Smackdown topic, Wednesday, June 26:

"Who was your first love, and did he/she know?"

This one depends on how you define "first love."

The first fellow I ever had feelings for of that nature, we'll just call him The Crush. I first saw him sometime in first or second grade, I forget which one it was. He was in another class, and their class was coming into our room for something when I saw him. I heard his teacher saying he was a new kid and his name. He sat down, turned around to look at someone behind him, and there I went. Love at first sight.

I don't know why I did that then, really. It's not like you can really DO anything with a boy you like in first grade. Yet like him I did, and continued to do so for YEARS, way longer than it should have lasted. Of course, I hardly saw him because he wasn't in my class.

Fourth grade I got lucky and he was both in my class and in my same daycare, and we were good friends. Oddly enough, I didn't have much crush on him that year until after we weren't in the same class again.

I figured that we were destined to be together and that someday, he too would figure this out. You know, just as soon as we got old enough and were in the same class again so we could have an excuse to see each other and interact.

Only that didn't happen, and didn't happen, and didn't happen. I practically never saw him, though I did figure out where most of his classes were every year and watched for him in public.

In eighth grade, I got stupid and told my best friend Angela who I liked. Incredibly bad move, because she had no concept of keeping her mouth shut. (Note that this was also the first bipolar person of my acquaintance. I could tell you many bad stories about her, but I won't today.) I should explain here that Angela was a big flirt. It didn't get her much anywhere because she hung out with nerds like me and thus was Boy Poison, but she sure as hell looked easy. Her idea of flirting was to (a) walk while twitching her ass and wearing short shorts, (b) smile big, and (c) say "Hiiiiiiii." Nauseating, huh?

So upon finding out who I liked, she tried to get me to act like her, even loaning me the short shorts. Oh yeah, and she said, and I'm not making this up, "Maybe he'll feel sorry for you and go out with you." I was so pissed. Not to mention that I removed the shorts after P.E. class. And boy, was that ever good timing, because Angela then blabbed to my worst enemy at the school (who, last I heard, was going to jail for carjacking and fleeing arrest) who I liked. I ran away.

Naturally, the next day he had his jerky friend ask me if it was true. I lied my head off, though that didn't stop his other jerky friend from chanting "sitting in a tree" at me in public.

I really could never get up the nerve to speak to The Crush ever again after that. I still never saw him around much, though by some freakish accident he ended up being the TA in my art class junior year of high school, where he made the occasional nice remark about my art. I still couldn't say much back to him.

Can you believe this crush lasted from around first to eleventh grade? Neither can I at this point, especially since nothing ever came of it. I didn't even know a whole lot about him after awhile. I finally got over the thing after my second date with the high school ex, when I realized that a guy could you know, actually like me back for a change. It was like Rosalind and Juliet, the moon and the sun- the crush melted away.

I suppose normally the high school ex should be counted as my first love, as in we actually dated and kissed and whatnot. When I talk about the third time being the charm, I count him as #1 and not The Crush. But given how many years I spent pining over The Crush, it seems appropriate that he gets the actual title.

My big excitement for the day was signing up for classes at the craft center. I had decided to go for the two glass bead making and the metalsmithing, but was still trying to decide on the Renaissance costume class. Signups started today at noon, so I went out during my lunch break.

The line had gone halfway around the building by the time I got there.

For SUMMER classes, people!

I got in line anyway, thinking (a) "So much for having lunch on my lunch break," and (b) "By the time my lunch is over, I won't even get to sign up. Should I even waste my time in line here?" I did finally make it to the front by around 12:50 or so, though.

Now I've figured out why there was such a long line and everything: they only take SIX PEOPLE PER CLASS! I know there's a large number (hah, the irony) of people out there who just adore small classes, but I personally hate them. One of the reasons why being that THEY'RE HARD TO GET INTO! Geez, six people per quarter get to take each course? If they're only letting students sign up on the first day from now on, no non-students will ever get in again!

Which is why, when I found out that all four classes were still open (I ended up being the 3rd or 4th person signed up per course, and the classes were about to be filled entirely by the time I left the building. Seriously, the girl helping me was being constantly asked to give up the sign in sheet), I took 'em. I'm not getting another chance at this.

I'm not thrilled about the costume class being on Saturdays in the entire month of August, but I guess Dave and I will live. Sigh. Maybe I can go up Saturday nights or something.

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