The Gary Hobson Mystique
Summary: Many years before he became the guy who gets tomorrow's newspaper today, Gary Hobson was a shy, yet popular guy trying to navigate through that emotional and social maze called high school. This very short story was inspired by "Home Groan" and "Don't Walk Away, Renee."
I dedicate this story to my friend Claudine who not only introduced me to the magic of Early Edition, but whose humorous story about her current events class in high school whetted my creative juices and was the catalyst for this story.
Disclaimer: Gary Hobson, of course, is not my creation. No copyright infringement intended. No profit is being made.
Author: Tracy Diane Miller E-mail: tdmiller82@hotmail.com
The Gary Hobson Mystique
October 27, 1982
High school...it was the best of times, it was the worst of times.
Few people can deny the indelible impression that one's high school years etch on the brain. Four years of hormonal hell, math classes that intermingle numbers and letters in some archaic language that made as much sense and had as much relevance to one's adulthood as hieroglyphics. And who can forget the self-proclaimed in-crowd. There were the popular girls with their expensive clothes, perfect hair, impeccable makeup, and beauty contestant smiles. They were Homecoming Queens and cheerleaders; the girls who reeked of superficiality.
There were the jocks with their athletic acumen and muscular bodies. And there were the nerds, the sensitive and intelligent social outcasts whose commitment to educational excellence saw them studying hard on a Friday night rather than making frequent pilgrimages to the malls for Calvin Klein jeans or obsessing about securing an invitation to some "A" list party.
High school...it was a time where no student who survived it could ever forget it. And it was a time where stories remain to be told even decades later.
And against the madness that was high school, the strange vertigo that lasted for four years, there were the 1980s- the last bastion of opulence and self-indulgence.
The Reagan Years. Who Shot JR? Dynasty. Glamour. Money. Prestige. A unique page in America's history.
Hickory, Indiana with a population of 8,225 seemed unaffected by the craziness of the 1980s. Hickory boasted a small town mentality where generations cleaved to the security of a close knit community. There were quiet streets with manicured lawns. People kept their front doors unlocked. Neighbors knew each other. Mothers served on the PTA while sons followed their fathers in business.
And one student, a future hero, tried to find his way through the emotional and social maze that was high school.
The tall, handsome, seventeen year old with dark hair, gorgeous mud green eyes, and an adorable stutter, sat in the second row of Mr. Bancroft's English class struggling to keep his eyes open. He had stayed up late last night trying to finish the mountain of Algebra 2 homework. He was ready to drop out of the course not wanting to risk failing, but Mom told him to give it a go. She even suggested speaking to her friend Betty Callahan about having Betty's daughter Renee, a math prodigy, tutor him. He had also spent hours working on his essay for the Rotary Scholarship. The Rotary Scholarship was such a big deal- one student, full ride. Mom was so excited by the prospect of him winning the scholarship. While she felt saddened at the thought of her only child leaving the nest, Lois Hobson swelled with pride imagining Gary attending some out of state, prestigious university. However, the Rotary Scholarship wasn't Gary's only option. Three years making varsity baseball and being selected All State meant that he was also in line for numerous athletic scholarships.
The female population at Hickory High School swooned over Gary. He had his own cheering section last summer on the baseball field. And he always seemed to have a date on Saturday nights. Gary Hobson was an anomaly among jocks, a good looking, sensitive guy who seemed embarrassed by the attention women lavished upon him. For example, last summer when he decided to help out his neighbors and earn some money at the same time by mowing lawns, he had taken off his shirt in an effort to deal with the scorching heat. As the beads of perspiration glistened off of his bare chest, he heard thunderous applause. Turning around, Gary blushed when he saw that he had an audience of three teenage girls staring hungrily at him.
Gary worked hard at keeping his grades up. He knew that even with Renee's help he'd probably have to drop second year Algebra. And he was pulling "Bs" and "C's" on the weekly quizzes for his current events class. It wasn't that the class was hard or anything, but it just didn't make sense to him how his teacher could pull obscure facts from the Hickory Daily News, quiz the students on these facts, then call it current events. For pete's sake, there was a whole world out there with events happening every day on the national and international landscape. Yet, Mr. Jackson was more concerned that his students knew who made "Little Miss Hickory" or who were the nominees for the best pumpkin at the upcoming Halloween Pumpkin Patch Competition or the final score in last week basketball game.
And he was doing extra credit for Mr. Bancroft's class. He was writing a paper on the life of Jim Thorpe. He had gone to the Hickory Public Library a few days ago to take out a book called "The Jim Thorpe Story." Miss Flowers, the librarian, eyed him suspiciously before handing over the book. She acted like he was abducting her child. She sternly lectured him about handling the book with care and on adhering to the due date. After listening to Miss Flowers' ten minute lecture, he was almost ready to dismiss the idea of the book report. But he remembered that he had received a "C" on last week's pop quiz on "Great Expectations." And it didn't help matters that he had fallen asleep in Mr. Bancroft's class a few days before the quiz only to be awaken by the feel of "Great Expectations" making contact with his head. Gary still couldn't believe that Mr. Bancroft had thrown that book at him.
Gary felt a slight tap on his back. He turned around and saw that Deb had a note that she wanted him to pass to Joe. Joe was seated three chairs to Gary's left. Mr. Bancroft was busy at the blackboard, his back towards his students. Just as Gary prepared to pass the note, Mr. Bancrot turned around and caught him. Oh Boy. Mr. Bancroft read Deb's note out loud, her romantic prose inciting laughter among the students and a blush on Gary's face. Mr. Bancroft sensed that Gary wasn't the originator of the note, but just the messenger. However, the chivalrous young man refused to divulge where he received the note. He was given detention after school.
Senior year came and went. So did summer. And he received the Rotary Scholarship. Gary decided to attend The University of Chicago, a school that would not only allow him to assert his independence but which was also close enough to Hickory for visits home.
The young adult with mud green eyes said goodbye to his parents as he started the drive to Chicago towards his new life. He was both excited and nervous, but he decided to take it one day at a time and not think about tomorrow. Who knew what would happen tomorrow anyway.
The End.
Summary: Many years before he became the guy who gets tomorrow's newspaper today, Gary Hobson was a shy, yet popular guy trying to navigate through that emotional and social maze called high school. This very short story was inspired by "Home Groan" and "Don't Walk Away, Renee."
I dedicate this story to my friend Claudine who not only introduced me to the magic of Early Edition, but whose humorous story about her current events class in high school whetted my creative juices and was the catalyst for this story.
Disclaimer: Gary Hobson, of course, is not my creation. No copyright infringement intended. No profit is being made.
Author: Tracy Diane Miller E-mail: tdmiller82@hotmail.com
The Gary Hobson Mystique
October 27, 1982
High school...it was the best of times, it was the worst of times.
Few people can deny the indelible impression that one's high school years etch on the brain. Four years of hormonal hell, math classes that intermingle numbers and letters in some archaic language that made as much sense and had as much relevance to one's adulthood as hieroglyphics. And who can forget the self-proclaimed in-crowd. There were the popular girls with their expensive clothes, perfect hair, impeccable makeup, and beauty contestant smiles. They were Homecoming Queens and cheerleaders; the girls who reeked of superficiality.
There were the jocks with their athletic acumen and muscular bodies. And there were the nerds, the sensitive and intelligent social outcasts whose commitment to educational excellence saw them studying hard on a Friday night rather than making frequent pilgrimages to the malls for Calvin Klein jeans or obsessing about securing an invitation to some "A" list party.
High school...it was a time where no student who survived it could ever forget it. And it was a time where stories remain to be told even decades later.
And against the madness that was high school, the strange vertigo that lasted for four years, there were the 1980s- the last bastion of opulence and self-indulgence.
The Reagan Years. Who Shot JR? Dynasty. Glamour. Money. Prestige. A unique page in America's history.
Hickory, Indiana with a population of 8,225 seemed unaffected by the craziness of the 1980s. Hickory boasted a small town mentality where generations cleaved to the security of a close knit community. There were quiet streets with manicured lawns. People kept their front doors unlocked. Neighbors knew each other. Mothers served on the PTA while sons followed their fathers in business.
And one student, a future hero, tried to find his way through the emotional and social maze that was high school.
The tall, handsome, seventeen year old with dark hair, gorgeous mud green eyes, and an adorable stutter, sat in the second row of Mr. Bancroft's English class struggling to keep his eyes open. He had stayed up late last night trying to finish the mountain of Algebra 2 homework. He was ready to drop out of the course not wanting to risk failing, but Mom told him to give it a go. She even suggested speaking to her friend Betty Callahan about having Betty's daughter Renee, a math prodigy, tutor him. He had also spent hours working on his essay for the Rotary Scholarship. The Rotary Scholarship was such a big deal- one student, full ride. Mom was so excited by the prospect of him winning the scholarship. While she felt saddened at the thought of her only child leaving the nest, Lois Hobson swelled with pride imagining Gary attending some out of state, prestigious university. However, the Rotary Scholarship wasn't Gary's only option. Three years making varsity baseball and being selected All State meant that he was also in line for numerous athletic scholarships.
The female population at Hickory High School swooned over Gary. He had his own cheering section last summer on the baseball field. And he always seemed to have a date on Saturday nights. Gary Hobson was an anomaly among jocks, a good looking, sensitive guy who seemed embarrassed by the attention women lavished upon him. For example, last summer when he decided to help out his neighbors and earn some money at the same time by mowing lawns, he had taken off his shirt in an effort to deal with the scorching heat. As the beads of perspiration glistened off of his bare chest, he heard thunderous applause. Turning around, Gary blushed when he saw that he had an audience of three teenage girls staring hungrily at him.
Gary worked hard at keeping his grades up. He knew that even with Renee's help he'd probably have to drop second year Algebra. And he was pulling "Bs" and "C's" on the weekly quizzes for his current events class. It wasn't that the class was hard or anything, but it just didn't make sense to him how his teacher could pull obscure facts from the Hickory Daily News, quiz the students on these facts, then call it current events. For pete's sake, there was a whole world out there with events happening every day on the national and international landscape. Yet, Mr. Jackson was more concerned that his students knew who made "Little Miss Hickory" or who were the nominees for the best pumpkin at the upcoming Halloween Pumpkin Patch Competition or the final score in last week basketball game.
And he was doing extra credit for Mr. Bancroft's class. He was writing a paper on the life of Jim Thorpe. He had gone to the Hickory Public Library a few days ago to take out a book called "The Jim Thorpe Story." Miss Flowers, the librarian, eyed him suspiciously before handing over the book. She acted like he was abducting her child. She sternly lectured him about handling the book with care and on adhering to the due date. After listening to Miss Flowers' ten minute lecture, he was almost ready to dismiss the idea of the book report. But he remembered that he had received a "C" on last week's pop quiz on "Great Expectations." And it didn't help matters that he had fallen asleep in Mr. Bancroft's class a few days before the quiz only to be awaken by the feel of "Great Expectations" making contact with his head. Gary still couldn't believe that Mr. Bancroft had thrown that book at him.
Gary felt a slight tap on his back. He turned around and saw that Deb had a note that she wanted him to pass to Joe. Joe was seated three chairs to Gary's left. Mr. Bancroft was busy at the blackboard, his back towards his students. Just as Gary prepared to pass the note, Mr. Bancrot turned around and caught him. Oh Boy. Mr. Bancroft read Deb's note out loud, her romantic prose inciting laughter among the students and a blush on Gary's face. Mr. Bancroft sensed that Gary wasn't the originator of the note, but just the messenger. However, the chivalrous young man refused to divulge where he received the note. He was given detention after school.
Senior year came and went. So did summer. And he received the Rotary Scholarship. Gary decided to attend The University of Chicago, a school that would not only allow him to assert his independence but which was also close enough to Hickory for visits home.
The young adult with mud green eyes said goodbye to his parents as he started the drive to Chicago towards his new life. He was both excited and nervous, but he decided to take it one day at a time and not think about tomorrow. Who knew what would happen tomorrow anyway.
The End.