Post #542668 by TikiG on Thu, Jul 15, 2010 12:32 PM

Huntington Beach, CA 4th of Julys - the day started with a parade in the morning and then an afternoon free at the beach with family and friends, BarBQ and then fireworks on the sand when the sun went down. I vividly remember packed crowds of people on the sand (north of and south of the fishing pier) throwing lit fireworks, firecrackers, rockets, roman candles, Piccolo Petes, sparklers etc over the pier and onto each other...usually ending in several mini-riots as the cops would attempt to disperse the scene...literally people running wild in the streets having a good ole time. Seems like a dream now 'cause HB cops are, well you know, HB cops...

Long Beach, CA - summer arrived when my dad would take me and a couple buddies to the Pike for a day of amusement park fun. I rarely wanted to go to Disneyland - if I had my way I always chose the Pike. Dirt and grime and street reality w/cops on foot patrol. Pot smoke in the dark-ride buildings.

Summer was also the Fun Zone at Balboa in Newport Beach - bumper cars and Ferris wheel and a ride across to Lido Isle on the auto ferry...watching Coppertone bikinis w/long blond hair. My first ever "job" was inflating balloons and running the dart booth (pre-teen) for a few weeks circa '74.

Fish and finger-pie in the schoolyard laying in clover fields.

Riding bikes all over town; hell, all over ORANGE COUNTY. The Santa Ana river bottom was the spine to destinations north or south, usually south.

Surfing early in the mornings before "tourists" & "in-landers" take over.

Music? For whatever reason "The Ballroom Blitz" by the Sweet rises to the top of memory.
Those early days of the 70s were a bit thin on testosterone fueled pop-music.

Now, almost half a century later, summer means working inside a concrete office.