a long time ago, in a kindergarten far, far away...
May 19, 2005, 7:50 pm
My hands were clammy; I remember that much. I also remember I was wearing hot pink OshKoshB'gosh overalls with the metal fasteners that made such a cool clicking sound when you unfastened them. I was so excited, I didn't even wait for my teacher to introduce me, I just sprinted to the front of the room.
"For Show and Tell Today," I yelled, barely able to get my fingers on the clasps fast enough...
"I BROUGHT..." my voice was near a shriek, I couldn't contain it; in a few moments more, every single kindergartener would share in my joy, would know what I knew. My fingers flew, unhooked the clasps, and in one sweeping motion, pulled down my overalls to my ankles and hoisted up my shirt...
"PRINCESS LEIA UNDEROOS!!!"
I beamed, proudly sticking out my rotund five-year old belly and making sure everyone got a good look. I was the COOLEST girl in the WORLD because not only was I donning underoos, but they were PRINCESS LEIA underoos, PRINCESS LEIA in Return of the Jedi underoos that sparkled and that were BLUE, my favorite color.
Mrs. Pietsch, the greatest, kindest woman of all time, asked the class to applaud for me and then gently asked me to put on my clothes. Later, she pulled me aside and explained that she was very happy that I was so excited to share my good fortune with my classmates, but that in school we always keep our clothes buttoned, unless we're going to the bathroom, and then we always button up after we finish.
I never took those underoos off that year. I LIVED for Princess Leia; I wanted my hair so long that I could it would be as long as hers at the end of Jedi in the Ewok Village. I ran around corners in my house pretending to dive into trash compactors, shooting my dad with my blaster, pretending he was a stormtrooper.
I guess that's why I'm excited for tonight; as badly as the last two movies sucked, I think tonight will be different. Even if the movie is terrible, well, I'm still going to be so fucking excited when it starts. These movies have meant a lot to me over the years; isn't that funny? I'm going to tear up a bit when it's all over. You may point a finger and call me geek, and I'll happily accept it.