Grant's first suit was picked up after tailoring Friday evening [see previous post: Becoming The Suit] and Mom dropped by the neighborhood florist to order a wrist corsage for Grant's date Calli and a matching boutonniere for the gentleman. The color of the corsage was chosen after Grant consulted with Calli and texted the appropriate colors to his mother while she was ordering at the florist's counter. This episode brings to mind a couple of questions:
1. How did anybody manage to organize and coordinate meeting times, locations and even coordinate colors before cell phone and texting & photo image technology?
2. If basketball had not been invented, where would they hold high school dances?
Grant's sister, while home from college in the summer, helped Grant select a sky blue dress shirt and matching diagonally striped tie, just in case the need arose for a "cleaned up image" during his senior year. Now that Grant owns a bonified dark pin-striped suit, I understatedly suggested that his light blue, diagonally striped neck tie may not be a good match for his pin-stripes. But what am I? Chopped Liver? A quick shot of his suite with his camera phone was sent to Inga in Oregon with the question, "What matches?" [See Question 1 above]. The answer came back, definitely not your new shirt and tie. He and his Mom, with Inga's approval, selected a white shirt and a black and white paisley neck tie. Now that is to the 9's!
With the shirt pressed and starched and several attempts at the full windsor; the outfit was assembled to a high gloss satisfaction. Calli texted her address and driving directions to Grant; all of us loaded into the car to pick Calli up -- but only after stern warnings issued to Dad not to try ANY strange humor or make ANY social gaffes while in the car or in Calli's home. I was to understand that I would be allowed to take a few photos of the couple at her home, but then they were to be delivered promptly to Zach's house where everyone would meet up then travel to the Dance. I was waved off from photographing anything inside the staging area and left to watch from curbside. Inbedded reporters with the 101st Airborne on manuevers in Iraq have less censorship than I was given.
Zach's hot date had dumped him 2 days before, so he was going stag. Several others, some couples and some single party-goers showed up at Zach's staging area, the names and numbers apparently were quite fluid all evening. Sam's date had her father show up unexpectedly at the Dance and tell the Home Coming chaperons that her mother was "sick" and she had to leave with him immediately (This was a fabricated story, obviously full of underlying weirdness, but best left alone at this point). Grant and Calli managed to stay together throughout the evening and have a great time, some dancing, some socializing and then an early exit prior to the last DJ tune at 11 PM in order to get to the restaurant before it closed. Numerous others joined with Grant, his date and friends to dine at the Olive Garden. The restaurant staff managed to seat about 20 in their party and were served rather quickly. Grant bought Calli an enjoyable, good, large meal and then phoned home with the new plan [see Question 1 above]. He and Calli would be dropped off at our house and then someone here was to take them back to Calli's place, since it was nigh midnight (her curfew was 12:30), could Mom or Dad do that?
Calli was delivered safely at home, I think after a grand evening where she was treated to dancing and dining with a comfortable crowd of friends, many with orchestra connections. Back home, Grant changed into casual clothes and went back to spend the night at Zach with a bunch of other guys, staying up watching movies. Most everyone had to be at church in the morning, so Grant was up and back home by 8:30.
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