Happy Anniversary!

Twenty-eight years ago today, two friends and I were in a car accident. It was a minor accident....the kind where no one got hurt....but your parents got really mad. It started out as one of our fun Saturday nights at After the Goldrush, a long gone 3.2 bar. I was a senior in high school, and my friends were a year older. It was the height of the disco scene, and we were there boogying with the best of them. We were supposed to be spending the night at Sandy's, who had her own apartment...but...we met some boys, and things changed. One of these boys had HBO at his apartment. That was a rare thing in 1978.....and we were VERY impressed, so we HAD to go check it out. I swear....we only cared about the HBO! So, we leave the bar, to follow the boys to their apartment, and I let Sandy drive my car, because my contact lenses were bothering me, and I had had a couple of drinks. We get on the freeway, and the boys made a quick exit that Sandy wasn't prepared for. She tried to follow them, but we hit a patch of sand and the back end of the car slid into the guardrail. Sandy quickly assured me that all was well, because SHE was alright, but all I could do was shriek, YOU WRECKED MY CAR!"

The boys...gentlemen that they were...saw our plight and came to assess the situation. We all decided that there was no reason that a little car wreck should end our fun for the evening, so we elected to not call my parents, and to drive the damaged car to the apartment. It made a horrible noise, but we drove on. In the morning, we drove back across town with the boys following us to make sure we were okay. (I told you they were gentlemen!) As we pull into Sandy's apartment parking lot, Jamie, Sandy's roommate, hears the loud racket of the car approaching, and opens her bedroom window to investigate. When she sees us, she begins yelling, "Where have you been? All your mothers have been calling!" I thought we were in big trouble then, but that Jamie is a quick thinker. She told my mother that we decided to stay at Teri's house, and she told Teri's mother that we stayed at my house. That crisis was averted, but my troubles were not over. I still had to tell my parents what happened. It was Sunday morning, and I decided to wait until they were at church and call them there. I thought maybe the yelling would be less that way. They didn't yell...they just told me to get home. So I'm thinking, I'll just go to bed, and they won't bother me when they get home from church. Yeah....right. They woke me up....imagine that! So yeah....I was in a bit of trouble....but we all survived it.

So...why am I writing about this 28 years later? Because, when the one year anniversary of the event rolled around, someone decided we should go out to dinner to commemorate it. We included a few additional friends besides the original four who were actually involved. Then we did it again the next year.....and we've been doing it every year since then. I've enjoyed all our get togethers, but I'd have to say my favorite was our 10th. We decided to go back to After the Goldrush. While everyone else was still 18 and drinking pitchers, we were pushing 30, two were VERY pregnant, and we were ordering up champagne.

Who would have known on that cold night in January, that a little car accident and some HBO would bond a group of girls....now women....all these years later? We've been thru marriages, divorces, births, deaths, good times and bad.

Tonight, there were a bunch of high schoolers at the restaurant, all decked out for their winter formal. I looked around and wondered if any of them would have a bond that would bring them together, 28 years later. I know my mother still doesn't find it amusing that we celebrate a car wreck that they ended up paying for, but I for one am glad it happened. It's nice to have friends who share your history....who know where you come from. I hope we'll be doing this for many years to come.