Scribbler's Rave & Favorite Five: Ninetysomething Days of Summer, #3 Summer of '92

As I neared the conclusion of writing the third part of the "Ninetysomething Days of Summer" edition, I realized 1992 could've easily been higher on this list.  Although the summer of 1993 felt more like a coming-of-age season, the summer of '92 provided an ample foundation as it was the first all-around dope summer I ever experienced in twelve-years-and-75-cents of life.  However, perhaps the biggest snub on this countdown could've been enough to propel this summer higher on the list: Boomerang.  Now I could gush over how dope the soundtrack was--more on that later--but the movie was such a huge deal because of how much Black star power was involved between Eddie Murphy, Robin Givens, Halle Berry, Lela Rochon, Grace Jones, David Alan Grier, Martin Lawrence, Chris Rock, Tisha Campbell and the late, greats Eartha Kitt and Geoffrey Holder.  Not to mention that after much pleading, Big Dadi Scribbler took me to see it on opening day--although we  missed all of the previews (a moviegoer no-no) and narrowly made it in time.  Despite no movie of that summer making as much of a dent in my memory bank as Boomerang, it still has a hard time beating these five reasons pleading the case for the summer of '92...

#5 THE ARRIVAL OF THE SUMMER OF '92 MEANT THE END OF THE SEVENTH GRADE.  I promise that the final two summers of the countdown come after much better school years, but until then, let's talk about how unbearable seventh grade was from a social standpoint.  Whole time, my grades were some of the best ever as I thoroughly enjoyed learning in a new environment, particularly because my algebra teacher heightened my interest in math even more, my science teacher made science more interesting than it had ever been, my super-cool geography teacher moonlighted as a musician and I learned three different languages in one calendar year.  However, getting to know new people has always been hit or miss and this was the biggest miss of all time.  Sans high school, being teased was not foreign, but walking past a table of girls say "uggghhhh" at me in unison, going from "boxhead b---h" because of my fade to "Fantasia" once I cut it because my ears were supposedly Mickey Mouse-like and having my fashion faux pas constantly criticized made all previous insults seem...well...elementary.  I had one of my favorite snapbacks stolen right off of my head in the schoolyard, nearly got into at least four fights--three of them almost happened in the same day--and one of those narrowly-missed altercations led to my father giving the principal a piece of his mind and her giving me hell for the rest of junior high.  (Ironically, impersonating her at a talent show during my ninth grade year stopped the bleeding.)  Although it was normally the infallible icebreaker, even my artwork couldn't earn me a spot in anyone's good graces for long.  Thus, when I tell y'all I couldn't wait for the summer of '92 to arrive, that is no exaggeration whatsoever.  Granted, eighth grade wasn't much better, but at least I had a season of reprieve...

#4 IT WAS ALL A DREAM...TEAM.  Let the record reflect that there will never be any Olympic basketball team like the "Dream Team".  Because it was the first time that the U.S. men's team used active NBA players, we all knew the fanfare would be through the roof as this was arguably at the height of the NBA's popularity.  As expected, Michael Jordan  was the talk of the town coming off of a second consecutive championship along with Bulls teammate Scottie Pippen.  However, this was a fully-loaded squad of future HOFers including David Robinson, Patrick Ewing, Clyde Drexler, Karl Malone, John Stockton, Chris Mullin and Charles Barkley and coached by one of my all-time favorites in Chuck Daly.  Even on the downside of their careers, having Larry Bird and Magic Johnson on the team added O.G. status.  Among the extensive discussions at summer camp in the weeks before the Olympics in Barcelona, two notable snubs caused plenty of controversy.  First, when it came to the only non-professional player on the team, all of us were like, "How the heck did they leave out Shaquille O'Neal for Christian Laettner?!?!"  Granted, being the avid basketball fan I was at the time, I understood it: Laettner, the defending Naismith College Player of the Year, was fresh off of making "The Shot Heard 'Round the World" against Kentucky in the Final Four on the way to Duke's second straight NCAA championship.  Still, Shaq would've been a more exciting pick as he ended up having a more illustrious pro career than Laettner.  Second, leaving out Isiah Thomas is still a sore spot to this day for many hoops fans as rumors floated around that Jordan wanted no parts of the team if one of the main poster boys for the "Bad Boy Pistons" was on it, who had been shading MJ since his rookie season.  A wildly-popular Jordan in his prime versus a vilified, post-prime Thomas?  No brainer, Pinky...

#3 I ENJOYED SUMMER CAMP(S) MORE THAN THE PREVIOUS SUMMER.  Up to this point, I only had two overall enjoyable summer camp experiences and only one of those experiences was memorable--which was ironically during one of the most mentally and spiritually torturous summers of my life.  (Long story, but I'll touch upon that briefly a little later and extensively in a future "Rave & Favorite Five" edition about the summertime.)  As mentioned last week, the summer of '91 had more downs than I wanted as I felt out of place for most of my first summer in the now-defunct computer, math and science program, Project CAMPS.  However, a social breakthrough in the final week of the program combined with building stronger relationships during the fall program, Project YES, set up a much better experience in 1992.  Not only did I enjoy the academic component of the program more--I went from doing a makeshift science fair project about insulation to a kick-butt joint about the aerodynamics of airplanes using models that I made from poster board--but I also had fun with my peers.  Class, lunch outings and field trips were all more enjoyable because I had plenty of people with whom to talk, laugh and connect and who actually liked me.  After Project CAMPS finished in early August, what topped off the remainder of the summer was being Uptown with Big Dadi Scribbler and Big Little Brother Scribbler at the Roots Activity Learning Center.  Although most of the kids were younger than me and my brother already established a bond with them, I still had a ball learning to play chess, shooting around at the basketball court and even tutoring some kids in math and reading.  Unexpectedly, Roots along with Project CAMPS ended up being part of a solid chapter in the development my social skills so that future summer camp experiences from this point forward became much easier...

#2 I KISSED A GIRL...AND I LIKED IT!  Anyone who knows me might not believe this, but I was actually mortified of French kissing up until the summer of '92.  (If you read last week's post, then you already know how I punked out when it came to anything more.  I know...I was quite the unique and dorky teenager.)  Added bonuses: this was only my second summer having a girlfriend, she really liked to French kiss and I had no experience doing it.  Ironically, kissing is now a mandatory part of intimacy for me.  Don't get me wrong, I love sex like most men, but I can predict how amazing it will be based upon the skill level and electricity behind a woman's kiss.  Anyway, so you know how Kermit the Frog always sounds like he's gulping hundred flies whenever Miss Piggy gets all lovey-dovey with him?  Well, that's how I felt anytime she pushed the issue, including one time in an elevator in the spring when I completely shied away from her.  On our end-of-the-summer field trip to Kings Dominion with Project CAMPS, we went on a boat ride into a dark cave and I knew I couldn't avoid it any longer.  (I overcame my fear of the dark not long before this moment, so I was being pushed to my limits.)  As she went in for the kill once it was pitch black, I put on my big boy pants, channeled my inner Donald Trump and said to myself, "What do you have to lose?"  To my surprise, all of my fears regarding kissing instantly went away and I not only enjoyed it, but also realized I was pretty good at it and gained a significant amount of confidence in the process.  Granted, I ended up breaking up with her months later once I found out she had like two or three other boyfriends while we were together.  Nevertheless, if I can't say anything else positive about her, then I can thank her for opening up my lifelong love for making out like a twelve-year-old kid...

#1 MUSIC, MUSIC AND MORE MUSIC!!!  Even outside of the summertime, 1992 was a monstrous year for music.  The late, great Michael Jackson continued his R&B/pop stranglehold with the Dangerous album as "In the Closet" became one of my favorite summer jams.  Fresh off of their highly-successful debut album, Born to Sing, En Vogue came back with a vengeance with Funky Divas as their remake of Aretha Franklin's "Giving Him Something He Can Feel" fed off of the success of "My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get It)".  There are some who might argue that the Boomerang soundtrack was just as good as the movie--if not better, although I wouldn't go that far--as "Give U My Heart" by Babyface featuring Toni Braxton, "There U Go" by Johnny Gill and Boyz II Men's then-record-breaking smash hit, "End of the Road," easily made it one of the best soundtracks of any summer on record while Toni Braxton's "Love Shoulda Brought You Home" and P.M. Dawn's "I'd Die Without You" continued the album's momentum into the fall.  However, there were plenty of freshman acts who contributed to one of the all-time great summers for music.  Jodeci continued their can't-miss success of Forever My Lady as "Come & Talk To Me (Hip Hop Remix)" spilled over from the spring into the summer and "I'm Still Waiting" got plenty of burn.  Uptown labelmate Mary J. Blige began her journey as the Queen of Hip Hop Soul with What's the 411? as "You Remind Me" and "Real Love" laid down the foundation for her now-legendary status.  TLC established their position in R&B and pop as "Baby-Baby-Baby" was their first No. 1 R&B single, finished at No. 5 on Billboard's Year-End Hot 100 and kept the Ooooooohhh... On the TLC Tip party going--not to mention the video, shot at Bowie State University, may have doubled the efforts of A Different World in encouraging many young Black teenagers at the time to attend HBCUs.

Even with all of these fantastic tunes, two songs stood out the most.  First, "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)" by Pete Rock & CL Smooth seemed to always be on the radio--sometimes ad nauseam.  The song's sentiment was personal because I was a huge Heavy D. and the Boyz fan and was heartbroken at the tragic death of Troy "Trouble T Roy" Dixon at the young age of 22.  More important, his untimely passing was one of several triggers during the summer of 1990 when I was tormented by the thought of death and struggling to understand the concept of the afterlife.  Hence, when "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)" came out two summers later, it was unexpected musical therapy as I reconciled some of my own feelings about dying and it gave me the opportunity to celebrate his life along with every other casual listener and hip hop fan who felt like they were part of this band of brothers.  Second, a song that was a little more of a favorite and was the song that made me think of Roots Activity Learning Center was the "Metamorphosis Mix" of Arrested Development's "People Everyday".  On the last day, I remember how we all were jamming to it like it was the best song we ever heard in our young lives.  As it powered through the speakers of the boombox, it was ultimately part of the most fitting conclusion to one of the most incredible and arguably underrated summers of my life.

Were you just as big of a fan of the summer of '92 as I was?!?!  Was there perhaps another summer that might not be your favorite, but is worth mentioning anyway?  Please feel free to share your memories in the comments.  Don't forget to return next week to find out which summer notches the No. 2 slot in the "Ninetysomething Days of Summer" edition of "Scribbler's Rave & Favorite Five"!!!