It is really a miracle that there is even one Boomer still alive. For the most part, our generation worshipped at the altar of the sun, fearing nothing except that we might be the palest among our friends. Boomer moms would on occasion suggest that we use some suntan lotion. Remember the little girl in the Coppertone ad with her white butt cheeks showing? Who wanted to look like the Coppertone … [Read more...]

A defining moment in the lives of many Boomers came in October 1954 when Texas Instruments and a company called the Regency Division of I.D.E.A. combined to offer the first production model of the transistor radio. No longer would be young people be tied to a plug-in radio in the den or a manually tuned radio in the car to listen to their favorite rock and roll songs. Now, with a smaller, portable … [Read more...]

Jobs were tough to find when Boomers were growing up. There were few temporary or summer jobs in the retail trade because most workers were full time and many had been on the job for years. There were no fast food jobs because there was no such thing as fast food. There was some part-time clerical work available in the summers, and of course, lawn mowing and baby sitting opportunities, but real … [Read more...]

Boomers recall lots of childhood memories. Some good and some not so good. One of those not-so-good memories for me was when I got “chiggered.” I was spending a week at Grandma Brewer’s, in Clemmons, NC, an annual event soon after school let out. My father, who was killed in World War II, had 8 living brothers and sisters and I was often passed around from Brewer to Brewer as I visited. On … [Read more...]

In 1954, the Swanson Food Company changed the way Americans ate their meals. Prior to that date, families gathered around the kitchen table for lunch or breakfast, or around the dining room table for dinner or supper. Sometimes the radio was on, but never during a dinner or formal meal. But with the introduction of Swanson’s frozen meals, appropriately called TV Dinners, families gathered in the … [Read more...]

Boomers loved to swim. Whether it was the ocean, a creek, a nearby lake or a chlorine-drenched swimming pool, when summer came, Boomers went swimming. Today’s kids have so many activities that it boggles the mind. Even in summer, there are gymnastic classes, T-Ball, baseball, softball, lacrosse, soccer camps, day camps and the like, not to mention the myriad of electronic games and gizmos … [Read more...]

It was the family car, but it was more than just an automobile. It was a member of the family. For most Boomers, it was the only “car” member of the family, because most Boomer families in the 1950s and 1960s only had one car. As a rule, moms stayed home and dads drove the only car to work, or if mom had some shopping or errands to run, she dropped off dad and picked him up after work. Kids either … [Read more...]

How do young people meet these days? There are no drive-ins! Not only are there no more drive -in movies, there are no drive-in restaurants. No place to circle the parking lot looking for girls – or boys, as the case may be. Boomers look back nostalgically at the days when a young lady called a carhop would take your order for a frosted mug of A & W root beer and an order of fries. You’d give … [Read more...]

Chicken is good. Hambone is sweet. Possum meat is mighty, mighty fine. But give me, oh give me, I really wish you would That watermelon hanging on the vine   My Daddy used to sing that song when I was a boy. I don’t know if it was an actual, recorded song, or something he just made up, but he sang it frequently around the house, particularly in summer and particularly … [Read more...]

The lives of Boomers can be defined by music. In the early years, just after the war, America wasn’t sure in which direction music should proceed. There were crooners like Sinatra and Bennett as well the remnants of the Big Band Era. Country stars like Hank Williams, Patsy Cline and Teresa Brewer had frequent hit songs as chart toppers, so it was a mixed bag of musical tricks. Then, rock and … [Read more...]