Summer fun in '81
Of all my summer memories from my childhood, for some reason, the summer of 1981 stands out. I can't explain why this summer was such a turning point or so memorable, but it was, so much so that I was making compilation tapes commemorating the summer of 1981 ... in early 1985.
The summer of 1981 was 30 years ago, and I meant to reflect, recall and relive that summer during this summer, at least on my blog. I never quite got around to it, however, particularly the past few weeks after vacation while we've been busy with enjoying the remainder of summer and taking care of the new puppy. But summer isn't over yet, and there is still time to look back at 1981 in 2011. Here's what I remember from 30 summers ago:
-- The baseball strike interrupted Fernando Valenzuela's rookie season, but didn't temper my enthusiasm for the game. This summer, my pee-wee team controversially won our league championship (a long story for another post), and I played more Strat-o-Matic than I had of any summer in my youth. Baseball returned with the All-Star Game sometime in late July, and I taped the game on our VCR for my friend Marc.
-- The music was memorable, including "Limelight" by Rush, "The Waiting" by Tom Petty, "Hold on Loosely" by .38 Special, "Bette Davis Eyes" by Kim Carnes, "For You" by Manfred Mann, "Stars on 45" by Stars on 45, "In the Air Tonight" by Phil Collins and "Jesse's Girl" by Rick Springfield. A heck of a lot of AC/DC, Styx and REO Speedwagon on WLS. American Top 40 on WBBM-FM (before the station went top 40 in 1982).
-- "Raiders of the Lost Ark," "History of the World Part 1," "Superman II," "Stripes," and "Clash of the Titans."
-- Centipede, Wizard of Wor, Gorf, Scramble, Asteroids Deluxe and Defender. Playing Odyssey 2 and Intellivision at a friend's house. Playing Adventure on Atari for the first time, a few months before we got our own VCS (and one of my first games was Adventure).
-- "Twilight Zone" reruns on Channel 9. "America's Top 10" (also on Channel 9).
-- Walking to Harlem-Irving Mall. Riding my bike all over the neighborhood. Water fights. Going to Great America the first year that the Eagle opened. Going to Kiddieland and winning a Styx mirror. Going to my first (and since, my only) baseball card show. Playing Jailbreak on humid evenings.
-- The fact it ended too soon and I started sixth grade that September. Great summers don't last forever. 1981 didn't. 2011 isn't, either.
The summer of 1981 was 30 years ago, and I meant to reflect, recall and relive that summer during this summer, at least on my blog. I never quite got around to it, however, particularly the past few weeks after vacation while we've been busy with enjoying the remainder of summer and taking care of the new puppy. But summer isn't over yet, and there is still time to look back at 1981 in 2011. Here's what I remember from 30 summers ago:
-- The baseball strike interrupted Fernando Valenzuela's rookie season, but didn't temper my enthusiasm for the game. This summer, my pee-wee team controversially won our league championship (a long story for another post), and I played more Strat-o-Matic than I had of any summer in my youth. Baseball returned with the All-Star Game sometime in late July, and I taped the game on our VCR for my friend Marc.
-- The music was memorable, including "Limelight" by Rush, "The Waiting" by Tom Petty, "Hold on Loosely" by .38 Special, "Bette Davis Eyes" by Kim Carnes, "For You" by Manfred Mann, "Stars on 45" by Stars on 45, "In the Air Tonight" by Phil Collins and "Jesse's Girl" by Rick Springfield. A heck of a lot of AC/DC, Styx and REO Speedwagon on WLS. American Top 40 on WBBM-FM (before the station went top 40 in 1982).
-- "Raiders of the Lost Ark," "History of the World Part 1," "Superman II," "Stripes," and "Clash of the Titans."
-- Centipede, Wizard of Wor, Gorf, Scramble, Asteroids Deluxe and Defender. Playing Odyssey 2 and Intellivision at a friend's house. Playing Adventure on Atari for the first time, a few months before we got our own VCS (and one of my first games was Adventure).
-- "Twilight Zone" reruns on Channel 9. "America's Top 10" (also on Channel 9).
-- Walking to Harlem-Irving Mall. Riding my bike all over the neighborhood. Water fights. Going to Great America the first year that the Eagle opened. Going to Kiddieland and winning a Styx mirror. Going to my first (and since, my only) baseball card show. Playing Jailbreak on humid evenings.
-- The fact it ended too soon and I started sixth grade that September. Great summers don't last forever. 1981 didn't. 2011 isn't, either.
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