Milk Duds, sodas...and such

 On the Way Out series, Vol. 2, Part 6

Milk Duds, sodas...and such

Time to remember the Road Runner again...

Long before mortgages, credit cards, a family to raise…long before the word “stress” was a seldom used word, back in the day when the words of the day were “cool” and “groovy” and the most important thing was getting ready for a Friday night at the drive-in theater.

Not too long after the sun disappeared over the top edges of the Tucson Mountains, cars would begin to lineup at the Cactus Drive-In, the young people inside those autos squirming, anticipating…ready to witness their favorite movie stars perform on the wide screen.

Back in the 1960s, movie-watching under the stars was the thing to do, followed hours later with a “cruising” of Johnnies Drive-in, maybe a burger and fries and a coca-cola, and then a squealing of the wheels and a quick getaway to get your date home to her parents before the clock reached midnight.

I passed by the area of 22nd St and Alvernon the other day, thinking of that moment in time, that simple time when the most important thing in life were those six hours on a Friday night, the car radio blaring away with tunes from Dion and the Belmonts, as I motored, with my date sitting next to me, east on 22nd St., heading for the Cactus already thinking of intermission and that quick run to the snack bar for the salty, buttery popcorn and milk duds.

The Cactus turned into the DeAnza in 1977 and closed down in 2009, replaced by a handful of businesses — including another Walgreen’s — covering up the area that was once so important to Tucson teenagers and the young adults who were already married and had a head start on the “family thing”…which meant it was a “must to get there early” for the Yabba-Dabba Do cartoon or the more hilarious antics of the Road Runner…aka the Wile E Coyote.

The Road Runner was a quick dude…FAST! Kinda like the last 75 years have been!

It didn't seem that long ago when I was a bubbly teenager and I was eyeing the expiration date on my driver's license. In the right hand corner it read: good until my 65th birthday. I said out loud, "Wow, that is a lifetime away!" I think back now and try to recall the stretch of road, which led me from a know-it-all teenager to a know-nothing adult.

All those twists and turns along the way. It certainly wasn't a yellow brick road and I can't remember spending a lot of time in Kansas. Dorothy certainly had her adventures. As for me, well...somehow I've come out on the other end and I'm still standing.

I went on a five-mile walk this morning. There's a pond a short distance from my house and beyond the pond a wooded area with a path that weaves by dozens of mesquite and eucalyptus trees. The ducks were swirling in the pond, the sun was creeping... slowly upward and over the highest peak of the mountain range to the east. Hawks were echoing above me.

As I continued my little journey, I thought: Would I have noticed such beauty years ago? Would I have taken a deep breath and lived...really lived? Would I have enjoyed such a journey, such a moment in time -- back when I was that bubbly teenager? Probably not. 

If I only knew at the time that my real journey was further down the road.

My goodness! Such a big world out there! -- Wile E Coyote