The Smell of a New School Year
I came upon the large display of school supplies while shopping at a big chain store the other day. I had seen them out for a while, in full force since the Independence Day displays went away.
I am a sucker for office supplies…even though my work these days is primarily done banging on a computer keyboard, I still love cool pens, Post-It(R) notes, and pads. That comes from one of my favorite things as a kid—shopping for school supplies.
I grew up when Trapper Keepers were brand new, and there was nothing better than picking out a new one. As I got older, each semester at college was similar, coming up with the perfect note-taking supplies and methods…none of which were any better than the previous method or replaced actually studying.
There were few shoppers early that weekend morning, so I took the time to see what was offered. I was pleasantly surprised to find that rather than high-tech gizmos, the bins were full of good old Dixon Ticonderoga pencils, eraser caps in a variety of colors, ball-point or gel pens, glue sticks…all the things I would get a half century ago. And the prices were so low, I almost started filling my cart—before remembering I’m a grown-up and already have plenty of this stuff, and can buy more when I need.
As a younger person, the options were far more limited and we weren’t told by the school what items to buy. But the same prospect of a new year of opportunity was there.
And what would it hurt to pick up another package of eraser caps, anyway.
