Today is tales out of school day.
My best friend was Sue while growing up. From grade 5 through 12 we were besties.
Then we lived together as we got older. Best roommate ever hands down!
We did the best friends in your wedding thing and just the other day she wrote me to get caught up on her kids. She is a friend who's life went onto another track than mine and while our lives couldn't have ended up more different we have always been there for one another. We can not talk for a year and then it's like no time has ever passed. She is the best.
But in high school she did things I could never do. She got away with things I never could.
She was the youngest and her parents I think were tired. Sue and I say that all the time.
I was the oldest and heaven knows my father was not tired yet.
She had a car. She had a later curfew. She could date long before me.
Her mom put her on birth control whem she began dating this one boy for a very long time.
I was shocked. My father would kill me first. Then I found out her mom didn't tell her father.
Gee, I wish I had a step mom like that was my thoughts.
I was the oldest living virgin at 16. HA
Susan's parents own our towns pizza shop.
Yes, only 1 pizza shop in the 'burb we grew up in at that time.
Her father was the town barber too. The store fronts were next to one another.
We were in 11th grade and her parents went out of town.
They asked Susan to run the pizza shop while they were gone for the weekend.
She had done this a few times before and nothing bad happened so they asked her to do it again.
Sue did not want to do this alone and told her parents she'd like me to stay over night and help at the shop. Her parents were okay with it. I told my parents I was spending the night at Sue's house but did not mention they were out of town. Oops.
My parents knew Mr and Mrs. Weaver and liked them and they felt comfortable to let me go. The good thing about having a new mom at this time was she was overwhelmed with all these kids and her new baby and she never called Mrs. Weaver. I lucked out.
The first night was such fun because the kids hung out at the pizza shop after the football game. I had to run the cash register, take orders and help Sue wherever she needed me.
It was fun to me and it was fun to see all our friends after the football game since we couldn't go.
The next day we were to make sauce in this huge vat.
Sue had the recipe and she had made it before so this wasn't a big deal.
The place is not open in the day time so we had time.
This was the end of 1972. It was a Saturday afternoon.
Our friend Colleen drove over to hang out with us.
Before you know it Greg stopped by. (Sue dated him off and on) Greg brought pot.
So we 4 smoked pot and then Greg left.
As Sue, Colleen and I began to divvy up chores that were on the list we decided we needed to eat first. Of course we did, we just smoked pot.
After finishing our free meatball and cheese hoagies we began to tackle the list.
(anytime I worked at the pizza shop to help sue I got to eat for free, I did not get paid)
Sue's mom listed all of the things that had to be done before we could open that night. Colleen and I did all those things. Cleaning, getting the delivery of breads and shells and putting them where they go and little things like that.
Sue was to make the sauce. She did and that was that. Or so we thought.
That night Sue made the food while I took orders in person and on the phone and waited on the customers.
The following day someone called the pizza shop and told us that the sauce tasted different.
It was sweeter they said. OMG we were in a panic. Sue offered them a new pizza but they said, No we liked it and wondered if you did something different deliberately or this is going to be the new sauce."
Sue was in a panic.
She was high when she made this and she feared her father would find out.
Looking back we now laugh because how could he know? We were just paranoid and 16.
In the mean time I suggested she make more. But her parents were on their way home and we didn't have time. Besides her parents would be mad if she threw this away before talking to them. She said maybe no one else will notice.
Her parents were back and life went on. Her mom was back to taking orders at the counter and helping in the kitchen. But customers came in for their weekly pizza and would say to Mrs. Weaver, the sauce was a bit sweeter last week we liked it.
Mrs. Weaver heard this a few times. Remarks of it being different.
She went to Sue and asked what she did.
Sue just told her she followed the instructions so she wasn't sure what she could have done differently. Colleen and Peggy were here but there were cleaning the machines and the kitchen and taking care of the deliveries while I made the sauce. Her mom just said, okay and went to taste it.
She said, "it's not THAT different. well we have to use it" and she walked away.
Sue called me later to tell me and Colleen what was going on.
We were in a panic. Now we laugh about this. Why did we think she'd know we smoked pot before it was made? She would have no way of knowing that. But for some dumb reason our 16 year old brains were in a sheer panic over this.
Life went on, no one knew anything more than Sue made it sweeter than her mom but everyone was fine with it. Whew we were never found out.
When Sue and I had our first apartment together we never had food.
We were 21/22. I was still going to school during the day and working 3rd shift.
We had enough money for gas in our cars, albums and rent. That was our life.
Food was never a priority until we were hungry.
I would go visit my parents and bring home left overs.
My boyfriend would bring food. But Sue's parents were the best!
Her parents made us pizzas and subs and brought them to our tiny little apartment.
We would have 4 large pizzas made but uncooked in the box & ready to just put in the oven.
Oh how we loved this. You'd open our fridge and see nothing but boxes of uncooked pizzas.
And God love her parents, they knew their daughter loved mushrooms and I did not.
So they made them half mushroom for me.
It was also fun when her boyfriend and mine came over and we knew we had a pizza and they brought the wine and beer.
We were all so broke at this time. But boy we had fun!
As opposed to today....being broke is no damn fun!
16 comments:
Sweet story. I remember my youth being a barrel of fun like that. Not that I'm old and stiff and poor, I think back to those good years and the smile goes from ear to ear.
Fun memories. I'm glad you shared them. I have a friend, too, who I can go without seeing for a year but when we get together we can pick up where we left off.
My mom always put sugar in her tomato sauce. Sweet sauce IS better.
Barbara, well you may not be old stiff and poor but I most certainly am. :-(
Jean, I think this sugar thing is an American thing. Thankfully my family did not make sweet sauce. carrots are sweet and they are added as well as meat bones etc. I had never had it in my life until I moved south and I get it here all the time and both my husband and I just I can't eat it. He too was also raised by an Italian mom and she didn't add sugar either. There are so many things in sauce that if done properly you don't need sugar. I don't think Mario Batali or Rachel Ray are putting sugar in their sauce. I could be wrong but I don't think they do. Funny how things change once brought over here for other palates isn't it? It is the same with my Greek friends. What I thought was Greek is actually American and she laughs at me. So I get this, and where you are coming from. It is just not something I like to eat, or sauce from a jar. :-) I have used that twice in my life. Each time regrettable.
P.S. Sue did not use sugar so we don't know why it was being mentioned as sweet. She must have skipped something is all we could think of. But no sugar in the recipe. maybe less tomatoes?
Huge vats of food. The last time I had to deal with a vat of food was in basic training in the army. I had to crack a pallet of eggs to fill this gigantic pot up. Lost a few shells in the big pot in the process. Even stuck my arm in to try and get them but both times they were long gone to the bottom. Used a paddle to stir the thing.
Mike a little shell never hurt anybody. :-)
That was delightful. Her parents had trained her well to run the business alone. Too bad you didn't find out the secret ingredient for you might have been able to put the big pizza guys out of business.
Had to laugh at you being the oldest living virgin at 16. I was once a counselor for a Jr.High group of Tri-Hi-Y girls. On a camp out one of the girls ran to us and was just sobbing when she found out she was the only virgin in the group. She was in the 6th grade. Boy did I feel old.
Patti, compared to my friends I was the oldest living virgin. That is okay it all worked out for me. I am glad I waited....not like I had the choice. :-) My high school boyfriend was my first as a senior and I married him. What a dufus I was! I can't even fathom being younger than I was - 6th grade? oh my! I didn't even use tampons. LOL
Can't believe two teens could run a pizza parlor by themselves. Those were the days, parents put you to work and let you do stuff even though you might fail, to many parents today do not give their kids a chance to fail.
So funny that the pot made you paranoid about the sweet sauce. I was expecting to find out that she added pot to the sauce instead of oregano. That would have been some secret sauce to make the store a fortune.
My mom was not italian but she never put sugar in tomato sauce so I never use sugar in tomato sauce either.
Pot never did anything for me but make me paranoid. I never could see the big draw. Perhaps the paranoia came from the fact that I never, ever, once in my life got away with anything.
How fun to read your post, and although I do not have any real friends from high school (you know, I know them but we don't write or keep in touch other than FB). I didn't go to college until I was ancient. Instead I married at 19 and had a kid by 21. Although I don't regret my eldest son at all, I do wish I had gone to college and had those experiences after high school. Sounds like a blast.
Those are some fun memories with Sue!
I can tell, Peggy, if you and I would have grown up together, we'd have been total chums!
Joeh, that's funny that you thought the oregano could have been the issue. When I told my husband this story many many years ago that is exactly what he thought. No, but that would have made for some fun stories as well as her parents killing us. :-) I had a job since I was 14. I was more responsible at 14 than some of the dip shits that apply at my company in their 40's. What is funny about us working in the shop was that it wasn't an option, her parents put her to work to help the family as a kid. She knew everything about it. I was always with her so they'd put me to work too. It is funny though to think of kids today doing something like that.
Olga, and the paranoia is real.
It's, I did have a fun few decades and got it all out of my system. The grass always seems greener on the other side, doesn't mean it was though. :-)
Abby, We could have lived in poverty and eaten hot and cold pizza together. :-) I'd study at the kitchen table in our apartment and once fell asleep in my pizza. I woke up with pepperoni on my face. I never lived that down from Sue.
Sounds like the best set up lol. I was so broke when Scott and I first got together. He says all he ate was friend potatoes he made in the fry daddy. I think I was working because I don't remember that. I do remember some really cheap cardboard microwave meals and cup of soup lol.
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