Old Friends
Northwest woof, seabear59, hit the way-back machine to ask:
"...I was wondering...how well do you keep in touch with your pre-military friends? Do you have any you wish you still had contact with?"
That was a long time ago. i grew up in the sticks and we didn't have any neighbors. So the only friends i had were either at school or in Boy Scouts. To top it off, my high school was a good 45 minutes (direct drive...which it never was) away. So, while i hung out with a group of about 10 or so friends in high school, i never got to do much socially with them. After graduation, we all went off to different colleges and i lost track of them.
woofer, Steve, Tim, Big Ernie (Tim's dad), Dave
Since no one lived around us, my buddies from the Scouts became my best friends, though i'd only see them a couple times a week at first.
Steve, Dave's brother, was a year older but in my grade, Tim and Dave were my age. Dave was my best friend. We were pretty much always into the same things and both were really into music. We could spend hours in record stores. But as a group, we did everything together. We'd cruise together, go camping together with the scouts, party together. i was usually able to bring the beer. My mom could never pass up a sale and would stock up on Busch. Of course, she would need places to store it, so naturally, she would put it under my bed. i'm sure this sounds weird to you as you read this...it sure as hell sounds weird to me reading it. i'm not really sure anymore what the reasoning behind my stashing it was. Maybe that she didn't want dad to know that she was buying so much. "Hide it in the kids' room!" Makes sense to me!
Of course, there was no real acc0untability, so when i needed some, it wasn't too hard to spirit it away. That being said, i didn't really get to party that much. By the time i could drive, i was working (at least) two jobs all the time to get the money for college. But we'd go to concerts...camp out for tickets...the whole nine yards. Steve joined the Army in '78. Tim, Dave and i drove down to visit him at Ft. McClellen, AL, while he was in MP school and we went to Atlanta to party; it was 18 back then. When he graduated, he came back to St. Louis to do a stint as hometown recruiter. Dave and i signed up and went to basic (and MP school) together. We were both stationed at Ft. Stewart, GA, about 45 miles southwest of Savannah. We'd still hang out there, but we were in different units and wound up working different hours and then i got into the K9 unit and our paths diverged even more. After 3 years, i went to Germany and he went to Alaska. Over the years, we drifted apart. We caught back up around '86 when i came back from Europe enroute to California; he was going to college in southeast Missouri.
About a year after i got back to St. Louis, in 2002, my sister ran into Dave at the store and we got back together. We went to a couple of shows together, but i had gotten out of the concert habit. Plus, i worked every Friday and Saturday night. Dave works for one of the hospitals in the area and had some back problems. He had surgery about a year-and-a-half ago. i guess he's doing ok...he hasn't answered an email of mine in awhile. i had come out to hime about the time of his surgery...well, actualy, he came out and asked if Matthew and i were a couple. i said we were and he seemed cool with it. His older sister is a lesbian, afterall. We've invited him to our last three parties, but he never made it. And so we've drifted apart again. i never did catch back up with Steve or Tim, either. What can i say? After all this time, and all the other friends i've made and lost over the years, i guess i don't really miss them that much. But it was a good time. Still, it's time to move on.
Dave, Bly, Schmidt, woofer
Bly reminded us of Tony Randall, Schmidt reminded us of David Johansen of the New York Dolls
coincidence? Who knows...i don't
My 30th high school reunion, if there is one, will be next year. i haven't been to any of the others (since i lived out of the country at the time) so i don't know what will happen. i'll probably go and take Matthew if for no other reason than to have a gay couple at a Catholic High School reunion. (Ain't we the shit-disturbin' bitches? WOOF!)
As you have noticed, my severe lack of brevity is going to take my March questions thing out a bit further...but i'll get to it. Honest!
"...I was wondering...how well do you keep in touch with your pre-military friends? Do you have any you wish you still had contact with?"
That was a long time ago. i grew up in the sticks and we didn't have any neighbors. So the only friends i had were either at school or in Boy Scouts. To top it off, my high school was a good 45 minutes (direct drive...which it never was) away. So, while i hung out with a group of about 10 or so friends in high school, i never got to do much socially with them. After graduation, we all went off to different colleges and i lost track of them.
woofer, Steve, Tim, Big Ernie (Tim's dad), Dave
Since no one lived around us, my buddies from the Scouts became my best friends, though i'd only see them a couple times a week at first.
Steve, Dave's brother, was a year older but in my grade, Tim and Dave were my age. Dave was my best friend. We were pretty much always into the same things and both were really into music. We could spend hours in record stores. But as a group, we did everything together. We'd cruise together, go camping together with the scouts, party together. i was usually able to bring the beer. My mom could never pass up a sale and would stock up on Busch. Of course, she would need places to store it, so naturally, she would put it under my bed. i'm sure this sounds weird to you as you read this...it sure as hell sounds weird to me reading it. i'm not really sure anymore what the reasoning behind my stashing it was. Maybe that she didn't want dad to know that she was buying so much. "Hide it in the kids' room!" Makes sense to me!
Of course, there was no real acc0untability, so when i needed some, it wasn't too hard to spirit it away. That being said, i didn't really get to party that much. By the time i could drive, i was working (at least) two jobs all the time to get the money for college. But we'd go to concerts...camp out for tickets...the whole nine yards. Steve joined the Army in '78. Tim, Dave and i drove down to visit him at Ft. McClellen, AL, while he was in MP school and we went to Atlanta to party; it was 18 back then. When he graduated, he came back to St. Louis to do a stint as hometown recruiter. Dave and i signed up and went to basic (and MP school) together. We were both stationed at Ft. Stewart, GA, about 45 miles southwest of Savannah. We'd still hang out there, but we were in different units and wound up working different hours and then i got into the K9 unit and our paths diverged even more. After 3 years, i went to Germany and he went to Alaska. Over the years, we drifted apart. We caught back up around '86 when i came back from Europe enroute to California; he was going to college in southeast Missouri.
About a year after i got back to St. Louis, in 2002, my sister ran into Dave at the store and we got back together. We went to a couple of shows together, but i had gotten out of the concert habit. Plus, i worked every Friday and Saturday night. Dave works for one of the hospitals in the area and had some back problems. He had surgery about a year-and-a-half ago. i guess he's doing ok...he hasn't answered an email of mine in awhile. i had come out to hime about the time of his surgery...well, actualy, he came out and asked if Matthew and i were a couple. i said we were and he seemed cool with it. His older sister is a lesbian, afterall. We've invited him to our last three parties, but he never made it. And so we've drifted apart again. i never did catch back up with Steve or Tim, either. What can i say? After all this time, and all the other friends i've made and lost over the years, i guess i don't really miss them that much. But it was a good time. Still, it's time to move on.
Dave, Bly, Schmidt, woofer
Bly reminded us of Tony Randall, Schmidt reminded us of David Johansen of the New York Dolls
coincidence? Who knows...i don't
My 30th high school reunion, if there is one, will be next year. i haven't been to any of the others (since i lived out of the country at the time) so i don't know what will happen. i'll probably go and take Matthew if for no other reason than to have a gay couple at a Catholic High School reunion. (Ain't we the shit-disturbin' bitches? WOOF!)
As you have noticed, my severe lack of brevity is going to take my March questions thing out a bit further...but i'll get to it. Honest!