With Bright Shining Faces................

Summer Vacation is rapidly coming to a close and a new school year is quickly approaching. When I was teaching, I always argued for a later start but the trend for a mid-August beginning has become the norm all over our state. Those last two weeks of August seemed like treading water with my students. Their heads were just not into the school and schedule mold until after Labor Day. It was still so hot and summer activities still beckoned. I never started a unit or on-going project until September. One Day at a Time was the way we went in August.

Last weekend's No Tax shopping was a great idea. Thanks to Oklahoma Lawmakers for making Back To School a little less painful for parents. All reports indicate the retailers and consumers were delighted with the results. If the crowds in the stores were any indication, the tax relief was a great incentive to spend money. Gee. Does this tell us anything?

Shopping for school clothes is a favorite memory for all of us. In Junior High I remember arriving the first day in my new fall duds. LadyBug wool skirt, button down shirt with a monogrammed circle pin, wool, cable knit cardigan and always Weejuns with hose. Of course, Fall was only a state of mind, induced by the much perused "Seventeen" Back to School issue. This was pre-air conditioning at West Junior High. My perfect flip was, needless to say, less perky by lunch time.

The boys arrived in straight leg Levi's and also, Weejun Loafers. They however, wore socks with their shoes. Said socks matched their perfectly ironed button down shirt. Baby Blue shirt? Baby Blue Socks. Yellow Shirt? Yellow Socks. If you went madras, which was definitely a fashion trend, your sock choice was as varied as the colors in your plaid.

Here's a walk down memory lane. Fruit Loops. Not the cereal, but the little sewn loop on the back of a man's Oxford Cloth Shirt. These loops were eagerly collected by every female in Junior High. You would walk up behind an unsuspecting male and rip the loop off the back of his shirt. The shirt often suffered but the boy felt validated and the girl had certainly gained his attention. Always the point in Junior High, right?

Ah. School supplies. The displays were up the 5th of July this year. Lap Tops, calculators, Blackberries. Designer Backpacks, satchels with wheels, thermal lunch boxes. Scented Markers, fancy pens and mechanical pencils. Throw in the contraband but expected Ipods and cell phones. Don't forget the reams of copy paper and boxes of Kleenex to offset expenses for teacher supplies. School supplies aren't twenty dollars and a trip to the dime store anymore!

To really date myself, the one prerequisite for my new school year was the blue notebook and a package of dividers. If all went well, by mid October, said notebook was literally covered with llll Carol Loves Curt, llllll Ringo Rules,
********* CC + DD ddddd& ######## WEST IS BEST!

Have a great "Last Week of Vacation" with your kids. Summer always goes so quickly but there is something renewing about a new school year. Fresh starts, opportunities and experiences. As an added bonus, it is nice to get back in a regular routine isn't it?