"WHAT WAS IT LIKE GOING TO THE DRIVE-IN MOVIES WHEN YOU WERE A KID, GRANDPA?"

Memo to Los Angeles residents: As we endure this perfectly seasonal cold snap and you’re thinking to yourself, “It’s just too cold to go out to a drive-in movie,” just be glad you don’t live with a drive-in jones in one of the areas of this country where the seasonal weather actually changes for a significant amount of time. Here’s a picture shot this past week by Jack Ondracek, owner of the Rodeo Drive-in in Bremerton, Washington, which indicates the lengths to which some drive-in fans will go to catch a sparkling new Hollywood double feature under cover of stars (or snow clouds) in the great outdoors. Here two die-hard patrons get the best spots on the lot for The Day the Earth Stood Still and Twilight.

Kidding.

Mr. Ondracek is obviously shut down for the season and using his time during the massive snowstorms that have socked in the Pacific Northwest to make some repairs to his establishment. His projected reopen date (an optimistic one, perhaps, by the looks of that picture, anyway): March 2009. Good luck, Mr. Ondracek, and happy projections for the coming year! The picture reminds me of the time my best friend Bruce and I sat through a Dirty Harry triple feature in a February snowstorm in Eugene back in the late ‘70s. I don’t recall there being many more cars on the lot than what you see in the picture above, but I do remember getting dagger eyes from the snack bar staff which suggested that, if not for the two goofballs in the Volkswagen Beetle, they could be home under a heavy wool blanket instead of serving ice-cold popcorn and icier Cokes.

Finally, my apologies regarding the radio silence here at SLIFR over the past week. The last week of school before winter break, combined with terrible service from AT&T affecting my Internet connection, made it impossible to be much of a presence here at my home away from home. But Christmas week holds many treats, including a new holiday quiz, so I hope you’ll stay tuned!

(Photo by Jack Ondracek, courtesy of Steve Swanson)