No Lucy does not have a water park but after a good long rain we
sure did create one. The geographical layout of Lucy makes for many
areas of water to build up as well as the multiple storm drains or
water ways that lay under Oakhurst rd.
Stevie, Mike, and I carved out many bike trails through out the
community. We made sure in our excavations that they would be low
lying grounds and would be extra muddy when rain is applied. We would
spend hours riding through the mud and water on our bikes covering us from head to toe with mud. After a good bike ride we would run to Mike's house and do a big cannon ball into their swimming pool. You can imagine we only did this once because once Mike's mom saw her pool
covered in mud our rear end’s paid the punishment.
Probably the best place to go after a big rain was Mr. Dale and Ms.
Cathy's house. They had a nice 2 acre lot that sloped downward towards
Oakhurst rd and were also fortunate to have one of the before
mentioned storm drains that ran under the road. Leading to the storm
drain was a ditch that stretched from the back of the property to the
road. If it rained hard and fast enough the ditch would fill up into
raging 3 foot rapids.
We would start from the back and either belly flop into the rapids or
ride some sort of boogie board all the way down to the storm drain. It
was the biggest thrill knowing there was nothing protecting you from
the jagged rocks on the banks of the ditch and the concrete storm
drain awaiting you at the end of your ride. The trick, however, was to
jump off your board or use your feet to stop yourself before plummeting
into the storm drain. If you were not careful, the current could suck
you into the drain and through to the other side of the street. This
of course was out of the questioned being that you would be fully
submerged inside the tunnel and couldn’t get air until you reached the
other side. Was this dangerous and completely a stupid thing to do?
You know it was but we never seemed to care.
To most people ample amounts of rainfall could be depressing and not be a
welcomed site, but to we Lucy boys it was a pattern of weather we
treasured.
- Steve Childress
Monday, March 29, 2010
Sunday, March 14, 2010
The Art of TP
One of the many things my mom taught me was how to properly TP a house. When most parents would forbid such an act my mom surprised us one evening. When I was in the sixth grade, I was having some friends over to spend the night. We had just consumed our pizza when mom came into the living room with a bag full of toilet paper rolls. She explained to us how when she was a youth in church, this was the popular thing to do. Holy Rollers is what she called it I think.
We all piled up in the black Ford Aerostar minivan and proceeded to my parent’s friends Dale and Cathy Ray's house. Parked outside mom strategically laid out the assault mission in detail. We executed the mission with ease leaving no evidence behind except the result of a perfectly administered TP yard.
As we got older, we ventured on our own TP adventures. Some successful, others not so much. One night Mike, Stevie, and I crossed through a field which separated Oakhurst Rd and Shane Rd to roll a kid neither of us liked all that much. As we arrived, I agreed to TP the bushes by the front porch. Unknown to us at the time, the kid, and his family had not made it home. When I was about to start the rolling process car lights swept across the yard as they pulled into the drive. Mike and Stevie still on the perimeter of the yard fled in fright across the field and back to the fort on Oakhurst leaving me barricaded between the bushes and porch steps. I watched the family literally walk by inches from me. Once inside I retreated as quickly as I could through the field where I tripped over a miniature tree. That night we failed our mission and I broke my big toe.
My youth was filled with multiple TP adventures. Some involving forks in yards, some with soapy water sprayed by our super soakers, and all demanded the attention of the next morning onlookers. My house was rolled as well due to the retaliation of others, but it was all in good fun.
I owe this gift to my mother and look forward to the day when I pack my daughter and her little friends in the car equipped with the proper ration of TP. I will watch them with pride as these female ninjas give their own assault on Dale and Cathy Ray's house.....It is only fitting.
-Steve Childress
We all piled up in the black Ford Aerostar minivan and proceeded to my parent’s friends Dale and Cathy Ray's house. Parked outside mom strategically laid out the assault mission in detail. We executed the mission with ease leaving no evidence behind except the result of a perfectly administered TP yard.
As we got older, we ventured on our own TP adventures. Some successful, others not so much. One night Mike, Stevie, and I crossed through a field which separated Oakhurst Rd and Shane Rd to roll a kid neither of us liked all that much. As we arrived, I agreed to TP the bushes by the front porch. Unknown to us at the time, the kid, and his family had not made it home. When I was about to start the rolling process car lights swept across the yard as they pulled into the drive. Mike and Stevie still on the perimeter of the yard fled in fright across the field and back to the fort on Oakhurst leaving me barricaded between the bushes and porch steps. I watched the family literally walk by inches from me. Once inside I retreated as quickly as I could through the field where I tripped over a miniature tree. That night we failed our mission and I broke my big toe.
My youth was filled with multiple TP adventures. Some involving forks in yards, some with soapy water sprayed by our super soakers, and all demanded the attention of the next morning onlookers. My house was rolled as well due to the retaliation of others, but it was all in good fun.
I owe this gift to my mother and look forward to the day when I pack my daughter and her little friends in the car equipped with the proper ration of TP. I will watch them with pride as these female ninjas give their own assault on Dale and Cathy Ray's house.....It is only fitting.
-Steve Childress
Monday, March 1, 2010
Disney World
It seems several of our friends are taking their little ones to Disney World for this year’s Spring Break trip. They are all talking about the money savers, meal passes, ride passes, and all of the ways they have found to efficiently and economically get around to all of the Disney parks with their kids. Although I feel my daughter is still too young for such an adventure, I do look forward to taking her and our next child-to-be, on their first magical trip to Disney World.
It was the late 80's when mom and dad made the big announcement that we, as a family, were to make our first grand excursion to the Magical Kingdom ourselves. I was ten, Will was four, and the excitement alone of such a trip was more than we could bear. My parents sacrificed a lot that year to prepare for this trip because trips like these were few and far between, so the plan was to live it up to the fullest. We avoided the Spring Break rush and took our trip in early May to avoid the Spring Break crowd. Rates were cheaper then, as well as the airfare. Now that I've married a teacher she would be the first to tell you that taking a full week off of school in May is a crucial time to miss, especially if one is preparing for year end test. However, I was ten and thought taking an additional week off of school was the coolest thing ever.
Finally, the big day came when we departed to Memphis International and were Orlando bound. We rented a car and stayed outside of the park area in a Ramada Resort there in Kissimmee. It was, by far, the biggest hotel room my brother and I had ever stayed in. Our first day there we were jumping from bed to bed out of excitement and if my memory serves me correctly, that was when we had our first accident. Will and I collided in mid-air during one of the jumps. Matching goose eggs on our foreheads and a bag of ice on each did not stop us for the amazing weeklong adventure that was awaiting us.
My dad had borrowed a friend of his video camcorder for our trip. This was not your little hand-held device that fits so neatly in the palm of your hand—no, this was a massive two or three pound suitcase that balanced neatly on your shoulder and used true size VHS tapes. My poor dad carried that camera everywhere we went on the trip. It was almost like having an Action News 5 crew document our trip for us. The hard shell case alone for this contraption would alert "today’s" airport security to by-pass the wand and go straight to a full-body cavity search, due to its questionable nature and size. Like I said, my dad recorded everything and by weekend, he had completely filled six full length VHS tapes.
The day finally came when we first entered the magic kingdom. It was everything I had dreamed of, seen in books, and on TV. We walked down the grand boulevard with Cinderella’s castle awaiting us on the horizon. It felt like we had stepped into a dream with the horse-drawn carriages, Disney employees all dressed in their attire, and fascinating sights made for this truly magical world. The park was extremely crowded, but it was not hard finding my family because it was the late 80's, so we were all decked out in the bright neon clothes that made us stand out. Not to mention, dad was carrying an entire film studio on his shoulders that made him easy to spot in the crowd. We rode as many rides as we could, including the infamous Space Mountain where my dad had told and retold the story of when he and mom rode the ride on their honeymoon. He recalled feeling his sunglasses slip and fly off his head. In the pitch dark ride dad reached up in thin air and snatched them back to safety. After riding Space Mountain, I could not understand how he did it. We spent the entire day in the Magic Kingdom and were able to watch the famous firework show at night.
Over the next couple of days, we experienced MGM studios where we saw the Indian Jones reenactment, took a tour on the Grauman’s Chinese Theater ride, and many other attractions MGM had to offer. We also experienced my favorite part of Disney World, Epcot. What amazed me the most about this particular park was the tour of countries. I could have spent the entire day in that section alone. We hit every country, visiting every shop and riding every ride. Did I mention dad was still carrying his camera? We did take a day off from the Disney Experience and took a trip to the Kennedy Space center and Cocoa Beach. That was our first ocean/beach experience. It was a sight I would never forget. My mom and dad made our first Disney experience an unforgettable one to say the least.
I later returned to Disney World my junior year of high school for a MCHS choral competition. There we all met up with a former classmate of ours, Justin Timberlake, and were able to spend the day with him on and behind the Disney scenes. Many years later Shannon and I were able to spend our honeymoon there just as my parents spent theirs.
Our first Disney Vacation was hands down the best family vacation we all took together. We experienced so much in that one week, and amazingly, Will and I did not fight one time. What made the vacation even better is that my dad heroically and sacrificially carried around that massive camera to document the unforgettable Disney Vacation. I was filled with a very nostalgic feeling walking through the parks at night as “When you Wish Upon a Star” played over the many speakers throughout the parks. I highly recommend that if you ever get the opportunity, take your family at least once to Disney World. I can guarantee you it would play a major part in your child’s life, as well as rekindle the child in you. I do recommend that you take a smaller camera though.
-Steve Childress
It was the late 80's when mom and dad made the big announcement that we, as a family, were to make our first grand excursion to the Magical Kingdom ourselves. I was ten, Will was four, and the excitement alone of such a trip was more than we could bear. My parents sacrificed a lot that year to prepare for this trip because trips like these were few and far between, so the plan was to live it up to the fullest. We avoided the Spring Break rush and took our trip in early May to avoid the Spring Break crowd. Rates were cheaper then, as well as the airfare. Now that I've married a teacher she would be the first to tell you that taking a full week off of school in May is a crucial time to miss, especially if one is preparing for year end test. However, I was ten and thought taking an additional week off of school was the coolest thing ever.
Finally, the big day came when we departed to Memphis International and were Orlando bound. We rented a car and stayed outside of the park area in a Ramada Resort there in Kissimmee. It was, by far, the biggest hotel room my brother and I had ever stayed in. Our first day there we were jumping from bed to bed out of excitement and if my memory serves me correctly, that was when we had our first accident. Will and I collided in mid-air during one of the jumps. Matching goose eggs on our foreheads and a bag of ice on each did not stop us for the amazing weeklong adventure that was awaiting us.
My dad had borrowed a friend of his video camcorder for our trip. This was not your little hand-held device that fits so neatly in the palm of your hand—no, this was a massive two or three pound suitcase that balanced neatly on your shoulder and used true size VHS tapes. My poor dad carried that camera everywhere we went on the trip. It was almost like having an Action News 5 crew document our trip for us. The hard shell case alone for this contraption would alert "today’s" airport security to by-pass the wand and go straight to a full-body cavity search, due to its questionable nature and size. Like I said, my dad recorded everything and by weekend, he had completely filled six full length VHS tapes.
The day finally came when we first entered the magic kingdom. It was everything I had dreamed of, seen in books, and on TV. We walked down the grand boulevard with Cinderella’s castle awaiting us on the horizon. It felt like we had stepped into a dream with the horse-drawn carriages, Disney employees all dressed in their attire, and fascinating sights made for this truly magical world. The park was extremely crowded, but it was not hard finding my family because it was the late 80's, so we were all decked out in the bright neon clothes that made us stand out. Not to mention, dad was carrying an entire film studio on his shoulders that made him easy to spot in the crowd. We rode as many rides as we could, including the infamous Space Mountain where my dad had told and retold the story of when he and mom rode the ride on their honeymoon. He recalled feeling his sunglasses slip and fly off his head. In the pitch dark ride dad reached up in thin air and snatched them back to safety. After riding Space Mountain, I could not understand how he did it. We spent the entire day in the Magic Kingdom and were able to watch the famous firework show at night.
Over the next couple of days, we experienced MGM studios where we saw the Indian Jones reenactment, took a tour on the Grauman’s Chinese Theater ride, and many other attractions MGM had to offer. We also experienced my favorite part of Disney World, Epcot. What amazed me the most about this particular park was the tour of countries. I could have spent the entire day in that section alone. We hit every country, visiting every shop and riding every ride. Did I mention dad was still carrying his camera? We did take a day off from the Disney Experience and took a trip to the Kennedy Space center and Cocoa Beach. That was our first ocean/beach experience. It was a sight I would never forget. My mom and dad made our first Disney experience an unforgettable one to say the least.
I later returned to Disney World my junior year of high school for a MCHS choral competition. There we all met up with a former classmate of ours, Justin Timberlake, and were able to spend the day with him on and behind the Disney scenes. Many years later Shannon and I were able to spend our honeymoon there just as my parents spent theirs.
Our first Disney Vacation was hands down the best family vacation we all took together. We experienced so much in that one week, and amazingly, Will and I did not fight one time. What made the vacation even better is that my dad heroically and sacrificially carried around that massive camera to document the unforgettable Disney Vacation. I was filled with a very nostalgic feeling walking through the parks at night as “When you Wish Upon a Star” played over the many speakers throughout the parks. I highly recommend that if you ever get the opportunity, take your family at least once to Disney World. I can guarantee you it would play a major part in your child’s life, as well as rekindle the child in you. I do recommend that you take a smaller camera though.
-Steve Childress
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