Going Back!!!

With school starting just around the corner, I have once again taken a trip down memory lane. As school supplies fill the entrances of every store, I am reminded of those glorious years. Oh, the fun of picking out just the right color notebook. In my day the big decision was going with a unicorn notebook or one that had kittens on the front. I always got a pencil pouch, but rarely keep them in there after the first few days. Picking out a book bag was exciting as it would become your most used possession as the school year rolled by. Don't forget the lunch box. That is what could make you the envy of the class, if you had the right lunch box. I remembering having a Holly Hobby, Strawberry Shortcake and my favorite one The BeeGee's. Although I am not really sure I even knew who the BeeGees were. LOL I loved getting new clothes and picking out just the right outfit for the first day back. The first day was exciting, seeing all my friends again. The newness of the school year was intoxicating as you were a year older. Then reality set in, and you realized that you were stuck here for 180 days. The newness faded into weariness has you prayed for a hurricane to hit (hey, I am from the coast), just hoping for some days off. Then during the winter months you prayed for snow, in my case at the least some freezing rain. The school year dragged by as I wondered why I was even excited about coming back. Before long Spring Break came and the end was in sight. The count down had begun. The last day of school is in sight, and visions of the beach dance in my head. The last day arrives and I say farewell to my friends. 2 months of summer fly by, and before I know it, we are back to school shopping again. I am excited all over again, but give it a few weeks and it will end. LOL

I get a desk for my birthday or Christmas and school play begins. If I only realized that pretending turns to reality too soon.

Remember When!!!

I was thinking the other day about things in my childhood. Things that I had to have and couldn't live without, or maybe they were just the "in" thing back then. Then again they might have been just things I really wanted.

The Trapper Keeper notebook. I had to have one of these, and to my disappointment red was the only color they had. This is the notebook with inside pockets and a flap with some velcro. I just had to have one of these or I was certain that I would not be able to start school without it. I remember my mom drove everywhere looking for one...I guess I was lucky to get one, so I should have been thankful for the red one.

OP shorts- everyone wanted a pair of these. I remember having 3 pair...blue, white and yellow. I think now what the big deal was about a pair of corduroy short with OP embroidered on them. In the '80's the were hot stuff, and I wanted every color they had. I also remember that they were very expensive back then.

In elementary I had to have the "Bee Gee's" lunch box. Why, I have no idea. I am not even sure that I knew who the Bee Gee's were, but the lunch box was cool. It changed scenes on the front. One scene they were posed and the other scene the were on stage singing. I was stylin' back then.

Wax drinks: These were little wax bottles filled with liquid (might have been kool aid). You bit the top off and drank the liquid. Then you chewed the wax. Why this was a thrill for me...I don't know, but it was back then. I begged for these everytime we went to store.

Back in high school everyone or every girl had to have a black onyx ring. I am not sure what the big deal was about these, but I had to have one. I didn't really think that they were that pretty, but I wanted one. The onyx in mine finally broke.

Who can forget the Walkman. I remember my dad got me one at the GE Employees store (I hate they did away with that). I thought I was hot stuff with my cassettes and ear phones. I laugh now at the size of the Walkman when I pull out my MP3 player that is not even the size of a credit card.

These are just a few things that made me walk down memory lane the last couple of weeks. Things that were so important back then seem so trivial now. The only thing is that in your childhood, that is your life. And getting the new "in" gadget was just as important to you then as making the car payment and figuring out how to pay for your child's college is to you now. Life changes and priorities change. Sometimes it is nice to remember when simplier things occupied your mind. As my friend, Leigh, says, "Back in the day..."