March Madness

So, it's almost April, and it's still 30 degrees outside – 20s with the wind chill. I'm done with Winter. It's officially Spring, so is it global warming that is giving us unseasonably cool weather? At least it's been sunny and there's a promise of warmer weather. Verizon came yesterday to install a tv outlet in my sunroom. I carried the flatscreen from the den to the sunroom and enjoyed the warmth of the sun and the entertainment on tv for several hours. As dusk arrived, I brought out the space heater from the den and the down throw. By evening, I was packing up the tv and moving back to the den. Maybe I should take bets as to when I'll be able to migrate there full-time.

As I'm gathering and scanning all the old family photos I'll post some of my favorite here as a snapshot of family life in the 1960's. Here is a picture of my older brother Bill and me "playing" together with his Hook & Ladder fire truck. Tell me, do either of us look happy? I'll bet he's thinking "You're kidding, you want me to pull this fat turd around the driveway? Are you nuts?" I look a little confused too. Am I being asked to stand still for the camera or am I waiting for my brother to take off and dump me on the ground? Maybe I'm just grateful of the possibility of a free ride. And check out our shoes!

My early years took place in Darien, Connecticut, on Miles Road. It was a tree-lined horseshoe street filled with young couples and lots and lots of kids. Back in the 60's, all ages of kids ran around unsupervised, for the most part. Especially on this street where there was minimal traffic. We would set up four-square games with colored chalk, and ride our bikes up and down driveways with abandon. There was another, similar, horseshoe street nearby called Walmsley Road. Same demographics. Though it might have been more of a boy-thing, there was a rivalry between the two streets. The two streets would play baseball games pitting one street against the other: Miles vs. Walmsley.

Here's a picture of my brother Bob with, I think, the Miles Road gang. A slightly different use of the word gang than in today's society. My brother Bob is the shortest on in the bunch (I think he's the youngest too, from what I can tell here). I have very warm memories of Miles Road. Maybe it was the simplicity of childhood that I remember most. We moved when I was almost ten to Ohio. More about that later...