Armijo High School

The past had blown away like...ashes in the waste-paper basket.
-Daphne du Maurier
"Rebecca"

Twenty-five years ago today

February 1, 1986
Saturday

Chad and I woke up at 7:35AM to a phone call from Steph Redding. Steph was calling to provide brief directions to get to her house in the Fairfield-Vallejo area.

I said, “Goodbye” to Chad.
He had to go to Chabot College this morning to work and study.

I went to mom’s house to pick-up Ashley. When I got home Margaret Lai and her son, Lance had just arrived at my place from San Francisco. Margaret, Ashley, Lance and I all left for Fairfield.

All of us (including Steph and her daughter, Tabitha) went to a local park in Fairfield. Margaret left with an agent she contacted to get tours of homes. Margaret wants to buy a house.
PHOTO: Margaret, Lance, Tabitha, Steph, Ashley

Steph and I went to ARMIJO HIGH SCHOOL in Fairfield. There was a Chief Armijo statue there. In 1891 Armijo High School began as a small one-room school house with 30 students, and grew over the past 100 years. The mascot for the high-school is the “Indian”; however, ARMIJO is NOT an Indian name. An Indian Chief was given the name of ARMIJO (by a Spanish explorer of that name) after donating his Native-American land for the school.

After the visit to ARMIJO HIGH (something I’ve always wanted to do) we went to CHUCKY CHEESE for the kids. We had a good time. I wondered if the people thought we were a family (Steph, me, Ashley, Tabitha and Lance).


I stopped at McDonald’s when it was just me, Ashley, Margaret and Lance en route back to Alameda. We had the munchies. I was home by 5:40PM. It was a long, tiring day. I enjoyed myself.


I telephoned Chad at around six o’clock. He wasn’t home yet.


I received a surprise phone call this morning from Bonni Jayne. We planned to get-together but didn’t because I was heading out to Fairfield.


When Chad returned my call I explained, “I really want to spend time with Bonni. We’ve known each other for such a long time and we need to get together.”
He understood.


So, I did see Bonni after all. I went to pick her up and we went to the Whale’s Tail for a drink or two. Bonni and I reminisced about our junior high and high-school days.  Our waitress was Donna Blackwell, a fellow high-school student.   Donna graduated (with us) from Alameda High as well. I recalled that she had dated George Shuman (one of our neighbors in Oakland, CA when we lived there in the mid to late 1960’s).
Bonni made me laugh when she said, “My prisoner, body-builder boyfriend jerked-off with a broom stick up his ass.”
It’s amazing what a couple of cocktails will do.
PHOTO: Bonni Jayne, 1986

Bonni and I went to my place and we watched the movie VISION QUEST together. We also played a game of SCRABBLE.


Larry telephoned, “I heard your message. I think you should call Chad at his mom’s house.”
“Okay, I will.”
When I did call Chad at his mom’s house I said, “You can come over her if you want.”
I drove Bonni home.


When I phoned Chad again at 12:25AM his Dad answered.
“Is Chad there?”
“You have the wrong number.”
I was sure it was his Dad’s voice. Chad ended up arriving at my place at around 1:15AM. It excited me for some reason. I wanted to know what was going on.
Chad simply said, “I was at my folks’ house until really late.”
I believed him. Why shouldn’t I?


I still cannot see that there is anything extreme in the idea that people should have what they need, particularly if they have had to go without it for most of their lives.
-Morag Joss
"Half Broken Things"