Some early works

Because of my parents' in-progress move to a new house, there are lots and lots of boxes of papers through which Mom is sorting, and I am working my way through piles of my writing. As soon as I figured out how to write, I wrote a lot, and it's a hoot to look back at the scribbles.

My reading materials ranged from George Orwell, whose work I assessed very seriously in one review...

(My dad read Animal Farm and 1984 to me as bedtime stories, and this review is funny to me because I'm pretty sure the first time we read Animal Farm together, I did think it was about horses.)

...to self-published works:

Although A Book About Me retailed for a mere dollar, it's only six pages long, with 15 words total. Sales were not high.

I also kept a lot of journals. Here is one noteworthy P.S.:

It's worth noting that the drawing above is a pumpkin and this entry is dated Oct. 31, 1991, the day of Minnesota's wild Halloween Blizzard. In it, I outline my Halloween costume and plans but make no note of the snow, apparently choosing instead of highlight Jessica Gold's triumph in one of my favorite TV shows.

The following excerpts are from one edition of "The Rebecca Press." I don't remember doing this, but judging from the box of papers, I produced this frequently, mostly handwritten and usually filing reports on what my family members did that day. This one turns third-person autobiographical.

In the "Taste" chapter:

"Her favorite food is pepperoni pizza. Rebecca's favorite pop is A&W Creme Soda. She loves peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Her favorite pie is apple. Rebecca's favorite cake is vanilla. Her favorite kind of ice cream is vanilla. Her favorite fruit is strawberries. Rebecca's favorite vegetable is cauliflower with cheese sauce."

Shifting to "TV" and "Books":

"Her favorite TV show is 'Saved by the Bell.' Rebecca's favorite boy character is Mark Paul Gosselar who plays Zack Morris on Saved by the Bell. Rebecca's girl TV character is Carrie on Little House on the Prairie. Her favorite series of books is the Babysitter Club. Her favorite character is Kristy."

I also found several Christmas lists that I'll save for later. And just to be clear, "Saved by the Bell" is still one of my favorite shows.

So many questions for you, Reader. Who were your favorite TV characters growing up? Did you love "Carmen Sandiego" like I did? And do you think I get to count cauliflower-with-cheese-sauce as a vegetable?