The diaries

When I was sorting through boxes labeled "Rebecca - Nostalgia" over the weekend, I found nearly my entire collection of diaries. I kept lots of them as a kid, some years more actively than others, often addressing entries to myself for whatever reason ("Dear Becky" and "Your friend, Becky").

I got a kick out of this section of "Rebecca - Nostalgia." Some entries were very succinct. I have no idea what prompted this one, from December 1992, but I do agree that my mom is neat (in both ways).

That's "Dear Diary, Our family is old-fasioned. We have an excellent Christmas tree and Mom is neat. In both ways."

Later in my teen years I felt self-conscious about keeping a diary because of those inevitable times when you read back and cringe about something goofy you wrote. Apparently I decided to take matters into my own hands in 1991, when I was seven, and edit earlier entries. Don't do this!! Note the snarky "in 1991, I get up at 7:00" asterisk:

That's "I get up at 6:00 AM or sometimes I almots miss the bus that's when I get up at 15 to 8:00!!" I appreciate the double exclamation point and the alarm that it suggests about waking up at 15 to 8:00.

The diaries covered some regular "day in the life" moments:

I like the "California Raisins" and "Garfield's Christmas" shout-outs.

And finally, I remember my dad helping with this poem:

Then there are the volumes from a few years later, complete with fake locks and crammed full of writing, into which I haven't even delved yet. That's a project for another day.