Above, I'm NOT certain, but I think the trailers and cars were being used by some of the BACK TO THE FUTURE crew, when they were working in Hueneme... the photo was taken by me.
NOTE - This will be my last regular post on this blog - UNLESS I make some progress.
Memories... The good, the bad, the beautiful, and the downright horrendous. Below are a few random memories, and rants, of my time in Southern California.
In June 2021, it will be FORTY YEARS since ROP graduation. I can't fucking believe it!
I have so many questions, and I know that most of them will probably never be answered.
My years in Southern California were a surreal experience. There were too many bizarre incidents to count. It was like being stuck in a David Lynch movie... That's NOT as much fun as it sounds.
I also remember the countless social misfits/hippies in several of the neighborhoods I lived in. I learned a lot from them... Like what? Don't ask... ha-ha-ha.
Above, Conejo Grade... I simultaneously loved and hated it.
Some of my elementary school pals were always spreading ridiculous rumours about the manson family and the zodiac killer. They would tell anyone that would listen..."They're hiding somewhere in Conejo Grade".... I know names are supposed to be capitalized, but I REFUSE to give KILLERS that courtesy.
Most of the time, I loved Conejo Grade. However, there were times, when driving that part of the 101 would scare the shit out of me.
Above are screengrabs from a documentary called, EARTHQUAKE! (by THE PRESIDENT'S OFFICE OF EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS).
The 1971 San Fernando earthquake was my first earthquake, and I still haven't forgotten it. That experience was NOT a good sign of things to come.
Above is a short article about a murder at one of my schools.
I hated almost every school I attended. Bigoted teachers and staff, getting into fights with bullies, humiliation/degradation of children by so-called adults, and inappropriate touching of children. NOT all of those things happened in the schools I attended in California, but most did. Just for the record, the school I hated the most was located in Indiana.
High school got off to a bad start. There were mutilations of small animals in the neighborhood next to my school. That should have sounded alarm bells for everyone, not just law enforcement. But, it was ignored. If I remember correctly, there were also decapitations and other types of mutilations of farm animals, at my school. However, I think that occured during a different time frame.
Above are articles directly related to a murder at my school... The only good NAZIs are DEAD NAZIs!
One night, a student was murdered, and another student was mutilated and left for dead. That was followed by rage, finger pointing, and more hate. Then NAZIs came to town. There were also anti-fascist groups - they were NOT communist groups, as some of the right-wing reporters stated. It all reached a boiling point at the local convention center. A riot took place. Some of the media reported over three hundred people. I was there, and in my opinion, the number was at least five hundred. I hit a couple of NAZIs on the side of the head with a tree branch. Weeks later, I could still hear the sound of the branch hitting their faces - I couldn't get it out of my mind. Do NOT misunderstand me, I have NO regrets about what I did, I just feel angry that I was put in a position of having to defend myself.
I hated the city my high school was located in. Most of that town deserved to be burned to the ground. That's how I felt at the time, and I still feel that way.
When I graduated high school, it felt like I had been released from prison, for a crime I had NOT committed.
Writing is therapeutic, and if I ever finish my book, I imagine, it will feel like I've finally stopped carrying a refrigerator on my back.
Above, KROQ as we knew it, is GONE.... Also some screengrabs of VOICE OF THE BEEHIVE and THE ROMANTICS.
I loved dancing with leggy valley girls, and listening to KROQ. At the time, I didn't care how silly I looked. Why?... Because the other people looked even sillier. Plus, I just didn't give a shit!
Above is a plastic bag from one of my favorite store chains... PIC 'N' SAVE.
I loved attending events held at the original version of the Los Angeles convention center. I also loved Point Mugu rock and Malibu.
I also miss SANTA MONICA PLACE. It was a mall across from the Third Street Promenade. It was one of my favorite ENCLOSED shopping centers - it's now an open air mall... BOO-HISS!.
Hanging out at the pier was also a pleasant way to relax.
There were two international newsstands close to the mall. One was at a place that rented mail boxes, and the other was at the promenade.
Above are sreengrabs from a documentary called THE LOST TAPES: L.A. RIOTS (by the SMITHSONIAN CHANNEL).
Companies were leaving California in droves, and the riots only made things worse. A lot of people forget, that the riots affected the entire state, and the whole country.
I loved California. However, I could no longer afford to live there. So, I left in the early nineties.
Above are a few of my favorite cities in California.
Despite the bad experiences, I also had a lot of good times, and those are the moments I want to hold on to. That's why my ROP class is important to me.
The twelfth grade was my only decent memory of high school, and my ROP class was the sole reason for that.
I've posted about this before, and I'm going to do it again, there's NO official record of who attended our class. It's as if we never existed.....
