Posted by Craig Funny you should remember the encyclopedia sales. She came by our house one night selling encyclopedias and I made a huge pitch that we buy the encyclopedia from her. It was that night that she told my parents that I was going to "be someone special some day." Funny how something said 46 years ago still sticks with you. Frustrating how I feel sort of sad that I let her down with her prediction. I remember that she had a book in her book collection called something like "A Field Guide to Animal Tracks." I was fascinated by that book and checked it out a zillion times. I would take it with me on winter weekends when I'd go tracking wildlife and use it as my way of learning animal tracks. In grade 6 I went to Mrs Switzenbergs class and asked her if I could check it out again. She wondered why and even commented on it to Mrs Bronson. It had nothing to do with the room it was it....just that it was a gold mine of information for a budding biologist. Damn. Brenda Louis sliding down a bannister. The commentary is almost endless there. And I certainly would have remembered that (and been envious of the bannister at the same time). There were so many memories of Brenda. Probably the most poignant memory happened in grade 8 with Mrs Hoople and I'll try to explain this with a modicum of decorum. It was a spring day....late April. One of the first really nice days of spring. Mrs Hoople (who could EVER forget her hair do??) had the windows on the south side of her room open letting in the fresh spring air. Mrs Hoople had us reciting things from a book. As we sat there on an otherwise warm (for northern Wisconsin) spring day, a wiff of cold air blew in through the window and across the class room. Luckily for me I was seated directly across from her when this cold air fortutiously blew over me and over her and more specifically over her blouse. The normal response of the involuntary muscle system kicked in with the cold air on her blouse and it did so just as Mrs Hoople called on me to recite something. I had never before seen the response that cold air on that region could create and in the mind of an 8th grader I thought I had suddenly died and gone to heaven. Being a typical all american testosterone-soaked male, a certain response kicked in. And it did so just as I was called on to read. She and I were seated about 3/4 of the way back in Mrs. Hoople's room. And unfortunately for me and my ego, 3/4th of the class had to turn around to look at me as I recited whatever the hell it was I was supposed to read. Of course only a blind person would have missed the response it created as I stood up from my chair and faced almost all of you. Brenda, to her credit, noticed what she had caused and looked the other way. I stood there incredibly embarassed and recited what I was supposed to recite and sat down as fast as humanly possible.
on 8/15/2006, 5:57 pm, in reply to "Re: Being Kissed By Jean"
70.18.243.81
Very nice memories of a very special person, Keith. She and Mrs Moe were the best reasons to be a student in Cameron in those days. I dont remember now (maybe you do) but for the longest time after I moved there she would call me "Claire" instead of "Craig". Drove me nuts.
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