Bikes and Boys

Unlike now, the Clayton "homestead" was always surrounded by a chain-link fence.  Grandma Mary allowed all the kids in the neighborhood to come in our yard and play - but she didn't really like her kids running around the neighborhood.  She didn't want the neighbors saying that Mom had so many kids she couldn't keep an eye on them all!  

And when I was younger and the "big" house was being built, our yard was a wonderful playground - piles of sand, stacks of lumber, cement foundations that sat for long periods of time - perfect for roller skating!  Trees to climb, oranges to eat - we had a swing set too.

But to ride a bike - or rollerskates - you needed to leave the confines of the yard!  This photo shows two important parts of my childhood memories.  One, Bill is riding his bike out on the street - which was pretty quiet - there were not lots of cars then - and actually there aren't all that many now.  I was older by the time this was taken, but I don't have any other bike photos!  Alice and I shared a bike - maybe that's why I'm not the most proficient cyclist!  We'd take turns riding riding - one of us would sit on the curb and the other would ride up and down the street.  Not the most satisfactory way to spend an afternoon, but it was all we had!

Secondly, the house with the car in the driveway had the Vergine's driveway exactly opposite - so we'd roller skate up and back on these two driveways - it was pretty fun!!

And on another note, I don't have lots of memories of the names of our neighbors, but the house Bill is riding in front of was Naomi Kadar's house - she was a friend of Mary's.

 

Knowing how mechanical my dad was, I'm not surprised by this old photo of Bob and his brother, our Uncle Paul, with their bikes.  I'm pretty sure my dad always kept a bike running for himself!  He worked with my brothers on their bikes I know.  My dad could build just about anything - I don't think I appreciated it much as a child - I just thought all dads could do that!