As a kid I loved going to the movies - what kid didn't. I'd get my popcorn
and soft drink and settle back in the comfortable confines of the local theater.
We had 3 in town with two on Main St. directly across from one another.
I can still picture the old fashion marquee hanging out over the sidewalk,
it's red lettering announcing that day's offering. The theater was air-conditioned
and provieded a nice break from the heat and humidity of the summer days.

My Mom would drop us off and with loving admonishments to "be in this spot after
the movie" and off we went on our rare excursions into town without a parent.
We felt so grown up!

At the time you didn't need a small loan or to bring a credit card to afford
an afternoon matinee. Movies were 2 or 3 dollars a ticket and pretty much anyone
could afford to go. The weekly allowance was more than enough to cover the cost
of the movie and if you were careful and wise with it, you could afford the movie
goodies too.

Mostly all the popcorn would be gone by the time the movie started... just the
very bottom with all the unpopped kernals and the greasy sides of the container
left. Wiping my hands on my pants (my poor Mother), I was ready for the movie!

The prevues and advertisements came first and sometimes they were just as
entertaining as the movie itself. We were sheltered children...

As we sat and watched, laughed or jumped out of our seats depending on the scene,
I remember feeling totaly emersed in the theater experience, sitting there, usually
with my brother thinking this was it...we had arrived. Things couldn't get any
better that this.

Sometimes after a movie, once my Mother had picked us up, she'd take us shopping
and we'd see a poster with the hero or villian of the movie we'd just seen. More
often than not, the allowance was long gone and we would have to explain to Mom
why we needed the extra cash. On
occasion she would say no and stick to her guns but most of the time we would anxiously
ride home deciding where the new poster or other movie memorabilia would look best on
our bedroom wall or bookshelf.

Today, if I want to see a movie, I just push a few buttons on my tv remote and whamo!@#!$
I'm watching a movie. Or maybe I've got a subscription to a movie service and have a movie
just waiting to be watched in my DVD player. I can go online and find dozens of services
who want my movie-dollar. Although I've never tried any of them, I question watching
a movie on my comparatively small computer screen. I know computers have trouble making
action movies play nice with pixels and I own a wide-screen tv.

With all the technological improvements and modern conveniences we have now to enjoy
movies, I still remember feeling swept up and whisked away into the theater experience
back so long ago. Although we needed to be driven there and back, about 6 miles from
my home, and we had to stand in line for tickets and treats, there was always something
special about our trips into town and the theater. An occasion to be sure.

Maybe we really had arrived...Things were pretty good back then!