Kiki Dee

I went to swing dance tonight because they were having a 70s and 80s social--a lot of people dressed like hippies, which I think of as more 60s. One woman was favouring Madonna, one guy had a glam rock wig. I wore my school blazer and a tie--trying to look a bit punkish, which was my late 70s/early 80s vibe. As I listened to songs by Abba, Queen, Alice Cooper, Thin Lizzy, Olivia Newtown John, and Elton John/Kiki Dee, I tried to place myself in this era. My memory is a funny thing. Memories of specific things come to me at random moments but I cannot call up memories at all.

I assume I've written before that my sister and I are estranged. She has an incredible memory, so she would provide the vault of childhood memories. Without access to her extensive database, I'm left with fragments. Which isn't a hardship--I love the oddball things that pop up, like the trailer that was my home room in elementary school in Chester Va. because the school was overcrowded. Or the grandfather clock in my grandfather's apartment. Or the roaches in my first post-college apartment. Or the rugby songs we used to sing after matches. Or the very high bridge over the Lehigh River where I put in for a whitewater kayak run. I've had such rich and varied experiences in my life that my memory is full of surprises, all the things I've forgotten.

March 25