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Sun Rays cover girl Nancy Chessman THE LIGHTS ARE MUCH BRIGHTER THERE

Growing up in Wisconsin, summers were always a cherished time of year for me. With
warming temperatures and no school for almost three months, my brothers and I couldn’t
wait for summer to arrive! My dad also liked to be outside during the summer, working
in the yard or tinkering in the garage. He would always carry the small, gray transistor
radio outside with him and tune in to a local pop station. Knowing my brothers and I
would soon be joining him outside (after we finished our massive bowls of cereal and
Saturday morning cartoons) dad would turn the volume up.

I remember many Saturdays, heading out to the garage in my stylish bikini to grab one
of our webbed, folding lawn chairs. I would set up the chair in the backyard and spend
hours soaking up the sun. Sometimes my best friend, who lived across the street, would
join me. In the background, pop songs from the mid to late 60s would play on dad’s radio.
We would sing along happily to all the great songs of that time period.

One song in particular which played over and over during those years was Nancy Sinatra’s
Downtown. I was a big Nancy Sinatra fan, partially because we shared the same first
name, but mostly because her songs made me happy. Now every time I hear Downtown,
the song brings me back to delightful childhood summers spent in the backyard.

Nancy Chessman

SOMEWHERE IN TIME BUGS ON OUR TEETH, ROLLERS IN OUR HAIR

Back in the early 1980s I saw the It was the summer of 1964, and I was attending college
at Delta State in Cleveland, Mississippi. As a member of
movie Somewhere in Time, which Kappa Delta sorority, I had to attend a workshop session
in Jackson, Mississippi to prepare for the upcoming Fall
I loved. Starring Christopher Rush membership recruitment. Following the workshop,
I departed for New Orleans along with two other sorority
Reeves and Jane Seymour, it members in my 1962 Opel Kadett. As we approached the
was filmed at The Grand Hotel Lake Pontchartrain Bridge, an oncoming 18-wheeler caused
the windshield to implode on us!
on Michigan’s Mackinaw Island.
We spent the night in a motel in DeRidder, Louisiana. Having
I especially loved the theme to drive with no windshield and our hair blowing in our faces,
we left our hair in rollers and wore our pin curl bonnets!
song for the movie, which was a Though we set out before daylight, we found ourselves
beautiful piano piece by Sergei dodging so many bugs that we had to stop and continue
later in the morning! We got many strange
Rachmaninoff. I purchased the looks as we rode with legs hanging out
the windshield and our hair in rollers.
soundtrack and played it often, Mike Glackin and Needless to say we were very hot, dirty
to the point that my wife, Trudy, granddaughter Vivian and exhausted when we finally made it
and our children knew it was back to my home in Killeen.

obviously my favorite song. They Today, though many years have gone
by, I fondly remember that experience
also became big fans of the song, but I was especially surprised whenever I hear The Animals’ recording
of House of the Rising Sun. Good times and
when my daughter Carly chose this song for our father/daughter great friends!

dance during her wedding. I was overcome with emotion as we Mary Jo Burton

danced to this beautiful piece.

This past January, I had the pleasure of taking a Walt Disney

Cruise with Trudy, Carly, her husband Marc and our four-year-

old granddaughter, Vivian. One evening before dinner, we were

waiting in a nice lounge which featured a pianist. I asked her if
she could play the theme song to Somewhere in Time. When the

music started I asked my beautiful granddaughter to dance with

me and she graciously accepted. I have both of these Somewhere in

Time memories on film. They are moments I will always cherish.

Mike Glackin

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