Tag Archives: High school memories

Long Ago and Far Away

2 Jul

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills.

Recently, Fred and I were just chatting, and something clicked in my mind, bringing up a memory.  I don’t remember the trigger, but the memory is quite clear.

The memory took in something from my high school days, and that brought up a memory from another part of our life.

And so, I got out the yearbook from my senior year in high school – at Highland High School in Albuquerque, New Mexico, my home town –  to look up the fellow in my memory.  WOW was that a walk down memory lane!  There were over 700 students in my senior class, so it wasn’t possible to know or be friends with all of them (and by-the-way – there were 3100 students in my high school, in just the final three grades of high school – sophomore, junior, and senior).  But quite a few were quite recognizable, and I had classes with some of them.  While I was mainly involved with the music program, some of the sports jocks were in my periphery.  

Highland High School – Albuquerque, New Mexico Credit Google Search

There was one guy who was in a lot of sports, which was a bit surprising, since he wasn’t much taller than I am.  We always called him by his last name – Taylor.

And that brings me to the main memory – Fred and I had been married over four years, when he joined the military (U.S. Air Force).

Credit Google Search

He had to go through the Officer Training School (OTS) as his “basic training” in San Antonio, Texas.  I elected to go with him and found a job with Civil Service at Kelly AFB.

1966 – Judy, my boss and a co-worker, at the beginning of “Zero Defects”

Kelly AFB, San Antonio, Texas

I had my own small apartment, and Fred was able to leave the base just one night each week.  All that to say that a National Guard unit from Albuquerque was going through the same OTS training the same time as Fred was. 

1966 – Fred receiving his certificate commissioning him as an Officer in the U.S. Air Force

Photo Credit – Charles Wills, Fred’s dad

1966 – After Fred’s graduation from OTS, Fred’s dad (full bird-Colonel) and me pinning the 2nd Lt. bars on his shoulders.

For some reason, I was with Fred at the same time this Guard unit was disembarking.  Perhaps I was just getting Fred out of the car and into the barracks, I just don’t remember.  However…standing there was a face from my past – my high school past no less!  And I yelled out  – “Hey Taylor” – because it was A. Taylor, that same sports jock, getting set up for OTS training!  He turned around, saw me, and with eyes as big as saucers said, “ohmygodlymygodohmygod!”  We both had a good laugh.  I don’t remember that we talked much – I’m not even sure that he remembered exactly who I was, but he remembered me from high school.

I have never attended any of my high school reunions, but my good friend from Albuquerque, Mary, has attended most of them.  We have talked some about the kids we went to school with, as she remembered them from those reunions.

There was another “sports jock” – B. Thompson – who lived not too far from me.  He was a real looker, and I’m sure a lot of the girls had a crush on him.  I probably did, too, but never got that close to him.  In any case, when I mentioned him, Mary said, “oh, he’s probably in jail by this time!”  So I guess he went off the rails somewhere along the line.

So how’s that for a memory, hmmmm?

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Typing Class

4 Mar

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

 

 

When I was growing up, my parents had an old manual Underwood typewriter that I used to “play around” with.

Credit Google search

Like the computer keyboards, all the “keys” had a number or letter on them. And while it was fun to play on, I didn’t really know what I was doing.

I knew that my high school offered typing classes, but I wanted to get a jump-start on that capability. So, one summer, I enrolled in a summer school typing class. Now you must remember that, back in that day, summer school was usually for remedial study. That didn’t bother me, however, because I knew I was just doing the class to further myself.

So I started the class. We had the standard, manual typewriters on each desk. However, there were NO numbers or letters on the keys – they were blank! But in front of the classroom – attached to a blackboard – was a chart with the typewriter keyboard on it – with the letters and numbers on each key.

 

Credit Google search – Pulaski County, Virginia l National Archives

 

As we began typing, we had to look at the chart – not our hands – to type what the teacher wanted us to type. In that way, we learned to type without looking at the keys or our hands. That has given me a lot of fast typing in all the jobs I held, as well as the letters I have written to friends.

As I was typing along one day, the teacher approached me and asked if he could ask me a question. When I agreed, he asked if I played the piano. Surprised by that question in a typing class, I said “yes.” In triumph he said, “I KNEW it! I can always tell the students who play the piano – they have a different dexterity to their fingering than those who don’t.”

That’s a fun memory that has stayed with me.

Following that class, I went on to take more typing classes in high school. When I graduated from high school, my parents purchased a portable, manual Olympia typewriter for me. I still have it. Here I am, typing my senior paper on my little portable typewriter at my Aunt Jessie’s house.

 

 

As I mentioned in another post (please see my post of December 18, 2016 – Out in the Cold), when I went back to work after 20+ years of being a stay-at-home mom, I tested out at 70+ correct words per minute on the computer!. That was a big surprise to me as well as those testing me. During those 20+ years between working in an office setting, and that testing for a new work situation, I had kept up my typing skills. Every letter I wrote home to my family was typed. My handwriting isn’t the best, and typing takes so much less time than hand-writing. So I typed all my letters. That helped keep up my typing skills.

I suppose many of you have seen pictures recently on facebook and other places that show old typing classes. That could have been me in that class! See the above picture!

Recently I had a visit to my primary care physician and for some reason we began talking about typing. She mentioned that people today can tell older computer typers as the keys “click.” That’s because when you learn to type on a manual typewriter, you must push the keys really hard to get it to actually meet the paper. Our wrists are in an up position (that’s a pianist position, as well), and we “attack” the keys.

It’s hard to let go of those habits, you know.

But, as I said – it’s a fun memory!

 

 

 

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It’s Music To My Ears

16 Oct

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

 

Seems like I have always loved to sing. I vaguely remember being in the Christmas program in my 1st grade class, and sang a solo. I think it was….Santa Claus Is Coming To Town.

I’m sure I sang in the children’s choir in our church. I don’t remember much about that. However, I do remember being in the youth choir in our church. And when I turned 17 years old, those of us that age, were allowed to sing in the adult choir. I was rather appalled to realize that some of those older women really needed to stop singing in the choir! And I made up my mind then and there that, when I got to that age, and if I found myself “warbling” like they were then it was time to stop singing in the choir!

I remember singing in my Junior High School chorus. Back then, Elementary school was 1st through 6th grade. Junior High was 7th through 9th grade, and high school was 10th through 12th grade.

I do remember singing solo’s in church – and not just in my home church, but in churches that Fred and I were members of years later.

But my best memories of singing came about during my High School days. I remember that we had to choose between singing in the chorus (or being in the band if that was our talent) or taking P.E. I chose music.   I was in the girls chorus all three years of my high school.

But there were two other groups within the music at my high school that I was interested in:  All-State Chorus and a hand-selected group they called Dreamers. I had to audition for each of those groups each and every year. The first year I auditioned for All-State Chorus, I had a cold and didn’t qualify. However, the final two years of my high school I was able to be a part of that group. High School choruses from all over New Mexico came to Albuquerque for the concert. We met in the University of New Mexico (UNM) gymnasium for rehearsals and the concert. As you might imagine, the acoustics were not the best, but we needed the space. And since Albuquerque was more-or-less central in New Mexico, it was always held there. What a fantastic experience that was!!

 

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1959 All-State Chorus from my high school

 

But I think, outside of All-State Chorus, the best thing about high school and singing, was to be a part of Dreamers all three years of my high school. There were 12 of us each year – four voices on each part of a trio. We always had a great blend, even though many of the voices changed out each year, as some graduated. We traveled to sing for other group meetings around the city. It was great!

 

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1959 Dreamers

 

Our chorus director was Arthur Loy. He was also the director for those of us in the All-State Chorus as well as the Dreamers. He had a great love for music, and his students, and the talent to direct us. He picked great songs for us to sing – some of the old great ones: Night and Day was one of my favorites. I was sorry to graduate and leave his tutelage.

 

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As you can see, music has been a large part of my life. I am grateful.

Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth.

Psalm 96:1

 

 

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