Best
- These may be the nicest people that our Father in Heaven placed on the earth. You could go to 7-11 to buy a candy bar and talk to the clerk for two hours about anything in the world like they were your best friend.
- Winters were mild with just a little bit of snow once a year or less. When it did snow, the city shut down and all movement stops.
- Wide open spaces. Your view was unobstructed to the horizon in practically every direction.
- The Oil Show was awesome. Everything was free, and there was always cool stuff to do there.
- Boys Club Basketball league was lots of fun, even if we never had a chance to beat Alamo Elementary.
- You don't have to mow the lawn much in the summer. Grass doesn't grow very well when it's 120 degrees outside.
- There was a Texas Burger down by Gibsons.
- There were several Whataburgers in town.
- There was a Dairy Queen down by the Bookmobile, and sometimes if we were good mom would buy us a Dilly Bar.
- There was an airport so it was possible to actually fly to Odessa.
- In the summertime, I would leave the house at 8:00 AM with just a pair of cut-offs on and ride my bike around and hang out with my friends until late at night. My parents did not know where I was, and really weren't worried about it either. That says something about the times, and the place. If I ever got into some kind of trouble, I could ask any adult that I ran into for help and they would offer it. The thought that I might be in danger from an adult was absurd.
- Permian High School Football games at Barrett Stadium.
- Pep Rallies at Nimitz Junior High School.
- Going to Prairie Pete Park and playing on the World War II bomber plane there.
- The most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen.
- The most pleasant evening weather I have ever experienced.
- Terror Theater on Saturday nights. I used to sneak out and watch it every Saturday night after mom & dad were asleep. Scared the crap out of me every week.
- Hawaii Five-O every week. Dad made me go to bed at 8:30 when it was half over, but I used to hide in the closet and crack the door open to watch the last half. Can't leave until McGarritt says "Book Him Dan-O. Murder One..."
- There were alleys behind all the houses in our neighborhood. So much mischief for a kid to get into.
Worst
- Summers were ghastly hot.
- Nothing to do except go look for expended shotgun shells and scavenge for coke bottles to return for deposit so you can get a Slurpee from 7-11.
- The water tasted like dirt.
- The red-neck kids in elementary school and junior high were only capable of uttering the term "Do you want to back that up?" when they did not agree with something you said.
- Moving from Michigan to Texas, I had to fight every kid in 1st Grade. I actually beat them all except for Brad, but I jumped him from the monkey bars a few days later and caught him with his guard down and was victorious.
- There was nothing in any direction for hours.
- El Paso was considered a vacation destination.
- If you didn't play football, you were second-best.
- Cable TV meant that the local channels actually came in clear, and we got the KTVT from Dallas, and the funny station that always played music and showed pictures of kids.
- The minister down the street had a kid my age. He was very unkind to me for many years.
- There were plants called "stickers" that grew in everyone's yard. They got in your socks like velcro and would not let go. If you went outside with no shoes on, you would stay off the grass or experience very real pain.
- I had my tonsils taken out by a Gynecologist in McCamey. He used ether to put me under. I did not receive ice cream when I awoke, I was given asparagus. I have never eaten asparagus since, nor will I ever.
There is much more than this, but these are a few that come to mind. To be honest, I would love to go back and live in Odessa now. Of course, I'm not a kid anymore, despite what my wife says... :)
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