Teenagers

I became a teenager in 1957. Probably the biggest thing to happen in 1957 that i can remember was the 1957 chevy bel-air made it's debut, what a beautiful car. I was a teenager and i was already a car nut. My brother could put a new mirror on the car and i would think it was the coolest thing in the world. I was hooked o.k. The scene back then out in front of our house at the colonia was, there would be Dad, Mundo, Jr, Jack, Michael, myself and maybe Mr Hasty or Mr Whaley. ( Mr Hasty and Mr Whaley didn't know a thing about cars but they didn't mind putting in their two bits), we would be out there tinkering with the car trying to get it going for hours. Jessie Troughton our neighbor would be looking out her kitchen window throwing her lil remarks too. And don't forget the cat lady Mrs Spinks. Our little Grandma would come walking down the street over to our house with her trademark one hand above her eyes and the other swinging in front of her. Some of us have inherited this from her and i'm one of them, i inherited the swinging arm. Kids would be running all over the neighborhood with the dogs and whatever other animal we might have, once we had a pet sheep and once we had a pet deer, This was the 50s and a lot of things didn't matter back then like they do now. Our government is so prevalent in our lives now that you can't hardly do anything without them getting involved, and it's getting worse all the time. life was so simple back then.
Back then the style of hair was, most girls had the pony tail and the guys had the flat top or crew cut or the pompadour and some times your dad just got you and cut it all off, kinda like the way kids wear it now a days. A kid wouldn't dare wear his hair long like they do now. If they did he would probably get his butt kicked.
Once i was introduced to music i was hooked. I always tried to keep up with the latest songs that came out. so i had a stack of 45s ( records ) that was second to none. My brother Jack and my Cousin Michael had a pretty good collection too. Little Richard,Fats Domino, Chuck Berry,The Drifters, Hank Ballard and the Midniters,The Cadillacs, The Sherilles,The Dubs. Songs like Lucille,There goes my baby, Annie had a baby, Johnnie be good, Could this be magic, Speedo, Blueberry Hill, Man those were some cool jams. Going to parties or dances was cool too, People were always trying to dance like the people on American Bandstand.The twist, the stroll, the mashed potatoes, the jerk, the hitch hike,the pony. I enjoyed the parties and stuff, but i was a boy trying to be a man, and not doing a very good job of it.
School was o.k. i guess but it just wasn't for me. Although i didn't like school, my grades were not terrible. I did o.k. up to my freshman year, then things went to hell in a hand basket. In them days when you entered the classroom you had to go to your desk and sit down, the teacher was in control and his/her word was law. You couldn't just go in there and screw up or they would deal with you. Back then when a guy screwed up it was something like throwing spit balls or talking during class, passing notes. sometimes it would involve a fight, but that was about as violent as it would get. The majority of students were white and then Mexican, Indians a few Asians and not too many black people. I hung out with mainly Mexican people but i also hung out with other races too. I never had a problem getting along with people.
My cousin and i would go to school and we would walk in one door and out the other and usually head over to the river and do kinda like Huckleberry Fin. We eventually got caught by the truant officer, a Mrs Doty. she'd been on to us for awhile, and she finally got us. I got a butt chewing for that one by Mom and Dad and my sisters. My brothers thought it was funny, They must have done the same thing, but i don't remember them getting caught. Getting caught skipping school was a big deal back then. I'm sure glad they didn't have that law like they have now where the parent can go to jail if the kid doesn't go to school. Mom and Dad would probably be sporting tatoos. School was just too boring for me. I still have a problem sitting and listening to someone talk about things that don't interest me, i guess everybody does, but for me there was an alternative. And that was to quit school and go to work in the fields, so i quit and went to work. My first job was working out in the prune orchards ( of course ) I was pruning trees in the winter time, it was freezing out there in the morning. It was a terrible job, but at least i was making money and helping out Mom and Pop. The important thing to note here is that i had a choice to stay in school or get out and i decided to get out. Now i always think about what i could have done if i would have stayed in school. I learned later on that if you find something that your good at, you can usually use that as a starting point for a career. If you like music you don't have to become a singer . You can become a promoter or any other number of jobs that are tied to the music industry. I should have stayed in school. But i didn't and i'm left to wonder what could have been. Stay in school people and get yourself an education. Believe me you won't regret it.
Being sixteen and living in such a small town, i always had to go looking for something to do, i was very restless. so i got me a car and started hanging out with my friends and started doing things that got me in trouble every so often. One time Dad went outside in the morning and seen all my car windows were broken.And he asked me what happened, of course i couldn't tell him the whole truth so i just shrugged my shoulders and said some guys were mad at me and broke my windows.Dad looked at me and to my surprise he said, you probably deserved it, pissed me off because he was right, but how did he know ? Dad used to talk to me, but i thought i could just go on doing as i pleased. There was this guy who used to pick on my cousin all the time and my cousin told me about it, so i went and told him to leave him alone or i would kick his butt, Well he didn't so him and i got in a fight. After that i thought it was all over, but one day i'm with my friends going to the Colonia and this car comes speeding up behind us and follows us to the Colonia, it was the same guy. I stopped in front of our house and we get out and the guy jumps out with a shotgun and points it right at my stomach, I couldn't show that i was scared of this guy with all my friends around so i stood my ground and told him to fight me like a man ( i think i seen that in a movie once ) I'm still here so of course he changed his mind. And he backed off and him and his partner left. I wasn't brave, i was stupid, can you imagine what i would have put my family through if that guy would have pulled the trigger. My wife and my 4 daughters and Grandkids would not be with this family today. This could have taken my life but also it would have ruined the life of the other kid and his family. Think about it, one stupid mistake. Thats why i tell the kids that what you do today, good or bad, will follow you for the rest of your life. Dad knew i was screwing up and he used to talk to me and i knew what he was telling me was true, but for some reason i wanted to continue doing what i was doing even though i knew it was going against everything i'd been taught. It just felt like there was always something missing in my life. And i couldn't put my finger on it. i've always loved sports but a career in sports was about as far fetched as trying to hit the moon with a rock. I really enjoyed sports, mainly football and baseball, I wasn't what they call a gifted athlete but I had a good arm, maybe i could have become a pitcher. I got that way from all them rock fights and prune throwing fights we used to get into. I made some bad decisions in life, but quitting school was one of the worst.
I came to Woodland to live with my sister and brother-in-law when i was 16. I got a job at a grocery store. I was working 40 hours a week and making 40 dollars a week. I would give my mom 20 and my sis 10 for room and board and i would get 10. It was all cool with me because back then 10 dollars was a lot of money for me. The guys here were not very friendly towards me. The girls were but the guys weren't. I didn't make any friends so i went back to Colusa. I lived in Colusa till i was about 18 years old, then i moved to Woodland again. Mom and Dad were living in the house on Kentucky ave. Man talk about some good memories, that house has some great ones. Remember when you first walked in and there's that big living room and you walk through the house and there's all these rooms, and there's 4 bathrooms and a wine celler and three porches, and a ball room. And all the kids running around. Thats the way Mom and Dad liked it. On Sundays that house would be packed. Ah the memories, Freds shetland pony that liked to bite and would throw you off if you tried to ride him, Rays scooter that bottomed out going over a hill about 6 inches high, The volley ball games, The smell of tomatoes from the field, the smell of Mom's fresh made tortillas, our brother Mundo usually making somebody laugh, Uncle Ray and Tia Chana coming from San Jose to party with Mom and Dad, Tio and Tia did all the partying, Mom and Dad would just enjoy their company, although Mom and Dad did partake in a few drinks once in awhile, When all our brothers and sisters came down with all the kids, that house would be rocking, How about Dad driving up from work in his old green pickup and getting out with his khakis and his hat. always that same old dirty hat. man i wished i would have had the foresight to keep one of my Dads work hats, they were too cool. Thanksgiving and Christmas in that house was something else. I don't know how Mom did it but she did. She would cook these gourmet meals that were second to none. When she said come and get it... We did. Mom used to make this one dish that had big chunks of egg in it with a lot of cheese and it was in this tomato sauce, man was that good, if anyone has the recipe i would love to have it. I wish my Grand kids could have gotten to know Mom and Pop. they would have loved them. I guess for them Belinda and i will have to do.

Cruising

My brother Jack got a chevy ( i think it was a 41 ) I was about 13 or 14 at the time. I thoroughly enjoyed cars. When Jack got this car i was really excited because i knew he would take me cruising with him. Of course we had to slam the car first. It was black and had gangster white walls. The car was so low we had to go over the railroad tracks one tire at a time. It was a cool little ride, It bounced a lot but that was cool with us. Back then the top speed on that car was about 45 mph and that was cool with us too. As long as we were cruising everything was cool. To us cruising in that old bomb was like cruising in a brand new Cadillac. We never went far. in those days driving from Colusa to Woodland is comparable to driving from Woodland to San Francisco these days. We were content to just cruise around town and be cool. In order to go cruising, the car had to look good, so we would spend about a couple hours washing and waxing it every weekend, and you had to look good too, you had to have your spit shines ( usually french toed shoes ) khaki's or frisco's pants that were starched and creased so sharp you could cut yourself on them, white t-shirt and a starched shirt, sometimes with a military style crease, depending on what was going down, and you had to have your pompadour hairdo with the ducktail in the back and your hair would be longer then what was acceptable at the time. Most people didn't care for "our" style. It was the Pachuco style. The Pachucos were the first to go against the grain so to speak in the way they dressed, there music, cars and attitude towards any authoritative figure. They enjoyed there own style instead of going with the mainstream. The Pachucos of the 50's had ties to the chicano movement that started in the 60's. They were the first to dress down with the "baggy look". They also created there own style of tattoos.I would say the cross was the most popular. In any group of people, you'll find good ones and bad ones and they were no different. They just had a different perspective of what things should be like. That was cool with me because i have always thought out of the box.
We didn't have a radio in the car as was the case with a lot of cars back then. We were just learning about cars and we didn't know how to put a radio in a car and it wasn't a priority for us cause we were content just the way we were. The music came later, we were digging the fact that we could cruise around and connect with our friends. Mom and Dad didn't care too much for our music, if it was too loud they would tell us to turn it down, if our hair got too long, either my Dad would cut it the way he wanted it, or it was up to you to get it cut. We had no other choice. Mom and Dad had there opinion about the way we dressed , but as long as we were clean they didn't say too much. These were fun times for me. Having Mom and Dad and the rest of the family there and all the good times with our cousins and friends....priceless. One time my Dad bought this 49 Studebaker, they were called torpedoes because of there shape,but it looked like an aquarium. It had wrap around windows and was this funky green color. At the time none of us had a car so we would go cruising in the studebaker. That car was my Dads pride and joy until......one day he was having problems with the battery and it wouldn't start. He told a friend to give it a push with his car to get it started and he told me to get in the studebaker and when i got it started i was to turn it around and come right back. and i did have every intention of coming right back but my friend Danny went with me to get it started and when the car started he asked me of i could give him a ride home. I should have listened to Dad of course, but that little devil in me said "aw what the heck, give him a ride home, you'll be o.k." I drove right past our block and gave my friend a ride home. I always wondered what my Dad thought when he seen me drive by, I sure didn't want to ask after what i did. Any way we get to my friends house and the car dies out, so i figure i'm in trouble now. so my friend Danny boy asks his brother-in-law if he can give me a push to get the car started again and he says o.k. So he gets in his car and starts pushing the ol Studebaker and he pushes it all over the neighborhood but it wouldn't start, about this time it's starting to get dark so i tell him to give me a real hard push and let me go and i'll coast it into the alley behind the house and then i'll run away from home. No not really . I just figured i would have to face the music alone. now about this time I should have been home over an hour ago. Well he gives me this push as fast as he could get it going and then he lets me go, i get to the road going into the alley and make my turn. the lights on the car were not working because the battery was too dead and when i make my turn i make it too short and i hit the curb. It bent the wheel and frame all the way back on one side only so that one tire pointed east and the other tires pointed south..OHHHH NOOOO. A bout this time i'm thinking foreign legion. I was only about 16 at the time and i only had about 35 cents to my name so i went home, as soon as i walked in the door everyone stopped talking and slowly started leaving the room with one ear stretching back trying to find out what happened. Nobody i mean nobody liked hearing my Dad when he was pissed and believe you me he was pissed. He said where did you go, and i said i went to give Danny a ride home and then he said, where is my car, and i said, it's at Danny's house. and he said, i thought i told you to come right back, well i was wrong so i couldn't say anything all i could do was just shrug my shoulders. Dad says did it stop on you and i said yes it did and i'm thinking boy did it ever stop. I look at Dad and he's giving me one of those looks that you only know what i'm talking about if your one of his sons or daughters and you just screwed up big time. I had to tell him what happened so i started telling him and before i even get to the part about wrecking it i just knew Dad already knew this wasn't going to be nice. Before i get to the part where the curb jumped out in front of me, Dad puts his hand up and says how bad is it, after i tell him about the tires he gets his hand and runs it over his face, top to bottom. About this time i feel about two feet tall and shrinking. Dad tells me he doesn't care how i do it but he wants me to go and get that car out of the street. Lucky for me my brother Jr. lived right down the street from where i wrecked the car, so i go to him and he helped me move it, sad to say the car was totaled. My Dad sold it to the junk yard. I still had to hear it from my Dad again when I got home, If I remember correctly, Mom would always be close when Dad was letting me have it and she always had this little tell tale smile or maybe even smirk on her face as if she was enjoying it. I guess she was figuring i just learned a good lesson and thats something i won't do again. I caught more hell wrecking that ugly ol Studebaker then i did when i wrecked his beautiful 56 chevy. But thats another story.