The Herndon McD employed a lot of teenagers, but at 14 we were two of the youngest. The managers abused the crap out of the lot of us, but we were too young, dumb, & inexperienced to know any better. We spent 20-25 hours every weekend cracking eggs & flipping burgers. (Guys worked in the kitchen, girls worked the counter & drive thru. We had to try really hard to flirt bc the girls were kept 10' away at all times.)
Like every restaurant, there was a bunch of turnover. For whatever reason, Brad & I never left. A year later, we'd trained a lot of the staff (older teens, adults on work-release, immigrants, etc.) We were only 15, but we ran that effing kitchen on the weekends.
We started hanging out with a third guy, Gerald, who followed the same progression on the night shift. He was maybe 1/2 year older, but a grade ahead in school.
When we finally got old enough to drive, we bought way too many cars, mostly Mustangs. Gerald had a '68 Fastback 302 and a '69 Grande 351. I had a '71 & '73 Grandes, both 302s, and a '73 Thunderbird (with a 460ci Police Interceptor!) Brad had a '65 Coupe 6-cyl and a '73 Grande 351. He also had the coolest ride of all: 1956 DeSoto with a push-button transmission on the dash.
Gerald was 17 when his parents were getting ready to move. He was trying to finish his senior year in Herndon. Brad's mom's basement was set up like a private apt: bedroom, bath, living room, private entrance, closed door to the rest of the house. Brad already lived down there. Gerald moved in when his parents left. I wound up there a short while later after some typical teenage stress at home.
The bedroom had a queen-size waterbed + a lazy-boy. We took turns sleeping in the chair.
So we're too young, we're out on our own, we have too much money, too many cars, lots of freedom at work, and a constant rotation of fresh cashiers to chase after. Life, as we knew it, was pretty damn good. :)
Obviously, not all of the stories from that era can or will be made public. Here are a couple quick-hitters...
Rafi & Safi, the Afghani brothers, worked at McD in the morning & 7-11 in the evening. They were happy to give us suitcases of beer from the cooler. When they weren't working, we just stole it from Dave's back porch.
Brad was the first person I ever saw puke thru his nose. We were bonging beers in Paul's kitchen out of a stupid-large funnel. He did 3 cans in one shot. Straight down the funnel to his belly, straight back up thru his nose into the kitchen sink. If I hadn't seen it, I never would have believed it was possible.
There was a cute little runaway chick living with us for a while. The cops came to the house looking for her. We knew she was upstairs, the cops searched, but never found her. She was hiding under the fiberglass insulation in the attic. Balls.
Driving to King's Dominion, in the rain, somewhere on I-95 southbound. Brad's in the lead, driving a rack of people in his mom's wood-paneled station wagon. I'm right behind with just as many in the thunderbird. Rounding a curve at about 90mph, the rear of the station wagon breaks loose. He's sliding sideways down the interstate; I'm face-to-face with the peeling vinyl wood of the passenger door. A couple of fishtails later, he got it back under control. The weather cleared, and we had a great day at the park.
Waiting for Pink Floyd tickets to go on sale at Fair Oaks Mall. We camped in the parking lot for three straight days, and we weren't even the first people there. We were #3, 4, and 5 in line. It was a hella good party with lots of fun people. We didn't want to hold cash in that situation, so on TicketMorning, I had to make a run to the bank. Stupid move. I was beyond tired. I crashed in super-slo-mo; I saw it happening but my reactions had taken a nap (like I should have done).
I smashed my head into the glass, my face into the steering wheel, and my car all to hell. I regained conscious thought standing in the middle of the road talking to the paramedic. My mouth was full of gravel, so I spit it into my hand. The rocks were my teeth. I threw 'em somewhere on Rt 50.
After spending 3 days with the same group of people, everyone was pretty tight. Somebody spotted my car all smashed up, and reported it to Brad & Gerald. They bailed out of their place in line to track me down. After an ambulance ride, a face full of stitches, and a hospital call to my mom, I found them back in Herndon. I tried to smile at their concern, but my face wasn't working right.
(We eventually got tix to the show later, at a much higher price.)
Brad & I double-dated with sisters, except we were each with the sister that the other wanted to hook up with. I think he succeeded later; I got close but didn't seal the deal.
Brad & I, two high-schoolers, crashing in Gerald's college dorm for the weekend.
Trick-or-treating the Herndon cops, drunk out of my skull, dressed as Father Guido Sarducci.
So why the random babbling about all the memories? Brad's 16yo son, Zach, passed away a couple weeks ago in a car crash. I can't even pretend to understand the feeling.
Brad and I had fallen out of touch. Too many miles between, too much work, too many distractions, not enough effort. The first time we'd talked in ~5 years was at Zach's services.
Friendships try to fade away. Don't let it happen. Continue to share the good times and everyday life. Otherwise, tragedies will be the only reason you get back together.
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Dom's saving my a$$ once again. You all know that I've been slacking with the game shares lately. Here are a couple quick-hitters that are totally worth it... Snake Game - It's a snake game. Eat mice, grow bigger. Don't bite yourself.
Drench - Change all the blocks to the same color in the least number of clicks. Easy, huh?
Adverputt - More challenging than the other games, but still rather brainless fun. You should be good at it.
And a little tasteless entertainment from Jacob...watch the movie trailer first. Finish throwing up. Now enjoy the game.
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Say hello to my little dancing disney friend...
What kinna engine you got in there? A diesel?
Emily sent me this old vid a while back, but it's still right on point.
Eddi's dad was a bit crazy in his youth. I heard rumors about getting plastered and breaking into the zoo to chase the animals. He caught one of the peacocks and did very unnatural things to the poor bird. Eddi's wondering if this is his sister...
If you haven't seen this vid yet, get out of your cave.
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