Flashback to Junior High

I love it when another blogger triggers a long forgotten memory. Today, it was Erin's post on school projects. While I have wiped my memory of much of my school days, I have to say a few moments truly stand out.

My English teacher in 9th grade required that we all do a book report on a biography. At the beginning of the term, we all had to pick a historical figure to read about. Once we had completed the book, however, she switched up the assignment. No simple book report for us, oh no. I began to tremble as my fear of public speaking asserted itself...please no oral report I prayed, please please please.

Well, my prayer was answered....sort of.

Instead of an oral report we were required to partner with someone else in the class. We would each dress AND act as the subject of our biography while our partner would act as a journalist conducting an interview. To improve upon this hideous assignment even further, it would be videotaped. I can only assume it was to be added to that mysterious "permanent file" to be pulled out and laughed at for all future generations of teachers and administrators.

I? was Mary Queen of Scots. All I remember about this assignment was putting a lace curtain on my head as part of the costume. I have blanked out the rest. But worse than my situation was another scary biography. Someone in my class had actually selected Hitler. And this someone actually found (or maybe made??? it's very fuzzy) a flag complete with swastika.

I guess in the overall scheme of things it was somewhat creative of our teacher to go this direction. It certainly meant we needed to understand our historical figures and almost literally put ourselves in their shoes...but I still classify it as cruel and unusual torture.

Popularity Contest

Did your high school have those fundraisers where different colored carnations were sold for like a dollar a piece? At my high school, the flowers were tinted for each possible event - and it seemed like there was a sale about every other week. Supposedly they were for the good of the class - you know, funds for PROM and GRADUATION and such.

BULL CRAP.

This was all about those most desirable chicks being able to act surprised and sweetly embarrassed when a bucketful of flowers were dumped on their desks in homeroom. They complained about having to carry them around all day from class to class, how INCONVENIENT it all was, how they couldn't understand how it was possible that Tom, Joe, Tim, Patrick AND Tony all bought them flowers the same day...I mean didn't those guys know she was already dating Peter? It was almost as bad as when they complained about having to wear their boyfriend's football jersey to school on game day. "Oh, it's so big, I look like a whale." "Oh I hate our school colors...if my boyfriend didn't MAKE me wear it I'd never wear this color."

GAG.

In my senior year of high school, I sat duty at the flower sale table rolling my eyes as the same names were written on the delivery cards over and over again. Nothing had changed for FOUR LONG YEARS. It was almost always the RASCK (a clique that was created using the first letters of each of the girls' first names). Renata, Amy, Stacy, Cindi, Karen....(notice there is NO W in RASCK).

At one point I actually asked a guy I was friends with to just BUY ME A DAMN FLOWER ALREADY. I told him he could send it to me ANONYMOUSLY. I told him I would GIVE him the dollar.

He politely declined.

Color me embarrassed.

Now, I've always had friends. And lots of them. Even in high school and across all cliques. My friends are top quality folks and I love them. Even though most of them continue to abandon me and scatter to the four corners of the earth these days. But I guess I still suffer from that sense of non-popular (a.k.a. inferiority) complex that was represented by my flowerless days in high school.

Time for redemption.

Last week I was recommended for an on-line interview on the internet. And, well, they have a voting process for the most popular blogs. I don't pretend to play in the big leagues here - no penetrating discussions here of hot news topics, no in-depth soul searching, not even superior writing or even good grammar.

But, I sure would like to get a couple of votes.

Click here, read my boring interview, and give me your vote.
(You can vote once every 24 hours...you know American Idol style)

And while you're at it, why not visit the upper right corner of my blog and "Follow me" so I can believe in the hordes of you out there hanging on my every word.

Won't you make me just a little popular??