The roller rink is the backdrop for plenty of my childhood memories. In the 80s, I probably went to 25 birthday parties at one of the three rinks in our area. If I close my eyes, I can still smell the stale carpet, cleaning spray they used for the rental skates, and the greasy grilled cheese and tater tots piled into a red-and-white checkerboard paper container at the skate-up snack bar.
My first kiss was at the roller rink. It was the same night I tried New Coke (and then quickly poured it out).
My sister once fell on the concrete rink floor and needed stitches in her chin. (No joke: The song playing at the time was Quiet Riot’s “Bang Your Head.”) The owners recklessly didn’t carry any insurance. We didn’t want any of our friends to find out, but it was this incident with my sister that closed down the rink in our town.
Whenever I hear this song I’m immediately transported back to 1983, whirring around the rink so fast with my hair flowing in the wind behind me.
Fun fact: I can still skate backwards.
This is the vibe I wanted to capture in my 2024 diorama: The Gen-X Roller Rink.
Nimble Narrative 