November 22, 1963

[peetie44]

My JFK assassination moment:

Friday, November 22, 1963, Hoxie Avenue Elementary (primary) School, Norwalk CA, 6th grade, Mr Morris' class, @10:35am PDT.

Mr Morris was my favorite school teacher. He taught the required curriculum but ran a fairly loose ship, structure-wise, often breaking into impromptu discussions on all sorts of subjects, many of which talks included personal experience references from Mr Morris' life.

Our televised "Spanish In The Classroom" program was just starting that Friday morning. Sadly and to our loss, most of us in 1963 didn't take learning a second language very seriously, so Mr Morris often let our classmate, Andy Pergola, who had immigrated from Argentina a couple of years prior, oversee the interactive portions of the show. Mr Morris thought it might be more interesting if one of our peers, a native-speaker, led the class during our Spanish lesson.

Friday was also "candy day" in Mr Morris' class. In order to stop the habitual gum-chewing and candy-eating that often takes place in an elementary school classroom, Mr Morris decided that if he caught no one chewing/eating in class during the first four days of the week, small amounts of candy/gum could be shared from a communal bowl during the pre-lunch period on Friday. This worked like a charm, as no one wanted to be the rat who spoiled "candy day" for their classmates.

The Spanish lesson is on, Andy's handling the class and Mr Morris is leaning back in his swivel chair, enjoying a Tootsie Pop (lollipop). There come's a knock on our door and Mr Morris went to answer it, the Tootsie Pop clamped in his mouth like Churchill's cigar. He stepped outside for a brief moment and when he returned, the lollipop was nowhere to be seen. He walked briskly to the front, told Andy to take his seat and switched off the television.

"Class, something has just happened that will effect you for the rest of your lives. The president of the United States has just been shot in Dallas Texas."

[Palinka (RIP)]

"Then we raised a glass to JFK, and a dozen more besides; when I got back to my lonely room, I supposed I must have cried..."

Cheers, Jack! I hope that you are having your end away with every woman from Helen of Troy through to Liz Taylor (and I hope that both were resurrected in their prime) and stopping only to top up with your favouritely mixed Maritinis.

[Resident Asshole]

Great song. Not to make it political, but I wish we had people like him back instead of the money machine that politics now is. Good on ya JFK, I will cheers you tonight!

[Frankennietzsche]

Oddly enough, November 22, 1963 is also the day that both CS Lewis and Aldous Huxley died.

[Mother Goose]

I wasn't alive yet. I will say that the Stephen King book 11/21/63 is a really good read, an eerie combination of historical and fucked up SK stuff.

[Grace O'Malley]

I was 5. I guess I had afternoon kindergarten then, because I was home with Mom, watching "Pete and Gladys". Walter Cronkite came on and gave the sad news. Mom started crying, and I cried, too, because Mom did.

[Savage]

I was in kindergarten. We usually walked home (about a mile). That day, someone's mom came and picked us up. I don't really remember much about it.

[stinie]

I played a spectacular game that addressed JFK's death. It's called Gone Home and I loved it. I would explain, but I'm lazy