Age 14. Again, my "memories" are somewhat fuzzy of that time and not for a reason that had anything to do with mind altering anything. Age 14, I believe was my last year in junior high. This is a little fuzzy too since I started 1st grade early, but then took 4th grade twice (that's a whole other story) so I think I was in 8th grade.
I went to a magnet school for physical education so I did an hour of dance and an hour of gymnastics per day rather than PE, thank God. Even though I had to wear a leotard, it was still better than the bright blue and yellow PE outfits those in PE had to wear. By 8th grade I was used to having to run around in a leotard in front of the boys, even though it still wasn't the most comfortable thing.
I remember some of my favorite pieces of clothing during this time. One was an acid washed jean skirt that had three layers. You may be laughing your butt off right now, but at the time I was stylin'. Another outfit came from Esprit, very cool in those days, and was splatter painted all over in different colors. I know, go ahead and say it, DORK.
It was in 8th grade that I had my first love. Brian S. We went together for I don't know how long. It seemed like forever, but it was probably something more like 3 weeks. We would write notes back and forth and talk on the phone when he wasn't grounded. My taste in boys at that age was the skater type. I liked the little bit of bad boy in them and the spikey hair that went high and then came down over one eye. I "went with" this one skater guy that was black and he had this really deep voice. When he would call my parents thought he was much older. I never told them he was black. (Nice little Jewish girl dating a black guy, wouldn't have gone over well). That one lasted probably a week and a half. He wanted more, but I wasn't all that interested.
I spent lots of time in my room making up dances to songs from the Top Gun record, yes record, and taping (yes taping) my favorite songs off the radio. I was into Depeche Mode, The Cure, Erasure and other bands like that.
8th grade was kind of a milestone for me. Not only because next year I would be going to high school, but I had actually gone to the same school for a whole 3 years, we hadn't moved and I had actually started to make some friends. I remember I would cry at the end of each school year because I was going to miss my friends so much. Each summer I would go to NM to visit my Mom. I really didn't have many friends there.
I was a good teenager. I didn't have much freedom, so I went to friends' houses, had sleep overs and that was really about it. I spent a lot of time in my room reading and just avoiding my house.
Oh, and I had to ride the bus to school. The school was not the one closest to our house, which was 3 blocks from our house. That is where I had to catch the bus. It was really embarrassing to be sitting at one Junior High to catch a bus to another Junior High. You look like you belong there, but you don't know any body. I can't remember if it was this year or not, but one year the bus we got for my area of town was the short bus. Yes the short bus. You can imagine the jokes. Go ahead, make one.
And that my friends, is the Age of Innocence at 14. Next time, we will discuss The Age of Innocence at 21 and then later 16 and 17. Feel free to give me another age to remember if you haven't "played" yet.
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