“Summer’s lease hath all too short a date.”
The weather the last few days has been a delight. The days are hot but not unbearable. The nights are perfect. Last night it got down to 58°, closed window and light blanket weather. Today will be in the high 70’s with clouds popping in and out. I’m thinking this is a deck day.
When I was a kid, my friend and I sometimes slept in her backyard where there was a fence beyond the grass with a small field and pear trees behind it. We’d sometimes grab a pear from an overhanging branch. The pears never seemed to get ripe. They were always hard. We’d lie on our backs on a blanket on the soft grass so we could see the stars. Back then there were thousands or maybe millions of stars. At least that’s how I remember it. We’d eat a few snacks, chat a while then finally fall sleep. I loved waking up to the sounds of the birds in the early morning.
As we got closer to school starting, the days got shorter a little bit at a time. We still played outside after supper under the streetlights, but that was coming to an end. My mother soon enough would start sending us to bed early reminding us,” It’s a school day tomorrow,” as if we really needed reminding.
I remember school shopping. In Woolworth’s we’d buy all our supplies. I got to pick out my pencil case, my lunch box and my school bag. We’d also buy a few lined Big Chief notepads with an Indian on the front, pencils, a box of crayons and a wooden ruler. When I was young, I wanted TV stars on my lunchbox, but when I was older, I outgrew the stars. I’d choose a tartan design or something similar. I remember a red tartan lunchbox. My school bag was square with a handle on the top and a strap for over my shoulder.
School clothes were easy, a white blouse, a blue skirt and a clip-on western tie. I did get to choose my own shoes, but I was steered to sturdy shoes so they’d last longer. They were tie shoes. My mother would buy us new socks and underwear. School shopping was completed.
The first day of school was always exciting. The rest were seldom exciting.
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August 15, 2024 at 4:09 pm
Hi Kat,
Today is sunny with a predicted high of 102°. We are in the hottest part of the summer. The school year has already begun and all the schools have air conditioning. It’s the walk home after school that’s challenging for today’s kids.
When I was a kid it was too hot to sleep in the backyard. However, I attended day camp and we went on an overnight camp out to flagpole hill. It is a park located on one of the few high hills in Dallas. I remember staying up late under the stars and we could see downtown with its tall buildings all lit up. We didn’t get much sleep after the adults told us ghost stories about the lady of the lake. Flag pole hill is right next to White Rock Lake.
Back to school shopping was always fun. In elementary school, I usually got a new pair of tennis shoes, several pairs of blue jeans, and a few polo shirts. I was appalled when my father moved me back to New York City because the public school system, back then, had strict dress codes. Boys couldn’t wear jeans, nor tennis shoes, and no polo shirts. We had to wear shirts with collars because we had to wear ties. Today, I don’t even own a tie. I have one sport coat for a rare weddings, funerals, and Bar/Bat Mitzvahs.
We also went to the Woolworth to buy the school supplies. Each grade had a list of stuff on the first day. The list sometimes included stuff I never used.
August 15, 2024 at 8:04 pm
Hi Bob,
I know of no schools around here with air conditioning, even the new middle school built a year ago. August is our hottest month but nowhere near a hot as where you are. The best months are September and October and sometimes even into November.
I sometimes went to the Girl Scout camp in our town for overnights. It was in the middle of the woods up a dirt road close to the zoo. There were wide paths all through the woods. The pine trees always reminded me of Christmas. I never went to camp other than day camp.
When we moved to the cape, I went to a public school for the first time so I didn’t have to wear a uniform. That was the first real school shopping we did. Girls had to wear dresses or skirts while boys had to wear collared shirts but not ties. Jeans weren’t allowed for boys.
I got a list for high school but not for grammar school. I also had a summer reading list for high school. Most of the books were pretty good.
August 15, 2024 at 10:03 pm
Here the school districts are suffering from lack of money from the state. Our terrible gov wouldn’t sign a school finance bill passed in the last legislature session because he wants school vouchers but the rural areas didn’t want it. They know it will take money from their public schools. Republicans hate public education and want to transfer money to fundamentalist Christian schools where white kids attend. It’s sad that the kids and teachers are paying for his obstinacy. He’s keeping the pressure up on the border with thousands of National Guardsmen manning miles of razor wire. Thankfully, in Texas the state legislature only meets every two years for 180 day session. The gov can call a special session but they can only pass or reject his bill.
August 15, 2024 at 11:39 pm
The school districts here are supported by the towns, by tax money. The richer the town, the better the schools. The state, though, does subsidize the schools in a variety of ways: lunches, free to all students, and building costs are a couple of examples. My schools are district schools supported by two towns, Dennis and Yarmouth. The elementary schools are in each town, but the middle and high schools are in one town.