Est. March 31, 2000 27,168 Previous Hits August 12, 2002 Editor:Tommy Towery http://www.leealumni.com Class of 1964 Page Hits This Issue e-mail ttowery@memphis.edu Staff Writers : Barbara Wilkerson Donnelly , Joy Rubins Morris ,Terry "Moses" Preston Staff Photographers: Fred & Lynn Sanders Contributers: The Members of Lee High School Classes of 64-65-66 |
Est. March 31, 2000 27,168 Previous Hits August 12, 2002 Editor:Tommy Towery http://www.leealumni.com Class of 1964 Page Hits This Issue e-mail ttowery@memphis.edu Staff Writers : Barbara Wilkerson Donnelly , Joy Rubins Morris ,Terry "Moses" Preston Staff Photographers: Fred & Lynn Sanders Contributers: The Members of Lee High School Classes of 64-65-66 |
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Still Crazy After All These Years |
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______________________________________________________ Point your mouse pointer on the photo below to reveal the answer to last week's Mystery Classmate? __________________________________ |
The Road to Remember . . . by Barbara Wilkerson Donnelly Class of '64 Our Most Illustrious Editor requested that I write an article (took me three solid days of frantic typing) on "Locker Room Stories" and . . . oops! I just reread the request and believe I might have erred! He wanted "Locker Stories." Okay, no problem, I can just wing it . . . I started thinking about lockers and had just about come to the conclusion that, regardless of what our M.I.E. said, I was receiving no divine inspiration! Then . . . Eureka! All of a sudden, memories started popping up. So while all the synapses are firing, I'm just going to go with the flow. The halls at LHS were usually quite packed with great hordes of male and female bodies -- hormones hopping -- and the lockers were a gathering place ("Meet me at my locker . . . ") for social reasons as well as a place to obtain information ("Did you know that she caught him with . . . ") of the utmost importance. I remember that during the "guys flipping girls" stage of our high school days, it was often very painful to stand at lockers. That seemed to be the place of choice -- when your back was turned and you were halfway into your locker -- when someone wanted to flip you! They could do the deed and be gone before you had a chance to turn around, IF you could turn around. For those of you who don't have first-hand knowledge of "flipping," let's just say it was often difficult to sit after a particularly successful "flip-off." Of course, as was mentioned in a previous issue of the Traveller, the girls got even by pulling off the "fruit loops" from the backs of the guys' oxford shirts. I remember opening my locker to take out my lunch one day, and finding the remainder of someone's dissected frog inside my bag! No one ever admitted to that one. Since I did not have a weak stomach, it was really no biggie! (Anyone care to own up?) As you may remember, it wasn't very difficult getting into any of the lockers at LHS. A well-placed smack under the handle and . . . voila' . . . access! In fact, some of the guys even had it down to an art . . . Any or all of the following -- a graceful pirouette, a slight leap into the air, a spin, bend and back flip -- were the required moves prior to dealing the death blow. Were you one of the unlucky ones who had a bottom locker? And remember the kid who always dropped his/her books on your head? I remember one day just prior to fifth period, when I drove into the parking lot just ahead of Mr. Hamilton! I had left a term paper, which was due that day, at home. No problem! I called my mother during the break and asked if I could leave to get it. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to go through the proper channels (talking, or something else important, no doubt!), so I just left during lunch. Okay, remember that we were NEVER to leave during the lunch break? I thought I had plenty of time to get my book from my locker and get into class before Mr. Hamilton caught up with me, but I was wrong. He just spoke to me like it was the most normal thing in the world to see me driving in during lunch! It was true, of course, that I spent a lot of time in the office. Unlike Lehman (and Lehman, I, for one, am very glad you decided to go by "Jorge" because it really IS easier to spell!), who spent his time under house arrest, my main job was to guard Lehman! I guess Mr. H. just didn't think I would break any rules. Remember "Slam Books?" Boy, were those neat, or what? We would stay up on the weekends making those darn books. I always signed under No. 13, because I was born on the 13th. Does anyone remember the kiss of death in a slam book? You never, never, never wanted to see, on your page, the words "Real cute and sweet." This either meant that the writer had no earthly idea who you were (bummer!) or, even worse, you had not made an everlasting impression on him/her. And, girls and boys, did we live to be the center of everyone else's world, or what? My mind trip took me up the hall from my locker and I happened to stop off in the typing room. I spent many, many days in that room! I remember trying soooo hard to type faster than Bob Walker (It never came to pass!), who typed about 125 w.p.m. (really!) on a manual typewriter. I did not like typing the first year I took it, but it soon became one of my favorite classes. Mrs. Parks was a real trip. I remember a boy she always called "Aloysius," and I cannot remember if that was part of his name, or if she just called him that for some reason. I believe his name was Collis Sims. Anyone remember him? (Tommy, I know you do!) The only time I got really angry with Mrs. Parks was when she wouldn't let me leave class because she didn't believe I was really sick! We had a typing test, and she thought I just didn't want to take it for some reason. Long story short -- my appendix was about to rupture, I did leave, I did live, I still love Mrs. Parks! I also remember that we had to come up with a sentence to put under our pictures in the yearbook one year, and for some reason, I was working on it during typing. It must have been due at that EXACT moment; because all I could come up with was "Silence is Golden." Of course, Terry (Moses) Preston, can attest to the fact that I was perhaps the quietest, meekest, and mildest-speaking girl at LHS, right T.P.? HA! We stayed in trouble for talking during Study Hall. That was when I got my exercise for the day -- passing notes to T.P. from almost every girl at LHS! Thinking of typing made me remember Linda Shafer. Does anyone remember the Demolay dances? Linda and I went to one of the dances with Donnie and Ronnie Blaise one weekend and had a really great time! None of us dated regularly, but for some reason, we all ended up going out that night. Linda spent the night at my house after the dance and, of course, we made a Slam Book! So, now I'm remembering dances at LHS. Don't even want to go to the senior prom in my mind -- you all know why. The dances after the football games were fun, though. Remember, girls, how we wore those gigantic mums for homecoming? They were really cool, huh? Especially with the "L" in the center of them. I started thinking about all the old gang at LHS, and how some of them had been friends of mine since the 8th grade. There were many, many parties at my house, which we referred to as "cook-outs." My dad worked a swing-shift, and while he never minded us having the parties at my house, he always wanted everyone gone before he arrived home at 11:30 PM. Anybody remember that? About 11:00 PM someone would call out the time and then it was a mass exodus! We always had a great time -- my mother was so neat! She was always around, but we never saw her unless we sought her out. I remember one night the Schiff twins decided to play a joke on her. Sandra, I think, went into the kitchen and started a conversation with Mother. Then she left and within a few minutes, Sara came into the kitchen and took up the conversation where Sandra had left off. This went on for about 20 minutes. Mother was getting a little flustered, wondering why "that girl" kept leaving and coming back to start talking about the same subject. They finally came in together and had quite a laugh! Another night, however, I remember we had an injury in my backyard. I think it was Sylvia Becks, but I'm not certain. Any help here? Terry? She was running and caught her chin on the clothesline! Ouch! We also had a scavenger hunt in my neighborhood one night and (this incident might have happened at another party) I remember that one of the items was "a bent fork." A man opened the door at one house, and when we asked for the fork, he went to the kitchen and brought it back. Of course, it was not bent -- so he bent it! He just asked us to bring it back that night so his wife wouldn't kill him! I remember parties at Marquietta's and Barbara Rousseau's houses, too. Barbara had this awesome basement with a fireplace in the center. Seems like we partied an awful lot, people! After thinking about all the people who were at all the parties, I managed to get back to the locker again and can see myself giving J. R. (Brooks -- also, of the party crowd) a "Snuffy Smith" cartoon I had drawn which, somehow, had some relationship to his campaign for Study Body President. I wish I knew now what that was all about! Then, I started thinking . . . why did we call Mike Smith "Snuffy?" And why was Larry Hale called "Puppy Dog?" And does anyone else (besides Lynn Bozeman) remember the chant we did while we exercised in P. E. and . . . I hope your Road to Remember is as wonderful as mine! Please share it with the rest of us! ________________________________________________ |
The photo at the top of the right column was one of the ones I took on my photo op visit to Lee during the 2K2 Reunion weekend. I was trying to see what the inside looked like and from the end doors all I could see were lockers, but I took the shot anyway. As I was reviewing it, I decided we could do an article on our locker stories, so I assigned it to one of our Ace Reporters, Barbara Wilkerson Donnelly, assuring her that she would have something in her brain's database upon which to base a story. All I wanted was a simple story about the lockers. This was like sending Barbara to the store for a loaf of bread. Six hours later, she comes back with a carload of food from the store, after making a side trip to Home Depot for some needed items, and a run through the shopping center for just a few things. Inside the car somewhere is the loaf of bread and inside Barbara's article are some fun memories of the lockers of Lee. She said she misread the assignment as "Locker Rooms of Lee" instead of "Lockers of Lee". I'm glad she didn't misread it as: "The Knockers of Lee" instead of "The Lockers of Lee". Now that would be a whole different story and probably one that would need to be assigned to Moses instead of Barbara! Now after reading her story, I have to be proud that my experience and wisdom of being an editor proved correct and I assigned it to the right person. I remember the flipping Barbara writes about. It was not the boys' fault that took place. It was the girls who wore the skirts so tight that you just had to do it. I don't know why, but when I think of tight skirts at Lee, I think of Marilyn Thigpen or Carolyn McCutcheon. It's just one of those memories that are ingrained in my mind, probably because of Page 131 in the 1964 yearbook. But, I degress; we were talking about flipping. If you got it just right, only the tip of your fingertip hit the target. If you got it wrong one of two things happened. You either missed entirely which gave you a second shot or you under judged the distance and POW! half your hand hit the target giving it a loud WHOP! and made you a very big target to the return blow and probably left a bruise instead of a sting. When it came to opening the lockers without a combination, I was one of the best. The inside heal of your palm strategically striking the bottom of the handle and voila, it was open. Most of us guys didn't even remember our combinations because that was how we got into them most of the time. So, all you dear readers, take Barbara's stories and add your own memories. I know that many notes were left in them. Sometimes they were left on the outside; sometimes they were slid into the vent slots. Sometimes they were good and sometimes not so good. What do you remember? _______________________________________ |
From Our Mailbox Subject: Re: Lee Traveller Update is On the Web Date: Wed, 07 Aug 2002 12:59:55 -0500 From: "Susanne Schlette" <susieshere36@hotmail.com> Tommy, thanks once again for all your efforts that went into planning the 2k2 Reunion. You and your helpers thought of everything for a very enjoyable weekend. As always, it was wonderful to see everyone and I look forward to the next time. I have Rainer's cake receipe tucked safely into my receipe box and am anxiously waiting for a large enough crowd to bake it. Your Mickey Mouse Club theory is a very interesting one and it occurred to me there were other "organized efforts" to assure me I would always be loved by my friends. How about Girl Scouts? They encouraged me to be "one of them" because I should want to: Make new friends but keep the old, One is silver and the other gold. A circle is round and has no end, That's how long I will be your friend. This of course was sung while holding hands with my sister scouts and walking around in a circle around the new recruits every year. I never felt that Buffalo Bob would let me down and if I just was careful, as instructed, and turned my books in on time and in good condition, the library lady was there for me. Given this foundation along with a halfway stable home life, I just expected that all my Generals would be there for me in a pinch. Unfortunately, the rest of the world wasn't to be so accomodating. This could account for why so many of us have been married more than once. Anyway, I for one am greatful for our close-knit group. Even with our faults, we are still one of the closest groups of friends I've ever found in my travels. Thanks to Mickey or whomever is responsible for giving us the ability to still believe at our age. Susie Wohlschlaeger Schlette 1966 Poplar Bluff MO _______________________________________ Subject: Hi Ya'll Date: Wed, 07 Aug 2002 12:17:12 -0500 From: "Jim Bannister" <jbann@hotmail.com> Hi ya'll, I'm "Blue" over last weeks trivia....I should have set my goals higher....Who am I kidding, I had a difficult time coming up with the songs that I did....Congrat's to Mr. Kinkle....I ran into Lloyd Bost, LHS Class of '68, at a social function in Decatur.... If you don't remember Lloyd, you will probably remember his dad.....He was the police officer that kept traffic moving and maintained order at Shoney's....He also handed out Shoney suckers to all the girls....I was telling Lloyd about the Mini-Reunion & The Website and how much fun our classes have with it....He said the Class of '68 had not had a reunion since 1988....Losses in Vietnam and other factors had taken a toll on his class....He also said that if they held a reunion it would have to be held at the Limestone Correctional Facility for maximum attendance....It was good to meet another LHS Alumni.... Jim Bannister Class of '66 Birmingham, AL ___________________________________ Subject: Traveller Date: Mon, 5 Aug 2002 07:42:31 -0500 From: "Taylor, Carolyn T. (RDEC)" <carolyn.taylor@rdec.redstone.army.mil> Hey Tommy, Loved the picture of Elvis!!. I wanted to tell you that being able to see back issues is GREAT. I can only read the Traveller at work (because I don't have a computer at home) and I have missed some issues being on leave and of course when I come back, I always get the current issue no matter which one I click on. Carolyn Taylor Class of '64 Huntsville, AL ___________________________________ Subject: Next Reunion Date: Sun, 4 Aug 2002 22:47:51 -0500 From: "elbert balch" <ebalch@bellsouth.net> Tommy, It was great to see you and everyone who made it to the mini-reunion. Whether it can be attributed to the Mickey Mouse brainwashing or not, there is certainly something special about the relationships that were forged by our classmates during our years at Lee. I think Lamar Taylor has a super idea to include Butler and Huntsville High in the next reunion! Elbert Balch Class of '66 Huntsville, AL ______________________________ Subject: Mickey Mouse Club Date: Sun, 04 Aug 2002 15:11:21 +0000 From: "Gary Kinkle" <garycark@hotmail.com> Just wondering if any of our classmates have ever had a Mickey Mouse Club? See attached. Gary Kinkle Class of '64 Miami, FL __________________________________ ___________________________________ Cecilia Levan Watson Friday, 8/2/02, 9:09 PM Hello to everyone in Huntsville and Lee High School. From: Portage, Indiana E-mail: hunts68@aol.com Year of Graduation: 1968 ____________________________________ I had the following e-mail sent to me, but unfortunately there was no name attached to it. I do not have a "Safety" address in my mail list, so if this is you, then please e-mail me again with the user name you wish to have removed...thanks. Subject: remove Date: Mon, 5 Aug 2002 07:44:59 -0500 From: "Safety" <safety@hsvutil.org> To: "'Tommy Towery'" <ttowery@memphis.edu> __________________________________ Subject: RE: Article: 1961 The Year That Was Date: Mon, 5 Aug 2002 17:20:02 -0700 From: "Terry 'Moses' Preston" <mosespreston@earthlink.net> I enjoyed your M-I-C theory. It may indeed be responsible for so much of how we think today, given our impressionable age and the basic human need to have friends and be loved. Terry 'Moses' Preston Class of '64 Wildomar, CA 92595 _____________________________________ |
Okay, It's The Girl's Time! Songs About Girls Trivia We had our male names in songs trivia, and now the promised Songs About Girls Trivia. Below are 10 songs with a blank or a descriptive passage about a girl in the music of our times. Send in your answers and a Validation note about one of them. This week try to pick one good memory about one of the songs and expand on it, instead of just casual comments on all of them. If you need to share memories on more than one, please feel free to do so. 1. Oh _______ I Am But a Fool, Darling I Love You, Though You Treat Me Cruel, You Hurt Me And You Make Me Cry, But If You Leave Me, I Will Surely Die 2. But what good does it do me? 'Cause _______ doesn't know I exist. I can't help feelin' gloomy, Thinkin' 'bout the lovin' I've missed 3. Went to a dance looking for romance, Saw __________ _______ so I thought I'd take a chance 4. She likes to travel around. She'll love you then she'll put you down., Now people let me put you wise. ______ goes, out with other guys. 5. Well, ________ _______ ________, she's built for speed, She's got everything that Uncle John needs 6. Never knew a girl like-a little _________, Her name drives me insane 7. Why don't you come out, with your red dress on, Come out, Mmm, you look so fine 8. He saw a sign for a stock car race, A thousand dollar prize it read, He couldn't get _____ on the phone, So to her mother Tommy said 9. _____ ______ what went wrong, Oh so wrong, We went together for so long 10. You passed me by one sunny day, Flashed those big brown eyes my way, And oo I wanted you forever more __________________________________________________ |
Our Public Service Duty The Traveller staff has decided that we need to be more in touch with the public responsibilities of our readers. We thought about running the missing children pictures on the milk carton campaign, but then realized that not that many of you would ever see it. Therefore, we have come up with our own Public Service campaign, reaching our readership in a manner in which we know they can be reached. After doing an audience acceptance study with George "Lehman" Williams, Terry "Moses" Preston and others who were at the 2K2 Reunion, we think we have found the medium for our generation. Below is the first of our Public Service items. Watch for more of them in the future at your favorite places and help us get the word out to try to find all the missing classmates of Lee High School. |
