Had to colorize these sweet little girls pre run down the hills. Miss Betty's knees aren't so bad... yet. See it here.

Young Miss Buck's precautions are understandable once one considers the slope of the sidewalk in front of the Bucks' home. (With some help from the 1940 census and Google Street View, it's easy to find this home at 4902 First Street NW, two blocks east of New Hampshire Avenue, in a subdivision carved out of the northern tip of the Soldiers' Home National Cemetery property.) The street and its sidewalks slope decidedly downhill for the entire block, allowing a roller-skating neophyte to build up great speed.

No mother in her right mind would allow her daughter put roller sakes on over those dress whites.

Even though we couldn't take our skates to school we would wear our skate key, with string, around our neck; it was a Badge of Honor.

knee pads, elbow pads, a helmet and a mouth guard -- at least if she were doing this today.

Probably didn't receive any royalties.

Those clamp-on skates never stayed on my shoes either. I finally made a scooter out of them, or as we called it in my neighborhood, a "pushey".

or maybe semi-detached. As built, there were usually no railings on the front steps. One touch of variety in my old Tenleytown neighborhood was the different railings that had been added over the years. Another common feature was a two- or three-step drop from here to the sidewalk. Look out, Betty!

Betty's going to be sorry but wiser when she learns that it's the knees that always get ripped up first by rookie skaters. My tomboy sister's knees looked like cheap 19-cent-a-pound chopped meat when she first took to skates.