These days whenever someone mentions fast cars in movies virtually everyone instantly thinks of Fast and Furious. If you’re my age you may instead remember the car chase to end all car chases in Bullet with Steve McQueen. For true aficionados this was indeed the quintessential pioneer of that genre. Set in San Francisco the climactic scene lasts a full ten minutes while Steve McQueen drives a muscle car through the steep and winding streets. It was innovative for the times back in the nineteen sixties and it still holds its appeal even with the somewhat dated music and the iconic dress of that era. I remember seeing it in one of the downtown theaters when Mike and I were still dating. If memory serves me we saw it with one of his buddies from St. Thomas High School. On the big screen it was almost as good as IMAX. Continue reading “Fast Cars and Good Times”
Category: Nostalgia
A Woman of 1960
When I was searching for a teaching position at the beginning of my career I had a general interview with a man who was old enough to be my father. He mentioned that he had worked for the school district for his entire career and that he had seen a number of changes over the years. He knew a great deal about me before I even showed up to his office because I had to include a photograph of myself with the application and I had checked a number of demographic boxes including one delineating my religion.
The personnel officer explained that he had decided to interview me in spite of my religion because “the people of the area had eschewed their former prejudice against Catholics.” He went on to provide me with a bit of history including stories about citizens who at one time had firebombed the local Catholic Church in an attempt to drive the parishioners out of the region. He said that during the shank of the baby boom they had to change their thinking a bit because there was an extreme shortage of teachers and so they began to reconsider their ban on hiring Catholics. To his delight he learned that hiring ladies who had formerly been nuns was a boon for the schools because they were well trained and most willing to follow directives. Eventually the district policies became more liberal and even encouraged Catholics to apply for jobs. Continue reading “A Woman of 1960”
When I Grow Up to Be
I was finally feeling frisky again this past Saturday. My high energy level has definitely returned. In between undergoing major surgery last year and having to wear an air cast for many weeks I had grown heavy and lethargic and perhaps a bit depressed. I’ve been walking everyday of late and going farther and faster with each iteration. I’ll never run again because I have arthritis in both of my knees which flares up time and again but I can do some fairly brisk stepping about. Continue reading “When I Grow Up to Be”
All It Takes Is A Little Love 