In my previous post, I named the group of is neighborhood kids, “The Hickory Street Hooligans.”

Many adventures of those youthful years occurred. There were several factions of kids. We didn’t care that some went to public schools and other to the Catholic school nearby. Your age determined what faction you belonged to. There was the older kids – and that’s where I fell into. My brothers had another group (the brothers of my friends), and my sister with her posse.

In the group that I belonged to, it was just three or four of us. Two sisters Patrice and Lynn, Kathleen who lived across the street from them, followed by myself. Being the youngest I was also bringing up the rear. We went through the neighborhood with a wagon collecting pop bottles to get the deposit money back. We then rushed to the five and dime to spend the money on Indian Head Pumpkin Seeds, wax lips and candy dots on rolls of paper.

We also gathered every Saturday during the summer and fall after our chores were completed and our allowances were burning holes in the palms of our hands. We would walk downtown (a thriving commerce center before they built the mall on the outskirts of town) and consume a hot dog and pop at the Sears, or Woolworths.

We would investigate the stationery store that had a book store on the second floor. There I fell in love with Nancy Drew mysteries and would spend my money on that as well. Once I caught up with all the titles, Tiger Beat and Sixteen magazines became my next obsession. From there, it was 45 rpm records which led to my first layaway of a portable stereo turntable and upgrading my music collection to include albums. For the times, it was only portable if you carried a bunch of size D batteries or had an electrical outlet nearby.

It was my first big purchase.

We would listen to music, sketch out own fashion designs. A couple of us would flip and cartwheel our way down the sidewalk to improve our cheer leading skills. From these girls I learned about sisterhood and teenage boys.

High school divided us, giving way to new friends and broader interests, but I think of those girls and that time of my youth often.