THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, February 21, 1997 TAG: 9702210049
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Column
SOURCE: Grace Hsiu
LENGTH: 53 lines
ROMANCE, WHATEVER blase older people might think of it, has proven important to teen-agers.
It's so important, in fact, that the message of amorous tidings must be advertised in the halls of school, of all places, like a screaming billboard on Shore Drive.
Does it strike you as kind of odd that students would choose a setting such as school as the backdrop for such love? But then again, in '80s movies - from ``Say Anything'' to ``Sixteen Candles'' - many teen-agers found their perfect mate in high school halls.
So maybe it's not so weird.
Which is why, when I was cruising the hallowed halls of my own high school recently, I noticed blatant displays of affection. I noticed further the raucous yet accurate advice of the person behind me, who yelled to the entangled couple, ``Get a ROOM!''
I'm not the prudish sort; my destiny does not lie in a convent. And so, you ask, ``Why do you care?!''
Well, before I to divulge my reasoning, let us come to an agreement that the Public Displays of Affection (PDA) that I see, and what you probably see in your high school, is vertical parking up against lockers, steaming up the windows, and other actions worthy of an ``X'' rating. Yes, affectionate ways have changed. In the 1920s and '30s, a kiss was the equivalent of a marriage proposal. Now, it's evolved into flippant lip locking.
Back to the question at hand. Why do I care?
Well, No. 1: PDA are not mere saliva transfers any more. Oh, no. Stuffing one's tongue down another's throat is a rather repulsive sight in any place at any time.
No. 2: School, I am disheartened to announce, is a place meant to teach students the usual array of G-rated subjects, with some exceptions.
No. 3: PDA in the '90s are disgusting. Watching Oprah Winfrey neck with her fiance Stedman Graham on national television was bad enough.
I'm not saying that public displays of affection are wrong - cripes, I don't consider holding hands a juvenile misdemeanor. I just think some things ought to be toned down, considering the fact that this is high school.
Cox High School student Diana Bull, 17, has been mulling the idea of PDA regulations for almost two years. So far, her remedy for extreme PDA is for a committee to carry shrill whistles and to utilize them when necessary. ``PHWEET! SEX IN THE HALLS! PHWEET!'' It hasn't gone into effect yet, and it probably won't until the 1997-98 school year, if it's approved.
Maybe, just maybe, we ought to strive for the day when PDA stands for Please Don't Ask. MEMO: Grace Hsiu is a junior at Cox High School. Her column appears
biweekly in Teenology.