Author: 610rrandtr

yes, I’m going to talk about it. If you’re under 50, you probably have a cognitive understanding of the war. And maybe sick of those of us who went through it. All I want to do here is try and impart the visceral emotive impact of the war. Not from a political viewpoint or from… Continue reading Nam

We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Brakes!! In the beginning……………since our street terminated up a hill, that was the winter meeting place. The hill on my street had a nice angle, but it was a short ride. And once cars started traveling, its hours as virgin snow were limited. Snow chains were Godzilla to snow paths.… Continue reading Winter Sledding & Contemplating Death

A time not too far gone, when I was changed by just a song Steve led the way upstairs, two fresh bottles of Green Spot in hand. He motioned to the right–his bedroom–but we turned left. It was another world. Posters of groups on the wall–the only ones I knew were the Beatles. A lava… Continue reading And so, the journey begins

I could have flown half way to heaven. Blue, my favorite color. With Grandma’s cash in hand, I went to to the local bike store with one simple question: “What can I get for $50?” More money than I had ever seen, I might add…..and it was all mine! The latest thing were Schwinn Sting… Continue reading My Blue Bike

Everyone’s grandmother is the greatest, right? In 1960, two years after her husband died, my maternal grandmother was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Disease and told she had six months to live. They clearly didn’t know who they were dealing with. Her parents came from Germany in the 1800’s, speaking fluent German in the house. I suspect… Continue reading My Grandmother, best in the world

Collections I had an aunt that was a department store buyer for women’s clothes. So she made multiple trips to NYC, even taking me along once to see the Statue and Empire State. We even ate in one of the last Automats (Note: if you don’t know what this means, check out a doc on… Continue reading More Toys!

Well, Susie, It’s right here! Fifth grade ends and the playground isn’t open………..yes, they blew the May 30 deadline. So, instead they did it on the Fourth of July, though in truth we had been skulking around after dark. (Cop parked there all day–goes to show how much crime there was.) The entrance began halfway… Continue reading The Playground!

We have met the enemy, and he lives here. How about a little music to set the mood? As the sixties refused to go away and leave daddy in peace, his racism and intolerance grew focused and festered. The Chicago riots turned him into a chain-smoking maniac. And I had a front row seat. Initially,… Continue reading Strike Two, Daddy–1968 Chicago

Dippity Do or Brylcream? Women’s Hair Salon’s looked completely different in the sixties. There were no chains, so they were all run by individuals. A place where neighborhood ladies met and talked in between sets and perms. Row after row of huge iron hair dryers lined the walls–large, space-helmet hats that descended on their hair… Continue reading Hair Care

Privacy? Not! I just realized, you never heard about the awnings. Well……… All the houses either had metal or canvas awnings. It was a cool thing to have in the fifties, I suppose. As you’ve seen the psycho next door had the metal ones, which made for wonderful sound at Halloween. We had canvas dark… Continue reading The awnings