First Kisses, Concerts, and Mall Food Courts
SilentPunt Lightning Round: These people are as weird as me.
Welcome to the first edition of the SilentPunt Lightning Round, something I’m planning on bringing back periodically. I’ll ask 3 people 10 questions each, and then share their answers. For the 1st edition, I asked some of my GenX brethren to talk about growing up. (stick around till the end for dogs)
Featuring:
(Click their links and subscribe to them all. No pressure, but also…do it):
Jonathan Small (click this link to find Jon)
Liz LaPoint (click this link to find Liz)
Matt Cyr (click this link to find Matt)
📺 📺 📺 📺 📺 📺 📺 📺 📺 📺
1) Where did you grow up?
Jon: Dobbs Ferry, New York.
Liz: In the land of 10,000 lakes, Prince, and the biggest mall in the states: Minneapolis, MN. And yes, sometimes I still say “Oof-da” when I’m done eating.
Matt: Pinson, Alabama. Same high school as Bo Nix. We absolutely did not have an NFL QB when I went there.
2) Favorite 80s movie:
Jon: That’s like choosing a favorite child! I guess, Fast Times at Ridgemont High.
Liz: There’s no possible way I could name just one. But off the top of my head: Back To The Future, Better Off Dead, Coming To America, The Neverending Story, and Indiana Jones & The Temple of Doom.
Matt: Raiders of the Lost Ark.
3) First celebrity crush:
Jon: Donna Dixon.
Liz: “Chachi” on Happy Days, “Bobby” on The Brady Bunch, or “Ricky” on Silver Spoons. When you’re 6 years old, you crush on the characters, not the actors.
Matt: Elisabeth Shue. She’s still a 10.
4) First R-rated movie you were way too young to watch, but did anyway:
Jon: Saturday Night Fever.
Liz: Does Temple of Doom count? Because that movie should’ve been rated R. But it wasn’t my choice, my teenage aunt brought me and my older brother to see it. I was a 9 year old in the theater watching a man’s heart get ripped out of his chest before being lowered into lava while alive. But I’m not traumatized at all. It’s just the first movie that always comes to mind when GenXers discuss which films they were too young to see, was probably responsible for exacerbating my insect phobia, and made me not eat soup for years.
Matt: The Breakfast Club. How I learned about high school, before junior high. I was quoting that movie to classmates years before they saw it.
5) Favorite fast food / snack / candy from the era:
Jon: Twix.
Liz: Fruit roll-ups, pixie sticks, Smarties, Nerds, Hostess Fried Fruit Pies1, and a McDLT with the new ch-ch-ch Cherry Coke (remember the jingle?).
Matt: On Fridays, my elementary school had a popcorn-and-Coke special for $0.50 each. I treated myself to a few of those with chore money.
(Yo Matt, in 2nd grade at Sts. Simon & Jude we got soft pretzels for a dime. Just sayin’.)
6) A place you got dropped off to be left alone for hours, and told, “I’ll pick you up later”:
Jon: The Galleria Mall in White Plains, NY.
Liz: I was never dropped off somewhere to be alone, I was always dropped off at the mall or the rollerskating rink with a friend or to meet a friend. When I was little I’d go the playground alone sometimes but there were always other kids there. Unless by “to be alone” you mean without a parent or older sibling. Then that happened pretty much everywhere!
Matt: Local neighbor’s house who had a shortened full court, complete with a 9’ indestructible bball hoop. Lotta pick up hoops played there. My folks never picked us up later cause that was the only other place we’d be.
7) First concert you ever went to, and who you went with:
Jon: The Grateful Dead in the Meadowlands with the late, great Adam Schlesinger (Fountains of Wayne) and his dad, Steve.
Liz: Weird Al Yankovic. I went with a boyfriend when I was a teen.
Matt: Pearl Jam, Springfield, Mass. Went with my gf at the time, who was a big PJ fan too. Outstanding show.
8) Favorite appointment viewing TV show (remember, no DVRs back then):
Jon: Mork and Mindy.
Liz: Who’s the Boss, Family Ties, The Cosby Show, Diff’rent Strokes
Matt: 1a) Monday Night Football, 1b) Miami Vice on Friday night.
9) Favorite rerun to watch:
Jon: Seinfeld.
Liz: Three’s Company, which I ran home from the bus stop to watch every day after school, starting around 8 years old. Other faves include Gilligan’s Island, The Brady Bunch, Happy Days, and Good Times.
Matt: Cheers. My father loves that show. When I’d visit him in the summer (in CT) he’d always have it on early evening before Sox games on TV38. Shout out to the Jimmy Fund.
10) Where did you have your first kiss? Details?
Jon: Nantucket Island. What happens in Nantucket, stays in Nantucket.
Liz: In true Gen X fashion, I had my first kiss at the mall. We were both 14, my crush and I stood by the bushes outside while waiting for our parents to pick us up and that’s when we kissed. I remember being thrilled, but we were “going together” for as long as you’d expect two silly young teens to be boyfriend and girlfriend: two weeks. Which, to be fair, feels like a month at that age.
Matt: Skate Haven roller rink. 6th grade. Andrea Whiteman. Her friend Angela came with us and nudged me over the finish line. I didn’t find out til months later, at a church social, Angela wanted me to kiss her too.
I’ll see y’all in Nantucket,
For the love of all move courts, did you listen to Ginger or not? How about you? Tell us your answers in the COMMENTS for cryin’ out loud.
Also, if you’re not a subscriber, join the idiocy below. (Dogs further below)
I’ve literally never heard of these. You?
This Q&A is epic and has catapulted me into a nostalgic frenzy!
I was obsessed with the heart removal in "Temple of Doom". I tried it several times on my dad while he was blissfully sleeping in his recliner, but it didn't work. He would just wake up angry and in pain because I twisted his chest hair during my attempts... That's what parents get for letting their children watch such age inappropriate content 😅
This Q&A was some awesome Friday fun! The heart removal terrified me to my core. Do we need a Temple of Doom support group? We could serve Hostess fruit pies. We couldn’t get those in Canada and they were the ultimate treat on U.S. road trips (along with Breakfast at Bob Evans).