An upcoming price rise of the Santa Rosa county schools' lunch costs for the next term is the first price rise in 10 years, and it will be a nominal 25 cents. Lunches will now be $1.50 for elementary school students and $1.76 for middle school students.

You may or may not be surprised to discover that 92 percent of students buy their lunches at the school rather than carry them from home. Now of course, I remember...

Back in the 1920s, when I was in elementary school, I was able to buy lunch every day when the act of buying your lunch was considered a 'big deal.' Twenty-five cents bought a whole bag of silvery tokens with which you could go through the cafeteria line and pick the food of your choice.

One day it might have been a hot dog with sauerkraut and mashed potatoes with a dessert of your choice, and lemonade or milk - of course, no sodas were available (or allowed.)

We each took our food to "our" table where we sat with "our gang," where most had brought their lunches from home, with a few of us lucky ones buying it at school. No one noticed any difference however, or made any comments about who bought lunch and who carried it.

You know, it's kind of nice remembering the 'old days' as a time when we all got along and discrimination was just a big word no one had yet learned to spell.

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Are you familiar with the Jazz Goes Dancing event held at the Bayview Community Center every Friday night at 8 p.m., and Sundays at 4 p.m.?

It will bring back those magic days when you and your 'steady' were the coolest couple on the dance floor. Want to know more? Just check the website: www.jazzgoesdancing.com !

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Here is some interesting information from a State Farm Insurance study of 2.5 million accident reports from the Federal Highway Administration.

About 70 percent of traffic deaths that occur at intersections take place at two-lane roads marked by stop signs. More than 3,000 Americans died last year as the result of running a red light or stop sign. Those most likely to be involved in this kind of collision are men between the ages of 16 and 44.

Slower travel is not necessarily safer travel. The study shows that if you are traveling at 35 miles per hour and you hit someone also going that speed, it is just the same as hitting a tree at 70 miles per hour. Maybe we all periodically need to reassess our driving, whether we think we drive too fast or too slow.

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Ladies, if you are getting ready for summer's more revealing outfits, there is still time to join the Senior Exercise Class every Tuesday and Thursday at 9 a.m. at the South Santa Rosa Recreation Center on Shoreline Drive. The exercises are geared towards the mature body, and they are enjoyable as well as healthful.

You may be surprised at the number of your neighbors and friends who are in attendance! You will find that low impact aerobic exercises help get your day off to a great start. Just call the Recreation Center at 934-5140 to get all the details.

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Now that Mother's Day has passed, and we hope every mother reading this received that all-important "thanks Mom" phone call, do you know on which day of the year there are more collect calls than any other? The answer - Father's Day. Dear old Dad - he doesn't care if he pays for the call, as long as someone remembers to make it!

See you next week.