Nothing Much Else Happened: August 31, 1978

Today we started up to Idyllwild. I had my skateboard, my radio and myself. When we got up there, the first thing we did was go skateboarding. No, come to think of it, the first thing I did was get out of the car! Then I went into the house and called Bob up. He said everything was set for tomorrow. Then I went skateboarding with Janna. Tonight we weill (Mom and I will) sleep in Jennie Lea and Joe's camper.

***

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 30, 1978

Today we called up Bob and got him the first time! Quite a change from the fifteen it took me last time. He said that as long as we provide the transportation, he'll be able to come down. So, this will be our schedule: tomorrow — we drive up to Idyllwild and spend the night with Jennie Lea; The 1st — Bring Bob down; the 2nd — go to Dodger double-header; the 3rd — go to the beach for the whole day; the 4th — go to Dodger game; the 5th — drive back up and drop off Bob. Spend night at Jennie Lea's; The 6th — come home.

***

It's hard to imagine anything closer to perfection at this particular time in my life than taking in a double-header at Dodger Stadium with my best friend, Bob Bayer.

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 29, 1978

Today I showed the over-exposed film to Max, Mark and Neil. They all thought it was pretty lousy, except for some parts that were done in the shade. The best part I think was the footage of Ring-Ling getting her first bath since she got home from the kennel. We have some really funny stuff, like Max rollerskating — and then suddenly his rollerskates disappear! Loralee & Marjorie got home from Solvang this afternoon around 3:00, and I showed them the movie too.

***

I'm not sure how much more mileage I'm going to get out of this movie.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 28, 1978

Today, Mom and I (again) went to the pool, and swam. Today was the farthest either of us had ever swam. She went 20 laps and I went 24. (Although we're not near a mile, which is 71½ laps — aargh!) After swimming, or rather, on our way home we picked up the film (that I've been waiting for so long!). When we got home and tried it on the projector, it was all over-exposed! The man at the camera shop told me it was outdoor film — he was wrong!

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 27, 1978

Today, Mom and I went swimming again at the "Y" pool. I did 20 laps and she did 16. I did much better than last time, and I am going to try to increase my number every time I go. The "Y" has a really nice pool, and hardly anyone knows about it. But we get in for free because we have a membership. Mom used to go all the time while I was in school to help her lose weight. By the way, only 16 days until School starts! We got the movie projector out and found there was no take-up reel. Tomorrow Dad will buy one.

***

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 26, 1978

Today let me tell you about our next-door neighbors. Personally, I think they're nicer than the Jones'. The mother is a fox and the father isn't so shabby either. He's a commercial photographer, and she does make-up for all his photography. His name is Tom and her name is Lee (the Kelley's). Their daughter's name is Shay and she's 7 years old. The father, who is divorced once, has another son that doesn't live with them, but he will be moving in soon.

***

Photography aficionados may recognize the name "Tom Kelley" as the photographer who took the famous Marilyn Monroe calendar nude shots. That photographer was Tom Kelley, Sr. It was Tom Kelley, Jr. who moved in next door to us. He's still working — you can see his photography at tomkelleystudio.com.

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 25, 1978

Today we did something I've never done before. Mom said "Do you want to go swimming?" I said, "Sure, let me go get my boogie board*, getting all set for the ocean. Mom said "Hold Everything. We're going to the Y.M.C.A. pool." Well, I'd never been there before, so I thought I might give it a try. I loved it! The pool is 10 feet deep and I had alot of fun diving to the bottom. I swam 12 laps and Mom swam 10.

*Boogie Board - a board that you lie down on and ride

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 24, 1978

Today we called up Bob's mom to find out if Bob could come down from Idyllwild from September 1st through till September 5th. But they weren't home. We checked again just to make sure (2). We then called information to get the 714 area information (3). We got Bob's Father's restauraunt's number (4). We called the restraunt twice (5, 6) but Bob's parents (or Bob) weren't home, but at their sister's. We got the sister's number, but not before trying the brother's phone 7 times (7-13) and called the sister's twice (14, 15) and finally got them. She said she'd answer Thursday!

***

I was gonna keep spelling "restaurant" 'til I got it right!

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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To view the next day click: August 25, 1978

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 23, 1978

Today I finished the movie cartridge with some scenes with Marjorie and Loralee. I strated out with Marjory drinking water from a glass, then stopping and filling it up again and starting again to make it look like it filled up. We also had Max, Mark and Neil form a line on their hands and knees. Then I had Marjorie and Loralee get on top of them, so it formed a pyramid. I also filmed alot of my wonderful dog, Barnum'n.

***

I hope I'm not disappointing too many readers by revealing the secrets of the cinema.

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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To view the next day click: August 24, 1978

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 22, 1978

Today I started shooting my movie. Max, Mark and Neil were dying to be in the movie, so I filmed them first. First, I filmed Max rollerskating. Then Neil getting thrown down a little incline. Next was Max doing his skateboard tricks. I came up with a super idea for Neil. I had him hang from the tree, Then I'd make the picture black, and come back with Neil on the ground — so it looked like he had fallen! I finished it with all of them crashing together. We picked up Lynn, and she will have my room while I get the den.

***

I'm sure I thought it was Citizen Kane, but this movie smells more like Jackass right now.

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 21, 1978

Today, we started down the hill around 10:00 A.M., picked up two bags of oranges, and also accumulated two dogs. We hadn't seen them for 37 days! Before we left, it was rumored that Bob Bayer, my old friend from Idyllwild, may be able to come down for my birthday. Also, Lynn, my sister, will be coming back from the hospital in Denver tomorrow to stay with us a while. Boy, are those dogs glad to be home! So are we!

***

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 20, 1978

Today, or rather, this afternoon after lunch at Arby's, we left for Idyllwild. Mom says that when we get back on the 21st, I can get my first cartridge of film for the Super 8 millimeter camera we have. The reason I'm finding all this out is because I will be using the camera when we go to Africa in February, 1979. So, I need the practice. When we got up the first thing Janna and I did was go to the Desert Sun Gym to skateboard. It was locked up, but somehow Janna squeezed through and opened it for me. We had fun!

***

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 19, 1978

Today, or rather this morning, we got a call from Jennie-Lea Richert. She thought we were going to be up this morning, but we don't go up until tomorrow afternoon. Janna said that she got a brand new skateboard with a kick tail and that it really works well! That reminded me that I hadn't gone skateboarding in a while, so Max and I decided and went out for some fun up near Marquez Elementary School. I also discovered Ian's old Super 8 millimeter movie camera, too!

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 18, 1978

Today I have the exciting pleasure of telling you about my jet lag, which was absolutely horrific — we ate dinner at 4:00 P.M.! We will be going up to Idyllwild in 2 days, and we will stay with the Richert's. I will probably go skateboarding with Bob Bayer in the gym up at Desert Sun School. On our way back down, we will pick up the doggies who I haven't seen in 34 days now. Boy, I bet they've about given up on us, haven't they? We also saw "Pippin" tonight too!

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 17, 1978

Today was the last day of our one-month trip. At 2:30 P.M. we left for the Tampa airport, even though our flight didn't leave until 6:45 P.M. Tampa has a beautiful airport, and it's so new that there is hardly anyone in it! Kim and Leslie Ogilvie met us at the airport, we had a drink and got on our way. On the airplane, I met a nice girl named Karen McAllister, and we played a few games of "Go Fish". When we landed, it was only 65-degrees, which seems strange to the 85-degree weather I'm used to!

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 16, 1978

Today, I planned to spend a day with Alberta (Aunt Alberta) and her grandson, Clarence. Clarence is a year younger than me — to the day — , but is almost taller than I am. We started out with the same thing we do every year I see her — go to the shopping mall. After looking through the toystores and had some ice cream, we headed for the peacocks! (We go there every year, too) We then did some thing that I have not done in some while — went to a playground and played on the swings! We finished this day with dinner at Morrison's!

***

The peacocks of Genius Drive were an institution in Winter Park, Florida. The area was basically a grove of orange trees where a great number of peacocks had chosen to make their home. Alberta and I would head down there with a Wonder Bread bag filled with bread crusts and feed them to the birds. Genius Drive has long since been developed into a bunch of McMansions, but a cousin who lives nearby says you can still occasionally hear the call of the peacocks that haven't left the area yet. (Here's a little blog entry I found about the peacocks of Genius Drive.)

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 15, 1978

Today, I finally found Tracy next door. He was down by the lake waiting for his friend, Chris, to come pick him up so they could go water skiing. I asked if I could come along to watch. We were out for almost 3 hours, and when I got back, Craig was waiting for me. We played a little ping pong and a little pool, and really had a ball -- until Tracy came over. I've learned that 3 is a crowd and it's just not worth it. He (Tracy) finally left. We had a big dinner party tonight with all of Craig's family, my Mom and Dad, and Aunt Sherry and Uncle Don.

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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To view the next day click: August 16, 1978

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 14, 1978

Today, I spent an active day at the farm. After a late breakfast, Mom, Aunt Sherry and I decided to go canoeing. So we (laboriously) pulled the canoe down to the canal out to the lake, ducking our heads under the spider webs, and we finally got out on the private lake! That's right -- no one else is there anymore! When we got back, Aunt Sherry got out a Slip N' Slide. After we patched up the holes, it worked great! It started working better when it rained! On our way home, we picked up 2 of the puppies, "Speck" and "Checkers", who will be Uncle Don's dogs.

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 13, 1978

Today was one of the best days of my vacation! We went to Kim Ogilvie's house with 3 dogs in the car! It's true, we picked up another dog, "Checkers", last night! Well, let's get down to business. After lunch, we went down to the lake (about 30 yds. away) got some skis on, and got right up the first time water skiing! I went around the lake once and wiped out once. My second time, I was almost slaloming! We left around 4:00 P.M. for the G.O. (Gregg-Ogilvie) farm and arrived about 7:30 P.M. We'll be here until tomorrow.

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 12, 1978

Today Craig and I did about everything you can fit in one day. We started out with looking at the new puppy, "Speck", who was brought here last night. We then played a little Trac Ball. Craig's mother got the idea of going down to the lake, so, we spent about 4 hours in the lake. We came up for a little lunch, and went out and lit about 12 firecrackers, 7 of them in a packet of toilet paper! It blew it apart. Well, tomorrow I will learn how to Water Ski.

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 11, 1978

Today, Mom and Aunt Sherry spent most of the day planning out a party for Mom tonight. Mom says she gets this party every time she comes here. So, while she is at the party, I'll be on my way out to Craig Ogilvie's house. When I got there, I met his younger sister, Ann-Michelle, who is adorable. I also met their German Shorthair puppy-dog, named "Yeager". "Yeager" means "Hunter" in German. His full name is "Yeager Meister Von Foots". I think I'm going to have a lot of fun here.

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 10, 1978

Today, I went over to check on one of my old friends, Tracy. I met him 3 years ago, when I last came here to the Ogilvie's house. Unfortuneately, he was away in another part of Florida for a vacation. I have discovered my Aunt's organ (No, not her organs, her organ!). I play it all the time, but my favorite piece to play is Strangers In The Night. I can do it in 9 different versions. Aunt Sherry can't believe how well I play. She said that it took me 1 day and a half to learn what took her 2 years to learn!

***

The organ was one of those Kimball home organs that far too many people had in their home in the 1970s. The "versions" were merely different rhythm settings (i.e., rock, soft rock, samba, etc.). I especially loved playing songs with the "bossa nova" rhythm loop playing.

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 9, 1978

Today it was confirmed that "Foots" was either stolen or got out and then picked up in the streets. So, Aunt Sherry put an ad in the paper. If you found him you would get about a fifty-dollar reward. I shot alot of pool today and also played some ping-pong with Dad, too. But let me tell you about some of my future plans. On the eleventh, I will be going to my cousin's place. (Incidentally, my cousin's name is Craig) On the 13th, I will learn how to Water Ski at my other cousin Kim's house (hooray!).

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 8, 1978

★ Highlight Day

Today, we flew to Florida and met Aunt Sherry at the airport. On the way home she said she had a surprise. When we got there, I found out the surprise was my favorite maid, Alberta! We had a meatloaf sandwich for lunch and then I went out to their gameroom and shot some pool (the first pool I've played in 3 years) They have a new dog named "Foots", and I went out to see him, but he wasn't there. Aunt Sherry thought that Uncle Don had taken him to the vet. But when Uncle Don got home, no "foots"! We figure someone let him out. For dinner, we went to Morrison's. I love their custard pie so I had 2 for dessert.

***

So much to explain in this entry.

First of all, that was two slices of custard pie at Morrison's Cafeteria — not two entire pies.

Secondly, I do make at least one more reference to Foots' disappearance, but it was confirmed after our departure that he had been stolen: a neighbor spotted a pickup truck pull up into their driveway next door, take Foots from his kennel, load him in the back and take him away. (The neighbor mistakenly thought that the thieves had done this with Uncle Don's approval.)

And lastly ... *sigh* ... Alberta. I've always struggled with this, but I can't deny the fact that my mother's father was wealthy enough to have full-time maids — sometimes two at a time. Considering the amount of time I spent at my grandfather's house as a child, it was somewhat inevitable that I became quite close to them, especially Alberta Tooley. She was more than a maid; she was practically my nanny for a number of years, and for all my subsequent visits to Florida. (She also came and visited us in California a number of times as well.) As strange as it is to talk about my family's maid, I have to say that Alberta was one of my closest friends in my childhood.

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 7, 1978

Today was our 17th, biggest and last day of touring. After breakfast, the troup headed for Metro-Rail, the subway of Washington. We got our tickets and jumped on the train for the Smithsonian. When we got there, we split up, Dad and me going to the F.B.I., and mom heading for the Smithsonian East Gallery. After the F.B.I. tour (my last and favorite tour), Dad and I went to see the Archives where the constitution is. We had lunch at the Smithsonian cafeteria, and then Mom and I went to the Dresden exhibit in the last gallery. On the way home we stopped at the museum of Natural History for a few minutes.

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 6, 1978

Today was better than August 4 because today I met Sally & Sarah Hodgkins. And today we did go to the Air and Space Museum. We didn't even touch the first floor — well, what I mean is compared to the whole museum, I hardly saw a thing! I did get to fly something called the Link Trainer, which is a training airplane. Tonight we went to see some of mom's and dad's old friends, named the Clements. They have some very cute daughters and a couple of adorable puppy dogs. We went out to the Jolly Ox for dinner.

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 5, 1978

Today we weren't planning to do very much, but ended up doing alot more than expected. We started out by taking the tour of the Kennedy Center of Performing Arts. Boy! That is one beautiful place! It has 3 different stages — the Eisenhower theatre, the Concert Hall and the Opera House. They said that if you laid down the Washington Monument on its side in the hallway, there would still be eighty feet left. We then went to the Ford's Theatre and the house across the street where Lincoln died. Tonight we saw a play at the Eisenhower theatre entitled "The Players".

***

"The Players" was a play about — I'm not making this up — Australian Rules Football. You can imagine why it never went anywhere. I've tried to find more information on it, but I can't. It starred Fred Gwynne, and it was difficult to ever get into the play, as I spent the whole time thinking I was staring at Herman Munster.

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 4, 1978

Today, we were supposed to meet My cousin, Sally, and her daughter, Sarah (who is 14). Unfortunately, Sarah couldn't show up because she had to practice with her swim team for a swim meet tomorrow. And we were supposed to go to the Air & Space museum, but we ended up going to Mount Vernon and the National Zoo. We went up to and walked around George Washington's Plantation. At the Zoo, I saw what I've been wanting to see for many years: Pandas! They were adorable! The male, Hsing-Hsing was my favorite because he would do other things then eat — unlike the female, Ling-Ling.

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 3, 1978

Today was another big day. But let me finish about last night. After dinner we decided to go to the Washington Monument. We got there at 9:00 P.M. and didn't get into it until 10:30 P.M. Today let me explain everything briefly. First was the Bureau of Engraving & Printing, where all the green stuff (money) is printed. Then, mom and I went to the Lincoln Memorial. After that we met Dad at the Capitol and went to the House of Rep. Then a short walk over to the senate for a while. Then a quick lunch and a short subway (the Capitol's) ride. Tonight we had dinner with some of Mom & Dad's ol' friends, the Baers.

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 2, 1978

Today I found I was right about "alot of things to do". We started out with the tour of the interiors of 3 main buildings in Washington D.C.: The White House, the Capitol and the Smithsonian Museum of History and Technology. The White House was neat, but you didn't get to see Mr. Carter or Amy or Rosallyn. The Capitol was "large", and that's about all I can say about it. When we went to the Museum of History and Technology, where we first went to eat. We spent some time there, came home, went to sleep, got up (does any of this sound familiar?), and went to The Greenery for dinner. (Continued tomorrow)

***

The Museum of History and Technology was renamed The National Museum of American History in 1980.

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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Nothing Much Else Happened: August 1, 1978

★ Highlight Day

Today we flew to Washington on the last stage of our sight-seeing trip. This is not the end of the trip, though. We go on to Florida to see my Aunt & Uncle and cousins; but not to sight-see. When we got to Washington we went to an excellent place to eat lunch called La Souperb. Mom said it was a "find". We then went back to our hotel, "The Gralyn", and did our usual thing: Slept! We then went out to a wonderful restaurant called Flagship. We've been talking about all the things we are going to do, and I'm afraid there'll be alot!

***

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 12.

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To view the next day click: August 2, 1978

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