Hot cat, lookin' for a kitty

I do not go to high school reunions. I did not like most of the people I went to school with and I keep in touch with the one or two I did care about. I really have no interest in what Mary is doing or how John is on his third wife. I really do not possess that "high school was the greatest times of my life" gene.

That said, the period when you are in Junior High and Middle School up until you get your drivers licence was a hoot. I would jump on my bike and ride all over town. My friends and I would put in ten, even fifteen miles a day. One summer, maybe my eighth grade year, my friend Jeff and I went to the pool every day. Our goal was to get girls. We would flirt, we would try to grab a little ass, cop a feel, get a kiss. We tried to lure the female by flips and twists and crazy stunts from the diving boards. We swam, we dived, we held our breath. We generally made asses out of ourselves as teen aged boys are wont to do. We held girls and swam with them and pretty much got nothing for our efforts but the chance to buy the girl a coke and hold her wet body on our shoulders in endless games of chicken fighting. We talked a big game, but pretty much scored zero with the girls. We sure had a terrific time trying. There was always tomorrow.

I think that was the summer I acquired a pornographic novel. It was like a two hundred page Penthouse Forum. It was just what I needed -- something to drive my hormone levels even higher! Otter discovered I had this book when I was on my third or fourth reading. When I would not give it to him he ratted me out to Mom.

My youngest will be in the eighth grade this fall. He is spending his days cruising the town on his bike. He is riding hours every day with his friends. I noticed a couple of girls were sitting with him in the score box as he kept the official scorebook at a baseball game last week (this is how he earns money in the summer).

It gives me certain comfort knowing that life has not changed much in the last thirty years. Small town boys still ride their bikes. Girls still flirt. Life is easier with My Space, IM and cell phones making contact a bit easier. Carefree days of summer still pass with the pages of the calender. The Icee or ice cream from the corner store still cools your body after a long bike ride.

Soon my youngest will be driving, dating in earnest and going off to college. I am not sure I am ready.