It was one of those days that come so rarely now; a whole afternoon spent lounging in and around the swimming pool. Even though I had my nose stuck in my mystery novel, I couldn’t help but be distracted now and then by laughing children, and the splash of a teen-ager executing a perfect can-opener off the diving board.
It got me to thinking about all the things that filled our summers when we were teens. At the risk of getting all sentimental – something bohemians are loathe to do – here are some musings about summer that I’ll bet many of you share with me:
Remember when they blew the whistle for adult swim, and that meant you had to get out of the pool?
When instead of anti-aging SPF 50 sunblock, you slathered yourself with a homemade concoction of baby oil and iodine?
How on a clear night you could pick up radio station WLS out of Chicago and listen and laugh to John Records Landecker’s “Boogie Check?” (This is for those of us who grew up in the Midwest).
Remember Boone’s Farm Strawberry Hill wine?
Do you remember triple feature drive-in movies, where you learned just what Meatloaf was singing about in “Paradise by the Dashboard Light?”
How about sending your pesky tag-along little brother or sister on a “snipe” hunt?
Going to the Dairy Queen on a hot Friday night and eating a Peanut Buster Parfait without giving a damn how many calories were in it?
Remember you and your friends listening to the Raspberries’ song “Go All The Way” over and over again because although you couldn’t quite catch all the lyrics, you just knew they were dirty?
How about pulling up to a stoplight in your friend’s Nova, Vega, Pinto, Pacer or Gremlin and everyone crammed inside spilling out into the street to play Chinese Fire Drill?
Remember when you finally got up the courage to jump off the high dive? Remember when pools and lakes actually had high dives??
Remember a flashlight suddenly shining into your car parked on lover’s lane, and a gruff voice saying, “You two kids get your butts home right now or I’m taking you downtown and calling your folks.” You both peed your pants, but you just knew the cop loved that part of his job.
It was a time when we just knew we’d be young forever, and those carefree summer days were never gonna end…Remember?
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