My wife ran across the document shown below and thought I needed to display it on my desk along with my other awards and accolades.
OK, in reality, this is my only award and accolade, but that’s not the point.
Actually, I’m not sure what the point is. Do they still give out this sort of thing? Surely not. And even if they do, I can’t imagine that the superintendent of the school district actually signs the blessed things.
Several observations. First, I always thought that my first grade school teacher’s first name was “Vera,” not “Bera.” I’m glad I’ve got that straight now. Second, Sid McCallister, the principal, is none other than the father of PGA Tour pro Blaine McCallister. Third, Comanche Elementary School was “retired” some years ago, too old and decripit for rehabilitation. The buildings are still intact, and there are ongoing rumors that the complex may be purchased by an oil company for a field office (or pipe yard, which is more likely but less welcome by the neighborhood).
Fourth, and most puzzling, is the lack of a grade in the all important area of “Appetite.” Did I not eat that day (in which case, shouldn’t I have received a “U”?)? Or did they not feed us? Perhaps the school was short on paste for the first day of classes. (Get it?) This is a significant and alarming gap in my record of achievement, and perhaps the last time in my life that anyone drew a blank when considering my appetite.
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Hilarious. The first thing I noticed was the “appetite” listing. Odd.
Yes, I was quite alarmed by the missing appetite as well. And funny to see that this used to be cause for a grade. I’ve always been an over achiever in that area. 😉
Ha, good one about the paste…
I still have all of my old report cards, etc…funny, but I don’t think the term OCD had been invented yet. My wife recently put all these valuables into a high end scrapbook with all the trimmings and acid free paper, to boot. Yes, we subscribe to a Scrapbooking Mag….
For grades, we had Smiley Faces, Pumpkins (not sure of the significance), and Frowny Faces…
BTW, my elementary was Reagan Elementary in Odessa. I believe they have been nationally recognized recently.
The other neat thing about this diploma, is that you can tell that it was written with a fountain pen…at least I think. For some reason I still drool over the Levenger Catalog when I get one… A lot of good fountain pens do us now on the keyboard. When was the last time you wrote a letter to someone with a fountain pen? A shame. huh….
Mark, I think you’re right about the fountain pen. It looks like the sup signed with a ballpoint, but the other two signatures definitely have that “free-flowing ink” look to them.
Of course, as old as I am, they were probably using a quill!
It’s good to wax nostalgic, but, truthfully, I wouldn’t trade my keyboard for anything. The pen is too unforgiving.