1980

Munjoy Street, Portland Maine

  After Jeff and Rhonda came to Maine we lived in an apartment on Munjoy Street, on Munjoy Hill, at that time a moderate rent neighborhood.  We couldn't afford to live there now that's it been "gentrified". 
Rhonda was in second grade, and Jeff was in the 10th, we didn't have much furniture, but I was still working at the Westfield.  I'd ride the bus down each morning, after the kids went to school, and drink, nothing about that was changing, yet.
  I got a new job as an attendant in a new parking garage, the hours were better and the pay too.  The work was tedious, boring and mind numbing.  One day someone took ticket 111-111, they took it at 1:11PM and left the garage at 2:09PM -- Holy Cow!! all added to eleven or eleven's in a series, I went to buy a lottery ticket, with number 111!  The winning number was something like 536, ha-ha to me.
  Jeff and Rhonda are very sociable people, they quickly made friends around the block, there was a store we could walk to, I still didn't own a car (no expense great than beer was my motto), they walked to school, and I could walk to work, or take the bus down, it really wasn't very far.
  Everything looked to be okay, at least to most casual observers, it wasn't - for sure.


Eastern Promanade and the view from the bus stop



Portland High School

The Portland Observatory.  Munjoy Hills' pride and joy, it was the tower
where people watched ships come and go, in the sailing days.