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Flashback Friday ~ School Daze

Brace yourself folks, I am actually doing the Flashback Friday on time this week!

Flashback Friday is brought to us by Linda of Mocha With Linda. This is the meme that takes us back in time to the days of our youth. Linda says, This meme’s purpose is to have us take a look back and share about a specific time or event in our lives. It will be fun to see how similar – or different – our experiences have been!

Did your family have any back-to-school traditions when you were growing up? Were you generally eager or reluctant to start school? Was buying school supplies a big deal or did you order them through the school? Were there any school supplies you particularly loved? Did you take your lunch or buy it at school? Brown bag or lunch box/thermos? Does the first day of school from any grade stand out? Did you ride the bus, walk, or go by car to school? Do you remember how early or late school began/dismissed each day? Did you go to kindergarten? Half-day or whole day?

I always started the first day of school in a brand new pair of shoes. Always. When I got to college I had to talk myself out of buying new shoes at the start of every school year (I no longer had only one pair of “good” shoes, and I could manage to make them last a whole lot longer when they no longer had to work the playground.)

I loved starting school.  I loved my brand new school supplies.  I especially loved sharpening pencils for the first time (still do) and reams and reams of college ruled notebook paper.  Even empty, it is full of promise.

From 1st to 5th grade, I lived across the street from the school and I went home for lunch.  I had an entire hour.  I ate whatever lunch Gram prepared, then sat on the couch and read or colored while Gram watched The Mike Douglass Show.  Come 6th grade my school was across town.  I rode the bus and carried a sack lunch — no lunch pail.  Only babies carried lunch pails.   I was in high school before school lunch was an option, and by then we generally chose to go hungry or carry our own sandwiches anyway.  It wasn’t cool to be seen in the cafeteria.

I think my most memorable first day of school had to be 8th grade.  Gram made Lorii K. and I skirts from the same fabric.  They were peachy frothes of chiffon and we loved them.  Lorii’s shirt just touched her knees (her mother’s orders) had a kicky little flair at the bottom.  My skirt was a full circle pattern a couple of inches shorter. We both wore ribbed, white long sleeved turtle necks.  I had a wide black belt with a huge gold buckle (70’s) and Lorii had an almost identical white belt.  Lorii was wearing dress flats.  I was in my first ever pair of high heels, and we were both wearing nylons (no pantyhose yet) and make up for the very first time (in public with permission).  Lorii’s hair was long and blond.  She wore it down and hanging free.  My hair was shorter.  I’d gotten a perm and I had lots of bouncy waves.

We stepped off the bus and walked toward the school together. Heads were turning.  We looked sharp.  That’s when things went really wrong.  I saw the boy I had a crush on and I just had to make certain he noticed me.  He disappeared through the school doors.  I followed after him at less than a lady-like pace.

Now it is time to stop the story and give you a bit of background info — you know how I am always saying the grown ups wanted us dead?  Well, here is further proof: the front doors of our school opened onto a very shallow landing.  On the right was a set of stairs going immediately up, on the left was a set of stairs going immediately down.

Back to the story:  I ran up the stairs, launched myself bodily through the doors in a effort to see which direction Heartthrob went, but I immediately lost interest in him because my slick-soled wonderful new patent leather high heels slid across that freshly waxed foyer like I was on ice, and catapulted me down the stairs.

The heel of one of my shoes caught on the safety tread at the edge of the first step.  The rest of me stretched all the way to the bottom. I landed head down and butt up.  My backpack spilled all of my new school supplies from one end of the hall to the other.  It was horrifically embarrassing and I was blushing furiously, but luckily nobody knew it because my skirt hid my face.

Oh yeah, good times.  Thanks ever so much for reminding me Linda. I’ll get even some day.

If you all want to share your most embarrassing moments with the world, sign up for Linda’s Flashback Friday and play along.  She’ll get around to asking you the right — or wrong — question one of these days.

32 Comments

  1. Oh my heavens! What a story, Quilly! However, you told it beautifully. I could just picture it. Isn’t it nice that you can look back and laugh about it now. You can laugh about it, right?

  4. You described that “fall” pefectly! I could just see it in my mind as I was reading it. I think we’ve all had one of those “moments” at some time in our lives. Thanks for being brave enough to share yours–I needed a laugh today 🙂 Great post!

  7. OH my! What a story!

    And who would have dreamed way back then that there would be an internet and blogs and you would voluntarily share the story with the world!

    Hmm, maybe we need a “most embarassing moment” flashback! 🙂

  8. Oh no! That really must have been embarrassing! This would be etched in my mind forever.
    But it makes a good story….. 🙂

  9. That is such a nice story, well, nicely written, about one of your most embarassing moments. Did your fellow see you stretched out like a fallen stunt man? I am sure he heard about it. New shoes every year! Of course girl shoes didn’t last like boys leather lace-ups did back then.

    I will add to mine that I had four driving accidents with Dad’s truck. Only two were my fault.

    And I will look at yours and read it if you will look at mine, Haiku Wednesday, that is. [ http://jimmiehov6.blogspot.com/search/label/Sensational%20Haiku%20Wednesday%5D Of course you won’t like the picture.
    ..

    1. Jim — I don’t know if heartthrob saw me. I don’t know who saw me. It was about a week before I looked anybody in the eyes again.

  10. We always had new denim to wear on our first day of school. This was a fun read, glad that you survived that first day of High School. Did you ever manage to find your Heart Throb?? Mike Douglas Show, now I can remember watching it at times.

    1. Bill — I think that was the end of my crush on heartthrob. It was about a week before I looked at anything but the floor and my shoes.

  11. “patient leather high heels?” Were they marketed by your friendly neighborhood health care provider? Talk about Freudian slips …

    (I fixed it.)

    😉

    :*

  13. Wow! What a story!

    I also enjoyed your comments about what was or was not “cool” regarding eating at lunch/carrying a lunch pail/etc. I wish kids had an hour to go home to eat lunch nowadays–except that very few of them have anyone at home to serve them lunch anyway. Ah well.

  14. why are the most embarrassing things also the most entertaining?
    says something about the human nature… and the author’s writing skills 😉

  17. Great story! LOL This is my first time visiting your blog, but I’ve seen you often over at Barbara’s blog, Stray Thoughts, and I believe you’ve been to mine a time or two. I can identify with the embarrassment, ’cause I’ve had a few of those moments in my life, but I’m glad to say I’ve never fallen down the steps with my skirt over my head! 😉

  18. All I can say is that I’m glad I’m just reading the story and it’s not happening to me :p

    I haven’t done my Flashback Friday yet but will post one tonight 🙂

  19. Quilly, you wrote it so well that I laughed at the end and then felt badly for laughing. What an awful and embarrassing way to start the school year.

    So did your crush notice you? 😛 [ducking and running away before you can smack me]

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