(Theme from ) the Monkees by The Monkees

It was just after 5pm and Catherine and I were anxiously waiting for our Dad to pick us up from school.  There was an after school daycare in the cafeteria at Twain Harte Elementary and I generally had a great time there.  There were friends to play with, books to read, stuff to do, but as 5pm rolled around, I was anxious to get out of there so we could get home in time to watch Double Dare.  Thinking about it now, this means my Dad had to leave work before 5pm to pick us up in time.  Or maybe he used to pick us up closer to 5:30pm, but he still would have to leave just at or before 5pm to make it in time.  There were no byways or even traffic lights back then so I am sure it took some time to get to us.  In any case, once he arrived, he had to sign us out and for some reason, he encouraged me to copy his signature and would let me sign his name (while he was standing there).  I was only in 4th grade, but the level of trust he had in me never changed, all throughout high school.  I admit, I was a bit of a goody-goody.

Back to the show.  If we were early, we could catch the end of You Can't Do That on Television.  I didn't really like this show.  It was kind of gross and the jokes were often over my head, but we'd watch it all the same.  Double Dare was this trivia/obstacle course show.  It was a big deal amongst everyone my age.  We all hoped to someday be on the show and we were sure we could handle the physical challenges and obstacle courses.  It was totally the highlight of our evening.  Immediately after Double Dare was The Monkees.  The theme song would start up.... "here we come....walking down the street...." and then these 4 goofy looking guys with accents were on doing who knows what, but I mainly thought it was about the worst, boring show you can imagine.  Kind of clever, that, as it was a surefire way to get us to turn off the TV for the night!  At least until The Cosby Show came on...

Hot Child in the City by Nick Gilder

I was in my car with Christine W. and we had just taken the Joaquin Miller Rd exit off of Highway 13.  Hot Child in the City started playing on my mix CD.  She was delighted with this song, as was I.  I can't speak for her, but the first time I had ever heard this song was on an episode of Sex and the City. It was an excellent episode in Season 3, all about acting like a teenager, hanging out on a hot summer day, and smoking pot.  The song practically demands that you chill out, kick back, and relax.  It is excellent. In fact, when we met, Nick said that this song actually reminded him of ME.  This might have been a line, but I was incredibly flattered and also validated because that was kind of what I was going for back then.  Being hot.  And living (near) the city. 

Back to the car ride, we were heading to a party at Scott B's house.  It might have been the first of his annual oyster parties, although I can't say for sure.  This guy is a real character and I met him in Spanish class during my sophomore year at Cal.  He was renting a downstairs unit of a women's house in the Oakland hills.  He had access to the yard and hot tub and amazing view.  He had had a number of interesting jobs, most notably, chef on a private yacht that belonged to the Hiltons.  He was such a relaxing, interesting, welcoming person, with fun, colorful friends, and an afternoon at his house was an afternoon well spent.  I had never eaten oysters, but was game to try them.  He had prepared amazing dipping sauces and I learned how to shuck them.  I tried them both raw and BBQ'd.  We also BBQ'd chocolate chip cookies, which I was surprised to find out is totally possible and also delicious.  There were amazing dips, like roasted eggplant with chopped parsley.  Strawberries with mint and balsamic. Tri Tips and crusty bread.  It was an endless feast, perfect weather, and great conversations.  I went to several oyster parties thereafter and always had a memorable time.