Fun, Fun, Fun “Back in the Day”

Growing up in Arlington, VA in the 1950’s and 60’s, this Baby Boomer had a whole lot of fun “back in the day” as there was always something to do, somewhere to go, a sight to see, or an event to attend!

Many of us participated in organized sports while growing up whether it was football, basketball, baseball, or swimming (soccer was not such a big thing then), as well as, representing your junior high school or high school in a number of other sports and activities such as clubs.

I will say being involved in sports was a major factor in attaining any future life or career successes. They required a total year-round commitment where you learned what being a member of team was all about in a disciplined environment where you practiced self-discipline doing what you were supposed to do when you were supposed to do it even when you didn’t really want too.

Unfortunately, I also chose to partake in a couple of other ventures where the outcomes did not bode very well for me. But I will admit, the lessons learned in failure have proven to be as beneficial as those learned when success was achieved.

I recall being briefly involved in scouting as a Tenderfoot after my folks must have spent a small fortune on uniforms and equipment. I can still remember the look my father gave me when I told him after our first troop weekend camping adventure that being a Boy Scout wasn’t “in the cards” for me after I was assigned latrine duty and cleaning all the pots, pans, plates, and utensils after meals just because I was a rookie and new to the troop. My skin also turned out to be very tasty to what I know had to be thousands of chigger and mosquito bites while attempting to sleep on the hard ground in a small tent with temperatures in the 80’s.

I also had a stint in 4-H (Head, Heart, Hands, and Health) remembering our meeting on a weekly basis in Clarendon with some retirees who thought they were helping us become entrepreneurs. I learned during our business venture where we planned to create a product, created the product, and sold the product that only a few of us did all the work while the rest of the folks involved attempted to take all the credit–a lesson which is still holds so true today. Needless to say, our project was a complete failure and we lost money nullifying any future business aspirations which simply went “up in smoke”.

A bunch of kids, “back in the day”, went to summer camp–some for just a week and some for what seemed like all summer. The kids thought their parents were being very generous letting them go to camp while I thought the parents were just getting rid of their kids not wanting to deal with them all summer.

My summer camp was at Wilson Elementary School, thanks to the Arlington County Recreation Department, where they had counselors assigned to many of the elementary schools and each day a number of games and activities were planned for you to enjoy. I recall having a lot of fun and creating many fond memories from my summers at Wilson!

I did attend one, I believe, weeklong camp between 5th and 6th grades and that was Safety Patrol Camp. As I recall, it was very hot and sticky and the cabins were not air-conditioned which made for a horrible experience (SEE: Boy Scout failure). Boy, was I glad to get back home as being comfortable was very important to me. I’m so very thankful my parents never sent me to camp every summer.

As you may recall from an earlier post, living next to our Nation’s Capital, my mother took me sightseeing every Wednesday for two summers getting to see all the sights. Without a doubt, my favorite was Arlington National Cemetary (ANC), where we could trek freely around the grounds and did so often, always being in awe of the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

We did go on vacation every year usually having a great time. Dad would normally take three weeks during the summer–one week at a time. My mom was from Marion, NC and the youngest of nine siblings as her whole family would meet there for an annual family reunion taking the first of the vacation weeks. The second week we’d head to a historic area and take in what the area had to offer. Some examples of where we went were New Orleans, Savannah, Atlanta, NYC and the 1964 World’s Fair, Philadelphia, and Boston. Our third week of vacation was spent at a beach either Myrtle Beach, Ocean City, Hilton Head, or Sea Island.

Some of what you may think of as one time bucket list fun places that I’ve been fortunate to have visited or events attended include a month enjoying the state of California top to bottom, Lake Tahoe, Las Vegas, Reno, Mardi Gras, the Kentucky Derby, the Indianapolis 500, a NCAA National Basketball Championship at Cole Field House, the 1966 World Series in Baltimore, The Masters, The U.S. and Senior U.S. Open at Congressional, and the 1973 Super Bowl between the Washington Redskins and Miami Dolphins.

The following is merely a listing, by category, of places went and things done where fun, fun, fun was enjoyed “back in the day”!!

Amusement Parks

Marshall Hall via the Wilson Line; Glen Echo; Kings Dominion; and Busch Gardens

Parks

Bluemont, Lubber Run, Barcroft, Taylor, Fort Marcy, and Bon Air all in Arlington; Hains Point along the Potomac River in Washington; and all along the GW Memorial Parkway also along the Potomac River

Church Dances

St. Agnes Catholic Church; St. George’s Episcopal Church; St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church; and St. Mary’s Episcopal Church normally on Friday evenings during the schoolyear

Dance Clubs

Winston’s, The Crazy Horse, the 9:30 Club, and the Black Greco in Washington; the Black Crystal in Crystal City–Arlington

Movie Houses

Arlington, Wilson, Buckingham, Glebe (Dominion) in Arlington; State in Falls Church; and RKO Keith’s on 15th Street in Washington for all the James Bond movie premieres with the Planter’s Peanut Store next door for a bag of hot nuts and Mr. Peanut standing out front

Theatres

The National, Kennedy Center, DAR Constitution Hall, and Sylvan in Washington

Sporting Events

W-L Generals; Golden Gloves military boxing at Fort Meyer; Washington Senators; Washington Redskins; Baltimore Orioles; Unlimited–Hydroplane racing at Hain’s Point on the Potomac; and PGA Golf

Bowling

Duckpin at Colonial Village and Pla-Mor; tenpin at Skor-Mor

Concert Venues

Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia; Carter Barron Amphitheatre, Cellar Door, and The Bayou in Washington; Wolf Trap in Vienna; and the Birchmere in Arlington

Ice Rink

Crystal Underground in Arlington

Miscellaneous Events

Pony rides on Lee Highway near Lyon Village and Bailey’s Crossroads; horseback riding at Rock Creek Park; Putt Putt; Iwo Jima Motel Swim Club (summers); Tuesday concerts at the Iwo Jima Memorial; National Symphony at the Watergate; annual Ice Capades and Harlem Globetrotters at Uline Arena; the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus at DC Armory; seeing all the animals at the National Zoo; visiting the grounds of the White House at Christmas to see the National Christmas Tree and all the State Christmas Trees; enjoying all the decorated windows at the downtown department stores during the Christmas holiday season

Fun Food Stops

Farrell’s Ice Cream Store at Tysons Corner; Gifford’s Ice Cream on Lee Highway; black walnut ice cream at High’s; Jamoca Almond Fudge or Pralines ‘n Cream at Baskin-Robbins; Shakey’s Pizza in Annandale; pick’n crabs at Ernie’s near Fairlington or get’m to go at the Quarterdeck next to Fort Meyer; the Sirloiner with Onion Rings at Tops Drive Inn; Royal Burger at Hot Shoppes Jr.; The Broiler; the Vienna Inn and “dem” Chili Dogs; Joe Theisman’s at Bailey’s Crossroads and their Lobster Bisque; Clyde’s in Georgetown; the Tombs near Georgetown; Mario’s and their Steak and Cheese or Cold Cut Sub with a center slice of pie care of Lefty and Joe; Sloppy Joes at the Kanteen; Hot Shoppes on Kirkwood Road enjoying a Mighty Mo or Steak and Cheese with fries and an Orange Freeze that would give you a “brain freeze” (the girls liked the Teen Twist); and Little Tavern

Day Trips

Popes Creek, MD for crabs at Robertson’s or Captain Billy’s; Williamsburg and Merchant’s Square; the Battletown Inn in Berryville; the Laurel Brigade Inn in Leesburg; the Wayside Inn in Middletown; Luray and Shenandoah Caverns; and Fall colors along Skyline Drive

Certainly, no way a totally inclusive listing, but certainly a good representation of fun activities “back in the day”!!

Please feel free to respond with you list of things you did for fun, fun, fun!!