20 Years Ago Today

Tuesday, 14 February 2012

Happy 83rd anniversary of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre!

But instead of the date, let’s talk about the day: Tuesday. You know what’s great about today?

First, I filled up with gas. Super America offers double-coupon day on Tuesdays. They also take competitors’ coupons, so I showed up with a 20 cents off per gallon coupon, which they doubled to 40 cents. With gas costing $3.50 a gallon, this netted me a savings of over 10%. With nearly $4.00 in savings, I essentially got a gallon of gas for free!

Next, the family and I ventured to Ingvar Kamprad Elmtaryd Agunnaryd (or “IKEA,” if you prefer). Kids eat free on Tuesdays, so the four of us each had our own meals and beverages for a grand total of about $11.00.

On the way home, we stopped at the neighborhood car wash. Their Ultimate Car Wash (and dry!) is normally $9.00. But guess what? On Tuesdays, it’s only $6.00.

Thank you, Tuesday, for being such a lousy day of the week that retailers have to offer special, um, offers in order to get us to crawl out of our hovels!

Wednesday, 15 February 2012
What were you doing 20 years ago today? Unless you’re a nineteen year old (in which case the correct answer is “gestating”), you might have no clue.

Would it help if I told you February 15, 1992 was a Saturday? Still no?

Well here’s what I did…

Enjoying the three day Presidents’ Day weekend, my friend Joel spent the weekend at my house. He and I were invited to a talent show in the afternoon. My parents and sister weren’t home so, around noon, we made this video:

 

Later, we rode with some friends to the talent show. I expected to be just a spectator, but during the intermission, my friend Rhett suggested I show off some of my mad lip-syncing skills. “Okay,” I said, “but only if you come on stage with me.” Rhett had already been on stage during the first half of the show. He and his brother Ryan performed their song “Balalaika.” But being the affable guy he was, Rhett just shrugged and figured, why not?

Selecting a song was a no-brainer. My favorite song at that time was Paul Simon’s “The Obvious Child,” and during the long Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Junior weekend back in January, I borrowed my school’s camera and had fun making crazy videos with my friends. One of the fun videos we made was me lip-syncing to that song with Rhett and another Ryan (not Rhett’s brother) sitting on the floor behind me playing bongos.

I brought the camera home this weekend, too (see the above video for evidence of that), and I had it with me at this talent show. Ryan 2.0 was not at this talent show, but Rhett said he could simulate the percussion portion of the song all by himself.

We ran up to the emcee and signed up. About a half hour later, we did this:

I had a lot of fun that day, and met a lot of people that became good friends of mine. In fact, I even met the girl who would become Rhett’s girlfriend, who then backed out of a bus trip at the last minute, leaving a space for another girl, who I subsequently married. Got that?

But what’s happened to the people involved in this video?

Rhett and I engaged in volunteer work through the religion for the next four years. We married within months of each other. Later, we worked at Lenscrafters together. Rhett passed away over six years ago. The above video doesn’t do justice to his music talent. GO HERE for a better example of that. Or here. Or, for a real treat, go here. Better yet, just go here.

Jamin, who you can see on the right during much of the video continued to be my friend for many years. We drifted apart in adulthood and I last spoke with him in 2006, mere days before leaving the religion. Jamin passed away just over two years ago. I wrote about it IN THIS BLOG POST.

Joel, who is holding and operating the camera, stayed friends with me for a few years. Like Rhett, he was a groomsman in my wedding. Like Jamin, we drifted apart as we progressed through our twenties. He contacted me four years ago, saying he missed the good times we used to have and that he wanted to get together with me and Jennifer. In my response, I told him I would love to do that, but that he should probably know I was no longer a Witness, and I hoped that we could still be friends. He didn’t write back. Ever. He owns a barber shop in Victoria, so I hope things are going well for him. I have no idea how well he does at cutting hair, but he’s a helluva great guy, so you’re sure to have a good time if you patronize his business.

Ryan, who can be seen briefly running in front of the camera and then assisting with the sound board, is webmaster of the most boring website on the internet. He, alone of the people listed here, is still my friend.