An email from Kazakhkstan leads to coffee in Newport

[substitute]

Saw Tom today, for the first time in more than 20 years. I went to high school with him and I think saw him once after that. In the meantime he's had a few careers and is currently fully employed saving the world. This is a damned good thing in that the world is in need of saving and Tom is both smart and on the side of the angels.

I tried to explain some of the more recent features of our locale including Mortgage Bro 'n' Ho Culture, the Vanguard Nice Christian Kid Death Star Attack, and the deadly affluenza of drugs and alcohol among the Kids These Days. Not sure if I was sufficiently descriptive.

I went away with the happy feeling of having reconnected, some good stories from both of us, and a sticker that says COALITION CONVOY / STAY BACK 50 METERS / DEADLY FORCE IS AUTHORIZED in English and Arabic. I think that is going to go on the laptop. I'll leave the rest of the storytelling to him, if he chooses to tell the stories.

On the way over there I was listening to Indie 103 (which I'm liking more and more) and it was Steve Jones' show. It was a crazy reunion show at that because Jonesy had John Lydon on the show and they were bullshitting and laughing about the Sex Pistols days. Best quote was from Lydon: "And we were very confused, as one ought to be."

Anyway they wrapped up the show as I was driving from the shrink's office to meet Tom at Kéan. Just as I drove past my alma mater, all decorated with happy cheerleader girls doing the splits, the radio spat out "God Save the Queen" and I realized that this was something like my 25th anniversary of driving past that high school blasting that song on my car radio.

As Tom said, "that still works."

Comments

[handstil.livejournal.com]

Awesome day.
Tom looks like a man with a lot going on behind those eyes.

also an eye comment

[salome-st-john.livejournal.com]

Which is that, judging by this picture, you and Tom have in common the eyes that are filled with warmth and understanding and intelligence and humor and also a little meltiness. I noticed that at Peet's the other day. The meltiness, I mean. Your eyes have it.

HOLY CATS!

[vanmojo.livejournal.com]

It reminds me of a Jimmy Buffett lyric: "I had to search my memory as I looked into those eyes... our lives changed like the weather, but a legend never dies..." Last Mango in Paris

mojo sends

[sp0rk0.livejournal.com]

I really like this photograph, and it makes me happy to hear you talking about reconnecting with someone meaningful to you and having it go so well.

[dr-strych9.livejournal.com]

Holy... that is one hell of a photograph. It's nice to see a picture of him. I wish I could have been there.

[stimps.livejournal.com]

It's too bad stickers don't sew on jackets very well. This one really deserves it. =)

[loose-joints.livejournal.com]

Fantasic photograph.

Holy Guacamole

[hyniof.livejournal.com]

Yep:

     That's him, all right.

     I still remember him volunteering to "take the fall" when 
we ran the mythical Mitch Kramer for ASB vice-president since
he was gonna be spending the next year out of the country 
anyway...

                     Mike

[(Anonymous)]

Yeah, that was a very worthwhile - even inspiring - cup of coffee.

The Mitch Kramer campaign was a political innovation decades ahead of his (our?) time of which I continue to be proud. I still use the name when i need a disposable user id. I don't think I had a choice about taking the fall. I had a NHHS student ID in Mitch's name with my picture but as I remember we couldn't bring ourselves to spend the $12 or so to get the little orange ASB sticker so used Ted Drayton's (a name I would not have been able to drag from memory), who got identified and fingered me and I got pulled out of Mr. Shira's German class by some Vice-Principal (Mr. Dominic?) and warned that falsifying a school ID was a fedral crime and I could be sent to jail. Who knows what would happen now. My parents were - understandably - somewhat baffled by the purpose and meaning of the whole incident.

Nice to re-connect. I've probably devoted more emotional energy to forgetting about high school than remembering it, but its worth being reminded of the things that are worth saving and that still work.

Tom