A babbling 60's train of thought.

I love October. I'm not sure if it's because it's my birthday month, or what, but something about this month makes me feel all, don't know how to explain it, all...cozy and comfy.
My mom always used to say about October: "Shuffle, shuffle, move along...sing a sad October song." She said it as we walked through leaves, meaning that the leaves should be singing this sad song, the end of the line for them. I 'm not sure if she made it up, or if it was part of an old poem or song. When we walk in the woods at this time of year, and the leaves are yellow and red and orange, and crispy on the ground, I think of her, and murmur this as I walk.

Like a squirrel that instinctively gathers nuts for sustenence through the upcoming winter, I gather books. I haunt the second hand book stores, the wonderful annual Library Book sale in late September, use up the last of any gift certificates at the sale tables in Coles and pile them in my room, tantalizing to look at...knowing that I have reading materials to last me during the blowing, blizzardly winter weather.

And now I have my Kindle! I've been downloading the odd free book and many of the .99 ones, and "saving" them to read too...perfect during power outages because my Kindle Cover has a built in light. Oooh, I can curl up with a blanket in the dark and read to my hearts content. I am ready for the Apocalypse. Or winter. Or even a nuclear winter for that matter, which is my favorite type of book. Ahhh, synchronicity.

Speaking of nuclear winter, this makes me think of another favorite topic of mine. No, not nuclear war...well, actually, yeah, kinda that.

The 60's. I have such an obsession for the 60's. Maybe because I grew up then, my "formative" years were during the 60's, and it was such a churning and tumultuous decade. In the early 60's, the world was still naive, the wars were over, the future was bright, I really believe it was the last of the tranquil and unagitated times.

Then, on October 14, 1962 (October 14...my birthday...did you know that William the Conqueror invaded England on October 14th? The year 1066. My mom taught me to remember it this way: "In 1066, the Normans got their kicks" He was William of Normandy then. But, as they say, I digress)

So, an American U2 pilot flew a "regular" reconnaissance photo mission over Cuba, and to his, and the rest of the worlds horror, the pictures clearly showed Soviet missiles on Cuban soil. They were armed with nuclear warheads and aimed towards the US.

The next 13 days became the closest that the world has ever come to nuclear annihilation. I guess it was my parents generations 9/11. Not to compare the deaths of 9/11 to this, but to compare the feeling of terror imposed upon one nation by another. And the feeling of being helpless.I don't think that today's generation realizes how terrifying it really was.

We had air raid drills all day long. The sirens would suddenly shriek that ear shattering noise, "Duck & cover!" you'd hear the teachers yell, and children would drop to their knees, crouched under a desk, hands on the back of the neck, eyes closed...waiting, waiting, waiting for the roar of the bomb, and the bright flash of light that would basically mean the end of the world as we knew it. Was it a drill? Or was it real...we held our breath and waited....Can you imagine that happening in today's schools? Parents would surely sue for trauma caused to their sensitive child. Or they'd keep their children at home. But you know, this was our way, this was what we did. These drills had been going for for quite a few years prior, but now there was a real sense of urgency.

If we were at home when the sirens went, we'd have to grab our bag of stuff, which was at the front door and run to your assigned bunker. I vaguely recall ours being one of the plane hangers, but I'm sure it wasn't since the runway and the hangers would be what the bombs were heading towards. I should explain that we lived across the street from the runway. Outside our front door was our small yard, then the road, and then the base runway. My parents are gone now, so I can't ask them where it was we actually ran to. Our basement was stocked with canned water (yes boys and girls, canned water...there was no plastic bottled water back then) and canned goods.

The TV was always on... and even at my young age, I knew who JFK was, and I knew to be quiet when my parents watched him speak on TV.

"We have enough missiles to blow you up 30 times over."

~John F Kennedy, President of the United States.

"We have enough to blow you up only once, but that will be enough for us."
~Nikita Khrushchev, First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.

After the 13 days were over, after two weeks of intense and secret negotiations between the US and the Soviet Union, the Soviets agreed to remove their missiles from Cuba in exchange for a promise from the US not to invade Cuba. In addition, and in secret, the US agreed to remove their long standing missiles from an American airbase in Turkey. These were too close to the Soviet Union for their (the Soviet Unions) comfort.

*Whew* There. It was over, although the Cold War reigned for another 27 years before the Berlin Wall came down and the Cold War was officially over.

And then the following year, just over a year from the end of the Cuban Missile Crisis, came the end of Camelot. November 22, 1963. JFK shot in Dallas. I remember being sent home from school, not really sure what was happening and why all the grown-ups were crying. My mom explained to me that JFK had died, but I can't recall if she told me that he had been shot.

Don't let it be forgot, that once there was a spot,

for one brief shining moment

that was known as Camelot"

Those were two huge events in my life, and I was so young that they made a big impression upon me, I remember those days so clearly. Maybe that's why I have such an affinity for the 60's. And the movies! How could I forget about all the movies about the 60's!? My favorite genre...movies that take place in the 60's, usually a "coming of age" theme, jumping back and forth from "present day" to the 60's is a plus, and a voice-over is a huge plus. Some of the best?

-Stand by Me (of course, that must be #1 on everyone's list. If it isn't on your list, gee, I have my doubts about our friendship)

-Mermaids (Whoa...Cher and Winona Ryder? Can't beat that combo)

-A Perfect World

-Now and Then (that missed the 60's by a year...but that's close enough)

-Pleasantville

-The Outsiders (Pony Boy!)

-Cry Baby (Johnny Depp....)

-Hairspray.

-Ed Wood (kinda one of the worst movies ever made, but also one of my favorites)

-The Sandlot.

-Dirty Dancing (of course that goes without saying...)

-Peggy Sue Got Married.

-The Secret Life of Bees.

I could go on and on. I guess if I could be stuck in Time, I'd have to choose the 60's.