Saturday, December 31, 2011

L T Dillon - Entrepeneur


Richard Holstad keeps feeding information about L T Dillon and the 1936 National Band Contest.  The exploits have been reported previously and at some point the numerous photos along with a recording made by the St Olaf Band of the song played in contest by the NHS Band will be posted by way of YouTube.

In the meantime, take a closer look at the above photo.  Click on it to open a larger view in a new window, then look carefully at the band members themselves.  They're all cut-outs!  According to the clipping at the bottom of the photo, it was made by L T Dillon, composed of individual photos of the various members munted on a base and placed on a small stage, thus "manufactured" by Dillon because the school in 1936 did not have an auditorium - and this apparently was the closest facsimile of a performance setting that he could come up with.  (The gymnasium used by the Class of '62 was built and occupied AFTER the National Contest.)

Pretty ingenious, that fellow.  He also is the photographer for the photo below, as reported previously in this blog.  Unable to be in the picture, he made it there as an inserted image in the upper left corner.  This almost makes you laugh, except for the picture of determination and dedication that he embodied as a "part-time" instructor for a national champ.  You may not find a more entrepreneurial spirit.

The band held a reunion in 2006; what a joy it must have been for those players to get back together again!
Keep your eyes on this blog for more information and stories on this group.  Many of them would have been parents of the Class of '62 or that era.  A son of one of the members, Richard has been reaching out to others to solicit their memories and photos as well.

Friday, December 30, 2011

One Last Holiday Greeting

The Hendrickson Clan on Holiday
We got this pleasant surprise today - an email from Janis with their Holiday greeting photo of their beautiful family.  They spent Christmas with the whole clan in Bradenton, FL.  What better site for a Christmas photo than a sandy beach?  We can tell it's not along the Shell Rock or at the Worth County Park - if that still exists.

We could congratulate Chuck for thinking of this and putting it together, but the rightful congratulations would be to say it's a darn good thing he married a woman with some creativity.  Click the picture for a larger view.

Lonna and I are heading for the Bradenton area for the month of April and Chuck and Janis expect to be there again at the same time so we look forward to hooking up with them.  And a Happy New Year to all of you!

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Blade and Seed - The Great Goose Caper

Another adventure, though the goose being cooked is themselves, in the lives of the Notorious Blade and Seed, direct from the pen (use your imagination) of Stan Arendts:

The objective was to create the most elaborate science project in the history of NKHS. What could be more impressive that to put together a skeleton of a full grown goose? How many bones in a goose? Who knows. How to get the meat and feathers off? I guess you boil it. Details, were never a problem for the dynamic duo.

Grandpa Morse's Favorite Goose
First, you locate a goose. Arlyn's grandfather had a few on his farm, but he was not interested in donating one to science......Then you capture the bird, put it in a milk can, so the bones don't break and put the top on so the goose makes no noise, revealing the theft. What could go wrong?

It was a normal night, with a lot of dew on the grass and weeds leading to the goose pen. It was also a lot longer of a trip (one mile) than originally thought. Additionally, an electric fence surrounded the pen. When we got into the pen, the geese went crazy, the dogs started barking and lights came on. The goose we caught was too big for the milk can. A hasty retreat was in order. On the way back, we got tangled in the fence with the milk can in tow. The dew solidified the connection and thus we were jolted into reality.

This was our introduction into "Murphy's Law" We ended up getting a C on the project, which sans the goose, concentrated on the properties of electricity. However, our creative instincts were intact. Such is life.

SCA

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

SCA Jr

The January 22 blog post reported one Stanton Carl Arendts was first alternate to be appointed to the Naval Academy.  Sure enough, our very own SCA is the apple who fell not far from the tree.  He confirms it was  his father referenced in the 75-Year-Old Anchor News:

USS West Virginia Burning in Pearl Harbor
Yes, My Father had almost as many sea stories as me!! He did go to the Academy (The boat school / canoe club) and graduated in time to be on the USS West Virginia when it was sunk at Pearl Harbor. Fortunately he was on shore at the time. 

His room mate was Bob Lim who went on to become the president of Philippine Air Lines after serving in the Philippine ARMY, as a general (I think). The Lim kids used to visit our family in Kensett during the summers.

While at USNA he, along with 2 other midshipmen formed a radio station and played music for the academy. When they graduated, they flipped for the records and my father won, ending up with hundreds of the old 78's. I used them as clay pigeons for skeet practice.His description of Navy life was much the same as my experiences. "Years and years of boredom, with fleeting moments of sheer panic and terror."  Much has changed since I got out.

SCA


Rest assured the photo of the USS West Virginia is included here only with the greatest respect.  The Class of '62 grew up in a marvelous era following what can best be described as a dangerous era.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Changing Times

Gadgets and toys abound anymore, and many people love them - if they work.  There is nothing more satisfying than re-wiring all the components in the surround system, then clicking the "power on" button - and everything works.

There is nothing more FRUSTRATING than failure of connections.  But sooner or later, even if it requires a call to an "out source",  order should be restored, and victory claimed.


As a result of all the toys available,  however, one might be looking at a mess as shown here on an end table:  Weather Station, cordless phone, Kindle, "dumb" phone, Harmony remote, and wireless keyboard.  Just sitting there, waiting to release their power.  Normal in today's world.



We are spoiled, rightfully so.  There was a time when changing the channel meant getting up out of your chair, walking to the TV, turning the dial, adjusting the tuning ring as necessary, then returning to your chair.  At that point, somebody else in the family will complain about the selection, and the diplomatic response is to repeat the process.





And if you were lucky the antenna didn't need to be adjusted, although that was often a pure stroke of luck because somehow your body was somehow able to funnel the signal to the rabbit ears but ONLY IF you were standing close, and once you moved away . . .

Isn't it nice to have today's gadgets?

Monday, December 26, 2011

The Car Show Game

Marilyn Weidler Ulve passed this along, and many car nuts will enjoy it.  The goal is to identify as many cars from the 50s as you can.  Click this link to go to the Car Show Game website.  While you're here, "honk" if you like this '57!



(It's a record "shortest" blog post in the history of NKHS 62.)

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Merry Christmas!

Here is a Christmas song taken from a television show, Studio 60.  Sometime later, this video was created as a greeting from New Orleans, a city extraordinarily diverse in culture and ethnicity.  We've enjoyed the song every year since it was the closing music in a 2006 episode of the old TV show "Studio 60" at Christmas, was posted online as an mp3 (see below) and wanted to share.  It's part of our Christmas Eve music routine, now including Christmas at Luther 2011.  This report regarding the music from the show was posted by Candace Lombardi:

A group of New Orleans musicians led by Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews played the new version of the Christmas classic as part of "The Christmas Show" episode's story line.


The musicians are really Hurricane Katrina survivors as they played on the show. The vignette was coordinated by the Tipitina's Foundation, an nonprofit organization dedicated to helping New Orleans musicians affected by Katrina.


An MP3 of the song can be streamed or downloaded from NBC's Studio 60 music site.


Friday, December 23, 2011

To Be Happy

Posted on a chalkboard by the coffee pots at the old J. D. One-Stop in Northwood:

When I was five years old, my mother told me that happiness was the key to life.  When I went to school they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up.  I wrote down "happy."  They said I didn't understand the assignment.  I told them they didn't understand life.


-- John Lennon       

It's not particularly deep philosophy but it does address a truth.  I mentioned in another posting that I don't know for sure which teacher, if any, ever motivated me to read books, or enjoy the ever-so articulate writers and orators.  Helen Thies certainly loved her symbolism, as someone pointed out, and for the love of me I wasn't  very good at finding the many interpretations that she uncovered, and this Lennon quote is pretty straight-forward if philosophical. 

One of the fellows I worked for in the 80's got all fired up about the symbolism in "Fatal Attraction," that spooky movie starring Michael Douglas and Glenn Close.  He expounded with enthusiasm on the water that showed up at appropriate moments, as it did when Glenn's character boiled the family pet rabbit.  A previous posting about Marilyn Monroe and her movie "Niagara" followed the same women/water symbolism, as I discovered when researching the movie a little bit.  Makes sense.  What more powerful water than Niagara?  More powerful woman than Monroe?  I don't think you even have to use your imagination . . .

The great writer and thinker Christopher Hitchens died recently.  He wasn't necessarily a symbolism guy, but he was a powerfully logical writer, and was cited by Ross Douthat, a conservative writer for the New York Times for his anguish over the existence of God, and his singular ability to debate an issue by citing circumstances and realities that few others may have considered.  It was as if Hitchens had a computer-like mind that enabled a constant "search" of "all things relevant to this topic" and then parsed the story to reflect it.

George Will is another author whose articulation is just fun to listen to, whether you agree with him or not.  Bill Buckley was awesome.  Lincoln was THE MAN of few more eloquent words.  Roosevelt.  Kennedy.  I wish I had paid more attention during English class and perhaps I would have loved them even more, symbolism or not, and somewhere along the way learned to be a better wordsmith.

Lennon, he of Beatlemania, may have just cut to the chase with the above quote, and I would confess to being one of those who would have thought he had not understood the assignment, being committed instead to the stated goal the student should achieve.  In 1963 Beatle music was becoming so popular, and though I had heard and loved the music they were playing, I had no clue who they were until I happened to be standing in Vic's Pizza in Mason City one night, waiting for a table or a person, I don't know which, glanced down at the jukebox near the front door that was playing one of their songs so I could find out exactly who was making that music, and realized that those four mop-headed characters were the source of the harmony that I, like everyone else, was becoming attached to.  

Continuing in my cultural heritage, narrow-mindedness, and inability to change with the world, I lacked the appreciation of the gradual transition of the Beatles to their adventures of living, the White Album, Paul's shoe-less walk across Abbey Road (symbolic or not), the hair that got longer and longer.  Some English teachers got with the program and used "Eleanor Rigby", "Yesterday", and various other Beatle titles as a teaching tool, and at least one basketball coach that I know would use their music to prime himself on game day, turning up the volume to a high level, then listening in a room by himself before his team took the court that night.

All while quietly, secretively attempting "to be happy."  And here's where we are today, in a state of retirement, reflecting on the past.

The path through this posting may not have been linear, but no matter - this ain't the New York Times.  But it is worthy to end where we started, with a quote from Lennon:  Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans.  And we'll leave it up to you to figure out the meaning and symbolism behind the whole posting.  Then send your thoughts to nkhs62@gmail.com.  My brain is near empty.

Thursday, December 22, 2011

More Old News from the Anchor - Stanton Arendts

The December 24, 1936, issue of the Anchor reports:

Stanton Carl Arendts of Kensett, son of Mr. and Mrs. Carl E. Arendts, has been nominated to be the first alternate to Gerald Carney of New Hampton for an appointment to the Naval Academy at Annapolis, MD, according to word received from Congressman Fred Biermann, who made the nomination.  The appointment begins in July, 1937, it is said.  With the present world situation, Arendts is almost assured of an appointment to the Academy, it is understood.


The Stan Arendts we know, who often signs his emails SCA, also served in the Navy.  Stan, fill us in on this earlier version of SCA, please.

Monday, December 19, 2011

Old News - from the Anchor

Last week's Anchor reported on the band that performed in Cleveland in 1936.

Fifty highly elated musicians, members of the Northwood school band, together with their director, L.T. Dillon, Supt. E. A. Prehm and four chaperones, boarded a special train on the North-Western railway at Mason City at 5 AM yesterday bound away for Cleveland, Ohio, where t 11 AM Thursday they will perform in the national band contest.  Chaperones include Mrs. Iver Bidne, Mrs. Levi Cornick, Mrs. Mabel Madson and Mrs. Leon Barnes.


The photo here was taken from a Globe-Gazette report in 2006, marking 70 years in 2006 at a band reunion.  The success of this band was reported previously in this blog, primarily by Richard Holstad, whose mother was one of the band members pictured.

Dillon is pictured in an insert top left of the band.  The original photo of Dillon included in the earlier report has been "lost" from the archives short-term but will be returned when found.  Call it Operator Error.

This photo appears to have been taken behind the school.  The gymnasium would be on the right, assuming it had been built by the time of this photo, and the classrooms behind the band would be Senior English - Helen Thies - if indeed this was a scene from the East side.  A really really careful view would seem to show students peering out those windows.

Friday, December 16, 2011

Home for the Holidays?

Home for the Holidays doesn't mean quite as much as it did in 1962 when college kids were approaching the end of the first semester, which in those days did not end until mid-January, or maybe those who had enlisted and would not be able to make it home until they had earned a leave.

Whatever the case, hearing the Perry Como tune inserted here caused some reflection on that first Christmas after graduation.  And I don't really recall a single thing about it.  Who I saw - what I did - what gift I received - NOTHING!  Bah humbug - maybe it's not all it's cracked up to be?  Call me Scrooge.

What I do recall is coming home the first weekend after classes started, and off and on after that point, frequently by hitchhiking.  Chuck Hendrickson and I did that often, and learned some lessons from it, plus picked up some life experiences.  

We'd find somebody to give us a ride out to the main highways out of Cedar Falls, like Highway 20 heading towards Parkersburg.  We always taped paper on the side of a suitcase with "Mason City" printed on it, figuring nobody knew where Northwood was, and once we'd get in a car we could somehow finesse the last 20 miles.  Often the drivers were heading north on 65 anyway, so it worked out.

Some folks went out of their way to help us out and sometimes we wish they hadn't because we'd be crammed into the back seat with some kid with a sucker, or something like that.  I think Chuck had a puppy throw up on him once and we'll have Janis grill him to find more about that - and add it to this blog.

One time I hitched over to Ames to see Phil Johnson and a semi driver picked me up.  I could not believe how that cab bounced around, but I still appreciated the ride.  I learned those guys probably retired with bad backs because it was really rough.  Phil came to Cedar Falls on a return visit and while there wound up talking to Norm Stewart, then UNI's basketball coach.

We were touring the campus, walked through the Men's Gym, and ran into Stewart, who saw Phil right away, recognized him, and said hello.  To Phil, not me.  As I recall the conversation Phil said, "Do you think he knows me?"  Of course he did, because he didn't greet me, that's for sure.  We turned around, Phil found Stewart in his office, and thus started the process that made Phil a Panther forever.  But that's another story.

I also learned that in hitchhiking you had to be instructive to drivers as to where they should drop you off.  One time we got dropped on one of the farm-to-market roads between 218 and Greene, and I thought we might die of loneliness out there.  Me, Chuck, a blacktop road, a gravel road, and lots of corn.  But if you just found out what route the driver was taking, you could set yourself up to get out at an intersection with traffic.  You always had to prospect.

On one occasion Denny Carnes and I hooked a ride home.  Somewhere out on Highway 20 a guy driving a big, long-finned Cadillac picked us up.  He pretty much looked like death warmed over.  His sallow face had a greasy mustache, baggy eyes covered by sunglasses, and a constant cigarette.  He regaled us with stories of Las Vegas, including his experience with Johnny Cash that we won't go into here, just to keep it clean.

To get back to Cedar Falls we turned the suitcase around with "Student to Cedar Falls" on the other side, and repeated the process.  I don't know how many trips we made like that but we sure wouldn't let the grandkids hitchhike today.  Too dangerous.  We grew up in a much better time.

So here it is at last - Perry Como.  This really looks like home, and it should take the Scrooge right out of you.  It did me.  Happy Holidays.



And if you have a wide-screen monitor, this newer and updated version is even better.  Notice all the trains.


Thursday, December 15, 2011

Butter Shortage?

Everything's better with Butter on it?

Yeah, butter shortage.  Whoodda thunk?

Such is the word of what is happening over in the Old Country.  Seems there is a very adequate supply of product here in the States, and now butter is indeed hitting the bigtime, like at the Iowa State Fair, where a stick of deep-fried butter apparently fills all your cholesterol needs for the next 3 months.

On the Steven Colbert Report, the host went so far as to talk with awe about this everyday condiment - if that's what it is - as delicious even when eaten "on the cob," which he proceeded to do, only to pause long enough to spread more butter on it, because "EVERYTHING tastes better with butter on it!"

Officially, here is what the AP is reporting:  High demand for butter used in Norwegian Christmas dishes has caused a big shortage, leading to butter smuggling.  (Those DASTARDLY Norwegians!)
In fact, officers at a border checkpoint with Sweden recently arrested a man with 200 pounds stashed in his car.  (Aha!  It's the SWEDES who are dastardly, NOT the Norwegians!)
Butter consumption has steadily increased in Norway.  Growth in demand peaked at more than 30% in November, compared with the previous year.
But this year's wet summer caused poor quality milk yields, affecting domestic butter production in  a country with steep import tariffs.


And here we are wasting butter at the State Fair by selling it by the stick, probably over-using it in Decorah in their fall festivals, where you can buy anything Norwegian, or in Emmons, at their annual lutefisk supper.  If they knew about this, real Norwegians would be ready to share with the rest of the world, yeah, sure, you betcha, so I can hear Sven right now:  "Get da bot ready, Ole, I'll bring da paddles and we'll head on over dere to deliver some of our own, den."

On the other hand, they probably have more snow in the Old Country than they need and the forecast here in the midwest is for another brown Christmas, just like Caleefourneeya.  Perhaps Sven will negotiate a swap.  If not, Stan, Merrilee, and Arlyn will be enjoying weather as if they were actually at home.  But a little greener.  And warmer.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

What Are You Reading?

Many of our schoolmates have talked about books they have read or are reading today.  Think back to your high school days - what teacher was prompting you to read back then?

Helen Thies - She Loved Her Lit
Perhaps in junior high you read some of the teen mystery books like Nancy Drew, Bobbsey Twins (72 books written by a syndicate between 1904 and 1979), or their ilk.  Or perhaps you read some of those fabulous sports novels, where fair play was more than a favorite term, becoming heroic by invoking the concept of fair play as the cause du jour.  In some of those novels the protagonist learned from the hard work of the Polish kid, whose name ended in "sky," or "ski," that being Polish was not a bad thing, that you could play on the same team, and that the nastiness of the kids at "Northern" or "State" was far greater than the undeserved ethnic disfavor heaped on the Polish kid earlier in the novel.  And there weren't any Polish kids in Northwood anyway, were there?

None of these books was included in the curriculum, outside reading that they were, and not until one encountered American literature as a junior, under the tutelage of Helen Thies, did one become erudite about great American novels.  Or did we?  Certainly we heard about Mark Twain, Emerson, Thoreau and others, but how many of them became part of your reading library - or inspired you to read more?  Perhaps the criticism is unfair, perhaps not.

As sophomores we were treated to an entire quarter of Leonidis Chimbidis reading All's Quiet on the Western Front, no doubt a great novel, but certainly an easy lesson plan for him to prepare just as it meant no homework for the students.  So it was like we were getting cheated on inspiration.

And then this writer discovered, through the Google, that Mr. Chimbidis died at age 73 in 2004, and found his obituary online.

We missed out on something, as you will discover if you click that link and read his obituary.  He was indeed a traveled man.  He never left you with any doubt that he was quite intellectual, but the depth and breadth of his life may surprise you.  It's just that he never seemed like the kind of guy who would come out to the farm and help you unload a wagon load of bales.  We knew him as having worked as a bartender at the Red Llama, as reported by Mike Lien after one of our proms, but his involvement in the development and operation of that and other businesses was never brought to the light of day.

What a shame.  The obituary reports that Leo was a teacher and philosopher in the tradition of those classical scholars of Classical Greece.  We could have learned much from the man,what with his repeatedly investigating the religious and archaeological sites in Italy, Greece, Yugoslavia. . . .

Leo, we hardly knew ye.

Saturday, December 10, 2011

What Technology Brings

Logitech Webcam - about $50
A few days ago I was talking with the District Governor of the Wisconsin Lions about a workshop I will present at the March District meeting, and described for him how my brother and I are able to use technology to stay in touch with my Dad.  The next day I was reflecting on the Miniatur Wunderland posted yesterday, and the technological progress it has meant for all of us.  And I realized - it's all the same topic!

The Governor has asked me to write a story in the State Newsletter for our Lions, many of whom are aging, to encourage the use of technology now available.  Reviewing what I wrote, it is probably suitable as a story to post, and challenge each of you who are in need of staying in touch with your aging parents or elders, or even with your children/grandchildren if they are far away.  Here's what I wrote:


Dad in 1939

My dad is 94.

He has had a computer for close to 25 years, and as he has aged we have found ways to use the computer and internet to accomplish a number of things.  In late 2009 we added a webcam, and this past summer we upgraded him to a Mac.

We checked out a few options for video conferencing and finally settled on Logitech Vid software because it is the easiest for him to use.  We added a Dropbox folder for storing and sharing documents, and TeamViewer software so we can control his computer remotely.  My brother, a Mac guy, uses their iChat function.

Dad loves his music, which he plays using iTunes, and, an avid reader his entire life, he has a long list of e-books including several Zane Grey stories that are his favorites.  Using an online photo service we are able to share several photos and videos with him.  He has seen our oldest grandson performing at a jazz concert and now has enjoyed the youngest grandson running the train we set up under our Christmas tree, smoke, whistle, and all.

We are able to make all this happen by doing hookups and software setup when we are on-site, then connecting with him by video conferencing on a regular basis.  When he has problems with the computer or we need to show him something, we connect by way of TeamViewer and I can operate his computer remotely even though he lives miles away.

About three years ago I started helping him with his bank accounts, viewing them online, downloading transactions to Quicken, and providing him reports on a monthly basis.  He lost his right arm 50 years ago and has difficulty writing checks, so doing it for him online is a big help, and I am able to watch his bills and payments for him.

At the end of the month I put all the transaction and balance reports in his Dropbox, check in with him by video conferencing, take over his computer remotely with TeamViewer, and walk through each report with him, line by line.

From time to time I will tell him about the weather outside my window, and can take down the webcam, point it out the window and show him – the wind blowing the trees, rain sweeping across the street, or snow piled up by the snowplow.  When I do this he just giggles – at what he is able to see from so far away, at the marvelous changes in technology, how all of that is "live" and fed through, for him, a phone wire.  Progress.

In times of crisis the video feed is invaluable as a tool to check his mental and/or physical health; my brother, especially, may have a better handle on his needs than my sister who lives but a block away but works in Rochester.  

Dad used to complain about the cost of the phone and internet service, but that doesn’t happen anymore.  He loves the video chat, especially with his great-grandchildren.  And my brother and I are pleased that by way of his computer and the internet we are keeping him “out of the four walls” of his apartment. 

Technology provides so much – if you are willing to step out of your own limitations.  If you choose to do something like this I encourage you to "Keep It Simple Stupid" and let the usage grow as the comfort level increases.  You can set programs to load automatically if the computer is turned on, and set Vid to open simply by pressing the enter key when a call comes in.  

Demonstrate the potential by showing them a video conference you might have with your own children, and let them know they have that same potential.  Be bold.  You won't be sorry.

Friday, December 9, 2011

Miniatur Wunderland

While pondering what to post next, an email arrived from Marilyn Weidler Ulve.  Titled "Miniatur Wunderland", it sparked an immediate reaction:  "Hey, a Christmas scene to include!"  Not really.

The only requirement of this posting is to somehow connect this awesome YouTube video to the NKHS 62 blog, and that will be done primarily by reflecting on the comparative differences of today's technology versus what you saw in the 50s or 60s.  Remember, after all, the spaceshot to the moon in 1969 was handled by a computer no larger than a Radio Shack TRS80, which today would not begin to power even the typical cigarette lighter, probably.  If a person had only paid more attention during math class, right, Merrilee?

(For the record, this writer has every paper published by the Waterloo Courier in the duration of the flight of Apollo 11, from launch to landing.  Just another historian.)

Perhaps you had a train like the one sitting on the bookshelves next to our fireplace.  It is an off brand dating back to about 1952 or so, had little or no machining that would keep it on the track, and an engine that worked 50 years ago but today is best considered a relic, not a functional toy.  At one point it had a headlight and would smoke when you poured in oil, but its best days are history.  Only a remembrance.

So this Hamburg Wunderland could make you feel how far behind you were back then.  It is so expansive it requires a computerized control center staffed by several computer engineers, as you would expect to see in an actual transportation environment.  And you might just wonder why these folks can't get hired to handle the clogged up freeways in so many major cities?

Thanks, Marilyn.  And now, everybody show it to your grandkids.

Thursday, December 8, 2011

Deck the Halls

Church choir would tour the neighborhood sometime in December, normally on a really really cold night and sing a variety of songs at the homes of the elderly, usually.  The selection process for identifying them wasn't necessarily a closely-held secret but then most of the choir probably didn't care unless they had a specific person they would want to entertain.

Goldy the Gopher was never one of them.  See what a University of Minnesota flash mob can do.  Click the full-screen icon for your best view, and use a 22" monitor or larger.  If you are receiving this posting by email, click the link to go to the blog site.


Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Old News from the Anchor

NKHS had hunters and outdoorsmen and the Anchor spotlighted Dave Randall, '61, in their November 30, 1961 edition:

Dave Randall, Northwood, bagged his third deer in three consecutive years with an arrow near Stimes Woods southwest of Northwood, last Saturday evening.  The deer was a four-year-old doe.  He is the son of Mr and Mrs Whitney Randall.


Dave was one of the upperclassmen to take Fabian, Stan Arendts, under their wing when the consolidation occurred, and if memory serves right, would have enjoyed watching this website video featuring cars and music from the era.  Thanks to Stan for passing it along.  It's a bit of a segue from hunting to classic cars, but hey, it's a blog and anything is possible.  Click that link.  Here's the cover info from the email:

Someone did an awesome job putting this together.  And with sound to boot.  At the very end of the video you'll hear the song "Thunder Road" sung by the star of the movie of the same name.  (Having a theme song that is the movie title) is not uncommon except this is the one and only song ever recorded for publication by Robert Mitchum.

Monday, December 5, 2011

Only In a Dream - at least these days

Sometimes you see some fantastic physical/artistic performances and wonder - could I have done this - 50 years ago ? ? ? ?   So when Merrilee Reid passed this along the thought was a vision, a dream, of perhaps being one of the performers, all the time knowing better.  Strength, flexibility, coordination - once upon a time, maybe, though in reality never at this level.  Still, dream along . . .



Once you've finished viewing it you may be asking yourself, "Why were all those people sitting on their hands with frowns on their faces?"  

Sunday, December 4, 2011

Christmas Old and New

A weekend enjoying Christmas at Luther leads to a posting of the "old" with the "new."  The "new" comes from Janis Hendrickson, and features the "card section" of the Hallelujah Chorus, which was not performed at Luther last weekend, but in a prior posting was described as one of the traditional Lowell Gangsted tunes performed at the NKHS Christmas Concert.  This YouTube presentation comes all the way from Quinhagak, AK, if you know where that is. Don't worry about the dark screen - the music and video will come.  (If you get this posting by email you need to click the link to go to the NKHS 62 website to view it.  Thanks to Janis for sharing.)


The "old" is a familiar face and voice for those growing up in the 50s.  Tennessee Ernie Ford was a favorite with songs like "Sixteen Tons" and this YouTube comes from his TV show.  If you like kids, you'll love this one. It was forwarded by an old friend who has no kids but has memories of Ernie...  And you'll recall the simplicity of all those Christmas programs by Ernie, Andy Williams, Lawrence Welk, ad infinitum.