Friday, June 11 & Saturday, June 12

Friday
Greg was my best friend from fourth grade through eighth grade. He moved up to Wisconsin in either eighth grade or before freshman year, so we started to lose touch in high school, but it was always easy to remember his birthday because it was two months after mine -- and one month before my other best friend back then, Tim.

Secret writing:

The pain in my back mirrors the pain in my heart. I'm stting here in Gaby's basement, being ignored by everyone (especially Hernando) I'm not completely upset about being ignored, except that it makes me feel like I've already left for college and am looking back on my friends going on without me.

This is just the beginning of my poor assimilation to the idea of going off to college, leaving my friends and family behind. Much, much more later in the year. Hernando, by the way, was Gaby's cousin who forbade her from dating me, touching off much of the drama earlier in the year. By this point I guess I was at least allowed in the house, but our relationship hadn't warmed.

The "B" in the little quoted exchange is Brooke R., I'm pretty sure. I don't know why she hated me in this particular instance; it was something she said whenever she was upset or embarrassed. I probably teased her about something -- and judging from the tone of the rest of my writing, I was in a grumpy mood, so that's likely.

Saturday
Megan J. was in my brother Peter's grade, but I knew her through the park district. She was a CIT -- counselor in training -- for the PD's summer camp, and she and a couple of the other CITs would come visit me at the concession stand on occasion. She was very pretty, with long blonde hair and a great body, a bit of an airhead, and also a very devout Christian. I was attracted to and repulsed by her in nearly even amounts, but we remained friends. She invited me to her 16th birthday party, and all I remember was that there was a pool in the backyard. I have an image of her in a one-piece bathing suit, looking like the nubile young teen she was... and that's all I remember about the party.