When I was a young boy
My father...
Took me into the city.
To see a marching band.
I'm kidding lol.
But he did take me to Chicago from Milwaukee (my hometown) on the back of his motorcycle when I was all of maybe 12 years old...
He picked me up and took me to stay with him and some of my siblings on his side of the family for that weekend.
I remember sitting behind him as we flew down the highway, imagining what it would be like if we fell over at that speed.
What if something hit us?
What if we fell off of a bridge?
What if my father fell asleep?
You know, the normal childhood thoughts.
I also had his helmet on.
I remember how the music from his radio played softly in my ears as we rolled along at 45-65 miles an hour...
My hair was uncut and nappy, and when I removed it my little afro was all lumpy and weird-looking.
And you know that I didn't have or own a comb.
I have a few pleasant memories with my father. He would make an appearance every so often.
Once a year maybe... No.
Once every 4-6 years.
He was like a celebrity to me...
He had two cars AND a motorcycle!
AND the motorcycle had a little cool-ass attachment trailer thingy that he could store things in!
When we got to his apartment, he showed me his Oscar fish which he fed chunks of steak.
I was in awe at how "cool" he was.
I think he wanted that...he wanted the glamor of it all to blind me so that my young and far-too-inquisitive mind wouldn't start to question him about his absence.
I remember the thing that impressed me the most.
He played me a cassette tape that contained some music that he and his band had made when we got to his place.
It blew me away.
Not because of how "good' it was, but simply because he was or had been a part of an actual band!
I know he was not an active part of my life.
I knew that he had not been around very often, if at all.
I knew that he hadn't -to the best of my knowledge- done much of anything for me.
But I loved him beyond reason.
I imagine all little boys feel that way about their fathers.
Anyway lol
He gave me a copy of that cassette.
It is long lost by this point lol.
I remember one of the songs very clearly though...
And young me must have been pretty fond of it, because he wrote it down word for word lol.
Enjoy.
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On second thought, I don't want to pos the lyrics just in case there is some strange legality about it you know?
Because I don't!
Seriously folks...I have no Idea.
He was in a band, so I am not sure if the lyrics are my father's for me to post.
On the other end of that coin!
Young me had a weird habit of writing down lyrics to songs that I apparently really liked lbvs.
Here is a list of ALL of the songs that I have come across between the journal entries!
I am sure that these are just as cringy as the thoughts left between them lol.
1. Perfect gentlemen. -Wyclef Jean.
2. She Wants to Move. - N.E.R.D.
3. 1000 Miles. - Vanessa Carlton.
4. Gotham City. (Name redacted because this dude is a piece of scat.)
5. She will be loved. Maroon 5.
6. Breaking my habits. Linkin Park.
7. Lisa Simpson's Birthday song. Michael Jackson.
8. No letting go. Wayne Wonder.
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Man, I was a weird teen lol.
I mean, CULTURED as shit you could say!
I was -and still am- quite eclectic when it comes to music.
Being some sort of writer, I have quite a love for lyrics and lyricism lol
I can't tell you what it was about that Simpson's episode that blew me away, but that song was amazing!
And I and sticking to it lol.
The funny thing about the lyrics that young-me wrote, I am sure that they are mostly wrong lmao.
Listen...we didn't have Google.
I didn't have the ability to just look up flippin' lyrics online.
We didn't have online lmao.
Okay, that's a lie. I was born in 1988.
But I grew up in poverty lol so WE didn't have online lol.
I also walked to school uphill.
Both ways.
See you soon folk.