The End & The Beginning

Published by

Julie Potter

on

February 24, 2024

Sadly, I did not learn from my disastrous Senior prom. The last date I remember with Doug was at the 49er Drive-In in 1986 sometime after the senior prom.

Following the theme of 1980’s movies…

The Drinking Scene

I was hanging out with a new friend and we came up with a great plan for a double date. We would have someone over 21 buy us some wine coolers and we would go on a double date to the drive-in theater. We were able to get our hands on a pack of peach wine coolers and were headed to the movie for what I thought was a fun time acting grown up. Yikes! When I think back, I wonder, what was I thinking?

BURP?

The movie started. I popped open the wine cooler for my first taste of alcohol. I literally took one drink. I don’t recall if I enjoyed the taste, but what followed cured me of wanting to drink for a long time. I thought that I needed to burp, maybe I took too big of a sip, but I didn’t burp. Instead, I puked right down the front of my shirt. The fun was over before it ever began.

Video Games & True Love

Meanwhile, Tony was at my house playing Atari with my Mom and keeping her company. Because, being the grown up that I was, I didn’t let her know where I was. They were both worried.

A Lightbulb Moment

After cleaning myself up and realizing that maybe I wasn’t as grown up as I wanted to be, I checked in with my mom. She let me know how worried she and Tony were. Tony? Why was he there? I thought. It was at that moment in time that I realized that Tony was the one for me.

He cared about me and my mom enough to hangout with her until I came to my senses.

I gave up on whatever crazy fantasy I had about me and Doug. I realized that the person who loved me was not going to give up and that is something that you are lucky to find. We started dating and we got married on April 11, 1987.

The Perfect Ending

Several years later Doug and his wife Deann moved into our neighborhood and we became good friends. Our kids were around the same age and we would get together to play cards. We would laugh and play spades for hours. Doug and I both found the perfect match. It just wasn’t each other.