Disco. Skating. Xanadu.

Planning content for you, our ThriftBooks.com visitors, is one of the most enjoyable aspects of my job. When my team and I planned to feature a rotating decades theme, I must admit, I was giddy with excitement for the '70s decade. I am a child of the '70's and it still has influence on my life today. I'd like to share a few '70s memories with you. Some of these can be found in my own Staff Picks selection but most are scattered throughout our dedicated '70s page.

I was born at the start of this decade on the Landstuhl Air Force base in Germany. My father was in the Air Force and we lived in Germany for the first few years of my life. I didn't move to the US until about the mid '70s. So, I technically only experienced a portion of the '70s decade, and I was just a child, but I soaked it all in.

Media had a big impact on my life. I didn't speak English very well as my mother is French and she raised us speaking French so books, TV shows, and music were great enablers to advancing my English skills. And to learning about this place called America.

The TV shows in the '70s were a fun favorite and what a wide range of families, and situations, they presented. The Brady Bunch, Welcome Back, Kotter, Good Times, Happy Days, Three's Company, The Waltons, The Partridge Family, Bewitched. I loved them all, each offering different slice of life experiences to augment my understanding of life in America. My favorite, though, was Little House on the Prairie. I had no idea back then the timeless stories and life lessons it would provide me. (You may have read my earlier blog about my love for Little House on the Prairie and how I shared that experience with my own kids.)

Music of the '70s is a very memorable part of the decade for me. Casey Kasem's America's Top 40 countdown aired every Sunday morning and I was glued to the radio listening to every song, music fact, and long-distance dedication. I accumulated Casey's AT40 summary books (I even put one on my ThriftBooks Wish List just a few months ago and was overjoyed when it came in!) and still have them to this day. The soundtracks from Saturday Night Fever and Grease were hits at the time and my kids know those tunes today. Some of those songs also make great Karaoke selections if you are ever looking.

While I enjoyed the music and TV shows of this decade, for me, the '70s was about disco and roller skating. To be clear, I was still young and was only allowed to go to the rink with my older brother or sister, but I didn't mind. They hung out with their friends and I had mine. Waiting in line outside for the doors to open, wondering in anticipation which friends, or crushes, will be there (life before snap map tracking!) was as much a part of the fun as the skating itself. I spent countless hours skating around in the same counterclockwise circle (unless it was a reverse skate) showing off my limited skills and new tricks I may have worked on during the week.

Sports-O-Rama was the name of my roller-skating rink. It was in Mattydale, NY, near Liverpool, NY (outside Syracuse) where I grew up. It was THE place to go, all types of people, all skating levels, casual skate, competitions, groups, there was something for everyone, and everyone came. It was a place where people apologized if they accidentally bumped you, they stayed to the right if you were passing, kids, teens, and adults all skated together and the music appealed to everyone, from dance-able disco to slow skate ballads. People arrived with excitement and left with tired legs, but also renewed anticipation for the next weekend. I can still picture the parking lot at closing time. The station wagons with engines running with parents waiting to pick up kids, laughter wafting throughout the air, the winding down music from inside the rink heard faintly every time the door opened with a new set of kids leaving.

Rollerskating in the '70s was a unifying type of fun. No judgements, no drama, no complaints and no demands. Just simple, shared enjoyment appropriate for all ages. I would say it was pure Xanadu.

Read more by Barbara Hagen