Spilled-Away

Although I haven’t been in the place in a very long time, I’m sad, for nostalgic reasons, to see Spillway Lanes close. I still think of it as Town and Country Lanes.

Aside from bowling there often as a kid, it was also the first place I ever played a pinball game and, yes, a video game. In 1974 (I think) a very primitive black and white ‘Tank’ game showed up in the arcade area. It was basically you commanding a multi-pixel “tank” and playing against the machine. It was about as complex as Pong but looked remarkably like the Tank game I now have for my Wii.

Also, in my early teens it seemed to be the place to go to do things kids shouldn’t. Like smoking cigarettes and other “stuff”. I remember even drinking beer in car behind the bowling alley with some coworkers when I was 16 working at Balestri's Grill. I’m not sure what it was about the bowling alley that seemed to attract that sort of activity back in the day. Anyway, even if I wasn’t always doing what I should have been back then, the place will always remind me of good times.