High School in the 60's

Although the make believe world of childhood was left far behind, the teenage years were full of wonder and yearning. You wanted to be popular, you wanted to be beautiful or handsome, you wanted to be with your friends a lot more than being home, and you wanted to belong. In the teen age years emotions were very close to the surface.  A snub could bring on a flood of tears, a poor grade could seem like the end of the world, and a pimple on your face was the disaster to end all disasters. You saw everything as black and white, not yet having learned the many shades of gray.
High School was a squat rectangular building, non imposing, located on a busy street. A faded red brick structure with tall institution like windows, it was flanked by a field for sports and bleachers for spectators. Much of the school life was centered around the football games and sport events. I did not attend those games having too much responsibility waiting for me at home but I knew of their importance from conversations in the social circles.
What do I remember;
heavy books lugged from home and carried around to classes
the sound of the bells when class was over and the hum of human traffic in the halls
the sound of lockers slamming closed
laughter
late bells
the smell of food coming from the home economic classes
the clatter of dishes in the cafeteria
In classes there were notes passed to each other inside notebooks and endless doodling on the papers while the teachers droned on. Subjects seemed so far removed from real life.
Once in a while you would have a teacher that would light a fire under you. They made the subject real and you wanted to know more. That was the best part of learning, a teacher who inspired.
Mostly your mind was on talking to your friends, getting out of the class, and seeing who was "seeing" who.
When a boy wanted you to be his girl he would give you his class ring. It was always too big but you wore it as a badge of honor. Not everyone went steady and there was a stigma to not having a boyfriend. Sometimes you would be given his "letters" which was a sweatshirt with the schools insignia; more status, more pride.
All of these tidbits are just the tip of the iceberg. There were proms, and hair styles, and dress codes all very particular to the 60's. That is yet another post.