Another AHA Moment in the Life of a Boomer

February 9, 1964, an astounding 47 years ago, a Sunday night in Toronto.  A bunch of us went to church as was our thing back then.  One of the friends brought his twelve inch, portable, black and white TV.  We skipped the service and gathered in the basement watching as he searched for the best reception.  Inside the men's washroom was it.  Must have been the pipes.  Girls and boys huddled together trying not to make too much noise.  Then it was 8PM.

It wasn't long after the Ed Sullivan Show appearances that I bought my first Beatles album at Sam the Record Man on Yonge Street.  Buy the album, get a free 45.  I grabbed "I Want to Hold Your Hand".  Still have them both in a box somewhere in the furnace room.

In September of '64, I remember heading downtown with my friend Larry.  He owned a 1957 Plymouth two door sedan, red with a white top.  We went downtown because the Beatles were playing Maple Leaf Gardens.  You could hear the screaming outside on the street.

The world changed in 1964.  Never did get the Beatle boots.  It was another year or two before the hair grew long.  Now even hair is a memory.