Artifacts: Junior High

Here's a bizarre artifact from junior high.  Alameda Junior high was originally Las Cruces High School.  You could tell that from the columned facade at the front door.  It's still there, though now the building is the county court house.  The entire rear of the school was remodeled with glass walls for it.  The auditorium is now the main court room, but the big chimney is still standing at the back the hall.  Hard to imagine that they were able to convert the gym into usable space.  The smell of that gym is still carved into my memory. 

I had happy times at the school.  No, no.  Actually I didn't.  I remembered being bullied there (just once, I stood up to them and they knocked it off).  Not to mention, the principal had a novel way of getting kids to class on time.  He went down the hallways, carrying a cricket bat, chasing tardy students.  (I made sure to be on time after only one chase.)  It was a more sensitive time in the early 80's.  All that said, I might rather have re-attended classes than had to return there for jury duty. 

I kept this school newsletter from back then.  No, "Hi-Times" would have had the same connotation as now, but the school administrators went with it anyway.   

I found these Letters to Santa pretty amusing and nostalgic with requests for the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders and Rick Springfield.

I can guess I kept this for the dedication at the bottom that mentions me and Stephanie (they spelled it wrong).  Alas, that never happened.  She was our real-life Olivia Newton-John being a transplant from Australia.  She was blonde, though I don't think she sang.