Discovered that Circle K has fountain drinks for .79¢, any size, everyday. The nicer stores have a whole wall of brands and flavors. And you can add a squirt of cherry, vanilla or lime for free. The largest drink size is only the 32oz. Yet, like the side of the cup says, The Thirstbuster, it does quench those late day thirsts. It's definitely the best value of the summer. McDs has theirs for a buck. 7-11 sells theirs for $1.19. Now, the real kicker that I think time has forgotten is the affordable refill. None of those deals include a refill. Except 7-11 and they offer a $1.49 refill, any size. What if the drink is only a $1.19? The only drink that the $1.49 refill is even a better deal on is the Super Big Gulp which runs $1.69. For .20¢, its almost not worth lugging the cup back to the store. So I have yet to ever do a refill at 7-11 and I continue to fill landfills with unwanted Super Big Gulp cups.
Summer 1989. Sophomore year at Roswell High had ended. Still hadn't gotten the drive to get a summer job. I worked down at Chewnings doing some of the odd jobs for some pocket cash, once or twice a week. I wouldn't find a job until Junior year summer. Yet, it was a great summer. And for movies. Sitting in the air conditioned Cinema 4 (at the Roswell Mall- the most modern of Roswell's three theaters. I think the first movie I would see at that theater was Breakin 2: Electric Boogaloo) watching Batman with Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson, Cinema 1 & 2 watching the Last Crusade (the last the original Indiana Jones movies). I was able to drive to almost anywhere, anytime as I had my first car - 1979 Ford Fiesta. It wasn't much to look at yet I got me places whole helluva lot faster than my 10 speed. So, I went to the movies often. I went to the Tastee Freeze when I wanted. But the best thing that summer was my Sun Country Mini Mart drink bottle. One would buy the bottle (a 32oz tube with a straw) for $1.99. Then, every refill, anytime, any Sun Country Mart, anywhere was only .39¢! I would get that thing filled up sometimes 2 or 3 times a day. That was a value! Just a quarter, dime and three pennies (with tax). There was a Sun Country at the corner of Sunset and Poe. This was the one I would visit the most. I would be sitting at home watching MTV (with real music on it) and I get a thirst. I would hop into the Fiesta and drive down the road. Within 5 minutes I would have my cold 32ozs of Coke. The deal would continue for summers after too. Eventually, I think I had about three of the bottles. So if one was dirty, I would have a couple backups.
Oh, I wish I could get .39¢ refills today. I guess I can't complain too much about a .79¢ drink. It is 22 years later....
Denver Comic Con
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Stormtroopers, Dark Lords and Jiffy Pop!
1977. I was five. One movie. Changed my life forever. Star Wars.
I still remember the first time I saw Star Wars. Well, I saw the first 30 minutes.
My mother and her boyfriend took me to see it at the Drive In somewhere in Roswell. I remember my mother telling me to get my PJs on and grab my pillow. Although the memory has some blurry spots, I think he (mother's boyfriend) drove a station wagon. I don't recall us owning a station wagon. Now that I think about it, I think my mother was driving an 1971 VW beetle at the time. The following year she would buy a 1978 AMC Pacer. It had door handles that looked like luggage latches. (straying...)
I knew very little about the film going into it. But I had seen some of the TV commercials. By the time Star Wars got to Roswell it was late 1977. I want to say it was September or October when we went. As the PJs were the nice fuzzy kind with feet. I had my pillow and my blanket. We parked and had our snacks. We had brought Jiffy Pop Popcorn that my mother had cooked before we left. I remember her letting me break the foil and being the first to scoop some out. Then, the movie started. The theme squawked over the tiny speaker box. The humongous star destroyer. Chomping jiffy pop. Stormtroopers burst onto the rebel ship. Frighted by the Dark Lord of the Sith. The droids escape. It was the coolest thing I had ever seen. I couldn't look away.
Once the action slowed down and the movie transitioned to Luke's home and his adventure in the cantina, I felt my eyes getting heavy. I don't remember when I faded out but I don't think I got past Han and Millennium Falcon escaping Mos Eisely. I remember Walrus Man loosing his arm so I know saw that part. I sorta regret falling asleep but it was past 10 o'clock at night and I was only five.
I don't remember the next day clearly, but I know I pestered my mother to know how the movie ended. And she probably told me. Within the next few months, I had the picture story book and all of the action figures. I've told the story before, but my great uncle Wade bought all 12 figures early 1978. Even had the vinyl cape Jawa. (he was lost a few weeks later, sad to say.) I played Star Wars on the playground of Valley View. I never wanted to be a Stormtrooper (not until I grew up), instead, I wanted to be the rebel guys at the beginning of the movie that had to defend the princess's ship. I ate peanut butter and jelly sandwiches from a Star Wars lunch box - the metal one, with the star field and X-wing on the drop down door. (I have a mini replica sitting on the self near my computer as I write this.).
I don't think I saw the movie in its entirety until late 1978 or early 1979 when the movie was on its third or fourth re-release and it was playing down at the Cinema I & II. And of course every time CBS would broadcast it - not until the mid-80s I think. But Star Wars shaped my life and I'm glad it did...
I still remember the first time I saw Star Wars. Well, I saw the first 30 minutes.
My mother and her boyfriend took me to see it at the Drive In somewhere in Roswell. I remember my mother telling me to get my PJs on and grab my pillow. Although the memory has some blurry spots, I think he (mother's boyfriend) drove a station wagon. I don't recall us owning a station wagon. Now that I think about it, I think my mother was driving an 1971 VW beetle at the time. The following year she would buy a 1978 AMC Pacer. It had door handles that looked like luggage latches. (straying...)
I knew very little about the film going into it. But I had seen some of the TV commercials. By the time Star Wars got to Roswell it was late 1977. I want to say it was September or October when we went. As the PJs were the nice fuzzy kind with feet. I had my pillow and my blanket. We parked and had our snacks. We had brought Jiffy Pop Popcorn that my mother had cooked before we left. I remember her letting me break the foil and being the first to scoop some out. Then, the movie started. The theme squawked over the tiny speaker box. The humongous star destroyer. Chomping jiffy pop. Stormtroopers burst onto the rebel ship. Frighted by the Dark Lord of the Sith. The droids escape. It was the coolest thing I had ever seen. I couldn't look away.
Once the action slowed down and the movie transitioned to Luke's home and his adventure in the cantina, I felt my eyes getting heavy. I don't remember when I faded out but I don't think I got past Han and Millennium Falcon escaping Mos Eisely. I remember Walrus Man loosing his arm so I know saw that part. I sorta regret falling asleep but it was past 10 o'clock at night and I was only five.
I don't remember the next day clearly, but I know I pestered my mother to know how the movie ended. And she probably told me. Within the next few months, I had the picture story book and all of the action figures. I've told the story before, but my great uncle Wade bought all 12 figures early 1978. Even had the vinyl cape Jawa. (he was lost a few weeks later, sad to say.) I played Star Wars on the playground of Valley View. I never wanted to be a Stormtrooper (not until I grew up), instead, I wanted to be the rebel guys at the beginning of the movie that had to defend the princess's ship. I ate peanut butter and jelly sandwiches from a Star Wars lunch box - the metal one, with the star field and X-wing on the drop down door. (I have a mini replica sitting on the self near my computer as I write this.).
I don't think I saw the movie in its entirety until late 1978 or early 1979 when the movie was on its third or fourth re-release and it was playing down at the Cinema I & II. And of course every time CBS would broadcast it - not until the mid-80s I think. But Star Wars shaped my life and I'm glad it did...
Friday, August 13, 2010
Earliest Memories
One of my earliest school memories is from Child Garden, near Hobbs and Main. I attended Kindergarten there in 1978. I remember playing on the playground during a solar eclipse. The sky got incredibly dark for the middle of the day. Darker than when the sun goes behind a cloud. Although I was only five, I don't recall being scared or mystified. Perhaps teachers had told us it was normal? I just remember climbing the hot metal ladder to the wavy slide and continuing to play. Beyond knowing I attended the school, I have no memory of teachers or the other children. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures.
First Grade is a blur. I have the class photo and I recognize all the kids. Even remember most of their names. It was 1979. Yet, I struggle to remember any important events. Nothing stands out. If I think of the year, I mostly think of times at my cousins house on Saturdays. I don't necessarily remember those as fond times. I was there cause I had to be not that I chose to be.
Second Grade was an event year. I noticed girls. I remember sitting in Mrs. Carrol's class with JM and K- flanking either side of my desk. They kept looking at me and whispering and giggling. They had decided I was to be their boyfriend. At first, I was embarrassed and confused. But flattered. In the end, it didn't last long. I think our torrid affair lasted a week. Then the two girls magically forgot the events ever happened. Women!
Third Grade, now that was the year that was the foundation to friendships that would continue through Junior High and High School. That was the year I became a latch key kid. My mother had the brilliant idea to put the key on a chain around my neck. Simply put: I lost the key the first day. Day two: it was on a key chain in my pocket to which I never lost a key again. Girls were more attractive and crushes on EF and SP started. Blonds. Dimples. SP was like a little Wilma Deering from Buck Rogers. Who could resist? Neither shared my feelings. If anything I was just the dork. Shy. Misunderstood. The geek who daydreamed more than he achieved.
First Grade is a blur. I have the class photo and I recognize all the kids. Even remember most of their names. It was 1979. Yet, I struggle to remember any important events. Nothing stands out. If I think of the year, I mostly think of times at my cousins house on Saturdays. I don't necessarily remember those as fond times. I was there cause I had to be not that I chose to be.
Second Grade was an event year. I noticed girls. I remember sitting in Mrs. Carrol's class with JM and K- flanking either side of my desk. They kept looking at me and whispering and giggling. They had decided I was to be their boyfriend. At first, I was embarrassed and confused. But flattered. In the end, it didn't last long. I think our torrid affair lasted a week. Then the two girls magically forgot the events ever happened. Women!
Third Grade, now that was the year that was the foundation to friendships that would continue through Junior High and High School. That was the year I became a latch key kid. My mother had the brilliant idea to put the key on a chain around my neck. Simply put: I lost the key the first day. Day two: it was on a key chain in my pocket to which I never lost a key again. Girls were more attractive and crushes on EF and SP started. Blonds. Dimples. SP was like a little Wilma Deering from Buck Rogers. Who could resist? Neither shared my feelings. If anything I was just the dork. Shy. Misunderstood. The geek who daydreamed more than he achieved.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Couple Only Skate
So the wife and daughter went on a mother-daughter outing yesterday to the Skate City. After, my daughter runs in to tell me how "mommy fell only a few hundred times" and how she is "totally a good skater." To which I believe it all - both statements. One, the wife is sporting a few hum dinger of bruises on her knees. Two, my daughter never tells a lie. Unless she's trying to get a new pair of skinny jeans from Justice. (story for another time) My daughter tells me the whole tale from their two hours of skating. The only question I could think to ask, "was there a couple only skate?" To which she replied, "No, Dad."
Remember, back when the last week of school was for having fun? Making crafts. Going on field trips to the zoo? Or having parties? with cup cakes? Those were the days of early Grade School. Not anymore. Times change I guess. Budget shortfalls hamper the fun stuff. But I remember that the last week at Valley View in the third grade meant going to the Skating Rink! I don't remember the name of the rink but I do recall smell of the burnt popcorn, the beeps and boops of the Galaga machine in the corner, the disco ball and anticipating and fearing the couples only skate.
Before that time, we (the dudes - CB and SM) would empress both guys and girls alike with daring stunts. Who could skate backwards? Who could skate faster? Who could skate the longest without face planting?
Most of the time it was just us skating in circles to I Love Rock N' Roll by Joan Jett or watching the cute girls skate as Centerfold played by J Geils Band. We (the dudes) dared one another to skate up to one of the girls and purposely run into them. Bonus points if we knocked them down. It wasn't to be malicious or reckless. It was just our way (int those prepubescent years) of getting close to the girls we all admired from afar yet thought of us as dorks and icky boys. I look back now and still get a bit of the shaky knees thinking of knocking EF down. I realize now how childish it was. I do regret it. Yet, I can still feel the nervousness of that moment. Apologizing with utmost sincerity and helping her back up. Taking her hand into mine. Knowing that in a half an hour the dreaded Couple Only Skate would take place and I would be parked on the bench by the foosball table. Girls like EF and SP wouldn't dream of skating with the kid with a Star Wars lunch box and a Teen Titans comic in his backpack. Or so I thought back then.
Thinking back now, I do recall skating in that Couple Only Skate. I think JS grabbed my arm and pulled me into the rink. Perhaps she felt sorry for me. Or maybe she liked dorky boys. Once the fear and anxiety left, it was kinda cool. The dreams of EF or SP doing the same thing next year never happened but I was happy at that moment - in those days. Disco ball casting flickers of light along the floor and walls. Girls and boys skating hand in hand. All trying to act cool. In 1980s irony, I think the song for that skate was Physical by Olivia Newton John. (Hey! it was different back then...)
Remember, back when the last week of school was for having fun? Making crafts. Going on field trips to the zoo? Or having parties? with cup cakes? Those were the days of early Grade School. Not anymore. Times change I guess. Budget shortfalls hamper the fun stuff. But I remember that the last week at Valley View in the third grade meant going to the Skating Rink! I don't remember the name of the rink but I do recall smell of the burnt popcorn, the beeps and boops of the Galaga machine in the corner, the disco ball and anticipating and fearing the couples only skate.
Before that time, we (the dudes - CB and SM) would empress both guys and girls alike with daring stunts. Who could skate backwards? Who could skate faster? Who could skate the longest without face planting?
Most of the time it was just us skating in circles to I Love Rock N' Roll by Joan Jett or watching the cute girls skate as Centerfold played by J Geils Band. We (the dudes) dared one another to skate up to one of the girls and purposely run into them. Bonus points if we knocked them down. It wasn't to be malicious or reckless. It was just our way (int those prepubescent years) of getting close to the girls we all admired from afar yet thought of us as dorks and icky boys. I look back now and still get a bit of the shaky knees thinking of knocking EF down. I realize now how childish it was. I do regret it. Yet, I can still feel the nervousness of that moment. Apologizing with utmost sincerity and helping her back up. Taking her hand into mine. Knowing that in a half an hour the dreaded Couple Only Skate would take place and I would be parked on the bench by the foosball table. Girls like EF and SP wouldn't dream of skating with the kid with a Star Wars lunch box and a Teen Titans comic in his backpack. Or so I thought back then.
Thinking back now, I do recall skating in that Couple Only Skate. I think JS grabbed my arm and pulled me into the rink. Perhaps she felt sorry for me. Or maybe she liked dorky boys. Once the fear and anxiety left, it was kinda cool. The dreams of EF or SP doing the same thing next year never happened but I was happy at that moment - in those days. Disco ball casting flickers of light along the floor and walls. Girls and boys skating hand in hand. All trying to act cool. In 1980s irony, I think the song for that skate was Physical by Olivia Newton John. (Hey! it was different back then...)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)