The Year Was 1960!

In November of 1959 I turned 17 years old. I was in the 11th grade at Brooklyn Park High School taking what was then called "The Commercial" course. The courses were geared to preparing me for an office job. Typing, shorthand, bookeeping plus the other required subjects like English, history, science and gym were what my studies consisted . Not really having any definite plans as to what I wanted to do after high school I took this course of study with the idea in mind of working as a stenographer or secretary after graduation. My parents never discussed going to college with me, but later on they said they had wanted me to go to Hood college to finish out my education. Perhaps they wanted me to become a teacher. I'll never know for sure. I was a pretty good student with A,B grades and maybe a C or two. I often wonder how kids at that age know for sure what they want to do with their lives and make their educational choices wisely! All I know is at that time in the history of my life I didn't really have a clue. (but God did and He allowed me to grow up at my own pace) Being a young teenage girl, wrapped up in herself and desiring to be popular I pretty much went along with my peers and what they were up to. At this point in time I was becoming rebelliously independent and disrespectful to my parents. I wanted to smoke cigarettes so I badgered my parents till they said ok. After all, they had given my younger brother Bucky permission so why couldn't I? One of the interests I had in high school was belonging to the Civil Air Patrol. Our unit met at the fire hall in Riviera Beach once a week. I don't remember how I got involved in this but I enjoyed wearing the uniform and going to meets where we marched. At our home station we would practice marching and listen to talks about CAP. I met a lot of different people through this organization. I believe I was only involved for about 1-1/2 years. For some unknown reason I've always liked uniforms and the discipline of the military. I went to lots of dances and parties with girlfriends and as I got older I began to have a few boyfriends. Mostly, I just wanted to go out and not sit at home on a Friday or Saturday night. I must admit I used a couple of guys who had cars just to go somewhere. One night in the spring of 1960 I was to take a girlfriend home from my house but instead of doing that she encouraged me to drive down to Glen Burnie to a gas station where some of the guys hung out! So, that is exactly what I did! She was right, there were a group of guys there that she knew. They were all seniors and some were pretty popular. One of those guys came over to my window where I was seated behind the wheel and wanted to know if he could drive my car. It was my Dad's '55 Pontiac 3 speed stick shift. I didn't give it a second thought as I got out and gave him the wheel! His name was Jim and he took the car for a ride around the block. Little did I know that he burned a few thousand miles off the tires before returning. We stayed for a while then I realized that my Dad would be expecting me home by now. We left the station and I drove her back to her house in Brooklyn. Then I drove home with a story as to why I was late. ( to be continued)