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James King '65

What I recall about Ms Lee was she introduced our class to Brother Dave Garner’s parody of Tragedy of Julius Caesar in Ms Barden’s English class. Anyone experience that?

Lynn Gregory (Ferraro)

James, I always knew Miss Lee was a great person, but I didn't realize how cool she was. Not everybody was into Brother Dave. Thanks for sharing. 

Beau Wann, Jr.

       Happy M day to youse youtes!       Brother Dave Gardner?  "James lewis, get away from that wheelbarrow, you know you dont know nothing about machinery..."  That ol boy was insane!  Had a couple of his albums along with Justin Wilsons, who had a cooking show on 8 methinks, sometime back.   "hoo mahn, hah guaruntee..." or woids to that defect.

     I could tell right off that it was Monday, because of the M on my 7 day vitamin pill thingy.
Pretty sharp eh!  We're very fortunate that all we have to take are vitamins and the like.  Well, I have to take a "metro...something or other'  for what Doc Frrrrrahnkensteen  (notice how I rolled my Rs)  calls "essential tremors".   I call them "my shakey pills", which seem to me to not be all that effective, but what the heck, could be woise eh hoser!   

     The days and nights are very interesting up heah in the Chalps, sto say the leeast..  Got into a fight with my pillow, over the weekend.  Well, we didnt fight over "the weekend", but during the weekend we fought.   I have 3 pillows, and dont like any of them, but got into a fight with the smaller of the 3.  Woke up and the pillow case was plumb off, and there was blood strewn about.  Oh, not alot, just enough to let me know "I bled". 

      I could understand a little bloodshed if I had gotten into a bruhaha with a rose bush... which is perzactly what I did yesterday.   I thought I'd help Diane out whilst she was in the big city, by innocently "deadheading"  the roses in Dianes rosegarden when one of those bad girls grabbed me and would not let go.  Like ol brer rabbit, the harder I fought, the stuckier I got.  

     I had my P hone with me, and was just a sillysecond away from calling 911, seriously!   After having thought about it at length, say anothe silly second,  I decided against it.  Can you imagine what that woulda sounded like...

    Operator:   "911, what's your emergency?"

Me:  Uh ma'am, could y ou send someone out to **** lane in Chappell Hill?
I seem to be stuck in my wifes rose garden"!

operator:  Ok, well then what's the emergency, you have a heart attack"? 

Me:  No ma'am, I'm tangled up in the roses, and the thorns are holding on to me, and I'm bleeding".

operator:  "Well what do you want me to do, call Martha Stewart?  Is this a prank call?  That's a crime you know!"

Me;  "no, this is a for real call, I am stuck in the rosegarden, and bleeding, well, dont think I'll bleed to death, but I'm having a heck of a time getting a loose from these rosebushes from hell, and I've got to get out to give my dog 4 pills at 3 oclock"

Operator:  "Sir, do you have some pruners in your hand?"

 Me:   "yes ma'am I do"
 Operator;, "well then, why dont you just cut the branches that are holding you back"
Me;   "ARE YOU NUTS?  If I do that, I'll need emergency service for real and sure. Ok, sorry to have bothered you, I think I can manage"
Operator: Ok sir, have a nice day"

     Fat chance of that happening! ! ! !        Well anyway that's how that phone call woulda gone had I made it.   Fortunately I was wearing a loose wrangler shirtjac, and manged to extricate my arms from it and vacate the premises aka rose garden.  (wasnt there a song..."I beg your pardon, I never promised you a rose garden...")  Aint that the truth! ! !

     So now I'm out of the rosegardenfromhell, bleedin like a stuck pig, maddern a wet hen...(has anyone ever seen a "stuck pig", or a "wet hen"? I havent)  Well, you know what I mean.  I need to get my shirt out of there, it looks like one of the scarecrows my beloved has made and attached to the gates.   You know, I've almost shot those scarecrows on numerous occasions, becasue they really dont belong there,  they are life size, and at night, looks like someone movin about.

     Of course when Diane came home lastnight, she asked me, "what's your shirt doing in the rosebushes...."     then she thought about that statement, and said,    "never mind".     At least I didnt run the tractor into the cement pond, ok?

     Never a dull moment up here at the Wannderosa.   What a beautiful day today, we had 39 this morning and 77% humadidity, why I mention the humadidity, is because at 3 oclock yesterday,  Jacks 2nd pill adminstering, the humadidity was 14% ! ! !   I've never in all my borned days, ever seen the humadidty that low.   

     Here's another thing, I was sitting out by the pool yestiddy, on the deck, that I built, smokin a stogie, listening to Janis Ian, (another story her), when I noticed dozens of buzzards circling about, low and high.  I had to check on Jack, because one day this past other time, Jack was laying in the yard, and a buzzard was on the ground not moren 2 feet away from him walking towards him.  I disabused that ol buzzard from it's notion of having Jack as a meal.

      Anyway to lengthen an otherwise short story,  I noticed up around 4 or 5 thousand feet, a white bird.  I saw the sun glistening off it's wings and body, then all of a sudden, there were hundreds of the white birds, not in a V, but at differeing heights and flying helter skelter, hither and yon, to and fro, all mishy mashy and wishy washy, otherwise in full out circling disaray. 

   The were coming from the north, and as I mentioned, way yonder on up there, bout 4 or 5 thousand feet, well above the buzzards.  When they got directly overhead, they disappeared, I mean gone, vanished, as in no longer there.  The day was as today, clear and no clouds, so they couldnt have gone behind one.      You know what I'm thinkin dontcha?  Yup ANGELS ! ! ! !   Wonder what they were doing?  I'm still here, so they didnt come for me!   Darn! 

     I'll save Janis Ian for another day....is that cheering I hear?   Oh fine!
Keep the sun at your six and "ride boldly ride..."
Your frien and resident rose bud, bud!  Cephus R a rose by any other name esq  

Wayne Lake

Who-da-thunk-it? that we would still be suffering in place at Thanksgiving when Johnny et al back in March made the correct call to postpone any fling ding. Well here we are….but, there is a light at the end of the tunnel thanks to some very hard working scientists who have developed low risk, highly effective, vaccines and we of all people are fairly high on the list for getting a dose or two. So far, so good as I have not heard of any of our classmates that have contracted COVID-19 and that says something about who we are.    

RIP John Prine, Jerry Jeff Walker (Paige Talley’s Ambergis Caye Belize drinkin’ buddy) and Larry Joe Taylor even though the amped up, glitzy, botox ridden and light show CMA failed to mention their passing.

So many reasons to give thanks this year; friends and family, good health, great medicine, pleasant fall Texas weather, hobbies that keep you busy and out of the fridge and the Waltrip64 web site that Jackie gave us and Beverly has been so kind to maintain.

Looking forward to when we can travel, go out to eat/drink beer and gather our clan to hug necks, shake hands, kid each other and reminisce about the good ol’ days in person.  

Have a Happy and Safe Turkey Day regardless of who with, how many and where you spend it, wtl

Don Ellisor

Good morning class of 64. It has been three weeks since my triple by-pass surgery. The Dr.s say all is going as planned and I am beginning to walk more frequently and further distances. Thank you all for praying for me and Shirley during this challenge. If ever any of you are facing this surgeryy and need someone to talk to, pray with or generally just someone to hug, I am available. 
pray for our nation and be kind to all. Regardless of how you voted, God is in charge and is not surprised by the elections outcomes.

Rodger Reynolds

Don, thanks for the update. Glad to hear that you are improving. God is good all the time.

Rodger

Beau Wann, Jr.

     Good Sunday mornin to all youse youtes. The Rosemandu of Chappell Hill, here!   Continued good recovering to you Don. You're on your way to start training for a marathon. 

     Truth be told, life is a marathon isnt it!  Some of us, and speaking solely for myself, are slower than others, much slower.  I remember when whoever coach I had for PE,   timed us in the 100yd dash.  Clock is still running for me.  I never understood why, even though we all have same legs, sort of, that one person is faster than another. 

     They say that "heart" makes all the difference sometimes.   That might be true on equal footing, no pun intended, but when it gets down to it, it's your legs that do the running, not the heart, althought it's the heart that  sees that the job gets done, however fast or slow.

    I wonder what my  " time" in the 100  was back in them good ol days.  For somereason, 11 seconds comes winging in from the infinite, but it was probably more like 14 seconds.  If they'd a had some biscuits and gravy at the tape, it'd be more like 1 second or faster.

     Speaking of which, I made from scratch biscuits and gravy this mornin in honor of another blessed Sunday.  Plus had 20 minute grits, (no self respectin southerner uses instant grits, ah take pride in mah grits),  ham and eggs, coffee and more coffee.

    Remembering back to the days when the families got together at my grandmothers house on Plateau st and at the bottom of South Oak in Little Rock, Ark.  All the womenfolk were in the kitchen and of course the menfolk were gathered in the parlor, smokin cigarettes, cigars and pipes, IN THE HOUSE! ! ! !  Anyway, I hung out in the kitchen just in case something needed tasting for salt or someother reason.  I knew where my bread was buttered!

     Listening to the women chattering in the kitchen, NO ONE ever mentioned anything about makin something from "scratch", because everything was always from scratch, and that included vegetables from the garden not from a can.  Dont recollect seeing any of the ladies using measuring tools or timers of any kind.  I HAVE TO HAVE MEASURING CUPS AND SPOONS ETC... and about half dozen timers and watches etc I'm not a good judge of quantities or time!

    Anytime anything was mentioned about making something from a "box", was if someone else had done it..."mama, did you hear that Miz Linquist made a cake for Mildreds birthday party, "OUT OF A BOX"???? To which my grandmother would reply, "laaawwww chile, that just aint natural, a cake from a box.  What next, taters from a box?  I hope I taught you girls well enough not to cook from no box". 

     If something calls for 1 cup of flour, then I measure to the exact cup, and not a farthing over or under,  same as in time, except I've learned to set the timer "short" rather than on the recommended time, such as my CC cookies.  Never leave them in longer than 8 minutes, and usually start taking them out around 6 or 7. They do continue to bake on the hot cookie sheet,  even out of the oven.  I like my CC cookies SOFT ! ! !

   There seems to be "mandates" on the number of people you can have over for thanksgibving, some states its just 2 and up to 6 in others.  You can have 30 people at a funeral....so, we're having a funeral for our pet turkey, and in lieu of flowers, bring a side and or a dessert, there, that ought to solve that problem.   (where do all the so called "experts" come up with the numbers they mandate? Is there a gov.com site for them? Do they have a handy dandy "pocket" guide?)  Of course with the powers that be, it's "do as I say, not as I do".  

    I dont think anyone is coming over for T day this year, just be me n the little woman and 3 dogs and a cat, oh and Harry the lizard that lives in the window in the Ram Daince hall.   

     Diane retrieved my shirt from her rose garden, none the worse for wear.  It was actually one of my all time favorite denim shirts with the pearl snaps.  Love that shirt!  I also have another denim shirt with buttons, made by  ROEBUCKS.  Yup, that shirt is probably oldern me, if that's possible. 

     Only problem with having one shirt with snaps and another that looks just like it, with buttons, is that sometimes in my haste to shed my clothing and jump in the shower, I just rip open my shirt front, like superman, and that works fine with snaps, but it's hell on a  shirt with buttons.  I dont know how many times Diane has had to sew the buttons back on my ROEBUCKS shirt, but moren oncet.  

     Nice overcast day today, just wish it would rain a smidgen.  Our dews are so heavy up here, that one is probably equal to a good quarter inch shower.  We also have a lot of foggy mornings.  For A while I was puzzeled over that occurance, but the longer I thought about it, it finally dawned on me...WE LIVE IN THE BRAZOS RIVER VALLEY! ! Mr Clausen would be so proud...or not!  

    Any of youse youtes been up to the White River in Arkansas?   They have a lot of fog, which I experienced, and there's picture postcards of it, and it's called "whipped cream" fog. That stuff is so white, almost looks like snow.  Diane and I took our boys up there a couple times to fish the "river".  Everyone caught rainbow trout, but me. Of course I wasnt serious about fishing as much as I wanted the boys to experience pulling a rainbow trout out of the white river, and they did in spades. 

    I'd heard a zillion stories from my dad and granddad and uncles about how they could just reach in the water of the White river and the Buffalo River and come out with a handful of rainbow trout.  If they'd a said "ready to eat", I'd a believed that too.  There's something about being on a flowing river, or next to it that just peaks the adventurous streak in a boy...of course,    MARK TWAIN ! ! ! 

    Well, I'll make this short...TOO LATE EH HOSER...! ! !

Keep the sun at your six and "ride boldly ride..."

Your frien and resident river boat captain, Cephus R Floatin esq... 

Ronna Brand

 Beau I love your reasoning in having a funeral for the big bird, so you can invite your clan to the paying of respects🤩

I am truly thankful for many blessings this year-all my loved ones staying healthy is up high on the list.  I was thinking that another of my many gifts are the lasting friendships with members of the Waltrip 1964 graduating class!!!!  I would say we are all blessed in that regard!,  Stay safe and well, friends!  I hope to see y’all soon!

Johnny Sheffield

Question of the day:

what do you remember on this day in 1963.

From Tony maddox

Answer:

1. President John f kennedy was assassinated:

2. Waltrip won the Houston football city championship. 
 

Johnny 

Beverly Hengst (Allen)

Well, I am a day late and a dollar short, but I clearly remember November 22, 1963.

I was an office aide and was walking down the hall when the announcement about John Kennedy was made.  I could not believe what I heard and looked into a couple of classes.  It was evident by the reactions, I had heard correctly.

I remember having to attend the football game that night since it was still on and I was a Guard member.  I believe we played Sam Houston.

Jeannie Vickery (Swanson)

November 22, 1963 - Doug McCuen walked in my bookkeeping class and told Mrs. Peek that President Kennedy had been assassinated...the entire class was in a state of unbelief.

Beau Wann, Jr.

       I was in Mz Hawkins arts and crafts class when the announcement came over the PA just shortly before 1 oclock, or 1:04.      Yall remember her, easy going, sweet and just  a delight and joy to be with, plus she praised you to no end with whatever goofy thingy you made in her class.

    She was so upset, as one would expect, she was crying, which pretty much got the rest of us somewhat misty eyed,  and upset, again as one would expect.
Dont really remember what happend the rest of the day.  

Don Ellisor

We played Bellaire. I still don't know why we played that game after the events of the day.

Carole Gunter (Snell) (Jenkins)

I remember being told about the assisination by Miss Lee.  We were sitting in the auditorium during our guard class.   We were all in shock and crying

Pat Brantley (Ross)

Don, yes indeed our God is good.  I am praying for you.

Jimmy Lee, the church we attended has taken the slack role also.  Most are not wearing masks and social distancing is not enforced.

Bennie, you were talking about humorous authors.  I would whole heartedly recommend Carl Hiassen as being the funniest guy I have ever read.  Of course Wayne Lake hasn't written one yet.  Haïssen stopped writing after his brother was killed.  Can't remember his real name, but his brother was killed by the man who shot all the people at the small newspaper office.  They had published a cartoon featuring Mohammed.  Well his humor is based on very strange people in Flotida.

beau, we bought a condominium that was 1 of 12 units.  There was no backup generator.  Someone forgot to send the elevator to the third floor when a flood was coming.  Floods come about every 10-12 years in new braunfels.  Condo was on the river.  Cost us lots of money to repair the world's slowest elevator.  I think it's great to find music you like.  My playlist expands daily.  I was in the car for about 15 minutes yesterday and heard music from Hank Williams to Death Cab for Cuties.  Whitney Houston can bring me to tears and Five for Fighting makes me want to sing along.  MusIc is a  joyful part of our lives.  We really need that.  
 

I am hopeful about the Vaccines and really pray that the delivery system goes smoothly.  My parents lived through the aftermath of WWI, the depression, and WWII.  I can live through this.  I have watched more tv than I would choose if there were options.  I have a huge choice and should be grateful.  Our Thanksgiving will be 8 of us in my daughter's backyard.  My son in law is an ER doctor so we wear masks unless we are eating.  He has seen this monster up close and personal.  Two nieces have had it.  One was very ill.  My grandson had a mild case.  We have not lost a family member.  I am grateful.

Richard Gardner

Our band had been invited to play "Hail to the Chief" and "Four Ruffles and Fluorishes" for President Kennedy the night of November 21, 1963 in the Sam Houston Coliseum and I took my little Brownie 8 movie camera and took movies of him and all the other dignitaries (Lyndon Johnson, Ladybird Johnson, Albert Thomas, etc.) Our band director, Burt Roth, gave us the period off on November 22, 1963 because we had played the night before. It was during our band class that we heard the President Kennedy had been shot and died. We were in total shock because we all had just seen him in person the night before. My home movies of President Kennedy that night are now in the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealy Plaza in Dallas. I was also invited to do an oral interview by the museum which is also on file in the museum. They gave Ann and I a guided tour of the book depository building and the museum which was extremely interesting. I still have my clarinet that I played that night.

Steve Puckett '65

I played bassoon or percussion for that event, a banquet to honor famous congressman Albert Thomas held at the convention center.  As far as I know, it was the last time Hail to the Chief was played for him.  The next morning I was on cloud 9 only to later be thrown into the pit of sadness.  I felt so sorry for him and his family, later worrying about the nation.

Glenn Weissinger

WOW.  I did not know that the Walteip band performed at the event.  What an honor and what a memory it must be. 
Happy Thanksgiving to all and be safe.

Richard Gardner

The Waltrip Band also played for JFK when he made his famous speech about going to the moon at Rice Stadium on September 12, 1962. I think we are in the background films (blurred) of all the replays of this speech. Since I was playing in the band, my brother took the 8mm movie of him at that time which is also now at the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealy Plaza. Another tidbit about my 8mm movies of JFK the night before he was killed is when we picked up the film from Sears on Shepherd after being developed, there was a small note from the FBI wanting to know if we had any other related films. When I was being interviewed in Dallas at the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealy Plaza, the interviewer did not know that the FBI notes were sent in the Houston area, he only knew they had been sent in the Dallas area.

Gloria Hornick (Walker)

This was one of the most memorable band experiences I had.  We were in band class when we heard he was shot, so it was doubly hard.  

Hoping everyone has a great Thanksgiving.  We really do have a lot to be thankful for.  

Bennie Schielack

Had a nice meal at the Rice Hotel cafeteria, located in the basement, just prior heading over to the Sam Houston Coluseum.  I remember Wayne Rogers taking some lemon slices with him to the event, to chew on just prior to playing Hail to the Chief, hoping to get some of the other members to "pucker up" and not be able to play as well as normal.  

Hopefully, this was just a few seconds of the band members "fifteen minutes of fame" . . . . . 

Happy Thanksgiving to all, even tho it is a bit delayed . . . . . 

Donald May

Thatis fantastic being able to play for the President.I know the band members are so proud.  The only thing I really remember was that I was in Ms Lee's class when the announcement came over the loudspeaker that President Kennedy had been shot.  At that point Ms Lee broke down and cried.

Wayne Lake

Don, welcome to the zipper club. I hope you are feeling better. Remember, it only hurts when you breathe or laugh and only lasts a few weeks. Walking a couple of miles every day is definitely the fix without a doubt.

Pat, thanks for the compliment I guess, however I have always tried to be serious on this forum.

I had no idea the Waltrip Band was involved when JFK came to town, what a thrill to play for him and then a huge letdown, I’m sure. Bert Roth was so gifted in many ways and we were lucky to have him and so many other great leaders at our school.  I remember when he left Waltrip and he became the band leader at Rice, organized the Marching Owl Band (MOB) – only a few members, without uniforms and they denigrated many SWC traditions especially when they played the Aggies in Houston around 1976 and at ½ time poked fun of recently departed Revelie. After the game the Aggie band members had the MOB cornered in their little band room till they were rescued by campus police. It was nip and tuck for a while but that did not stop them from making fun of the much larger schools with hundreds in the bands with their fancy uniforms and gear.  

Be sure to shop till you drop this year cause Jeff Bozo needs the $, just read that Amazon gets 30% of all on-line sales and Black Fridays Matter more than ever this year.

Duelin’ with the dog gone Duck Hunters fighting for real estate on the flats, wtl

Teddie Jordan

Was there a earlier  event with JFK at Rice Stadium where he spoke?  Waltrip took several Bus loads of us to that event. Either late '62 or early '63. Fran I had started dating and rode together in one of the school buses. 

And Don, that is great news. We have walked frequently and consistently for a number of years. It is a good RX for life. As many as the physical benefits are, it as good for mental health equally. It is a time to think, and commune with nature, a time to reflect, and a perfect time to pray and thank God for our many blessings! Thank you for the update Old friend. 

Patty Payne (Nami)