As the holiday weekend comes to a close, this is when I start thinking about the old school days of mine of yore, as back in central PA in the 70's and 80's, kids returned *this* week instead of getting the head start that so many schools seem to get nowadays (based on the proliferation of "first day of school" shots I saw plastered all over the facebook in the prior fortnight).
For most of my K12 education, I *walked* to school (in Fredericksburg, going home afterwards was just going over to the chicken plant my dad managed which was just beyond the playground [although in Fredericksburg, it's safe to say that there was a chicken plant of some kind around just about every corner]... in Schuylkill Haven, where it was just over the hill from where I was living with my mom for a short time ... in Jonestown, even despite being bitten by a dog on my way one day [on both hips, because I turned around to walk home after the first bite -- and then he bit me again, so I did I full 360 and just finished my trip and went to the school nurse for comfort and to clean up the blood {note -- I don't blame the dog, I blame that shiny 70's style fluffy silver astronaut coat I was wearing that clearly was acting like a toreador's red cape}] ... in Lebanon, following the Quittie as a shortcut to the junior high school, and perfecting the "read-and-walk" to and from the high school).
But to get to my first school in Elverson (or maybe it was my second, I don't know if I went to school in Bethel without digging out the old files -- and, due to some apprentice hoarding skills that I'm developing, that's "digging" ... literally), I got to ride the bus. And I got to ride it with the little red-haired girl (whose name I think was Margot, but, just like Charlie Brown, I'll simply call her "the little red-haired girl"). And what do I remember about her? She was the only one who didn't move away from me on the bus when I pulled out my liverwurst sandwich and started eating it. (Which either means that she was worldly as I was OR that she had anosmia!)
Liverwurst sandwiches, bus rides and little red-haired girls ... in this back to school season ... you are all missed.
NOW I CAN RECAPTURE MY YOUTH:
http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/liverwurst_sandwich/
SPEAKING OF PLAYGROUNDS, HERE'S MY POST FROM LAST YEAR THIS TIME:
http://capcognition.blogspot.com/2012/09/random-memorial-for-monday-9312.html
ALL THINGS LITTLE RED HAIRED GIRL:
http://peanuts.wikia.com/wiki/Little_Red-Haired_Girl
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