Flashback

I don’t know what made me think of this.

Maybe it was a song on the radio. A name that crossed my mind. Or just the memory dangled over my head, so I had no choice but to dive in and replay some memories. Some I don’t think I could even explain.

But we all have that ONE summer (maybe two).

The summer that was better than any other summers.

With friends.

With family.

Always out doing something.

I think mine was somewhere around 2009. I was in high school. I didn’t have a boyfriend, but I had my crew. My 2 best friends and some guys who probably were crushing on one, two, or all of us – in any particular order.

I remember driving around my small little town. (It’s not so small anymore).

Every time one of the guys would pick us up, it was like an adventure.

For whatever reason, none of the girls drove. I think when we did drive, we used our parents cars and it was only to get to school. Maybe I didn’t even have a permit yet. I don’t remember.

Either way, the boys took turns driving. And one by one they would pick us up. All in nearby neighborhoods.

Usually I was the second person to pick up. My friend Chelsea, Addam, and Taylor would be in the car. All we had missing was Andrea. So after we picked her up – the day was up in the air as to what we were going to do.

Usually they would blast some music as they rolled up to my cul-du-sac.

My dad always scolded me when they pulled up so obnoxiously to our quiet neighborhood when it was still early in the morning. But I knew usually that I would be gone till it got dark outside. Sometimes even later.

There were times we would just go to random stores and chase each other. Try on silly clothes, silly hats, glasses and other accessories.

Go to the mall a lot too. Just window shop.

Snow cones was pretty regular too.

Driving the back roads of the countryside.

Hanging around friends houses. Playing card games. Trying to be polite most of the time to the parents.

Riding around in golf carts.

It was simple and fun.

There was always food involved. The debate where to eat lunch.

Lunch was always at a different time. Kind of when everyone finally was hungry and agreed on a place. Sonic was a usual. Hang outside and sip on a Route 42. Sometimes pizza. Sometimes Chinese. Anything cheap.

Rain. Snow or Shine. I remember that Sonic was THE SPOT. Even after summer.

Yet Summer 2009 was special.

We were always outside. Usually at the lake. Either kayaking. Jumping off bridges. On Jet Ski’s or whatever we could do outside. I think one of they boy’s parents were pretty well off and trusted a bunch of teens with Jet Skis unsupervised.

We were reckless sometimes.

There was one time we had an indoor/outdoor water gun fight with the boys and one of their little brothers. I remember I was loosing really badly. So I ran into the bathroom to lock myself in. The twelve year old somehow managed to get onto the roof when I was trying to protect myself from being attacked. I think he may have switched over to a paintball gun or some other painful little pellet thing. Not quite a BB gun – but you get the idea.

I was laughing so hard and was simultaneously so scared!!

Man, I was cornered. From the inside the guys were messing with me and shooting these pellets at me from under the door! I had to jump around so my feet wouldn’t get hit! They were banging on the door and the little brother eventually was opening the window somehow!

I push through the door screaming and laughing.

” HEY!!!! I thought we were doing water guns you guys!!!!!!

I had never laughed so hard. Or had that much fun in a short period of time. I knew my parents would have killed me if I did such havoc at their house with my friends.

The house totally took some damage.

There was also this crazy kid named Taylor. He was also a part of our group. He had some memorable moments. And I think all the inside jokes came from him.

There was one time late at night we decided to go through a carwash. He got down to his boxers and laid on top of the car.

You can already see this is not a great idea. He even managed to have goggles on so the high pressure water would not get in his eyes and blind him.

It was pretty stupid – but a cautious, silly kind of stupid.

We watch as the car and Taylor go through the car wash. The anticipation was great. He was so anxious and worried. But still wanted to do it.

“You guys this is going to suck. You guys, guys…..GUYS. OH MY GOD WHAT AM I DOING. GUYS. THIS IS GOING TO HURT SO BAD.”

As we snicker from behind the self car wash watching.

After the colorful soap spit out and applied he laughed. “This isn’t so bad! I won’t have to shower tonight. This is great!”

As he scrubs under his armpits.

But then the high pressure water comes on……

After a few seconds he slips off the top of the car yelling. Catching himself as he almost falls down again and runs out the car wash. The whole time yelling….yelling….yelling….

We were laughing so hard. Some people were recording from their flip phones. I think he was either yelling from it being so cold or also the pressure. Maybe it didn’t hurt at all. Or maybe he made it more oboxious because he was on camera.

Still, I don’t know what was funnier – everyone contagiously laughing…. Belching these big belly clenching laughs, or how ridiculous Taylor looked in his wet boxers with a massive wedgie and tons of soap still all over him. Oh – and the goggles which were very much sideways.

None the less, it was the best car wash I had ever seen. And one of the most memorable laughs.

Another time Taylor swiped his car on some yellow pole trying to be a “racecar” driver.

There was this abandoned neighborhood that stopped development for a few years and we knew that was the place to go be silly and drive our cars fast. It was fun although it was just a white ford focus. Not really fast but for sixteen, the thrill was taking turns hard and blasting music and messing around.

Like I said, Taylor’s car…. which he named it something… I can’t remember the name. Ole Betty we’ll call her – rocked a yellow stripe across the driver and backseat door for quite some time in high school. Yet it didn’t seem to bother him and only we knew what it was from when we saw it at the school parking lot later that year.

Not sure what he told his parents.

Addam had a Jeep. We would take it into the woods off roading. That was fun too. Sometimes we got stuck and we knew which wannabe rednecks we had to call to get us out.

Our town was not redneck at all. Just a little southern sometimes, but it didn’t really feel like it. I guess our high school had the usual, preppy folks, jocks, nerds, anime people, and then the 4X4 off road reneck group haha.

That was a thing for my high school.

Looking back, the town was very nice. You ran into people often enough at the local Walmart but you still also didn’t know everyone in the town which was ideal.

Anyway, that summer there were times we would go to Chelsea’s to watch a movie or have a sleepover. Then sneak out and go to parties.

These parties were crazy. The ones where drunk people were on the roof and homes got trashed. The nights where you would wake up with battle scars the next morning.

Andrea and I would get high together and go for walks – explore.

She and I also had another group we would hang out with. It was our stoner group. But they didn’t do a whole lot. Just Koom-baya circles and reggae music. Where I learned to appreciate the stoner culture.

Andrea and I normally would hang out more with our sober friends ironically. Although we loved to smoke.

We use to go to Taylor’s grandparents lake house and go tubing.

I cut my heel pretty bad that summer on the boat propeller. My dad bugged me for a few weeks why I was limping. He never found out. I didn’t want him mad.

Addam’s girlfriend at the time one day that summer crashed into me on her JetSki. Idiot. That was bad. Poor Kris knew his parents would be so mad.

I remember one time we bought mentos and threw them in a coke bottle. Watched it explore.

We made homemade ginger ale with dry ice.

We baked lots of cookies and brownies. All sorts of food at Addams house.

Kris had two Golden Retrievers we played with. Use to watch Tosh.O at his place all the time.

We all snuggled too. A lot. The guys would even cuddle too. Especially when we would try to squish six people on a couch.

There was a lot of laying on each other.

Lots of tickles.

Massages.

Hugs.

Smiles and laughs.

We talked about getting a house together one day when we grew up.

We all got along so well.

That summer I can’t remember all the things that we did. We even ran into the cops a few times. How we didn’t ever really get in trouble is insane. Nobody ever got grounded either! Maybe once. But then it was such a relief when they were free again.

I wish I remembered more. Writing helps jog back memories.

But I do remember that every morning I woke up and knew my buddies were coming to pick me up soon. I didn’t know who, in what order, or when – but I knew I was part of the crew. And I anxiously waited.

Everyday we had an adventure no matter how big or small.

I think one of the guys bought a bow and arrow too.

Eminem’s recovery album came out that year – seemed like it was the soundtrack to a bunch of teenagers having fun and just messing around.

That’s all we did. Messed around. Nothing was always super memorable. But there were so many laughs.

Why is it that we only get one summer like that?

I wish there were more.

The older we get, the harder it is to have a crew that just wants to hang out everyday and see what the day brings.

Now we all have jobs. Bills. And responsibilities.

Oh the simple times.

Take me back to 2009.