Monday, June 27, 2016

blast from the past

  When I checked Facebook this morning, I had a message request from someone whose name rang a distant bell. I repeated the name to myself a couple of times, trying to place this person, and my mind flashed back to my teenage years. Then I read the message. He asked if I remembered him. That his best friend used to date my best friend. Then it all came back to me.

The year was 1978. I was 16 years old and living in Jamestown, Kentucky. My best friend and her boyfriend used to come to my house on the weekend and the three of us would hang out. Of course in those days, there wasn't any internet or cable TV or cell phones. We would hang out in the living room and actually talk for hours without the distraction of screens. I can remember the three of us sitting on my parent's faux leather couch (man, that thing was hot and sticky when we were wearing shorts!) and laughing hysterically because the boyfriend gave my kitten a piece of cheese and the kitten promptly got up in the boyfriend's lap and farted. 

{My best friend - who's wearing my strawberry top because she loved it - and her boyfriend}

We lived in a rural area, so there was nowhere for us to go. We didn't even have a McDonalds. About all we had was a drive-in movie theater, a roller rink, and the high school gymnasium when there were basketball games.

Being 16 and seeing my best friend with a boyfriend when I didn't have one...well, I just had to have a boyfriend, too. So my best friend's boyfriend promised me he'd fix me up with his best friend, J. J and I wrote each other little notes - yes, handwritten ones - and they were delivered via courier pigeon  Best Friend's boyfriend. Why Best Friend's boyfriend never brought J to my house when he'd come over with my best friend, I don't remember. But I do remember one night, Best Friend and her boyfriend picked me up and the three of us went to a basketball game in a town about 30 miles away where the guys lived. J was supposed to meet us at the basketball game. He never showed up. It wasn't like we could call or text him to find out where he was! Boy, the kids nowadays have it so easy, don't they? 

Eventually, my best friend and her boyfriend broke up, and I gave up my hopes of ever meeting the infamous J.

{my sister, my best friend, and our four dogs - GS (stood for German Shepherd - we were clever like that), Ringo, Puggy & Gypsy}

So now, after 38 years, the Mystery Man somehow finds me and contacts me?! I wrote back and told him that I did remember him and asked how in the world he even remembered me. I looked at his Facebook page and from the photos I see, he still lives in the same town in Kentucky, is married, and even has a few little grandchildren.

{Me and my best friend; Christmas 1978}

All I really want to know is:

Where was he that night he was supposed to meet me at the basketball game? ;-)


14 comments:

  1. Melanie what a fun story - and great photos too! How different life was in those days prior to high tech gadgets etc. We really did talk to one another and it was so much better!

    Have a wonderful week, Mary

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  2. Melanie, I love this little peek into your past!! Will you ask him about the night he never showed up? I remember that feeling, it was awful....yes, these days kids have it easier, they can just send a text. Although, if the guy doesn't feel like answering it, it's still the same old story, isn't it? Love the photos, and I'm pretty sure I had that strawberry shirt also! :)

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  3. Thank you Melanie for thay story and those terrific pictures. We never know what goes through our childrens's heads. I so appreciate the peek.
    Mama

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  4. What a neat story, Melanie. Thank you for sharing. I grew up at the tail end of the same era, where all you had was the phone, and remember plenty of mysterious situations, lol. I loved seeing your photos. I was a toddler/preschooler when you were a teenager, but I had my own strawberry shirt, a lot like yours. You could have been my babysitter. :)

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  5. Great story Melanie. Did you ask him why he didn't show up and if so, what excuse did he have? LOL

    Judy

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  6. Kids these days would be better off to have lived in those days :).

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  7. This is such a fun read, Melanie! Love your writing style and humor. Great photos too.
    Mary Alice

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  8. Oh my! That is a blast from the past. I'm impressed you were able to put your hand on photos from that time period. I wouldn't even know where to find any of my old pictures and probably don't have many since I mostly used a Polaroid at that time. Crazy that he would even contact you when he never showed up and you never even met him in person all those years ago.

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  9. That is so funny...and a real mystery. Maybe he found some of your old letters and was feeling nostalgic....and I agree, those technology-less days were the best. I like the convenience they provide and I am happy to be able to text my kids and know they are safe, but sometimes, they are just too much. Hope you find out where he was!

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  10. What a fun walk down memory lane to a simpler time. I truly believe that technology and modernization aren't all they're cracked up to be.

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  11. What a great story, Melanie! Are you still in touch with your best friend so you can tell her about it?

    I love glimpses into blog friend's teenage years because essentially, aren't we still that young girl at heart? I know technology is amazing and filled with blessings, but we also lost something important in gaining it, didn't we?

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  12. That's a cute story! I have a similar one. My best friend was going out with a cute guy from another school, and I had a little bit of a crush on him too. She begs me to go out on a double date with them, and the cute guy's best friend, who was not nearly as cute. I didn't want to, but she begged me to go out with him, and I finally agreed. The four of us went to a party, and my date went out to get beer, and never returned! I had been stood up by a guy that I never wanted to go out with in the first place. I'm embarrassed to this day! LOL

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