Click. The Good News: Back to High School

Last weekend, while H was out of town watching baseball, I decided to visit my old high school to see how it was doing & catch a volleyball game. It was weird going back after 10 years. Some things were exactly as I remembered them and some things were different. The band was out practicing on a Friday evening.

I was shocked to see the school is being remodeled and expanded. I'm kicking myself for not going back sooner, but I'm glad I was able to see it before all the construction is finished. This is the front of the school, with a little courtyard in the center. The auditorium is on the right hand side.

I'm pretty sure the school had already had 1 major expansion when I was attending in the last '90's, but this looks like they are adding on quite a few more classrooms.

I think the student body was between 3,000 and 4,000 when I attended, so I can't imagine how big they have grown since then that they need to add more classrooms. This "side" of the school is sort of U-shaped hallways with all the classes on 2 stories.

What's most surprising is that there were 5 high schools, all as large as mine, in the school district 10 years ago. Now, with all the crazy growth in the Houston suburbs, there are 10 high schools, all the new ones being even larger!

The practice football field & baseball grounds. I remember having to run many laps around the track and spending many mornings running those bleachers.

Behind the athletics locker rooms, I can really see how bad the over-crowding problem has become. If I had to guess, I'd say there were at least 10 "portable classrooms" needed for over-flow.

This is the back of the school, by the student parking and bus driveways. The gyms are on the left of the courtyard and classrooms are on the right.

I first peeked into the "small gym", which looks exactly the same & saw the Freshman volleyball team playing. Those doors on the right lead into the girls locker room- where I spent much of my high school life hanging out.

The main hall/walkway from the parking lot to the cafeteria and classrooms looked the same, with the lockers having a fresh coat of paint.

The giant cafeteria looks about the same.

The tropy cases are still there. The banners announcing homecoming week are new, but somehow feel like they were never changed.

A typical class room still looks the same. Oh the memories of those awful desks. I'm so glad I wasn't left handed. ;)

The office & honors awards trophy case. I never spent any time in the office :)

I guess this was the part that looked different to me. I don't' remember it being so stark and bland. Maybe because it was always full of rowdy teenagers when I was there, but, after hours, the school lacked the life and character that I remember so fondly about my 4 years there.