“However enjoyable the holidays may have been, there is always a pleasurable excitement about going back to school.” ~A. Q. Carter
Hello, my lovely friends!
The week has flown by, and it’s already Friday Funday! Today we’re diving into the rollercoaster that is high school. It was one of the best—and worst—times of my life, but it absolutely molded me into who I am today. Let's get into it.
1. My sister and I are four years apart, which meant we never spent a day in the same school. I'm actually grateful for the gap, because we're total opposites—she's an extrovert, and I'm an introvert. Our personalities would have certainly clashed. She graduated high school in June 1986, and I started my freshman year that August.
2. My school stopped offering special programs like Gifted and Talented or Club 34, but I was placed in AP English and AP Math. I also made a plan to finish all my core classes during my freshman and sophomore years. My goal was to have my final two years free to take electives and more interesting classes, and it mostly worked out as I had hoped.
3. I never quite fit into any one group in school because I was friends with everyone. Our class was a diverse mix of backgrounds, with most of us growing up together from kindergarten to high school. The majority of students were Black and Mexican, with only a small number of white kids. We were briefly separated in middle school, but we all came back together for high school.
4. I took French for a number of years, starting in middle school and continuing all the way through high school. While I still remember the fundamentals and can read and pronounce the language, my conversational skills have gotten rusty. I'm hoping to refresh my memory and regain some fluency by taking a few lessons.
5. I was on the Speech and drama teams. I competed in debate, and placed in a few meets on the weekends. I took drama all four years, but only tried out for one play, "Dracula." I got the part of the maid, and had to learn an English accent. I learned my lines and the accent by watching wrestling and copying the British Bulldogs.
6. Back in the late '80s, I was a total metalhead. I lived for the hair bands: Mötley Crüe, Bon Jovi, and Guns N' Roses. They were the biggest thing around, and my friends and I would go to a concert almost every month. We'd pack into one car and sleep in the parking lot just to snag tickets. There was a core group of about 20 of us who were at every show, and we all became good friends.
My mom was cool with it and always wrote a note for me to excuse my absence from school the next day. One time, the school office tried to deny the excuse, but I told them to call my mom at work. They did, and she set them straight—I got my excuse note.
So glad you stopped by! Wishing you the coziest morning/afternoon/evening ahead. Can't wait for our paths to cross again!
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I chuckled over the sister and you not being together, my sister and I had a much bigger gap of 10 years - LOL by the time my sister got there, they forgot I ever went to the school. We are opposite to you both as well, I am the oldest and the introvert and my sister the youngest and the extrovert. It was so great reading about you in high school, thanks for sharing! Have a wonderful weekend.
ReplyDeleteGreat memories. Thanks for sharing. 🤗💖
ReplyDeleteMy older sister was two years ahead of me in school, and my younger brother three years behind me. So there were times of overlap. But as with you and your sister, each child is an individual in their own right, having their own characteristics. I remember one teacher I had in grade school. Her career had such a span that she taught all five of my sibling group, and there were 15 years between the top and the bottom of that group! She came to our mother's memorial service, and we were all so touched.
ReplyDeleteHere's hoping for a good weekend ahead for you and all you love!
Loved drama/theater/speech in high school. Fit in w/those groups, but otherwise, not too much w/the “cliques”. That’s all right. They were pretty snobby anyhow and that wasn’t me. Despite drama/theater/speech I was pretty much an introvert, too.
ReplyDeleteYou have a cool Mom!
Here’s to a great weekend.
Hugs
Barb
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It's Kathy. Great memories from high school. I agree - it was the best and the worst all combined. My sister was 4 years younger than me so we also never were in school together. And I would say she was the extrovert while I was the introvert. I remember loving all my math classes and totally hating science - especially Biology. In my Junior Year I became one of the Roosevelt Rockettes so while I didn't know many people, most everyone knew me. In my Senior Year I was voted "Best Dancer" along with Mike Botton (who I don't think I EVER danced with). Finally, something I can remember! Thanks for sharing your experiences. Oh, and I took Spanish I think all 3 years so I tested out of language in College! I can still speak it a bit but haven't had reason to practice. These days I'm working hard to learn Norwegian so I can read some of my grandparents' letters from family in Norway!
ReplyDelete