Hubby saw my 'Retro Fan Headband'...that I shared in yesterday's post...when he came home from work yesterday, and he loved it! :-) I knew he would. We're both children of the 70s after all! ^_^ But what I hadn't figured on was that my headband was gonna start one of "those" conversations...you know, the silly 'from here to who knows where' conversations that he and I have sometimes! {Warning: This is one of my long chatty posts!}
We started talking about the 70s and our childhood and......this morning we're still talking about it! ^_^ It started with the simple word "Remember....!"...LOL He said: "Remember the McCloud coat?!"...
...{McCloud was an NBC television series about a country talking police Marshall....You can see him wearing the coat HERE.}
They had these coats for men and women, and everybody in our neighborhood wanted one! They kept you so WARM during Massachusetts winters! And even though they would get filthy dirty...part of their charm :-) ...they lasted forever!..."Oh yes! I remember them!"...
I said: "Do you remember 'Get Christie Love!'?" :-) ...Well, I 'was' Get Christie Love! back in the day! ^_^ I used to iron a crease down the front of my blue jeans, or my white polyester pants, and wear my 'floating Afro' just like her! You could see me coming for miles!! LOL...
...and you could almost hear the theme music to "Get Christie Love! as I was walking!! LOL
Then I said: "Do you remember Nehru jackets...the jackets that didn't have the collar, and they had the nice buttons, or closures, down the front?!"...
...I used to have one...Silk, with Chinese character lettering on it! I loved it! :-) ...And I had a pair of wedged heel Espadrilles too!...
...I always wore them with my jeans...always! ^_^
Then he said: "Do you remember how we used to search Army and Navy stores for the perfect blue jeans?!"...Oh yes! I remember!...And I remember when the stores started to fill up with the NEW...meaning 'EXPENSIVE'! ^_^...jeans that had been shot full of bullet holes...on purpose! LOL...
And then hubby said: "Remember the stiff Wrangler blue jeans?!"...Hubby loved those jeans!...Frankly, I wasn't a fan. They were too stiff, and in my opinion...not for girls! LOL...No matter what size you bought, when you put them on you always looked like you were 'packing'...*Teehee*...and girl don't 'pack' packages...if you know what I mean!...Teehee*
We went to bed with silly grins on our faces after talking about all of this...Then this morning it got serious!...We started remembering things from our past that made us wonder how we ever got out of our childhood without dying!....Dressed badly? Okay...but I'm talking about ALIVE!! ^_^
It started this morning with hubby remembering a 'date' with a girl when he was a teenager. A date to the blue jean store that she wanted to take him to...to buy 'him' a pair of jeans...*wink! wink!* Oh, if only he had caught on that the trip was not actually for him! LOL
She took him to a rack and was raving about how nice 'he' would look in some jeans with the pockets in the front, like these...
As he was telling me this story...a story that in all the almost 35 years we've been together I've never heard, mind you!!...I said out loud: "Pocket front jeans were girl jeans!" O_O He said: "DUH!!! That's the part I didn't figure out until it was too late! LOL"
He tried them on in the store and really didn't like them, but...as guys do when they really like a girl...he believed every word she said and figured 'If she says they look nice on me, they must look nice'....WRONG! LOL
When they got in the car she said: "So, you're giving those jeans to me, right?!" O_0 And here's the part where it's a wonder he's still alive! He said: "No!" And then he went on to say how this was his hard-earned money and asked her why would she think he was gonna spend it on her!...YIKES!!...I would've killed him! Wouldn't you?!! ^_^ He laughs now about how oblivious he was then...and how naive!
He further showed his naivety by sharing a story with me to show me that he's always been kinda slow...Another story I'd NEVER heard!!...He remembered a time when he was eight years old, visiting one of the neighbor girls at her house after they had been playing outside. They were talking..and talking...about something, and she had to use the bathroom. So, instead of cutting the conversation until she came out, she grabbed him by the hand and brought him in the bathroom with her!! O_O
She was talking away, and he just sat on the tub listening to her...while she was going to the bathroom!...The girl's mother opened the door and said: "What are you doing?"...She was talking to her daughter, not hubby. But that's the point at which it dawned on my hubby where he was, and what this must have looked like!! O_O Kinda slow?...Uhhh...yeah! ^_^ It's a wonder he's still alive!!
He wasn't alone in the naivety department though! I had my moments too. And frankly, one of the times could have really cost me!!...While I'm telling you about it I'll show you my latest headband photos.
This is the bad photos I took of Shequita wearing the custom headband...
...the custom headband that I'm gonna remake today. {I don't like the flower for my customer, so I'm just gonna do it all again...and maybe sell this one in the shop.}
Anyway...my story!...Remember the story I told y'all a while back about my bus trip with the group...to Canada? Well, there was a guy on the trip that I'd never met before...he said he was from Africa (that'll be a part of the story in a minute). He kept staring at me every move I made...He was intense!!
We played cards on the bus and sang...he didn't! He just stared at me, and grinned every once in a while if he caught my eye. Everybody noticed and started to tease me about him!...Me...in my creased pants, Afro, and espadrilles...I just thought he REALLY liked me! I was kinda flattered actually...until...O_O
...until we had a three-hour stop in 'Lake George', before we got to Canada. He became very insistent that I not go on the planned Lake cruise with everybody else, but rather stay alone on the bus with him! It kind of threw me that he was being so overly familiar, considering that we had just met a few hours earlier. So, I politely refused.
He started giving me reasons why it wouldn't be a good idea for me to go...kinda creepy-like. And I got kinda wary. I had my friends keep an eye on me, and I determined that I wasn't going anywhere alone with him...We headed for the little boat, for the Lake cruise.
When I looked up, there he was! He had bought tickets for the cruise too..the same boat I was on! O_0 It was not a nice boat ride around the Lake...with him in my ear every second, and pawing at me every chance he could get! {I found out later that people on the boat thought we had known each other before and were having a little 'tiff' or something!! YIKES!}
In Canada I roomed with another lady from the trip. He kept coming up to the room...first with flowers and gifts. Then just knocking insistently!...trying to get me to come to his room (on another floor) or go for a walk with him around the Hotel. After 10:00 at night?!....No!!
I had to become almost cruel with him for the rest of the trip to get him to leave me alone!....Can you say "Stalker!"...I was never so happy to have a bus trip end! It unnerved me for a few days when we got home. I kept worrying that he was gonna show up somewhere. Especially since, on the boat, he told me that he would love to marry me and take me back to his home country of Africa. O_0
He said that his brothers...he said he had a lot of them...would have to sleep with me to make sure I was gonna be a good wife. He said it in a joking manner. I didn't think it was funny AT ALL! and I told him so!! Grrrr!
About a week later...just as I had purged the thought of him from my mind...I saw him at a corner store...
He seemed so much more docile. He hung his head when he saw me. He seemed embarrassed...He came over to me and apologized whole-heartedly about the way he had behaved. He said he had no excuse and he hoped I wouldn't hold it against him. I politely said okay...and 'high-tailed it' outta there!
Later that evening he showed up at my house!! O_O He so nicely introduced himself to my father and told him how he and I had met on the trip...I hadn't mentioned one word of it to my father! {A mistake I recognized in retrospect} He asked my father if it was okay if I went with him down to Connecticut for a few hours...to fill out some job application or something!
I was taken aback because he hadn't asked me if I wanted to go, and he hadn't mentioned anything to me about a job application! O_O I told him POINT BLANK that I didn't want to go!!!...My father saw the tone of my voice. He had never seen me talk to anybody like that before and was surprised at my rudeness.
Now I was really in a pickle! So, before he did something else more bold or ridiculous...and at this point I wasn't sure he wouldn't hurt someone in my family or something...I told him I would go. In my head I just figured I was able to sweet-talk him if worse came to worse....Talk about naive! I get cold shivers just thinking about what a dumb move that was!! I should've called the police right then...and told my father the whole story...the story he still doesn't know to this day, by the way!...*shaking my head*
By this time it was dark. I got in the car and he headed off, waving so nicely to my father. But he didn't head to the interstate like I thought he would. And all of my questions as to where we were going fell on deaf ears! He was just looking straight ahead. O_O
When he wouldn't answer me I really started to worry!...Then, not that far from my house, he pulled into the Post Office parking lot. It was empty, and dark. I was really puzzled..Then he started asking me really suggestive questions about things he wanted to know if I wanted to do. I told him...in no uncertain terms...NO!!...and that I wanted him to crank this car up and take me home!!
Not only did he not crank the car up, but he started to forcefully grab at me! I reached for the door handle...and realized there wasn't one!!! At this point it dawned on me that he was going to try to rape me!...Sorry if you didn't see that coming, or if you think it was too much information, but that's what happened!
My brain....THANK YOU BRAIN!...said: "No He Isn't Either!!!!" I started fighting him like a mad woman!! He backed up and said: "Whoa!" and came at me again!...I REALLY fought him then!! I was in full 'Kick Him Where It Hurts' mode too!! And he realized it!!!
He said: "FINE!!!! (All angry) I'll take you home!" I said: "No you won't!! You're gonna get out of this car, open my door and let me out!!!!!!!!!" Every time he tried to put the key in the ignition I kicked or punched him again!...He finally let me out. I ran home. I was sooooo thankful to have gotten out of that situation with my life!!
Years later, when I was repeating the story to my hubby he asked: "Did you tell your father?!...Did you call the police?!.." The answer to both of those questions was no. :-( I don't know why. Maybe I was too embarrassed about how stupid I had been. But I've often wondered over the years if I had been the first girl he'd tried that with, or if he'd gone, after that, and tried it with someone else. :-( It makes me sad still today to think about it...And it's a wonder I got out of that situation alive!!
I don't know where he lived, if he was actually African, what his name was, or anything! Otherwise I might try to find out...It took me a long time to wake up, didn't it?!
That incident did change me though. I knew from that time onward that I was not a shrinking violet, but that I was powerful. Stupid on occasion...but powerful! And I no longer let people talk me into doing anything I don't want to do...no matter what!!
I know who I am. I know what I like...and what I don't! And I'm not afraid to say "No!"...Oh Yeah, as a side note, when I told hubby about this story years later...and this is really gonna creep you out...he said: "Was that guy kinda short and have bubble eyes?!"....."Yeah!... O_O ... How did you know that?!"..."I saw him over at your house one time." O_0...and then later he called me on the phone, when you and I were first starting to date, and asked me what size shoe I wore, and some other crazy questions. I hung up on him."
I had no idea that had happened!! Clearly that guy was crazier than I thought...and maybe a lot more dangerous too!!...*cold shiver* It's a wonder I came out of my past alive!...See what I mean?!....Me and hubby have to stop having these conversations!! LOL...And the week is only half over too! What in the world will we talk about tomorrow?!He'll be home all day!! O_O
Half-Way
Half-Way away from Monday.
Half-Way to the end of the week.
Half-Way with a hump in the middle.
Half-Way, like a quarterback sneak.
Half-Way is what Wednesday is.
Half-Way from where the good times have been.
Half-Way to the goal of beginning.
Half-Way back to now start it again!
