High School Reunion

It’s hard to believe our 10-year high school reunions are coming up soon! Luckily I didn’t need to wait until Spring to see my two best friends from Franklin – Barbara and Megan. Over the past month I've had the chance to meet up with both of them!

When we graduated, we scattered. I moved to Austin, then London. Megan went to school in New Mexico, and then moved to DC to get her graduate degree at Johns Hopkins. Barbara moved to Utah for college, where she met her husband Jeremy, became a teacher, and then a new mom to baby girl Kassandra! 

On her way to Spain for vacation recently, Megan had a long layover in London, so we were able to spend an afternoon together. It was great to catch up. It had been too long – 7 years! 

Graduation Day!

Even though we hadn't seen each other in 7 years either, Barbara and I do keep up through our blogs and email.  During one of our recent email exchanges, Barb mentioned that she had a family reunion in October in San Diego.  I immediately sent her a note back with the dates I would be in California for Cristy’s wedding.  She was feeding Kassandra in the middle of the night when she saw that message, and immediately ran into the bedroom to wake Jeremy up and tell him the good news – we’d be in San Diego the same week!

Barbara and me now, with Kassandra.  

What a coincidence!  I hadn't seen my HS BFFs in 7 years, and within one month, we were able to get together! 

David’s impression of my friends and me in high school is of a bunch of silly, boy-crazy teenage girls.  And we were!  They were great times, and here are some of my favorite moments:

• Megan and I spending our summers at El Paso Country Club tanning and swimming and eating all of the free chile rellenos we could get our hands on.  We were working as lifeguards, but it never felt like work!

My old high school swim team photo.  

I wish I could still eat 7 chile rellenos a day and look like this!

• Calling our parents from pay phones to come and pick us up.  That’s right, kids, I didn’t get my first cell phone until I headed off to college!

• Sleepovers at Megan’s house outside on her trampoline, even the time I got bit on the lip by some kind of horrible bug.  The next morning, it was so swollen I couldn’t speak!

• Dressing up as Huey, Dewey, and Louie for Halloween.  We thought it was awesome, but looking back now, those were the lamest costumes ever.  We just wore green, blue, and red T-shirts with matching visors.

Megan looks so young in this picture!

• The first time we “snuck” off campus for lunch (which was totally allowed, by the way) at Ardovino’s for El Paso’s best spumoni ice cream!

• Rationing out our $3/day for lunch at Wendy’s, where we could get 2 Junior Bacon Cheeseburgers, a Small Fry, and a free glass of water.  Delicious and cheap!  Later, we wised-up and started to go home a couple of days a week so our moms could make us lunch for free!

• Becoming seniors and getting the privilege of dressing up in themed costumes every Friday night for football games.  And then gorging on Taco C after the games.  Elizabeth tells me the senior girls still do this.  Fun!

• Megan and me blasting Lifehouse, Linkin Park, and homemade CD mixes (again, I feel ancient talking about mix tapes and CDs instead of iPod playlists) on the way to lifeguard classes in Socorro.  And during our lunch breaks, we’d have pizza eating contests at Cici’s.  For two thin girls, we could finish off quite a few pizzas!

• Hanging out in my backyard pool every single day of the summer.  And little Elizabeth would push us around on our floats, taking us on “splendid boat rides.”  Later, Barbara tried to help her “become a woman” by teaching her to go underwater without holding her nose.  Elizabeth still holds her nose.

• Summer trips to Cleveland, where Barb and I rode the tallest roller coaster in the world (at that time) and Mexico, where Meg and I would eat the best authentic Mexican food.

Barb and me at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Megan and me at a cabin in Mexico

• Watching ridiculous movies like Billy Madison, Austin Powers, and Heeeewey over and over to memorize all of the lines and songs.

• Dancing around the halls of our high school to Prozac’s Sucks to be You before getting our Walkmans (OMG – Walkmans) confiscated by the principal herself!  Then pointing at each other and continuing to sing, “Sucks to be you!”

The halls of Franklin High

Once we learned to drive, we became even more ridiculous…

• At least once every couple of months, we’d go to a really late movie.  And when we got out, the mall’s parking lot would be practically empty… except for the cleaning van!  We used to chase the cleaning man around the mall’s parking lot (going about 3 mph) just to freak him out.  I think he was more confused than anything.

• Spying on our boyfriends, and once even breaking into one of their cars to steal and destroy his dip (it was a filthy habit anyway)!

• Having water balloon fights with Barb and our friend, Matt, while driving down Mesa.  Once, I threw a balloon at a stranger’s car, not knowing his window was down.  It hit him right in the side of the face and exploded, soaking him.  He was so furious that he started to chase us.  Our car chase lasted about 10 minutes, until the guy got bored and drove away.  Thank goodness Matt was driving that time!

On the last day of school, everyone would go to a 

local park for a giant shaving cream fight

• Off-roading in the desert in our friend’s trucks and Jeeps.  El Paso was a great place to off-road.

• Seeing how many people we could fit into my 4-seater Ford Probe to drive to Sonic for lunch.  I think the record was 8.  My Probe was a piece of s---.  Once, I lost power steering so Barb had to help me crank the wheel on all of the turns home.  Another time, the car became possessed and the windows started rolling up and down on their own while driving to my piano lesson.

• Or the time that Barb and I lost our minds and thought it would be hilarious if I drove down the street with her sitting on the hood of my car.  We crossed four lanes of traffic to get to the Franklin Mountain neighborhood, with her holding on for dear life.  (Actually, now that I think about it, it’s amazing that none of us ever got into an accident…)

Ah, the memories.  High school was such a great time spent with some amazing friends.  Let’s not wait 7 years to get together again, ladies!