The Dance

This is where the story of Todd and I gets interesting.  Because at age 14 I was a great journal keeper.  I can pull out the actual overly dramatic documentation of the night, written on the very night it happened!!

(Todd hates it when I get out my journals for things like this.  He usually points out that just because I wrote it down that way, it doesn't necessarily mean it's the way that it happened.  I'm sure I recorded every detail with absolute integrity, but I'll include his disclaimer nonetheless.  Because I love him.  And he's cute when he gets all indignant about things.)

 Journal Entry from Dec. 27, 1990:

"We had a dance at North Branch tonight, but I just wasn't in the mood, so I moped around for a while.  After a while, I went out to the Clinton foyer and was looking at the bulletin board when all of a sudden a voice behind me said, 'You bored, too?'  It was Todd Smith, but he had been asleep on the couch with his back to me, so I hadn't expected to hear a voice.  Especially not his.  He was having a rotten time, too.  So, we decided to do something useful.  We grabbed some shovels and went outside to shovel snow.  Then we went in the kitchen and helped to get dessert ready.  It got me in a better mood in no time, but then he left.  It was fun, though.  I hope we can get to be friends."

Poor Todd.  He had just passed the time with me.  I decided I was head over heels "in like" with him.  At future activities we did spend more time together and got to know one another a little better.  But I had a very romantic sub-plot going on in my head.  Todd didn't.

My other girl friends from church had boys at these same dances, that they liked, so we came up with code names for all of them, so we could talk about them during early morning seminary and church without the boys from our ward knowing of whom we were speaking.  We weren't nearly as stealthy as we thought we were, but the memories sure are fun!  I have an entire folder of paper hearts, dance countdowns, and posters with lyrics to our favorite song, "Somebody" by Depeche Mode, on them.  All of them made with our respective "love" interests in mind.  We were so wonderfully silly together.  It still makes me smile to think about it.

Because of Todd, my attendance at Stake Youth Activities was 100%.  Here's an entry from the Valentine's Dance in 1991:

"Tonight was the Valentine's Dance!  [Todd] and I had an awesome time. .. We were being quite immature the whole night....He's so fun to be around.  We sat next to each other at Friendly's after the dance  and had a blast....When it was time to leave Friendly's he got up and gave me a hug, but I couldn't get really 'into it' 'cause his Mom was standing right there watching us.  However, when I was just about to leave I told him to give me a hug.  He said he already had, but he gave me one anyway.  It was a 10 as far as hugs go, and even after I let go he kept his head on my shoulder.  It must've looked like more than it was because Brother Clegg on his way by said, 'Keep it up, Todd.'  It was a wonderful night."

Wow.  More embarrasing journal entries later.  I was extremely prolific about Todd from January to June of 1991.  After that...not so much.  ;)