Eighth Grade

     In the fall of 1949 I began to attend David Millard Jr. High School . I was still twelve years old for I had not had my 13th birthday at the time. All of my dresses had sashes that tied in the back and I wore my Mary Jane’s, but every one else had penny loafers and skirts and sweaters. When I first showed up there, I was told, “You are at the wrong school! You belong at the Elementary School!”

     I was less sophisticated than the other students. I still liked to play hide and seek, and red rover and action games and the girls at David Millard were usually chatting about boys, which I thought was not only stupid but boring. They would say, “Don’t be so naïve, Sallie!” Eventually, they would quit including me..

I was happy enough just to play with my sister when I got home from school. I had to take Algebra and Home Economics and College Placement English. The school wanted me to take Latin, but I got out of that somehow.. We made friends on our street. There was Elizabeth Anne , Sarah , Junior H., and the Hensley kids. We also played with Tammy and his grandma Cora. We liked to play in the auto wreck yard and on red clay bank. There was an old deserted house on the red clay bank, which we explored.

      It was a mansion at one time and had even been a school for some years. We found a deserted school building and drug some old desks and school materials up to our yard. We went downtown to the Cagle Music Company, and found some big plywood packing cartons and drug one back and made a “club house”. We found some blue paint and painted it. We would go inside with candles.

     Mary and I saw a movie called, “White Savage”, with Jon Hall and Maria Montez, they were into cobra worship, so we would pretend to be cobra worshippers and bang on our home made drum (an old oil drum) while we chanted, “Hail King Cobra!” We would also try to balance on a rolling and empty oil barrel.

     Here I am in my Jr High School blouse with a plaid skirt. I did not even comb my hair very well. I wore that blouse that had flowers on it with a plaid skirt. What a sight that must have been.

     During this time, I learned to ride a bicycle that belonged to one of our grandmother’s neighbor kids. His name was Harry S and he lived next door to her on Allen Street. He had a brother named Max, who was in my class at school. I kind of liked Max, but he paid no attention. He gave no evidence that he knew I was a living being..

     Riding a bicycle was so much fun. I really felt a feeling of freedom. I felt like I was flying or something. Harry was very generous with his bicycle. He let Mary and me ride it often.

     I would baby-sit with some kids in our neighborhood. They were the Johnson kids. They had a nice home. One time I found some wine and decided to sample it. The children got out of bed and caught me, so I gave them all a sample. They had threatened to tell on me if I did not share. Even two year old Bronnie, was served . A neighbor saw me and reported on me. Mrs. Johnson would still let me baby sit with warnings not to give the children wine.