Ed

My life long-long friend Ed and his wife Judy on his daughter's wedding day in 2003;

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Same day Roxie, Ed's mother, now deceased.

SUNDAY FUNNIES!! MAD's LONG STRANGER

THE LONG STRANGER was a take on THE LONG RANGER, of course, I hope I did not ruin that for you.  Art by Jack Davis and as usual, text by editor Harvey Kurtzman.  This was carefully lifted from MAD #3.

OUTRAGED = $$$$

Being Outraged is a money making opportunity. The Trump fans are contributing millions of dollars to for his defense fund. On the flip side, millions are pouring in on the Democrat side to bring Trump down. Art by Will Elder.

Charles Roscoe Collins

This is a bust statue of Charles Roscoe Collins (1907-2000) in the Union County History Museum which was the old courthouse in Blairsville, Ga. Roscoe and I are both descended from John Hunter, pioneer of Union County. When I went to the Hunter Reunion in Union County every year I would talk to Roscoe, he always came alone, I was always surprised he remembered my name and that I was Marietta - every year, he had a sharp mind. I am always surprised when someone remembers my name after an hour or two lapses, but a whole year...wow!
I remember he and a Union County Congressman relative who also attended the reunions were the only two who wore ties or in Roscoe's case, a bowtie and a button cap - that is like Sunday Casual
Roscoe was a pioneer educator and founder of several things, such as the Air Civil Patrol in that county.
I have read several essays he had written about John Hunter's children. The one that comes to mind is john's son Andrew's trips to Augusta to sell the whiskey his father had made. Augusta was the closest market. His trail was the name of a certain highway, which was no wider than a cow path.
He is my 3rd cousin, once removed. I'll take a claim to fame anyway I can get it.

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Throwback Thursday, Eric the Snapper

Throw back Thursday.  This was originally published on this blog Apr 8, 2018.

My old ship-mate distant cousin died yesterday.  I only met him one time at a Hunter Reunion.  I took his picture because I thought our meeting was unique because at our only meeting we discovered we were both on the ship USS NEWPORT NEWS at the same time..  Later I learned he was one of the top, if not the top, sniper(s) in the Vietnam War.  From what I know, I think he was a very humbled and shy person.

I heard a few days ago they were about to amputate his leg.  Maybe that did him in.

I remember at our own meeting we talked about the NEWPORT NEWS.  I told him what I hated the most about shipboard life for enlisted men was that no matter when you go to the "head" for a bowel movement, the toilets are lined up facing one another, and it is always crowded, even in the middle of night, so when you take a shit you will be touching knees with someone you don't know very well.  He got a kick out of that.

Google Eric England and you will meet an interesting person.

Postscript:  For what it is worth I think he was the "King of the Vietnam Snappers" after our Newport News shipboard experience.  That was in early 1965.  

Labels: Hunter, War

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 15, 201

Downton Abbey flick

We went to the movie Tavern  to see the movie version of Downton Abbey.  I think the only people there in the theater were fans of the TV series of the same name and the same characters and the same story line.

That saved a lot of time, they did not have to established each character or their relationships with the other characters.

It was typically  British with everybody very polite and doing what customs expected of them according to their rank in society.

The character Maggie Smith played spit out one quip (or wise crack) after another.  I think that is all she said, she even quipped about her quips.

The scenes in the giant rooms of Downton Abbey was gruesomely  dark.  My only thought about that is TV lightening must be better than movie lightening.

Being a longtime fan, I enjoyed it.

Willow, the Silent Friend

Willow has been around and near us for about 13 years and mostly being silently watching us.  Life goes on.

Willow Read Us Like a Book

A month or so ago Anna and I started watching a special NPR about groups of animals and their interactions of with each other.

The production crew kept up with a tribe of monkeys or apes, a bunch of hyenas, and a couple more species which I forgot.  They all had one thing in common:  Heredity royalty.  The leader of the group's children are also expected to be the leaders when they become of age. 

What I was most impressed with was their interactions and communications skills.  Take for instance a pack of wolves on a deer hunt.  Each member knows his position.  One knows to be waiting in a clearing to black off the deer if it starts to run that way, and each escape route is carefully guarded.  Each canine knows its duty.  How did that leader assign the positions?  The only explanation  I can come up with is body language.

Take our late Willow for instance.  When we awere planning or discussing something that will involve her she is right in between us intently listening and studying our body language.  Even like a simple act of going shopping, when we get up to go, before we are out the door she is out of the room in her sleeping area bedding down for a good nap.  I think in many cases she knew what we would do before we did.

From Wiggles to Willow

In 2006 I had a stroke.  Afterwards the doctor told me I need to not get upset over things, and keep active, like walk daily;  keep that circulation pumping.  So I decided I needed a dog to walk me daily.

We went to the Atlanta Humane Society and looked over all the dogs available, and why we picked Willow, I don't remember.  She didn't like us.  The human society people told us she has been returned either two or three times, which they insinuated 3 Strikes and you are out and she was a "runner".

We adopted her.  Her papers said she was part Whippet, a dog bred for racing.  He had a lean muscular body.   That was when she was young.  Her name was Wiggles.  If we decided to change her name, they recommended we change it to something with the same sound, like Willow.

We put her into the car and drove  to a Petco in Kennesaw.  She cried and whimper the whole 20 miles distance.  We had her on some kind of temporary choke leash.  We went into Petco. and  brought her food, treats, and dog toys.  As we headed up front to the cash registers  she saw the big plate glass with daylight outside.  She leaped out of the buggy and ran towards it.  When she got close to the doors,  which they sensed her movement and oped wide for her.  She ran through the door out into the parking lot.  She's a "runner".

I thought she was a "gonner", she would either get ran over or run out of sigh and gone forevcr.

About all all the employees of the store and I think some customers ran out trying to catch her in the parking bt she successfully dodged them.

Then another Petco employee,, on her lunch break, siting in her car eating when saw the commotion.  She got of her car and held out a chicken nugget to Wiggles and wiggled on up to her and she gave her the nugget and grabbed her.

The rest is history.

Willow Will Be Missed

Willow will be missed but not yet.  Her presence is still around.  Several times I sensed her walking by and just barely making in smallest corner of my parifavision.*

*I know it is misspelled but Google will not give me the correct spelling, as it had before.

M Little Buddy Willow died Today

It was a painless death, I hope.  Not so painless for her masters. 

We hope to post some pictures of our late little buddy to extend the memory of her

Fairs and Fairs' Parades

It is county fair season. On TV this morning apparently the announcers said something about the fair and Anna asked me if I had ever seen the fair parade on opening day. I told her I was in the fair parade one year. Marietta High School had the last entries of the parade. My friend Monty and I watched our friends decorate their cars with their clubs names. We snatched some of their crepe paper and streamers and decorated the his mother’s car, then got back in to be the last car in the parade. In the parade through town and down Powder Springs Street to the Fairgrounds I drove and tooted the horn while he had his pants legs rolled up, sitting on the fender waving. Or was it visa versa? Or did we take times? I forgot. We were the last car to roll into the fairgrounds, then they close the big gates. We got into the Cobb County Fair free! As soon as we got out of the car we ran into two friends Billy and Buddy. They both had their arms full of stuffed animals. We asked them if they won those already. They said no, a rude man who ran a booth gave them each a few bucks to carry the stuff animals from his trailor to his booth. " But he was rude," they said as they were walking towards the parking lot.. Both B & B grew up to be prominent business men in Marietta.

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Ryman and the Grand Ole Opry - Throwback Thursday.

This is mostly copied, pasted, and edited from a previous post.  Ken Burn's current running special of NPR about the history of country music inspired me to recycle it.

I just read an article in AARP Magazine about Willie Nelson by Rich Cohen, which brought up the time he met Charlie Dick, manager and husband of Patsy Cline, which he met Patsy, and she sung a song he wrote, “Crazy”, which she got to hear before she died.  Her death brought up the memories below:

In October 1962 President J.F. Kennedy spoke live to Americans via live TV.  He told us through what he learned from spies and aerial photos that the U.S.S.R. was arming Cuba.  Kennedy ordered a blockade of the little country only  90 miles from Florida. 

By the way newscasters were whispering seriously  like they were almost scared they would be heard, about war possibilities. 

“Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country..”  I typed in typing class hundred of times.  But in October 1962, it was serious.  But when they said “good” I’m not sure I am that good of a person.  So, I substituted “young” for “good”.

Now is the time for all young men to come to the aid of their country.  I enlisted in the Navy Reserves at NAS ATLANTA in Marietta.

The Navy technician in charge of finger printing, Military I.D. cards, and Dog Tags was a friend, co-high school student and co-Big Apple Grocery Store employee.

I had my boot camp in December and it was planned that I would go active duty for two years in July 1963.

Before I went into an active duty and God knows where, I wanted my friends and I to go to the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.

Then I had a PV544 Volvo.  We decided to go to Nashville in it.  It was small, we would probably get better gas mileage.  But it had brake problem.  My friend, who also was going on the trip said bring it by his mother’s house and we (him) would put new brakes on.  Which I brought by his house.  And we (him) put on the new brakes.

On the trip, this was before Interstate expressways, we went the old Dixie Highway.  Miles north of Chattanooga the road going up hills and mountains got steep.  Coming down one steep hill my brakes gave and our uncontrollable speed picked up getting faster and faster and faster.   Thank God for truck runaway ramps back then.  It saved our lives.  Ed screamed until we came to a stop.

I’m not sure of the date we went but it was before March 5, 1963.  Patsy Cline died on March 5, 1963, and so did Cowboy Copus.  We saw them perform at the Grand Ole’ Opry.

We drove into Nashville and got us a room at the  Andrew Jackson Hotel, next door to the Ryman Auditorium, home of the Grande Ole Opry.

We went down on the streets of downtown Nashville to find a place to eat.  We ate at a Five and Dime Store, maybe Woolworths.  The booth we were witting in was facing the sidewalk.  A tall unkempt man with a guitar slung on him was just outside the window looking at every bite we took.  We invited him to join us.  He mimicked that he had no money.  We motioned that we would buy him a meal, which he immediately joined us.  He told he and Cowboy Copus grew up together and were good friends.  Cowboy told him if he ever got to Nashville he would see that he got to play on stage at the Grande Ole Opry.

We wished him good luck.

Shortly after that we were in the balcony of the Ryman Auditorium stomping our feet to country music.  We saw giant cereal boxes and famous singers, lined up one after another.  Cowboy Copus was the M.C. and kept the show time moving rapidly.

Then I looked down on the first floor and saw the familiar dirty old raincoat and the guitar.  I punched my friends to look.  The old drunk we bought his dinner was walking up the aisle toward the stage.  An usher stepped out from nowhere and asked him something.  The man pointed up towards Cowboy Copus and said something.  Another usher joined them.  They bot listened to hm and half way politely nodding and rudely shaking their head.  They forcefully removed the bewildered man.  Cowboy Copus, playing up on stage did not miss a beat.

Patsy Cline played that night.  My memory is confused.  I think her and Cowboy Copus were killed in a plain wreck in Camden, Tennessee, either that night or the following Saturday night.

Afterwards we went to a jam session at something like Earne’s Music Store and then to a bar/lounge called the Jungle.  Our waitress flirted with us for tips and somehow learned she had six or seven kids at home that her husband was minding over while she worked, not that that had anything to do with anything.

Marie and her g-g-grand children

This is my late mother-in-law and her g-g-g grandchildren.  I took the picture about 15 years ago.  I just like the composition and facial expressions of the moment I accidentally caught. 

HAPPY CONSTITUTION DAY !

MAD's Al Fieldstein

Al Fieldstein (MAD editor) c2000 at Atlanta's Dragon Con.

SUNDAY FUNNIES: MAD's Grocery Stores

This is as true today as it was over 50 years ago when this was first published.    Art by Georgia's own Jack Davis, and the story by editor Harvey Kurtzman.

click on each page to make it bigger and understandable and hopefully funnier.

Pieces of Waterman Street School

Random pieces of my first school and random pieces of me.

HAPPY FRIDAY THE 13TH!!~

Mary the Wave

Throwback  Thursday
There were no females in our squadron of 300 plus men. We were in a seagoing helicopter squadron, so any of us was subject to be part of a helo crew on a ship at any time. It is probably not the case now, but then females did not go on sea duty.

On the base there were a bunch of Waves. They worked here and there in base operations. Some, and probably most were typists. Some worked at the little on base medical center and some worked in Special Services who ran the theater, bowling alley, library, and so on.

The waves’ barracks building was next to the base pool. Some times in the summer on Sunday afternoon we would go and hangout at the pool hoping some of the waves would come out and flirt with us. They came but hung out in a group.

Another wave, was alone many times at the E.M. Club. We noticed her like we noticed all waves, like eyes transfixed and focused on the nearest one. The wave was named Mary. We cleverly named her Mary the Wave.

Mary was masculine and had away about her that any egomaniac jock would envy. She walked as if she was a muscle bound man and was a loud mouth. In short, we had no sexual interest in Mary the Wav

One day at the E.M. Club one of us spoke to her which led to a long conversation. She came to our table. I think the big pitcher of beer sitting there attracted her. Before sitting down she went up to the bar and asked the bartender for an empty glass. After all, she had standards.

After drinking beer with Mary we found out she wasn’t she wasn’t such a bad gal. Well, she did let us know we had no chance at all of getting to first base with her and that she said in so many words and witty word play innuendos that she preferred women. Well, we couldn’t hold that against her, we also preferred women.

Mary became one of our regulars beer drinkers at our table at the E.M. Club. At least twice she slipped into the barracks with us holding the door for her and looking around to make sure the coast was clear.

She didn’t slip in the barracks with us to have a sexual love tumble. In each case it was time to close the E.M. Club and she wasn’t finished talking yet. When she started drinking she had plenty to say.

I remember one night after lights out (10pm)  Don slipped Mary in the barracks.  They were both drunk.  Don and Mary visited a few friends that were asleep in their bunks and they got quiet a jolt when then woke up and realized Mary the Wave was crawling under the blanket with them.  

At the entrance of the E.M. Club was always a SP (security police) in uniform sitting at a little table. His job was to make sure no under-agers came in to drink and in general restore order in case disorder happens.

Next to him was a little hallway. In the hall was the door to the men’s restroom and the door to the women’s restroom, pardon me, I mean to say "Ladies Head"  and "Men Heads."

One night, after all us males have left except Don, that one kept drinking with Mary and see was in her abstract drinking and had a lot to say. She had to go to the restroom but she wasn’t finished talking.

So, she motioned for Don to  to come on with her to the women’s restroom. The guy refused, saying the SP will see him. She more or less jumped up and down and demanded that he come alone. Finally decided that first she would go and a few seconds later he would go, and the SP would assume that the guy would have naturally went to the Men’s room.

In a few seconds he found himself in the restroom. Mary hollered from a stall, “Over here!”

So, he walked over and stood outside the stall while Mary was making her deep philosophy  points, driving her point home with the sound of farts and turds hitting the water.

After she wiped and flushed and she washed her hands.

Mary and  Don walked out. Facing them just outside the door of the SP with his arms folded, patiently waiting.

He checked their identification cards and told them to come with him. He had them climb in the back of a gray Naval van. Off they went. Don expected him to turn left at on the main road towards the security office at the front gate. Instead he turn left towards the airfield. After he drove so far out and the in the dark he pulled over.

The SP opened the van and told Don to get up and drive and do not look in the back. The SP climbed inside the back with Mary. The guy drove and he could hear Mary in the back raving, screaming cursing, kicking, and hitting her attacker

Don  drove for a minute or two and thought, “This is wrong, just plain wrong.”

He drove pulled onto the runway with all the lines of lights. He stopped the van, left the headlights on and got out and started walked away. After he got maybe ¼ mile or more away a moving light got his attention, he looked up, and three of four vehicles with their lights on, one a flashing light, were quickly approaching the parked van.

The next day Mary was laughing about it saying the SP was in trouble and she was going to press charges. We asked did he rape her, and she swatted her hand, like swatting a gnat and said, “Not hardly!”

I wonder what ever happened to Mary the Wave?

Labels: Navy

WHAT TH...!?

What I did September 11th, 2001:

I first remember driving through the Krystal Hamburgers and getting a cup of coffee and a sausage and biscuit  and then to my sister's house to feed their pets.  They were on vacation in Florida.  While there, the telephone rang and I picked it up.  It was Anna, calling from work.  She said, Turn on the TV!"  Which I did and the TODAY SHOW was on and what they were discussing and puzzled about was one of the top floors of one of the NYC TRADE CENTER buildings was on fire, then the other one, hit by a big plane.  OH SHIT!  We are at war!

Today we are going to Costco.  A week from now I doubt if I will remember it.

No Problem

They had no problem on what to do with their Uncle's remains.

Keeping Up

Today in a restaurant two ladies were in the next booth.  One was elderly and the other was middle age The elderly was dressed plainly and the middle-age lady dressed affluently fashioned.  The older lady was fussing about the food, then she was fussing about having to eat it all.  The younger lady told her "You don't  have to eat it all, have them put it in a box to carry it home Mother."
Mother? 
So the younger lady carried her mother out to lunch and both were uncomfortable.
The older lady found some more things to fuss about  and the daughter was disgusted.
When they walked off the daughter told her mother, "This is the last time I'm talking you out."

Also on a busy traffic road billboard:  A pretty teenager with braces on.  A dental company ad, it said "HAVE THE BEST SELFIES!!"

Keeping up with modern trends.

Voyeurism of the Blue Ridge Mountains

Several years ago we spent almost a week in he mountains of north Georgia between the towns of Ellijay and Blue Ridge.  What a view we had!  All the pictures here were taken from about the same spot.

Of course click on each picture to make it more commanding.