I remember . . . Read More..

I remember having GI Joe fights with my brother.  We used to pretend that our action figures were waging war with each other.  They would sneak into the enemy's base (each bedroom being a base) and attempt to take out the enemy.  It was funny because it was kind of arbitrary how we would determine whether or not one of the GI Joes successfully shot the other GI Joe.  I think it was based on whether or not we were willing to give up one of our action figures.  If it was one of our cherished Joes we would say "no way, you missed" or "he dodged it".

We would sometimes get in fights because one of us would claim that we had a straight shot at the opposing Joe.  It was a good time, nonetheless.

I remember countless charming hours playing Turbografx. Bonk's Adventure, Keith's Courage, DJ Jazz Jeff, Splatterhouse and those pinball games, Air Zonk. Man, there still has not been a game system invented that left the same impression on me. The games were these tiny cartridges and the system was called "Turbo" because each controller had a turbo button. I never owned one. My brother received it as a Christmas gift. When we really started getting into comic books, he traded it to our friends John and Derek for some comic books. Now our comic books just sit in their cardboard boxes collecting no value but collecting plenty of dust.

I remember when I was first really introduced to pop music.  Previously I had liked a song here and there and I owned a Paula Abdul album (Spellbound).  However, I really only listened to jazz and classical.

I think I was in tenth grade.  It must have been 1995.  I remember that Jim Falk introduced me to Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and the Rolling Stones.  Shortly thereafter, I remember Austin Meoning playing Green Day for me in my room.  And I remember liking what I heard.

I remember running downstairs and informing my parents of the music that I had "discovered".  They smiled and humored me and soon after I started spending my allowances up at Music Master instead of at Video Game Master and The Vault (a comic store).

Back then I used to be able to buy a few albums with my $20/week allowance.  Nowadays that only buys me one album at Best Buy.  I guess I could still download two albums of MP3s for $20 but it just is not the same.

Back in the day, Chris Shea, Adam Lamb, Austin Moening and I built a 4-story tree fort in the fields by my backyard. It started as a 1-story fort but we could not resist the urge to continue to build higher on the perfectly-suited tree. It was a majestic thing with a superfluance of nails.

The first level was enclosed in plywood and the second and third levels were just floors made of 2 x 4s. The fourth floor was more like a ceiling or roof. There were no guard rails on the fourth floor and it was very high up and kind of scary. It was one of the triumphant accomplishments of my youth. Me and Shea hung out there a lot--and yet--I don't have a single picture to prove it.

Update: I found a picture of us on the fort but it is at night and all you can see is a 2x4.  I was talking with Chris the other day and he said that my aunt took a picture of us all on the fort.  I will have to search my parents' albums for that photo.  Dave, when can I borrow that document feed scanner?