Newsletter, #94
February 2012
 

“You - Everyday is Special” 

Classmates,

Well, here we are thirty-one days into the New Year - 2012 - and a twenty-nine day month to leap into our future.  Is it just me or does that new year number seem too big for us to be looking
at now?  It really looks more like an address or zip code!  What happened to those past days and months of the fifties, sixties, seventies, eighties, nineties, and that new millennium of two thousand?  Wait, wasn’t that to be the end of the world as we know it?  Oh, I forgot, 1984, another time depicting, according to Mr. Orwell, when our society, as we know it, was coming to an end.  Also, what about those early years in the sixties and the Cold War?  The Soviet Union and the United States had enough missiles to put a glow on the Earth for tens of thousands of years.  Damn, I feel like a dinosaur - in and out of extinction for over a half century plus - and you know what?  We are still here, but the herd is starting to move at a slower pace, thinning out somewhat, and marking a trail onto a different path than we have ever traveled before. 

Are we really that old?  You bet we are!  And damn proud of every gray hair we have considering the alternative is no hair.  I just tell people it is “sun bleached” from the Las Vegas beneficial sun rays, better known to many of you as "benies."  And what of the change in the gravitational pull on the Earth’s surface?  Now our mirrors act like those we use to seek out and stand in front of at the Fun House at the County Fairs in years past.  Now we try to avoid them, especially those that magnify an ordinary pore to look like an active rock quarry!  Next, what about all those aches and pains from areas we never knew we had?  What got them so bent out of shape at us enough to say “you used us too much over the years” or “you haven’t used us in years. You need to start paying more attention to us or we will put you into a permanent hibernation”.  Lastly, most of us have a Mac or PC that we rely on for much of our knowledge, because we are starting to get the symptoms of that age related disease, acronym form -  CRS (can’t remember s**t).  In some circles we can teach history and we don’t need a book.  Why?  Because we are the living, breathing, hologram from times not known by many.  We are not getting bad memories, but we are starting to have bad recall.  It’s all in “our” computer, called the BRAIN.  We just need to “use it, before we lose it.”  We have the best and most efficient computer known.  It allows us to look at the past with our memories and to look forward with our dreams. 

So before we throw in the preverbal towel, become a Tyrannosaurus or Mamenchisaurus, and move into our on Cretaceous Period and extinction, let’s put some thought, (before we forget), into what has been said above.  We came into this world screaming and fighting for a breath and life.  I suggest that we keep moving our limbs and using our minds every day.  Anything is better than nothing, you can do it.  It might not be comfortable,  so work out of that comfort zone and live life to the fullest...for as long as you can. 

I’m sure that many of the Classmates would be happy to hear what you do to keep on, moving-on, with a good quality of life.  Share it! Pay it forward or side-ways with your Classmates.  By this time in our lives we have all dealt with death, and you know what?  We will deal with more and more as we get older… a fact of our existence/life.  But many also deal with life and another generation.  We have a lot to do before we succumb to our faith and whatever that holds for us.  I would submit to you that there are many people - family, friends, and acquaintances - that love you and want you to be with them as long as possible.

Now, let’s get to this month’s Newsletter, #94, February 2012, “You - Everyday is Special.”  The tone of number ninety-four has been set, so let’s see how this will precede with articles from you.  We are going to use your Brain, “YIP-C,” (your individual personal computer);  and we will target your memories and your dreams.  We will rely on your memories, that will need to be recalled, and we will look at some articles representing your dreams and goals for the present and future.  OK, let’s get those muscles flexing, relaxing and that YIP-C producing that spark between the synapses and neurons... being a dinosaur is not really that bad! 

- As I See It -

                                 Hooah, Hugs, Memories & Dreams,
                                 Bob

“Happy New Year”

Contributed by Bruce Ahlvin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x91rBzNKvlc
 

“Retirement”

Contributed by Bonita Beck

Question: How many days in a week?
Answer: 6 Saturdays, 1 Sunday

Question: When is a retiree's bedtime?
Answer: Three hours after he falls asleep on the couch.

Question: How many retirees to change a light bulb?
Answer: Only one, but it might take all day.

Question: What's the biggest gripe of retirees?
Answer: There is not enough time to get everything done.

Question: Why don't retirees mind being called Seniors?
Answer: The term comes with a 10% discount.

Question: Among retirees what is considered formal attire?
Answer:  Tied shoes.

Question: Why do retirees count pennies?
Answer: They are the only ones who have the time.

Question: What is the common term for a senior who still works and refuses to retire?
Answer: NUTS!

Question: Why are retirees so slow to clean out the basement, attic or garage?
Answer: They know that as soon as they do, one of their adult kids will want to store stuff there, or move back in there.

Question: What do retirees call a long lunch?
Answer: Normal.

Question: What is the best way to describe retirement?
Answer: The never ending Coffee Break spiked!

Question: What's the biggest advantage of going back to school as a retiree?
Answer: If you cut classes, no one calls your parents.

Question: Why does a retiree often say he doesn't miss work, but misses the people he worked with?
Answer: He is too polite to tell the whole truth.

Question: What do you do all week?
Answer: Monday through Friday, NOTHING..... Saturday & Sunday, I rest.

SERENITY

Just before the funeral services, the undertaker came up to the very elderly widow and asked, “How old was your husband?” “98,” she replied…  “Two years older than me.'  'So you're 96,' the undertaker commented.  She responded, “Hardly worth going home, is it?”

Reporters interviewing a 104-year-old woman: “And what do you think is the best thing about being 104?” the reporter asked She simply replied, “No peer pressure.”

The nice thing about being senile is you can hide your own Easter Eggs.

I've sure gotten old! I've had two bypass surgeries, a hip replacement, new knees, fought prostate cancer and diabetes. I'm half blind, can't hear anything quieter than a jet engine, take 40 different medications that make me dizzy, winded, and subject to blackouts. ‘Have bouts with dementia. ‘Have poor circulation; hardly feel my hands and feet anymore.  ‘Can't remember if I'm 85 or 92.  ‘Have lost all my friends. But, thank God, I still have my driver's license!

I feel like my body has gotten totally out of shape, so I got my doctor's permission to join a fitness club and start exercising.
I decided to take an aerobics class for seniors. I bent, twisted, gyrated, jumped up and down, and perspired for an hour.  But,
by the time I got my leotards on, the class was over.

An elderly woman decided to prepare her will and told her preacher she had two final requests.  First, she wanted to be cremated, and second, she wanted her ashes scattered over Wal-Mart. 'Wal-Mart?' the preacher exclaimed. 'Why Wal-Mart?'   'Then I'll be sure my daughters visit me twice a week'

My memory's not as sharp as it used to be.  Also, my memory's not as sharp as it used to be.

Know how to prevent sagging?  Just eat till the wrinkles fill out.

It's scary when you start making the same noises as your coffee maker.

These days about half the stuff in my shopping cart says, “For fast relief.”

THE SENILITY PRAYER

Grant me the senility to forget the people I never liked anyway,
the good fortune to run into the ones I do,
and the eyesight to tell the difference.

 

“Rock Star”

Contributed by Michael Graham

http://www.videobash.com/video_show/baby-jams-out-on-guitar-27921

      


“The Old Telephone on the Wall... Hello?”

Contributed by Gary Rocklage

When I was a young boy, my father had one of the first telephones in our neighborhood. I remember the polished, old case fastened to the wall. The shiny receiver hung on the side of the box. I was too little to reach the telephone, but used to listen with fascination when my mother talked to it.

Then I discovered that somewhere inside the wonderful device lived an amazing person. Her name was "Information Please" and there was nothing she did not know. Information Please could supply anyone's number and the correct time.

My personal experience with the genie-in-a-bottle came one day while my mother was visiting a neighbor. Amusing myself at the tool bench in the basement, I whacked my finger with a hammer, the pain was terrible, but there seemed no point in crying because there was no one home to give sympathy.

I walked around the house sucking my throbbing finger, finally arriving at the stairway. The telephone! Quickly, I ran for the footstool in the parlor and dragged it to the landing. Climbing up, I unhooked the receiver in the parlor and held it to my ear.

"Information, please" I said into the mouthpiece just above my head. A click or two and a small clear voice spoke into my ear.

"Information."

"I hurt my finger..." I wailed into the phone, the tears came readily enough now that I had an audience.

"Isn't your mother home?" came the question.

"Nobody's home but me," I blubbered.

"Are you bleeding?" the voice asked.

"No," I replied. "I hit my finger with the hammer and it hurts."

"Can you open the icebox?" she asked. I said I could. "Then chip off a little bit of ice and hold it to your finger," said the voice.

After that, I called "Information Please" for everything. I asked her for help with my geography, and she told me where Philadelphia was. She helped me with my math. She told me my pet chipmunk that I had caught in the park just the day before, would eat fruit and nuts. Then, there was the time Petey, our pet canary, died. I called, Information Please, and told her the sad story. She listened, and then said things grown-ups say to soothe a child. But I was not consoled. I asked her, "Why is it that birds should sing so beautifully and bring joy to all families, only to end up as a heap of feathers on the bottom of a cage?"  She must have sensed my deep concern, for she said quietly, " Wayne, always remember that there are other worlds to sing in."
Somehow I felt better.

Another day I was on the telephone, "Information Please."

"Information," said in the now familiar voice. "How do I spell fix?"
I asked. All this took place in a small town in the Pacific Northwest. When I was nine years old, we moved across the country to Boston. I missed my friend very much.  "Information Please" belonged in that old wooden box back home and I somehow never thought of trying the shiny new phone that sat on the table in the hall. As I grew into my teens, the memories of those childhood conversations never really left me. Often, in moments of doubt and perplexity I would recall the serene sense of security I had then. I appreciated now how patient, understanding, and kind she was to have spent her time on a little boy.

A few years later, on my way west to college, my plane put down in Seattle. I had about a half-hour or so between planes. I spent 15 minutes or so on the phone with my sister, who lived there now. Then without thinking what I was doing, I dialed my hometown operator and said, "Information Please." Miraculously, I heard the small, clear voice I knew so well.

"Information."

I hadn't planned this, but I heard myself saying, "Could you please tell me how to spell fix?" There was a long pause. Then came the soft spoken answer, "I guess your finger must have healed by now." I laughed, "So it's really you," I said. "I wonder if you have any idea how much you meant to me during that time?"  

I wonder," she said, "if you know how much your call meant to me.  I never had any children and I used to look forward to your calls."  

I told her how often I had thought of her over the years and I asked if I could call her again when I came back to visit my sister. "Please do", she said. "Just ask for Sally."
  
Three months later I was back in Seattle. A different voice answered, "Information." I asked for Sally.

"Are you a friend?" she said.

"Yes, a very old friend," I answered.

"I'm sorry to have to tell you this,” she said. "Sally had been working part time the last few years because she was sick. She died five weeks ago." 

Before I could hang up, she said, "Wait a minute, did you say your name was Wayne ?"

"Yes." I answered.

"Well, Sally left a message for you. She wrote it down in case you called. Let me read it to you."  The note said, "Tell him there are other worlds to sing in.  He'll know what I mean."  

I thanked her and hung up. I knew what Sally meant. 

Never underestimate the impression you may make on others - Life is a journey... NOT a guided tour.

“Make Sure to Breathe”

Contributed by Bruce Ahlvin

http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=ThFCg0tBDck

“Best Friends - Lily and Maddison”

Contributed by Bob Graham

http://dailykimchi.com/buzz/best-friends-blind-lily-and-her-guide-dog-maddison

“Ahhh...Youth!”

Contributed by Bruce Ahlvin

http://www.youtube.com/v/EEu42L0ufBY&rel=0&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3

“Boomers and Music”

Contributed by Charlene (Wiper) Swenson

OK, boomers, your favorite musicians of the 60's have revised their lyrics for you:

Herman's Hermits - Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Walker
The Bee Gees - How Can You Mend a Broken Hip
Bobby Darin - Splish, Splash, I Was Havin' a Flash
Ringo Starr - I Get By With a Little Help from Depends
Roberta Flack - The First Time Ever I Forgot Your Face
Johnny Nash - I Can't See Clearly Now
Paul Simon - Fifty Ways to Lose Your Liver
Commodores - Once, Twice, Three Times to the Bathroom
Marvin Gaye - I Heard it Through the Grape Nuts
Leo Sayer - You Make Me Feel Like Napping
The Temptations - Papa's Got a Kidney Stone
Tony Orlando - Knock 3 Times on the Ceiling if you Hear Me Fall
Helen Reddy - I am Woman, Hear me Snore
Willie Nelson - On the Throne Again

“The Pew Research Test”

Contributed by Bonita Beck

http://pewresearch.org/politicalquiz/quiz/index.php

“Change for a Dollar”

Contributed by Bruce Ahlvin

http://www.flickspire.com/m/Share_This/changeforadollar?lsid=161f9da9b7692b6854ca64548e80ab61

“Beautiful Explanation of Death”

Contributed by Gary Rocklage

This really is the most beautiful explanation of death I've ever heard. Had to send it on…

- DEATH- WHAT A WONDERFUL WAY TO EXPLAIN IT - 

A sick man turned to his doctor as he was preparing to leave the examination room and said, 'Doctor, I am afraid to die. Tell me what lies on the other side.' Very quietly, the doctor said, 'I don't know.' 'You don't know? You're a Christian man, and don't know what's on the other side?' The doctor was holding the handle of the door; On the other side came a sound of scratching and whining, And as he opened the door, a dog sprang into the room And leaped on him with an eager show of gladness. Turning to the patient, the doctor said, 'Did you notice my dog? He's never been in this room before. He didn't know what was inside. He knew nothing except that his master was here, and when the door opened, he sprang in without fear. I
know little of what is on the other side of death, But I do know one thing... I know my Master is there and that is enough.' 

May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be. I believe that friends are quiet angels who lift us to our feet when our wings have trouble remembering how to fly. 

"Truly great friends are hard to find, difficult to leave, and impossible to forget!”

“Made in America”

Contributed by Peggy Graham

http://cdnapi.kaltura.com/index.php/kwidget/wid/0_04vzdsr5/uiconf_id/5590821


      

“1936 - Chevy Assembly Line”

Contributed by Charlene (Wiper) Swenson

http://www.dump.com/2011/07/15/fascinating-1936-footage-of-car-assembly-line-video/

“Growing Up In The Fifties”  

Contributed by Bruce Ahlvin

http://www.lilesnet.com/50/photo_memories/

      

“Thought for Today”

Contributed by William Stevens

Your Kids are becoming you......but your grandchildren are Perfect!

Going out is good... Coming home is better!

You forget names .... But it's OK because other people forgot they even knew you!!!

The things you used to care to do, you no longer care to do, but you really do care that you don't care to do them anymore.

You sleep better on a lounge chair with the TV blaring than in bed.  It's called "pre-sleep."

You miss the days when everything worked with just an "ON" and "OFF" Switch.

You tend to use more 4 letter words ... "what?"..."when?"... ???

Now that you can afford expensive jewelry, it's not safe to wear it anywhere.

You notice everything they sell in stores is "sleeveless"?!!!

What used to be freckles are now liver spots.

Everybody whispers.

You have 3 sizes of clothes in your closet... 2 of which you will never wear.

But “Old” is good in some things: Old songs, Old movies, and best of all, OLD FRIENDS!!

“Back to the Sixties”

Contributed by Gary Rocklage

http://objflicks.com/TakeMeBackToTheSixties.htm

“Angel Flight”

Contributed by Bob Graham

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70Ikj1hZDnw&feature=related

Don’t Forget:

Happy Birthday and Anniversary to
All February Classmates



February 2012 Dates to Remember:

1 - National Freedom Day   

2 - Groundhog Day 

3 - The Day the Music Died   
On this day in 1959, the plane crash claimed the lives of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J.P. "Big Bopper" Richardson and the pilot, Roger Peterson.

4 - Rosa Park’s Birthday, born in 1902 

5 - Super Bowl XLVI  

6 - Monopoly Board Game goes on sale in stores, 1935 

7 - Send a card to a Friend Day 

8 - Boy Scouts’ Day, founded in 1910 

9 - Hershey’s Chocolate founded, 1894
(Thank You - Mr. Hershey!) 

10 - Umbrella Day 

11 - White T-Shirt Day 

12 - Abraham Lincoln’s Birthday, born in 1809

13 - Clean Out Your Computer Day 

14 - Saint Valentine’s Day

14 - National Organ Donor Day 

15 - National Gumdrop Day 

16 - Nylon patented, by DuPont in 1937 

17 - Random Acts of Kindness Day 

18 - National Battery Day 

19 - Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood debuted, in 1968 

20 - Hoodie-Hoo Day -
You are supposed to go outside to shout "Hoodie-hoo!"
to scare away Winter and make way for Spring! 

20 - President’s Day     

21 - Love Your Pet Day   

21 - Fat Tuesday    
(Mardi Gras - always 46 days before Easter)   

22 - Be Humble Day

22 - Ash Wednesday 

22 - George Washington’s Birthday,
born in 1732

23 - International Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day 

24 - National Trading Card Day 

25 - Paper Currency introduced to the  U.S. in 1862
by President Abraham Lincoln

26 - Levi Strauss’ Birthday, born in 1829 

27 - No-Brainer Day  

28 - Public Sleeping Day  

29 - Leap Day -
February 29th only occurs once every 4 years, known as the leap year. 

29 - Also Yellowstone Park Day
In 1872, Yellowstone became the world's first National Park

 

Keep Your Fork...’64,
Bob Graham

 

PS:   Thank You All who continue to contribute to the monthly Newsletter.  I hope all Classmates are enjoying the start to an Outstanding 2012.  Stay healthy and safe, and stay connected.  We will “compute” again in March.