Whistle For The Block Blazers

An old friend has recently been unearthed - due more to the modern age of computers than to any shovels - and his unearthing has rekindled fond memories of his rather short but essential role in my carefree youth. However, it was when I received this old picture from him (above) that I'd never seen before - showing the stomping grounds of my childhood, the football being tossed but not yet caught, the little kid on the bike that is today the father of two little kids himself - that my reminiscing really gathered steam.

So I began investigating some of my own pictures of the old neighborhood (and the old gang) which quickly became one of those visual strolls down memory lane that people of advanced age seem to enjoy so much.

What came back clear to me, and I may have taken it for granted at the time, was that, with so many kids my age living on the same street, there was always stuff going on and stuff to do. Always someone outside giving a sharp whistle and holding a football, a hockey stick or a better plan for the day than I'd planned for myself.

If I'm remembered by my friends for anything, it's that I was the one who bothered to capture the old days on film for posterity. In both home movies and photographs. (So maybe I didn't really take those days for granted after all.) I must have known they'd become important to me in the long run. The only picture that really eluded me, and I would gladly pay a steep price to have it neatly framed on my wall today, was a single group/team shot of the seven of us kids together, in our prime, on our home turf, summer holidays, circa mid 60s.














What I settle for at this late date, is having a wide variety of moments captured in photos, taken in different seasons, playing different sports, but always with the comfort of home evident in the background. It was my recent communication with this former part time participant of that era (and the sudden glimpse back at my street in its heyday that he'd provided) that has initiated this wistful 'backward glance' blog report. We have him to blame for this sappy, nostalgic pause in our busy day.

Danny and I are probably overdue for another update in our series of street corner photos like the two below. Only Dan's mother remains from the original 7 sets of parents for the 7 kids on the block; she's the last member of an exclusive club. The last of an epoch. All the others have either moved away or passed on or are in hiding. As I peer closer at this first of two pictures of me & Dan, I'm baffled as to what Dan might be holding. Is he planning to build a fence? Is it a very elaborate 'Man From UNCLE' pistol with scope and silencer that needs to be assembled?



If you spend enough time in one place, you tend to think you'll be there forever. Of the four 'other' places I've moved to over the past 25 years, none of them have been situated more than a mile away from this original area. Must be something in the air. Even my sister, long since removed from the neighborhood, makes sure to drive by the homestead on a regular basis. Just to see that it still exists I suppose. Just to see the subtle (sometimes drastic) changes that progress demands on a never ending basis.



As for me, whenever I return to the street for another 'look see', I always expect to hear the whistle. The call from one of the 7 former kid inhabitants looking for the others. Trying to coax a few of us out for a late night frisbee match or some foot-hockey in the snow under the street lamps.

But it's a ghost town nowadays with no kids in sight. Something or somebody has sucked all the life out of the street and left it an empty shell of half remembered TV show theme songs and unused PNE tickets blowing in the wind. Sigh. You may find these mental images to be rather sad and depressing ones for what is otherwise - on a normal day - an upbeat, family friendly, wholesome blog. You might decide at this point that a full blog refund should be in order. But hey - we must not forget the person who is ultimately responsible for this surprising change in tone. That's right. And here's his picture.


It's none other than the star of: "I Love To Walk" and "Old Smokey". Hanklin Snowden. That's who.