* * * * * By November, of 1947, America had emerged top superpower from the war; the jobs were plentiful and the economy was humming. It was truly a great era in the States for a kid to grow up in. Or was it, dear reader? Pop had finally landed a good job in the oil Business, as a tool pusher for the Santa Maria Drilling Company and, because we were moving a lot, Pinkie was staying with Grandma so it wouldn’t interrupt her schooling. For several months Dad, Mom and I had been living at the Ranch House Motel - on the outskirts of Santa Maria, California – when eventually Pop came across a small house in town for rent. I had recently ...