The california trip
I was 12, maybe 13, years old.
The Toronto Telegram was running a fall contest among its carrier to increase subscriptions. For each new subscription you signed up, you got an entry in a prize for a trip to Disneyland in California (Florida's Disneyworld was built yet).
Two carriers' names were to drawn from all carriers across the province. One draw was for carriers outside the Toronto area and one for carriers within Toronto.
The two winning carriers were to be announced at a stock car race in Toronto.
I forget jhow many sudbscription you had to peddle to go to the stock car races.
But in any event, I managed to be one of the ones to go.
It was to a weekend trip.
It was the night before the stock car race trip.
I was in my room packing when my mom came in and mentioned something abouut the California trip. I remember saying something like I didn't have a chance in a contest like that. I don't recall what she said after that, but i never gave the Disneyland trip another thought.
The next day there were about two dozen of us Toronto Telly carriers on the bus when they called me to the front. I had no idea what was up until they said I was going to California. I was in shock.
I guess I must have looked pretty pale because they asked me if I was alr right.
I was thinking my parents would never allow me to go, they will have to find some other carrier.
But it didn't work that way.
Apparently my parents were told I had won sometime prior to the Stock Car Race trip and were assured they little boy would be well chaperoned.
In any event, they aggreed to let me go.
The trip was scheduled for late August, before the start of the school year.
I and George Belzile from Toronto were the two carriers whose names were drawn.
We were accompanied by a guy from tthe paper's circulatiohis wife.
We flew out of Toronto and I remember being in awe at the size of the airport and all the people.
I grew up in a small town of about 10,000 people. I had never seen anything as big as the Toronto airport.
We got to Los Angeles and took a car out to Disneyland.
I was 12, maybe 13, years old.
The Toronto Telegram was running a fall contest among its carrier to increase subscriptions. For each new subscription you signed up, you got an entry in a prize for a trip to Disneyland in California (Florida's Disneyworld was built yet).
Two carriers' names were to drawn from all carriers across the province. One draw was for carriers outside the Toronto area and one for carriers within Toronto.
The two winning carriers were to be announced at a stock car race in Toronto.
I forget jhow many sudbscription you had to peddle to go to the stock car races.
But in any event, I managed to be one of the ones to go.
It was to a weekend trip.
It was the night before the stock car race trip.
I was in my room packing when my mom came in and mentioned something abouut the California trip. I remember saying something like I didn't have a chance in a contest like that. I don't recall what she said after that, but i never gave the Disneyland trip another thought.
The next day there were about two dozen of us Toronto Telly carriers on the bus when they called me to the front. I had no idea what was up until they said I was going to California. I was in shock.
I guess I must have looked pretty pale because they asked me if I was alr right.
I was thinking my parents would never allow me to go, they will have to find some other carrier.
But it didn't work that way.
Apparently my parents were told I had won sometime prior to the Stock Car Race trip and were assured they little boy would be well chaperoned.
In any event, they aggreed to let me go.
The trip was scheduled for late August, before the start of the school year.
I and George Belzile from Toronto were the two carriers whose names were drawn.
We were accompanied by a guy from tthe paper's circulatiohis wife.
We flew out of Toronto and I remember being in awe at the size of the airport and all the people.
I grew up in a small town of about 10,000 people. I had never seen anything as big as the Toronto airport.
We got to Los Angeles and took a car out to Disneyland.
