In a nutshell? I didn't go.
I wish I had a better story for it, but really it was because my high school boyfriend/fiancee was always getting into trouble and wasn't allowed to take me. In all honesty, I wasn't too devastated at the time because the small, private school I attended was only having a prom because kids demanded it, but the rumour going round was there would be no dancing. And at the tender age of 17, I thought I was way beyond prom anyway. I was ENGAGED after all! Practically an adult when you think about it.
Yes, I would LOVE to go back and have a little heart to heart talk with my teenage self, but at the same time, those years were not all that bad. I was INCREDIBLY awkward for most of it, but I had a good group of core friends, some of whom I am still friends with now, and I managed to actually GRADUATE high school and attend college (a major accomplishment when you consider the fact that I was really only interested in two things - boys and heavy metal).
I do wonder now, what it would have been like to attend my senior prom. I had attended plenty of sweetheart dances, ROTC dances, even a few Junior Proms - but not my senior. And most people I talk to now are of two camps.
If they attended Senior Prom there were two possible results:
A magical, wonderful, storybook experience
A horrible, crushingly bad but now funny in hindsight experience
If the did NOT attend Senior Prom there were two possible results:
Had a wonderful time with friends doing something different like a theatre night or going into the city
Had a lousy time and stayed in with their parents and watched movies - something that once again is kind of funny and a badge of honor in hindsight.
My reason for not attending? Kind of lame. Okay, REALLY lame. I COULD have gone alone - but the snob in me was NO WAY attending a fancy dance if I couldn't parade around my boyfriend/fiancee. I mean, what was the point in even HAVING a boyfriend/fiancee if I couldn't make him escort me to over-priced events where he would have to make small talk with people he didn't know and where I would eventually make out with him in front of everyone and boy would they be JEALOUS!!! I mean COME ON!!!
Perhaps though I am putting too much weight into the whole Senior Prom experience. I grew up on the movies "Sixteen Candles" and "Pretty in Pink" and the idea of Prom is HUGE in these movies. Jeff attended his prom wearing a white tux with TAILS for God's sake, and I feel like maybe I missed out on not getting the whole enormous poofy dress with hair pulled into a some sort of weird up-do and wearing too much make-up. Hmmm... maybe that's a great idea of Halloween this year.. I could be an 80's prom girl!!!!
What do you all think? Did you attend your Senior Prom? Did you have a good time or bad time?
2 comments:
Oh yeah...I think we should totally dress up as 80s prom dates for Halloween this year. How cool is that idea? It's the first time we'll actually HAVE an idea earlier than the day before Halloween. WhooOO!
Sixteen Pink Candles
I had no idea you even knew those movies - you certainly never watched them with me.
Do I recall that you put together your own alternative prom? It seemed a very romantic thing to do. A very noble sacrifice on your part. A pity it wasn't for someone more worthy of you, but you weren't particularly open to comments of that source.
And believe me, I have nothing but praise for the fact that you went from don't care in high school to high achiever in college - even if you had to keep your poor father in the dark about how seriously you were dating at the time.
And how often do you you need Statistics II, anyway?
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