From: seawasp@vm2.cis.pitt.edu (Sea Wasp)
Newsgroups: alt.callahans
Subject: Re: schools re: Old Coots Test
Date: 28 Sep 92 04:23:09 GMT
Organization: University of Pittsburgh
Originator: seawasp@pmax1.cis.pitt.edu

In article <1992Sep27.230933.5804@news.Hawaii.Edu> saiki@mpg.phys.hawaii.edu (L. Saiki) writes:
>Spacey mumbles:
>The Mighty and Powerful Sea Wasp comments:
>>	"Well, how else WOULD you say it? (Aside from the way *I* 
>>always pronounced it: suffer-more..."

>"I say it "sophmore" and always spelled it correctly.  Back then I was
>a wiz at spelling.  Now, I think I need pronounciation hints to get

	"Ah. I always heard it pronounced sof-oh-more or sof-uh-more."

>by.  A side comment here...I used to really good at writing stuff when
>I was in high school.  I was still quite good when I entered the 
>University but as soon as I stopped reading REAL books and skimmed
>through Physics/science texts my writing gradually worstened along
>with my spelling...although miniscule, I took pride in being the 
>best at spelling."  <sad grin and a sigh>  Spacey takes a sip from

	"So why did you stop reading 'real' books? Even in  college
I didn't drop much below a book a day. I have trouble getting
to sleep without reading something.
	"Boy, does reading make a difference, though. I'm amazed at
the number of intelligent, articulated, and fairly well educated
people who are incapable of writing anything of any length without
glaring spelling and grammar errors."

>>	"SKIPPED SCHOOL???? 
>>	"In HIGH SCHOOL? I mean, if you meant in college, okay,
>>I can see that, but how did anyone have enough money in high school
>>to afford to go to a nice restaurant... and how could you get OUT
>>of the school in the first place?"

>"We had a very nice shopping mall near the school, so all we did
>was walk/drive off campus and go to one of the restaurants and eat 
>there.  All of us could - somehow - afford it.  It wasn't so bad 
>really since lunches would go for 5-10 dollars a person which was 
>within range of our allowances...but if I wanted to buy records, I
>would have to lay off the fun stuff for a while since I go 
>berserk when it came to buying imported underground records..."

	The Wasp, still hazy because he's not sure if he can completely
unlurk, blinks in amazement. "Wow. First, in my high school you didn't
get to LEAVE THE BUILDING without permission -- which was only available
from a teacher on request.

	"Second... 5-10 dollars IN RANGE OF AN ALLOWANCE????? Good god!
My allowance was the square of my age, in pennies -- I wouldn't hit
the ten buck range YET. At 14-15, of course, it was something over 2 
bucks a week but not much.
	"Buying records and so on was out of the question -- at least,
on an allowance. I got a paper route at 14, that paid my expenses --
but I was required to save 4/5 of my income, so I got maybe 3 bucks a
week to spend from that. So my income in high school was mostly from
4-7 bucks a week, job included. Once I got to  16 (sophomore-junior)
I got a job in a local grocery that paid more, but still... I
couldn't afford to eat out at all."

>"Hey Seawasp, what did you do in high school?"

	"Not much. Ate in the cafeteria, avoided the bullies, (or frightened
them off with lunatic laughter and Peter Lorre impressions), went to
the library and did a lot of hacking (that's where the two computer terminals
were located), wrote stories in class or read books, and played D&D.
(Not AD&D, it didn't exist when I was in high school -- D&D, the three
little booklets, later with Greyhawk, Blackmoor, Eldritch Wizardry, and
Gods, Demigods, and Heroes as supplements...)"


                                 Sea Wasp
                                   /^\
                                   ;;;