Ahh.... High School Days

In the fall of 1973, I started high school.  It's been a number of years since 1977, the year I graduated.  Funny story about my graduation.  It was a warm June evening, we had commencement on the football field.  I have no idea who spoke, or what was said.  My parents were there, had driven in their car, my boyfriend was there, had driven in his car.  After it was over, the graduates had to leave their gowns in the gym and pick up the official diploma.  In the confusion of the day --- and because we didn't have cell phones back then --- I searched high and low for my parent's car, or my boyfriend's car.  I finally gave up and started the walk home.  It was about 8 blocks, and I'd done this walk every day for four years, except this time I was in a dress and heels!  Lucky for me, a neighbor was driving along and recognized me and gave me a lift the rest of the way!!   It's been a family joke for years!! haha

But now that it's been 46 years --- yikes!!--- I look back at those years and wonder why I had so much angst about the whole ordeal.  It was only four years of my life, and yet at the time, it felt like it was everything important.  The emphasis on the social aspect of high school felt normal at the time, but looking back, I realize now that I put too much importance on what all the others were thinking and doing, and not enough effort into what I was feeling, thinking, or doing. 

In high school, we all want to fit in, to be part of the norm.  But like one of my favorite quotes from the show MASH:  Major Frank Burns says "Normal is everybody doing the same thing at the same time.  Trappers asks:  "What about individuality?  Frank replies:  Well, individuality is fine-- as long as we all do it together."  And that kind of sums up the high school experience. 

For me, I knew I didn't fit in with two of the major cliques:  the "field rats" and the "rah rahs".  I was chubby/fat and very introverted.  What seemed so very important in those few short years weren't very important in the bigger scheme of life.  The people ... I can barely remember the majority of them.  Of course, a few close friends stick out in my memory, and/or we stayed connected after graduation for a time.  But when it comes to the real life we all embrace after graduation, the importance of our peers is diminished. 

If I could give my 14 year old self some advice just before starting high school, it would be:

• Be yourself, and don't cave in to peer pressure
• Set some goals -- and work toward them!
• Take lots of interesting electives - it will help you choose a career path
• Don't beat yourself up in your mind over the little, silly things

High school was a long time ago.  But some memories never completely go away; revel in the good memories, and forget about the bad ones! 

Wilcox High School

Santa Clara, CA

Class of 1977

Gal VS The Moth

Just around 10 pm last night, I was sound asleep -- well, sound asleep for an old gal! -- when I felt something buzz up against my ear.   I shook my head and waved my arms a little bit and rolled over, went back to sleep.  

About 10 minutes later, I felt it again, but this time against my face.  ACK!  I waved my hands, brushed my hands across my face and hair and jumped out of bed!  I quickly turned on the lights and saw what it was....  a moth of some sort.  It was cream colored and not very big but yuck! Not when I'm sleeping!!   I grabbed a pillow and chased it around the room.  I must have gotten a good whack on it, because it stopped flying, and I couldn't find it. 

At last, back to bed.  

But not for long!

I felt it yet again, and this time I jumped up, slapped the light switches ON and grabbed a towel, waving that thing around.  I watched this moth try and bury itself behind my pillows, but I was having none of that! More towel waving, arms flailing, trying to swat this thing down.  No luck in taking it down, but it DID fly out the bedroom door, so I slammed the door shut, and laid the towel across the bottom so it wouldn't sneak back in!! 

I always thought moths were attracted to light, so why wasn't it trying to attack the TV or something?  Why did it feel it needed to get cozy with me and my pillows!    I don't like critters who don't keep to themselves!!! 

Here's hoping for a better night's sleep tonight!!  

The Perfect Pillow

I don't know about you, but it seems like I'm always on a quest for the perfect pillow.  When I was in 7th grade, I took an elective course in crafts.  One project was making a pillow.  Mine was orange fabric, and I embroidered a purple snail on the front of it  (don't ask my why, I don't remember! Unless it happened to be a pattern mom already had! lol)  

The pillow was about 18x18 square and to stuff it, I cut up a piece of foam that was on hand into little 1x1 cubes, or as close as I could get.  It sat on my bed for a few years.  When I was in high school, I took apart this crazy pillow I'd made, but I stuffed it into half a pillow case and sewed up the end and voila! I had this perfect pillow.  It wasn't too over stuffed, and it didn't go flat in the night.  Being only half sized, I could bunch it up under my head pretty much in any shape I needed it to be.  I'm a side sleeper, so my pillow roams an awful lot in the night from side to side!   

So here it is ..... like 40 years later ... and I'm STILL using this little half pillow.   It's been washed, dried and scrunched so many darn times!  I keep putting it aside and trying this pillow, that pillow, good for side sleeper pillows ... you name it, I've tried it.  But I always *ALWAYS* go back to this little pillow.  

However.  After 40 years, the foam has broken down and mushed up.  I finally decided I needed to do something.  So I bought a couple different pillows that felt sorta right, and on my next day off, I'm going to tear them apart and see if I can replicate my perfect pillow.  I have to --- this one is on its last legs!    Wish me luck here, cuz I'm going to need it!  I may be cutting foam into cubes this weekend.  lol

I'm Rumblin'!

I've been using my Rumblex vibration plate for a week or so now, and I like how I feel when I use it.  I've watched a few videos on how to change up what I'm doing, so I'm looking forward to even more changes. 

But the one thing I've noticed that no one has mentioned is my change in sleep.  I track my sleep on my FitBit and even if there are naysayers who say it's not accurate, it at least gives me the same type data each day.  Two years ago, my night sleep was mostly 90 minute naps all night long.  Then it has slowly increased to mostly 2 hour increments of sleep between waking moments.  But my only change in habits has been the Rumblex and I've been sleeping in stretches of 3 and 4 hours for the past week. 

Better sleep is a game changer at this point in my life!  As a teen, I can remember sleeping a solid 8 hours at a time.  After having kids, that changed dramatically.  

All in all, if my Rumblex is helping with my sleep ..... I'll take it!  And a bonus:  when I'm leaving work, I like telling folks I'm going home to jump on my vibrator.  Heeheehee