Smiley: This love story wasn’t on the screen

If you like stories of young love and drive-in theaters, here’s one for you:

Francisco Lomas, of Lafayette, says, “My dad was projectionist at Mission Drive-In Theater in San Antonio.

“When I was between 10 and 12, I would tag along with him to work almost every day during summer vacation.

“After doing some minimal chores in the projection booth, my dad would release me and I would join up with some kids who lived nearby.

“They would sneak in over the back fence, and we would meet at a playground beneath the theater screen. It was there that I met my first puppy love, Linda.

“You could say we were an item, since she gave me my first puppy love kiss.

“We saw each other constantly, until my dad got another job at a downtown theater.

“Years later I learned she married one of my high school classmates and moved to California. Ahhh, the memory of that first kiss under the stars! What was showing on the screen, I don’t recall.”

Dipstick it to ’em

John Laviolette, of Metairie, says our story of a gas station trick in years past “brought me to the realization that I was pretty naive back then, and now.

“I had a 1965 Ford Fairlane 500 handed down to me from my dad. I thought it burned a lot of oil, since it was supposedly a quart low just about every time I went to get my $1 worth of gas.

“I can picture the attendant showing me the dipstick, with the oil not reaching the ‘full’ line.

“Little did I realize that he was probably not putting the stick completely in.

“It only took me to the age of 74 to come to this realization!”

No algebra here

Many readers were quick to let me know that the formula a reader told of on Saturday (Pi x d=C), used to determine the trim needed for a round tablecloth, was geometry, not algebra.

Suzanne Kennedy, of Mandeville, says she learned in her Algebra II class at Hialeah High in Florida in 1964 that Pi 3.14) times diameter equals circumference.

Defending both algebra and geometry, Larry Greenblatt, of Lafayette, reminds us, “Finally, math is a mandatory part and a building block in our technological age. Thankfully, some of us get it.”

And while we’re on personal attacks, C.J. Aucoin, of New Orleans, tells me, “You made a good decision when you became a journalist.”

Remembering Mickey

Linda Gardner, of Vidalia, offers me a chance to plug my home town: Natchez, Mississippi:

“The original urban cowboy, Mickey Gilley, passed away last year in May, but some folks in Concordia Parish are honoring his legacy and passions — golf, music, and animal welfare.

“The inaugural Mickey Gilley Memorial Two-Person Golf Scramble takes place on Thursday, June 22, at Duncan Park Golf Course in Natchez, with an evening of entertainment and live auction of Mickey memorabilia happening at Clarion Suites in Vidalia.”

For details, contact Lindajgardner@gmail.com.

Special People Dept.

— Patsy and Glynn Cambre Sr., of Baton Rouge, celebrated their 57th anniversary Sunday, June 18.

—Nicholas and Elizabeth DiGiovanni, of Metairie, celebrated their 50th anniversary Friday, June 16. He is retired from BellSouth; she is retired from teaching.

— Dickie and Myrtis Leonards , of Livonia, celebrated 50 years of marriage Friday, June 16.

Weighty topic

Glenn Balentine, of Prairieville, says, “I read with dismay that the Office of Motor Vehicle’s cyber attack exposed our Social Security number, birthdate, eye color, and several other items.

“Thank God they didn’t get my real weight.”