I was talking to Foodstamps the other day and he mentioned that a few of you are from the Great Glowing City. Now, I know only people who are from there going to read this post based on the subject line. So, I'd like to know who you are and when did you graduate? I'm just wondering if I know any of you Toppers and maybe even helped drain a keg or two of yours up at American Springs, the Pipeline, etc. or even saw you play at a busted party at a quad.

Anybody out there willing to admit to such an abnormal upbringing? Oh, wait, this is Rocksquawk. Of course you are!

Since I keep my house at bar lighting, Jenny Tonic is always easy to spot when she comes over due to the radioactive exposure she experienced growing (glowing?) up in Los Alamos and, apparently, working at Rocky Flats.

They are a cultish lot, these Los Alamosans. Never trust them. They lie.

No, Foodstamps, it's actually from hanging out in the hidden city of mutants that live beneath one of the bridges. Or maybe it was the uranium filled cocktails my parents fed me. Or working next to the Kivas and watching the multiple experiments being conducted.

Yes, we are a cult. I have never met anyone with even close to the experiences I had growing up. Only we, the insiders, really know what is going on with the government conspiraicies.

Be afraid. Be very afraid.

LAHS class of '80.

I'm probably lots older than you, Jenny Tonic, but I think it's cool how those party places and their names lasted through time. I'm well familiar with American Springs and Pipeline. And I'm sure you know the Dome, St Peter' Dome.

Do you know the Ocean? The Electric Tree? The Bathtub? Certainly, Peggy Sue - and I've heard the origins of the name and it has nothing to do with the alleged ghost of Peggy Sue looking for her head.

Did you jump off the cliffs at the East Forks - where I had my bigfoot sighting?

Did you explore the canyon behind the high school and find the cave? Did you find the weird rock formation on the other side that we called the Crack? Did you ever get to go into the tunnels under the town? There were tunnels that you could get into under the high school that went on forever and there was graffitti from the 1950s. The theater kids showed me the entrance - you got into it under the auditorium, and you had to scoot on your stomach under the stage forever until you got to this little room that they would party in - then that led to an entrance to the tunnels.

Did you ever get under the swimming pool? There was actually a room under the swimming pool.

Did you ever go to the arch? Did your house burn down? Mine did.

And, for heaven's sake, did you know about the Marshalls?

My friend Steve committed suicide at American Springs. My friend Paul Spirio died climbing down near Hell Hole - down by the rio grande, pajarito acres. Did you ever go down in hell hole? My classmates Lester and Thomas died in car crashes before graduation. My friend Terry was struck by lightning on his bike in white rock and died.

There was a cool cave in western area called 'cave of the winds' - concerned parents blew it up with dynamite so their kids would stop going into it.

My first band was a southern rock thing called 'gambler' and they kicked me out before their first gig - new year's eve at the Los Alamos Inn. Which was fine because they were all my pals. I worked at the Inn as a dishwasher and Maid's assistant. Jergen Peters liked the way I mopped. I worked at the ski hill, too, which is a whole nother story.

I've disconnected with that town and I haven't gone to any class reunions, but it's surprising how nostalgic I get when the topic comes up.

There's probably a bunch of stuff you and other 'toppers' know about that I don't - it would be fascinating to hear about it. The whole post 1980 scene up there is a mystery to me.

Holy shit I'm captivated. When is the movie coming out? Has anyone tried to make a documentary yet? We'll I'm sure LANL has had and has been in many docs. But what about the subculture.

i drove thru los alamos one time years ago at like 7pm on a Saturday night. we stopped and looked for a place to eat and there was NOTHING. the place was a total ghost town. we finally found a pizza hut that was open but refused service to us because they said they were too busy with deliveries. fucking weird. i can't imagine growing up there. sounds like you guys did lots of cool stuff outside to stay sane as kids.

Age is all relative. You're not that much older than I am ('87). You may know my brother, Corby Wilson, even though is was a year ahead of you. And wasn't Paul Carmen in your class?

"All these people died,died..."
My brother's best friend was also killed while climbing in one of the canyons. Jeff something or another. Then there was the kid who was killed in Bandelier when someone threw a rock off the top and it hit him in the head. Don't forget the guy who drove his girlfriend and himself off overlook and the kids who went off the road at the curve by TA-15 on the pajatio Rd. I'm sure more could come to me. oh, and don't forget the bus load of kids that when off the Jemez Rd. Let's see, there was also the girl that was murdered. They thought that her boyfriend did it, but could never prove it. And the girl who died from lack of electrolytes after skiing.

I actually was in gymnastics with Mary Spirio. Was it Martha Dummer that found him?

After I left, people used to ask me if I was afraid of getting cancer from the radiation. I told them I was more afraid of the Curse.

I distinctly remember my mom talking with Tony Brown's mom and they said they were praying every night the their boys would graduate before they died.

It may not seem like much to people on the outside until they realize that all these deaths happened within like a four year period and the small size of town.

Next up...
Memories.

Memories...

I'm glad you brought up the Domes. I was racking my brain to think of the names. I actually went away to school for highschool, but whenever I was in town for vacations or when I was doing my coop, I spent the magority of my nights at one of those sites or the other. Folks had moved up to some townhouse across from the police station so I'd head on over to Ashley Pond, find out where the parties were and head on up. I'm absolutely amazed that there weren't more DWI deaths of people coming down from the mountains. I loved it the couple of times the cops would show up. 75% of the people would scatter and the cops would walk up and say,"how's everything going?"
"Fine officer."
"Well, make sure you get that fire put out and clean up after yourselves."
"We will. Thank you, sir."
And off they went.

I had a bunch of people try to get me to go in the tunnels, but with a pretty serious case of claustrophobia, I always declined. I did find the room under the pool though. That was pretty cool.

Growing up in White Rock, I spent most of my time in the areas around there - overlook, red dot trail, arroyos behind Aragon, Rocketship park where there was this awesome hidden cave on rattlesnake mountain. It wasn't until a few years ago that my brother took me to the caves that are right around the turnoff from State rd.4 to the truck route. Petroglyphs everywhere. I guess they've shut all that down now.

I too jumped off the cliffs at East Forks...once. Didn't care much for struggling my way towards the light to breathe. My folks owned the land that went right up to the cliffs at the west fork so I knew that area like the back of my hand. We used to wade all the way up the river to the cliffs and waterfall that were just on the other side of the cliff jumping.

I think that by the time my generation got old enough to hit all the great places, many people just stuck to the tried and true and didn't have enough gumption to go exploring. pretty sad. my brother had great stories.

What was the name of the road that you would take from the top of Nort Mesa (I think) and bring you out at the bottom of huge horseshoe curve that was between LA and espanola? That was great down there.

What were the Marshall's?

quote:

Originally posted by WebMonkey:
i drove thru los alamos one time years ago at like 7pm on a Saturday night. we stopped and looked for a place to eat and there was NOTHING. the place was a total ghost town. we finally found a pizza hut that was open but refused service to us because they said they were too busy with deliveries. fucking weird. i can't imagine growing up there. sounds like you guys did lots of cool stuff outside to stay sane as kids.

That's about right. Everyone goes off the hill to eat out.

A lot of people bitch about growning up there, and when I was there, I vowed I would never go back once I got out. Once I did, I realized how lucky I was to have so much available to me. I really had a ball when I was there. Like any small town you have to learn how to make your own fun.

One reason is because anytime a place became considered a hangout, folks would do what ever they could to shut it down.

Gordon did a lot for the kids by giving them shows to go to and really providing some intown entertainment for the youth besides going to a pathetic Youth Working for Youth dance. Plus, the baby boomers that had moved back really enjoyed them as well.

I knew Lisa Spirio, but not Mary. I knew Martha Dummer - she would actually do flips off the scarier jumps at east forks. Martha and Paul Carmen were a year behind me - Paul, of course, was a great bass player and went off to Los Angeles and joined a metal band called Leather Wolf.

Wow, a whole bunch of names I thought I had forgotten. Mike Gerwin here. I graduated same year as Nick Brown. Spent some afternoons sitting on the backside of the ski hill drinking, talking about moguls.
I remember the bands in Los Alamos, not the greatest in retrospect, but cool to see a band powered by a generator, LSD and lots of beer up at the Dome when I was 19 years old. I seem to remember the best bands were pretty much high school kids. The Rick Rogers bands followed some years later by Billy Blastoff and the Retrorockets. I miss the Los Alamos that was.
It hasn't been calling to me as much since the forest service and the park service burned down our mountains. It's a depressing sight these days.

I went to snowboard at Pajarito a couple years back, and, indeed, it was a depressing drive up to the ski area. Blackened country all over. What's equally revolting is the horrid palaces that people have put up in the stead of the original housing that burned down. Huge, three story adobe style homes in unnatural stucco colors that betray the natural beauty and mode of the landscape. A lot of them look like they were just thrown up as quickly as possible, with asymmetrical architecture with a lack of fit & finish that is nauseating. Ugly shit. I bet the builders and contractors who made these architectural abortions made a lot of money off of the fire.

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Paul, of course, was a great bass player and went off to Los Angeles and joined a metal band called Leather Wolf.

Funny. That's how I met him. I got a call at my apartment in Boston after seeing them play. Turns out that a couple of my groupie friends were partying with them. When he told them where he was from, they got me on the phone. After answering a couple of LA trivia questions he said,"You've got to get over here!" So I dragged my tired ass over to their hotel and we spent the night talking about the place and making fun of everyone else's accents. I guess when they came around again, he was asking where I was. Dude must have been getting homesick.

Mom always said Los Alamos people have a way of seeking each other out. I guess she was right.

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It hasn't been calling to me as much since the forest service and the park service burned down our mountains. It's a depressing sight these days.

Not only that, but a bunch of locals have had them close off all the great roads and trails around there to "preserve" them. Can't even get up Pipeline without a bike.

Oh, I almost forgot the reservoir. Wish I could remember that ghost story. Used to have me trembling in my boots.

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three story adobe style homes in unnatural stucco colors

Dude! Did you see that purple house! AAACCCKKKK!

Proof that money + brains != taste.

(Please note the .net version of "not equal" to add to the reputation that we're all geeks)

Yeah, the Barney house.



"Hey, kids, come live in meeeeeee."

I used to be in a band with a guy from Lost Alamos his name was Luke Wanek. We even played a show at the Dome like 15 years ago with a band called All Eyes...i think they were from Lost Alamos too.....good times up there for sure!

Oh and I remember taking mushrooms and going cliff jumping...that was fun till my friend shattered his elbow on a boulder while jumping. We were haulin ass back to ABQ and got pulled over, when we told the officer what happened he gave us a police escort all the way back to Bernalillo....haha was crazy shroomin and chasing the cops.

do any of you guys have any stories about running into the ninjas who do security for the labs while ya'll were tromping around in the woods out there???