I decided to do a ‘firsts brain-storm’. I scribbled firsts onto a sheet of A4 without stopping to think about it. When I read it back I was surprised to see that my list didn’t include any of the really big events in my life. They were all little firsts, so here are my top five little firsts:
1. My first lipstick: The colour was baby pink. It was a soft lipstick and I suspect I put it on much too thickly.
2. My first miniskirt: It was yellow and white striped and had a black patent belt. The belt was almost as wide as the skirt. *sigh* Those were the days!
3. My first pop concert: I saw Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas billed with Gene Pitney at Leicester’s De Montfort Hall. I wore a trouser suit made of brown suede. I screamed a lot and thought I was really classy.
4. My first car: An Austin A40 Farina with the registration DOL. I called her Dolly and loved her dearly.
5. My first published story: Waiting to be Rescued was about a lady stuck on a high-up window ledge. It was published by Best Magazine in 1999. You can read the story on my website here.
I could have included major events like marriage, child birth, my first book, but I didn’t. I suspect that it’s the small things in life that really shape who we are... I loved that lipstick!
What's your favourite little first?
I'd have to think hard about my favourite first, but one of my top few is my first concert. I saw The Offspring in my second last year of high school, the night before my chemistry exam. I ended the night by falling down a flight of stairs and putting myself on crutches. I hopped along to the exam the next day and told my teacher I had been fetching more study supplies when I fell. No doubt my mark on the exam was instant karmic reward for my fib, or else the result of a late night!
ReplyDeleteHi Amie, thanks for sharing your first. I take it you failed the chemistry exam but you're in good company. I failed chemistry too!
ReplyDeleteHmm... my first gig was Wet Wet Wet. Oh, the shame!
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year to you, Rosalind!
I think a brown suede trouser suit was very classy indeed! The first shoes I bought for myself were purple suede and cost £4/19/11 (is that how you write it?) I got them very wet the first time I wore them but still loved them to bits. The first record I ever bought was an LP 'The Mighty Quinn' - by Manfred Mann. Not a classic by any means, but did not have a record player until I was 16+ (sob, sob!)
ReplyDeleteAliB
I loved your post & I think you're right- it's the little things that shape us.
ReplyDeleteMy fav 1st: My 1st mentor who sparked my interest for becoming a writer. I had written my 1st story (I was 6 or 7), something about an alien watermelon brainwashing human with its seeds? Her few words of encouragement sparked my passion for writing.
THose are fun firsts!! :)
ReplyDeleteI had a yellow and white mini skirt too - but no black belt with it. Those were indeed the days! :)
What does "failed" mean, really? I got 49% and went and made my case to my teacher, who quite possibly found the quarter mark necessary to get me over the line just so I'd stop talking to her. That might have been one of the early signs I'd grow up to be a lawyer and then a mediator...
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun post! I really enjoyed that.
ReplyDeleteMy first ever gig was Shakin' Stevens. I can't believe I just admitted that in a public place, but then I did adore him at the time.
Hi Cat, don't worry. I won't tell if you won't!
ReplyDeleteHi Ali, those purple shoes sound excellent and all for under a fiver!
Thanks Katirra, am slightly concerned re the alien watermelon scenario but I can see why your teacher encouraged your creative skills. (Have just had melon for breakfast. Hope it's not true!)
Hi Jemi, what a pair we'd have made in our identical skirts!
Hi Amie, I suspect I got away with stuff at school so the teacher could stop me from talking too but never got a fail reversed. Good for you!
ReplyDeleteThanks Rebecca, and as I said to Cat, don't worry about the shame. I won't tell a single person!!
My first published article as an "adult" was 'After baby arrives - how come I still weigh so much?'
ReplyDeleteAnd I've continued asking the same question for the next 35 years.
I really identify with the late Erma Bombeck who used to refer to her shape as "post-baby" even when her baby was 35 years old.!
Hi Ann, join the club. I don't think we'll ever get our old shapes back now, will we!
ReplyDeleteLovely post Rosalind.... great idea.
ReplyDeleteCan remember my first bra - it was white and yellow gingham looking garment. Felt very grown up in it. My first kiss was also wonderful with a local hunky guy. He was 17. I was 15. I felt so grown up. Was interviewed by the older girls later!!
Thanks Barbara. I'd forgotten about my first bra. Mine was white cotton embroidered and it was too big for me!! Love the way you were interviewed about your first kiss. I hope you made them all really jealous.
ReplyDeleteI have a first for my son. He recently went swimming for the first time at nearly 9 months old and he absolutely loved it. The huge grin and squeals of delight as he splashed around, whilst being held by me of course, will stay with me for a long time to come.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing such a special first with me, KFC. Wish I could have been there. He's a gorgeous little boy... (spoken as a totally unbiased Grandma!!!)
ReplyDelete