Yeah, just sitting back trying to recapture
A little of the glory of, well time slips away
And leaves you with nothing, mister, but
Boring stories of glory days.
Well, it's been 25 years since I graduated high school and 23 years since I've been back. I attended my first class reunion a few weeks ago. The days prior to leaving, I was flip-flopping between going and not going. It didn't seem like anybody from my class was going to be there and I only knew a few people from the other classes because of Facebook. I became that shy and insecure 17 year old all over again. Sad...but true.
In the end, I decided that I really wanted to go. I haven't been to any of the previous reunions and who knows when I'll have the chance to go to another one. So, Albert and I made the trek from South Carolina to West By God Virginia. Albert was so excited. He'd never been to WV.
The drive up almost ended about 40 minutes outside of Florence when the car just stopped accelerating. It was crazy! It would run but as soon as you pushed on the gas pedal, the car would stall. So, we "cruised" down the street in Cheraw until we got to a mechanic. The mechanic called a tow truck for us and called the dealership to order a fuel pump so that it would be there when we got there. Good thing because if the part hadn't been ordered by 11am, we would have been stuck like Chuck. After about 3 hours, we were seeing the light of the tunnel. In the end, it wasn't the fuel pump. It ended up being the air flow sensor and they just HAPPENED to have one in stock which allowed us to be on our way about 30 minutes after getting there.
At this point, we were still 6 hours away and it was already 1pm. The casual get-together started at 6pm. Do we go, do we not go?? We decide to continue on but started this leg of our trip with a prayer. And that made all the difference.
The trip was nice, scenic, and stressful. Albert rode the whole way up. And what a ride it was. The roads twisted and turned. It was fun and I did my best impression of Mario Andretti EVER!! There was a red 18-wheeler that was on my butt for a good portion of the hills. I mean he was INCHES from me. I wasn't skirred!! lol...I hunkered down and kept ahead of him. I even made it a race getting out of the toll booths. Albert just laughed at me and my nonsense.
We made good time and we managed to get to The Barge by 7:30pm. Albert and I had a great time. Carolyn and Roger Bird were there and Albert loved them. I didn't ever really talk to her in high school but because of Facebook, we had become pretty good friends. We had so much fun with the two of them. Marti and Kevin Ritz were there too and it was if we had known each other for forever. I found myself feeling comfortable and welcomed there when I had expected to feel awkward and lonely. I got to see Steve Peters, Michael Bumgarner, Debbie Holley, Cherie Casto, Brian Limer, Terry Gillespie, George Richardson, Mark Cadle, Julie Rowsey Ashworth, Joanna Bane Watters, and Sara Jane Grimes McMullen. A little into the night, I caught Albert laughing. I asked him what he was laughing at, he told me....I was looking around and I realized you're the only Mexican here. LMAO...Carolyn told him I was probably the only Mexican in West Virginia.
After the Barge, we all headed to MOJO's in South Charleston. Albert and I had a great time. He took video on his camera while I danced. He didn't seem to feel out of place and everybody was pretty friendly. I got to see Susan Horne Burgess aka George with whom I used to play softball. It was all in all a great night.
Saturday found me giving Albert a tour of Armour View and my neighborhood. We drove by my old house--1110 Ivywood Lane. The owners painted the house a hideous copper color. Although it appears that a double deck had been built in the back which looked pretty cool. I took him to Village Elementary which is now a sanitation department. He was pretty amazed at how far I walked to school. And then I continued up the hill and took him to Ridgewood Pool. He couldn't believe we walked all the way by ourselves. When he saw Ridgewood, his only comment was...That's small. lol...yes, yes it is!! Then we drove to Spring Hill Junior High which is now an elementary school. We went over the Dunbar Bridge and then headed back to the hotel to get ready for our evening.
The Saturday night event was a lot of fun. We sat at a table with Marti and Kevin and Julie and Roger Roberts. Albert assumed we had all known each other for years the way we all got along and joked around. Everybody made us all feel comfortable. The music was great. The dancing was fun. And there are pictures that prove it. Greg Harpold and Brian Hinkle showed up and that made my night. Albert and I had a blast on the dancefloor. Then we hit the "after party" in Ivan's hotel room. Albert had a blast drinking Bruised Boobies aka Purple Hooter Shooters that Donna Harrison Pauley kept serving him.
Good times were had by all.
Albert fell in love with West Virginia but was glad to get back to South Carolina. Mostly because when we were in West Virginia it was "all about Michelle". It was something he had never experienced. lol...people would talk to him and it was to ask about me or my family. He was referred to as "Michelle's boyfriend" or "Michelle's husband." I cracked up!! Poor Albert!!
I am SO glad I went. There weren't a lot of old memories to rehash but I made a lot of new memories and I'm so glad Albert was there to share them with me. I created stronger friendships with my Facebook friends and Albert made some new friends.
Thank you to everybody for making this reunion something special for me. Which reminds me, did Terry ever make it back for the fish Sunday morning?? lol...I sure hope so!!
Glory days, well they'll pass you by
Glory days, in the blink of a young girl's eye
Glory Days
Glory Days
