I remember club. Club contained Marla,myself and Karen Casilio our self appointed club leader. She was fat,ugly and mean and I hated her but Marla and I were pals so I tried the club. It mostly consisted of Karen trying to show her superiority and using Marla as her faithful companion,we would sit at the piano and Karen would ask us where ‘middle c’was. Marla of course,being involved in piano lessons at the time,and Karen obviously already knowing the answer and me,a totally keyboard ignorant fool just guessing.
So since I was the only one who didn’t know the answer,I was always forced to go first. And of course me selecting B or D wasn’t acceptable so I was severely graded down for my poor performance.
Other times we’d have to draw shit. Another one of my non-talents that only made me look foolish.. At least until Karen had to leave early one day and Marla and I were left to draw untethered to our wonderful ms. Karen,self appointed group leader..
Well left untethered my artwork flourished. With no one but Marla watching I was able to draw exquisite elephants and hippos with Karen’s name attached. I was at my peak and left them in ‘teacher’s’folder.
I never attended another one. I did peek in through the window one time,Marla looked desperate and trapped when she saw me and Karen mouthed ‘…don’t look at him..’
Awe,Brian,my long lost BFF! How well I do remember “Club”and the pure frustration thereof! Although I’m usually the one cursed with the photographic memory,I must have blocked out much of that pain. The Piano Lesson and your drawings are coming back,however,clearer every moment! My most vivid memory is that of crying to my mother about it as she made her bed one morning,telling me I needed to assert myself and just say no! (In so many Mid-Century words) I remained powerless and enslaved until Karen moved on (prematurely,thank God) to greener pastures where she could work her wiles on her peers of the opposite sex who were somehow motivated to jump through her hoops,or to easily entice her through theirs. I was free at last to join you in childhood bliss,whether being slaughtered by you at hand-ball,Cross-out and H.O.R.S.E,building a cardboard fort,reading Marvel comic books in your bedroom,playing cops &robbers at First National Bank across the street,or diving for dimes under the dryers at Maybee’s Laundromat to finance our sugar fix at the Hum Dinger! The happiest days of my childhood were spent with you!