turkishtowel

We used to take Free Pike from Brumbaugh Blvd to the Trotwood Acquatic Club, a swimming pool where we spent our summers. In the old days, it was a true "pike," in the sense of a quick straight road designed to get from point A to point B, with little but farmland on either side. Now it is so built up, it takes forever just to go a few blocks.

I made the mistake of riding along with a guy who wanted to test the new cheater slicks he had just installed on his 1964 Pontiac GTO. He chose Brumbaugh Blvd. because it was a straight stretch with very little traffic -- except for lots of children playing on the boulevard. With no seatbelts and speeds exceeding 120 mph, it was only a matter of luck that no one was killed.

I lived at the top of Wyoming Street in an apartment complext next to Cleveland Elementary School. Saturday mornings, rain or shine, little kids would go tearing around on their big wheels in a covered playground at the school. It was a rude awakening for anyone with a hangover.

Keep WPAFB on your left and you'll soon find Wright State University, my almma mater. A few years after graduating, I return to WSU to work in the public information office, editing The University Times, a weekly newspaper for faculty and staff. The Times was created as an official alternative to the student newspaper which was not always very meticulous with the facts, not to mention things like grammar and spelling.

Generations of Daytonians have played baseball and softball at Kettering Field, a set of diamonds located in the middle of the city off North Bend. We had a team called "The Slugs" and our primary mission was to get the game over with and go have a few beers. We played against very serious teams who usually beat the crap out of us, but we didn't care. We were just trying to have fun.

When I went to Chaminade High School on Ludlow Street in the 1960's, it was all boys and somewhat twisted, as a result. It is co-ed now, which makes more sense because being around both genders is an education in itself that I regret not having.

You know those plastic sticks you find in plants you buy at a nursery that provide information about the plants? Chances are, these were made at Dayton Garden Labels on Ray Street. I worked there, part time, helping to pay my way through college.

If you can't have a good time at a Dayton Dragons' game, you are incapable of having a good time. Located downtown on Monument, the Dragon's home stadium is modern minor league baseball at its best. Win or lose, the whole experience is a treat.

I lived at the northernmost end of Myron Avenue from birth through the age of 18. It was a quiet suburban atmosphere, ideal for families with children and even retirees. We had our own ballfield in a vacant lot just off Salem Avenue and played baseball and football there almost every day.

Trace the historical growth of Dayton in a northerly direction via Salem Avenue (State Route 49) from the Riverside area through the first wave of suburbs all the way to the extreme north end of town. We used to ride our bikes all the way downtown, using sidewalks almost the entire way.