meet up with my old highschool friends

I’m not gonna say who, and I’m not going to say where… but it was awesome.

A month ago, a group of 10 from my high school got a cabin for the weekend. I hadn’t seen most of these friends in 15 years. Our plan is to make this a twice-a-year event, so if somebody has to miss one, they won’t have to wait a full year to get together again.

A select group of us went kayaking and white-water rafting for a week on the Upper/Lower Klamath River in Oregon/CA, and it was awesome. One of the best times I’ve ever had. Looking back on things I realize that though I had a ton of acquaintances in high school, I really had only a few real friends. And I’ve never really been very much out of touch with them since I left high school, so I didn’t really need this goal. I should’ve made the goal- go on vacation with high school friends.

I have to admit that it was not that hard to do this, because I graduated only last year and most of us go to the same university. However we lost touch over the last year so I was happy to see them again. Definitely worth doing!

VISIT SCOTLAND

Thanks to the internet, I’ve got to keep in contact with my friends and classmates. I live in another continent different from where I was born. It was weird though, they think I’ve changed so much so that I feel they’re a little intimidated by me. Which is a total Bullshyte cuz I’m still me, only grown up. I’ve kept in touch with one of my very good friends from elementary, and we’re in the same boat. It’s fantastic bec. it seems like nothing has changed between us.

I missed my 10 year high school reunion (in Texas) last October, because it was the weekend right before the 50th anniversary open house at the TV station I used to watch the most as a kid growing up (in Wisconsin), and I couldn’t afford to go both places in the same month, in fact I could barely afford even one of them, but this was fulfilling a childhood dream and I didn’t know when that kind of opportunity would come up again, so I went for it. My sister did go to the reunion though, and said there weren’t really that many people we knew.

I flew down on Jan 20th, barely making the plane because it left 12 hours earlier than I had originally thought, and a 7am flight borders on insanity for me. I was the last person on the plane and they waved to me as I got on.

• Met Chris and Julie at the airport
• Coffee at Alton Square (a few blocks from my old house)
• Helped Julie cook
• Dog park with Marley (Julie’s St. Bernard)
• Roz came over and we went bowling

• Cooking cooking
• Matt arrives
• We pick up Jared
• Islands (Erin meets us)
• Crazy Horse dancing (Nathan meets us)

• Big lunch at 11
• Josh, Sara, Jen, Maria, Brittan, Christine, and Brian all show up (with spouses and kids when appropriate)
• 2 details
• Matt smashes egg in hand

• Big breakfast
• Hiking Suicide Hill
• Slurpees and Slim Jims from 7-11
• Planning Midlife Crisis Tour ‘06

I don’t know why I wrote this all down. It of course doesn’t capture the spirit of the weekend, which was more like a Teletubbies meets Dazed and Confused afterschool special. I was so happy to see everyone, my brain reverted back to its 18 year old state for 4 days and had a bit of trouble piecing itself back together when I got back.

Pictures are being collected here.

right now big E smalls is doing this in Irvine and I am super jealous. Irvine. I’m curious to go back there for 2 days. 2 days is plenty to figure out how I think of it in retrospect. I know what I think but I’d like to be in contact and see if that makes things any different. I did have a lot of good times there. Despite my general feelings of ennui and disdain.
oh well. I’ll have my chance to reunite with people I knew but haven’t kept up with.

Reconnected with my core group of best friends from high school over the past year or so, and it’s been terrific—semi-constant e-mailing, drinks when we’re in each other’s towns for work, etc. We all left Alabama and ended up scattered across the country, but it’s pretty amazing how quickly the old friendships were rekindled, and how each of us is, in his or her own way, pretty similar to his/her high school self. I personally can’t wait for my reunion, but maybe it’s because one of my best friends is planning it….