While digging through a box in my garage I found an old photo of ex-wife Gail and myself. With us were three of my four best early friends. I took the picture, using the camera’s timer function, at the Vivian bowling alley, a business defunct for thirty years. A wave of memories swept over me as I gazed at the faded photo causing me to ponder all my friends, ex-wives and ex-lovers.
Gail is long gone; I haven’t seen her in years, but I still stay in touch – although infrequently – with Tim, Rod and Wiley. Although married three times (a fact I would have never dreamed) Gail is my only ex. Anne and I were married twenty years when she died. Marilyn and I are still married. While I only have one ex-wife, I have a slew of ex-lovers. About the only difference is a signed marriage license.
An ex-lover is not simply someone you once had sex with. During the pre-AIDS era one-night stands were commonplace and I had my share of nameless and faceless encounters. An ex-lover is someone you were close to for months, or maybe even years, and someone you remember vividly. I can count my ex-lovers on one hand.
No matter how memorable they were, all my ex-lovers and ex-wives are long gone. It’s different with my friends. As I look at the old photo I realize all my friends - while they may be far away - are all still around.
Gondwana
Gail is long gone; I haven’t seen her in years, but I still stay in touch – although infrequently – with Tim, Rod and Wiley. Although married three times (a fact I would have never dreamed) Gail is my only ex. Anne and I were married twenty years when she died. Marilyn and I are still married. While I only have one ex-wife, I have a slew of ex-lovers. About the only difference is a signed marriage license.
An ex-lover is not simply someone you once had sex with. During the pre-AIDS era one-night stands were commonplace and I had my share of nameless and faceless encounters. An ex-lover is someone you were close to for months, or maybe even years, and someone you remember vividly. I can count my ex-lovers on one hand.
No matter how memorable they were, all my ex-lovers and ex-wives are long gone. It’s different with my friends. As I look at the old photo I realize all my friends - while they may be far away - are all still around.
Gondwana
2 comments:
Eric,
What do you know about Frog Level, LA (I think maybe it is called Rodessa now)?
Rodessa is seven miles from Vivian and once an oil field boom town. From what I understand, Frog Level was a creek that marked the surface location of a fault. Old oil finders used this as a rough guide because oil was always found on one side of the creek, but not the other. There is a sign on Louisiana Highway 1 commemorating this location. I have a picture somewhere and will see if I can find it.
Eric
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