The CB Radio and How The Green Eyed Gal Met Superbee

For those of you not familiar with the CB Radio.......

In 1945, the Citizens' Band Radio (CB Radio) service began in the United States. It allowed ordinary citizens to communicate a short distance via a radio band. In the beginning they were primarily utilized by small business owners. With the advancement of solid state electronics in the 60s CB radios became mor abundantly available and affordable for the general public.

For those interested in learning more about the CB radio and the 10-code (remember 10-4 good buddy, what's your 10-20?) I have provided links at the bottom. The Wikipedia link also has a list of popular movies and songs that resulted from the CB radio. I'm sure you remember "Smokey and the Bandit" and "Convoy".

But, now for my story.

My parents took part in the craze that hit in the 60s. They got the proper licensing that you had to have back then and had cards printed called "calling cards" that had their "call letters" on them. They joined a CB Radio club and began meeting other CB-ers around Texas. These state-wide meets were called "Coffee Breaks". I remember my parents talking about the fun they had at one in Marshall, Texas in the mid-60s.

We each had our 'handles" (similar to your screename) that we went by. My Daddy was the "Wire-Twister" because he was an electronics technician by trade. My Mother was known as the "Coffee-Maker". Little ole me, being a product of the two, was aptly named the "Coffee Twister". We each had a white cotton shirt that someone made us that had images of the Flintstones characters on them with our CB handles on them as well. These folks were serious about their CB-ing.

By the mid-70s CB radios saw a surge in popularity with the oil crisis and the national reduction in the highway speed limit. More and more people had CB radios installed in their vehicles as a means of alerting each other of speed traps.

Being a young girl of fourteen, my parents thought I might enjoy chatting with other people they way they had the decade before and bought me a CB radio unit for my bedroom for Christmas in 1976. It was really cool to be able to talk to other people in an anonymous kind of way. Of course, I had to create a new handle since what 14 yr old wants to be known as the "Coffee Twister"? I chose "Green-Eyed Gal". I often went by GEG for short (pronounced gee-eee-geee).

Bear with me as the story switches to third person. It's just easier to tell this way.

This is where you learn about how the Green Eyed Gal met Superbee.

A shy steely-blue-eyed sixteen year old boy living about three miles from Green-Eyed Gal also received a CB radio for his room that year. Being the only son in a clan of seven kids, he enjoyed retreating to his room to talk to other people. His handle was the Superbee.

Even though Green Eyed Gal and Superbee lived fairly close to each other, they didn't know each other because they went to different schools. You see, both lived close to the borderline between the two school districts. In fact, the street Green-Eyed Gal lived on was the dividing line. All the kids who lived across the street from her went to a completely different school than she did.

For about four months, in early 1977, Green-Eyed Gal and Superbee spent hours chatting to each other on the CB radio. He sat alone in his room and she sat alone in hers only a few miles away.

Another guy from Superbee's school by the handle of "Cherry Bomb" had been chatting to GEG as well and had asked her to exchange school photos with him. She did, with the permission of her parents. "Cherry Bomb" passed GEG's picture all around his school to all the guys he knew talked on the CB radio. Superbee was one of the guys to see the picture.

In April 1977, Superbee and Green Eyed Gal were ready to meet in person. Superbee lived not far from my GEGs cousin "Clothespin". They arranged to meet at a park in their neighborhood. Green Eyed Gal and Clothespin rode their bicycles up to the park at the agreed upon time. As they rounded the row of hedges, Green Eyed Gal collided with another cyclist exiting the park. It was Superbee!

From April 23, 1977 until April 23, 1981, Superbee and Green-Eyed Gal dated without once breaking up. They experienced all the firsts in a relationship. The first kiss, his first prom, her first prom, his first car, her first car, etc. Exactly, four years to the day, Superbee proposed to Green-Eyed Gal. They married four months later after she graduated from high school.

Did it last? Well.....almost.

Green Eyed Gal and Superbee were married for 23 years and had two wonderful children. They are still great friends and live next door to each other today. Both have since remarried.

And you know the Green Eyed Gal as KCC Big Country.