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ANGIE'S JOURNAL
It's the middle of the night and I'm curled up on a lumpy couch at my friends apartment, writing because I can't sleep. Lynn is already in bed and, since I forgot to tell her all of this before she went to sleep, I'm telling you. I had to tell someone what happened tonight, because it was a bit magical. Unbelievable. I want to write it all down so I don't forget.
I'll start at the beginning, with Lynn, Kanu and me looking for Jim.
We decided to check the crowd at the Ramones' concert first. Lynn and Kanu fought on the car ride over, well, this one was Kanu's fault, I think. Kanu accused Lynn of lying about her brother, and then Lynn bit her head off. But they worked it out. I like to think I helped, a little.
I was surprised at the crowd. They were so much more relaxed-looking than I thought punks would be. I thought punk rockers were supposed to be scary? The fans were smiling, laughing, joking. Nobody was hitting anyone. Most were just standing around, chatting or listening to music on boomboxes.
The outfits were kind of exciting - some had colorful hair and jean jackets like Lynn's (I even saw one guy with a mohawk!), others wore tee-shirts and ripped jeans. I felt a little motherly looking at them, I just wanted to lend them a sweater, or something. A few looked preppy; like they would fit in at a New Kids On The Block concert. But most were wearing all black. The shoes were cool too, Converse, Doc Martens. A few random sneakers. Nothing that looked like it was made to intentionally stomp on people, as I've heard punks will do. They were very calm, just standing or sitting in line, waiting to get in. I guess this is punk. Just like any other fans, they were here for the music.
He wasn't at the concert so we went over to check another place, a bar called the Dirty Socks. Our teacher, Mr. Lee was there all dressed up like a rockstar. I kind of freaked out a little at his look, I admit it.
Jim wasn't there either. But, instead of leaving, Kanu and Lynn got into another fight (this time about Mr. Lee), so Kanu abandoned us at the bar. Not that I blame her, I couldn't believe the things Lynn said. Somehow I wasn't scared about how we were going to get home, but I guess I should have been.
So Lynn and I were stuck at the bar, and had nothing else to do, so we watched the band. I didn't like them very much. The band members were all dressed like rockers, just like Mr. Lee, but more so. Even their boots were decorated. The lady singer had a pretty voice, I guess. I just didn't see the appeal.
So I spent most of the time watching the crowd instead of the band.
The tables were full of young people, for the most part, and like the punk show, I was again surprised to see that they were so relaxed. I guess it was a night for surprises. Some of them bobbed their heads, or tapped fingertips on table tops, but overall I found them reserved. Even the mob that was standing behind us was calm, and watching quietly. Nobody was dancing. After each song ended, the group responded with enthusiastic applause and a few shouts, so I suppose that they liked the show.
When the singer announced it was time for the last song I was relieved, and I didn’t notice any difference at first. But after about thirty seconds a person sitting right in front of the stage got up and walked out. They didn't make a big deal out of it, they just left. A moment later, a table of three to my right got up and walked out, too. Then another two tables went. At this point, the people who were still sitting were gathering up their bags and coats. I remember wondering if something was wrong, and tried to pay more attention to the music. I found it hard to listen to - like the different parts of the band weren't working together, somehow. If this were theater it would be a fight scene. That's a funny thought - the drummer and the guitarist could have been holding swords, threatening each other like Tybalt and Mercutio. That would only make sense if they were still wearing their leather pants and fringed boots.
After the band finished their set they got a few half-hearted claps, but most of the audience had left by then. So they started packing up. My ears were ringing so bad it felt like they were stuffed with cotton, so I couldn't hear myself think. At least they feel better now. I was about to ask Lynn about the disappearing audience, but she marched away, toward the stage.
Lynn waved her hand at the band and crew, and then her whole arm. She shouted, "HEY! HEY! HEYYYY - Jonathan! JOOOONNNAATHAAAN!"
A young man, who was starting to break down the drum set, looked up and his face cracked into a smile. "HEYYYY! LYNNN-STERRR!" he called out, stepping out from behind the kit. A few steps brought him to the edge of the stage where he knelt down, and jumped to land on the dusty floor of the bar.
"Jonathan! It's so good to see you!"
They shook hands with big, wide pumping arms, then hugged and patted each other on the back. This guy was very tall, so much taller than Lynn that he made her look like a hobbit. Would he pick her up next, and toss her around?
"How crazy is this, that you are out here in the sticks! What are you doing here?" Lynn asked.
"I'm touring with the Flamingos, to make a little extra cash! After the club closed..."
"They closed? The Black Pea actually closed?"
"Yeah, well, it's a long story." He finally noticed me standing there. "So, who's your friend? " Jonathan's expression changed, and he looked me over. "You gonna introduce us?"
"Yeah, sorry," said Lynn. "This is Angie. Angela Smith. We go to school together, here in Stonyfield."
"Nice to meet you," I said, and shook his hand. He had a firm grip with rough fingers, and was taller than most guys I had known, but he was also really skinny. I remember thinking he would blow over in a strong breeze. He was dressed all in black, a white bandanna was tied around his head to keep his long straight hair out of his eyes, and he had a wide, angular face. He wouldn't be called handsome, by any stretch, but his eyes were friendly and he seemed to like looking at me.
Which suited me just fine.
"So, Jonathan, huh? How do you two know each other?"
"Yeah, me and Lynn, we go WAY back." He put his hand on Lynn's shoulder as he said this, which she ducked out from under quickly.
"Yeah, yeah, don't try that with me." She glared at him and folded her arms.
"Sorry, Lynn, I forgot you don't like me doing that." He held up both hands in surrender, then addressed me. "Yeah, we worked together for a couple of years, back at this club called the Black Pea, in the city. I was the bartender, and she ran the ticket counter in the afternoons. It was a pretty sweet gig, I gotta tell ya. We got to see so many great bands...."
"Yeah, I loved working there," interrupted Lynn. "If felt like every day a tour bus or van was parked out front." She got a wistful look on her face. "Remember that time when that band came...where they were from England, right."
"Oh totally. Yeah, " he faced me, and looked excited. "You wouldn't believe it. Every guy in the band was named....get this." he giggled for a second, "Wait, you tell it, Lynn. "
"Okay, yeah, the entire band was named Guy!" This made them both laugh, and she continued, "I mean they all had the big hair, y'know, lots of hair spray and lipstick. A bunch of guys named Guy. Man, what a trip that was, meeting them." She laughed again. "There were lots of other good times, too."
Jonathan said, "Oh, totally. But this time was a riot. I made him introduce all of the other band members to Lynn while they were doing their sound check. This is Guy, and their bassist was named Guy, and oh yeah, have you met our drummer?"
At this point I was laughing too. Did I laugh just a bit harder than I normally would? "Wow, okay." I said quickly,"I wonder if it was a requirement, like you couldn't be in the band unless you had that name? What a cool job! Lynn, how long were you there? Did you work throughout high-school?" I remember my words came out in a rush. I always get a little nervous around guys I like.
Yeah, I like this guy. Definitely.
Lynn hadn't noticed. She answered, "Well, I started in my junior year. After school every day, I would take the train to the club. I could sit behind the ticket counter and sell tickets while doing my homework, n'stuff. It was great." Her face fell as she asked him, "But now they're gone? What happened?"
"Dunno." Jonathan was shaking his head. "But it was rough for me for a few months, until I got this new spot. I'm a roadie, you see." He stood up straighter when he said this, and leaned back against the stage. "It's great, I get to travel and meet all sorts of interesting people. So..." He looked at me, and I felt my heart do a little dance. "So, Angie, right? What's your major?"
"Oh, I haven't decided yet. I'm either Chemistry or Bio." I paused, and realized he was waiting for me to say more. "If it's Bio, I want to specialize in Environmental Biology."
"Oh, so you want to go fix the environment? Like, make it a safer place for the animals, and stuff? That’s cool."
"Exactly, something just like that." That was surprising, a rocker who wants to save the world. I've heard of Rock Against Drugs, but not Rock for the Environment. "Are you interested in protecting the environment?"
"Completely." He nodded to himself. "Back a few years ago, I was with Greenpeace, putting up posters and raising money, trying to save those cute baby seals."
"Really, wow." That was surprising. "You did that?"
"Yeah." Then our eyes met.
Like I said, it was a magical night.
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Janet