Mustangs Rock!

My first car was a 1966 Ford Mustang coupe with a V-8 engine and automatic transmission. It was an aquamarine color, and if I remember correctly, had a gray interior. My first husband and I purchased it in 1973 at a used car lot on Holt Boulevard in Montclair, California. The total price was about $1,000; my parents gave me $200 for the down payment and we financed the rest with monthly payments of $54. Although I put up the money to buy it, I didn't have a driver's license so couldn't drive it for almost a year after we bought it. The license plate frame advertised the Walker Buerge dealership so I think that is where it was first sold. I still remember the license plate number—SUP 874! To this day when I see one of these classic cars, I check the license plate to see if it was the one I once owned!

1966 Ford Mustang Coupe.
Public domain image from Wikimedia Commons.

© 2011 Denise Spurlock

Winter in Alaska

For several years during my childhood, our family lived in Fairbanks, Alaska. According to weather.com, the average high temperature in January (the coldest month) is 3°F and the average low temperature is -11°. The lowest recorded temperature of -61° occurred in 1961.

Going outside in the winter meant bundling up in many layers of clothing—boots, warm pants, parkas, hats, mittens or gloves. Outdoor activities were somewhat restricted, but we still went outside to play and for recess. My recollection is that we could go outside for recess unless the mercury dropped below -20°.

Ice skating was a favorite activity; the photo at left shows me and my friend Becky ready for some skating. Look at the snow piled up on the car behind us! Although there were skis available at school, I never learned to ski. I also remember building ice houses from sheets of ice that we would break off the top of snow banks!

Living so far north also meant limited daylight hours during the winter. I can remember walking to and from school in the dark. I don’t remember ever seeing the aurora borealis—the “northern lights.”

When we moved back to California in 1964, I remember thinking how silly it was that we could not go out for recess in the rain!


© 2011 Denise Spurlock

New Year's Memories

New Year's celebrations are not something I recall happening in our family. In years past, I did my fair share of partying in celebration of the dawn of a new year, but now I would just as soon be at home and out of the way of crazies!

One "tradition" I do remember is having black-eyed peas as part of our New Year's Day meal. Neither my sister nor I cared for them, but Daddy insisted that we eat a spoonful for good luck throughout the year!

The year after Daddy passed away, my sister and I were visiting Mama in Oklahoma. Our nieces and nephews were going to parties and invited us to join them. I don't remember what my sister did, but I wasn't keen on going to parties and leaving Mama home alone. We ended up running around town trying to find mix to make piña coladas (remember the song?) and stayed home and played dominoes with the "old folks"!

Image courtesy of The Graphics Fairy.

© 2011 Denise Spurlock