by Barb, in Maine where we’re having a rainy July (so far)
Continuing with our theme of Hangouts & Hideaways, Wickeds where was your high school hangout? The convenience across from the school? The mall? Under the bleachers? Tell us about it and what shenanigans you got up to if you dare!
Edith/Maddie: I remember a lot happening on and under the bleachers of my high school’s football field. Friday night games were a Very Big Deal in my little suburb east of Los Angeles. Everybody went. There was always a “Fifth Quarter” dance in the gym afterward (dancing to In a Gadda Da Vida under a spinning light ball, with Julie Krug reputed to be wearing no underpants…). And under the bleachers when I was in ninth grade, Dave Roth somehow thought it was a romantic overture to snap my bra in back. Now I might consider that abusive. At the time? I wanted all the experiences, all the shenanigans – and it never went further than that, anyway.
Julie: The Hanover Mall in junior high, Downtown Annapolis or my parents’ basement in high school. And there was a lot of driving and coordinating to get something–like a Slurpee. I was a wicked nerd in high school, so no shenanigans for me. In fact, I skipped school once and had lunch at the mall with my friend Paula. I was such a wreck I confessed that night, and my father wrote me a note.
Liz: The mall, totally! The old Methuen Mall in my hometown was THE place to be on Friday nights. If you were going to meet up with a guy, that was usually the place to do it. I remember setting up my best friend with another friend of mine for the prom, and we arranged to meet at the mall with our respective posses to gauge the situation. I usually had to lie about going and pretend I was somewhere else, and then hope no one told my parents.
Jessie: Like Julie and Liz, I am going to have to go with the mall too! I spent a lot of hours there before I was old enough to have a driver’s license shopping with my sisters and my friends. As soon as I turned sixteen I spent most of my free time there working at a variety of clothing shops.
Barb: In summers in high school, it was the parking lot of the Dairy Queen. The cops would show up every once in a while and we would break into smaller groups and walk around the block, arriving back as soon as they left. Looking back, I feel bad for the poor guy who owned the franchise, who was just trying to make a living. On the other hand, we never interfered with customers that I remember and I ate more than my fair share of Dilly Bars. Our town was small enough it seemed you couldn’t get away with anything, and my parents were duly informed by some busybody driving down the main drag when I puffed on my first Winston there.
Sherry: I can’t imagine you smoking, Barb! We hung out at a place called The Barn after high school games. It was part convenience store but it also had food. It was the place to see and be seen.
Readers: What about you? Where was your high school hang? Any notable shenanigans (that you’re willing to tell us about?)