Page 8 - Sentinel July 2017

FIRE Continued from page 6 terey Pop Festival was in June of
1967, and do you remember these
names? The Grateful Dead, Jimi
Hendrix, Grace Slick, Janice Jop-
lin, Big Brother and the Holding
Company? All those bands were
at Monterey.

Fifty years ago, we did not have
home computers. There were no
cell phones. We had one black
and white television. Many of
today’s teenagers cannot imagine
a life without computers or cell phones or multiple high defini-
tion color televisions. Those of us who have a little gray hair
remember what it was like, and we remember it fondly. So let’s
go back to 1967, and I’ll tell you some things that I remember as
a 15 year old teenager that may elicit some of your own memo-
ries. Hopefully, you can share with your kids or grandkids.
My brother and I were about
three years apart. The poor guy
was just overmatched in every-
thing we did. My dad bought
him boxing gloves, so we put
them on and I went down on my
waiting on a rental home the insurance company has agreed to knees to make it “even.” I nailed
fund. We have a builder who has high hopes we can be home him with a one-punch knockout,
in less than nine months. We have one healthy, happy puppy and he was done with the boxing
out of three, and five kids who are deeply shaken. We have a gloves. My dad tried to persuade
puppy on order to add to our family this summer, and have re- him to get up and continue, so
viewed every possible countertop choice available to us. We are Dad put on the gloves and fought
still replacing things and will continue to do so as we can. We me while he was on his knees. I
are deeply grateful to the people of this community who have blasted him too. He admitted it
showered us with love, most often having never met us. We was a bad idea.
will rebuild and we will stay, and we still talk of retirement and
grandchildren and golf carts. This community has become our My brother and I used to love watching pro wrestling, and we
family, and even if we could find and thank every person who enjoyed the colorful names. So naturally, we formed our own
reached out to us, “thank you” just wouldn’t be enough.
wrestling league and tussled with each other. You will LOVE
some of these creative wrestling names that we made up. From
SUMMER ACTIVITIES FROM 50 YEARS AGO--1967 Germany, there was the fearsome “Heir Puller.” From France,
we had the undefeated “Le Downer.” The best name of all was
Michael Stone...
the undisputed Champion of the World from Spain, “El Bow.”
Let’s take a trip back in
None of us were old enough to drive cars, so we rode our bikes
time to 50 years ago, to the
EVERYWHERE. We didn’t care if we looked like kids, be-
summer of 1967. It was the
cause we KNEW we were kids. We could go to Don’s Hobby
original “Summer of Love”
Shop and buy a balsa wood glider for a dime. We could put a
where the word “trip” had a
pin in the nose of the glider and fly them at each other. Nobody
completely different mean-
ever got hit, but it added an element of danger, and we did it
ing. Dr. Timothy Leary
for hours. We would gather up friends and go play basketball,
came up with his famous
baseball, and football.
quote of “turn on, tune
in, and drop out.” I was a
Eventually, we all had to go home for dinner. All family would
young teen growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area and ready
gather around the table, and we’d eat dinner together. Satur-
to transition from my sophomore year to being a junior. Being
day night was reserved for watching “Lawrence Welk.” We
born in September 1951, I was usually younger than most of
got popcorn and Seven-up. Everybody loved Norma Zimmer,
my classmates. I would not reach age 17 until September, 1968
and so graduated from high school as a 17 year old. The Mon- Continued on page 9
Page 8 - July 2017 Perry Park Sentinel