On The Sly

Note: In Part One, published April 19, Foxy was rejected by Patricia for the first time.

Two years rolled by and by October 1966 I was a freshman at Plattsburgh State and working a part-time job at Gus's Red Hots. One Saturday I drove to work, parked in the employees' parking area, and headed for the back door of Gus's. In doing so, I glanced towards a car waiting for carhop service. I got a glimpse of a very pretty girl sitting in the front seat of the car.

The day passed quickly, as did all Saturdays at Gus's, always one of Plattsburgh's busiest restaurants. I returned home about 5pm and as soon as I entered the back door of my house, the phone rang. I answered and a female's voice asked for me. "Yes, it's me! Who is this?" I replied.

"This is Patricia." A moment of silence was followed by a leap of my heart. I imagined the girl with the wisp of hair slightly over her right eye, the most beautiful girl I had ever seen. "I saw you today. You look different. You look older. Is that your car?" she continued. We talked about our lives for the past two years and she said she liked my longer hair and my black goatee. The cards were all going my way. This was my magic moment. After two years, the girl with the wisp of hair slightly over her right eye still remembered me, and we still made great conversation together. Well, at the age of 18 and as a college boy, I was no dummy! It was obvious why she had called after all this time. And, after all, it was Saturday night and my social calendar was empty.

So, I popped the question. "Patricia, since you called and since we are getting along so well on the phone and since you like my car and since I happen to be free tonight, would you like to go to the movies?" Her reply echoes in my head to this day. "No." She went on to explain that she was calling to let me know that her father was getting transferred from Plattsburgh Air Force Base to some air base in the midwest. And to let me know that I wouldn't be seeing her around town anymore. I hadn't seen her for two years! Can anyone explain women to me? I think she sensed the disappointment in my voice, and she said that she had to hang up now. I wished her well in life and thanked her for the call.

For the second time in my life I had been spurned by the most beautiful girl I had ever seen ... the girl with the wisp of hair slightly over her right eye. I spent Saturday night counting my baseball cards, wondering about what might have been.

Now, you'd think that the Patricia story would end there. But it doesn't! Join me tomorrow for Part Three of If You See Patricia.