I try to do this as well. Really, it's the natural byproduct of what happens from living life -- writers observe people, the ebb and flow of relationships, striking life moments, dull life moments, and these all collect into a Pool of Usable Material at the fingertips of a writer. Or in the tip of their Bic pen, or under the keys of their typewriters.
Jill and I have been talking a lot lately about our craft, why our stable middle-class childhoods both helped and hurt our art form, and why it might not be a bad idea to take a quick dip into the pools of Suffering and Addiction -- just momentarily, for the sake of the craft. But scheduling heroin cycles and past domestic abuse isn't something you can just decide to weave into the tapestry of your existence. Actually, hold on -- I suppose I could start with the heroin or instigate some highly unhealthy domestic habits and make my life go south, but I'm not going to do that.
That being said, I'm stuck with my middle-class stability...my relatively non-traumatic childhood, my degree, my job(s), my good health, and my loving, supportive family. SHEESH, GUYS!
Although this is just a sampling of Those That
Constitute My Genes, I am so blessed to have the
family that I do.
I guess the only thing I can do is use my formative years to my advantage. Much to my chagrin/delight, the most resonate aspect of my childhood is Cedar Point. That's right -- America's Rockin' Roller Coast. Located in Sandusky, Ohio, this gem of a thrill-seeker's oasis constituted the bulk of my introduction into Real Life. Summers were focused on obtaining season passes to Cedar Point, from my youngest memories until present day, and then abusing those passes to the fullest extent. Winters were spent pining for a variety of wood and steel-based experiences. Falls were spent being haunted by local ghosts and riding the last wave of available thrills, and springs were spent waiting desperately for the Opening Day.
It comes as no surprise, then, that my adult years are spent relating a majority of my life experiences to the cycles of Cedar Point. I didn't realize this right off the bat -- in fact, it took a good number of years before I realized how ingrained Cedar Point and its environs were in the fabric of my being....all the way to my artistic metaphors.
This came to my attention for the Nth time when Jill and I were caught in a rainstorm on our way to the Chilean version of Wal-Mart way across town. We had been dodging various gushes of water from the streets, multiple dripping gutters and a whole slew of rain-borne lakes when I mentioned (i.e. screamed over the downpour), somewhat offhandedly given the storm, "This is worse than Thunder Canyon!"
Any Cedar Point Aficionado will know exactly what I'm talking about -- the desperate unknowing of when the next gush of frigid water will unexpectedly saturate, douse and completely chill you to the bone. Will the raft rotate enough for you to miss the waterfall, or will it place you directly in its torrential, unforgiving path? The feeling of helplessness is overwhelming...and apparently a life experience that resonated most strongly with me via Thunder Canyon.
This is not the first time Cedar Point and its rollercoasters have been the subject of my (select one: poorly-timed/lame/ambiguously creative/regionally-based/mildly interesting) metaphorsimiles. Once in Europe, Jill and I encountered a museum with a line so long it prompted me to shriek, "This is worse than when Raptor opened!"
See, Ohio-folks? You know exactly how long that line was. INSANEly long.
This emergence of a Cedar Point-focused understanding of the world around me has led me not only to seek an appropriate diagnosis in the new DSM-IV
, the giant book of disorders that was recently re-issued, but also to delve a bit deeper and find out what else, exactly, I understand in terms of roller coasters and amusements parks.Childhood Amusement Park Coming of Age: A bit different than the classical coming of age later in puberty, this experience coincides with finally reaching the height requirement for the Big Kid rides. Any Sandusky native knows about waiting with desperate, nearly fatal excitement for the time when the height stick is the same level as the tippy top of your head (possibly with hair teased a bit higher by mom). This milestone of reaching the height requirement for all the cool rides inevitably forms the foundation around which Childhood Life is based. ("That summer we finally could ride the Magnum", or "The day you finally made it onto the WildCat") Boasting to your friends that you finally rode such-and-such roller coaster proves to be good fodder for street cred later in the halls of Perkins Schools once the end of summer hits.
The "Holy Shit What Did I Get Myself Into" Second Thoughts: A brand of roller coaster regret
that, although short-lived, is soul-piercing and also nearly fatal. Occurs most often once boarding a new ride, or one you haven't been on in a very long time, just after your window for changing your mind and getting off has passed and the car begins heading up the first hill. Usually accompanied by an intense urge to pee and or defecate. This is when you shouldn't look down.
Coaster Second Thoughts tend to occur
at about this point in the ascent.
Amusement Park Exhaustion: A specific brand of exhaustion that occurs only after a special cocktail of elements are mixed, including mid-summer Ohio heat, twelve hours of walking/roller coaster riding/line waiting/greasy food ingesting/water-logged pants from the water rides you swore you wouldn't go on in your clothes but you did anyway because it was so damn hot out/refusing to sit down and rest because we're going to ride as much as we possibly can today/lines that reach the 2 hour mark or higher, and sun burns.This exhaustion is usually accompanied by the notable scents of sun screen, body odor, sweat, aforementioned fried food smell clinging to your clothes, and the lingering grit of countless metal hand rails.
Loss of a Beloved Coaster: Cedar Point deals with limited real estate (but really, can't we extend the peninsula by now? COME ON) which means that certain rides and coasters get ousted in favor of the latest and greatest. Many of my childhood favorites have been heartlessly canned -- such as the Pirate Ride and, more recently, Disaster Transport -- but at the very least this teaches us an important lesson in the changing nature of life and love. Everything must come to an end. We all get dismantled and discarded eventually....which, I guess in human terms, would be dying. Even Disaster Transport, which, to be honest, I still haven't dealt with that grief. (Roller coaster counseling, anyone?)
In reality I began detaching myself from
Disaster Transport when they removed the
outer space theme and the all moving bits and bobs
in the repair bay.
New Coaster Excitement: This is a type of excitement that, for coaster enthusiasts like myself, penetrates deeper than most anything else in life. Let's talk about Gatekeeper -- I've been watching simulated video footage of this beast for over a year. I'm living in Chile but I'll be damned if I don't get a season pass for the four weeks I'm in Ohio just because I am positive I will go enough times to more than pay for the cost of the pass. This isn't just excitement, this is dedication. Sure, the ride will be over in a matter of minutes, but that'll be some damn thrilling couple hundred of seconds. Also including in this branch of excitement are people who track time in terms of number of days until Cedar Point opens.
The "One-Chance Shot" Letdown: This is a brand of disappointment that thankfully doesn't strike often, but when it does, can be highly disruptive. The scenario usually goes as follows: you've either left the city or state for work or school or pursuing-life-goal purposes, and either don't have it in your budget or priorities to purchase a season pass for Cedar Point. This means you visit once, and during your trip to Ohio you buy a day pass, probably from Meijer. You have one chance to go, and you plan to make the best of it and ride as much as possible, but the one day you're able to go between park hours, family obligations and general vacation timetable is....the one day it rains. Or the one day all your favorite coasters are down for repairs. Or the one day the wind is so strong that Wind Seeker is closed due to weather and you still haven't had a chance to ride it since it came out. So what do you do? Ride Calypso? Play Skee-ball? Oh, like that's worth $50? This is the one-chance shot letdown. Better luck next year!
Other Cedar Point-Specific Phenomena: the Gray-Out that occurs after the first hill on Millennium Force, the specific emotional arc that accompanies Top-Thrill Dragster (anticipation--surprise--glee--one moment of heart-stopping beauty and adrenaline from the front seat at the top curve--glee--feeling like you're dying/being born--the come down as the ride stops), the spine-jarring experience of the Mean Streak, and the dismay when you realize the Back Lot is full...
As evidenced by this excessively lengthy post, Cedar Point is near and dear not only to my heart, but to my understanding of the world around me. Though there are some life moments that are best understood in terms of roller coasters and amusement parks, I will make a sincere effort to wrangle this probable disorder so that it does not negatively affect my creative fiction. Unless, of course, I decide to get into Roller Coaster Fan Fiction writing...now that might be a real moneymaker that combines all my passions!
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