6/14/2011

I remember You


I remember you. 

You were that guy.  You know, the one our parents warned us about, the one they prayed we wouldn’t bring home in a fit of teenage rebellion.

Despite our parents, or maybe because of them, you were the one we all lusted after, that slightly dangerous guy, that bad boy who could take us all the way to cool.

You wore your hair long, shiny with Brylcreem, slicked back into the perfect DA.  And, oh, your eyes.  Your eyes promised something we didn’t yet know we wanted.

You lived in dungarees, rolled twice at the ankle.  The t-shirt beneath your old leather jacket was white, with sleeves long enough to hold your Joes.

You never walked anywhere in your old black Chuckie T low tops.  You sauntered, casual in your indifference to what anyone thought, confident that they thought all the right things.

Oh, yeah, I remember you.  You were that guy. 

What the hell happened?
Posted by PattiKen
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20 comments:

  1. markJune 14, 2011 at 6:35 PM

    Sometimes time has other ideas than younger times can conceive.

    I really like this...

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  2. Brian MillerJune 14, 2011 at 6:40 PM

    ha. he gained about 30 years and twice that in weight, the child support payments have run him broke so he smokes and drinks to forget tomorrow will be here on the dawn...damn i sound cynical dont i...the last line gave me a chuckle though...

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  3. ScarletJune 14, 2011 at 7:54 PM

    It is funny how the years can change our perception of one person - then and now.

    And ironically enough, sometimes we remember the person who stands out, the who does not conform, the cool rebellious guy or gal. I wonder what happened to them too~

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  4. JonasJune 14, 2011 at 9:23 PM

    It's a hard road to uncool.

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  5. CMJune 14, 2011 at 10:46 PM

    Oh how time changes our perceptions! I would love to know if there is a real story behind this! I guess that's for another day/another post :-)

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  6. UnknownJune 14, 2011 at 11:09 PM

    I adored one of those buys, a generation later in the '70's. In fact, I married him. He's STILL that guy! ;-)
    http://www.kimnelsonwrites.com/2011/06/14/letting-go/

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  7. Elizabeth YoungJune 15, 2011 at 2:51 AM

    I think we all dated 'that guy.' What would life have been like if we hadn't ultimately learned that often he was the one our parents warned us about! Like every generation, we have to learn for ourselves though. I certainly understand the appeal...

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  8. ayalaJune 15, 2011 at 6:04 AM

    We all knew that guy :) great last line.

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  9. JinksyJune 15, 2011 at 9:19 AM

    Methinks we chose the same subject today...

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  10. G-ManJune 15, 2011 at 9:19 AM

    Patti...?
    You dated The Fonz?

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  11. Pat HattJune 15, 2011 at 12:01 PM

    Yes what was cool then, turns out 20 years later leaves you a mess in the ditch, not so cool now huh?...haha great last line too.

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  12. Tara R.June 15, 2011 at 5:22 PM

    My high school class of 1980 is holding some sort of gathering this fall. I will not be attending, I don't want my memories to be 'what happened to that guy/girl?'

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  13. Grandmother MaryJune 15, 2011 at 6:15 PM

    Like Johnny in Dirty Dancing. I watched him from afar but married Joe straight arrow!

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  14. JaniceJune 16, 2011 at 1:40 AM

    What the hell happened? We all grew up. Darn.

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  15. UnknownJune 16, 2011 at 2:10 AM

    I love the details of the clothing, because they give me a perfect image of who that guy was. Excellent work! :D

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  16. KavitaJune 16, 2011 at 4:00 AM

    Oh.. I hear ya, Patti!! It's funny how we are attracted to exactly that which we are forbidden from.. :) And yet, later, things change... *sigh*
    I guess time has its own plans for us.. :)

    Loved this one, lady... as I could ABSOLUTELY relate to it!! :)

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  17. PattiKenJune 17, 2011 at 11:46 AM

    Thanks for your visits and comments, everyone. It's no surprise at all how many of us remember "that guy."

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  18. OliviaJune 18, 2011 at 10:35 AM

    The end was surprising!
    Very well woven.. I could almost see the guy and then uh oh! Time changes many people.. he was one of them..

    Weekend hugs xox

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  19. steveroniJune 19, 2011 at 10:57 PM

    Well Patti. I DO know what happened. Because I am driving tomorrow to Stark (FL State Prison) to pick him up, after serving 30 years with a little time off for GB. He wants to come home, but the Peeps still remember what he did here in a drug-inspired/induced weekend.

    I suspect he's sober now, but who knows if that will last? I do not enjoy my job tomorrow, but there was no one else. Also I know that there is nobody lusting after his ass this trip. He will be lucky to stay alive for a week, if that long.

    --Steve E

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  20. AnonymousJune 22, 2011 at 2:25 AM

    He got a job with Goldman Sachs and realised money was more important than rebellion. Haha. I used to know a guy like the one in your poem. I often wonder what became of him.

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Thoughts? I would love to hear from you.

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