A tale from the Days of Emo.

I used to be emo.

I fell in love with a boy a long, long time ago. We were young; we were but mere puppies. And we listened to a lot of Jimmy Eat World (with a healthy sprinkling of Sunny Day and Dashboard Confessional). We'd drive with the windows down and sing at the top of our lungs. They were good times. And try as I might, to this day, when I hear these songs -- I think of him. Not as a person who wistfully wishes for the past -- but as a person who admires a particular album that defines a time period.

Jimmy Eat World's Clarity defines a large moment in my life.

The boy I fell in love with left. We broke up and he went to the other side of the world. I hadn't heard from him in months, and Christmas was rapidly approaching. I didn't know what to say. So I made him a Christmas card. It was a sad and dreary picture; a wintry scene with a cold looking couple. There were no words on the front of the card, and on the inside of the card I wrote one simple thing. The lyrics to Jimmy Eat World song.

"I didn't mean to leave you hanging on.
I didn't mean to leave you all alone.
I didn't know what to say.
I didn'tknow what to say.

Merry Christmas, Baby.
Merry Christmas."

I signed my name and send my card across the world.
And to this day, I have no idea if he got the card.
Frankly, I don't really care.
But driving down the 710 freeway with friends tonight, singing that song at the top of my lungs -- I couldn't help but tell the story. Sure, I was an idiot back then -- in fact, I'm an idiot now. But, I poured my lil soul out on a Christmas card using Jimmy Eat World lyrics....which is pretty awesome.

Here's to days of old.
Here's to emo.
They were good times, the emo days.
And it made for damn good Christmas cards.