I’m sure you’d never guess it now, but I was a strange child. I grew up in the country so my days consisted of collecting caterpillars, creating my own farmer’s market, and attempting to build tree forts that definitely endangered the safety of not only my life but also of my one neighbor friend that actually lived on my dead end street. Of course, he was a boy so that didn’t help my quest for girlishness. We were like Forrest and Jenny -except we never ended up dating. Or having an illegitimate child. Or getting AIDS.
My other neighbor, Bill, was a farmer so we’d play around on his tractors and then go back to his house where it always smelled like catfish and cigarettes. (they thought they still lived in Mississippi) He and his wife were typical farmers, missing a couple teeth and living on black coffee. I don’t think I owned one single doll except for the cabbage patch my grandma bought me. And I’m quite sure I threw up on that.
A nerd right from the get-go, I would gravitate to the office supplies aisle every time we stepped foot in a store. In the picture you will see that I’m sitting in an actual school desk – one of the most amazing purchases my mom has ever made for me. Still. And as you’ll see from the picture, I’d sit and write in my closet for HOURS and HOURS. Even from a young age, it was all I wanted to do. I think if most people would think back on their childhood, they’d discover that their interests haven’t changed that much. Aside from picking their nose and stuff.
Speaking of my one childhood neighbor, do any of you remember a period of about 1-2 years where you were TERRIFIED OF ALIENS???!? Cus, it’s very vivid in my mind. I don’t know what was up, but there was some kind of alien frenzy going on during my younger years. It was all over the talk shows – people talking about being abducted and what not. Anytime I was outside I’d keep a close watch on the sky and strange noises. Of course, I was always protective of my friends even back then. One time, I was playing softball with my neighbor and his brother. There must have been a bunch of planes nearby, but as soon as I heard the noises, I immediately took action:
me: STOP WHAT YOU’RE DOING!!!
boys: What? Why?
me: GET IN THE GARAGE!!!!!
boys: the garage? but we’re in the middle of a ….
me: JUST DO IT! DON’T ASK QUESTIONS!
boys: but…. I …
me: LOOK, DO YOU WANT TO DIE?!
Aw, Brit, I too was the girl in the neighborhood of boys. My main punishment was always having to be the ghost in “Ghost in The Graveyard”
I was the mother hen though..
haha “Do you want to DIE?!?!”
oh jules. yea… we always played house – where we pretended that a tornado was coming and I had to gather all the kids and we’d stockpile food from my mom’s garden in our fort. it was ridic. But all that mother hen stuff went out the window when I got so sick of my neighbors little bro that we just tied him to a tree when he got on our nerves.
where the heck is brandon these days?
Hahahahaha!!! I remember the alien thing, also, I remember that swim suit in that picture!!!
I remember going to your house and wondering why we never played dolls, and instead started making a ‘jar’ of our own cement. Yes that’s right – we made cement once. hee hee. good times good times!
still hating- i hope this is who i think it is. I DO NOT REMEMBER THAT?!?! jars of cement?? how on earth did we do that?! and where were my parents? isn’t cement not such a good toy for 5 year olds?
Too cool for us Brit, too cool.
Hopefully there are some “Wendy-esque” stories to follow
haha. yea he’s not only too cool for us, he’s too cool for school – clearly.
yo bros and … ok lets stop rhyming right there.. hehe
this made me remember something about my childhood… i started up a group of kids on our bikes and called ourselves the BMX bandits after the movie named the same.. hehe we fought for truth, justice and the susi spice way! hehe.
im goign to blog about that now uve inspired me brit! hehe.
wow it amazes me how different childhoods are, tornadoes and worrying about aliens.. haha
whatev susi. .. my childhood can beat up your childhood!
I seem to inspire alot of blogs around here. Maybe thats my purpose.
Well, you did live near Rockford, so constantly being in fear for your life makes a lot of sense.
When I was younger, I was lazy and played a lot of video games. Unfortunately, there is no career in doing nothing (actually there is, it’s called unemployment, but that doesn’t afford me the nice things I want…). So I had to do something, which of course became not only the easiest thing for me to do, but the one that paid the best. And I can be lazy at work (most of the time).
excuse me brandon, i didn’t say i lived on the WEST SIDE. in that case, i would have definately feared for my life. I just feared mythical sci-fi creatures perpetuated in my mind by evil talk show hosts like donahue and ricky lake. not. my. fault.
I also find it very endearing that you guys miss me so much. awww
I promise to make at least one blog post this week. I would promise 2, but I don’t want to be held under so much pressure.
brandon. there’s a distinct difference between MISSING YOU and casually wondering where you are. don’t be thinking you’re special or something.
It’s okay Brit, I know the truth. It can remain unsaid.
no, no. i’m not fabricating the truth anymore as one of my resolutions. Im super serial.
will it make you have a better week if you thought we desperately missed u? because i could probably reverse my resolution for a night
It’s not fabricating the truth if even you are unaware of how much you miss me.
And I’m actually working on a blog post right now! It probably won’t get posted until tomorrow though… it’s going to be long, and I’m not staying up much later to finish it.
well it’s only taken you 3 weeks. … was it cus you were in a depression over my absence for a week? I understand what a toll that can take on someone such as yourself.
brandon, get a new job already where you can stay up late and write blogs all night like me.
pssh. seriously.
Yes, that was it. Depression. It had nothing to do with my apathy, my inability to finish something I start, or overall lack of ambition in regards to writing.
And hey now, I posted a blog at least once a week the past couple weeks, so don’t give me this “it’s only taken you 3 weeks nonsense.”
okaaaaaay. your last blog was march 8 which was a week ago, but before that you u didn’t have one since feb23 . I’m sorry to be harsh but the “I’m not feeling very whitty today” post about nothing DOESN”T COUNT.
hang on wait a second… brandon was gone?
where? and yes i do know how lazy u can be at work brandon as much as i am haha.
susi- you are all a bunch of lazy -good for nothing “workers” eating cookies and writing blogs all day. it’s a disgrace!
which is why you’re perfectly welcome at my blog
If I could pick my nose I’d choose Grecian
uh oh. look at nurse over here with the witty commentary
I don’t remember much of my childhood, although I do remember disappearing on everyone every chance I got. I too was a country girl, and the nearest neighbor with kids was a mile and a half away. Didn’t matter though, I was one of 6 kids in my family and the only loner. I’d grab books, fruit and veggies from the garden, a bottle of water, and off I’d go into the pasture or somewhere where no one would find me. I’d spend the day there reading and making up stories. I’d even talk to the trees, the cows, and whatever else I thought would stick around to listen to me…lol.
yea, skye – i hear ya, growing up in the country was really a great childhood. but if you combine the desolate-ness of where my parents house was and the fact that I as an only child… you definately understand why I am the hermit I am today.
New blog posted. 1500 words. I hit my “at least one this week” quota, so now I’m back to procrastinating.
ugh. brandon.
get. over. yourself. already.
haha
Brandon, your trophy’s in the mail.
You are cracking me up with the alien thing. I do remember stuff about alien abductions and crop circles, but I don’t think I was afraid of them. I do remember being afraid of my neighbor boys. They insisted I was going to be a go-go dancer in their treehouse. Does that age me or what? Of course I was about 8 or 9 at that time. LOL!
oooh… pixel.. go -go dancer… what were they running a brothel tree house over there?
sheesh. i just hope you ran when they wanted to play doctor.
thanks for stopping by!!!
oh my word! I thought I was the only crazy kid whose prayers involved, “Please don’t let the aliens get me”. I couldn’t even look outside the windows of my house at night because I was convinced that every plane…. and every star… was the light of an alien ship that was gonna land in my backyard.
haha, oh jessica. at least I can count on you. SERIOUSLY. and even one time in high school when i thought i was beyond that. .. i was driving home (in the middle of nowhere) and i was talking to my mom on the phone and we both saw this thing in the sky hovering right over where my car was… and to this day we have no idea what it was… needless to say i almost burned the tires out on my car driving home so fast.
I don’t remember the alien thing at all! I too darling lived amongst boys. I made them play house and be the big bad wolf, grandma and hunter in my little red ridding hood production…ah the days
ah yes… the plays. we did that too. we also build homeade obstacle courses in my parents driveway which my dad wasn’t too happy to see after he was halfway down the driveway with his truck
You know, I do totally understand why you’re a hermit. Question is, do you understand why I am one, being the middle child of 6? Yep, you probably do! hehehe
haha. well skye when you put it that way – that does make complete sense! i guess it works both ways= if you’re an only child or if you’re part of a tribe (in your case)
hysterical…
and I have to tell you that my mom also bought me a real school desk. Actually she bought TWO…one for my little sister and one for me.
And yes, I vividly remember being scared of aliens.
WEIRD fact about me…my parents threw out our tv when I was like 2 or so and didn’t get one until I had moved out and my 2 siblings were in high school. Seriously. They wanted us to read and play outside and use our imaginations. No, we weren’t Amish…
NO TV! Can you believe it?!
man rach. no tv is HARSH.
our moms are sweet action.
are you suuuuuure you weren’t Amish??
you failed to mention the name of such a dead end street. lol!
haha nel- NO ONE would believe me if i told them that. sigh.
Pingback: The Opposite Of Daddy Issues | Blunt Delivery
Terrified of aliens. Terrified of asteroids hitting the Earth. I think I saw the beginning or end of “Armageddon” or something… I was crazy. Also, would cry when jets flew over the house. I feel ya.