The whole Goonies movie could have happened to me and my childhood friends as we explored the woods surrounding our neighborhood. That movie captured the feeling of a summer in Twin Acres when I was a kid. So where was I leaving off in yesterday’s post…oh yes, that time I almost lost an eye to a big sword!
Actually this event happened in 1981 in high school, but the way it was handled was very 70’s. Maybe that was because my teachers were also 70’s parents. I was in tenth grade and on a normal day I walked into the classroom. As I walked in another student was swinging a Lord of The Rings sword and the tip of the sword caught my face about a quarter inch from my eye, leaving a little cut. I don’t have any recollection of being sent to the nurse or of the other student being sent to the principal. He had brought the sword in as part of some project. That was the 70’s/80’s for you. You could walk right into school with a lethal weapon and the excuse that “it’s for a project” always worked.
French Fries to Die For? Who doesn’t love salty french fries? But if you’re a kid, you can’t exactly drive to McDonald’s. So what do you do when you’re home without supervision during summer vacation? Of course you pull out the electric vat full of grease and throw some fries in! It was just me and my younger sister at home. I was about 14 and my younger sister was probably 12 and way too overconfident in her cooking skills. She started the fries and at some point she pulled back on the handle of the basket in the grease. The whole thing full on boiling grease overturned on her arm/hand. Did we call 911 or our parents? No! Of course not! There was no 911 back then! Kids in the 70’s clean up their own messes. I think I bandaged her hand that was shedding skin like crazy.
It’s stuff like this that made me write my novel “The Sneaker Tree.” Although the novel is an ode to the adventures of my childhood, the neighborhood and the great friends I was lucky enough to have, it’s also a fun, suspenseful ride that’s been compared to Stephen King novels. I honestly didn’t go into writing this blog post to sell my book, but I’m very nostalgic and I enjoy what I think was a wonderful time to grow up in a small town.
Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy a nice Memorial Day if you’re in the States. ~Phil
Your fries story reminds me of when my friend and I, as students, came back drunk to our halls and decided we wanted toffee. And we didn’t have any, so we thought it would be a good idea to make some.
We over-boiled the sugar mixture and burned it, and, because we couldn’t put it in the bin as it would’ve burned through all the plastic, we decided to, erm, pour it out of the window. Because it was so cold it kind of set as it was falling, and the people on the floors below woke up to what they thought was a new fungus, previously unknown to science, clinging to their windows and window sills.
70’s kids were tough. A bandaid and a squirt of Bactine handled anything below amputations.
I feel badly for young kids today, they’ll never know the freedom we took for granted.
I completely agree with you. I think my kids did pretty good as far as having good adventures but they’re adults now. Kids now will probably miss all their summer vacations looking at their phones
This brought back so many memories—what a wild and wonderful glimpse into childhood back in the day! The sword story and the french fry incident had me smiling all the way through. Your writing is so vivid, it feels like we’re right there with you. Thank you for sharing such an honest and nostalgic piece.
Warm greetings from the Himalayas,
– Hari, Himalaya Heart Trek