground or how cold it was outside, we had to sleep in our rooms – unless there was frost on the the inside of the windows. Then, the five of us were allowed to sleep on the sofa bed in the living room. I had a system for getting ready and into bed: Take a bath/shower and get nice and warm, put on jammies, run like heck to your room and throw yourself in bed. Pull the covers up over your head, breath hard till the blankets and sheets feel less like popsicles.
To this day, I remember coming downstairs to warmth and the smells of fresh coffee and burning wood, trying to keep my brothers and sisters quiet as we made breakfast and watched cartoons while Mom slept in. I also can’t sleep unless the blanket’s over my head. :)
Who watched Sky King and Penny on Saturday mornings? Just remembered Saturday cartoons in the 50’s and 60’s. Heckl and Jeckl drove me crazy but I watched them.
Heckle and Jeckle
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8017HK1GIX0
Sky King ( looking back,this scene is a bit kinky)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OiB46pFu-H0
Really liked Roy Rogers and Dale Evans
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shp1j94yRf8
egregious @ 192
Mom solved this with finally getting a dishwasher which she had been angling for for years ;)
solai @ 134
Indeed “stubbornness” would have segued into the arrogance of the Republican’s blocking bills like SCHIP and the Webb Amendment perfectly.
Saturday mornings – today in SA it’s about 68 degrees – a beautiful day for Texas. Remembering Saturdays of my childhood might inspire me to get the things done I need to do today – having family over to meet our new prospective son-in-law with a barbeque, picking up my sister Ann, who doesn’t drive at night, finishing the side dishes while hubby tends the grill. Nothing like my childhood. We (mom, dad, 5 children) left New Orleans 1940 for then Camp whatever in Leesville La. Housing was at a premium so we lived in a duplex on a farm in Oakdale where I saw banty hens for the first time, began to learn that we were “different” from the rural families’ children who were bold and brash and curious about us. My sister, nicknamed Cookie, took a lot of teasing – local kids named her Muffin. Thanks for the chance to write about her; she died three years ago, complications with diabetes. I guess my best friends were my siblings, because as Dad was transferred from base to base, we were always the “new ones”. I vowed that when I had children they would start and finish at the same school and not be the curious outsiders. They did. I can’t say whether being stationary or peripathetic is better. As a child we had no TV but even in small communities, there was a library – where I was hooked on Nancy Drew mysteries. Recently I took my 9 year old granddaughter to see a Nancy Drew movie and was so glad I could witness the same rapt attention she paid to the movie that I had in reading the novels.
OT – just read on either KOS or TPM that telecom companies TMOBILE, QWEST, AND WORKING ASSETS don’t (didn’t) comply with Bush’s request (demand) for turning over phone records. I plan to switch from ATT.
I wish all Firepups a good Saturday.
egregious @ 175
Funny! And explains why my sister procrastinates about cleaning up after meals, and I procrastinate about doing dishes. I cleaned the table and stacked, she washed.
On a cold winter day in central NJ, I couldn’t wait to get the ice skates on Saturday and go down to the creek to skate, meet up with neighborhood kids, get taunted/flirted by the cute but not too bright guy, and just enjoy the long curvy skate paths that the big boys had cleared for us.
rosalind @ 157
My mom saved my Ken doll, and we found him when I was about 40 in a box and he is completely bald on top with a perfect recessed hairline. He’s sits on my shelf.
katymine @ 182
The older of my two brothers is allergic to most soaps as well, but we have a mean mom – she bought him gloves. Nothing says “manly” when your 15 and your friends stop by as much as a pair of bright yellow gloves. :D
Probably doesn’t help when your oldest (married, supposedly adult) sister teases you mercilessly… LOL
Marilyn In Texas @ 198
(((Marilyn))) I’m so sorry for your loss. I’m so close to my brothers and sisters, I can’t imagine the pain losing one of them would cause.
I imagine moving so much made you and your siblings much closer than you might have been in a “stable” house. Having others on your side even before you meet the locals is always more comforting.
(((((Marilyn)))))
Sorry to hear about your sister.
I recall doing lots of neat things on Saturdays and Sundays.
Certainly there was the usual overdose of Saturday Morning cartoons (Johnny Quest, all the Hanna-Barbara and Warner Brothers stuff…plus some things like Felix the Cat and even Betty Boop). Never watched stuff like Speed Racer or Scooby-Do. The only Japanese shows I remember were Astroboy and Gigantor. I always thought the Flintstones were in the Family Hour. And a lot of these other cartoons were slotted in the after-school kids hours before the “bread-winner” got in from work. But more and more those times got taken over by the “Talk Shows” and Soap Operas (which I hated…except for Dark Shadows…which was COOOL…vampires!).
When my Dad wasn’t driving huge distances to work, we would usually go off on Saturdays to some place to look for fossils (even the area behind our house in Simi Valley…now full of subdivisions had fossils. Or we’d go tide-pool, the Griffith Park Observatory, or Museums, the LA or San Diego Zoo, or to a mission or Native American heritage site. But I was also pretty good at finding stuff to do on my own. I’d go on long exploration walks in the hilly areas behind our house (sneaking under the barb wire into the Getty Ranch). Climb the eucalyptus trees. Try and catch jack-rabbits by stalking them with buddies (we never did…but got close), sometimes watch wild deer. We’d get our skateboards or Flexy-Flyers and ride them insanely down the steepest streets we could find (or in this massively steep cement “wash” we found. Lucky nobody broke their necks! We’d have “bicycle chicken” crashes. Lots of bloody knees and elbows. Secret codes and clubs…with underground forts (abandoned due to black-widow spiders). And if bored I’d pour through tons of National Geographics or Scientific Americans that my folks subscribed to. I had a small group of friends, a mix of nerdy guys and jocks…the fractionalization of such groups hadn’t begun at that stage.
My family went to Africa for almost three years and when we returned to the same area I thied to mesh with the same group of old friends. But I found that none of them still friends and had actually fallen prey to the whole Jr. High battle for status issues. Some had even become utter bullys. Had to rebuild a whole new set of friends.
Great stories, cinnamonape!
My best friend Randy grew up to become a dentist and rental property owner in the southwest. A real live right winger. Like most of ‘em, money became his god. Once the Iraq fiasco started I got tons of stuff from him touting Bush blah blah blah. Not a peep since the elections in 2006.
We rebuilt a Ford Model A from the frame up. Used to drive it in the high school homecoming parade. Friday nights we spent watching Rod Serling’s “Twilight Zone” and the various private eye shows that were the rage. For those too young to know what I’m talking about it was in the late 50’s. His parents were square dancing freaks and we’d sit downstairs and smoke cigarettes (both parents smoked) and watch TV while they were gone for the evening. He gave up smoking after high school. Other than that I guess everything else about him went to hell in a handbasket. During the summer Randy and I would go looking for Civil War stuff in the fields around Washington. The area was nowhere near as populated as it is today. Lots of open spaces and woodland. My dad was a Civil War buff and had a copy of the official atlas. We used it to find where small engagements had taken place in Fairfax County. We’d take our trowels (you know, the kind Kathrine Harris uses to apply makeup) and go looking. My dad usually had a gig on Saturday nights (piano player in DC when it was still a hot town) so we’d go to wherever he was playing. Took our dates and since I was “Herb’s boy,” we never had to pay for anything. My dad played a lot of congressional parties in those days and going to them was always interesting. Maybe that’s where Randy picked up his conservative ways. The congress critters were always willing to talk to a kid who showed a real interest. In those days civics was a required class so we were up on all that stuff.
A lot of musicians in DC used to go to the Texas Chili Parlor after a gig. They didn’t go every night but if we knew the band was going we’d stick around just for that, no matter how bored we were. Best chili I’ve ever eaten. My dad spent years getting the recipe out of them, one ingredient and direction at a time. I still have a copy. Takes 24 hours to make and it’ll burn right through cold rolled steel. When I was stationed in San Diego I used to send my dad fresh peppers. They were a hot purple pepper he couldn’t get in DC. Randy ate that stuff like it was jello. Judging from a picture I got a couple of years ago he still likes to eat. That’s something else I’ve noticed. These right wingers all look like they put in a lot of overtime with the knife and fork. Maybe it’s the stress of knowing they’re full of shit and can’t admit it.
For the downer segment my oldest kitty Missy passed, naturally, in my arms on Tuesday aged 22 1/2. Not a bad run. She is painfully missed.
Thank you for your great stories Southern Dragon. And I’m very sorry to hear of the loss of your Missy.
(((((Southern Dragon)))))
egregious @ 208
Yeah definitely great stuff! It’s interesting to see how kids who run in the same circles somehow go centripitally flying off in opposite directions like the butt end kid in “crack the whip”. Sometimes it’s chemicals…but other weird things start happening in adolescence and those first few years after High School. And when I was growing up…during the Vietnam War…when we hit those years we had to basically make decisions politically…even when we really weren’t ready to.
In fifth grade, my best friend Jon and I went around in the midwest wintertime, and, in imitation of baseball players’ tobacco-caused cheek-bulges, found the biggest chunks of rock salt we could and put ‘em between cheek and gum. To this day I don’t like salt on anything. Or olives.
Schoolhouse Rock!!!
Love the topic and the photo. I remember several different “epochs” and “best friends” as a child, there was the best friend of imaginary horses with whom I built a stable and equestrian practiced techniques on our dogs. There was the best friend of the Laura Ingalls books with whom I played little house every day after school in second grade. And there was my dreamy, wispy best friend from preschool, yvette with whom I could play any imaginative game on any topic at any time. Any world but the real world was our motto.
Great memories.
My best friend and I traded Hot Wheels ™ and GI Joes ™, then swung from a long cable over a gully in the woods and broke bones. If you are going to break a bone-or-2, do it when you are young. It usually heals over like it never happened. Now, at 50, I am very carefull.
Ah, what a wonderful post egregious, thanks. I’m going to dawdle over the comments for the rest of the afternoon.
I was a swimmer as a child, almost an Olympic one if my mom hadn’t said no to the whole schlepping-me-all-over-creation thing.
I spent every Saturday morning from late February until just before Thanksgiving swimming a mile backstroke, or having practice relays with my teammates. We were good. The smell of cholorine (!!), steam rising from the pool on a cold fall morning, hamburgers with Lawry’s seasoning salt liberally sprinkled on…ah, nostalgia.
And that’s where I was, at the pool eating burgers, when I heard on the radio that my parents’ best friends and their 18 month-old daughter had been kidnapped from their home at 4 am by two escaped killers from Oregon. Fortunately, no one was seriously hurt. Mom and baby were let off at a country store in the Sierras (near Sacto) and dad was shot in the leg so he was immobile and left by the side of the road, where he was picked up moments later by the state police, who were following them just out of sight. Hale, the dad, was a high muckity-muck in Pat Brown’s admin, a fact unknown to the killers until they turned on the radio later that morning. Ah, nostalgia…
I really appreciate hearing all of your stories. Keep em coming.
i am blessed to still be close friends with my best girl friend who lived 5 houses away. We can’t remember a time when we didn’t know each other. I am also close with a few friends who go back to elementary school. As I graduated in high school with 965 others (one of 2 high schools in the 7o’s) and we all went to colleges all over folks are usually surprised at our bonds.
Egregious, this has been a great and fun post!
I am ancient– for me, on Saturday mornings we listened to radio program called “Let’s Pretend” — dramas of fairy tales etc. My dad before my turn at the radio, would be listening to Eddie Arnold because Mom was sleeping in (she did not like country music but he could listen then) he would be reading his newspaper, smoking and drinking coffee then went off while we listened to ours. Later in the day we did what all the other kids in town did, went to the Saturday double feature WITH cartoons, 9 cents to get in, 10 cents for popcorn. No wonder i hate to pay $7.00 for a matinee now! I would go with Connie, my best friend in grade school, till we moved to another NE panhandle town. We also had huts and tents and games where we got all sweaty and exhilarated at various times. Boy that was fun!
It has been sad and comforting to hear about the friends lost by FDL friends, and my heart goes out—. Our lives are shaped by our childhoods — and this post has brought wonderful memories flooding back!
My best friend when I was a little girl is still one of my best friends. We have been friends since kindergarten. Her name is Ruth Her brother was best friends with my brother. We are now in our 60s and on opposite coasts. But, when I go home, she is the first person I call after calling my sister to pick me up and my grandniece to make arrangements to see her. She was so inquisitive and had a great sense of humor. Her family seemed like mine (although I was too young to know the similarities were our dysfunctionality). Her inquisitiveness taught about being curious of all things in life. Learning was hard for her because she was dyslexic before there was a word for it; but, it never kept her from learning. We also had a love for music and movies. Now, we spend so much time talking about the next movie we will see. The last time I was home, she and I had seen five movies in three days. I retire in the spring and plan to move back home and look forward to going to movies with Ruth, renting movies and watching them with Ruth, or just having a nice meal with my oldest and dearest friend.
Riesz Fischer @ 162
Hi Riesz,
I’m EPU’d in a big way, but hopefully, you’ll check back. I have to agree on the excellent thread. Some of our memories are bittersweet, but it’s great reading.
I don’t know if girls form closer relationships with each other than boys do, but one of the things that comes to mind is the fact that there are lots of physical changes for girls as they are in their pre-teen years that might bind us together and that we discuss. I don’t know if boys talk with each other about those things.
IMHO, YMMV,
-S
Riesz Fischer @ 162
Didn’t know it was a competition? Some do, some don’t. We live such different lives with such different pressures. Do girls/women do the same competitive/dominance dance that boys/men do? Do girls/women goad each other into stupid/dangerous situations just to “prove” themselves the way boys/men do? Surviving physical danger can forge strong bonds but so can surviving emotional or physical trauma. I think it’s a question that doesn’t have a relevant answer.
solai @ 136
Not all of us grew up where there were street lights.
When I was a kid my family moved pretty often. I had lots of friends for a while. I haven’t had any real lifelong friends. My father was a school teacher and a union organizer. He pretty much single-handedly organized the teacher’s union here in WV. So, as you might imagine, we had a few enemies. But, it never seemed to bother my parents much. My father’s family was from Sandy Creek in Clay County…we lived in a holler. But, as I said, we moved around a lot. I roamed the countryside wherever we went and was so free I dang near kilt myself a few times.
I guess I’ve been lucky to have had a bunch of friends, but unlucky to have lost track of most of ‘em. A lot moved away to find work.
Nowadays, one of my best friends lives in NC and I only see him a couple of times a year. Thank God for e-mail and the telephone.
Saturday mornings was always a lot of t.v. cartoons and newspapers. But, I guess I always felt so at home outside that I never thought of it as one or two special moments. Nowadays I’m more of an indoor person, but I still love to go to the park.
For those of you who don’t live in especially scenic places…visit a mountainous area like the Appalachian’s or the Rockies when you can. Here in WV it can be beautiful, even in town. Believe me, I’ve been to some other places and our state’s motto, “Almost Heaven” (well, it used to be) is sometimes right on. We also have some great state parks.
Strategerie @ 219
Way, way EPU’d here, but I wanted to chime in.
Reisz: With a surfeit of male relatives – brothers, cousins, sons – I’ve had ample opportunity to witness their relationships with friends. Yep, they do form the same close bonds as women, but girls and women are allowed to be physically and emotionally expressive throughout their lives. Boys are told very early by the adults around them or by schoolmates that hugging male friends and family members, crying, etc. isn’t acceptable. “Big boys don’t kiss.” “Don’t be a sissy.” etc.
It’s damned hard to counteract those societal messages, and I count myself lucky that my 20yo and 18yo sons have no problem giving each other or their dad hugs and kisses, though that’s as far as their so-called “mushy side” (their words) goes. (Mom, female relative and young male relative exceptions do apply.)
Strat: I don’t know about other generations, but my sons’ peers do seem to talk about the same things, though obviously from a male perspective. I think it’s a matter of finding their way through the thicket of life – figuring out what they think and believe.
When my sons were in their early teens, they and their friends talked about every topic from how breasts grow to menstruation and how tampons work (with a show-and-tell of my personal items) to pen*s size to what laundry detergent works best on sheets, and could you wash all your clothes together or did you have to sort them? (And wasn’t that a roundabout discussion, with none of them wanting to mention why they were suddenly interested in washing their own laundry.)
There was always a time when I’d hear one of my sons say, “Let me ask my mom” and horrified voices would reply, “Dude! You can’t ask your mom about that stuff!” (I guess they really believed that I couldn’t hear them in the next room?) But they always asked, though usually after their friends left.
Now that they’re older, they talk about everything – showing respect for women, divorce, war, terrorism, abortion, rape, and what makes a good father.