didn’t know I didn’t know

“Lines form on my face and hands.” – Alice Cooper, ‘Eighteen’

In April of 1973 the legal drinking age in Massachusetts was lowered from 21 to 18. By then I was 24, and had been drinking since I was 16, but I was happy because it was cool. It was the right thing. ‘Bout time.

Back then I was a “student” at Salem State College, returned from dropping out and enrolled in the new Social Welfare major. I was on the staff of the college newspaper, “The Log,” and was very devoted to that journalism side of college life. Going to classes? Not so much.

Anyway, the night the new ’18’ law went into effect I made a not at all unusual appearance at one of my two favorite bars on Derby Street – ‘In a Pig’s Eye.’ You know, to celebrate with the kids. Someone snapped a photo. This one:

The next day or one of the days close after I wrote a feature story for The Log, about the festivities and all the goodness as a result . I noted that this bar, just down the street from my apartment, was “within crawling distance.” The article was titled – “I’m 18, I get confused every day.” Yup, another line from Mr. Cooper’s song.

One of the electives I’d taken within the Social Welfare curriculum was ‘Alcohol and Alcoholism.’ You know, skate through three credits, race toward that ole diploma. My next class I walked in a bit early and the teacher looked at me and said he’d read my article. He said he’d enjoyed it. He said all this with something of a grin on his face, and about 20 years later the light in my head flashed on and it came to me the grin belonged to a Cheshire Cat. An “I know something you don’t know,” grin.

Geez, Professor. It only took 10 more years to start figuring it out. Like the song says – “I got a baby’s brain and an old man’s heart.”