BFF and the 70s

My BFF was my BFF before they were called BFFs!!   We met when we were 12, just starting junior high school, overwhelmed being in a new school with kids from other schools.  We were a strange mix. It was 1970, which was a strange time in history.

Chevy introduces the Vega, and Ford introduces the Pinto.  Palestinian terrorists hijack four airplanes, destroy one after evacuating occupants.  And we were in the midst of the Viet Nam war.  But politics didn't touch us as kids at our age.  

My BFF phoned me today, and we spent three hours reminiscing the things we did, like riding our bikes from home to Westgate shopping mall, 6 miles away. We would get a cold soda and wrap it with a paper towel and foil to keep it cold, and slip it onto our bike racks. We stopped halfway at a school to enjoy our drink.

Then there was Jack in the Box on one corner, and The Bottle Shoppe where we could buy cigs.  Taco Bell, shopping at Lawrence Square, or Mervyn's. Later it was Vallco Mall, where we spent many long Saturdays!  We had places to go, and the freedom as well.

Growing up in the 70s was .... a wonderful experience.  Slurpees at 7-11.  Meeting friends at the local public pool and swimming all afternoon.   We stayed out after dinner until the street lights came on.  We drank from garden hoses.  Hide and seek in the dark, group "dates" to the movies: American Graffiti, Cromwell, Gimme Shelter! 

We lived during a decade of so many things going on around us, and we enjoyed the freedoms in our childhood!  When we look back, it seemed like the very best of times! 

We had rock, funk, soul and the rise of disco had just begun.  We had an oil crisis in 1979, with gas shortages and long lines waiting to fill up. And then there was Watergate.

There were drive in movies, including Grease, Jaws, Smokey and the Bandit, and The Godfather.  And in 1977, Star Wars. 

It was THE decade to grow up in, and spending time with my BFF reminiscing makes me feel young all over again!