In August of 1984, we moved to the Washington, DC suburbs.
What a shock. We went from a small town where we knew a lot of people to a
teeming metropolis where we knew no one and no one knew us.
The kids at my new school were much more sophisticated than me; they
dressed like the models in Teen magazine, and their conversations revealed
concern with name brands and popularity. I hated it. I wanted to jump right
back in the car and retreat to Tennessee. I felt intensely isolated and
lonely for my family and friends.
But that was not to be. Mom got a job at an insurance
agency, and I trudged off to the 7th Grade.
The Bananarama song “Cruel Summer” was my anthem.
