Who Am I (part 2)?

One of the things my parents told me to help me go quietly to Mtn. Home was that there was a radio station there in town. My dad, who had accepted their job as school superintendent, had been interviewed on that station (KTLO) and the general manager had told him that I could have a part-time job if I came in to see him. When my parents told me this, my vision of becoming a big-time DJ started to become a reality.

Well, at least in my own mind.

Although I missed my friends in Northern Illinois tremendously, the job in radio filled in the gap but only slightly. I tried out for the football team but as a result of the "good ol' boy" system, I sat on the bench...a lot. If I was that bad of a player, I'd wished someone would've just said so instead of trying to fool me into thinking I'd ever amount to anything. When your team makes it to the early round of the state playoffs and you're wishing for a loss so you don't have to spend 5+ hours on a yellow school bus traveling to unknown parts of Arkansas on a Friday night, you know football isn't going to work out. I should have seen this when I didn't even get on the field for Homecoming night.

Me, along with several other seniors, sat idly by on this "special" night while the usual suspects killed time off the clock. Considering that throughout my "tenure" at MHHS I was never able to really connect to any of the bigshot football players who were the same age as me and in many of my classes, I really began to hate living in Mtn. Home. Here I was, supposed to be having the time of my life and enjoying my senior year. Instead, I was being isolated and ignored by the majority of anyone in my senior class. Yes, I had a few friends (thankfully) but there wasn't the sense of camaraderie I'd had at Central. To say my senior year was miserable is an understatement.

Until I met Jennifer.

One of my friends was someone named Kristin Turner. She was bright, smart, attractive and very engaging with people. I started hanging out more often with her and her friends. They were all smart and "good" students, something that probably couldn't be said about me. Yet, I felt like their influence on my life was something I wanted. They all seemed to have something inside them that looked beyond being popular. Things like who was dating who, who was having a big party this weekend, who got drunk yesterday in the parking lot...none of that was even remotely on their radar.

They seemed to be focused on Christian-like behavior. I was more focused on Van Halen and KISS. They were more interested in planning for their future. I was more interested in what shift I was working on the radio that weekend. Yet, I was drawn into their midst and felt a sense of peace about things when I was hanging out with them. I even began eating lunch with this group.

Boy, am I glad I did because one day, Kristin's sister, Jennifer, sat down in front of me at the lunch table and my life was instantly changed!!

"Whoa," I thought to myself. "She's H-O-T!!" (this is something I still say about her to this very day!)

"I wonder what I'd have to do to ask her out" I said quietly. "Well, let's play Joe Cool and get some inside info first off. Let's ask Kristin about her sister."

And that's what I did. She told me that Jennifer was a sweet girl, 2 years younger than me (no problem there) and she'd just broken up with a boy. Yes!!! It's all clear for me to ask her out. So, I did just that...although I don't remember the Joe Cool method I used as a nervous 17 year old. Whatever it was though...it worked.

She was a cheerleader and the Mtn. Home basketball team was doing pretty well so we'd have to wait for our date until they lost and she would have a Friday night available. This was late Feb/early March. Hmmm...what if our first date was my 18th birthday? Turns out the team kept winning and our date kept being pushed back until FINALLY the team lost and we were free to make a definitive date for our...ummm...date. (Another example of my ability to write from the Department of Redundancy Department)

And, it turns out that March 20th 1987 was indeed our first date. I believe it was Crocodile Dundee then pizza at Pizza Hut. She would want me to tell you that I nearly killed us as I drove away from her home. She and her family lived way down a dirt/chat road with a couple sharp curves. I'd just gotten a 1982 Olds Cutlass and I thought I was king of the world. Sweet car, 18 years old and a hot date with a hot girl. Unfortunately, the curve in the road thought otherwise.

As I approached this curve, she softly mentioned that I might want to slow down. (She never softly mentions anything like this nowadays...it's more like a "confident command". LOL) Being 18 and all-knowing, I thought I could take that curve at 35 instead of 20 like the sign said. I thought wrong. The car spun around and the image that haunts me to this day was Jennifer's hand shooting up to the top of my roof for support and her legs straightening out as if she were applying the brakes in a sudden fashion.

Remember that scene in Planes, Trains & Automobiles where John Candy & Steve Martin have that horrendous car wreck where they go between 2 semis and spin out for about a mile...then as they finally come to a stop, they have to dig their fingernails out of the dashboard as they sit silently, reflecting on what just happened?

Yeah...that was us when we stopped spinning.

Oh boy, I thought. Way to go, ya jerk. She's gonna ask you to take her home and you'll be back to reading your Spiderman comics on Friday nights at home...alone...AGAIN...ya loser.

But it didn't happen. In fact, not only did we make it to the movie AND pizza, I got to kiss her good night (a first for her, she later told me) AND another date. Plus, 5 days later, I gave her my class ring and made her "my girl".

Cue the 50's music and play the scene with me on a motorbike wearing a leather jacket.

Aaaaaaaaaaaay!

She couldn't resist my charm and still can't to this day as we've been together ever since. Yeah, that's it...my charm. HAHAHAHAHA

(To be continued...)