Sunday Stealing

This month, kids from all over will be going back to school (if they haven't already gone back).  I thought it might be fun to look back at our own school days, some of them more recent than others.  I couldn't find a meme to steal, so this was cobbled together from a bunch of "questions to ask students" sites, and a couple of my own ideas.  Have fun!

 
1.  What kind of school did you attend (Big? Small? Public? Private? Specialty? One-room schoolhouse?)
I attended a small Catholic school for both grammar and high schools (two different schools).  My high school had only 200 students.

2. What did you wear to school (uniform? dress code? Whatever you wanted?)
I wore a uniform for 12 years -- pleated skirt and middy blouse with Navy tie in grammar school, plaid skirt and white blouse in high school.  (Age 10 and 15, below)

 
3.  How did you get to school?
In grammar school, I walked (about 3/4 mile--only uphill in one direction) and in high school, I took public transportation.  We lived a block from the cable car in San Francisco, so I took the cable car most of the way and transferred to the bus the rest of the way.

4.  Who was your favorite teacher?  Why?
Sister Anne was my typing teacher.  We became friends working together on various projects.  She became my lifelong friend, until her death 20 years ago.  Our daughter is named for her (Jerilyn Anne)

5.  What was your favorite subject?  Why?
Obviously I loved typing, but I also loved English and languages.  We studied Latin and French.  I always wanted to speak another language (and can bumble along very badly in French today).  I loved English because I got to read and to write and I was good at both.

6.  What was your least favorite subject?  Why?
Math!!!!  Loathed it.  I still can't add 2 and 2 and come up with the same answer every time.  I also was not fond of Chemistry because it required math.  In later years, when I was typing for a psychologist who assessed learning disabilities, I learned that one can be intelligent and still not understand specific subjects -- so I'm generally smart, but math-stupid.

7.  Did you belong to any clubs?
I can't remember any except the Legion of Mary, a religious club.  I don't think we had a lot of clubs in my school.  I sang in the choir for 4 years and was on the yearbook staff for 3 (editor my senior year)

8.  Were you a picky reader?
Not sure what "picky" means, but I loved any books about animals and, it being a Catholic school (especially in grammar school), read the lives of all the saints our library had books about.  

9.  What did you do in your free time?
Mostly, I read.

10.  Did you get good grades?
I was pretty much an A-/B+ student, with Cs in math.

11.  Did you like/participate in sports?
Hated sports.  I remember playing volleyball in high school, and spending a lot of time on the bench because I was so uncoordinated.

12.  Did you have a boyfriend/girlfriend in high school?
I met Bill the summer before I started high school and we dated through my junior year, when he entered the Jesuits (I drive men to the clergy!).  I briefly dated my leading man after our Senior Class Play, but we didn't see each other after I started college (I suspect he was gay, so I didn't exactly break his heart)
13.  When did you get your driver’s license?
On my 16th birthday.  I became a hit and run driver that night.

14.  What kind of kid were you?  (Popular? Class clown?  Shy? A nerd?  Teacher’s pet?)
I was the shy kid in the corner with my book, or teacher's pet, depending on the teacher.

15.  Who were your heroes?
St. Therese of Lisieux.  I wanted to be a Carmelite.

16.  Were you ever bullied?
I can only remember once, and it wasn't so bad.  I was a year younger than everyone else ('cause I excelled at coloring in kindergarten!) and so was slower to develop and I remember being surrounded by a group of girls all checking to see if I had boobs yet (I didn't) and teasing me about it.  But that's the only thing I remember.

17.  Did you learn how to touch type?
Yes.  I took Typing I in my junior year and by the end of the year, I typed faster than anybody in Typing II.  We learned on big clunky black manual typewriters like this, with the keys covered.  There were two electric machines in the class and toward the end of the year, when we knew how to type, we got to take turns using them

18.  Who was your best friend?  (Are you still friends today?)
Gayle was my best friend in grammar school.  We are friends on FB, but our opinions on EVERYTHING are diametrically opposed, so it's good we don't see each other.  I did have lunch with her and a few other grammar school friends recently and we stuck to "safe" topics.  Joyce and Anne were my best friends in high school.  We still exchange Christmas cards, but haven't seen each other in years, though we keep taking about getting together.

19.  What is one thing you regret about high school?
I honestly can't think of anything

20.  What were you most proud about?
I am proud of the yearbook I put out in m senior year.  I had practically zero cooperation from other seniors and my friend Anne and I did it all on our own.  We missed every deadline and the books came out late, but I'm proud of how they turned out.

Bonus:  Did you like high school?
 Loved it.  Those were the best years of my life to date.  I wouldn't want to go back and repeat them today, but I loved almost everything about high school.