That 70s Surf, Part Two

In August, I did a blog entry called "That 70s Surf" with some favorite things from the 70s. Since I've been thinking about the 70s quilts a lot lately, I thought I'd do another 70s Surf blog with more things I remember all too well. Of course, there was the Pet Rock.

When I first saw this classic McDonald's Big Mac commercial I had to practice saying "Two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun." Even though I was just a kid, I wanted to be smarter than all the grown-ups in the commercial who couldn't get it right. Some people were just in a haze in the 70s, but nothing got past me. 

That's not to say I wasn't a total goofball. The classic "Manamanah" from Sesame Street was one of the songs I still, to this day, find myself singing. I was busy avoiding schoolwork, watching cartoons, and collecting Wacky Packs.

Without question, my favorite food in the 1970s was cereal. Any kind of cereal would do, if it was full of sugar, had cartoon characters and prizes or games. I ate Quisp, Count Chocula, Frankenberry, Boo Berry, King Vitamin, Super Sugar Crisp, Sugar Pops, Cocoa and Fruity Pebbles, Cookie Crisp, and my all-time favorite, Cap'n Crunch! There was regular Cap'n Crunch, Peanut Butter Crunch, Vanilla Crunch, and my absolute favorite, Cap'n Crunch with Crunchberries!!

It wasn't until the late 70s that I learned about pizza parlors. Before that, Mom made homemade pizza sometimes but the rest of the time we had Tree Tavern frozen pizza.

The Tree Tavern started as a tavern and restaurant on Crosby Avenue in Paterson, New Jersey, and was a landmark location in Paterson through the 1950’s and 1960’s - right in the heart of the city. The Francia family presided over the restaurant from the very beginning. They froze the very first Tree Tavern Pizza in 1955 and was the first frozen pizza ever sold in a supermarket. I would still eat a Tree Tavern pizza, but in 1977 our family moved to south Jersey, closer to Philly than New York. That's where we discovered the local pizza parlor, Sal & Joes. It was similar to the one in the opening scene of Saturday Night Fever.

Toward the end of the 70s, disco wasn't as cool as it used to be, so I started listening to classic rock on WMMR in Philadelphia. That's when I discovered Pink Floyd. I don't think I was ever the same after that! Developing an appreciation for time and money was just the beginning.