Looking Back: What I learned about me in high school from my yearbooks

Ah, yearbooks – we all have them from back in our high school days, and some people even have them from college. My high school yearbooks have been sitting on the bottom shelf of our bookcase in the living room, hidden by the fact that it’s so close to the TV set that it’s hard to pull them out.

And yet, while I was desperately searching for books and other items to sell (after all, we do need some cash), I pulled them out and began to read all the notes that people wrote to me over those four years. As I tried my best to remember all the people who wrote nice things to me, I looked back at my life, which seems like a previous one. I learned a lot about myself then and now. I was given the keys to go forward by a glimpse at how things used to be.

Since I am coming up on ten years since I graduated and left Westlake High School, I decided to make a list of all the things I learned from my yearbooks way down the line, when we have forgotten so many people who wrote in them:

People need to make their names more legible. I can’t tell who half the people who signed my yearbook were. Same goes for the light-green pens.

I find it funny that most people described me as “nice” and “interesting.” Interesting must mean weird. And I’m okay with that.

I never made it to SFSU. Thank G-d: Two years after I was accepted but never made it, the Hillel was attacked and two people ended up in comas. I would probably have been involved with Hillel, and I could have been right in the middle of it. Life works in mysterious ways.

All my three crushes in high school (the two minor ones and the major one) were total dorks. Looking at my husband, my taste for nerds has never changed.

A lot of people left phone numbers and e-mails in my yearbook. I should have contacted them and hung out with them. I should have kept up with them through the years. Luckily, there’s Facebook – it’s time to reconnect, people.

I totally forgot Nick Rutherford’s nickname for me: “Reinstabitch.” I think I may take it up again. Other nicknames include Chyna and Reina VICTORY Slutske.

It’s nice to know that, after all these years, there is one friend who I see regularly and maintain a strong friendship with despite the crazy times that high school had to offer. Lindsay King, you’re the best.

The truth is, I’m dying to speak in front of 3,000 people again. It’s a greater high than anything in this world.

Still wondering what happened to my archrival Phillip Chang.

I think that if Lady Gaga and Glee were around during my adolescence, I would have had a much easier time being weird.

Speaking of “Glee,” there is a great quote about high school from it: “One day, all of you are gonna be gone, and all of this, all of us, will be nothing but a hazy memory.” So sad how true that statement is, and sometimes it is sweet relief.

There are a lot of Sailor Moon drawings in my yearbook – not to mention other weird anime drawings. Most of them were Reggie’s.

I love the funny memories that these yearbooks make me think of. Highlights include: Marc locking me into a dark dressing room with Rhett, having my dad’s car end up on Ben’s driveway wall, sitting at Applebee’s with a huge group of people before the last choir show, and Zeb getting in my face and singing, “A-santa-sana-sqash-banana-we menu-menimia-bana.”

Still find it funny all the guys that people I should have gotten together with: JD, Jon, Dan, Joel, Zach… the list goes on. Never got together with any of them, though.

I have come to the conclusion that “Have a great summer” is what you say when you have nothing better to say to that person.

I wish I remember half of the weird inside jokes that are in here, such as being attacked by smurfs, “I am an evil carrot,” pink flowers have been known to attack, the duck quacks at midnight, etc. Guess they lose their meaning with time – unless it’s with Lindsay, because she remembers all of them.

Israel was not as fun as people thought it would be. However, it was dramatically changing – the evidence is how people viewed me in my senior yearbook versus my junior one.

Was WAY too obsessed with choir. I should have done something else other than that. Oh yeah, I wrote poetry. In the middle of history class. And then gave them to Nikki to read.

The sweetest thing in the world is to find out that my major high school crush, based on a yearbook message, actually loved me in his weird, twisted way. I should have known it all along – and I’m glad to know that, despite the insanity of my particular brand of adolescence, that there was someone who truly cared during that time. We may have not ended up together, but not all love is meant to last forever. Sometimes, we are meant to leave it behind and move forward. Their love is what pushes us along in life and allows us to love again.

Here is the best thing I ever wrote in anyone’s yearbook. I will never forget it, as I was just obsessed with this song at the time, which was during our freshman year: “For the life of me, I cannot remember – what made us think that we were wise and we’d never compromise? For the life of me, I cannot believe we’d ever die for these sins. We were merely freshmen.”

This is part one of two -- I have an interesting post coming up this week that should hopefully resonate with all the upcoming graduates. Until then, here is a recipe to cool you down in the hot months. It comes from my brother-in-law's wife, Renee, but it has some of my adjustments. Enjoy!

TACO SALAD

1 bag of romaine lettuce

1 red pepper

1 can corn

2-3 scallions

1 can black beans

½ cup shredded cheese

1 cup soy crumbles (see Quick Tip 1)

½ cup sour cream

½ cup avocado dip (see recipe, page )

1 tablespoon barbecue sauce

½ cup crushed corn chips (see Quick Tip 2)

Pour the lettuce into a bowl. Slice the red pepper in half and remove the stems, ribs and seeds. Chop into ¼ to ½ inch pieces. Cut the tips and roots of the scallions and chop into ¼ inch pieces and add both to the bowl.

Drain the corn and beans and put on top. Top with the cheese. Add the avocado dip, sour cream and barbecue sauce and toss together. Serve topped with the corn chips.

Quick Tip 1: The soy crumbles should be hot when you put them on the salad. A simple way is to just zap them in your microwave for 2 minutes. You can also warm them on your stovetop in a small frying pan.

Quick Tip 2: Unless you love soggy corn chips, don’t top your salad with them until you’re ready to eat. They’ll get mushy.