My Mother Has Been After Me To Write My Memoirs Chapter Four Girls and I Part Two

 July 25, 2022

Gentle reader,

If you are new to this blog/memoir, here are links to the previous chapters:

People Say I'm Special. But I Don't Know Why: My Mother Has Been After Me To Write My Memoirs Chapter Three Girls and I Part One

People Say I'm Special. But I Don't Know Why: My Mother Has Been After Me To Write My Memoirs Chapter Two

People Say I'm Special. But I Don't Know Why: My Mother Has Been After Me To Write My Memoirs Chapter One

I left off in December of 2020 having told you about some of the girls I liked in elementary school and our pending move from San Anselmo, CA to Denver, CO.

While we were enjoying life in the "big house" on Bolinas Avenue, our parents SHOCKED us by showing up NOT in a newer model VW bus, but in a blue 1971 AMC Matador station wagon! The car shown is a 1973 coupe, but they did not change much, and that's the color of it.

My brother Jim had the use of a film movie camera during high school and made a bunch of silly films. Here is one of the most popular videos which shows the car being used "for educational purposes": Driving and You - A driver's ed movie from the late 1970's - YouTube

We arrived in Denver in July, 1971 having enjoyed air conditioned car comfort and a vehicle which had ample power to carry seven people  across multiple mountain ranges with relative ease for the first time in our lives.

In California, at least back then, public schools were divided as such: Elementary was kindergarten to grade eight with a graduation. Then high school, grades nine through twelve. And another graduation.

In Colorado, again, back then, it ran kindergarten to grade six, then Junior High, grades seven through nine. With a "continuation" ceremony. Senior High school ran grades ten, eleven and twelve. Finishing with a graduation. 

As stated at the end of the previous chapter, I was determined to change my image. And BOY, did I! I made friends with the jocks and cheerleaders stepping way outside of my comfort zone in doing so.

I'm on the left squinting in the sun, older sister Marcia in the middle, middle sister Judy wearing the red hat, baby sister Becky in front and brother Jim striking a pose.

We are in front of our Denver house which had an addition added some time prior to our moving in. It can be seen behind me. They added a carport and family room as well as large bedroom with it's own bathroom. That was Mom and Dad's end of the house. Oddly, they left the kitchen window and door in place. So, one could look at what was going on there while doing dishes.

So, back to girls and me. To my surprise, girls were drawn to me (they probably were in California, but I was clueless to it then) and one girl, K. was the head cheerleader. She became my girlfriend. We hung out at school and walked with our arms around each other, but frankly, I had NO idea how to kiss, so did not try. 

A "Karen" signed my yearbook, upper left. K. finally broke up with me, saying, "I do this with a lot of guys." I was not heartbroken, because there were other girls lining up. I could not believe it! Of course by then, hormones were starting to affect us all. Joyce, who signed lower left, was in the eighth grade. Word got out that "Joyce" was looking for me. Eventually she found me. Like T. in California at Ross school, she was a redhead with freckles, quite pretty and had a "reputation". I at least walked her home from school, but, again had no idea how to enjoy having a girlfriend. Man, did the word spread that she and I were "an item". Something that I did not discourage.

There was a family up the street which we became friends with. An older sister and younger brother. Their dad fixed up old cars which really got me excited! His daughter was in eighth grade to my being in ninth. She too took an interest in me, trying to get me to pay attention to her instead of her little brother, who was my buddy. We even "wrestled" one time and I ended up on top of her my legs straddling her. I looked down at her and she had a "funny" look on her face. "Uh, oh," I thought, "She wants me to kiss her, what do I do!?!" I got off of her and gave her my hand to help her up. Idiot!

Looking through the yearbook, the vast majority of the notes were from girls, everyone was very pretty too. And three of them were named Karen! I feel bad for all Karens, what with their name becoming a meme. Interestingly, they call the ninth graders "freshmen" in the yearbook. 

I went to study hall one afternoon and there was a girl across from me. She was OK looking but by her size I guessed (correctly) that she was a seventh grader. Nonetheless, I smiled at her. Not a leering one, just an acknowledgement of her existence and presence at the table. 

Boy, was THAT a mistake! People started coming to me asking who, Xxxxx was. "Who?" Some girl is writing your name all over the school. WTH? Yes, it was HER. It seems that my smile made her "fall in love with me"! 

I have looked through the yearbook at every girl's picture, but I can't remember what she looked like nor her name. Once the yearbooks came out, she and her friends pestered me to sign her yearbook. I refused over and over, "But she loves you!" "She does not, she doesn't even know me!" On the last day of school, a passel consisting  of Xxxxx and her friends were chasing me down the hallways. The gate to where the bike racks were was locked, so I climbed the chain link fence and jumped down, desperate to get away! While the honorable thing to do was at least put my name in her yearbook, but what did I know of honor then?

The funny thing is, there WAS a seventh grade girl, whom I did not know or even notice that "freshman" year, but in my senior year at South High, I sure did.

But, that story will pick up within the next chapter. I promise not to take so long before writing it.

Feel free to comment below or on Facebook. Thank you for taking the time to read my story. I write to other blogs: Pictures of Nancy. The Love of My Life. and: The Robb Collections . The former, because I include relationship advice in addition to photos of my gorgeous wife in the articles is really picking up in readership. The latter has over 300,000 readers. And to my surprise has been linked (unbeknown to me until now) to other websites and even Pinterest. 

Scott Robb

July 25, 2022