High School

I know I'm pretty late to this internet stalking thing, but...man looking up old high school friends and acquaintances can give you a strange complex.

I'm so removed from people from my hometown now that it's really hard to remember who did what to whom and why I should care. Mostly, I don't. Or I don't because I don't remember, but looking at people now is strange. I've lived a rough life. But, I've lived them on my terms. More or less. It's strange to see how my classmates have not really budged from their spot. I don't blame them though. Outside the lines of family and friends, strangers are very very strange. Had I to do over and tell people the experience I had while out here, I doubt HIGHLY that the younger version of myself would want to come to L.A. At a certain point, we're all going to be in our own minds. I don't think location or mindset matters. If you're a douche. You can be a douche in Abu Dhabi.

My high school was a place called Indian Hill. The richest neighborhood in Cincinnati. When people heard it, they automatically assumed you were a dickhead rich kid. This was true and false. because of the population of the people who actually lived in Indian Hill, they were mostly rich people who were too old to have kids of high school age. So they opened it up to places like Kenwood and Camp Dennison. Which for the most part is middle class. Class wasn't a huge deal there. But it did still draw lines between people. Strangers outside who came in were unaware popular or unpopular. Rich or poor. All they cared about was getting through school to get on with life. My friend Ashley was that person. A beautiful person inside and out. For whatever reason, she and I bonded. I think she was grateful that a weirdo like me chatted with a new girl like her. But she didn't need me to do that. She was pretty in that way that made all pretty girls in school pissed off. And we had a tiny school. Boys were in love with her. She was also ridiculously smart. We both wanted school to end so we could do more important things. I loved spending time with her. She was so freakin' cool. Her and her boyfriend (my friend as well) would go barbecue in the park. I'm not sure what the other kids were doing but I'm pretty sure they were drinking somewhere, whilst we would sear meat or hide out in some church parking lot smoking cigarettes. We had a LOT of dreams then. In a blink, we're now almost 40. I forgot what we actually looked forward to. This is what people call "hope." We were able to skip through life wanting things for our future. So weird that our future is now.

High school ended. Rather quietly. I had a senior girlfriend. But I disappeared (at 18 years old) into Los Angeles. Ended up missing my hometown. I dropped out of college in L.A. came back to do undergraduate in Ohio. Loved my life there. I see a LOT of pro NFL players still return to watch their alma mater team play. I get that. It was the best years you can remember having hope.

I'm still friends with Ashley. Value her a ton as I don't keep up with a lot of people. As I re-visit, re-find, re-stalk old friends, it reminded me who was here to stay.