My first thoughts of east Tennessee begin with a large brown wooden case radio [ now Im realy dating my self ] we don’t see radios like that today three feet tall with built in speaker on each side a large dial in the middle. I could listen for hours ,The stories they play ,the dramas it really learned me how to us my imagination. I think its to easy for children today my two year old got Barney on DVD he all ready counting I dont think I don’t think that I did that at two years old

Back to East Tennessee and 1954 ,It was a warn house and a couple years ago [ 2006 ] we went by that house , at first I picked the wrong house but soon realize my mistake it was next door, the house had not changed in 50 years, the big oak tree still by the gravel sidewalk the house still painted green., my dad had dug out the basement as his work shop and that’s where his boat building was done. We talk more about that later.

The basement also is where me an my brother would build are soap box racer, we canvassed for wheels ever where, for are racer old trickles wheels seem to be the best chose but in short supply so roller scates some time there used a few 2x4 and a apple box we had brought home from the supper market ,

Dad had help us one time build a real nice one with a steer wheel and brakes [ a stick that rubbed the road ] but there were many accidents and our racer did not seem to be long lasting., talking about accidents there a nice scare on my chine today to testify to this. Surprised we were not killed as there were many small hills to ride down.

My mother must have lived in fear, there were bb guns and no we did not shot our eyes out but we tried. , good thing we were such poor shots, My bother had got a pellet riffle an I think many small birds scrum to that one Im not sure but think so. A few months ago he email me saying he was big game hunting again seem chickens were shiting on his sidewalk, hope he has inproved in the past 50 years but I heard no reports of chicken soup as of yet.

Dad had ever tool that only pro wood worker would have but I was responsible for leaving many of them out in the yard where I would be making my road side repairs to are soap box racers,Truth is it was just in are yard, it could be in any body’s yard an I know many tools were lost for ever I should have received many beating but did not I don’t know why not.

I don’t know what year my dad bought a TV but I do reminder him going weekly to test vacuum tubes still the early TVs did not look like they do today the picture tube was more rounded than it was square . an of course they were black and white. We did not seem to mind that sense we knew no better as that time,An when color TV did come out on the market they seemed to be more green than any thing we have today, my father never bought one till the late 60s

And then there was the test pattern for the TV, sence it was not 24 hours a day but more 16 hours, ending at midnight and starting again at 6 am.

Don’t seem that I was completely potty trained till after I was six years old, I can reminder my brother saying [ you shit your pants again ] he was four years old than me , funny he still is.