We lived in the Santiago Baca house, located across from Socorro Grade School. There were besides me, my Nanna (Grandmother Theresa), Tom, my grandfather, and my Mom (Mudder, Dorothy). I was pretty much a healthy kid. I remember only two times when I was what one would call sick. Once with the whooping cough (this happened at the time we were at Park Hotel because our house burned) and the other was appendix.
The Olguin's lived in the house just south of us. I didn't know any of the kids but would go over to their house to be a boy and snoop. One time I did a dumb thing and climbed the fence with intentions of getting on top of their house-behind-the-house and in so climbing I cut my hand on the tin roof. I cried, of course, not from the cut but from the fear it gave me in knowing I had to answer to Nanna as to why I was doing something I had been told not to do. But for Mrs. Olguin I was saved, she cleansed my hand and painted it with iodine and walked me home. Sure enough my Nanna
was ticked but for Mrs. Olguin helped to get Nanna to let things go.
I was very lucky while we lived in the Baca house, for just a block away lived Juan Castillo and his family of which I was soon a part of. My Nanna, after I met JJ and Rudy, would allow me to go to the Castillo's and play, then of course came lunch and Momma Castillo would insist (tho resistance on my part was nil) that I stay and eat with them, am sure you are aware of the most delicious fare, home made fresh tortillas, beans southwest style, diced fresh tomatoes, green chili, black coffee, and the love and kisses of Momma Castillo, two older sisters of JJ, and the rough house of Arther, Candy (Cruzie) and Papa Juan. Those friends were with me and in my memory still are, through grade school, high school, and then seeing JJ and his wife after his return from the military (he was going to the University then). It is great that memories bring to mind the lasting sights of earlier times.
My other playmate, David Paxton, lived in the Bursum house next door to Mrs. Chambon. David was into all sorts of things in terms of ways to scare the Hell out of me. And in most cases he was able to do this at his leisure. What would happen is he would come over to get me to play and we would end up over at his house. He would make some cockamamie excuse to go inside. Inside, in his room, he would put on theater makeup and it would be of the scary type , this along with the cloaks and wigs to hide his appearance, he would sneak out the front door, slip around the house to the back where an unsuspecting Dave Anderson would await. Yeah, scare me, he would. But when it was done we would continue to play.
One other tale on Poor Dave Paxton and I will leave him alone at least for a while, I ran into him in Okinawa years later.
The Bursums had a maid and a very good one. She prepared the best lunches and pastries around. (exception is my Nanna) This particular day I went to play with David and he was just sitting down at the table on the back porch, lunch was a tuna
sandwich and a small bowl of peas as the Bursums required veggies for virtually every meal. And as David P. was opposed to the partaking of said veggies, when the maid stepped into the kitchen, the peas entered the drawer in the porch table. The remnants of the veggie plate added to some previous droppings and would be removed later that afternoon when the coast was clear. I have often thought about the hiding of veggies and wonder if David still avoids them?
Whoops, forgot one of the most important things that David Paxton did for David Anderson. He taught me to swim. We would go to the School Of Mines and get into the watering tanks (round concrete tanks 10 ft deep). He would push me into the tank and of course I would flail and sink and come up and flail again and he would then be in the water by me and push me toward the side and Viole' I learned to swim.
I think it was in 1936, I was about 5, my grandfather Tom Conlin took me to an adobe house on Old Route 6o, the house was being added on to and was just near being finished. The floor was being laid and I remember taking some scrape pieces with me, for after all when one is a giant in building he always has wood, right?
We moved into the house and it was really wonderful. Room and cozy, warm in winter, cool in summer and yard, yes lots of yard. And most of all a huge mulberry tree.
My near by neighbors we Leo Funk, Frank Naranjo, and his two cousins, can't think of their names just now, however I think one was Mike and the other was another Frank, not sure. And of course JJ and Rudy and David were still playmates also.
Next door was a family that I shall never forget, and the stories and learnings derived from this family shall be with me and in part with my children and eventually maybe some of my grandchildren. The family was the Jojola's. The youngest
Ciprano and his next older sister Mary were playmates and Mary was in the same class as I. I will expound on this subject later in a more chronological time.
These happy sojourns into the reaches of childhood would come to an end as Tom, my grandfather sold the dealership and we would move to Albuquerque.
(bc01) The year was, I think, 1938. BILL and his family (MOM and DAD, Big Bill) lived across street from Mr. Mrs. George Cook. This is significant in that Mr. Cook was the Ford dealer at that time, (Mr. Cook sold the dealership to Mr. Keith) and also one of the elite of the community.
Adjacent to them on one side was Dr. and Mrs. C. C. Clark and their kids Catherine and Cornell. On the other side lived Mr. and Mrs. Mundy and daughter Marcella (she died about this time so I cannot tell you any more about her, bless her soul.)
Juat a block away on the opposite corner lived the Everharts. Mr. Everhart was a mining engineer and worked a mine North and West of Socorro. James (Jimmy) was their son and was a year behind me in school. I say that tho in truth until High School Jimmy went to private school, can't recall the name, I'll work at it.
Bill and his sister had been dance students prior to their moving to SOCORRO. Since I ended up moving to ALBUQUERQUE shortly after this I don't know if they kept up their dancing or not. However I suspect someway they did as in later years there was a lot of dancing going on.
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(bc01) There you find a letter from BILL CALDWELL giving us real times and real corrections to some items.
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