A Meme... Blame This on G.W.
I pulled this months ago from G.W. Ferguson's blog, Secret Mountain Laboratory, and I have been meaning to post it for a while now. So here it is:
"Everybody's doing it!" Fill this out about your SENIOR year of high school! The longer ago it was, the more fun the answers will be.
1. Who was your best friend?
Barbara Spilman, who is now Barbara Lawson. We became best friends in Junior High School, and we are still best friends.
2. What sports did you play?
None. Although back in 10th grade when I was still taking Phys Ed, I discovered that I had a knack for softball. I could actually hit the damned thing—and make it go far, too! That never translated into any varsity efforts, though.
3. What kind of car did you drive?
I would sometimes persuade my dad to hand over the keys to our 1969 Buick LeSabre, a white whale of a car that actually had a built-up gas pedal. The only way I (and my dad… both shorties) could drive the behemoth.
4. Friday nights where did ya go?
Mostly to the drive-in movies to see double feature cheap scare and schlock movies. We’d cram several cars full of like-minded individuals and caravan to the Skyline Drive-In or the more down-rent 340 Drive-In and mill about around the cars and make fun of the movies. Blackula, The Corpse-Grinders, and The Undertaker and His Pals were among the favorites I remember. Sometimes we would collect crap from our basements (and/or steal flags off the local golf course) and use the detritus to dress up a half-sized, fig-leaf embellished statue of David that stood at the entrance to a local apartment complex. One of our “dress David” efforts even made it into the local newspaper!
5. Were you a party animal?
No. I was pretty innocent, all told.
6. Were you in band, orchestra, or choir?
I was in Concert Choir, the elite touring choir. You had to audition for it. Membership could be politically motivated, as the principal’s daughter was tapped for the choir as a rising sophomore (the youngest you could be), and she couldn’t sing worth shit. Most of us had at least a bit of talent, though. I was a second soprano—not the first chair either. I was a competent chorister, but not a soloist, by any means—something that carried over into my years playing and singing in bands. The females wore evening dresses and the males wore tuxes, and we gave concerts around the state. A year or so after I graduated, Concert Choir started performing in New York City once a year—but I think that has stopped after there was a scandal with the conductor and some students.
7. Were you a nerd?
Well, kinda. I was a wannabe hippie chick with a quirky streak. My friends and I didn’t really fit any stereotypes, except that we were all kind of oddballs. We started a group called “Young Fools on the Go,” and we amused ourselves accordingly. We knew we’d never be “popular,” but that didn’t mean we couldn’t have fun or belong to a social network. Here is a picture of some of the Young Fools:
Back row, L-R: Barb and her then-beau Rob; Middle row, LR: yours truly, Lee (aka, G.W.), Chibby (aka, Susan), Ginanne, and Jeanne; Front row: Laura. As you can see, we were a compromised but fun-loving bunch!
8. Did you get suspended/expelled?
Oh no. Never. I was a good girl.
9. Can you sing the fight song?
I don’t think we had one, although we did have a school song to which I still recall the words:
In the hills of old Virginia,
The lovely Shenandoah,
There’s a school that looms supremely.
Each year I love it more.
The sky is bright with the sunshine;
The spirit of love is there.
There’s truth and faith and courage
And friends who do and dare.
Dear Waynesboro High School,
As time goes on,
We’ll e’er be faithful
Daughters and sons.
We’ll float your colors
Only where there’s right.
We’ll keep your standard
Spotless and bright.
There was a cheer that was sung at football games and such, but I don’t think it qualifies as a “fight song”:
La-di-dah
Little Giants are the best!
La-di-dah
Are the best of all the rest!
La-di-dah
Little Giants are the best!
La-di-dah, la-di-dah, la-di-dah.
The name of our team was The Little Giants, as you can probably tell.
10. Who were your favorite teachers?
Michael Hamp was my English Lit teacher, and he was great. I also loved Mr. Zimmerman (or Mr. Z, as we called him), who was the choir director. He had directed my church choir when I was in elementary school, and he had been the director of all the choirs and choruses in which I’d sung since 7th grade.
11. Where did you sit during lunch?
We had a “Senior Lounge” beneath the stage in the auditorium, and I used to sneak over to Mick or Mack (the grocery store across the street—we were not supposed to leave school grounds, but hey) and buy something to eat and some Dr. Pepper to drink and then hang out in the “lounge.”
12.What was your school's full name?
Waynesboro High School.
13. School mascot?
I don’t think we had one. But then, there's this guy:
14. Did you go to Prom?
No, but I did go to Finals Dance, which was an uber-prom for seniors and their dates only. Women had to wear white gowns. Since nobody asked me, I asked a fellow YFOTG member who was about three years younger than me. It was kind of lame, really. I look at the picture now and wonder what I was thinking, using the ribbons I cut off the end of the dress (to hem it—me being a shorty and all) as little bows in my hair. Yikes.
15. If you could go back and do it over, would you?
No.
16. What do you remember most about graduation?
It was really hot, and I was sweltering in the gown.
17. What was your fave class?
Concert Choir. English Lit a close second.
18. Where were you on senior skip day?
I actually don’t recall a senior skip day. Uh oh.
19. Did you have a job your senior year?
No. I ended up working at Burger King (and later doing inventory at General Electric) the summer after I graduated, though.
20. Where did you go most often for lunch?
See above… Mick or Mack.
21. Have you gained weight since then?
Sadly, yes. I’ve been on a yo-yo since then. At my 10th reunion, I weighed 20 pounds less than I weighed when I graduated, and no one recognized me. That was gratifying. But at the latest reunion… feh. Dumpy and middle aged. I’m trying to work on the dumpy part right now. Can't really do much about the middle aged thing, though!
22. What did you do after graduation?
Went to the all-night party, first at the YMCA and then at the Wayne Theater, for a double-bill of cheesy scare movies.
23. When did you graduate?
June, 1973.
24. Who was your Senior prom date?
Bruce Taylor. Well, he was my Finals Dance date.
25. Are you going to your 10 year reunion?
I went… see #21 above. I also attended the 20th, the 25th, and the 33rd (don’t ask).
26. What was your favorite thing to eat at lunch?
I liked the rotisserie or the fried chicken at Mick or Mack. In the school cafeteria, I liked the open-faced grilled cheese sandwiches. They were always kind of bubbly and almost burned. Yummy!
27. Who was your boy/girlfriend?
I didn’t have one, although I had some severe crushes on Robbie Robertson and Chris Sandquist. They were friendly to me, but popular, so there was no way they were going to see me as date-worthy. Sigh.
28. What was your favorite memory your senior year?
Making our own 8 mm scare movies at the abandoned Claudius Crozet railroad tunnel through Afton Mountain.
Great fun.
And inner tubing down the Maury River through Goshen Pass.
29. Did you like how you looked in your senior picture?
No. Ick.
30. How have you changed since high school?
I’m a lot more confident, although I look back on the whole YFOTG thing, and I’m impressed at how we all embraced our status as oddballs rather than trying to suppress it and fit in with mundane popular kids who wouldn’t have given us the time of day for our efforts. I’m glad I learned early to trust and follow my instincts and not follow the pack. It’s served me well.
"Everybody's doing it!" Fill this out about your SENIOR year of high school! The longer ago it was, the more fun the answers will be.
1. Who was your best friend?
Barbara Spilman, who is now Barbara Lawson. We became best friends in Junior High School, and we are still best friends.
2. What sports did you play?
None. Although back in 10th grade when I was still taking Phys Ed, I discovered that I had a knack for softball. I could actually hit the damned thing—and make it go far, too! That never translated into any varsity efforts, though.
3. What kind of car did you drive?
I would sometimes persuade my dad to hand over the keys to our 1969 Buick LeSabre, a white whale of a car that actually had a built-up gas pedal. The only way I (and my dad… both shorties) could drive the behemoth.
4. Friday nights where did ya go?
Mostly to the drive-in movies to see double feature cheap scare and schlock movies. We’d cram several cars full of like-minded individuals and caravan to the Skyline Drive-In or the more down-rent 340 Drive-In and mill about around the cars and make fun of the movies. Blackula, The Corpse-Grinders, and The Undertaker and His Pals were among the favorites I remember. Sometimes we would collect crap from our basements (and/or steal flags off the local golf course) and use the detritus to dress up a half-sized, fig-leaf embellished statue of David that stood at the entrance to a local apartment complex. One of our “dress David” efforts even made it into the local newspaper!
5. Were you a party animal?
No. I was pretty innocent, all told.
6. Were you in band, orchestra, or choir?
I was in Concert Choir, the elite touring choir. You had to audition for it. Membership could be politically motivated, as the principal’s daughter was tapped for the choir as a rising sophomore (the youngest you could be), and she couldn’t sing worth shit. Most of us had at least a bit of talent, though. I was a second soprano—not the first chair either. I was a competent chorister, but not a soloist, by any means—something that carried over into my years playing and singing in bands. The females wore evening dresses and the males wore tuxes, and we gave concerts around the state. A year or so after I graduated, Concert Choir started performing in New York City once a year—but I think that has stopped after there was a scandal with the conductor and some students.
7. Were you a nerd?
Well, kinda. I was a wannabe hippie chick with a quirky streak. My friends and I didn’t really fit any stereotypes, except that we were all kind of oddballs. We started a group called “Young Fools on the Go,” and we amused ourselves accordingly. We knew we’d never be “popular,” but that didn’t mean we couldn’t have fun or belong to a social network. Here is a picture of some of the Young Fools:
Back row, L-R: Barb and her then-beau Rob; Middle row, LR: yours truly, Lee (aka, G.W.), Chibby (aka, Susan), Ginanne, and Jeanne; Front row: Laura. As you can see, we were a compromised but fun-loving bunch!
8. Did you get suspended/expelled?
Oh no. Never. I was a good girl.
9. Can you sing the fight song?
I don’t think we had one, although we did have a school song to which I still recall the words:
In the hills of old Virginia,
The lovely Shenandoah,
There’s a school that looms supremely.
Each year I love it more.
The sky is bright with the sunshine;
The spirit of love is there.
There’s truth and faith and courage
And friends who do and dare.
Dear Waynesboro High School,
As time goes on,
We’ll e’er be faithful
Daughters and sons.
We’ll float your colors
Only where there’s right.
We’ll keep your standard
Spotless and bright.
There was a cheer that was sung at football games and such, but I don’t think it qualifies as a “fight song”:
La-di-dah
Little Giants are the best!
La-di-dah
Are the best of all the rest!
La-di-dah
Little Giants are the best!
La-di-dah, la-di-dah, la-di-dah.
The name of our team was The Little Giants, as you can probably tell.
10. Who were your favorite teachers?
Michael Hamp was my English Lit teacher, and he was great. I also loved Mr. Zimmerman (or Mr. Z, as we called him), who was the choir director. He had directed my church choir when I was in elementary school, and he had been the director of all the choirs and choruses in which I’d sung since 7th grade.
11. Where did you sit during lunch?
We had a “Senior Lounge” beneath the stage in the auditorium, and I used to sneak over to Mick or Mack (the grocery store across the street—we were not supposed to leave school grounds, but hey) and buy something to eat and some Dr. Pepper to drink and then hang out in the “lounge.”
12.What was your school's full name?
Waynesboro High School.
13. School mascot?
I don’t think we had one. But then, there's this guy:
14. Did you go to Prom?
No, but I did go to Finals Dance, which was an uber-prom for seniors and their dates only. Women had to wear white gowns. Since nobody asked me, I asked a fellow YFOTG member who was about three years younger than me. It was kind of lame, really. I look at the picture now and wonder what I was thinking, using the ribbons I cut off the end of the dress (to hem it—me being a shorty and all) as little bows in my hair. Yikes.
15. If you could go back and do it over, would you?
No.
16. What do you remember most about graduation?
It was really hot, and I was sweltering in the gown.
17. What was your fave class?
Concert Choir. English Lit a close second.
18. Where were you on senior skip day?
I actually don’t recall a senior skip day. Uh oh.
19. Did you have a job your senior year?
No. I ended up working at Burger King (and later doing inventory at General Electric) the summer after I graduated, though.
20. Where did you go most often for lunch?
See above… Mick or Mack.
21. Have you gained weight since then?
Sadly, yes. I’ve been on a yo-yo since then. At my 10th reunion, I weighed 20 pounds less than I weighed when I graduated, and no one recognized me. That was gratifying. But at the latest reunion… feh. Dumpy and middle aged. I’m trying to work on the dumpy part right now. Can't really do much about the middle aged thing, though!
22. What did you do after graduation?
Went to the all-night party, first at the YMCA and then at the Wayne Theater, for a double-bill of cheesy scare movies.
23. When did you graduate?
June, 1973.
24. Who was your Senior prom date?
Bruce Taylor. Well, he was my Finals Dance date.
25. Are you going to your 10 year reunion?
I went… see #21 above. I also attended the 20th, the 25th, and the 33rd (don’t ask).
26. What was your favorite thing to eat at lunch?
I liked the rotisserie or the fried chicken at Mick or Mack. In the school cafeteria, I liked the open-faced grilled cheese sandwiches. They were always kind of bubbly and almost burned. Yummy!
27. Who was your boy/girlfriend?
I didn’t have one, although I had some severe crushes on Robbie Robertson and Chris Sandquist. They were friendly to me, but popular, so there was no way they were going to see me as date-worthy. Sigh.
28. What was your favorite memory your senior year?
Making our own 8 mm scare movies at the abandoned Claudius Crozet railroad tunnel through Afton Mountain.
Great fun.
And inner tubing down the Maury River through Goshen Pass.
29. Did you like how you looked in your senior picture?
No. Ick.
30. How have you changed since high school?
I’m a lot more confident, although I look back on the whole YFOTG thing, and I’m impressed at how we all embraced our status as oddballs rather than trying to suppress it and fit in with mundane popular kids who wouldn’t have given us the time of day for our efforts. I’m glad I learned early to trust and follow my instincts and not follow the pack. It’s served me well.
Labels: high school memories, waynesboro, YFOTG
posted by Cathy VanPatten at 9:55 PM
15 Comments:
Actually, I have several comments which I'll save for later, but I feel it's my moral duty to tell you I'M SO STEALING THAT YFOTG PICTURE!
Damn, I need a scanner!
I can send the jpg to you--is the verizon addy still good?
After all... Cindy took it, so technically, it's hers!
This comment has been removed by the author.
Verizon address is still good...but I've copied it off your website.
And here's where old age creeps in--I remember the coat I'm wearing (my father's USN fatigue jacket), I vaguely remember all of us posing, but for the life of me I can't remember where or the circumstances.
But LOOK HOW CUTE YOU ARE!
And OMG! Mick Or Mack! I was a fan of the fresh-baked bread. Remember rehearsing While Shakespeare Slept (Barb: "He'p me, he'p me; 'e's a looney!")? Chris Sandquist and I would sneak out and get an entire loaf of the stuff to devour between scenes, then proceed to make various comments in this half-assed pidgin we found amusing ("Need first aid blinkie*." "First aid blinkie no come."). At one point Pam Kidd was squatting on stage exposing a...great deal...of buttcrack and I nudged Chris, saying "Drop bread down pants!" to which Chris replied (to my shock and amazement, for it was SO out of character), "Drop d**k down pants!"
Ya can't make up this stuff!
*ambulance
OMG! "While Shakespeare Slept"! Who the heck came up with those horrid one-acts!
Of course, it was not as bad as the dramatization of "The Outcasts of Poker Flats" (ah, Mother Shipton!) or the truly wretched offering (in three acts!) of No Opr'y at the Opr'y House Tonight, (and I say that as the actor who gave that stunning portrayal of the "Searching Seamstress"). Meanwhile, county schools such as Turner Ashby were doing Pinter and Albee. Damn.
That lovely picture was taken at our annual April Fool's Picnic at Coyner Springs--not exactly picnic weather, huh? And again, I come back, in amazement, to the fact that I thought that I was fat. Fat, fat, fat. I mean, I wasn't SKINNY, but...
Love this blog!!! As a former YFOTG, but two years ahead of the pack and therefore an OCOTG way too soon, I appreciate you recollections. Do you remember the dart board we made out of a huge piece of plywood, with all our faces that we painted on? I swear, I think Barb still has it, all pocked with dart holes, the wood cracking and peeling, as we smile out at the world from acrylic eyes.
I remember Outcasts of Poker Flats. I can't remember my character's name but do remember I was a "lady of the night." And at the end of the play, when the fire was supposed to die out (and we were all dead), I had to roll over and turn the switch on the fake fireplace. We got a really crappy rating at the One Act Play Festival. When we'd finished our performance, I remember the judge asking Rob Dillon how old he thought his character was (Rob played a grizzled old dude, and he had the creaky, quaky voice and walked all bent over and stuff) and Rob said, "I guess about sixty." I think the judge was about that age. We got a "3." A "1" was the best. Man, did that suck!! But it was fun!!
I wish there was some way to get "Terror in the Blue Ridge" and "The Puerto Rican Apaches and Their Zombie Slaves" up on You Tube!
Love the high school questionnaire. I should send that to all my WHS classmates. Go Little Giants (and yeah, the Little Giant *was* the mascot. How un-PC is that??)
Beth
Oh yes! I remember the dart board!
And somewhere I still have a photo Cindy took of you as YFOTG President (you were the first!) gazing over a glass paperweight that I think we said was the "Presidential Jewel" or some such thing! Too funny!
Oh yeah. I remember that 3. Feh! I mean, the play was awful, but the players were not.
You know, if those old super 8 movies are still intact, Barbie could have them converted to DVDs. Then I think they could be uploaded to YouTube. That would be AWESOME!
I'm going to have to dig out some more old pictures to scan. Lots of blog fodder in my old albums! LOL!
Beth, your character was, appropriately enough, "The Duchess," and you had some stage business where you were entertaining one of the characters (Piney?), putting on pretend airs, and referring to the primitive cookware as "Limoges," which for some reason still cracks me up.
I think a lot of those otherwise dreadful one-acts & melodramas existed so high school drama clubs could use as many people as possible while not overtaxing anyone's acting skills. But hey! We did do Albee's "The Sandbox" with Rrrrrrobbie Rrrrrobertson!
Cheap solution for Super-8 to YouTube: project Terror and Puerto Rican Apaches onto a movie screen and film it with a digital camera. Cheaper than a transfer and works surprisingly well!
OMG! How do you remember this stuff???
I'm sure the Limoges line flew right past me at that point in time, as worldly as I was! Heh!
And you're right. We DID do "The Sandbox"--I think it might have been the next year.
I had a fixation on Edward Albee back in my senior year. In Drama, we second year students (to distinguish us from the first years, because we were all in the same class...) had to direct a scene, and I picked an early scene from Tiny Alice. Alas, John N. was cast as the Lawyer, and he could NEVER get his lines straight. "This is Brother Julian, and there are 10 years missing from his life!" "Tell us, Brother Julian, about those 20 years missing from your life." etc. etc. And man, was his delivery wooden. Ohh, I was steaming!
LOL!
My brain,not unlike my apartment, is cluttered with TONS of stuff, mostly trivial.
"Broooother Jooooooolian!"
You may or may not remember that I lacked a sixth period class my senior year and often spent the afternoon in the rear of the auditorium watching your Drama class; I was a witness to John N.'s frightening lack of acting ability.
And The Sandbox? Oh, I had SUCH a crush on Leslie Snyder, who played "Mommie." Uncomfortable Trivia: she had just broken up with the guy who played "Daddy."
My introduction to Albee and the Absurdists must have occurred during our Junior year when we hosted a regional one-act play festival and some high school (Buffalo Gap?) performed An American Dream ("Goodness! Someone is ringing!" "I shall answer the door!" "Goodness! Someone is ringing!" "I shall answer the door!"). Sam Moyer briefly dated the female lead, who, you may recall, spent half the play wearing only her slip, which is as good a reason as any to get involved with someone.
And the Floodgates of Nostalgia continue to gush...
Ah, yes! "Goodness! Someone is ringing!" It became a foolish catchphrase, as I recall!
Also Shirley Chisholm's immortal "I'm not braggin', I'm NOT braggin'..."
Also, yesterday when I was digging through old photos to find the picture of Beth with the paperweight, I found pictures of a foolish ice-skating adventure, no doubt up on the mountain. There's a picture of Dave V. tying up his skates, and one of you, Bruce, and Cindy looking appropriately foolish.
Once Christmas is over and chaos no longer reigns, I will scan some of these lovelies!
Lee, I can't believe you remember all this stuff (wait...didn't Cathy just say that?!) The Duchess, yes, and the Limoges! Good Lord...
Cath...the photo of me and the paperweight...I remember it was the presidential onyx! Why onyx? Why anything when you're a YFOTG!
LOL! Yes! The ONYX!
And indeed, it looks like an onyx. If an onyx were clear and glass-like. Too funny.
I will have to get those photos scanned!
That was fun to read! And *ahem* you graduated the year I was born! ;-)
I love the picture. What a cutie you were in high school! I'm liking all the girls' coats, too.
LOL, ewok!! It is really amazing to think how time has flown! And I really don't feel all that much older than that chick in the little double-breasted coat. Well, not often...
My stepson will be 21 this coming April--now THAT blows my mind!
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