Nana and Pop lived in Belmar, but Nana would pop us in her dusty, funny old smelling car to go to Asbury Park to see the decorations at holiday time. It was a big deal. Next AP memory is eighth grade summer. Mom wanted us out of the house, and consequently out of her hair as she was going to Julliard and just wanted to practice the piano. We got to walk from Belmar to Asbury along the boardwalk. There are 2 things I always think about regarding those days. 1. There was no such thing as bottled water. They had fountains and when you were thirsty, you stopped and took a drink, FOR FREE! 2. We didn't have cellular phones so from the time you left til you got back home, no one could contact you. Kids today don't realize the free and easy feeling they are missing. You could buy stuff to eat if it was the right time of year and concessions were open, but we never had much, if any, money. The guys at the amusements let us ride on those bumper cars all day because we were young and cute, same thing with the carousel. Around and around and around pulling out the rings, throwing them into the wooden box. What about the fun house with that blow hole that they activated when you stepped over it, especially when you were wearing a dress to blow it up. When I was a little older, I won so many games on the pinball machines that they turned the lights out on me. I remember frat parties in Asbury Park. When I was 19, I was a waitress in the Upstage Club. The most outstanding memory of that was Tom Potter, drunk at the end of every single night "ALRIGHT, everybody out of the Fxxxxxx Pool" My mom taught Margaret Potter music. And who could forget Ricky DeSarno with his flat affect, standing perfectly still playing the most incredible guitar riffs ever heard. He was, to me, the generic guitar player. No need for gimmicks, he just played the guitar. That reminds me, the usual set-up for jamming was Ricky on lead, John Lurachi, bass and I think the drummer was named Bob. That was it. 3 guys and the most electrifying music Eddie Lurach We worked in the Telephone Building with the PBX. You know the plugs and holes that they used to use to make phone calls. I can't tell you the things we would do, can't put it in writing. We hung out with Richie and Kenny and the rest of the guys from Western Electric. Then there was Lerners and Canadian Fur Company and of course, Steinbachs. A right of passage was getting an apartment in Asbury Park. Some of them were so beautiful, big old apartments. For a while I lived on Webb Street in an apartment that Bruce used to live in, across from the Miramar apts where John Lurachi's Aunt Tessie lived. Johnny Lyon lived in the house out front. He was a sweetie. Billy Rush was going to be a lawyer and he gave me the first guitar I ever played, an old Framus, that I took to Phil Petillo to repair, but he said it would not be worth it to fix it. A bunch of us went to a concert in Chapel Hill North Carolina and tried to get them to let Bruce play. They refused because they said "Bruce Springsteen? Who ever heard of Bruce Springsteen?" Bruce and Steve and I left Chapel Hill together, to go back to Russ Clem's in Richmond. They were so funny. Bruce kept making references to Harry Truisms, and Steve was so talented with the guitar. At Russ's he would just pick it up and start making up songs, and they sounded real good. I had patches all over my jeans. Russ stuck his finger under the patches to see if there was really a hole, or just a patch. I was really mad. I don't recall doing a lot of swimming but we did hang at Howard Johnson's, my sister was a waitress there while she was going to Monmouth College. That is what is was before they got to be a University. Then there was the big Vietnam Vets Motorcycle thing where I met the photographer from the Star Ledger, Snapshot. He was so nice and we went for a ride on his big motorcycle. Oh, now I am getting depressed missing those days, and there was Donny Griner and Jimmy Greco and so many people I forgot about, so many bands. We were so young. I never really hung out at the Stone Pony, never went to a Bruce Springsteen concert or bought a record in all these years. I find it kind of confusing this celebrity thing. And there was John Bass, on the Boardwalk, painting life. The Casino was such a cool building and it still is magnificent but I heard they are tearing part of it down. Sad. I could keep talking and talking but that would be boring. For life in Asbury Park was a big part of my life. And experiences from youth are always poignant because youth is a great time, even when it isn't all we wish it could be. To all my old friends who find this website, I say hello, miss you. didn't realize how much til right now. Kat