My Friend, Stephanie

 

This is my next story about another friend I know in Lawrence.

Stephanie Harsin

I’ll never forget the time I’ve finally met Stephanie Harsin as a teacher in Cordley Elementary School. It was the first time I’ve seen her since the 4th grade, and I think that she’s one of my friends that I’ll always know and love. I remember the summer seasons she and I spent together from 2001 to 2006. We’d hang out together in the car listening to the top 40 music on the radio, college music on KJHK, alternative rock on 96.5 The Buzz, hip hop music on Wild 92.9, and many others. We’ve also did a little reading together during the summer reading program from the Lawrence Public Library too. Good thing I received some prizes in the end. During the summer season, Stephanie helped me out on some tutoring including mathematics, English, science and much more.

We even watched the hip-hop multiplication video on VHS. It really helped me out on my multiplication skills. I really loved the background effects and the kids dancing in green screen. By the time it was coming fast, it’s all SUPRISE! It reminded me of Ed Tannenbaum’s PlayArt at The Magic House in St. Louis, MO.

I remembered this when I first play around with that when I was on vacation at St. Louis the first time though. I just wish I can go back there again just one more time, and not just once. Hey, it could happen.

Anyway, Stephanie and I also remember the time me along with her and David went to the Hollywood Theaters to go see The Simpsons Movie. When we first saw that move in theaters, the three of us and everybody else really loved it! We were laughing are pants off and we all enjoyed it.

My favorite part was the one with Homer Simpson and the wrecking ball.

In the beginning of the film, Green Day guest starred in it.

Way back in 2001 before summer was starting, Stephanie and I got to see the movie Shrek here in theaters. We both really enjoyed it for the very first time and it was an incredible movie experience to see in this theater here in Lawrence. DreamWorks does it best. One of the greatest songs I've heard from the movie is the new version of 'I'm a Believer' by Smash Mouth.

Now there's a lot a movies that Stephanie and I watched recently in the past years. I remember when we got together during the summer and joined our friend Daniel Lassman to see some classic movies in the movie theaters. The classics we saw back in the day were The Babysitters Club, Good Burger, The Rugrats Movie, Rock-A-Doodle Doo, all that stuff. I really enjoy seeing those movies every summer with her. One of my favorite parts of that was getting the popcorn before the movie.

I also remember bowling at the Jaybowl once when I was with her. We were at the Level 1 floor of the Union at KU that time. We would hang out, get plenty of strikes, and see who wins. That was plenty of fun!🤩  Speaking of fun, this reminds me. We played a little air hockey at the Jaybowl, and call me crazy on that one but Stephanie and I would compete on who wins in that game. And I actually beat her in it. I’m always a pro at this since we hung around at the Union. It was really fun!

Now here’s something that you might also remember. It was that winter season when we went to KU when Stephanie and I were about to play around in the snow, then Stephanie got her camera with her and she took pictures of me playing outside in the snow. She took a lot of pictures of me posing in the cold snowy weather. She and I wanted to throw snowballs at each other though. I can also think of the good times we’ve had when I went over to her house for a Christmas party with her, David, and all their friends and family. We had everything set up including the food and drinks, the games, the music, all that stuff. We even played around and watched a little TV in the living room. We all got to watch Saturday Night Live. 

Jeff Bridges looked really cool in that episode. Especially when Cookie Monster appeared on stage. I wonder if she can invite to her next Christmas party when I come visit her in Topeka. Maybe they’ll bring some marshmallows for a reason.

Anyway, of course… I’ve done so many nice things for her and so did she. I remember when we were hanging out at Royal Crest Lanes and just like that after bowling, we got together and played some pinball.

We remember the Monster Bash. That thing was off the charts just like MTV. Dracula was the bomb!

That other pinball machine had the Revenge From Mars in 3D. The graphics were out of this world as the ball launched into the machine and the aliens are just about to attack.

That was kinda like the martians from Mars Attacks!

The next pinball game we played was the one with Austin Powers because it had the Soul Bossa Nova theme by Quincy Jones in it. I really liked that pinball game because she really likes the Austin Powers movies. Her favorite was the one with Dr. Evil in it. Good call!

I really love doing these fun things with her in the good old days because it reminds me of the good times we both shared together.

There was this place that we went to for dinner once in 2002. There was this restaurant called Mojo’s and we used to hang out and have something to eat there. I really liked the Mojo fries, they were delicious. It also had a big screen TV, arcade games, and a jukebox. Pretty convenient, huh.

Here’s some other places that we’ve gone to for dinner.

We did Rudy’s Pizzeria, Pizza Hut, Jefferson’s, Yello Sub. We’ve been to many different places to get some dinner once, and there’s also this one other place we’ve all went to in the evening. That place was Free State Brewery!

We’d talk about some things before our food arrived and we’ve enjoyed the onion rings and the burgers.

That was fun too!

We also loved going to the East Lawrence Rec Center to play ping pong, a game of pool, and a little foosball. We even got to play some indoor basketball. This exercise really gets me going like always! Now I don’t know if I’d told you about this before, but at the Rec center there was a vending machine that had the Fruitopia drink that everyone enjoyed from back in the day.

That was seen inside the Rec center when I saw that thing. I wish that Fruitopia would come back in the future. I’ll always remember that fruit drink I’ve had once. If you haven’t had a Fruitopia in a long time, then you should.

Well, anyway. Back to my story.

I also rememeber that time in the summer when we sold some lemonade to the neighbors there. We saw Ms. Kitchen coming here, we were happy to see her. That was also fun, even for the part where we got all the lemonade sold so I can save money.

There’s always something that I can always remember doing when she and I were together this late at night. We stopped at the open field of Lawrence KS and we were gonna see the Aurora Borealis in the sky. But it turns out it wasn’t bright enough at night. It was just starts in the sky. Nice try though. But at least we got here early in the evening. That was when we were listening to smooth jazz.

Here’s something else I remember doing that summer. We were out at Veterans Park and I went on the swings and I swung high as I can on the playground. At first, I felt like I was flying, but this playground is all about getting animated since recess. It’s even kinda like a free outdoor play here, especially when it’s a beautiful day outside.

While my parents were out on vacation, we got the week to ourselves. It was that one time I loved in the country here in North Lawrence. We did a lot of cool things together with her and David. She got to sleep in my parents’ bedroom and I got to sleep in. My favorite part of that was when I got to sleep in at her apartment in downtown Lawrence. I slept in Stephanie’s room with the music on, I love to soothe myself with some quiet music while sleeping. And when I was about to wake up, Stephanie did something really funny to get up in the morning. I remember that time when she did her impression of Coco the imaginary friend from a cartoon I watched on TV. In case you already know, it was Foster’s Home For Imaginary Friends. And it was really funny when she did that. That silly Stephanie!

Anyway, I really enjoyed Stephanie spending the week with me at my place. Especially when she got to pick me up right after school. I was really surprised to  see her parked in front of the parking lot so that we can have an adventure together. That was one of the good times I’ll always remember. Let’s hope we’ll do this again someday. Tell Foster’s Home For Imaginary Friends I said hi.

Now here’s something that I also remember doing, a couple more things actually. I was at North Lawrence when I met up with Stephanie and David for a party.

That was at the Visitors Center there. We were having a really great time there when we hung out there. We played cards and enjoyed plenty of snacks and food. Oh man, that was really cool. Especially when I hear the sounds of a train passing by.

The second thing I’ll always remember the most is celebrating her birthday here in Topeka Kansas. I’ll never forget the time I got her a special music CD for her. She really loved it the most. Just like the time I got her a special Retrospective 80s I made for her in 3 CDs. That was fun too. Anyway I really enjoyed the indoor pool there during the celebration. And we all got to enjoy the birthday cake.

Thanks Steph! You will always make my dreams come true when we hang out together.

There’s this one restaurant I almost forgot to mention when I moved out of Lawrence in the first place. That place is the one I’ve always wanted to check out for the very first time. Johnny’s Tavern.

I just wish that Stephanie and I will go to this place so we can have dinner there. That way we can spend some time together and talk about some good time we’ve shared. And who knows, maybe Stephanie and David will meet me there sometime in the future when I finally come back to Lawrence. Because truth be told, I really miss my friend and I really miss Lawrence Kansas a lot. I hope that someday I will move back there once again. Stephanie, if you reading this, thanks for all the good times we’ve had together. I hope that we can do this again soon!

Here are some pictures for you.

That’s about it for now! If you like this blog, let me know on the comments. This blog you are reading is a shout out and dedication to my good friend Stephanie. This goes out to you, my friend. Love ya!

In the meantime, check back later for another story on the next Lawrence Kansas Monthly Blog. Have a nice day you guys and check you later.

Peace! ✌️