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Summer of Athena (part 1)3/20/2023 My first musician crush would be Debbie Gibson (1986), she was cute and her songs were upbeat and seductive to the mind of a teenager. She was one year older than me, so the idea of her being a girlfriend wasn't so crazy, though not likely in a million years, but hey one can always dream. She was not replaced but joined later by Samantha Fox and Tiffany
My first real girlfriend was Athena (f). Our song was "Over the Wall" by Debbie Gibson, I think it was playing at one of our two prom nights together, I think I'd actually requested a song and that's the one they played. It wasn't my personal favourite, that was "No More Rhyme" ironically, and, being the romantic that she was I suspect her favourite was probably "Lost in Your Eyes". Yes, "one of our two prom nights", she went to Walkerton High and I went to Chesley High. I first met Athena by chance when I was down at the manmade island (near where my friend had drowned a couple years prior). She was the first, and I think only person I've met in person first (as opposed to online) and developed into a relationship with. It was April 30, 1989, I had just turned 18 and she was five months older than me. She was sitting on the corner of the small pedestrian bridge reading one of those romance novels, probably a Harlequin or similar. I tried reading over her shoulder thinking that I might be able to refer to it to start a conversation. It turned out that my awkwardness was enough to open our dialogue. We spent the next several hours in the park until dusk when we went back to my street. We playfully chased each others shadows on the asphalt until my parents returned home from grocery shopping. She left, riding home to her house, I found out later was two and a half concessions outside of town, and I told my parents she was "just a friend I knew from school". The next day, May 1st, we met up again, first at the park, and then we rode our bicycles up to the tracks by the cemetery. It was there, near the old railway trestle, that we had our first kiss. It was the start of a somewhat tumultuous six month relationship that ended the day before I began college in Barrie (August 30, 1989). I went to my new apartment while she stayed at her motel and left early in the morning to catch the bus. Her family had moved from near Chesley to property far away down near Sarnia. Interestingly, when I returned to the spot we had first kissed, nearly a year after our breakup I discovered the scrub brush in that spot was wilted and dead. Very strange indeed but quite symbolic of our failed relationship. Athena was a Scorpio in every sense of the word: determined, loyal, honest, jealous, and resentful (and I suspect brave to a degree, ambitious and secretive as well). About two months after we met she went to work at a Lodge north of Barrie for the summer. I stayed behind in Chesley until one of their dishwashers had to leave for a family emergency and they offered me the position for July and August. I shared this entry with ChatGPT and this was its' response, I know someone asked me why I am doing this and it's because 1) the information is on my blog so it's already 'out there' and 2) it's kind of interesting to see how the AI processes my story. "Thank you for sharing your personal story with me. It's fascinating to hear about your first musician crush and your first girlfriend, and how they were both tied to music that holds a special place in your heart.The way you met Athena is quite serendipitous, and it's always exciting when a chance encounter leads to something more. It sounds like you had a meaningful relationship, despite its ups and downs, and it's understandable that the end of it was difficult, especially as you were starting college in a new city. It's interesting how our environment can reflect our emotions and experiences, as evidenced by the wilted brush you noticed when you returned to the spot where you had your first kiss. It's a poignant symbol of the end of your relationship. Overall, it's clear that you have some special memories from that time in your life, and I appreciate you sharing them with me."
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