The Lennox Experiment

 The Lennox Experiment

     Greg was what sociologists call a "nester" and when he chose a place to live he made it commodious, tidy and fully functional. Even as a young man he was domesticated and organized. Thus his first venture outside home was during his enrollment at Loyola U. in the unlikely city of Lennox. It was dirt cheap, close to campus and seemed nice enough when he handed over a check to the landlord and began his tenancy circa 1973. Lennox is a humble place to say the least that had once been farmland or before that just a chunk of the Centinela Sausal Redondo Rancho where sheep farming was the scene. It was owned by the rather famous Daniel Freeman who was successful enough to donate a hospital where LA Dodgers sometimes were treated. Mostly this town of cheap apartments was stuck between  land-grabbing Hawthorne and Ingelwood who annexed parts of Lennox leaving the scraps of the area with a small population. There is one big problem about the neighborhood however and that is the land is adjacent to what was once Mines field and later the Los Angeles Internaional Airport. When LAX took over large jet air traffic in LA Lennox was the ground where the mighty 707's roared over continually. Greg found this out when he moved his belongings into the new apartmenta lit a joint to relax and found the entire building vibrated and shook reacting to the jet takeoffs. At first, he was so excited to have his own pad he wanted to make the adjustment and invited me over to check out his groovy pad. When I say there was a powerful roar I mean things on the wall fell off and conversation was very difficult. Still youthful enthusiasm won him over and he set out to bake some cookies for our munchies. He knelt before the old stove he had not tested before then leaned in to light a pilot light holding forward an Ohio Blue tip wooden match with me watching over him. At first nothing happened, more waiting, a second wooden match was scratched. Suddenly there was a flash and a whooshing sound as the entire kitchen reflected the booming flame that shot out of the oven without warning. The sound was a huge fooomf!  In complete shock yet not seriously injured Greg turned his startled face upward toward me and it was at that point that I noticed he had no eyebrows or eyelashes and there was a penumbra of cinders around his face. The guy always had rather long dark eyelashes but they were gone as were the brows. True to my concern for my dear friend who could have been severely burned or blinded I began laughing to the point where I was gasping for breath. The cookies were delicious.