Seven Favorite Lunchbox Treats

Last day of Back to school week, ya'll!  Are you ready for it?

I'm back and I'm talkin' about lunches.


Remember lunchtime at school?  It was always an unspoken contest between you and your friends to see who had the best lunch that day.  Most of the time I had a PBJ and whatever accompaniments as a pretty simple lunch. Occasionally, my parents would buy me and my brothers a treat for our lunchboxes.  Those were the best days! 

Seven Favorite Lunchbox Treats: 

Dunkaroos.  These are awesome.  Do they still make them?  You can basically make your own with Teddy Grahams and a can of frosting.   Limitless options too because teddy grahams come in several flavors and so does frosting!  Or even a homemade variety...now my brain is about to explode!

Fruit By The Foot/String Things.  They were both long strings of fruit snacks. One was rolled up like toilet paper and the other was coiled around itself flatly on a cardboard package.  Both seemed to last forever and were both quite delicious back then.  I bet now they would taste weird and seem very small.  Back when I was younger though, I felt like the coolest kid on the block when I had these in my lunch. 

 Mondo/Squeezits.  We were only allowed to have these on certain very special days because we were on the milk program at school and had to drink our milk everyday at lunchtime.  It was such a special privilige to have one of these, or even a capri sun(that you had to stab the straw in the bottom to be cool, duh).  I even remember these from my after game snacks when I played soccer for AYSO.  Anyone else remember that?

Oatmeal Creme Pies.  I would still eat the hell out of these amazing sandwiches.  I refuse to buy them because the entire box would disappear and I would get so mad at the thief.  I hated how most lunch snacks would get smooshed and be ruined or a pain in the butt to eat.  The cool thing about these oatmeal pies was that they were just as delicious when accidentally flattened in my backpack.  Maybe even better?

Hi-C Ecto Cooler.    Remember this?  It was the bright yellow juice box with the orange flaps and the big green monster on the front!  That big green monster was Slimer from the Ghostbusters.  I have no idea what the flavor combination was that made this citrusy but it was delicious and I remember drinking this any chance I got. In school lunches, at my friend's houses and even at those soccer games.  Gone now though, poor children of this day and age, they're missing out.

Sun Maid Raisins.  This sounds like a non-treat huh?  We actually had them often in our lunches and at home as snack but I freaking LOVED them.  I still love raisins.  But the tiny boxes sometimes got all  stuck inside and you had to eat a giant glob all at once.  That was like candy for me back then.  I loved it.  Just the other day at work I had a handful of raisins and was transported back to snack-time.  YUM!

Lunchables.  Back in my day, this was a very special treat for my brothers and I.  I'm talking before the days of mini hamburger lunchables.  The ham and cheese ones or the turkey and cheese ones with crackers were all we were allowed to have.  The picture I grabbed is from the years I remember but I don't think I was ever allowed to have the big DELUXE package.  That's a lot of food for a kid, methinks.  Anyways, the little candy was the best(duh).  I must admit that I truly enjoyed those meat and cheese products!  I want one now, but I'm pretty sure I would be disappointed with it.  So I shall hang on to my memories.



There you go!  My lunchbox faves!  Did you have any special treats?  Am I weird for including raisins?  Who wants to go to the store and buy some of these snacks right now?  I'm totally going to make gourmet dunkaroos someday.




Images graciously borrowed from here,  here, here, here, here, here, and here.

Seven Schoolboy Crushes

Hey, can we talk?

Okay, good. 

I feel very powerful as the curator of this blog.  I have my own private corner of the interwebs and there are a select few that follow everything I post on here, religiously. I have people that are alarmed when my posts are late or if I miss a post(accidentally).  I feel like you people rely on me and hold me in high regard. 

I'm probably wrong, but that's okay.  It helps me be more diligent and follow through with this daily blogging thing.  

As the powerful, pace setting blog curator I get the privilege of hosting guest bloggers.  I get to preview their posts, and edit them as I see fit and then I post them here under my blog with my name on it.  I approve of these people and want you to read what they write!  That's why I have guest posts!

Sometimes I write all entries in a week.  Sometimes Herc contributes 3 or 4.  Sometimes I have two guest posts a week.  Sometimes I put three guest posts in a row.  This is just how it works!

My inspiration and creativity comes in spurts.  Its just how it is.  This happens to be my blog, so I am fortunate enough to have guest bloggers!

Like today, Herc is back.  He has some crushes to share with you too.  Enjoy it, because I did!

7 Schoolboy Crushes

In the “7 Slabs Of Vinyl That Ruined My Life” post, Herc gave you a glimpse of the wonderful mess that was his schoolboy love life - or lack thereof.  This time around, there’s no music, just names and memories.  Relate if you can and ridicule in comments if you can’t.

Diana B. was the elementary school girl that every boy liked, the most popular girl in school. Diana had pretty eyes and a gorgeous baby toothed smile.  She knew this and was a master manipulator at a very young age, teasing and flirting just enough to keep you interested before dropping you and smashing you under her Converse rubber soles.

Becky W. lived across the street.  She had red hair and the obligatory freckles and she was smart and possessed the soul of someone much older.  When she ran, she ran with her elbows up and her arms in front of her, almost like a boxer but she could out run just about every guy  including Herc.  She resisted every advance towards a relationship beyond friends.  Her family moved away while Herc was vacationing out of state.
 Donna F. was the out of town girl who came to visit, a friend of the family.  She was the tough rocker chick who modeled herself after Joan Jett/Pat Benatar and we bonded over Van Halen’s Women And Children First album.   She had an amazing soft side as well.  An interesting study in contrast.

Sally V. was easygoing and fun to be around.  She went away to summer camp and wrote letters on paper plates - one long spiral - and folded them up and mailed them back to Herc.  She had a fraternal twin brother named Todd.  Sally’s best feature?  Her squinty-eyed laugh.  Herc’s first make-out partner, he cut his tongue on her braces but it was worth it.

Stacy R. sat behind Herc in most classes freshman year because alphabetically, her surname was closest to his.  She was fiesty and outspoken and could talk for hours about anything.   Herc didn’t realize it at the time but he missed her a lot after he moved away.

Joy C. was an older girl - eighth grader - who Herc sat next to on the bus.  His was one of the last stops in the morning and the seat beside her was always empty, so he always took it.  She never said a word to him.  She didn’t have to.  A brassy, “well developed” blond with a voice incapable of low volume, he could hear her at school many, many doors away.  One day, Joy made the mistake of wearing a tube top to school - Herc noticed it immediately on the bus, under an unzipped track jacket.  At recess, someone snuck up behind her and pulled her top down and Herc, along with twenty or so other boys in the immediate vicinity, saw “them”. Neither Joy nor the boy who pulled her top down returned to our school and Herc never saw either ever again.

Debbie B. was THE junior high hottie: head cheerleader, student council president and just the perfect girl next door - not conceited, not a mean bone in her body. Nice to everyone. The day Debbie had her braces removed was one of the single greatest days of young Herc’s life. That bright smile she had always possessed was finally unleashed at its full, blinding magnitude. As impossible as it seemed, the hot girl just got hotter. When it came time to go to high school, her parents wisely sent her to Catholic school.

Seven Things I Miss About Back To School Season

Hi there!

I've got another guest post for you today.  This time its from KM herself!  She is a lifelong fan of back to school but not for the same reasons as everyone else.

Can you believe we are almost done with back to school week?  Its been one of my favorite themed weeks.  Are you, my beloved readers, enjoying my themed weeks? I hope you are, cause I'm having fun with them!

Enough about me and you, let's get to KM's seven.

Seven Things I Miss About Back To School Season:

1. School Supply Shopping. When I was in elementary school, we would go to my school and get a list for what grade we were in and then go around the cafeteria and pick out all the school supplies needed. When I got to high school, my friends and I would make an entire day of going to an office supply store and pick out things we needed...or wanted. It was always a great time

2. First Day Of School Outfit. Growing up, I always remember going shopping with my mom and getting to pick out an outfit that I was going to wear my first day of school. One outfit I specifically remember was for my first day of freshman year and I got a blue camo jean skirt from old navy and a black shirt. It was in fashion then I promise...

3. Getting A Class Schedule. I don't know why I loved it so much but I loved getting my schedule in high school and then posting it on IM as an away message (since this was before Facebook...say what?!) and seeing what friends I had classes with...because really thats all that really matters.

4. Autumn Time. I grew up in Ohio...where there are seasons. So when I was going into school it could be a nice summer feeling day in the 70's or 80's and then the next day it would be a brisk autumn day. I loved it. Autumn in Ohio is amazing because of all the leaves changing colors and such. Oh I also started school in September. ..not august like these kids in Arizona do.

5. Seeing What Teachers I Had. This was sometimes a scary situation for me. I would check with my older brother to see if he had any of the teachers and get his opinion which was usually negative. Then on the first day of school, the teacher would call my name, and ask if there is any relation to Josh Lusk (my brother). I would hesitantly say yes and then the teacher would give a look of approval which meant my brother wasn't a terror to them or a look of disappointment meaning they hoped that I was nothing like my brother...love you Josh!

6. Seeing The New Freshmen. I wasn't a mean person in high school...ok sometimes I could be a huge bitch...but I enjoyed seeing all the scared freshman every year. I know that I was one of them at one point, and people messed with me too. It makes you stronger...builds character. Don't worry, I didn't do anything really horrible, just gave them a wrong direction time to time and walked in front of them so they couldn't get by =]

7. Seeing All My Friends Again. Over the summer, I was always hanging out with my friends. But it's different when you are in school. You get to see more of them. All your aquientences that you don't hang out with but still like to talk to, you get to do that in school.

I miss school sometimes. I miss taking notes and going on field trips and recess. I had a blast in school most of the time...even in high school. I made great friends and actually learned a thing here and there. What were some of your favorite things about starting the school year?


Answer KM's question in the comments, ya'll!!!

Seven Coolest School Supplies From "Back In The Day"

Hi there!


Another Back To School post!  Herc is back for round two to tell you all about his favorite school supplies!  


He has always enjoyed school supplies and back to school shopping, so he is pretty much an expert on all things school supply.

Let the man preach, ya'll!

7 Coolest School Supplies From "Back In The Day"

(cough*”mid to late Seventies”*cough)

These are Herc’s - put yours in your locker the comments.

Trapper Keeper

At the time these came out, they were the hottest thing going.  Kids did anything their parents asked them to just to get one of these revolutionary binders that, well, kept your Trappers.  Trappers were essentially pocket folders but rather than have horizontal pockets, they had vertical pockets so it was virtually impossible to lose your papers.  Herc saw a Trapper Keeper on sale at the store the other day for $20 - not  a vintage one but a brand new one.  Uncool.

Erasermates

These were some of the first erasable ink pens on the market.  They were cool because now all of your #2 pencils could be used in “pencil wars” where you took turns trying to break each other’s pencils by whacking them.  They didn’t work so well and some times the ink kind of clumped out and smudged and they weren’t completely erasable but as the years went on, the technology was perfected.  Herc missed out on erasable markers and erasable crayons but is ever so grateful for spellcheck.

Texas Instruments TI-30

This was the first calculator Herc ever owned and it was about the size of a really thick paperback book.  Red LED display instead of the later, sleeker black LCD.  Not to brag but he didn’t need it for math but it was fun learning math tricks (123456789 + 987654321) and spelling tricks (“7734” and “58008”).

glue sticks

Don’t know why they started kids off with paste when they were younger and then weened them onto glue, sweet Elmer’s glue.  Glue Sticks must have been invented by a teacher/mom to eliminate sticky messes.  Gluing was never as fun after they came along although daring kids to apply it like lip stick to their own lips sure was fun.  Hercyesneverhediddidthis.

jumbo crayons

Crayons, particularly Crayola Crayons, have always been a passion for Herc.  He did whatever it took to get the biggest box, the one with the most colors and the sharpener.  It all started with those jumbo crayons you get in kindergarten. 4-5-6-8 to a box.   You could color for hours with just one crayon, applying a thin layer of wax over the whole piece of paper and then scratching it off to reveal other colors underneath.  

Big Chief tablets

The originals were mighty fine but then the Son Of Big Chief tablets came out with the cooler, hipp(i)er Indian head on the cover and it was game, set and match.  Now that schools are doing away with teaching kids how to write cursive, soon there will be no need for paper in schools at all.  Good?  Bad?  Sad?  Remember getting a page fresh off the mimeograph back then and smelling it?  Herc does.

Evel Knievel Lunch Box

Some kids brought their lunches to school in brown paper bags.  Some kids got lunch free from school because they were “less fortunate”.   The rest of us rocked a decorated metal lunch box, a kiddied up version of that working man staple, the lunch pail.  With a matching Thermos, no less.  If you took care of your lunch box and never played “kick it” or attacked a classmate using it as a weapon, you could maybe make it last two years.  Most of Herc’s lunch boxes never made it through one year.  He’d accidentally leave something in it over Christmas break and then he’d have to throw it out because the stink wouldn’t wash out of it or it would fail to survive an ill-advised game of “kick it” on the way home from school.  (“Mom, my lunch box is broken!”  “What happened?”  “I dropped it.”)  The two coolest ones I ever owned were plastered with images of Hot Wheels and Evel Knievel, the Tiger Woods of the Seventies.  Once plastic lunch boxes showed up, the thrill was gone.

Seven Schoolyard Crushes

Yo.

Check it out, this blog is about to get reeeaaallly real.

We are gonna tiptoe across the line spelled a-w-k-w-a-r-d and stroll right down memory lane.  

In honor of back to school week, I am putting pen to pad and writing about my crushes.  Yep.  All 7 of them.  

No, really. I only had 7.  Ask me about crushes AFTER school years, that's a whole 'nother story, ya'll.

I have a catch though, no names.  No distinguishing characteristics.  No nicknames.  Also, you may not make fun of me if you have figured out who I once crushed on.  

Or at all.  

Please don't make fun of me. 
 

Seven Schoolyard Crushes

The One Who I Was Supposed To See Titanic With.  He was such a blonde hottie back in the day(15 years ago!).  I had such a crush on him and we made plans to go see Titanic in the theaters shortly after school got out for the summer.  Then his military father was relocated to Alaska.  We never saw Titanic and I have never heard from him or about him since.  

The One Whose Smile Melted My Heart.  He was my first foray into the world of chocolate cuties, if you know what I mean.  He had the most perfect smile that would probably still catch me off guard.  I have several photos of him and I dancing at some of the school dances.  I look ready to pee my pants with glee and he looks like he’s giving a charity dance to that awkward girl.....ahhh middle school.  Last I heard he was in the medical field down south, Georgia maybe?

The One Who Never Knew We Were Dating.  I knew this guy for so long, its no wonder we both eventually fell for each other.  We were hanging out all the time and together non stop for over a year.  We saw movies, we went out to dinner, we rode the bus everywhere.  I eventually told him I liked him.  He said he didn’t feel the same.  A few months later, things were still very awkward between me and this guy and he slipped me a note and professed his very own feelings for me.  I was on to the next one by now.  He is doing very well, has made quite a life for himself but we never talk.  You win some, you lose some.  

The One Date Wonder.  This guy and I went on one date.  After flirting for months and making all of our mutual friends feel awkward we went out to dinner and a movie.  That movie was enough to tell both of us that we were not meant to date.  Also, second worst movie I have ever SEEN.  He has bounced from career to career and religion is ruling his life right now.  

The One That Saw Me As “One Of The Guys”.  This dude was really well liked at our school.  He was one of those guys.  We were pretty close and we bonded over similar interests.  He told me one time, and I will NEVER forget it “I love how you are just like one of the guys”.  That was when I knew I had no chance with this guy.  He proceeded to work his way through the entire class, so I wasn’t too keen on him anymore.  Nowadays he has accomplished his biggest dream...good for him!

The One That Was Younger.  In middle school I had this major crush on a kid that was a grade lower than me.  That’s not how you rolled at my school.  You liked kids in your grade or gazed longingly at the older kids.  We used to hang out at recess everyday and stand next to each other waiting for our parents to pick us up after school.  He has become a stoner/dropout.  Too bad.

The One Who Got Away.  Yes, the one you’re thinking of.  Don’t use his name, remember.  Knowing what I know now, I wouldn’t have wasted so much time trying to be his friend.  Less time trying to be there for him between his breakups.  Less fake dates, less false hope.  I would have jumped him in the hallways when I had a chance(probably still would...).  I kept up with him for a while.  He has been out of my life for over a year or so now and is doing well for himself.  I am happy for him.


So, you wanna tell me yours?

Seven [11] School Songs

Lunes again.  

I've got Music Monday's post with Herc, special Back To School edition, with an exception to my 7 rule.  This is a list of 11 school songs that Herc has put together for the occasion!  

 Let's go Herc!

Seven 11 School Songs

(part of ongoing series 7 Song Playlists)

Most kids, this little Herc included, loved going back to school every fall.  Sure, summer was over but if you did it right, you were exhausted and ready for the rigid discipline that school always brought. (Keep those comments polite, please.)  Not to mention the new clothes, shoes and all those cool school supplies that accompanied you.  Here’s a decades spanning mega list of seven eleven songs having to do with school.  Listen to the Spotify Study Guide and then feel free to add your own favorites in the comments.  Don’t be tardy.

SPOTIFY STUDY GUIDE

“Thirteen” - Big Star [1972]

Simply put, this is one of the sweetest, most innocent songs ever recorded.  The lyrics are brief but infused with awkward understated passion and if you ain’t played the game of love, you don’t know that these are the rules.  And those silky sweet harmonies in the background are absolutely angelic.  Pleading, practically begging to spend time with the one he loves (“Won't you let me walk you home from school?/Won't you let me meet you at the pool?”), our hero has the stones to stand up to her Dad (“Won't you tell your dad, "Get off my back"?/Tell him what we said about "Paint it, Black"/Rock 'n Roll is here to stay”).  Often used to great effect in mass media to portray a first love, “Thirteen” is one of the greatest love songs ever recorded.

“My Old School” - Steely Dan [1973]

Technically perfect and coldly soulless as are most Steely Dan records,  “My Old School” is a not so kind reminiscing of school days past.  The kind of song for people like Herc who do not attend reunions. (“And I’m never going back to my old school.”)  Neither am I, brother, neither am I.

“Rock N Roll High School” - Ramones [1979]

Three chords and a chant (“Fun fun/rock'n'roll high school”), this pounding punk blast from the 1979 motion picture of the same name says it all (“I don’t care about History/ Cause that’s not where I wanna be”).  Re-recorded by the band with legendary producer (and future convicted murderer), Phil Spector, for their 1980 End Of The Century album, the original movie version is the better bet.

“School Days” - Chuck Berry [1957]

A day in the life of a student set to a rockin’ beat.  (“Ring ring goes the bell”) Chuck leaves nothing to the imagination as he paints the day as hard work and drudgery that only pays off when school ends and (“You finally lay your burden down”) head to the juke joint (“Drop your quarter right into the slot”) and you dance the afternoon away until its time to go home and start it all over again tomorrow.  (“Hail! Hail! Rock and roll!”)

“Be True To Your School” - Beach Boys [1963]

Almost 20 years before Toni Basil brought cheerleader music back into pop consciousness, the Beach Boys built the bottom of the pyramid with this rah-rah song.  Showing school spirit without any one getting beaten, stabbed or shot, what a great concept.  The only smashing done is on the football field.  The song features marching band instrumentation and powerfully incessant cheers.  Put on your letterman’s sweater and pick up a pair of pom-poms cause it’s on, buddy.

“Teacher, Teacher” - Rockpile [1980]

Another one of those songs that sound creepier now than when they were recorded, “Teacher, Teacher” was Rockpile’s lone American Top 40 hit.  A rocking, driving song which combines rockabilly with the burgeoning “new wave”.  (Although Herc could not locate any prior versions of the song, it seems to have been written in the late Fifties or early Sixties.)  The band known as Rockpile released a total of four albums yet only one of them bears their name.  Two others were released as Dave Edmunds “solo” albums and the final one was a Nick Lowe “solo” album which contained “Cruel To Be Kind”, a power pop staple. 

“Hot For Teacher” - Van Halen [1984]

With its avalanche of drums intro and careening guitar, “Hot For Teacher” hits hard below the belt from the start and doesn’t let up.  The Parents Music Resource Center protested both the song and video, demanding they be pulled from the airwaves.  A nation of young males was grateful that the video, in particular, was not pulled.  Truth be told, Herc was hot for Ms. Bufano years before this song was released.

“School” - Supertramp [1974]

A slow burning song that features cascading piano riffs that tumble into a beautiful melody, with lyrics about someone (the father? the boy’s grown self?) watching a boy go to school and learn the rules.  A cautionary tale about conformity and treating all students the same much like the next song on the list.

“Another Brick In The Wall, Part 2” - Pink Floyd [1979]

With it’s accusatory tone (“Hey teacher/leave them kids alone”), fun to sing-along on the playground verse (“All in all/We’re just bricks in the wall”) and shout it at the top of your lungs opening lines (“We don’t need no education/we don’t need no thoughts controlled”), this is a song built to sing, shout and yell.

“School’s Out” - Alice Cooper [1972]

Ah, the joys of the last week of school.  Cleaning out your locker and desk, finding all those things you thought were lost.  Getting all your stuff back from the teacher who confiscated it throughout the year.  And finally, blowing the school to pieces.  At least it looked that way with all the paper and trash strewn about.  You know what the inspiration was for this song?  Someone asked the band what their “greatest three minutes ever” was and this is what they came up with.

“High School Never Ends” - Bowling For Soup [2006]

People like to think life will be different after high school and for a lot of people it’s true.  But for some people, high school is the pinnacle of their lives and they never mature past it.  They enjoy the lack of responsibility and focus on petty, shallow things like clothes or cars for the rest of their lives.  That’s what this song means to Herc.  What does it mean to you?

SPOTIFY STUDY GUIDE

Seven Memorable Teachers

Sunday Sunday Sunday!

I really like Sundays.  Always have.  They remain my second favorite day of the week.  I generally work on Sundays.  Quiet, easy days.

Sundays back when I was in school were pretty neat too because I was always gearing up for the school week.  I always loved school and looked forward to more school.  So, Sundays were my lead in for the school week.  I was really fortunate to have mostly great teachers and only a couple not so great ones.  I have always wondered what my teachers thought of me when I was younger.

Was I a brat? Too talkative?  Was I beyond my grade because of my supreme genius?  I think I was a major kiss ass with just a little too much attitude.  I may never know!

I do know I had some unforgettable teachers.  Teachers that I will always remember for one reason or another.  I am thankful for these teachers.  Truth be told I am thankful for all teachers and all that they do!

Some teachers and students have returned to their schools already and many others start back in tomorrow.  In honor of the back to school season, I am putting together back to school week for you!  Let's jump right in!

image found here

Seven Teachers I Will Never Forget:

• Mrs. Yonkers - High School French.  I took French for fun during my senior year and did very well.  I can't speak it very well but I can read most of the fancy labeled food in my kitchen now!  A very smart thing to do, and I learned from a very wonderful teacher.  She always encouraged me to be a better version of myself and I carry that lesson on with me even still.
• Mrs. Neeley - 6th Grade.  She taught us the Greek alphabet and the song that went with it.  I still know it and it comes in handy during trivia!  Sixth grade was one of my favorite years and I owe it all to her.  She kept all of us kids in line and taught us in the most innovative ways.  Even now I remember that you can't learn everything out of a book. 
• Mrs. Petty - Music/Choir.  I went to Catholic school until high school and she led our church choir(and still does).  She was just always a good time and every kid I knew looked forward to music class or  choir practice or the school musical.  I remember her as the cool teacher that always knew the purpose of time and place. 
• Mrs. G - Second 1st grade Teacher.  In first grade, my teacher left partway through the year for some reason and so did the other room's first grade teacher.  They brought in two new teachers for us and they flip flopped between our rooms for the rest of the year.  It was a very memorable year(long, long ago!).   I don't have any specific memories with her as my teacher but as I moved through the school I remember her as always looking out for me!  Later, she was both of my brothers' teacher and she went above and beyond for the three of us.  She's got another name now, but she will always be Mrs. G to me!
• Ms. Martin - Science Lab.  Unfortunately for kids these days, Ms. Martin doesn't teach science lab anymore.  She is in Haiti doing God's work.  Because of her, I dissected a cow's eyeball and saw firsthand the affects of smoking on lungs.  She had actual lungs of a smoker for us to see.  This is why I do not smoke.  Thanks for that(among many other things).
• Mr. Dudash - High School English.  Craziest teacher I ever had.  Just plain crazy!  But he taught us Homer's Odyssey with those crazy ways and I actually read the book!  That's a big fat book that is not written in clear English!  David Dudash was The MAN! 
• Mr. Miller - High School Art.  This guy was no hero of mine.  He was rude and always smelled of dank coffee.  We had to take one art class and he taught drawing and painting.  I took this my freshman year as my first class of the day.  I had no friends in the class and I was assigned a seat in the back of the room.  We did a bunch of random assignments in every medium.  I enjoyed myself but wasn't that great.  I never aspired to be an artist.  His criticisms were always the same.  "You have no perception" "You will never do this and make money" "Do you ever think in a creative manner?" "Don't pursue a career in an artistic field."  Thanks for keeping it real, sir.  Ugh.  

Them's them.   Did you have any awesome teachers?  Are YOU an awesome teacher?  Talk to me.