Wow! Such vivid imagery. You're an awesome writer, Chris. I have so much to learn. :)
And it's such a captivating story of passionate love that harkens back to a different era. Perhaps I'm romanticizing a bit too much, but sometimes I wonder whether such adventures are still possible today...
Thank you Alvin! My guess is that young people today have so much information available to them that it would be practically impossible to undergo a similar adventure . . . but it would be lovely if it were still possible
I also appreciated the story, probably because I can relate to it in many ways-- as I've commented elsewhere on your writing. I was in the same phase of life in the early 2010s, and despite the time difference, I feel our experiences were similar. My time in high school in Texas, college in Virginia, and a long stint backpacking in Europe... all filled with awkward but enchanting interactions with mystifying women. I think it's a universal experience for young men, which is why it resonates.
Moreover, I just read Haruki Murakami's Norwegian Wood, which is about the same topic, though set in 1960s Japan--- yes, still relatable haha.
I'm really glad to hear it Grant, because by your time you had all the access the Internet could provide and you still remained a romantic and weren't disillusioned by the lowest-common-denominator demistification of social media, porn, etc.
I find that very heartening and I love your line "filled with awkward but enchanting interactions with mystifying women."
I've also been intending to respond to your earlier comment, but in the planning for my trip to Australia, where I am right now, it got lost in To Do lists. I'll follow up soon!
I really appreciate the dialogue. It’s what I’m looking for here on Substack, so thanks for your response and take your time.
I was strongly affected by the presence/proliferation of internet pornography and social media. The line between them is often very blurry, with female friends on Facebook or instagram posing and preparing for photos as if they were models. I have steered clear of those for many years, but it was a significant part of my adolescence.
I was a big nerd in school, so never really had any prospects with girls growing up. But we could be friends on Facebook and many of them would post photos from a beach vacation, for example. As such, I had easy access to images that most men throughout history would never have dreamed of, unless they went to a brothel. Or were some kind of king. It definitely messed with my mind and my expectations for what women and a relationship “ought” to be.
It’s been many years since that time, and fortunately things have gotten much better for me in terms of dating prospects, confidence, media use, etc. But still I experienced all that when I was in my formative years, and I can tell it still influences me to this day.
I don’t use dating apps, but I think that’s a whole other issue. And I’ve heard that AI is making things even more seductive. Kids these days have smartphones in middle school. I didn’t get one until college. I can’t imagine how hard it is for them.
Your observations are very interesting Grant. It illuminates another perspective on a core truth that over the years and decades has become emergent for me: the tremendous power of the feminine. Ironically, the feminist movement ignores or denies it, channeling women’s energy into masculine imitation or self-quenching. The extreme case is abortion which is both the negation of a woman’s power and the taking of life, when a woman’s deepest super power is giving life. Our entire political order is based on a woman’s right to kill, rather than on a woman’s power to give life and then to nurture, care for, educate and inspire new humans to be their best selves.
In the context you’re describing where your friends who were girls posted photos of themselves on vacation, they either didn’t (initially) understand the extraordinary power they wielded over men, or flaunted it frivolously.
This is all not ending well. At the most basic level, young adults aren’t having children, they’re not initiating relationships, and a growing number aren’t even having sex. At a broader and more fundamental level our society is choking off its own life force—which originates in the feminine.
Such a tease! I enjoyed reading your story. And, yes, I want the next installment.
When you were describing various men hitting on you, just imagine what every woman in the world goes through. You can probably name all the times that men hit on you - there are very few women who could begin to count the number. By the way, you are an attractive guy so I can see why both men and women would hit on you...
And, who's your uncle who lived near Travis? My hometown was Fairfield (which is the town by Travis). It was small back then. Maybe I or my folks knew him!
Hi Robin, I probably can’t quite name all the times, but your point is certainly directionally correct. I was very influenced by those experiences in how I treated women, at every level of my relationships with them. The possibility that a woman might feel like just a piece of meat rather than an individual human being whom I “saw” for who she was was absolutely mortifying for me, and how to avoid that kind of misunderstanding created a conundrum for me, given my inexperience, that I’ll write about next, because in fact women do (at least in general) expect a man to be bold and decisive, so how to recognize that a woman might welcome, and be expecting, me to take the initiative was initially a chicken and egg puzzle . . .
My uncle was Sheldon Strong, and he taught math at Woodland High School and was the manager of the Woodland City Pool--a great perk back in those days, because we'd help him out and be able to swim in the pool before opening hours!
Well written as always and those photos made the story a delicacy to consume. Thank you for putting this one into the world man!
Thank you Steven—¡te agradezco!
…rapturous…
Wow! Such vivid imagery. You're an awesome writer, Chris. I have so much to learn. :)
And it's such a captivating story of passionate love that harkens back to a different era. Perhaps I'm romanticizing a bit too much, but sometimes I wonder whether such adventures are still possible today...
Thank you Alvin! My guess is that young people today have so much information available to them that it would be practically impossible to undergo a similar adventure . . . but it would be lovely if it were still possible
I also appreciated the story, probably because I can relate to it in many ways-- as I've commented elsewhere on your writing. I was in the same phase of life in the early 2010s, and despite the time difference, I feel our experiences were similar. My time in high school in Texas, college in Virginia, and a long stint backpacking in Europe... all filled with awkward but enchanting interactions with mystifying women. I think it's a universal experience for young men, which is why it resonates.
Moreover, I just read Haruki Murakami's Norwegian Wood, which is about the same topic, though set in 1960s Japan--- yes, still relatable haha.
I'm really glad to hear it Grant, because by your time you had all the access the Internet could provide and you still remained a romantic and weren't disillusioned by the lowest-common-denominator demistification of social media, porn, etc.
I find that very heartening and I love your line "filled with awkward but enchanting interactions with mystifying women."
I've also been intending to respond to your earlier comment, but in the planning for my trip to Australia, where I am right now, it got lost in To Do lists. I'll follow up soon!
I really appreciate the dialogue. It’s what I’m looking for here on Substack, so thanks for your response and take your time.
I was strongly affected by the presence/proliferation of internet pornography and social media. The line between them is often very blurry, with female friends on Facebook or instagram posing and preparing for photos as if they were models. I have steered clear of those for many years, but it was a significant part of my adolescence.
I was a big nerd in school, so never really had any prospects with girls growing up. But we could be friends on Facebook and many of them would post photos from a beach vacation, for example. As such, I had easy access to images that most men throughout history would never have dreamed of, unless they went to a brothel. Or were some kind of king. It definitely messed with my mind and my expectations for what women and a relationship “ought” to be.
It’s been many years since that time, and fortunately things have gotten much better for me in terms of dating prospects, confidence, media use, etc. But still I experienced all that when I was in my formative years, and I can tell it still influences me to this day.
I don’t use dating apps, but I think that’s a whole other issue. And I’ve heard that AI is making things even more seductive. Kids these days have smartphones in middle school. I didn’t get one until college. I can’t imagine how hard it is for them.
Your observations are very interesting Grant. It illuminates another perspective on a core truth that over the years and decades has become emergent for me: the tremendous power of the feminine. Ironically, the feminist movement ignores or denies it, channeling women’s energy into masculine imitation or self-quenching. The extreme case is abortion which is both the negation of a woman’s power and the taking of life, when a woman’s deepest super power is giving life. Our entire political order is based on a woman’s right to kill, rather than on a woman’s power to give life and then to nurture, care for, educate and inspire new humans to be their best selves.
In the context you’re describing where your friends who were girls posted photos of themselves on vacation, they either didn’t (initially) understand the extraordinary power they wielded over men, or flaunted it frivolously.
This is all not ending well. At the most basic level, young adults aren’t having children, they’re not initiating relationships, and a growing number aren’t even having sex. At a broader and more fundamental level our society is choking off its own life force—which originates in the feminine.
Such a tease! I enjoyed reading your story. And, yes, I want the next installment.
When you were describing various men hitting on you, just imagine what every woman in the world goes through. You can probably name all the times that men hit on you - there are very few women who could begin to count the number. By the way, you are an attractive guy so I can see why both men and women would hit on you...
And, who's your uncle who lived near Travis? My hometown was Fairfield (which is the town by Travis). It was small back then. Maybe I or my folks knew him!
Hi Robin, I probably can’t quite name all the times, but your point is certainly directionally correct. I was very influenced by those experiences in how I treated women, at every level of my relationships with them. The possibility that a woman might feel like just a piece of meat rather than an individual human being whom I “saw” for who she was was absolutely mortifying for me, and how to avoid that kind of misunderstanding created a conundrum for me, given my inexperience, that I’ll write about next, because in fact women do (at least in general) expect a man to be bold and decisive, so how to recognize that a woman might welcome, and be expecting, me to take the initiative was initially a chicken and egg puzzle . . .
My uncle was Sheldon Strong, and he taught math at Woodland High School and was the manager of the Woodland City Pool--a great perk back in those days, because we'd help him out and be able to swim in the pool before opening hours!