Larry McIntyre

In less than 8000 characters ! Okay .. among them:

- in Grade 9, the parquet floors in the second floor classroom, remnant of what had been the ballroom when the old school had been the 'Cayley mansion'; the north and west side window walls looking out into the stand of maples, 'the last stand of virgin forest in the area' according to Miss Mott

- 10B classes in 'the Annex' to the old school, heated by the coal burning Quebec heater; the cadet corps' Bren guns stored in crates around the room, the diagrams above the blackboards detailing how to strip and reassemble them; we learned to do it in 30 seconds

- earning the Army's $20, with Mr Stevens coaching and Capt Spikoluk's certification of ten words a minute Morse Code (or was sit $10 for 20 wpm?)

- the wool khaki cadet uniforms coming out of storage, and trying to find one that would fit, in the run up to Cadet Inspection; the preceding Church Parade, rotated through the Norwich churches, and one year St John's in Otterville; blank files in the platoon and the 'eye's right' at the reviewing stand; the afternoon's PT and military field skills demonstrations; and the formal Cadet Dance ending the day

- Ernie Hewitt's Orchestra playing to school dances in the Legion Hall, then in the 'new school' gym

- assemblies in the Legion Hall during the years in the old school; a past grad, whose name is long since beyond recall, telling of her year-before travel adventures in Europe, flint-to-stone for already incipient wanderlust in one listener at least

- parts in the annual school plays staged in the United Church auditorium, later the musicals staged in the new school 'gymnatorium'

- Principal J. C. St John triumphantly tacking up the blueprints for the new school during the last Open House at the old school

- bused from the old school to the Arena for PT in the upstairs gym; 'shirts and skins' basketball

- track and field: Algerd Tamasauskas' long strides taking him round the Fairgrounds track laps ahead of anyone else

- TINDA junior and senior basketball home and away games; the football team, after how many years in the cellar, winning the last game of the season the first year in the new school, climbing to the top of the league the next year and never afterward looking back

- me, definitely no football player, selling hot dogs at the games at the Fairgrounds, later the back campus at the new school; turning a profit the first year operating the after-class canteen in the new school - high fives to Geraldine Bloxidge, Fenton Lafortune, and the others who staffed it, with appreciation to the always and ever nice Hazel Bucholtz, school secretary, guardian of our cash box

- after school and weekend jobs: Connie Tokarz and Pat Robertson behind the counter at the Campus Bar; Junior Cayley in the Co-op butcher shop; Jim Anderson in the family store; me, Longworth's delivery boy, later behind the soda fountain and waiting on tables at the Grill

- in Grade 11, announcement of the death of the King, and the ascension of HM the Queen

- the Grade 12 French penpals organized by Mr Wallace; years later, in Paris, an afternoon visit near where she worked at American Express with Mlle Bernard, my penpal

- pre-401 bus trips to Toronto for the Winter Fair; to Maple Leaf Gardens for Ice Capades; stopping off at the Rendezvous in Hamilton

- the flask under the sink in the home room Lab table Zip Pennington and I shared, into which we dumped whatever came out of our Chemistry experiments, somehow, thankfully in retrospect, self-neutralizing; the distinct smell of 'rotten eggs' that once permeated the school via the ventilation system was somebody else, not us

- the Frank Panabaker painting the class decided upon to hang in the North Corridor as Grad Class gift to the school

- Stenny's - Mr Stenson's - patience instructing how to clutch the Farmal, ('Ye Gods'), both of us knowing, whatever our enthusiasm of the moment, a future in farming was not in the stars for this Grade Ten-er

- the 'frf', 'juj', 'end of day 3:00-3:40 spare' instruction in the 'conservatory'-typing room at the old school, volunteered by Dorothea Edmonds, Commercial teacher, for anyone who wanted to learn touch-typing: a skill I have used every day since ..

- significantly, bused to Burgessville for Manual Training classes as we were in Grade 10, one afternoon Mr McSpadden's informal career counselling sessions turning a gangly thirteen-year old's head to what eventually became my years in Radio and Television; later, in Grade 13, Mr Irvine writing a Letter of Introduction to his former London next door neighbour, CFPL TV General Manager Bob Reinhart, which more than got me inside the door, and ultimately induction in the Half Century Club of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters, and life membership in the Broadcast Educators Association of Canada; my eternal gratitude ..

Yes .. seeing as how it has been many years since I have been on NDHS campus

Only fond memories

Infrequently

As well as the 'Honey Do' list ??

Free lance writing, broadcasting, having wound down my travel career (Tour Director, Great Canadian Holidays, taking tour groups to North American destinations and 1996-2001, Portugal and Spain)

writing, broadcasting? full circle, back to the beginning!

Travel Australia .. I'll get there yet ..

Spare Time ? What's that ??

On the theory you are only as old as you feel, decided on my last birthday to be 42 again.

But, turning 76, decided that's a good number: in the US the Spirit of 76 stands for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness - not a bad triad. As well, 76 trombones led the big parade thru River City ..

.. earned every one of them!

that I am really very short, just that I have been 'walking tall' all these years !

Yeah ..

.. I am sure teachers and staff would have a few suggestions !

All time: 'A Christmas Story' ("Ralphie"); 'Driving Miss Daisy', '84 Charing Cross Road'; To Kill a Mockingbird

.. you mean like Angelina Jolie and Cate Blanchett ? On a movie set. I was doing background. No credits.

.. who? Me ??

yeah, I've done that. The Atlantic, Cavendish Beach, PEI; the Boardwalk, Atlantic City, NJ; the Grand Strand, Myrtle Beach, NC; on the other side: the beach at Albufierra in the Algarve; as well, the Aegean, from the beach at Marathon, Greece; and (a personal goal) all five Great Lakes; making good the early swim instruction at Lions' Pool, Otterville

.. where do I begin!

Well, hey, Christmas comes only once a year !

.. memorably, yes .. with 10,000 Scouts of the World, at the World Scout Jamboree, Kananaskis, Alberta, 1983. The camp was assembled waiting on the Opening Ceremonies when the heavens opened; when we thought it could rain no harder, it began to hail! In retrospect, it made the Jamboree - everyone equal, all soaked to the skin!