Flashback Friday...Movies, Independence and Nostalgia

(Wow...look what I found! Proof that it is still there.)

Don't you just love reading something, or having a conversation that causes you to take an unexpected walk down Memory Lane? I do. I was reading about Damaris's first movie memories. I hadn't really thought too much about my own...until I started thinking about it, that is.

Very first of all, I remember being a pre-schooler and playing on the playground, at the drive-in, in my pajamas, with the other kids (also in their pajamas), waiting for it to be dark enough for the movie to start. (Ahhh, the 70s!) As of a couple years ago at least, the drive-in and playground in Santee still stood. {I wonder if kids still go in their PJs? I wonder if people still pop their popcorn on the stove at home and bring it...in brown paper grocery bags, delicious with butter spots...just like we did?} The only movie I can remember specifically is The Apple Dumpling Gang, but we did this a lot, so I know there were more...but I was really young. I do remember going in my dad's pickup truck, though. And riding in the bed of the truck, all the way there. {Yep...we did that in the 70s, too...because bad stuff never happened.}

We moved to a small town in East San Diego County for a few years (Lakeside). They had an old theater downtown, and during the summer, they showed a Disney-type, kids' matinee every week. My mom would drop off my brother and me (we were like 8 and 10) with money for the movie and some candy every week. I remember Escape to Witch Mountain, The Gnome Mobile, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...but most of all, I remember the sense of adventure and independence. Those were the days! I know the old Lakeside theater is closed, though...because it didn't stay open past those first couple of magical summers (of our time there, anyway...it had been around a long time before that). Guess they didn't charge enough for the candy. I think it was vacant for some time, and then it became a church. I wonder if the building still stands? Probably not. It's probably a Super Wal*Mart by now.

One final, childhood, movie memory worth mentioning. ET. It came out the year we moved to Utah. {Tough time in the life of my family of origin, incidentally. We moved to an even smaller town...an oilfield town, which also had an old, quaint theater.} I went to see ET with my brother, Jimmy. (You know, the sentimental one from my previous post?) Anyway, he bawled through the whole ending. I probably did, too...but mostly I remember looking over to my left at him, repeatedly wiping at his emotion-twisted face with his sleeve, and thinking, "Wow, this is really eating him up." Not your typical 14 year old boy, for sure. Which is one of the things that makes him so special. I didn't say anything to him about it, we just pretended it wasn't happening. {I probably saved it to tease him later. Don't know for sure, but I'm guessing...knowing how valuable that ammo would have been. We loved each other, but hey...we were still siblings.}

Thanks for reading along, while I'm trying to get my blogging feet wet again. I'm feeling better about being here, so stay tuned for more. I would LOVE to read about your early movie memories, if you care to share. Happy summer!

{image}