At the time that I turned six, Larry was serving a tour of duty in Vietnam so Dee Dee, Lara, and I were living at Dee Dee’s mother’s (Ma’s) house. Dodson, Ma’s town, and Hollis, the Tucker’s town, were just about 13 miles apart, so it was no big deal to go to Hollis when we felt the desire. This proved to be quite useful when it was time for my birthday “extravaganza”.
You see, when Blaine and Madelene bought their house, it was directly across the street from the high school. There was a separate building on the side of the house, facing the school, and the woman who previously owned the house – and that building -- had the spare building set up as a little burger joint. Many of the kids would come there for lunch; since the school mascot was a tiger, this little place was called, “The Tiger Den”. The lady left all of the furnishings intact when she left, which meant that there were several booths and tables with lots of space for a birthday party!
This was one of the few birthday parties that I can remember that actually involved more than just our immediate family. To make it even more special, I had a “Batman” cake! I was crazy for all things Batman at the time, and this was such a special, special treat. I think I was more excited about the cake than I was at the prospect of presents. Here are the few pictures we have from that day:
Here I am at Ma’s house, waiting to go:
Here we are with my cousin, Kandi Ford. She is the daughter of Dee Dee’s brother, Ronnie:
Some of the “Tucker” side was there, too. On the left, with just half of her face showing, is Jani Amburn. She is Larry’s cousin’s (Janie Amburn’s) daughter. On the right side in the front is Jimmy Ford. With a name like “Ford”, you might think he’s from Dee Dee’s side of the family. However, Blaine’s sister, Margie, married a man named Bill Ford, and Jimmy is their son. In the back is my uncle, Monte. He was only 4 years older than me – Larry was a senior in high school when his mother was pregnant with his younger brother.
The pictures from this birthday serve to highlight one other phenomenon that was prevalent in my life during this time: big, poufy hair. Dee Dee had a major fascination with those pink foam rollers, and she rolled my hair all the time. Looking through old pictures, it seems that the pink foam curler was not saved for special occasions (like birthday parties). Here I am with my great-grandmother, Carrie (and some major pouf):
At bed time at Ma’s house – it’s the end of the day, but that curl is still hanging on!
And here we are at the old mobile home, with me actually sporting those dreadful things:
I guess mothers through the ages have done whatever it takes to make little girls look good!
