Chuck, like Ann, is an extrovert and he had a lot of friends when we were growing up. We hung out together quite a bit. Actually, since I was an uber introvert, it was more like I was tagging along with him. It was through him that I met my best buddy, Ernie Blackwood, and a whole lot of other people. I suppose without him around, I might never have left the house.
Chuck also enjoyed a wide variety of music. He had records by everyone from the Isley Brothers to Charlie Rich. Chuck is the person responsible for turning me on to Grand Funk Railroad. He brought home their "Live" album, put in on the turntable, and two songs later I was hooked. Now, everyone knows who to blame.
He did inherit some of dad's aptitude for mechanical work, which I've always envied. He was always tinkering with his cars and motorcycles, which is good when you need to repair a breakdown, but it did get him in a bit of trouble once.
In 1976 mom, dad, and I took a vacation to Florida. Before we left, Chuck had bought a used Harley Davidson that he planned to customize. What we didn't know was that he planned to customize it while we were gone. Apparently it was one of those things where he went a little overboard. When we came home and walked into the kitchen door, there sat the motorcycle, entirely dismantled, all over the kitchen floor; pistons, gears, gas tanks, wheels, strewn from end to end. He thought we were coming home the next day, boy was he surprised. The only saved him from summary execution was that he'd put down newspaper to protect the floor.
We used to fight quite a lot when we were young. I guess that's the way it is sometimes, but it wasn't like there weren't good times between us. Besides turning me on the GFR, he took me to an Elton John concert. He took up for me when some bigger kids threatened me. He let me make some money by delivering part of his paper route and helping him collect. He took me to the drag races several times. And, I remember him and his buddies cheering as I received my high school diploma. Nope, we weren't going at it all the time, it just seemed that way.