Meatballs

I watched the movie "Meatballs" earlier today. The movie was made in 1979; I was 10. I probably saw it when I was 11 or 12 on HBO. It quickly became, and still is, one of my favorite movies. I enjoyed it for the humor, Bill Murray was fantastic. But I also enjoyed it because I really wanted to be Rudy Gerner; I wanted to win the race and be the hero.

Like Rudy, I was awkward and shy. It still am. I could see myself in Rudy. I was the shy kid who was not good at sports, but I still wanted to be one of the guys. I knew that I could win the race and be the hero just like he did. I wanted a friend like Tripper. I even tried to start jogging after I saw the film. That fell apart when I realized I hated jogging.

There was also the appeal of summer camp. I never went to a summer camp. There wasn't a real need for it in rural Kentucky. Summer camp was for kids in the cities that did not get to the outdoors. I went camping with the family every summer, to the lake a few times a year, fishing occasionally, and it was a short bike ride to the woods or the creek. Meatballs, and a few year later the HBO movie "The Wilder Summer" made me think camp would be great. I heard a story on "This American Life" a few months ago that brought back that nostalgia.

I realize now that summer camp would have probably made me miserable, but on some level I still want 12 year old me to be Rudy Gerner.