Rockin' the 80s

Today was ‘80s dress-up day at my daughter’s school.  Crimped hair kept in place with a fat headband featuring a floppy bow…Madonna fingerless gloves…a “Flashdance” shirt and leggings...yup, my daughter nailed her 80s look as she headed out the door this morning.

Remember the 80s? Those were the days for me of big, bad hair, big shoulders, a skinny waistline and skinnier paychecks, bad economics, Reaganistas, and really disappointing boyfriends. 

My husband probably would say it was a decade of crappy music, too, but I don’t think so….just consider The Joshua Tree, Purple Rain and Thriller, the Clash and Born in the USA.  Madonna shook things up and David Byrne made existential, suburban crisis cool and hummable.

It was the decade of my first grown-up acquisitions:  A stripped down Nissan Sentra with vinyl seats and a stick shift that my former high school boyfriend taught me to drive on the 495 Beltway around Washington…terrifying.  I bought my first home for $28,000, a 375-square-foot co-op efficiency in a roach-infested building in Rosslyn, VA.   And my first little mink jacket (sorry, PETA fans, but I do love fur) came from SEARS of all places for $400. 

Some of the big ‘80s cultural icons are back in favor now, believe it or not.  Composer Cyndi Lauer has a huge Broadway hit on her hands, and a stage version of Flashdance isn’t far behind.   The dysfunctional Ewings are shaking up Dallas once again, in a revival produced by my former Hollywood neighbor from late 70s. 

Everything old is new again, which is always kind of fun.  Since starting this blog, I’ve heard from folks I haven’t heard from – or seen, for that matter – in more than 25, 30 or more years.  Since….the 80s, that’s right.

On his 80s single, “Boys of Summer,” Don Henley sang that you can never look back, but I disagree.  As I do so now, I think it was a pretty consequential period in my life --  the time when I finally accepted adulthood.  The true beginning of my career.  The start of some wonderful, enduring friendships and the loss of others.   

During the course of those 10 years, I started to morph into the person I am today.  What a feelin’. 

Next stop,  Graceland.  But NOT for a good long time to come, I hope.