"The stand" "in the attic"

In the Summer of 1979 I begged and begged not to get shipped to the D.R. I made a deal to work at the factory 3 days a week and maintain the pool and "police" (as my dad put it) the grounds. I spent Thursdays and Fridays reading in my bedroom during that hot summer, I was 13... My reading books of choice were Steven King - The Stand, and V.C. Andrews - Flowers In The Attic (so controversial). My mom was so concerned that I was reading such "spooky books" (as she put it), and she convinced my dad to take measures...

Measures!!

I was soo enthralled in these books they were my life that summer. I read each book twice, and that infuriated Gigi! I'd rush home on my bike every workday, jump in the pool, and chill in the mosquito net gazebo reading. On my days off I'd wake up late and hang out in my AC'ed room reading all day..
One day these kids from down the block (whom I didn't relate with) come barging into my Shangri-La...
"Hey Paul want to come outside and play some ball"

Play some ball?
Since when did I come out and play ball?

Then I see my dad looming outside...
He PAID these kids to come in and lure me out of my room to play...
I was embarrassed
so embarrassed...
and he knew.

I saw him paying the 3 boys 10 bux each..
I stood there.
We all looked at each other uncomfortably...
the kids, me, my dad, me, dad, the kids,dad, me...
and the kids ran off...
running to buy baseball cards...

We never mentioned anything...

Those were the "Measures"

I was left to read all summer...it was paradise.
Chris, Cathy, Carrie and Cory with Stu, Frannie, Randall and Mother Abigail Freemantle.

Freekdom begins..

I had the weirdest growth spurt that summer... it was soo painful.
I'll never forget it...
We went out to dinner one night and I instantly got sick. I had to lay my head down on the table, and my parents were mortified. I really was THAT sick.. instantaneously!
They reluctantly left..
By the time we got home I had like a 103 degree fever. I was BOILING, and so freaked that I stripped naked in front of my parents (new pubes and all) because I was that uncomfortable. They started to panic, they saw it was real, I was hallucinating, it was soo weird. The called in the doctor that lived down the block, and he put me in a freezing cold bathtub. THAT WAS THE WORST!!!
I was screaming.
Gigi quickly turned on her old mommy ways, and things started to get better.
I was in bed for like a week, I had fever for like 2 days, and the most painful backache for days.
When I recovered people who saw me FREAKED.. I like grew 3 inches in a week... REALLY!
I even noticed it..
My brother couldn't believe I was that much taller than he was, he sort of made a scene. I felt powerful. People started to treat me different. I was quoting nonsense from my summer books, and I was getting props!

I guess that was the year when the burried freak came out...
Thanks Steven & V.C.

Fin