She drives me crazy

The Raw & the cooked / FYC
(Fine Young Cannibals)










Have you ever been obsessed? I mean truly, like, all you think about it this one thing or person? And you can’t possibly live without it? I think I would like that kind of devotion, but I just can’t seem to muster it. I mean, I know I’m still young and it could still come, but… I’m not optimistic.



My friends all seem to have found their obsessions. Kirk has the Beatles, which is actually very annoying. Bentley has cars. Even Le, my sister, who’s only ten has found their passion. But me? I’m apathetic. Don’t get me wrong, I do care about things. Some. Just not enough. And I do feel guilt about this, not caring. Just not enough.


I guess all this is why when Ginny sat down next to me in the café and told me that she heard from her then boyfriend Ted, who heard from his sister, Alice, that Alice’s best friend’s sister Amanda had this wicked crush on me and I should be forewarned, I didn’t really pay much attention. That was my first mistake of many.

About a week later, I started to notice Amanda being around.  I knew what she looked like from school, but we'd never spoken to each other or anything.  And Glendale is not really a big place.  So, when I saw her downtown, then at the mall, and than at the 7-11, I didn't really think anything of it.  In fact, I thought I was probably only noticing her because of that stupid conversation, that I hadn't really paid that much attention to.  This was my second mistake.

Then weird things started to happen.  I found gummy worms in my car.  I know this sounds strange, but I happen to like gummy worms.  There's something about the gross factor that appeals to me.  First, I thought I might have left them there and forgotten, but that didn't seem right.  They were on the passenger seat.   Then I thought probably oneof the guys had left them for me. 

Not that they are prone to doing nice things or leaving presents.  Guys don't do that.  But sometimes, for reasons we don't understand, people give us stuff.  Moms, girls, sisters, they are no doubt trying to be nice or really trying to bribe us.  But the thing is, they often don't really know what works, so they offer up things they think might work.  Bentley's mom is particularly clueless about such things, so it was not out of the question that she might have seen me eating gummy worms and presumed that her son would too.  Then she would buy the gummy worms and leave them in Ben's lunch or something, hoping he'd be all happy and everything and then in this good mood do whatever silly thing she wanted.

But Ben hates gummy worms.  He thinks there gross and disguesting, which they are.  But knowing I like them, he might drop them in my car.  So when i saw the gummy worms, I didn't really think it was any big deal.  That was the third mistake.