So read it if you want.
I remember the first nights I spent when I first moved into the UCLA dorms, the nights I spent the first three nights at the Hedrick Hall rec room. I suppose going to that room changed my life forever: that’s where I met Veronica, the person who I ended up rooming with for the three years following; that’s where I met Marco, who I went out with for about two years; some other people I met there were Will, Eric, Mike, Connie & Tin, Danny, and Joe. We all congregated there for the next few nights, promptly getting to know each other. I remember Will, Mike, and Marco playing pool (that’s when Will hated my guts and wanted to kill me–no seriously. I saw it in his eyes). And I remember Eric competitively trying to beat Joey at ping pong. I mean, we didn’t call him Superman for nothing, right?
A few months later, trying to get all up in the LA scene, I found out that there was gonna be a party at the old Weezer house! I STILL get jitters thinking about it! I quickly asked everyone around me everywhere if anyone would be interested in heading out there to check out the party! (Supposedly, the party wasn’t supposed to be made public but someone had posted it on the Weezer site and BAM every teenybopper–me included–migrated out there.) I found out Joey was also loved Weezer! Yes! He was the only one I found that would go with me! But… how were we gonna get there? Turns out Joey’s mom was gonna drop something off for him or something or other but he said that she could drive us and drop us off there. Tight! Cept… being the youngest, only girl of an overprotective Chinese family, I was freaking out because I barely knew the guy and I was willing to hop into a car with his mom that so coincidentally was gonna be around? Uhh… for Weezer? I’M WILLING TO TAKE MY CHANCES than to EVER lose an opportunity like that! I was totally on edge in the car but the house wasn’t too far away so we got there soon enough.
Needless to say, the party was REALLY fun! There were a ridiculous amount of fans from all over the place–I remember meeting people who drove from Arizona just for the party! Dedication! And I remember people that drove down from Fresno or even the Bay just to check out the joint! (Wow. We totally got there in like 15 minutes from UCLA.) Joey and I oohed and ahhed at all the parts that we recognized from the “Say It Ain’t So” video. A pic I took with the rugged wall from the background of the video! Awesome!
I was most definitely living off of some high for the few hours we were there. Everything was pretty much as seen from that video. A really small place. And we even sat on the washer/dryer! It was the closest I thought I’d ever get to Weezer. Joey actually went off to explore the neighborhood a bit while I stayed and socialized with folks. (I even met some folks from Nerf Herder!)Soon, it was time for us to head back to the dorms. But… how the HECK were we gonna get back?! Uhhh we were waaayyyy to newb to figure out how the bus system worked, and no one we knew had a car to pick us up (we barely even knew where we were). So… we walked.
We walked from Olympic & Bundy all the way back up to Westwood (about a 6 mile distance) around midnight-time, in unfamiliar grounds of LA, and I was with a some tall guy who I barely even knew. I mean, he’s REALLY tall and could pretty much kidnap me and do what he would with me with 100% ease. And so… we walked, and walked, and walked. After a few minutes, I realized that the challenge was actually trying to walk with him. Since he was so tall, his stride was SO much bigger than my dinky little legs. But the cutest thing was that I think he was used to walking with shorter people so I think he purposely walked shorter so I wouldn’t be panting my way after him! Finally, we got back to Westwood. We probably got back to Hedrick around 2 or 2:30AM.
I guess after walking with him that whole time and chatting with him, I started realizing that he was genuinely a sweet guy. I remember him saying that he wanted to be a vet, and I think to this day, I think he was the only person I met in college that said that they wanted to be a vet. I thought that was pretty awesome!
A couple of years passed and I’d see the giant on campus and he’d always greet me with such a friendly smile, waving with his big hands. It was just the mutual understanding that our relationship was built on those days at the pool hall and our major infatuation with Weezer. It’s no surprise that I found out Joey also went to the same Ozma shows that I went to.
Ozma, a “Weezer-like” band, had broken up, and I remember how Joey and I would IM each other about what we were gonna do, and how sad it was that we were at the last Ozma show without really realizing that it was gonna be their last show. (And also sad that the audience was dumb because of all the ridiculous teenybopper Rooney fans and all their parents that stole all of our space.)
But then… OZMA GOT BACK TOGETHER! AND they were gonna have a reunion show in LA! YESSS! We went to their last and were gonna go to their re-first show! YESS!! As soon as I found out, I rounded the troops. Eugenia and batz drove down from the Bay, and I hopped into Joey’s car once again to meet them at the show (or did Eugenia ride with us too?). On our way there, I caught up with Joey to see how his last year was going. Unlike a lot of people I’ve known, Joey was 100% still going for his dream of becoming a vet. Right on, man, right on. We chatted about I-don’t-know-whats and we laughed about things I don’t remember. All I know is that we were totally excited and jittery cuz… well… cuz Ozma got back together and we were going to watch them!
Needless to say, the show was orgasmic and was more than we ever wanted! I had my favorite Ozma buddies with me and we were rockin out like… well… like Ozma had broken up and had gotten back together a year later. I remember how I was having so much trouble taking good pics cuz I’m so short and how Joey would take them for me cuz he was so tall! Hahah, remember how he said he had to stay in the back because he was so tall? He really waaasss SUUCCHH a sweet guy!
There’s really no way to fully describe his kindness, nor how to describe that smirk he had on his face whenever he waved hi to me. Rest in peace, dear friend. I wasn’t the closest of friends but I know for sure that we shared some AMAZING experiences together. Thanks for being my favorite giant.
A lot of losses have occurred to too many people in the last few months. It’s all just another big reminder that we all need to really live life to the fullest. I say it all the time, but we really are taught to believe that we’re all going to live forever. Don’t forget that everything in our lives are so incredibly fragile that anything can be taken away in a second. It’s a shame that we all spend so much time being upset at each other, dwelling on the most trivial things. Times like these really remind me how important it is to really be happy and grasp every moment and to really appreciate LIVING.
Live. Love. Laugh.
And for goodness sake, please DRIVE SAFELY.
http://www.vvdailypress.com/news/perez_3245___article.html/road_highway.html
http://ucla.facebook.com/group.php?gid=6629791055
http://www.myspace.com/rememberjoeepperson
As we grow up, we learn that even the one person that wasn’t supposed to ever let you down probably will. You will have your heart broken probably more than once and it’s harder every time. You’ll break hearts too, so remember how it felt when yours was broken. You’ll fight with your best friend. You’ll blame a new love for things an old one did. You’ll cry because time is passing too fast, and you’ll eventually lose someone you love. So take too many pictures, laugh too much, and love like you’ve never been hurt because every sixty seconds you spend upset is a minute of happiness you’ll never get back.
