In the last entry, I said something about Catholic school dioing nothing to prepare me for the real world, especially the big scary world of high school. That's not completely true.
Eighth grade was the year I blossomed I guess. I became best friends with the two coolest girls in school who also happened to be the prettiest. Sounds like I'm setting myself up for failure doesn't it? Lol.
Betsy was skinny as a rail. She had dark brown eyes and thick shiny hair that was almost black. She had a really pretty face and a sweet personality. Kathy was a brunette with curves in all the right places. She exuded sex appeal. Not many girls could rock a plaid uniform and green knee highs, but Kathy did. She had more of a "been around the block" persona than either Betsy or I, but she also had an innocence about her. I think she had a rough childhood due to her parent's divorce. She also had an older sister who was something of a wild child.
It was with them that I experienced many firsts. Smoking behind the school, sneaking off grounds during lunch to shoplift at the nearby drugstore, hanging out with cute older guys, drinking beer on the weekends.
I also started to grow up physically, finally getting boobs after being totally flat chested. I even became a cheerleader! I was still bigger than most of the girls in school but I was popular enough to pull it off. As always, I was constantly aware of my weight, especially hanging around these two girls. But we truly did love one another and had great times together.
The summer after eighth grade was also great. I didn't hang out with Betsy and Kathy much because we didn't live close to each other. One of the downfalls of private school is that you have kids from all over attending, not just the kids in your neighborhood.
So I mostly hung out in my own hood. Yes I said hood, I'm cool like that lol. A bunch of us teens would gather at the ballpark every night, just hanging out, smoking cigarettes and drinking beer if we could manage to get some.
At some point I decided not to follow in most of my classmates footsteps. I wanted to go to public high school. I wanted to branch out, see what it was all about and above all, wear jeans to school!
One of the few girls who was also going to public school, was my friend Barb. We went to register together, making sure we had the exact same schedules. We were excited but also terrified!
I remember the first day like it was yesterday. We were like two scared little rabbits, in our new jeans, walking to school together.
The next four years were some of the best of my life. I loved high school! I made great friends, many of whom I still have 30+ years later. I was well liked and fairly popular. I did well in school but I wasn't above skipping classes or smoking a bowl at lunch. There were some not so great times. There was some mild racial tension, something I had never experienced before. I had my heart broken a few times. I hated gym.
I had no serious boyfriends, although most of my friends had steadies. I did have a few crushes, even a few boyfriends but nothing serious or lasting. I even managed to hold on to my virginity all through high school. I had offers and opportunities but to be honest I was scared to death. Not only of the pain, but I couldn't fathom letting a man see me naked. That feeling has never gone away. I loved sex, had a lot of sex, but even with long term relationships, I worked hard to never let a man see me completely naked. Lights off, please!
Eleventh and twelfth grade were more grown up times. Still lots of fun, but like most of my friends, I only went to school in the morning and worked in the afternoon.
Okay I'm finally getting sleepy so I'll close for now. More tomorrow. Thank you for reading.
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