Throwbacks and Head Turners

Being a teenager is all about feeling a whole lot of nostalgic and kickin' it a little bit old school. The summer is the perfect time to rediscover the things that used to give you so much joy as a little kid. It's so crazy to realize just how old we really are, and to notice the things that brought us proud, bright and white smiles were so simple. Now our lives are perpetually complicated and unbelievably boring. Time to break the cycle, and do things like you used to. Throw it on back and turn some heads.


The importance of childhood is immeasurable. It's where the good in people originates, in my honest opinion. Everyone has at least some good memories of their childhood, as long as you can hold on to those, you can always go back to those when you need to. Childhood is what makes us innocent, oblivious, and carefree. It's the times where we're free just to be ourselves, be a little wild, and sometimes even ridiculous. You can always tell when people are more in touch with their inner child. I, for one, am one of those people. I frequent Disney Channel, Disney XD, and Nickelodeon on a daily basis - I never miss a DCOM premiere or new episodes when they come out. BTW, did anyone see the season finale of Avatar: the Legend of Korra because that was literally amazing. It was perfect, mindblowing, and the amount of beautiful bending that went down. What I'm trying to say is, that you need some naivety, to be gullible, and most importantly to be a kid a sometimes. It's necessary to take a break, have some fun, and just be young, wild, and free every once in a while. We may be young adults, but that young part is what separates us from the rest of the boring population. Don't forget it. Time for some thowbacks and head turners.

My summer has been more than super lazy, but instead of being totally bored I'm balancing my obsession with TV, with the other things that make me so happy. Just because I may not leave the house for four days at a time doesn't mean I'm not having the time of my summer life. Wednesday, I had to get up at 7 am to get ready to make a trip to the orthodontist for my 6-month post Brace Face checkup. I got dressed, blasted Chris Brown "Don't Wake Me Up" and Big Time Rush "Windows Down" as I swung by my sister's school to pick her up and rescue her from basketball camp. I go to the ortho and I let him know about my college life. My orthodontist is the best, Dr. Morris - if you're in the Cincinnati area - he's awesome, and makes you feel comfortable as heck. I attribute my compliment inducing perfect teeth to him, thanks doc. Bianca and I dip out, make a pit stop at McDanks and it's back to her school while she sips a cherry berry chiller, fights off a brain freeze, and gets ready to go work a basketball camp. It's home for me where I crash on my bed (moving before noon is completely foreign to me) and watch like four episodes of MTV's "Awkward." The show is hilarious, that mean girl Sadie is the ultimate bia, she takes everything too far and tells it so bluntly how it is. Love the show, Ashley Ricards, Beau Mirchoff, Brett Davern, Molly Tarlov and the rest of the cast, bravo for portraying a high school experience so modern and ridiculous that's it's actually accurate. Noon rolls around and I go to pick up Bianca and bring her on home. She's getting her room painted so it's hardcore cleaning mode once we get home. I'm sanding the plaster I put on the poster holes (Diggy Simmons, I blame you) down, dusting, and vaccuuming like nobody's business. Me, being a handyman like a wannabe Matt Iseman or Jason Cameron, is a funny sight to see. I'm just not a rugged guy, but I can definitely follow directions and do a good job. It's a total throwback and head turner.

Hanging out can mean doing the littlest things. My sister's best friend, Bailey, came over and they spent the day doing literally whatever. I was in my room sending emails, making a funding request form, and updating facebook/twitter for IRA (the life a president) when they called me downstairs to help setup the Gamecube. Pause, right there, the Nintendo Gamecube, that thing brings back some memories. I help them get the old thing working and we play a couple rounds of TimeSplitters 2, capture the bag and bag tag. Let's just say, I'm a boy who used to game a lot, and I'm just really good at everything. I beat them, with my unfair advantage of gamer knowledge and some kids come to visit. Days when my dad is home are always eventful, multiple cars line up and groups of visitors are put in separate rooms until my parents can find time to talk to all of them and sort out their problems. Kids in the basement and my mother tells me to bring out Bianca's old box of toys (it's massive) and the creme de la creme, her Barbie Grand Hotel. I play with them and help them get their imaginations going (I've still got it), and soon it's time for us teens to peace out. Bianca, Bailey and I head to Steak and Shake for dinner. The normal way we'd go on state route 48 is blocked by an unsightly car accident (hope everyone's okay), so we're forced to turn around and all hell breaks loose, literally. A leaf blower falls from a truck and lands in the middle of the road and everyone has to avoid it. Traffic is backing up like none other so we take shortcuts through neighborhoods to get out of there. There's this windy road where the historic Kings Mills, OH Powder Factory is located and it was first time driving it, and I did it - like a pro. We're jamming to One Direction "Another World" and "Everything About You" and zooming on the highway. We finally make it and we sit down to order. We all know exactly what we want and we're just talking amongst ourselves when we notice this table of old white women hardcore mean-mugging (as in giving dirty looks for those of you who don't speak mock-ebonics) us. They're just staring, and we catch them even point and just glaring at us. We're eating and we just around and look right back at them. What you've never seen three African-American teenagers eating in a restaurant.?They look down, and away, embarrassed as they should. We turned your head, right. Like, really though - this is 2012, and if you didn't get the memo, racism still exists. We're not doing anything other than exisiting, is that a crime? We finish our food, leave a heft tip and dip out. That group of ancient hags exits before us and we hope in the Benz, blast some ratchet ghetto hoodrat music and drive by them (best line of the song "old white folk") just to spite them. It's off to Yagoot, which is the best frozen yogurt in Ohio. The girls at the counter, all my age, we're giving me the up and down, especially the place was legitimately empty. Why yes girlies, I'm single and one of them was cute but I'm not going to hit on you while you're working, that ish cray. We drive back to our house and ride skooters, and jumprope in the blazing hot sun. It's so much fun, and I've still got the moves like nobody knows. We play Gauntlet: Dark Legacy on the cube, watch Baby Daddy before Bailey heads home. Y'all know Bianca is my favorite person in the entire world, her and Bailey and a hilarious dynamic-duo. Those girls had my dying from laughter, legitimately.Such a fun day, even with that incident. It ends with me watching the season premiere of the Real World: St. Thomas, and new episodes of Property Brothers, and Royal Pains - oh and half an episode of CSI:NY. So many throwbacks and head turners.

Being a teenager is all about realizing that you're never to old to be a kid. We're all still children at heart. The things that were fun then may seem so juvenile, and childish - but that's not the point. It's the spirit of adventure, randomness, and good, clean fun that made you so happy that you want to embody now. I'm telling you, it can totally change things. Vintage is in when we're in a world of fast forwarded modernities. This is throwbacks and head turners.

My blog post question for the day is ... what was your favorite childhood game? My sister and I used to play magic where we'd be all the elements and fight each other with powers. Then there was swimming class where we'd lay out all the pillows in the couch and pretend to swim from one end to the other with Degrassi style drama as a subplot. We're still so imaginative and a whole lot funnier.

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