If e-mail existed in 1979 . . .

None of his friends had called Pewter back. He had noticed that his popularity had waned as more people in the group had gotten their drivers licenses.

He laid down on the couch and stared at the television. "The Love Boat" was coming on. Robert Reed and Jo Anne Worley were on the show. This really sucks, Pewter thought. This was no way for a high school senior to spend his Saturday night. The Class of ‘79 was running out of tomorrows.

Pewter had an inspiration. He went online and to demonstrate that he was "with it", worthy of still being included in the group, while in no way hinting that he feared his social standing had badly slipped, he sent the following lyrics from Pink Floyd’s recently released, "The Wall", via e-mail to his buddies:

Hello?
Is there anybody in there?
Just nod if you can hear me.
Is there anyone at home?

Pewter went back out and laid on the couch and waited for his telephone to ring. He watched as Robert Reed and Jo Anne Worley navigated the rough shoals of love. After fifty minutes, Isaac the bartender eased the couple’s transition back to life off the boat by telling them to "take it slow, and just keep on keepin’ on."

Pewter could stand it no longer. No one had called. He went to his computer to see if anyone had responded via e-mail. He was disappointed when he saw that he had no messages.

He laid back down on the couch. Rip Taylor and Charlene Tilton had already arrived on "Fantasy Island". With a violent whiplash motion, he removed his encroaching bangs from his eyes. Out of frustration, aloud he said, "This sucks."