Dee Dee's Memories of Steve

I met Steve when I was quite young, and he was 24. I looked much older, lied about my age, and had been on my own for several years. I was streetwise to be sure, but in the area of romance and dating, I was a fool. I had one horrible experience after another. Steve was a beautiful man, and I had a huge crush on him, as did most of the women we knew, so when he asked me out, I was all aflutter. My friend Rhonda had introduced us, and since I had really good fake ID, age was not a barrier to enjoying the night life.

At that point, I didn't know what a gentleman was. I'd never met one. Steve arrived at my house all dressed up, and looking so handsome. We went to dinner, and he paid! Definitely a novelty for me at that time. We went to see some great music — I think it was the Isaac Scott Band — and we danced and danced. I was taken aback, in a good way. I was shy, and he picked up on that. So, just like normal people (I guess...), he drove me home, gave me a sweet, tender kiss, and asked me to call him if I felt like it. To be quite honest, this was the first time I had been treated as though I had worth in this kind of situation.

Steve and I went on to meet our respective beloveds, and were destined to be friends. I'm not saying we didn't have some wild times together, because I did call, and we did, but they were mutually desired and appropriate to the times. That is another story. We were just not destined to be together forever. Steve left me a better person. He made me feel pretty for the first time... Heck, he made me feel a lot of things for the first time! Up to that point in my life, I'd been mostly abused by men. So thank you, Steve, you remain one of the finest men I've ever met. You raised my standards and opened my eyes. The time I spent with you remains dear to me.

So happy birthday to you!

Your friend for life,

Dee Dee Crane Conant

Blast From the Past Please write Dee Dee, care of the Fabulous Rainbow, 722 NE 45th Street, Seattle, WA, 98105, or leave a note at the bar. She sees all, knows all, tells all, sometimes.