Sunday, September 14, 2008

Reflections on a happy childhood

My friend Katie commented on my Fudpucker’s blog below, mentioning the fact that when she and her sister were younger, they recited all of the lyrics to Salt-n-Pepa’s “Shoop” in the presence of their horrified father. It reminded me of my own Salt-n-Pepa experience.

I grew up in a neighborhood that was within walking distance of a few shopping centers. I spent many of my weekends making that short trek and would always visit Super D drugstore and Be-Bop Record Shop. One particular day I visited Be-Bop and bought Salt-n-Pepa’s “Very Necessary” album. I can only imagine the conversations the store’s hipster clerks had when I left the store. Here I was, a scrawny, very white 8th grader buying Salt-n-Pepa. I can pretty much predict what I was wearing...a Gap T-shirt tucked into khaki shorts that hit at the knee, complete with a braided belt that was looped a few times because it was too long...topped off with scrunched down white socks and loafers. Couple that with the fact that I went to junior high at Jackson Preparatory School and never missed Sunday school or youth group at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church.

If only those store clerks knew what I did when I got home. I remember immediately heading to my bedroom and sitting on the floor in front of my boombox. I put the c.d. in and grabbed a notebook and a pencil. I listened to “Shoop” and “Whatta Man” over and over until I recorded all of the lyrics in my notebook. This took a few hours. Then I memorized the lyrics to each song. I’m not sure what the reasoning for this was, but to this day I can recite the lyrics to each song backwards and forwards. If only the store clerks could have seen me...sitting cross-legged under my pink ceiling and next to my ruffled Laura Ashley bedspread, I was perfecting my own rapping skills, spouting out, “You’re a shotgun bang...what’s up with that thang? I wanna know how does it hang? Straight up, wait up, hold up, Mr. Lover, like Prince said you’re a sexy mutha. Well, I like ’em real wild, b-boy style by the mile smooth black skin with a smile, bright as the sun, I wanna have some fun come and give me some of that yum yum chocolate chip, honey dip, can I get a scoop? Baby, take a ride in my coupe. You make me wanna shoop.”

3 comments:

Anisa said...

this is flat out hilarious. i can just picture it!

Anonymous said...

omg! i think i had that outfit! ;) i also did the same thing to learn the words of songs. too funny!!

Katie said...

I'm late to comment, again, but...SO FUNNY. Oh to be able to go back in the third person and watch how our junior high dances panned out when those songs came on...