story time

I don't usually tell stories here, but for some reason I thought I'd share one today.

I believe I was in 8th grade (it may have been 7th, I think my brain has tried to repress this memory, and such has left some details blurry). At this point in my life I was still very awkward around girls (I'm glad that has changed some, if only a little). My cousin Michelle is about the same age as me, and lived next door. There were a few others in the neighborhood that were our age, and we happened to be hanging out with a kid named Nick that night. I'm not quite sure why, because Nick and I rarely got along, but there we were, out snowmobiling around the neighborhood. Nick went to the same junior high as us, but had transferred from another nearby, and thus knew several people that I did not. This night a girl named Anne from his previous school had joined us. We had two snowmobiles, Michelle and Nick were on one, and Anne and I were on the other. We stopped in the middle of a field for a while to chat about whatever it is that mixed company 8th graders talk about. When we decided to get moving again, I went to start my snowmobile. I gave the cord a good solid pull...and jacked Anne in the face with my elbow. I felt so awful, embarrassed and awkward all at once. (Did I mention I had a crush on this girl? I guess not, but you should have guessed...I was an 8th grade boy with hormones raging, lucky enough to have this attractive girl holding on to me in order to stay on the snowmobile...)