Earth, Wind, and Fire:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDhCtwr6W2U
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MY7WO0_wAJ4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYQrLAkDLR4
Peter Frampton:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmjFk7i4hyg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uQwMTnmo_k
Styx:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uR4if4ble1A
My freshman year in high school was pretty cool. Our family lived in the small, southwest Kansas town of Elkhart. The high school had about 250 students in it, and you knew just about everybody, at least by name. My first initiation into high school was through football. As a freshman athlete, you could play varsity in football and track, but not basketball. The previous year, I had made a bold… or cocky…. statement to my male classmates while we were outside of the gym, waiting to switch classes. I don’t remember what the conversation began with, but somewhere along the line, I made the statement that my goal for the next year was to start on the football team… varsity, not jv…. as a freshman… My friends started to really rag on me. They thought I was crazy. Maybe I was, but that was my GOAL! Its what I was working for. My carrot for myself. And my friends laughed. At the time, their laughter fueled my resolve.
The season started with two-a-days. All football starts with two-a-days. Pros call it training camp, but it’s pretty much all the same… two practices a day and you work your ass off! My first practice went off without a hitch, but during the second practice, I ran a pass pattern and one of my best friends threw a really terrible pass…. I’m not sure why he tried out for quarterback, and it didn’t last long because they moved him to tight end shortly… The pass was low and behind me, so I dove. I really don’t remember much after that because my head hit the ground and I was knocked out for a moment. Getting my bell rung wasn’t the worst thing, though… the broken collar bone was.
So much for my bold prediction… I had to sit out of practice for the rest of two-a-days and for the first 3 games. Because I couldn’t play, I was able to march in the band, of which I was a member as a drummer. Not quite the same spotlight, but it really turned out well for me. During one of our games, I met a girl…. She played the clarinet… and her name was Joan. Joan had dark hair and blue eyes… great, slightly almond shaped eyes. During the third quarter of one of the games, Joan and I started to flirt. I thought…”Hmmm, maybe the band isn’t so bad after all.”
Eventually, I got up enough nerve to ask her out. She was a Junior, so I was just a little intimidated, but she seemed to be sending me the right signals, so….
Elkhart is in the farthest southwest corner of the state, and is a pretty low key place to live, not many options for a date. At the time, the closest movie theater was 40 miles away. Now there are good things about having to drive to an activity during a date. You get to talk, listen to music, get to know each other… So I asked her out to see a movie. She said yes!
I took her to see “Jaws!” Although it might not seem so at first, “Jaws” was a GREAT first date movie! There are several times in the movie where the suspense builds into a surprise appearance of the shark or disappearance of a swimmer. That was good for me, because the beautiful girl at my side would automatically grab my arm in fright. Our first date was very nice, and led to several dates after that. Actually, I consider Joan my first girlfriend. She was a great first girlfriend. She liked me for me… pretty cool. And my dad said he thought she was the prettiest girl in school. Lucky guy!
One thing I will never forget is parking in front of Joan’s house. For those of an urban background, “parking” in southwest Kansas means pulling your car somewhere private, parking it with the music going, and then making out… Not many people “park” in front of the girl’s house… Her dad it too close…. with his guns…. and if he doesn’t like you or what you are doing with his daughter….
So most kids would drive out in the country for some privacy. However, Joan said that her dad preferred she park in front of the house, because he thought it safer for his daughers… he had three… than being out in the country. ( I bet safer… more intimidating for the guy… smart dad!) I was ok with that, anyway. Iwas scared to try much of anything anyway, other than kissing. And boy could Joan kiss…. Great days and nights, with all the music on my playlist above. When I hear those songs, my mind goes back to Joan…
However, I was destined to be an idiot. Eventually, my shoulder healed and I was able to play again. I suited up for two jv games, but only got to play in one. I did pretty well, though. By that time, I just wanted to hit someone and did so a lot, which is a very good thing in football. So, the week before the fourth varsity game of the year, our head coach approached me and said, “Larry… would it bother you to play against a 200 pound lineman?” At the time I weighed about 170, and 200 pounds was big for our level of ball. “It wouldn’t bother me any…” I confidently responded. So the rest of that week in practice, they got me ready to play defensive end against the biggest team in our league. The senior who usually played the position had injured his shoulder and was out for the season, so they were looking for a replacement for the rest of the year. Our team was 3-0 and their team was 3-0, so I was going to start as a freshman in the biggest game of the year against the toughest team in our conference. Pretty cool… or so I thought.
I finished the year as a starter and lettered on varsity as a freshman. Joan and I continued to date throughout the season, and my head began to swell. For some reason, I began to think I would like to date other girls. I was a jerk to Joan…. really, really stupid. She was a great girl! After we stopped dating, she eventually became involved with another guy and they got married.
Served me right….
Playlist of Life 