This is a diary of sorts chronicling August, 1984 through to December 1985 or somewhere thereabouts. Check back every day or so for new entries.
August 5, 1984. S & H and Quality Stamps were still a thing - IGA and Cooper Martin gave them out with purchases. A story on compact discs: "Because nothing but light touches the disc, it never wears, and it lasts forever. There are no pops, ticks, or crackles." The future was coming and now I wonder where it went.
This is a diary of sorts chronicling August, 1984 through to December 1985 or somewhere thereabouts. Check back every day or so for new entries.
August 4, 1984. It was Saturday which meant I'd watch pro wrestling from 11-12 on channel 17. Then I'd probably ride into Murfreesboro with my father. We'd pick up my uncle from this shack in Dilton where he lived at the time. He would always ask me to unplug his stove before we left as he was afraid if left plugged in it would catch the house on fire. I once got a considerable size shock from doing this and I've been wary of electric outlets ever since.
I definitely watched the Late Night with David Letterman's 2nd anniversary show (even though it was a rerun as it originally aired on February 4, 1984) from 10:30-12 and the local comedy/music video show Misc. followed at midnight on WSMV channel 4. Co-hosts Mike Bohan and Mike Donegan were great with wry comedy segments between the latest hot music videos. I wish full length episodes were out there.
Promo for the Letterman special
2nd anniversary special of Late Night with David Letterman
Misc. (Mike and Mike try to get Dan Miller to guest on their show)
This is a diary of sorts chronicling August, 1984 through to December 1985 or somewhere thereabouts. Check back every day or so for new entries.
August 3, 1984. Highs have been in the mid-80's with chance of thundershowers daily so….typical Tennessee summer weather. The movies playing in Murfreesboro.
Martin Four
Cinema One and Two
Marbro Drive-In weekend showings only
The Summer Olympics were still going strong, but I had no interest in them. August 3, 1984 was a Friday so my television watching would concentrate on NBC's Friday Night Videos which ran from 11:30 PM until 1:00 AM. If I wasn't completely exhausted I'd watch Rock-N-America which came on next. If we had had cable I would have probably watched MTV all night.
When I said I was going to chronicle my senior year and beyond of high school I wasn't kidding. This whole thing is like a diary of sorts. Probably will be better as a whole, but for now you'll get it a day or two at a time. I would begin my senior year of high school later in August so we're starting in that month. August 1st was chronicled yesterday if you missed it.
August 2, 1984. The reception was spotty but I tried to catch Murfreesboro's channel 39's At the Video every evening at 6:30PM hoping to catch some decent rock and roll. It was this show that introduced me to the White Animals and The Style Council. The Daily News Journal had an ad about the local downtown JC Penney to close forever on September 3rd. It was not a store we shopped at frequently, but I have fond memories of those rare times we went there. I loved the staircase that led to the second floor and would spend much of my time just going up and down it.
My son is starting his senior year of high school this month which reminds me that I was also a senior in high school 38 years ago. It was a fleeting moment in time that continues to bring me (mostly) joy and fond memories. So, for the next year or so I'm going to devote the blog to an almost daily diary type journey to those days. My senior year at Riverdale High School in Murfreesboro was the culmination of my public education that had began with Mrs. Phillip's private kindergarten class (public schools in Tennessee back in the early 70's started at 1st grade) and ended with Mrs. Warner's home room. There were 6 periods of classes at Riverdale, but I only needed 5 more credits to graduate in 1985 so I was done after my 5th period accounting class. My other classes would be English, Sociology/Psychology, Geography, and World History. It was, for the most part, a completely stress free senior year.
We'll get to that soon enough, but for now I am going to begin this look back at the beginning of August just to have this tour of the past begin on the first day of the month. So how about we see what went on in and around August 1, 1984. I was still living on Jimmy C. Newman's farm. Here's a photo of the trailer and one of me probably from April or May of 1984.
The weather was hot, but I stuck to my t-shirt, blue jeans, and flip flops most of the time. The only time I was allowed to use a car was when I would get to drive to the mailbox which was located at the foot of Jimmy C. Newman Road at Big Springs Road. I don't know how far it was, but I could get in at least one song off of KDF to and from on the trip. My mother would drive to Smyrna for work during the day and my father was usually on the tractor all day bush hogging hundreds of acres. I listened to the radio, my records, and tapes. I might have read the latest Creem, Circus, or Hit Parader magazine if I'd been able to get one on a Saturday when I'd usually ride into Murfreesboro with my father and uncle. I'd go outside and hit rocks with an old baseball bat or just meander around the farm making sure to keep an eye out for timber rattlers. I mowed the grass around the trailer we lived in every week, but spent lots of time inside thumbing through the complete set of Encyclopedia Brittanica's my parents bought me at the start of my sophomore year of high school. I waited around until 11:30PM to watch Late Night with David Letterman. That show was basically my religion at this point. Ghostbusters, Gremlins, Best Defense, and The Jungle Book were at the Martin Four. Purple Rain and Meatballs II were at the Cinema. The local newspaper, the Daily New Journal, had a coupon for 40 cents off E.T. cereal.
