Goosebumps Are a Form of Punishment

I agree. I have vivid memories of being in a freezing cold classroom.

Oh What a Tangled Web We Weave...

That's a lotta planned deception!

It's party time!

Happy Friday! Raise Your Hand If You're Absent!

What are we doing tonight? Looks like we're going out with "H", which is only a problem b/c she's so beautiful and we'll all be jealous of her. Too bad we don't have tickets to the David Bowie concert.

Yikes! Sr. Christian's mug shot from seventh grade! Anyone remember the barettes that we made back then by braiding verry narrow satin ribbon onto the barette, leaving the ribbon hanging down and attaching beads to the bottom? Classy! Circa 1982--you can tell by the feathered bangs.

Song Contest

Our school had a song contest where each class had a song, we rehearsed them, and then all sang them in the auditorium. Don't know what the prize was--probably free dress or something. Here's our lame submission our senior year. I remember we had to wear paper bones on out head with our names written on them in glitter. I also recall that we were trying to redeem ourselves from the previous year, where one of our songs wasn't well received--apparently, teachers don't like it when your song lyrics include "Teachers, you need to take a chill pill."

Seriously, I can't believe that S even tried to read this note. How incredibly annoying! Look below for a transcript.

Hey, what's up? I'm in biology, the high point of my day. Anyway, your notes were cute. I have to remember to bake a cake tonight for tomorrow and get N and H birthday cards. DON'T LET ME FORGET! So what are we going to do about RN? He can't get away with this! The guinea pig is asleep. Let's kill it. I wanna name it Champagne. It'll probably die before tomorrow of fright (or boredom.) Dr. T will tell the story of her life. It was so nice not having the guys at lunch. I didn't miss anyone!! I can hardly believe Christmas Dance is a month and three days away!! I just don't know about D any more. I mean, I like him and he knows it--nothing has happened. I think the pursuit is fruitless. What do you think? If I don't ask him, Who will I ask? Help! Running out of room! Gotta go! Check ya later!

Female Don Johnson

These notes are soooooo dated! Anyone watch Miami Vice? I didn't, but N was a devotee.

In other news, I have no idea why S was considering lending money to J, nor do I know which J it could have been. But she sure was stressed out about it in this note-fragment I found.

Nazi Punks *&%$ Off!

To this day, I have no idea how "Kricket" knew I was the one writing to her on the desk. Nor do I have any idea why I felt so defensive when she ragged on "preps". I certainly wasn't one!

And in other news, he's a lovely list I found on the back of a boring note. I'm guessing this list would be titled Guys I've Kissed (To Date), and probably compiled sometime my senior year.

Oy, The Guilt!

Or, since my family is Italian, not Jewish, should I say "Mamma Mia, the guilt!?

This is neither high school or 80's related, but after a guilt-ridden encounter with my grandmother this weekend, I felt compelled to post these letters.

So, I went to the University of Texas at Austin--a HUGE school. And, like many from my generation, I took more than four years to graduate. So I was graduating at Christmas. At UT, many students don't attend the official graduation ceremony. It's very impersonal and boring, what with the huge number of students. You literally hand the announcer a card with your name on it as you walk across the stage, grab your Xeroxed letter stating you'll get your diploma in the mail, and walk off. I never planned to attend. About a month before I finished, my parents started asking me about graduation, and when I informed them I wasn't going to walk, they freaked. Apparently, when your parents spend God-knows how much money on your education, they want to see you walk across that stage, dammit, never mind the expense. So, at the last minute, I ordered some announcements and bought a cap and gown. Sent the annoucements out to family only, and received countless phone calls and letters from my furious grandparents insisting that the late invite was essentially a non-invite as there was no way they could get across the country in time to attend. I bet they're still pissed about it almost 20 years later. Here's one gem I found in my stash of letters:

And here's a family newsletter, sent by my grandfather ONE YEAR later, still referencing their disappointment, and driving the point home by emphasizing how thrilled they were to attend my bother and cousin's graduation.

Mind you, this was the only family newsletter my grandfather ever wrote.

Whomever says the Jews have the market cornered on guilt haven't met my Italian family!