> > R E B OO T Y O U R B R A I N
BY JON BRADSHAW <<
SO, YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE?
IT WAS 10 P.M. ON A FRIDAY IN SPRING 1987 AND TIME FOR THE LAST DANCE AT THE LOCAL YOUTH DISCO. For the last three hours, I (and 200 or so others) had enjoyed an innocent evening dancing to a soundtrack of mostly Phil Collins, The Eurythmics and Billy Joel. I’d danced like a malfunctioning windmill most of the night and was now slowed down by the sweaty air, teenage longing and self-consciousness. The DJ introduced the traditional slow
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song that would herald the end of the evening: “Lady in Red” by Chris de Burgh. I’d been going to these monthly events for more than two years, but had never had any success in getting a girl to dance with me. I’d only asked once, and the response—“Go away now or I’ll kick you”—from the beautiful but image-conscious Mary S. had shattered my confidence. Mary was all too aware that being seen even in proximity of the geeky
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of One + July 2011