Really Good Dudes...

 When I was in college there was an old lake just out of town in a pasture and the owners of the property, whoever they were, did not seem to mind if hippies parked on the dirt road by the gate and walked down a rutted cow trail to go swimming. It was a good sized lake, several acres and I recall a small dock and decent fishing. 

A trip to the lake was a good way to start a party. I'd join a group of hairy guys in fraying cut off blue jean shorts which were the favored bathing suits of the era and tote an ice chest full of beer through the pasture to the waters edge. It's a fond memory because many places won't let you swim in cut off blue jeans and I've gotten too old to tote anything that heavy anywhere much less while covering uneven terrain. 

The lake was a good place to meet other people in cut off jeans, both men and women and hear about where the college parties might be for the weekend. On this day I don't remember who arrived first us or them but we met two very young girls, carrying their own ice chest and probably harboring the same intentions as ours's to meet people in cut off jeans and find out where the parties were.   

These girls were so young that they made us 19 and 20 year old college students feel like old world weary travelers. One was apparently old enough to have driven a car to the lake but the other one was a child certainly no older than 13 or 14. They were friendly and we sat around all drinking beer, swimming and chatting. 

As young healthy college age men in their prime we were fine specimens for drinking cheap beer in the warm afternoon sun all day long. Those young girls were not used to that. Car driver soon became very drunk and had to take a nap laying on a blanket in the grass at the water's edge. The other very young girl did not ever appear intoxicated and as I think back to that day almost 50 years ago may not have even been drinking. We continued on swimming, fishing and drinking.

Soon the sleeping girl stirred from the nap and laying on her back half conscious began drunken puking. As college students who had lived in the dorms we knew how to handle this. We rolled her to her side and held back her hair so she didn't get vomit in it or all over herself. My fine blog readers have probably never had such experiences but drunken puking while asleep is a choking hazard and if you have someone to help you, watch over you and hold your hair back you will feel better afterwards. 

Which is what this girl did. Young and strong she roused around and rose refreshed from her nap and rid of at least some of the alcohol in her system. The experienced drinkers we were pronounced her sober enough to drive. We helped them carry their stuff to the car and saw them on the way. 

They made it safely home that day and I know that because a few years later when they became legal age I would occasionally see them at the bar. We would nod and say hi but we were operating in different circles and all these years later I do not remember their names. 

I really don't remember exactly who the guys were with me that day but I could make an educated guess. Despite the frayed cut off jeans and all the beer drinking they were some really good dudes.