Spock and Summer Vacation taught me more about life than school ever did.--by Bryan F.

I’m sure Spock would say that it is logical to reflect on the warmth of summer when trying to cope with the cold of winter. Spock did not come off as strange for me, his logical mind made sense to my way of thinking. He was also culturally popular during the time that summers were the most important time of the year for me. More so than even Christmas vacation. Summer meant freedom and the warmth of the sun on my face. It meant riding my bike and big glasses of iced cold Kool-Aid and bologna sandwiches and running through lawn sprinklers. It meant that I’d have more time to spend at Grandma’s house and no more gruesome homework or bullying teacher and classmates. 

Most summers were the same for me; a trip to the beach for a week during Dad’s vacation time. Some years a trip to Disneyland depending on financial circumstances and whether my Grandparents got super cheap tickets for State Workers Day. 

The surf at Doheny State Beach. Notice the surfers in the water

Doheney State Beach was frequently the choice, where you had to show up for a lottery in the morning to get your campsite. Often with aunts and uncles and cousins, always from my Dad’s side joining the caravan to accompanying us.

Campsite at Doheny State Beach.

One year it was Carlsbad in North County San Diego with our family friends the Warners that included my childhood friend Joey, the only time we ever camped with them. There is a funny story that goes with that one. My Mom was driving and her long time friend Pat was the passenger along with my three siblings and Pat's two children Joey and Darla. Well, my Mom was driving very slowly looking for the road to take to get to the beach and a highway patrolman pulled her over for driving too slowly. This was about maybe 1961 or '62. Anyway, when the cop comes to the window, Darla who was maybe four or five exclaims when she sees the officer and his gun and I'm paraphrasing "My Daddies a policeman and my Mommy has a gun under the seat". Of course, the adults were at first alarmed that this might cause a problem for them but it was the early 60's and they were just women with children so nothing came of it except a driving citation for my Mom. The Fathers who had to work that Friday joined us the next day at the beach and were regaled with the exciting story. It was apparently a good trip, much of which I cannot recall.

In 1962 and 63 we went to the Salton_Sea with our next-door neighbors the Moores. They had a speed boat that made it a different and interesting experience. It was different there in the desert than at the shore because there was really not much sand; it was just this huge body of salty water in the middle of the desert. The camping area was clay and the driving of tent stakes was not for the weak. This was also before it became heavily polluted. It was my least favorite vacation destination but the speed boat made it a little more tolerable. There was also that one night while camping at the Salton Sea, that I woke up and I was in the backseat of our car, my siblings all fast asleep beside me. I got out and noticed the Moore family station wagon was parked next to our car and looking in, I saw the four Moore kids sleeping. I then noticed we were in front of a rough-looking wooden building and there was a door, so I went to it and opened it and on the other side were Kenny and Elva Moore and my parents in the dark neon lite bar, sitting on barstools and drinking. Why not, nothing much else to do in this dreary wannabe resort. I was, upon being noticed, admonished to return to the car and to leave the adults to their adult diversions. Strangely, none of this seemed out of character to me for most adults I’d encountered to that point, my maternal Grandma was the exception. Children were often seen by adults as more of an annoyance than responsibility in my experience. 

The best camping experience for me, maybe because it was something different, was Camp O’Neil, now known as     O'Neill_Regional_Park. Located in the foothills of
The Santa Ana Mountains in Trabuco Canyon, California.

Add caption

The mountain setting was a magical experience for me. Believe it or not, the beach can get pretty boring. Camp O’Neil was spread out and we could wander off; safety in numbers and all the adults left us to or devices. I remember a very long wall that was maybe a couple feet high that ran along the highway that the camp skirted. We, my siblings, and cousins, and I would skip atop the wide stone wall and survey the entire camp from our elevated position. Likely singing some sing-song kids tune. It was never crowded at the camp and it covered quite a large area and had a lot of trees. It was like Sherwood Forest for me. I had a Robin Hood thing when I was prepubescent, including an old Halloween costume that I wore until it disintegrated.

Another summer distraction for us was Disneyland in Anaheim, California. The drive was a short one as were many of the Southern California attractions for us. We had an embarrassment of riches with places like Knott's Berry Farm, Pacific Ocean Park, San Diego Zoo, Santa's Village, Calico Ghost Town, and Marineland all within easy reach. But Disneyland was the crown jewel and the first one I ever attended; the first time in 1959 at the age of five with my friend Joey. My Disneyland experiences are ingrained in a happy place in my brain. I didn’t love it for the rides like my siblings did. In fact, I found most of the rides tedious. Mr. Lincoln and Pirates of the Caribbean were the exceptions.

I usually did Pirates more than once in a visit. I can still smell the gun powder down there, from the cannons firing across our boat as we passed the feuding pirates. The Animatronics like Mr. Lincoln was a marvel to me. The dog dangling the keys just outside the prisoners' cell and the wench figures running from the invading pirates were beyond my imagination at that time in space.

Watching the Animatronics in Great_Moments_with_Mr._Lincoln, Mr. Lincoln rising from his chair and his jaw moving to the eloquent speech mesmerized me. This was very innovative mid-century-modern stuff. Tomorrow Land’s, Walt_Disney's_Carousel_of_Progress,  also used animatronics like those of Mr. Lincoln. In a four-stage slow carousel, it took us from the homes of the past to the home of the future. I won’t elaborate on the tedious details of what made each stage interesting but it was slow and informative and sparked the imagination. I also liked the ride where you got shrunk to the size of a molecule. Adventure_Thru_Inner_Space. It too was a slow ride and very educational. I mean the Matterhorn was really high and super scary, but that’s all there was. 

Disneylands Main Street, the railroad, and themed restaurants, the architecture, accurate or not pulled me in. It stimulated my childish imagination and caused me to wonder why the world outside could not be like this, or even close to it. Some places are a bit like Disneyland, gentrified areas, and well kept historical towns, also gentrified. But, I dreamed in my childish mind of a magical place where everyone got along and built it all up for everyone to partake and enjoy.

Summer sparked my imagination in much the way that the old Star Trek TV show with Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock did, that school never did. I sat in a wing-backed chair with my friend Joey, shoulder to shoulder absorbing the images on his family's colored TV, believing that was how the future would look. The future did not bring forth the Jetsons lifestyle but the summers are still mostly nice here.

A Drive we often went to that was owned by Twyla_Tharp's parents  

Watch for my future piece on Drive-In movies which were also a very enjoyable summertime diversion. I will also do more Disneyland and Walt Disney memories in the future.

Go to next C7 post