Recreation
What did we do before computer games?
Spring and summers, we assemble carts built of two-by-fours. Drill holes into the centerboard and axel a cross-bar. Scavenge roller skates for wheels that we attach to the undersides. Strap on rope for steering and a plywood seat for the driver. We drag our racers to the top of Cherry Street and freefall the hill, braking with tennis shoes.
Sometimes, we take a tennis ball. Binko stands near the steps of his house while one of us fields the street behind. He ricochets the ball against the stairs. Struck with force, it carries over your head…a homerun. Gets past you on the asphalt, a single. Field it cleanly for an out. Three and you’re “up.”
Phil and Jimbo, the Giron brothers, hang a rope from the Maple in front of their house. We climb a lower limb ten feet above the sidewalk. Pretend Tarzans, we swing over the concrete river to the hillside. They charge three laurel leaves for each turn.
Santiago Beltran, the original “Green Hornet”, rumbles the neighborhood in his green Harley. Wears a leather helmet and jacket. He lets kids ride the saddle behind him. Summer evenings, he invites the neighborhood to movies in the family backyard. Sets his projector and screen on the patio. Provides folding chairs for the adults. Feet hanging the deck, we watch cartoons and newsreels into the sweet night.
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