My routine of spending my holiday time in Tampico went a little off-course in 1999. Easter was a write-off, and I had summer school to make up for a couple of courses I had failed, so I needed to catch up if I want to graduate in time. I didn’t, because of social service. Oh, well.

So when a good friend invited me for his graduation party in september of 99, I had to go. He was a little unreliable, so the first night we were supposed to hang at a club, he left me and his friends outside and passed out into the arms of Absolut. Doesn’t matter, I clicked with his friends and they invited me to a late night beach party. A couple of cartons of beer, loads of cheap snacks and a few italian-style burritos from a convenience store and we were there until 4 AM. I told one dude, nicknamed Dinokid, that I always wanted to see the sunrise at a beach. “Cabrón, I’ve lived in Tampico in my life and never have seen it!” We clinked our beers, and he gave me a ride in his old 70s oldsmobile. Arrived at my aunt’s gaff at 5 AM or so and I tried to sneak, but she caught me. “Are you high?” she asked, genuinely worried. “No, I’m just really pissed” I answered. She laughed, made me a serum (lime, sugar, salt, and fizzy water), made me drink it, and sent me to bed with a bucket to the side. I wasn’t going to ruin the mattress, her dogs already did that job for me.

The next day was graduation day. A quick trip to a VIPS café where they still sold CDs at a decent price, and I snagged Everlast’s Whitey Ford sings the blues and Control Machete’s Artillería Pesada Presente. Quick listen to both while getting ready for the party, then went to the big Church on Avenida Hidalgo. Everyone looked great, and the ceiling fans were overworking to dispel the heat. I think everyone was pretty hungover, but it mattered not, the graduation effect got a hold on us and we kept drinking, dancing, and nibbling on the rather scrumptious food available. My friend who invited me to his graduation almost had a fist fight with a guy picking on his brother. Tempers flaring, we decided to vamoose, all the way to the beach, with carboots full of fancy food “acquired” from the party, and too many bottles of rum, vodka, mezcal, tequila, and even absinthe. We stopped for a few cartons at a local “Depo”, which was shaped as a beer. We got a discount since we told them we were on graduation.

We drank everything, listening to music as loud as we could, while the gentle waves of Miramar beach rolled in the pitch black night. I think one dude tried to get me to hook up with a relative of his, but I was too blitzed to get any hints. I brought a cd wallet that night, with several mixes and I think I chose mostly bangers. People were happy with the mixes of rap, rock, pop, and electronica. Being a loner at parties makes you pay attention to which songs people like and you mix them for their pleasure.

“Can I place a few songs?” said a guy who then bribed me with a chilled Stella Artois. I let him take control of the music and he pretty much played the entirety of Varsity Blues’ soundtrack. You gotta understand the impact that flick had on Gen X. First major film role for James Van Der Beek, top notch music from Foo Fighters, Green Day, Collective Soul, and more, and a coming of age story set on the fields of college football. Heck, it has Fastball’s best song, and I refuse to tag them as one hit wonders.

The movie took its sweet time to arrive to Mexico, a common thread in these posts. Arrived in late July here, in few theatres, but I was there, opening night, wearing a Dallas Cowboys jersey my dad gave me as a gift. I don’t really like football, but that jersey is special to me because it was a gift from pa. I wore it during summer school, with a green beret backwards and cool yellow glasses. It was 1999, everyone liked yellow glasses.

We drank our carboot dry and went for other carboots. Most of the people from the graduation party were there, except the guy who picked a fight and another guy who crashed his car and tried to bribe a cab driver to take the blame. The sun came up and I made a little smug smile towards Dinokid, who told me to fuck off, then clinked beers with me. We dragged our drunken carcasses to a place that had zacahuil and gorditas. I got back home well past 11 AM, and my aunt offered me a big mug of coffee and told me to sleep it out.

I’ll always think of that weekend when I listen to Varsity Blues. The movie had a few hokey points, but still is an enjoyable coming of age movie. It’s sad to see that Paul Walker, James Van Der Beek, and Ron Lester are now gone, it feels like losing classmates from your generation, another common thread in these posts. So it’s the closing track, varsity blue, by Caroline’s spine, as a way to remember them and those days.

-Sam J. Valdés López