friday the 13th

friday june 13th, to be exact.

june 13 will always hold a special place in my heart
but when june 13 falls on a friday,
my heart makes this squelchy, squeaky kind of sigh...
a happy/sad sigh.

june 13 makes me think of
birthday parties and sleepovers and bikes with banana seats...
popcorn and tents in the backyard
and melty butter
and plenty of salt...
washed down with purple or green kool aid
poured from the beige Tupperware pitcher,
you know the one,
with the push button cover....
the same one we once tried to mix kool aid and vodka in
until we realized at the
very
last
second
that it was turpentine
in a tiny vodka bottle...
we had to throw away the jug in order to hide the evidence.

june 13 on a friday
makes me think of how the birthday girl
loved horror movies
(i myself hated them and was totally a chicken about them,
even though I was the older one...instead i would constantly
crack jokes to keep myself from crying...look i am going to
beat you with the stump of my bloody arm!)...
and what better way to celebrate your birthday than to
have a Friday the 13th movie marathon
on the new VCR,
the one that came with a wired remote control...

i think about summer days spent at union corner beach
climbing on the rocks
until we literally couldn't go any further,
the bottoms of our bare feet tough from never wearing shoes...
of swinging as high as we could on the metal swing set,
that was the best swing set ever.
my dad would always come by and say we were going too high.

purple rain and bon jovi videos,
livin' on a prayer...
i don't know why she swallowed a fly, i guess she'll...
the cult and she sells sanctuary...
secrets and cherry pepsi and sharing a set of headphones
in the backseat of a chevette
after we bought the new madonna tape in moncton...
papa don't preach....

how you always laughed so easy,
i thought i must have been the funniest girl in the world...
the time i made you laugh at mcdonalds,
remember...the night of the canada day fireworks
and we were talking to Richard Brooks...
and i made you laugh
and you choked on your pop
and threw up.

then you went in the bathroom and wouldn't come out
until i told you that the old lady at the next table was
yelling at Richard for making you throw up
which made you laugh
and so you came out and i put you in a hug/headlock
and we snuck out the side door
giggling at the perplexed look on Richard's face.

barbies in masking tape bathing suits,
pretending we were dentists and making my little brother
wear wet-toilet-paper braces...
little people mansions built in the nightstands by your bed...
the easter that it stormed and the power went out
and your family was storm-stayed at my house
and we each wore one of my rainbow striped roller skates
and skated back and forth from the bathroom
to my bedroom.

the first time i went on a date,
i made you come with me.

there are so many things that make me think of you.
in a happy/sad way.
we were going to buy fieros (red for you, purple for me)
and move to new york
and live across the street from each other...
you in your red house, me in my purple house.

i try not to think about the times that we argued,
the times that i was mean to you...
i try not to think about the night i knew i would never see you again.

happy birthday, rockin' robbie piper,
come and see me sometime...
i'll be watching for you.
xo