The "Signage from the Shore!" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Just got back from the boardwalk with my morning newspaper ....... and quite a few signs of the shore; the type of signs that inform you.  For those who enjoy water related activities and destinations, you probably will recognize some of the signs I have included in today's story.  So, instead of more wordage, here is my morning beach edition.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The "Eggs and Potatoes both look the same, don't they?" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Overcast and not looking like it was going to get any better.  My daughter and granddaughters arrived yesterday and we attended the Big 33 Football Game in Hershey, PA last evening.  My son-in-law was the head coach of the Maryland team and stayed in Hershey last evening.  This morning he called and told his family that it was raining in Hershey and wasn't a good day to go to Hershey Park.  Instant disappointment, since they were anxiously awaiting his call to see where they would meet him for their day on the amusement rides.  My granddaughter Camille was all set to ride the "Comet", the old wooden coaster that was always my favorite, and I told her to hold her hands up the whole way down the first hill as she thought of me.  Hard to understand why you can't do what you had planned because of the weather, but their tickets can be used at a later date.  It became obvious very soon that my granddaughters were becoming antsy and were ready to head home to see their friends, so my daughter helped them pack their bags and prepared to head home to Urbana, MD.  My wife asked if they would like her to pack a sandwich and chips for each so they wouldn't have to stop on the way home to eat.  That idea was greeted with enthusiasm, one of the first positive responses of the morning.  Carol took two orders for chipped smoked turkey and one for egg salad.  Camille had gone to the store with me yesterday and picked out the egg salad which is a favorite.  Carol packed the sandwiches in plastic containers and the chips in baggies and gave all bottles of water for the trip home.  Eventually, after many hugs and kisses, my daughter and granddaughter hit the road for the two hour ride home.  As Carol and I came back into the house I noticed that she had not put the lunch meat and egg salad back in the fridge so I headed to the counter to take care of that chore.  

Then I stopped ...... and said to Carol, "Why did you have the potato salad out with a knife in it?"  She looked puzzled, then laughed and said, "Did I just made Camille a potato salad sandwich?"  Yep, that's what she did.  Camille and I had purchased both egg and potato salad and they were in the same type of container.  Carol just picked up the wrong one.  She picked up the phone and called our daughter.  "Brynn, did Camille eat her sandwich yet?  If not, it's potato salad and not egg salad."  We both could hear Brynn's laughter coming from the phone.  She promised not to tell her and hung up.  Half an hour later the phone rang and the 301 area code told us that Camille had taken a bite.  She was on the phone and said, "Amah, that wasn't egg salad, but it was OK."  We laughed again and found out she ate the whole thing anyway.  Maybe will become her favorite sandwich.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The "Stairway To Heaven" Story

John Paul Jones, Robert Plant and Jimmy Page watch
the concert at The Kennedy Center last December

It was an ordinary day.  Looking at a YouTube video that my life long friend in Arizona, Bill, sent me a link to which showed the members of one of our favorite rock bands in the late 60s sitting in the Kennedy Center watching their greatest hit, "Stairway To Heaven", being performed by Heart members Nancy and Ann Wilson along with an entire choir and orchestra.  Unbelievable!!  Led Zeppelin members John Paul Jones (keyboardist/bassist), Robert Plant (guitarist) and Jimmy Page (guitarist) sat in the balcony as their best song ever was performed in front of them at the Kennedy Center Honors Gala which was attended by President and Mrs. Obama this past December.  I can remember when the English band first started playing together in 1968.  Page and Jones were originally members of the Yardbirds who lost a member, but still had a commitment to go on tour in Scandinavia.  They added a new lineup and played the tour known as the New Yardbirds.  Then vocalist Robert Plant and drummer John Bonham were added and became known as Led Zeppelin.  

Led Zeppelin

Their most famous song, "Stairway To Heaven", which was written by Page and Plant, was released in late 1971 as part of their fourth album.  The song ran eight minutes and two seconds and increases in tempo as it progresses, ending with Plant's unaccompanied delivery of: "And she's buying a Stairway To Heaven."  Just typing this and humming it as I type gives me the shivers.  The song was voted #3 in 2000 on the VH1 list of 100 Greatest Rock Songs.  Rolling Stone named it #31 on their "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time."  Drummer Bonham died in 1980 from alcohol-related asphyxia.  In 2007 they played a Tribute Concert with Jason Bonham taking his late father's place on the drums.  As I watched and listened to the video it took me back in time to the days when rock music was king.  Watch the video and you will understand why.  When the choir and orchestra join the song and Ann Wilson sings ....."And as we wind on down the road".... you'll see why Robert Plant was seen to wipe a few tears of joy away from his eyes.  Hard not to be emotional as you watch the performance.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.  PS - click on link to view the surviving Led Zeppelin members watching the performance of their song.  http://youtu.be/JK_DOJa99oo

The "Welcoming the new Graduate!" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Standing in the front of the auditorium/ gymnasium of the Centerville Elementary School in Urbana, Maryland with a few other people snapping photos of my granddaughter Courtney's graduation. In Frederick County, MD the students celebrate graduation from 5th grade into Middle School.  Place is packed with approximately 200 graduates plus  teachers, a couple hundred parents, grandparents and friends in the auditorium while a gym class is in progress at the rear in the gymnasium.  After the students filed into the seats in the front of the auditorium wearing their blue tees with "2013" on the back that featured everyone's name, the principal gave a short introduction which was followed by a class song and individual teachers having their class stand so they could talk about the progress they made during the school year.  Courtney's teacher gave an emotional talk and her students gave her a big round of applause as she finished.  A video presentation featuring just about every 5th grade student followed with a few more choral songs from the entire class.  When the hour ceremony was over the students followed each other to the playground where they met with family and friends for photos and lots of hugs.  Courtney will be in the Urbana Middle School next year which is grades 6 thru 8.  New learning experiences as well as a chance to meet new friends.  Today was the first of three graduations she will progress through during her educational experiences in the Urbana school system.  Her report card she received today reflected the excellent student she has been for the six years she has spent at Centerville Elementary.  Congratulations Courtney for a great job well done.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.  

Urbana, MD

Graduates file through applauding younger students

Graduates seated in the front of the auditorium

Panel on the stage held everyone's photo with their teacher

All graduate signatures were on the rear of their shirts.  Courtney's name can be found in the bottom right of the #2.  Click on photo to enlarge.

Video presentation shows Courtney as second from the left

Courtney discovered I was right behind her

Courtney with Carol and LDub

Courtney with grandparents Linda and Joe 

Courtney with proud parents Dave and Brynn

Friends

The New Graduate

The "Marvelous Journey" Story

Recent self-portraiture of my wife and me

It was an ordinary day.  Just came back from having our evening meal at Ciro's Italian Bistro which is located at Richmond Square right off the Fruitville Pike in Lancaster, PA.  Talked to Tony, the owner of the bistro, about how great our meal was this evening.  Neat little restaurant which Carol and I have visited in the past.  They naturally feature Italian choices and specialize in freshly made gelato which they have in a large display case at the rear of the restaurant.  My boss at the framing gallery where I work, Keith, gave me a gift card this past Christmas which I used to pay for the meal.  A few days ago I saw an article in the local newspaper about Ciro's which talked about a dish that is literally a product of "la famiglia."  Dish is called Pasta di Lila and is named after Tony's daughter, who is a waitress in the restaurant.  Tony's mother, Giovanna, who also works at the restaurant but had gone home before I got to meet her, used to make the special dish just for her granddaughter Lila.  Dish features penne pasta flavorfully accented with cauliflower, olive oil and garlic.  

Sounded fantastic, but my favorite Ravioli Quattro Formaggi which is blended four cheese ravioli with sautéed shrimp, garlic and broccoli rabe pulled me away from the Pasta di Lila.  I don't care for the broccoli rabe, but the waitress always makes sure they replace it with asparagus.  The meal sounds great, but not as great as when you actually taste it.  The butter sauce that accompanies it is to die for and certainly can't be heart healthy.  But, that's OK for just this evening, since Carol and I are at Ciro's to celebrate our 46th anniversary.  Seems like only yesterday we were standing in front of Rev. Batchelder and saying "I do" to each other.  Been a happy and marvelous journey since June 17th, 1967.  Couple of houses, three children, numerous pets, dozen of automobiles and sharing of our life's wishes and dreams together.  Wouldn't have wanted it any other way.  Well, we returned home and Carol asked me if I could find an 8 1/2" x 11" frame for a certificate she was working on at her job.  I dared to search through our crawl space in a spare bedroom and while searching for the frame found a framed piece that was given to us on Saturday, June 17, 1967.  Funny how things work out that way.  It was titled The Time Chronicle and gave headlines of the month such as: 6/2 - The FCC orders all radio and TV stations carrying advertising for cigarettes to warn of possible dangers; 6/12 Supreme Court rules unanimously that states could not legally bar marriages between whites and non-whites; and 6/21 - American medical Association liberalizes its policy on abortion, the first change by the group on this subject since 1871.  Other interesting things on the paper were Prices Then & Now: Loaf of bread was $0.22, Gallon of milk was $1.15, new Ford car was $2,724.00, gasoline was $0.33 a gallon, an average sized new home was $14,425.00, and the average annual income was $7,305.00.  Commodities were: Dow Jones was 879.10 (I found this hard to believe) and gold was $35.00 an ounce.  Winners In The Arts were: Song - Up, Up, and Away, Movie - In The Heat Of The Night. In Sports: World Series was won the previous summer by the St. Louis Cardinals, AJ Foyt won the Indy 500 with a speed of 115.2 MPH, Super Bowl was won by Green Bay, Stanley Cup was won by Montreal and the NBA champs were the Philadelphia 76ers.  And, finally in Politics: President was Lyndon B. Johnson and Vice President was Hubert H. Humphrey.  Kind of neat going back over all the events and happenings during the year we were married.  But, time goes on and we now have our 47th to look forward to next year.  Will we be back at Ciro's?  Probably!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.  PS - Carol had the Spaghetti Bolognese and she says she agrees with me about our marvelous journey together.  Thank goodness!!

The "Arrival of the Yearbook: Intermediate Edition" Story

Cover of the 2013
Landis Run Intermediate School

It was an ordinary day.  Helping with the distribution of the Manheim Township Intermediate School Yearbook.  First time ever to help with this book, since the Landis Run Intermediate School just opened in September of 2012.  Really neat school for students in grades 5 and 6.  I have helped with yearbooks in the township school system for over 40 years now and last year's 6th grade principal, Chris, asked if I would be willing to take on the job of yearbook advisor to the new intermediate school where he would be the principal.  I was already the advisor to the middle school which used to be grades 6, 7 and 8, but now would be just 7 and 8.  Hey, I have plenty of time so it took me all but 5 seconds to respond yes.  This book has much the same look as the middle school book with 56 pages and a hard cover.  Jostens Yearbook Company also is the printer of the intermediate book.  Since this was the first year for the new school, I made sure we did a few special things for the yearbook.  Naturally had to have the student and faculty portraitures, administration and office photos, nurse and librarian photos and club and organization photos.  I asked the students to fill out a questionnaire midyear with questions such as: If you were the architect of the school, what would you do differently?; What is your favorite feature on the Landis Run Intermediate School; and How hard was it to adjust to a brand new school.  Had quite a few students return the questionnaire and after reading the results, picked out about a dozen students and included a photo of them with a few of their answers.  Also had Matt, the 6th grade art teacher, help me with a contest to design the cover of the 1st ever cover for the Landis Run Intermediate School Yearbook.  Again, had about a dozen entries and selected one which featured the school as the main theme of the cover.  As with the middle school book, the Jostens representative spent a day with me at my home to help with the design of the interior pages.  After he left, I began to work on the book and in two days had it complete.  Today the students of the Landis Run Intermediate School will receive their copy of the inaugural school yearbook.  Pretty neat that I was selected to produce this historic piece of memorabilia and even neater that I got paid to do it.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

Photo I took for the title page

6th grader who drew the cover design

The LRIS Library

Phys-Ed Room

The "Arrival of the Yearbook: Middle School Edition" Story

The 2013 Yearbook: Red tie-dye cover

It was an ordinary day.  And, the Yearbooks have been distributed!  For the 14th year I have been the advisor, designer, photog and just about everything else for the yearbook at the  Manheim Township Middle School, located in Neffsville, PA.  I was the advisor to the high school yearbook for 31 years prior to that and when I retired from teaching in 1999, I asked the high school principal if I could continue as the advisor to the yearbook, even though I no longer taught at the school.  He told me he preferred to have an in-house advisor if he could find one.  The next day Bob, the middle school principal, called me and asked me if I was interested in doing the middle school yearbook.  He had heard that I wasn't going to continue to do the high school book, so he thought maybe I would want to do the yearbook at his school.  "How much can you afford to pay me to do the book?" I asked him.  He responded with, "Tell me how much you want and I'll tell you if we can afford it."  After doing some figuring I gave him a price.  I had to take into consideration that I would have to do everything on the book, but it was only 88 pages, or approximately 1/3 the size of the high school book and there were only three grades in the middle school in comparison to the four in the high school, but I did have 31 years of experience.  He accepted the price immediately and I had a new job.  He even wanted me to sign a 3-year contract.  I was back in business!  Over the years I tried to make a few changes each year, but with only 88 pages, there weren't many changes that could be made.  Naturally the cover was different and I tried to have a different theme each year, but was somewhat confined by the fact that over 65 pages were for class photos, teacher photos, club and organization photos and athletic team photos.  Students in the middle school enjoyed the baby photos from past yearbooks so I also kept a few pages for them.  The rest were filled with questionnaire information and candid photos.  Most years I had students design the cover, but recently the students have lost interest in participating.  This year's book featured a cover designed by Jostens Yearbook Company.  I had the Middle School Office look at samples and they helped pick the design for the cover.  Two years ago, because of budgetary cuts, many of the club sponsors were eliminated so I had fewer clubs to photograph this year.  I spent many hours at the school taking candid shots of students in classes as well as in the hall during class breaks.  Then I had the usually office staff, custodians, administration, guidance staff and cafeteria staff to photograph.  Many times I would arrive at the school and too many would be absent from a photo, so I would have to return at a later date.  Then this year Manheim Township School District opened an intermediate school and now there are only two grades in the middle school book which was reduced to 56 pages.  Well, today I helped with the distribution of the books and the sales of excess books.  The book sold for $19 which isn't too bad for a hard-cover book.  Book has been printed by Jostens for quite some time now and the advisor has become a good friend and knows how I like to operate.  He visits me once to pick up the cover design and one time help me with the page design.  Everything is done online now and if I have everything ready the day he comes I can just about complete the entire book in a day.  Nothing like my high school days when it would take days and days to complete one section of the book.  All that's left now for me to do is submit my bill and wait on the check.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

Photo I took for the title page

Photo of the stairwell in the school

The "Sittin' On The Wrong Side" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Just found the car right where I had left it three hours ago under the #37 light post in the Hershey Stadium parking lot.  Thought I could find a closer spot, but after searching for five minutes, decided I better take the spot instead of having to walk an additional five minutes to get to the Stadium.  This evening my wife and I as well as my daughter and granddaughters attended the annual Big 33 High School All-Star Football game.  My son-in-law Dave was the head coach for the Maryland team that faced the team from my home state of Pennsylvania.  Dave has been a highly successful high school football coach with nine straight playoff appearances, three trips to the 4A State Championship Game and one State Title and Maryland decided to name him the head coach for tonight's prestigious game.  He had a coaching staff of 7 assistants as well as having one of his players playing in the game.  For tonight's game I had to switch my allegiance and sit on the Maryland side of the stadium.  Hundreds of red towels waved in the night air for the away team while the other side of the stadium was dotted with blue towels.  Perfect evening for some football.  We arrived an hour before the game and found our seats in section 28, right at midfield.  Both teams were introduced which took almost half an hour since there where 33 players on each team as well as the coaches.  The cheerleaders unfurled a huge flag, the local National Guard presented the colors and a young girl sung the National Anthem.  Then ........ off in the distance we heard a roar as the Penn State Hershey Medical Center Life Lion helicopter approached the stadium.  Flying at over 150 MPH it quickly reached the field, circled a few times before stopping, dipping the front of the copter to both sides in the stadium and soaring off into the twilight. Wow, what a start!  Then the lightening began.  Lightening in the form of the blue suited Pennsylvania team.  After the first one minute and fifty-six seconds the Maryland team was behind by three touchdowns!!  The red side sat in shocked silence as Dave and his assistants tried to right the ship.  The only thing I had to cheer about in the opening quarter was the fantastic catch that our hometown PA Manheim Township product Tyler Karpinski had made to keep a touchdown drive alive.  The Maryland team settled down and managed to pull within striking range as the half ended with the score 37-20.  You could just feel and see the hurt that my daughter and granddaughters felt for their husband and dad.  In a game such as the Big 33 game, the players only have minimum time to get to know each other and their playbook for the game and both teams had trouble stopping the opposing team for parts of the evening.  During the halftime the 33 red-clad and 33 blue-clad cheerleaders put on a stirring performance that had the crowd cheering and clapping.  The second half was just about a carbon-copy of the first with the final score 58-27.  Tough night for the red team with the Pennsylvania coach passing on almost every play in the last quarter as well as faking a punt on 4th down to gain another score.  After the game we made our way to mid-field to console a rather upbeat head coach who approached us with a smile on his face.  His team did their best and he was proud of them for playing hard until the last snap.  It was an exciting and thrilling evening and provided many memories for our family.  And, there's always next year!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.  PS - If you care to contact Dave through his Twitter account: #@QOCoach

Maryland's Head Coach

Pre-game color presentation and National Anthem 

Penn State Hershey Medical Center helicopter Life Lion

Opening kickoff touchdown.

Halftime performance 

Stadium from the top row at midfield. 

Granddaughter Camille never gave up hope for her Dad.

Courtney, Dave, Camille and Brynn

The "Bestest Father's Day" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Just got a few cards from my wife and my daughter and granddaughters who are visiting for the weekend.  A kind of tear-jerker from Carol and a few humorous ones from the other three.  Today is Father's Day and to all the fathers who read my stories, a great big Happy Father's Day to you.  I have many fond memories from years past and of other Father's Day.  None stands out more than others because they are all just as important to me.  Last week, while going through the thousands of photographs that I have in three large boxes, I found a few photos of my three kids from back in the 70s and 80s.  To me that's not that long ago, but to my granddaughters that I shared them with this morning, it seems like centuries ago.  I'm so glad that I took tons of photos as my children were growing up because it is the only memory I can share with those who didn't know them at the time.  Most people reading this story never had the pleasure to meet my family, so just for this important day in my life, I have selected a few to share with you.  What a joy it is to be blessed with a wonderful family.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

Brynn, Derek and Paul (Tad)

Derek, Tad and Brynn at the Jersey Shore

Tad, Derek and Brynn having lunch

Grandkids Caden (Derek's Child), Camille and Courtney (Brynn's children)

2012 Family shot at Ocean City, NJ.  Derek, Barb and Caden are on the left.  Tad is top center.  Dave, Brynn,  Camille and Courtney are on the right.  Carol and I sit in the front.

The "Cloak of God's Grace" Story

Forword:  A few days ago I inadvertenly deleted a story that I had posted on April 5.  Since I don't make copies of my stories and can't retreive my lost story, I rewrote the story about the Catholic Church that occupies a spot on Front Street in Philipsburg, which is the capital of Sint Maarten.  I'm sure I have left out some of the original details, but also may have added some items that weren't in my other story.  I inserted it at this point since I find it impossible to change the date to reflect the date it was originally posted.

It was an ordinary day.  Just finished taking photos inside and outside the St. Martin of Tours Catholic Church on the boardwalk in Philipsburg.  Two years ago when Carol and I visited St. Martin we watched as the boardwalk entrance was being redone by making a Styrofoam mold of the name of the church across the entrance gate.  We stopped a few days to see the progress, but never had the chance to see the final result until the next year.  The church is beautiful with the yellow exterior and bright colors on the monuments and statutes that occupy the courtyard on the west side of the church.  The interior is very beautiful with an airy feel and solemn reverence.  In the 15th century, Christopher Columbus gave the name of St. Martin to the island he set foot on November 11, 1493.  That date happened to be the feast day of St. Martin of Tours, France.  So, when the first Catholic church was established on the Dutch side of the island in 1841, it was given the name of St. Martin of Tours.  Dutch-born Father Arnold ten Brink became the first pastor and in 1844 laid the corner stone on Front Street in Philipsburg.  The parish grew and grew and additions were made to the church.  The church eventually was destroyed and on May 30, 1952 the present church was constructed.  Saint Martin was born in 316 AD in Hungary of a Roman Cavalry officer and non Christian mother.  He entered the military at age 15, but left it at age 20.  He was a fierce opponent of the Arian heresy and became a hermit, monk and evangelizer in northern and western France.  He was eventually appointed Bishop in 371 and established the great monastery at Tours which became a major site of pilgrimage.  In the courtyard of the church on Front St. is a statute dedicated to him.  The plaque says: "In the service of God he now offers the cloak of God's Grace to us.  The statute and plaque were dedicated November 11, 2012.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.  PS - the photos for this story were taken during a few different visits to the church.

Worker places the Styrofoam letters in place

Entrance to the church from the Boardwalk

Shrine To Our Lady Of La Salette in the outdoor courtyard

Side entrance to the church

Beautiful interior of the church