Mattson, DelGrosso, Bodily. Early 1980's. More From the Collections.

From the Fortress of Solitude
Pleasant Grove

I'm slowly working my way through hundreds and hundreds of slides taken between 1972 and 1990. They are posted randomly, and for that I apologize. The thought of organizing my entire collection, then categorizing them by decade, year, time and place would be too much to consider. To be perfectly honest, I would never do it. These pictures would end up lost to time and never appreciated. So, with your permission, I'll continue to post away in a grab bag random sort of way.

That being said, let's take another journey in the Wayback Machine.

Who is this little chubby cherub enjoying a paddle in his raft?
Chaz Bodily is the correct answer.

And in goes mom. Jilane and Chaz. Chaz loved the water. Jilane hoped for a tan. This picture was taken in Provo. Vernell's is a candy company. Kevin got the raft through his job at the Quaker Oats Warehouse. Ah, the life of leisure. Things haven't changed much for Jilane over the years :)

Baby Chaz Bodily once again, a bit older this time and wearing his Sunday Best. Jilane had a strange taste in children's clothing back then. All of this helps us understand the reasons Chaz is the way he is today.

There is one thing about John Mattson everyone should know; Keep him away from a garden hose! The lure of water is temptation he can't resist.

This picture was taken in front of the Mattson home on 510 S. American Fork. John is at the hose. Jake Mattson is in the blue trunks doing his best to land a strike before the full brunt of the garden hose is turned on him.

Joseph Mattson (yellow top), being the good older brother, couldn't stand idly by and let Jacob
battle the Dragon alone. Joseph and a fellow neighbor Knight took up buckets to extinguish the
Dragon's flame restore peace once again to the Kingdom. John, heavily outnumbered
fought bravely on. He succumbed in the end, giving the boys the sweet taste of victory.

Aunt Bev never got involved in anything messy. She was the one who cleaned up
the messes.

While the boys battled in the driveway, Bev enjoyed the lazy late summer afternoon by teaching her youngest daughter Candace to ride a bike.

An action shot taken just before Candace's frightful Crash and Burn. Down she went onto the neighbors lawn. If memory serves me correctly, Uncle John saw her fall and turned the garden hose on her. She had strayed too close. I told you Uncle John and water hoses are a bad combination.

Not to worry, the boys came to their little sister's rescue. Several hundred gallons of water later, the lawns were thoroughly watered and the battle ceased.

And how does one celebrate a courageous victory? Ice Cream of course.
Are you thinking "Poor Bev?".
I agree.

A half gallon container of ice cream didn't go far in the Mattson home. There wasn't much left by the time the four oldest (Kirk, Gina, Angie and Joe ) got their fill. Jake, Camille and Candace were left with the drippings - and those inevitable went to Jake. Grabbing the empty container and running away from the two youngest girls was good sport for him. The little girls cried while he licked the box clean.

You never commented about Jake's uncivilized feral ways if you wanted to keep your face clean. Jake would chase down those who did and use their faces as a towel.

Joseph Mattson's 13th Birthday.

This was a special birthday in the Mattson home. Special not because Joseph was the family's newest teenager. It was special because of what Joseph was given that day as a birthday gift. A gift which marked the family's entrance into the technological age.

Do you see what I mean?

Joseph's 13th Birthday gift was the Mattson's very first video game system, the original Nintendo 64! They played that box morning, noon and night. The Nintendo 64 was the beginning of a new era in computer and gaming history, captured the moment it arrived for the first time in the Mattson home.

How could Joe celebrate his birthday without his favorite cousins? Brandon DelGrosso, Joseph Mattson and Forrest DelGrosso. This may have been their fist exposure to home video gaming as well.

That same summer I took the older cousins to Lagoon.
Angie, Jake and Joe Mattson with Brandon and Forrest DelGrosso.


Jake and Forrest on Lagoon's brand new JetStar II

I'd like to think that Brandon DelGrosso's fascination with climbing may have gotten its start in Lagoon's Fun House. Do you remember the game? For a little extra cash (compliments of Uncle Victor) you got to climb a wobbly rope ladder up a wall to the top. A cheap prize was yours if you made it.

Jake Mattson

I loved roller coasters; however these spin you around rides were not good for me. I let the kids ride the twirl around rides while I indulged in my favorite amusement park concessions. It worked well for my wallet. I only had to buy one treat for me!

Jake Mattson and Brandon DelGrosso on the Jet Star II just before
take off.