High School Days
Recently, while speaking with one of my long-time friends, he reminded me about one of our friends in high school. This guy was sort of a laid-back, quiet guy and seemed normal in every way. Well every way except that he had larger than average ears and they really stuck out. You ask how far did they stick out? Let me put it this way, they stuck out far enough that his nickname was "Wingnut". I mean this guy looked like a 1959 Cadillac limousine with both back doors open.
Throughout junior and senior high school he worked at his parents ice cream shop, so he never really had time to "hang out" with other students. He always seemed to be in school or working, so he didn't have that many friends. When his senior year arrived, he drove to school in a brand new 1965 Pontiac 2+2 fastback. It was eye-catching black with red interior and the finned aluminum wheels. Everyone gathered around it in the student parking lot and there were plenty of oohs and aahs. We looked inside and saw the bucket seats and the 4 speed shifter. Looking at the front fenders, we could tell it was a 421 engine and he confirmed that it had 3 2-barrels. Someone said they had seen this car around town but didn't know it was his. He then told us he had special ordered it and he received it 2 and a half months ago.
Someone asked if his parents paid for it and he said, "No. I have worked at my parents shop for a long time and each time I received my pay I put most of it in a drawer in my bedroom. So when I had enough cash, I took it to the dealership. Not surprisingly, it was around this time that people stopped calling him Wingnut and used his real name ( Spenser ). It was also this time period when the high school cuties started asking for rides in his car. Coincidence ?
Loren Lesh
