Jerome's First Impression of Eric

It was the Fall of 1986. I was dating Sandra at the time and had accepted the invitation to come to Nampa and “meet the parents”. There was a lot that was new and wonderful for me, but one of my strongest memories from that experience was when I first got to meet Eric.

He had come home from work late in the evening, so we didn’t really talk much that night. However, the next morning I was reminded that sometimes actions speak louder than words. Jay Dee and Vance, young pups at the time, were (apparently) pretty heavy sleepers. That night, Eric had taken a black permanent marker and drawn exquisite mustaches on both of their faces. They didn’t even realize it until the next morning.

I was stunned -- I had never imagined anyone using a permanent marker (intentionally) on skin, and I had never imagined the audacity of putting such a long-lasting “enhancement” on someone’s face. That next morning, we laughed and laughed; it was one of the funniest things I had ever seen. I don’t know if Jay Dee and Vance were quite as amused as the rest of us were, but it was all in good fun (and they made a good recovery).

So this was my first impression of Eric. He was bold, adventurous, and had a great sense of humor. I was impressed!