Bill OBoyle: But man, it sure was fun
Mar. 5—WILKES-BARRE — It's time to fire up the Way Back Machine again and take a trip back to, you know, those good old days when small towns were the place to be and where we all learned all we needed to know.
At least until we actually grew up and could think on our own a bit. But everything we learned "growing up" was there for us to tap into and guide us as we began our "adult" lives.
The 1960s brought about "counterculture" — a continuous revolution of social norms, including the clothes we wore, the music we listened to, the way we behaved, which for some, included alcohol and drugs. The later 1960s saw big changes in the way we thought about sexuality, respect for authority, civil rights and education.
The era brought about a lot of positive change, but sadly, it also brought a lot of less-than-positive change to the world we live in.
But we survived. We got through it all and for many of us, we also managed to endure the loss of that hometown feeling. We became bigger, bolder and far too lenient.
Yet here we are. We are much older now and, perhaps, a bit wiser. And as we look back on our lives, we remember where we came from and who guided us and how the rapidly changing world affected us.
And this is why I fire up the Way Back Machine — to go back to where we were and recall the fun we had and the moments that changed our lives forever. We may not have even realized what was going on at the time, but we sure do get it now.
OK, yes we lived through the British Invasion musically and the Cuban Missile crisis and the assassinations of JFK, MLK and RFK. We watched the first landing on the moon and we cheered through the first Super Bowl. We rode the bus to the first day of school in a jointure. We ate at fast food places, pushing away from the traditional family home sit around the table meals. We watched color TV for the first time and we used a cordless phone.
Remember piling in the car with your pals and heading down the shore? Listening to all that great music and anticipating what might happen when we got to Wildwood? Who would we meet? And like the dog that chases the car, wondering what we will do when we catch it?
Man, cut-off shorts and a t-shirt were all we needed. Head to the beach and lay out until the sun starts to go down. Come back to our motel room, take a shower and head out. We had no agenda. We had no idea where we were going or what we were going to do once we got there.
But, man it was sure a lot of fun.
The Jersey Shore was such a huge part of our evolution. There was no better breakfast place than Uncle Lou's and the Shamrock Cafe was always fun.
We always stayed at the Premiere Motel — it's still there and operational.
And that salty Atlantic Ocean and that awful sand remain — I love the beach, except for the sand and salt water.
And the Boardwalk is there in all its glory — the shops, the games, the rides, saltwater taffy and fudge.
Yeah, this is where my pals and I set out on exploring life in a way we hardly had any experience in, but we managed — and we had fun. We would arrive in town, head to the pool or ocean and soak up the rays, man. We had to get some sun before we dared to get social.
Those memories are with us forever.
Life as we knew it sure has changed, but there's is nothing wrong with remembering where we came from and what it was like in a far less complicated world.
I just have this sentimental gene, I guess, that drives me to return to those days when life was so much simpler and so much fun.
We want to remember as much as we can from those formative years before we all went different ways, taking different paths to very different destinations.
But back then, we were pretty much all the same — we had a common goal and that was to enjoy life while we could before the realities of life came calling.
The events of the 1960s have left indelible marks on our minds and hearts. We take pride and comfort in knowing that for so many of those historical milestones, we were there.
Yes, I do wish we had cell phones back then so we could have preserved many of the memories that are tucked away in our memory banks.
But they do remain vivid and, perhaps, even more so because they can't be refuted.
The Way Back Machine really does serve me well.
Reach Bill O'Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle, or email at boboyle@timesleader.com.
