He was twenty yards or so away, but he hit me right in the head, near the temple, and drew bloodI wanted to get out and fight, but I could see he was bigger, stronger, and tougher than I, so I swam awayGiven my experiences with the ram, Tavia Perrys BB gun, and similar mistakes I still had ahead of me, I guess I did the right thing The second time I took a pass in junior high I know I did the right thingOn Friday nights there was always a dance in the gym of the local YMCAI loved rock-and-roll music and dancing and went frequently, starting in eighth or ninth grade, even though I was fat, uncool, and hardly popular with the girlsBesides, I still wore the wrong jeans One night at the Y, I strolled into the poolroom next to the gym, where the Coke machine was, to get something to drinkSome older high school boys were shooting pool or standing around watchingOne of them was Henry Hill, whose family owned the old bowling alley gucci coin wallet downtown, the Lucky Strike LanesHenry started in on me about my jeans, which, that night, were especially raunchyThey were carpenters jeans, with a right side loop to hang a hammer inI was insecure enough without Henry grinding on me, so I sassed him backHe slugged me in the jaw as hard as he couldNow, I was big for my age, about five nine, 185 poundsBut Henry Hill was six foot six with an enormous reachNo way was I going to hit backBesides, to my amazement, it didnt hurt too badlySo I just stood my ground and stared at himI think Henry was surprised I didnt go down or run off, because he laughed, slapped me on the back, and said I was okayWe were always friendly after thatI had learned again that I could take a hit and that theres more than one way to stand against aggression By the time I started ninth grade, in September 1960, the presidential campaign was in full swingMy homeroom and English teacher, Ruth Atkins, was also from Hope tiffany