Disappointment, Heartache and Foul Odors Pt 2

In my last post I wrote about some of the disappointments and foul odors I experienced in 5Th grade.A lot happens in fifth grade, for example, feelings change and our bodies change. This is probably why I remember so much from this time. Fortunately, my kids are not shy and seem to have more self confidence than I ever had. They have bus drivers and teachers they seem to really like and more importantly, seem to like them. There is also a video/audio recording device on the bus so there shouldn't be any problem catching bullies in the act.I did cringe a little when E came home from school on Thursday, and told me about the article she and her friends wrote together for the school newspaper. Of course I didn’t mention about my firing. I just expressed to her how proud I was and told her I couldn’t wait to read it.
And now for the heartache part of this post. In fifth grade I met a boy named Chris. Chris was the cutest boy in my grade. He had jet black hair down to his shoulders, big brown eyes and wore t-shirts with the names, of rock bands like Kiss and Queen emblazoned on the fronts. He might have even smoked cigarettes. All the girls liked him. I heard them talking about him in the girls room or on the bus. He was quiet and had an air of mystery about him ,as much as any 11 year old might have. I spent a lot of time staring at him. Then one day, something strange happened and he stared back. He started talking to me more than he talked to anyone; He asked for my phone number. Chris liked ME, he actually liked me. Pretty soon we were considered an item. This in fifth grade meant we talked on the phone a lot and hung out at recess. One thing I remember talking about with Chris was music. Oddly enough, whenever I hear the song ‘Cool Change’ by The Little River Band, I think of him. We both thought the song was good. I thought it was a sad song, he thought of it as a happy song.
Throughout our short relationship, the way my classmates treated me only got worse. I could hear them (loudly) whispering behind my back or right in front of me about it. “I can’t believe Chris actually likes HER!” “SHE is sooo weird!” “Why doesn’t he like Beth, she is sooo much prettier than her, and Beth really likes him.” I always thought I was at least a little pretty, even with bad Dorothy Hamill hair cut. But Beth, nobody was prettier or more popular than her. Back then it seemed any girl with the name Beth was popular. Probably because of the popularity of the Kiss song ‘ Beth’. Chris loved Kiss. This Beth, with her long blond hair and blue eyes, wasn’t ever mean to me but I hated her anyways. For a while all this negative energy didn’t touch me; Chris was my ray of sunshine, brightening my school days and warming my afternoons with our long talks. Then it happened. He broke up with me. I don’t even remember why he dumped me. I don’t think he started dating Beth, though, I am not sure I would have noticed. It was the end of my world. The bus rides, if I could get out of bed in the morning, were excruciatingly long, the days even darker and my evenings lonelier than they ever were. This was the first time I ever cried, missed school, and neglected to shower for a week, because of a boy. To me now, 10 or 11 years old seems way too young to cry over a boy. E and her friends do have crushes on boys but E insists they are “just friends” not boyfriends. At least there aren’t any boys calling on the phone yet. I hope that when she gets her heart broken, she will tell me.
Years later, at a time when I was feeling especially good about myself in the looks department, I ran into Chris. I knew I was hot, and I could tell he thought so too. As for Chris, he looked sort of the same.He still had long hair and was wearing a rock band T. HA! Caught in a time warp, I thought to myself. Loser! While he was still drooling, I said goodbye.

Disappointment, Heartache and Foul Odors Pt 1

First Day Of School 2008

I took this photo yesterday, right before the bus came to pick them up in the morning. E is in 5Th grade this year and T is starting Kindergarten. Do they look like they stepped out of a JC Kohl's Bean catalogue? How about those plaid shorts on T, and E's plaid shoes?

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As a mother I try to remember what it was like to be a kid at whatever age my kids are. I think this helps me be more empathetic and patient with them.
I really don't remember much about Kindergarten. I do remember quite a bit about 5Th grade though...
Up until 5Th grade I was able to walk to school. This enabled me to avoid certain bully type people on the way to and from school. All I had to do was walk really slow. The middle school which included 5Th and 6Th grade, was located too far away; I had to take the bus. I hated the bus from day one. I was shy and being that my friends from my street all attended the Catholic school, I had no one to sit with. I don't have any specific bus memories from 5Th grade, just general bus memories. Sweaty, smelly kids, mean stares, mean whispers and uncaring bus drivers.Hot, heavy air leaving me feeling like I couldn't breath. Fear too, I remember fear of being bullied. This fear never left me even through high school bus rides.
My teacher in 5Th grade was Mrs. Smith. She was short, round and really old. Being I was in 5Th grade 1978-1979, I have no fear of her being alive now, catching me writing about her! Mrs Smith's breath was horrible. She smelled like stale cigarettes and un-bathed old person. I dreaded when she would call me up to her desk to talk to me. For the first half of the year I was her pet. I did really well academically, no one seemed to notice I didn't' have many friends.
One day she asked me if I wanted a job writing for the school newspaper. They needed a movie critic. Wow, what fun, of course I took the job. I went to the movies the very next weekend and saw whichever Star Trek movie was playing that year. Well, I didn't really like the movie and being naive about the extent of Star Trek fans and the influence they had on the world, I wrote honestly about the movie. I felt like I wrote about it fairly,but got across the point that I didn't' like it. I was fired! Turns out the stinky, wrinkly old woman was a Trekkie! I was so angry and disappointed because my writing was rejected. Not on the basis that it sucked, but because my teacher and perhaps all the members of the newspaper, were crazed Star Trek fans!
I'll be back to write about the heartache I experienced in 5Th grade next time. I don't want to keep you all too long.

Roller Skate Mama

E had her roller skate birthday party and all the girls, even grown up girls, had a blast. It was so much fun skating with the young girls. For some it was their first time skating. They all did really well. No major injuries occurred!
The music was perfect for skating...Fleetwood Mac, ELO, REO Speedwagon and of course the ultimate skating song Lynyrd Skynyrds FREEE BIIRD, Yeah! Oh, wait, having a flash back, that was the music played when I went skating as a pre-teenie bopper, not now.
I used to love roller skating. I went twice a week to USA Skate in West Springfield Mass with my friends. I remember the 'Couples Skate' 'Backwards Only' 'Boys or Girls Only' and of course the 'All Night Skate'. I remember my roller skates were soo cool. White with hot pink sparkled wheels. I could just skate and skate and skate. I had nice legs back then.
As usual memories are bitter sweet. My 6Th grade boyfriend broke up with me at a roller skate party, then had the nerve to ask for the necklace back he gave me for Valentines Day! JERK! No, I did not give it back. I kept it and cried for weeks. Then got a better boyfriend.
I wish the rink we had E's birthday party at was closer,because I would definitely go back frequently.
Do any of you have roller skating memories? I would love to hear them.