The Observation Deck

Stan and Gaby are absolutely correct about the "Legend of the Old Harding School".

There WAS that legend of toughness, and worse.

And of course, it was all a complete fabrication.

Harding was a "junior high" school, and a very fine one. Dad taught there for twenty-five years under Principals Virgil Wallace and Robert Miller. That school was run like a fine watch from the top down. As my father's son, I was up there all the time before I became a student there for grades 7-9, because back then, you spent your first "high school" year AT a junior high, hence the name.

Were there some "tough" kids at the "old" Harding? Of course there were. Harding was very much like the rest of Lakewood; a true microcosm of American society at its best and worst.

Harding's "reputation" probably arose, quite simply, because of a perception that...most of the "rich" kids went to Lakewood's OTHER two junior highs, and as we all know, "rich" kids are often thought to be good kids because they are simply rich kids. (smile)

At least that may have been the perception of SOME people.... (bigger smile here)

But...as we as adults know, perceptions in all directions can so often be utter fabrications, as well.

The real truth was that wealthy AND poor children attended ALL THREE of Lakewood's junior high schools, and that ALL THREE of those schools had long standing traditions of excellence in education, as well as very high standards and a real spirit of competitiveness in those days before cooperation began to eclipse competition as a social virtue.

But, all of these points being made, as a former "old Harding" student from nearly a half-century ago, I CAN say...

...yeah, we WERE tough.

Back to the banjo...

Gary Rice wrote:Stan and Gaby are absolutely correct about the "Legend of the Old Harding School".

There WAS that legend of toughness, and worse.

And of course, it was all a complete fabrication.

Gary

I would have to say, everyone at Webb Pharmacy, Roman Fountain and Midnight Market
would agree with that assessment.


.

Hmmmm Jimmy....

On reflection, I guess the "old Harding" had to have been pretty tough after all...

...since, of the three original junior high/middle schools, Harding is the ONLY one STILL a middle school.

Funny isn't it?

The original Horace Mann and Emerson buildings are still there, while the original "old Harding" building is gone.

Yet of those 3 schools, the HARDING MIDDLE SCHOOL, in a brand-new version, remains as a school for the middle grades.

Yes, there must really be something about that Harding spirit.

Harding RULES!!!

(Come to think of it, that GREAT new Garfield Middle School's not too shabby either )

Back to the banjo...

(Just had some of that great Roman Fountain pizza too recently. What a magnificent Lakewood tradition that is!)

Yea--- Roman Fountain

Gotta get your pre school smoke in at Poppee's then shake down the weaker for their lunch money, then do a stint at BIS.

(Hmm, is there a parallel to the Waterbury incident?)

I've been all over the country and seen a lot of branding of cities from Chillicothe, MO, home of sliced bread, to Jamestown, ND, home of the world's largest buffalo. But I've never been more impressed with anything than Austin, TX.

[url]www.keepaustinweird.com/home.html[/url]


Coordinated Individualism. That's kind of what Lakewood is to me.

good name for a city