Tribute

So many memories.

The last 6 years have flown by. I really can't believe its been that long since I sat down at a desk for the very first time in 7th grade at Eisenhower Jr. High. I sat there in Mr. Beagley's room, eyes open for any potential crushes, my brand now forest-green zip-up folder resting in front of my scrawny body. Courtney, if you read this, kudos to you. I apologize for my immaturity several times over.

The weekly sleepovers with my best friends, the Gardner twins and Chris Thatcher, always included a weekly report of who we thought was cute or otherwise repulsive. Occasionally we also debated who Levi ought to like, how much we liked or disliked Ms. Alsop, Mr. Lyman, Mr. Brough, Morris, Earl, or Wong. I don't even know how many times we acted out the scene of Mr. Earl in lederhosen saying, "GT Puzzle".

The hours we have spent playing Super Smash Brothers, Battle Tanx, Mario Tennis, Mario Party, Fusion Frenzy, and Halo have been astronomical. Honestly, the four of us could be pro ballers by now if those hours had been spent on the court rather than in one of our basements, our eyes wide and our hands firmly gripping a controller.

But that's not what I'd want. The good times we've had on those games will be something I will remember for a long time, and I wouldn't even trade that for Brewer's shoes, and Brewer's my homie. No sir, I wouldn't trade the Eternal Order of the Dead Sock Society for anything.

Lunchtime. Oh, the joys of lunch in the EJH cafeteria. We had our table reserved all three years; that was home to us. The chocolate milk bubbles, the tomatoes on the crotch, the ladies flocking to us...err...to Thatcher...the data matches, opened anxiously as we sat in our designated spots.

I always finished my lunch last, and was left alone for a good 5 minutes while my posse fortified the corner by C Hall. You'd think they would have waited for me, but no... Shoot, and what about our excursions to the drinking fountain in the corner of the cafeteria? That was an every-day event for us!

Band class. How can I even begin to recall the good times spent in that room in that remote hallway of the school? The first memory I have of Cadet Band is playing the Stars and Stripes Forever, the same arrangement the 4 of us played the year before in elementary band with Ms. Ryburg. We dominated that song hardcore; that was the shock and awe of the century, that was.

Before Jazz Band every day, waiting for Smith to get there was awesome! Turning all the combination dials in the hall to '0' was ever so much fun. I owned the alto sax during Jazz Band, with Thatcher behind me on his bone, sitting beside the Child Molester, and the twins and Nickmo off to the left with their clarinets on the Tenor 2 part. Beseme Mucho, Abracadabra!, Pennsylvania 65000, that crazy Spy Medley Song, Tequila, Smooth, Shaft, Channel One Suite, My One True Friend, La Bamba. Those songs were the ultimate. We were the ultimate.

Spirit week. The best week of each year, hands down. Oh man, the things I wore. It was awesome. Bathrobe with the waist tie around my head, my sick nasty nerd get-up (head-gear included), the Vietnam get-up (which, by the way, gave me the name CombatKyle), the decked out EJH colors (complete with Dracula cape), cowboy a freaking awesome Ninja Turtle, and many more. I even came to school dressed as Marge Simpson once, with everything from the tall blue hair to the long green dress. And yes, lets not forget the time Thatcher and I were a cow. Freaking awesome. We did a runway walk on the cafeteria stage and won a Smores Bar for our awesome-ness. I took Spirit King 2 years in a row, and feel pretty good about taking it Freshman year, had they had a spirit king. I even complained openly about the stupid coconut that was cut open at the Spirit Assembly one year. I won't ever forget dethroning the Freshmen our 8th grade year either. We got a day at Hollywood Connection for our amazing spirit.

Spanish class. I was bilingual by the time the summer of 9th grade came around. BYU Spanish fair was ridiculous, Thatcher and I dominated the impromptu conversations. We were unstoppable. Even when Horton trapped me in a box or threatened to make me eat my way out of the dung I'd stepped in I was unstoppable. And lets not forget, "I am I, Don Quixote!" or the annual "Dia de los Muertos" video. Wow, we were good enough to even make Caminos Peligrosos. "You've got Francisco!" Dang straight Levi. I remember walking every step of the way on La Gran Aventura de Alejandro. What a stud he was.

Academic Team. Sure, I scored more negative points than I did positive, but how could I ever forget the practices after school with the best kids ever? I loved learning those things, even if I didn't use them to dominate like my boys in the games. Peck, Mann, and Chambers were awesome. I can still taste Peck's cookies and pop. My circumcised square still smarts too :S I still listen to Thatcher's Nerd Jump and Nerd Win CDs, they rock. "I just torched a building downtown, and I'm afraid I'll do it again!" "...dinner with friends..."

Running. I was the skinniest runner ever. But man, did I run. I'd say not too shabby if you ask me actually. Chris dominated me in the long run (ha!), but I'm still proud of my 5.42 mile time. How many skinny 9th graders do you know who did that? Look at me and my bad skinny self. My skinny bad self that just loved to pee a hundred times before a race and puke a dozen afterwards. Bladder the size of a walnut, as I recall Thatcher saying several times.

Good times with Earl, thats for sure. Yessir, Coach Earl and his calfs. We even worked out with him in the weight room during CC. What a stud.

I do recall the time Thatcher's backpack was stolen from the park down by Lion's Club Fitness Center. Sucks to his ass-mar.

Seminary. Best seminary class ever. Good old Brother Whitmer. I read the Book of Mormon for the first time ever that year. I also learned all 25 Styx Mastery through the awesome power of music. Those songs rocked my world. I'm sure Whitmer would be proud that I still Remember Euticus too. :P

Oh man, Chris, your girlfriend is smart.

That girlfriend of yours was an adventure in and of itself too :D

Man, EJH was good to us. Thats the moral of story. And look at us now, 3 years later. It really has gone by in a blur. We've grown so much (in more than one way), and I've only gotten closer to my friends. My friends are freaking awesome. New and old friends alike; the group I hang with is certainly the cream of the crop.

So thanks everyone. Thanks for an awesome 6 years. And for Chris, James, and Levi, Katie, Molly, and M. We: lets rock next year hardcore. Utah State, hey, Aggies all the way!

This has been a walk down memory lane by yours truly, CombatKyle.