[rollei_list] Re: A Regrettable Absence
- From: Marc James Small <marcsmall@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: rollei_list@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Tue, 31 Aug 2010 23:30:04 -0400
Don
I pray that your wife will be all right.
I was graduated from High School in '68 and from
Washington & Lee University in '72, where I was a
proud member of the Gamma Delta Iota melange. I
then went on to earn a Master of Arts degree from
Yale and a Juris Doctor degree from William and Mary.
I have never been to a High School reunion,
though I am in touch with one person from each of
my High Schools. I did attend my twentieth
College reunion and horrified my then-wife when
she realized that I knew all of the
barkeepers. (I later calmed her down by telling
her that I had worked my way through college and
had held every odd job I could find, and these
guys were sub bartenders, their day jobs being
the maintenance staff which was why I knew
them.) Since then, almost everyone I would want
to see has died, so I have never gone to another
and do not think I will do so in the future,
though I stay plugged into the History
Department. (There are a number of graduates who
are following the failing health of a certain
professor, so I check in from time to time, as he
no longer answers his telephone by choice. He
took my son and I out to dinner in 1998. When I
introduced Ian to him, he casually asked, "who is
your pick for the greatest US President?" Ian,
then 16, immediately snapped back, "Calvin
Coolidge, of course". The Professor just looked
at me with approval and said, "Marc, you have
raised him well." (Ian has stayed close to his
roots: he now lives in Wasilla, Alaska and was
ecstatic over Murkowski's concession, albeit Ian
has little time for Sarah Palin, his former Mayor and Governor.) )
I have never given a dollar to any of my schools,
although I did foolishly give a few books to W&L,
who promptly discarded them. But I keep getting
invited to alumni meetings despite my pleas that
they take me off their begging list. I worked my
way through three college degrees and anyone who
wants a college degree may do the same. I think
I did receive two scholarships along the way, but
most of my way was paid by the US Army ROTC
Scholarship Program and GI William and sweat labor.
So, Don, have fun this weekend -- but understand
that your wife will be in my prayers, and, I hope
the prayers of others on this List.
Be well, guys,
Marc
At 10:32 PM 8/31/2010, Don Williams wrote:
At 03:28 PM 8/31/2010, Marc wrote, in part:
I will be closing station at 0500 hours, Zone 5
summer time, tomorrow, and will not be online
again until 10 SEP. To the astonishment of you
digitally-enhanced folks, I do not own a
lap-top or a Blackberry or an Iphone or Ipad or
a Kindle or whatever; I do not afford such
nonsense on my cell phone as texting. I might
check in with my stepdaughter's computer but do
not count on it. I am like a fine wine, and do
not travel well, but this has to be done. And
I might get to reconnect to my best friend from
High School (last physical contact in 2000) and
a former step-son (last physical contact in
2000, as well). Again, I do not travel well.
Interesting thing, I will be going to my 60th
and final High School reunion the weekend of
10-11 September and will be seeing some folks I
have not seen since 1950. Should be interesting
but it will be confusing. The local folks from
that class have a brunch every month not far
from here and I recognize only 2-3 of them. I
will be taking my smallest digital camera.
That same weekend the Oklahoma University
Physics Department is celebrating it's first
Centennial, but it extends from the 9th to the
12th. I will have to give preference to the
high school events which coincide with the
Physics events. Also, I expect I will know no
one at the Physics Department because the guys
who went to school with me are either no longer
with us or have moved far away. Interestingly,
I will be taking a HS friend to a Physics
Department event, the play "Copenhagen".
Finally, there is a third event. My old
fraternity is having a tail gate party on the
11th before the OU-Florida State football
game. I won't be going to that event but there
are tail gate parties planned for the future.
Strange thing but I just can't be at all the
events at the same time. Heisnburg just didn't
come up with a large enough number to
accommodate the time and distances that would be required.
I just delivered my wife to a hospital this
afternoon and she will be undergoing some
surgery events during the next two days, and is
thankful that she now has a valid excuse for missing all the goings on.
As for me, I am learning to find what is in the
kitchen and how to deal with the dogs, who have
to stay in one of the bedrooms when no one is here.
Regarding the group, I will try to generate some
interesting discussions, as I have from time to
time, making up for Marc's Regettable Absence.
I'm told that I'm losing my mind...
but I don't miss it. :)
Don Williams
msmall@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Cha robh bàs fir gun ghràs fir!
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