Back In Time

I'm going back in time today. The year is 1973, I am 14 years old. I'm months away from graduating from grammar school at Saint Patrick's, Brooklyn, New York and unbelievably happy about leaving that school, though not my friends. From kindergarten to 8th grade there were always a few changes in my classmates, they juggled us around for many reasons, separating twins sometimes, trouble makers most times and maybe, just maybe, moving students into another class because the student would do much better with a different teacher. But over the years I attended St. Pat's I pretty much got to meet or sit next to most of my classmates. And there was the school yard where we lined up before school and after lunchtime. And before line up, you hung out, different grades had different corners of the school yard, in 8th grade, I think we had the corner by the stairs, that's my memory at least, so much has happened since then, there's lots of memories floating around my head.

At 14 years old and in the senior grade of school, I am cool just for being in the 8th grade. I'm ahead of all the other grades and of course I'm not even thinking that all too soon I'll be at the bottom again, starting over, feeling awkward again and not so cool.

I was lucky that there were a few girls that would be attending the same high school I was, but there were so many others who did not, well, all the boys, since I attended an all-girl Catholic high school in Staten Island, right over the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. It was about a ten to fifteen minute ride. And then I moved from Brooklyn to Staten Island in my sophomore year of high school. Way out in Staten Island, the boonies, nothing but woods and more woods. Where you say "down the road" and "into town" instead of "up the street" or "on the avenue" and "to the stores". My ride to school now took at least an hour on a good day and too many days to count that it took hours. And I lost touch with pretty much everyone I knew in Bay Ridge Brooklyn. I did move back and forth from Staten Island to Brooklyn over the years but most time was spent here in Staten Island, I grew to love it here. It's no so country like it was, but if you want country there are so many beautiful parks pretty much within walking distance in all areas around the island.

But remember the old TV show Green Acres? The opening theme song was about the differences between the husband and wife (Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor playing Oliver and Lisa Douglas). By the way, may he rest in peace, but I helped Eddie Albert's son, Edward Albert, park his car one day in Manhattan. I didn't know who he was, I just saw a guy parking his convertible on the street and noticed he couldn't see if he had pulled the car back enough, I just walked to the curb and gave him universal hand language for "go on, you have room" and I walked away. My friend Marie said, did you know who that was? No. When she told me I thought that was cool, I helped a movie star and as a typical New Yorker didn't notice.

Well anyway, back to the Green Acres opening theme song, the wife loved the city life and the husband loved the country life. Staten Island was like the country to me. Well it was, especially for those living on the south shore in the early 70s. I saw people riding horses all the time, rabbits in the woods behind my house or the woods across the street. Learned what a possum was, sorry didn't dig the possums, kinda scary looking, but there was a possum in my backyard with a bunch of baby possums one night, their eyes glowing at me, I ran back inside real quick. We didn't have a back fence, there were just more woods behind the house and a dirt road where we could walk our dogs out there off the leash, it was nice for them being in the country. They were on the Oliver Douglas side of the city versus country life issue. But seeing those possums, I remembering thinking that was only something people like Granny talked about. Granny is from another old TV show, The Beverly Hillbillies, and she was always talking about cooking a possum!



Tonight I am going back in time to 1973, meeting two of my classmates that I haven't seen in 38 years. When I remember these girls, Kerry and Mary, they are still 14. I know what they look like now, I've seen their pictures on Facebook. But when I look at them, I still see 14 year olds. That's who they are to me. I know that will change after tonight. I'll go again Back in Time to today, to 2012, and Kerry and Mary will be pictured differently in my mind.

Kerry and Mary both attended the same high school and have remained friends all these years, since kindergarten and now are married with children and living not far away from each other still. I remember Mary as Mary Ann. She dropped the Ann when she attended high school and it's so weird for me to call her Mary. Again she's 14 in my memory and she's Mary Ann.

I reconnected with Kerry and Mary on Facebook. I love Facebook and I can also understand why some people don't. It all depends on what you use it for.

I've heard some people call themselves "Facebook Stalkers". They don't comment or write on their wall, they just look at their family and friends' pictures and posts. I don't think of them as stalkers, to me it's like reading a much better issue of People Magazine or movie/celebrity magazines. I'm reading about people I care about, I'm looking at their pictures, seeing their lives, their loves. I'm not a stalker. I put myself out there too. I comment sometimes, I share sometimes, but more times I'm reading what the people I like and love are posting. Again a much better read for me than a celebrity magazine. I go Back in Time to then and now in a moment. It's a great ride.

And tonight should be a blast, talking and sharing life stories with Kerry and Mary, remembering our past and then Back in Time to today.