Wednesday, November 08, 2006

Three Word Wednesday #9

Each week, I will post three (or more) random words. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to write something using all of those words. It can be a few lines, a story, a poem, anything. Don't spend too much time on it. It doesn't have to be perfect. The idea is to let your mind wander and write what it will. I'll also write something using the same three words.

Be sure to leave a comment if you participate.

This week's words are:
sky
slit
echoed


Continuing with 80's week here on IYROOBTY...

I was in ninth grade, taking my first year of Spanish. At my school, each year the Spanish Club went on an optional field trip to the Spanish Club Convention in Tuscaloosa.

For some reason, they were never able to procure buses for this annual pilgrimage. Maybe it was because of the small number of kids who went. Maybe it was because we stayed overnight and needed to be able to get around town easily. Whatever it was, we traveled by car. And that meant chaperones.

As the bell echoed from the halls that Friday morning, signaling the start to another school day for everyone else, we were gathered in the parking lot. Preparing to leave, getting last minute instructions from the Spanish teacher, Ms. Quinn. And most importantly, deciding who would ride with whom.

That year, we had one student chaperone, Jenny Goss. She was a junior, or senior, and I don't even think she was taking Spanish. I'm not even sure why she was chaperoning.

But as the other chaperones were teachers or parents, everyone wanted to ride with Jenny. Well, the guys did anyway. So it wound up being four guys, myself included, piling into Jenny's sky blue Cutlass, for the two-hour drive. And I somehow ended up in the front seat.

As she was two or three years ahead of me, I'd never really talked to Jenny. But I knew who she was. It was common knowledge that she dated Ronnie Byars, and had been seemingly forever.

Ronnie could best be described as a biker without a bike. A smoking in the boys room type. Although I never saw him smoke, it just seemed like he probably did. He was tall, with long hair. And I remember him wearing a black leather jacket a lot.

Still, boyfriend or no, you got the idea Jenny might be up for anything. Although I doubted I was her type. The street toughness of my acid-washed, tight-rolled Levis and untied high-top British Knights was betrayed by the cute little alligator on my rather conservative Izod. Still, there was something mysterious about her. Or maybe just naughty.

She looked like she belonged in a Whitesnake video. And I could totally rock some air guitar. I imagined she had camped out for Motley Crue or Cinderella tickets at least three times in her life. And that hair. So permed. So sprayed. So perfectly pouffy.

I sat back and tried to relax as I caught a glance of her legs so sveltely working the gas and brake pedals. I wasn't sure what to expect on this trip. And I definitely wasn't sure a student chaperone was supposed to be wearing a skirt that short or slit that high.

But I'll never forget that weekend. After all, that was the weekend I bought my Milli Vanilli cassette.

"Where's the mini-skirt made of snakeskin? And who's the other guy that's singing in Van Halen..."

20 comments:

  1. A silver streak of lightning slit a black construction paper sky. I watched Liquid Paper raindrops flood the empty void. A scream of thunder echoed in my mind until I realized I was the screamer. The storm lifted as I threw away the page.

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  2. Ah! Your story wasn't up when I posted my submission. Hilarious! True???

    I laughed so hard about her hair that I inhaled a little of my water! We all knew that girl! And what's sad is some of us probably wanted to be that picture of teased and Aqua Netted perfection.

    Great story, per usual, Bone!

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  3. She looked like she belonged in a Whitesnake video. And I could totally rock some air guitar.

    You're too funny Bone. :)

    I too, want to know how much truth there is to this story...?

    I actually wrote one this week! After weeks of "good intentions" gone awry, I did one.

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  4. Short skirts...before dress-codes killed the fantasies of teenage boys the world over...

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  5. And that hair. So permed. So sprayed. So perfectly pouffy.

    Too effing funny. I really missed a lot in the 80's, didn't I? It's a shame.

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  6. "a biker without a bike" is probably my newest favorite Boneism.

    The Izod shirt--milli vinilli

    It's all so you

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  7. Anonymous: Hey, that described like 80% of girls then. At least. It was the style.

    Liquid paper was the best. Remember the Liquid Paper pen, with the fine tip, that you squeezed?

    Traveling Chica: There is a lot of truth to this story.

    I can't wait to see what you wrote :)

    InterstellarLass: Ah, yes. Those were the days. *Deep sigh, gazing longingly skyward*

    Heather B: Yes, you did. It was the best! The thing is, 80's hair was so hot then.

    Pia: Thanks. I'm usually good for one decent line per post :) Nothing says Bone more than Milli Vanilli. Trust me.

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  8. Sounds like you "wished that you had Ronnie's girl!" I'm guessing that didn't happen...especially with 3 other dudes in the car...and she was of course so devoted to Ronnie.

    So who did the girls on this trip ride with?

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  9. Hey, how bout that disclaimer that let's me know when these stories are fiction? I get to about the 3rd or 4th paragraph all into the story thinking you really lived all this. Then D'OH! It's probably fiction. Good story though!

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  10. That's so true about 80's hair: it was hot then. And so not hot now. Ugh.

    Can we get like a bloggerwide post to the world going about how bad mullets are? Please?

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  11. So with Traveling Chica on the Mullets are bad thing. My high school boyfriend's sister had a Mullet!!! :o Can you believe it??? she actually went to a barber to get it done too. Weird girl.
    Same girl had the nerve to get all pissy with me and sick one of her friends on me because I told someone she couldn't drive... Hello??? she wrecked her NEW car after having it for all of a week. 'course it didn't help that I was dating her brother who didn't get a new car at all.

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  12. And I definitely wasn't sure a student chapperone was supposed to be wearing a skirt that short or slit that high.

    PERFECT!

    You always impress me. Always.

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  13. Renee: I don't know. The teachers, I guess. Who cares :)

    Carnealian: Wrong again. This one is based on actual events :)

    TravelingChica: I think there should be a law that makes it legal for you to cut or shave someone's hair if they have a mullet, without their permission.

    Renee: Boy mullets=bad. Girl mullets=felony

    Blondie: Thanks, Blondie :)

    (Dangit, I misspelled chaperone that last time. If you hadn't quoted that line, I wouldn't have caught it.)

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  14. No, Bone, no!

    It shoudl be illegal for you to NOT cut their mullet off without their permission! If you are a hairdresser and you see a mullet, it should be an automatic "bye bye!"

    Come on!

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  15. Had mine done yesterday, but forgot to publish as I was headed out to dress rehearsal. It's up now. I went all "Outer Limits" on this one.

    Personally, I think it sucked and I'll try to go poetry next week, but let me know what you think. Yes, even if it sucks pond water through a pink straw.

    I loved how you threw the Milli Vanilli in there. "Blame it on the Rain"

    Did your hand accidentally hit the armrest next to her arm? Did you feel the lightning bolt of adolescent attraction?

    And yes, my hair was every bit as big in the 80's.

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  16. Traveling Chica: Oh, OK. Even better. It's time for a change in this country. I propose the great Mullet-off of 2007.

    Dorothy: No, it didn't suck. I liked it.

    And yes, I definitely felt the bolt.

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  17. I'm in.

    Which states do we need to hit first? Kentucky? West Virginia?

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  18. Traveling Chica: Those are probably good starting points. What state has the highest per capita mullet population? I wonder...

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  19. I'm thinking Kentucky. Or it least it sure seemed like it during the longest 6 weeks of my life (ie the six weeks I lived in KY...).

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  20. TravelingChica: Kentucky, huh? Six weeks, huh? Interesting.

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