When I was a senior at Hong Kong International School, I had a huge crush on a girl named Paula.
We were in Expository Writing Class together, where Mrs. Chern had us arrange our desks in a big circle. I always tried to sit across from Paula, where I could gaze at her long legs, her tight-fitting school uniform, her full lips and her long hair that I desperately wanted to walk through bare-footed.
Paula had more curves than a 17 year old girl ought to have, and her boyfriend, who was as handsome as she was gorgeous, was over six feet tall and the captain of the rugby team. Needless to say, I was no competition for this good-looking, athletic, über-cool cat.
I graduated and moved back to the States for college. The summer after my freshman year, I returned to Hong Kong for a visit, and to my surprise and delight, Paula was also visiting, without her pesky boyfriend, and I managed to wrangle a date with her.
I took her to an expensive restaurant at the top of Victoria Peak, overlooking Hong Kong harbor, and spent way too much money on Chateaubriand for two, Caesar salad for two, and some kind of expensive dessert, all ordered by Paula. In my effort to accommodate her expensive tastes, I played along, and didn't say a thing when she hardly touched her food.
Paula had more curves than a 17 year old girl ought to have, and her boyfriend, who was as handsome as she was gorgeous, was over six feet tall and the captain of the rugby team. Needless to say, I was no competition for this good-looking, athletic, über-cool cat.
I graduated and moved back to the States for college. The summer after my freshman year, I returned to Hong Kong for a visit, and to my surprise and delight, Paula was also visiting, without her pesky boyfriend, and I managed to wrangle a date with her.
I took her to an expensive restaurant at the top of Victoria Peak, overlooking Hong Kong harbor, and spent way too much money on Chateaubriand for two, Caesar salad for two, and some kind of expensive dessert, all ordered by Paula. In my effort to accommodate her expensive tastes, I played along, and didn't say a thing when she hardly touched her food.
After dinner, having set the stage for a romantic ending to the evening, I led her up to the balcony overlooking one of the most spectacular skylines on the planet...and she chose that moment to let me know that she had a boyfriend back home.
Crestfallen, and feeling like I had been taken for a ride, I made some lame attempt at continuing the conversation, but the wind had been knocked out of my sails...so I walked her to a cab, and never heard from her again.
Until facebook.
Having been contacted by many of my former high school classmates, I thought I'd give it a try. I did manage to find a woman with the same name as the Paula I knew, but her picture was one from childhood, so I couldn't be certain it was her. My curiousity got the better of me and I sent her a message asking if she was the Paula who attended HKIS in the late 70's and if so, to please contact me.
Weeks went by with no response, until today when I received this message:
"Yes, I went to HKIS until the middle of my junior year (1977), when I came back stateside. Sorry for asking this, but were you in my same grade? I should pull out my yearook, blame it on age!"
I guess I won't be sending her a "friend request" after all.
Crestfallen, and feeling like I had been taken for a ride, I made some lame attempt at continuing the conversation, but the wind had been knocked out of my sails...so I walked her to a cab, and never heard from her again.
Until facebook.
Having been contacted by many of my former high school classmates, I thought I'd give it a try. I did manage to find a woman with the same name as the Paula I knew, but her picture was one from childhood, so I couldn't be certain it was her. My curiousity got the better of me and I sent her a message asking if she was the Paula who attended HKIS in the late 70's and if so, to please contact me.
Weeks went by with no response, until today when I received this message:
"Yes, I went to HKIS until the middle of my junior year (1977), when I came back stateside. Sorry for asking this, but were you in my same grade? I should pull out my yearook, blame it on age!"
I guess I won't be sending her a "friend request" after all.
John,
ReplyDeleteIs that a Gibson Hummingbird you're playing? Looks like a 12-string... very sweet. Looking forward to jamming with you again one day.
T