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| NAME: Sandi NICKNAME: "Arkansaw" HOOKED-UP: 1991 (almost) NOTEWORTHY: To sum up what occurred between myself and this little lady can be identified with one word: timing. Both good, and bad. It was while still with my very first Rocky Horror cast in Woodland Hills (The Denton Bunch) during the Summer of 1991 that Sandi caught sight of me at the theater before a show. It still amazes me that she could be attracted to the pitiful sight I had become: just one month removed from my first love lost, having taken up drinking as a means for numbing some of the pain. Although not yet a falling-down drunk who couldn't stand upright, I was at least somewhere in the neighborhood of legendary entertainer Dean Martin's slurred speech and stumbling stance. My long hair and black tux jacket probably helped. At least appearance-wise. As it turns out, Sandi was in a similar predicament; having just parted ways with her boyfriend on very negative terms. This is where my mention of timing comes into play. On the one hand, it was ideal that we met at a time when we were both newly available. But on the other hand, it was not a good time for either of us to be lookin' for a new significant other who might turn out only to be a rebound relationship. In reality, neither of us was quite ready to move on; at least, not significantly. While I still wallowed in my situation to the point of being a pathetic mess, Sandi grappled with circumstances surrounding her ex-boyfriend's presence at events she attended... largely due to them sharing several friends and going to many of the same places. I could very easily relate to said problem since Jen was still showing up at RHPS. Even though we enjoyed each other's company while taking in things like roller skating, trips to the movies, etc., my heart just wasn't in it. Being crushed as I was, more time was needed to emotionally heal. Sandi's days in town were numbered as it was; she had just enlisted, and was on the verge of shipping out for the Army's boot camp at Ft. Jackson on The East Coast (same as Debbie had done earlier that year). While in the military, she & I remained in touch; we exchanged many letters over the years, which allowed for her to keep track of my tragic love life, and for me to hear all about her drunken exploits. Time eventually came when we both settled down; my luck with romance seemed to gradually improve, and she was successful in beginning a family of her own. She & I have maintained pretty good contact--even during her service time in Iraq--regardless of being settled in the Carolinas. Since leaving the military, she's begun to focus on a career in aviation; if memory serves, she has a pilot's license now and works air traffic control. Recently as late 2002 she was able to visit family here in California, which is when TOBY & I got to see her for the first time in over a decade as well. Regardless of hardly spending any time together since that summer of 1991, Sandi is someone who I continue to think of as a good friend. It is hard to say what kind of relationship might have transpired if we'd become romantically involved during that summer of long ago; but I feel it safe to say we are most likely better off as friends than we would have been as lovers. Especially considering how both of us were like way back then. I feel blessed for the friendship we've continued to share through the years. __________________________ |