Memoir Monday, Oct 11, 1957

Back to that crazy freshman year at Clarkdale the last year before it became Mingus, the 1957-58 school year.   

Oct 11, 1957

Got up early. Did the horse chores. Ate breakfast and visited with Mom a while. Dressed and up to Kit’s (Evelyn’s) to pick her up. We were quite early. We talked until the bell rang. Up to study hall,  Howard, Bobbi and Tyce were discussing me. In reference to my sobriquet “Mosquito,” Tyce said, “Maybe she ain’t big but she sure has a heck of a bite.” I nearly laughed out loud. They had not seen me. English class I turned in my report on “Jumper” and read Tyce’s. His is good but not as complete as mine. The senior gals brought the school paper around. I bought a copy. My first published work, mentioning TWM too. Recess. Visited Carolyn (Nobles), Tracy (Ensign) and Linda (Crose). Algebra. Did some board work. Home for lunch and up again. Teased and talked with Howard Schwab and some of the girls.  Usual typing. In Spanish had a time. Mrs Horsepower asked us questions. I got all the easy ones and Tyce got all the hard ones. He made La Professora mad! Down to History. Bobbi left on the early bus. As there were only four, Mr Cantrell let us out. Tony and Delores went home. Tyce and El Professor to the gym and I came home and saddled up Louie. About the first canyon after the Indian Hills gate, a yellow truck came up,. A loud whistle startled me as the truck drew along side and passed. I looked up into the laughing eyes of Tyce. He grinned and waved at me as he leaned on the ledge. He looked out the back window as they (he and the foreman) drove on. Louie and I had a nice ride and I rode Tina too. Usual chores. Ate. Did some writing and hit the hay. What is on the book for tomorrow? Quien sabe.  Adios, Peggy. PS 11 is now a lucky day.

For a short while my friend Evelyn decided she wanted to be "Kitten", thus the 'Kit'. I can laugh now recalling how many silly aliases I aspired to over the years. Such as here going by Peggy instead of Maggie since I had become Margaret for awhile. I have no idea if girls still do that. Maybe not; young people are more inclined to want to change their pronouns if I can trust the news.  Sometimes that means names too, I suppose. Shrug!!

As I have said before, the first class of the day happened to be study hall. I must have wandered in a few minutes late and overheard this conversation. I often felt I was an odd gal out, not quite fitting in to the rest of  the group and maybe often really not liked. I have no idea how much of that was actual or just my perception. In later years I am inclined to say it was mostly me, how I felt--I was prickly and shy and knew my life and family aside from the school scene were very different. I had friends, maybe more and better than I recognized in those days.  For example, Carolyn(Nobles), Linda (Crose) and Tracy (Ensign) were all 8th graders at this point and later were part of my graduating class, except Tracy had moved away.And I did and do think of them as friends. 

Charlie Mike was now home from the hospital after his broken leg but still in the half body cast and of course not going to school.  For the most part, life went on pretty much as usual. Mom spent some time most days home schooling him so he would not fall too far behind. First grade is a rather critical point in schooling. Otherwise she had resumed the household tasks and I was back mostly doing horse and mule work. I'd have to check back to see what we had right then. I know Tina and Louie--not sure of others. 

I was not fond of Ms Taylor, the typing teacher who also was in charge of the mimeographed (maybe a 'ditto' machine with the purple gunk?) school paper, but she knew, perhaps from Miss Rayle, that I liked to write so she had made me more or less the freshman class reporter. It was part gossip column and some relating various events. I'm not sure what this article was, my first effort in that line. I think the paper cost five cents. I usually could not have found much more to spend!

Our family privately called the small hills west of the Cottonwood highway "The Indian Hills" because Vince and Vernon Randall's mom lived up there. Other than her small house, they were bare and we often rode up there. I think they may have been Yavapai tribal land.  

 For "pix" tax--One photo of me on Louie out on the open area west of the assorted houses where the Nobles family and several others lived. An earlier friend named Michele Boyle was there for a bit and I think perhaps Kathy Feld and her mom lived there also. At this time I think Louie was teaching me more than I was training him! He was one wily old mule and well trained when we got him. Then Tina up the the canyon, near the time and place when she broke Charlie Mike's leg.