Spit

I was sweet on a neighborhood boy.  He was in the sixth grade, I was in the fifth.  A younger girl rarely caught the eye of an older boy in those days.  He was popular and had a little sister who knew how to make pom-poms out of tissue paper.  She was pretty and he was athletic.  They were a sibling power couple.

"Kirk's such a fox.  He's tuff," I remember saying to a friend within earshot of my dad.  "He's the best basketball player in the whole school."

Basketball is a religion in Indiana, or at least it was in the 70s, so the fact that my little Hoosier crush played the game well, elevated his celebrity.

"You like Kirk?" my dad asked.  "That kid spits all the time."

It was true.  Kirk was a spitter.  Maybe he still is.  But the way he spit as a kid was neat.  He'd walk down the sidewalk, sometimes dribbling a basketball, look to the side and spit with speed, force and precision.  He spit with equally precise frequency, like a high-pressure lawn sprinkler, ticking methodically across the grass.  It was awesome.  It also might have been a compulsion, but it melted my butter.

*****

I was looking at family video recently.  Chris and the two older boys braved a thrill ride at a local amusement park in August. The five-year-old boy [he was actually still four when the video was taken] and I are a crack team of backpack watchers and videographers.  It was the end of the day, which is my excuse for putting a four-year-old in charge of belongings.  I think he bummed a smoke from the people next to him, and karate-kicked potential abductors in the stomach.

"Spit" is a small part of the video, but I know my family will appreciate it.

Soaring and Spit from Chris Ross on Vimeo.

Comments

[Cheri @ Blog This Mom!]

You are quite the videographer and editor. Kudos. I was holding on to the arms of my desk chair during part one. During part two I just wanted some of whatever chocolate-y things were in that backpack.

XO

[Corbie]

I must have laughed out loud at least a dozen times during that video. Classic Chrisy, classic Redmond...just plain classic. Loved it.

[Connie @ Young and Relentless]

That song is perfect!! And Oh My HECK! How do people get on that thing!

Love that Redmond was stealing candy! Classic!

[Captain Dumbass]

It's just spit. Deny everything and work your way up from there.

[Mary]

Loved hearing your voice. Loved seeing your menfolk swinging and swallowing "spit!"

[unmitigated me]

"It's just spit."

That's my boy. In the words of Eddie Izzard, "When we were kids we lied our heads off about everything! I didn't do it! It wasn't me! I was on the moon...with Steve!"

[Kate Coveny Hood]

That ride is like the scariest thing I've ever seen in my whole life. You couldn't pay me a million dollars to do that. And I'm not even kidding. I wouldn't do it for any amount of money - that is exactly how horrified I was while watching the video. It looked like they were going to hit that building every time they passed it. I'm going to have nightmares about that ride tonight...

[muskrat]

Gross!

[Lady Fi]

It's just spit! Kids ARE hilarious! And that ride - terrifying.

[Rebecca]

Melted my butter? OMG, I love that! :)

[25BAR]

Oh those childhood memories!It is nice to meet you!

[Rachel Cotterill]

One thing we noticed in Beijing was everyone spitting all. the. time. And LOUDLY. It was yeuchhhhy. I don't think I could ever have had a crush on a "spitter".....

[christy]

I've always been appalled by spit, and spitters. I never would have made it in your town when I was growing up! I have tried a few different times, but my darn computer won't show me your video. But from the looks of it, I'd be as terrified as Kate! Great post, sorry my comment is so late! :)

[Debbi Austin]

I don't know how I missed this earlier ...... TOTALLY cracked me up. You know he's the highly successful girls basketball coach for the high school now?? So still doing the bb thing. And yes, basketball still rules in Indiana. If it's a choice on Sun between bb game or church ..... bb usually wins out. I know, we're horrible people. lol

The video ...... I would have been having a heart attack if I was watching my husband and boys do that!! Wow. What an awesome experience for them to do together and make a wonderful memory. And Redmond has a wonderful memory also. If your family is anything like ours, he'll be getting teased far into adulthood with the phrase "It's just spit" often and repeatedly. Love it!!