BOOMER by Tim Engel (smallest ebook reader txt) 📕

or in the desert where we could shoot. Again, the weapon was kept pointed down range or at the ground or in the air. Never at anyone.
We started small. .22 caliber rifle. That was my first gun. I still own it. I would become a pretty good shot with that rife. Our favorite place to go shoot in our youth was Lake Matthews. With urban sprawl, this area is all built up now. But in those days it was ‘out in the country.’ And you could go out there and find abandoned washing machines and refrigerators that you could use for target practice!

FAVORITE BABYSITTER
TV. Television. There were 3 main TV shows in the 50s and 60s that idolized American families. Leave it to Beaver, Father Knows Best, and Ozzie and Harriett. And I loved em all. Ruth Atlas was one of our most favorite babysitters. I remember her chasing us around the bed trying to get us to go to bed. Or something like that…Her brother Mack was Tom’s age and they were good friends. But Ruth was older and would sometimes babsit us. We were young boys. Brothers. We would gang up on people. Especially female babysitters. And we did. She survived. I hope she was well paid.
Perhaps our favorite babysitter was Television…I remember our little black and white Dumont. I must have been all of 4 or 5 years old. But I remember sitting on the floor on our green carpet watching the Dumont. Man, this was living! Ricochet Rabbit, ShaZam, Hercules, Sea Hunt, Engineer Bill, Captain Kangaroo, Diver Dan, Hobo Kelly, Romper Room – Do be a do-bee!, Bozo, Sheriff John, Tom Hatten and Popeye, HR Puf n Stuff, Soupy Sales, Mr Wizard, Lidsville, Our Gang, Laurel and Hardy, the 3 stooges, Henry Aldrich, and Chucko to name a few.
Tom’s good friend Dave Rigoli went on the Chucko show. Many of the shows of the day would have audiences of kids. Well, at one point I believe Chucko asked Dave if he wanted to spin his hat which would “start the cartoons.” Dave wasn’t having any of that. His reply to Chucko was “ahhh Cram-it, Clownie!!!”
Mr Wizard was so cool because it was TV and science. Mr Wizard would wow us with science. He made it fun. I think America needs Mr Wizard now because we seem to be failing at Science, technology, Engineering, and Math. So let’s get some kind of Mr Wizard out there to get kids interested in Science again! He would take some household materials and invite a host kid to combine the ingredients and see if they wouldn’t blow up the studio. Well, that might be a slight exaggeration. But check out the pic above.
And one of my favorites was Leave it to Beaver. The quintessential American family. But of course, every episode found the Beav in some kind of fracas, problem, dilemma. Which was usually mopped up by the end of the show. “Hey, Wally, whatcha doin’?” Wally and Beav were like me and Tom. Wally was older and had his buddies and wanted to do his thing with them. Sometimes the Beav got lucky and could hang out with his brother and the older boys. The Beav was in 7t Heaven. That’s kinda how I feel. Or felt! Smile.
Ozzie and Harriet was another one. I loved this show, too. “The Irrepressible Ricky as Ricky Nelson!” I was Ricky and Tom was David. This was a long running series – from 52 to 66! Very successful. The Nelson family not only were successful actors, but very talented musicians. In fact, Ricky lost his life flying from concert to concert when the plane he was flying on crash landed.
Ricochet rabbit
Engineer bill
Hercules
Captain kangaroo
Sea hunt
Twilight zone

MUSIC
Fleetwood Mac would become one of my favorite groups as I went through my teens. Tom liked Elton John, Jimi Hendrix, the Doors, Joe Cocker. Elvis, The Who, Led Zeppelin. The Guess Who. T Rex.
Did Music change people or did people change music? As we got a bit older we definitely had interest in Rock and Roll. Mom and Dad had bought the Meet the Beatles album and we never looked back. The Beatles were terrific. There are people today who talk about John and some of his politics and choice for a wife and all. I tend to agree with some of those conclusions. His whole sit in bed – the sleep in as opposed to a sit in or whatever he and Yoko called the thing. And how did John choose Yoko? Was he sober? But you know they say there’s someone for everyone. Who would have guessed that John Lennon, about as famous as you could be, would choose Yoko Ono? And to this day Yoko is ‘making music’. I have yet to hear anything by her that I would say was good.
But the Beatles were terrific. When interviewed by Tom Brokaw about what song he remembers and what epitomizes his life. Bill Clinton replied “In my Life”. “In My Life I loved you more…” Was he singing it to Hillary? To Chelsea? To his supporters?
From Meet the Beatles to many of the other albums both by the Beatles as well as the independent artists. I enjoyed much of their music. George Harrison went through his Eastern religion period. His All Things Must Pass album was great. Paul McCartney’s Ram On. Paul is still very active writing and performing. I like most of his music. When he was with Wings he was still very popular. The Beatles have just become available on iTunes. I don’t use iTunes, but if I did, I would download Beatles music. I don’t agree with all of their politics. In fact, like many Hollywoodites like Susan Sarandon and other rich, guilty liberals, I see that Paul supports Democratic causes. So be it. I still like his music.
Tom and I always loved Elton John’s music. He was very popular in the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s. More 70’s. I remember Tom bought one of his early albums. Elton John. Your Song was very popular. At this time we didn’t know he was gay. Again, I don’t like him for his sexuality, but for his music. This album also had Take me to the Pilot. Another very good song. I probably listened to this album 50 times.
Tom sort of introduced me to Joe Cocker. I had heard a couple of his songs. He sang at Woodstock. But I remember Tom bringing home one of his early albums. I believe Joe Cocker! Was one of his first. I think this was the one Tom purchased. “She Came in Through the Bathroom Window.” Wow – an amazing song. “Protected by a silver spoon…” Hmmm. I always wondered exactly what this meant. Was their some deep symbolism there or was the window lock actually secured with an eating utensil?
I went to a Sly and the Family Stone concert. He appeared much as he does in the photo above – but the hair was even bigger and had a big, thick red sash or ribbon tied around it. I bought this album – Fresh. “If you want me to stay, I’ll be around today, to be available for you to see.” Great album.
I started following Fleetwood Mac in 1970 and became a big fan. They were a British Rock group formed in 1967. I was 13. Bare Trees was one of my first albums. I had interest in some bands that I don’t think Tom cared a lot for. Fleetwood Mac was one of them, I think. They were more softer rock – blues rock. Mick Fleetwood, Christie McVie. The band saw changes as players came and went. Some taken down by health – mental and physical. In their 1971 album they sang about the “Woman of 1000 Years.” Wow – just the title was something special. The Bare Trees album had “Sentimental Lady” and “Spare me a Little of Your Love.” All very good music. It’s been over 30 years but I still enjoy their music greatly. Christie McVie and others have gone solo and done very well. We had a chance to see FM on a recent tour at the Irvine Amphitheater.
Elvis. The King. In my teenage years I just thought that Elvis was for “older folks.” Grin. I am now older. Actually I started liking Elvis when I started listening to his music. His distinct voice. His style; his charisma. He died in 1977. I remember where I was when I found out he had passed. I was with my brother-in-law Jim Perroti. He needed help with his car because his battery had died. And the story came in over the radio. From that day on I took more of an interest in Elvis and as the years have passed I enjoy his music more and more. I was actually upset when his ex-wife and daughter sold some of the rights to his Estate. I thought they were traitors. But I’m sure it was more of a business decision. Elvis movies were good, too! Oh, sure – he was bored with them after a couple years shooting the same bubbly, light stuff. But America loved it. Still do. Who doesn’t like Clam Bake?
Leonard Cohen. I remember when I first brought home a Leonard Cohen album. Suzanne. That’s the name of the hit song. I guess Leonard is unique. I’m not sure what his style is, though recently he’s seen a resurgence in popularity. When he’s singing he sounds like more of a poet than a singer. As a matter of fact, he is also a poet. Touching, moving, emotional. That’s how the music moved me. He was different, unique. I remember Tom asking me where I had ever heard of this guy. Funny. I had heard of him from a friend at work, Racquel.
Joni Mitchell was also one of my favorites. “Woke up, it was a Chelsea Morning.” “Big Yellow Taxi”, “A Case of You.” “Court and Spark.” I fell for Joni. Not so much her beauty – I fell for her because of her music. I wrote a love letter and sent it to one of the Production Companies that produced her records. I think it ran along the lines of offering her a walk in the Santa Cruz morning sunlight…love with a teenage boy. I’m sure she was tempted to call me! Ha! I think around this