NileHi trained us well

 How often it has been said that verbal communication is the 

greatest deficiency of modern America.

 The English program at 
Niles,however,seems to present at least one outright contradiction 

to the rule.Having concluded three required years of English and encouraged to elect a fourth, the student has mastered the

 rudiments of grammar, has built a basic vocabulary, and has been introduced to the 
fundamental literary achievements.Those students who have

participated in the advanced program of studies, having chosen such

 courses as Composition, American Ideas, and Honors Reading, have gained 

not only the knowledge which accompanies extensive work, but also 
the literary appreciation coming through analysis and practical 

experience. Upon graduation, the Nilehi student goes forth adequately 
prepared to enter the adult world as a well-informed,

self-expressive individual.

The layout of this excerpt from our yearbook is a bit choppy and not a true representation of the message. 

Walking

I've received a few emails but no responses yet. If you hit comments at the bottom of the blog you can enter a reply which everyone can read. This will make it a community thing. 

If you read any of my previous blogs from 10 years ago you might have noticed my enjoyment of walking. It's something we take for granted until father time kicks in and walking becomes a chore. Now I struggle to walk to the Bayfront and sit on my favorite people watching bench. So easily most of them glide past me and we say hello. Kids in strollers, joggers, happy couples walking past holding hands and I can read their minds as they greet me (that poor old man should I put a quarter in his hat). Well I have to make a living somehow. The bright side is we have had 80+ good years and we are still here. It's amazing what modern medical technology has done with their synthetic drugs that trick our ailing bodies by blocking antibodies that are attacking our bodies rather than protecting us from viral invasion. 

Lets see those comments, Keith

HAS IT BEEN THAT LONG

 It's been a minute since my last post. 81 and we are still here, During this past decade we had our 60th reunion. That was August, 2021 and Covid was rearing it's ugly head. We still managed to muster over 60 classmates and some spouses. It was so good to see old friends again, some coming from as far away as Texas. We met at a restaurant in Glenview/Northbrook. We are looking forward to our 65th reunion in 2026. 

Dolores and I recently met Chuck Scharf and Sandi  on Balboa Island,  where we are spending September, getting away from the brutal heat of Palm Desert. Our daughter and son came to visit for a week or two and we enjoyed the fine eateries Newport Beach/Balboa Island has to offer.  10 more days and we are back to Palm Desert having a few visits from assorted doctors. Stay happy and I'll try a write more.

I think there is a reply you can add at the bottom. Love to hear from you, Keith

THE LIFE OF A REALTOR

When I watched the real estate shows it looked so glamorous and easy. Show a home, sell the home, collect a commission. This is also the general attitude towards brokers held by the public. We are listed somewhere between used car salesmen and a snake's belly (not sure which comes first) on the list of things you trust. This is possibly why our clients don't confide in us. They hide the whole truth about why they are asking for your help in buying or renting a home. I refuse to become cynical. I am glad I don't need to make a living at this. The young people in the office put up with so much garbage. In a couple of months I will be in California for the winter leaving my realty world behind. We'll try to visit as many of our CA friends as possible. We will have 6 months this winter. 

I PASSED

1969 was the last time I had taken a classroom course and taken tests. Recently, partially out of boredom and partially the need to earn more income, I took the real estate course to become  a broker. 90 hours in 2 weeks was a heavy load in a class of mostly 30-40 year olds. What to expect, could I still read and retain? After the first week there was a test and I passed. After the 2nd week another test and I passed that. This only qualified me to take the big test (Illinois State Real Estate Test). I studied like never before and this past Monday took the 3 1/2 hour test. I finished and then went through it again. When the tabulations were done I saw this big PASS at the top. Was I happy. Now the fun starts. I like to meet people and what better a line of work than real estate. We showed a condo last night and I had to bite my tongue seeing the condition it was kept. My heart wasn't into trying to convince this young couple how happy they would be in this $750,000.00 home. I'm glad they passed on it. I hope future places will show nicer.

IT'S BEEN A WHILE

The Index page on the website broke and while they are trying to figure it out I'll be writing on the old blogspot.
We watched the movie "Nebraska" tonight and it was rather depressing. Maybe hit a little too close to home. I think the old couple were older than us but not by too much. Bruce is 77 and born in Chicago. June Squibb is 84. We have some oldtimers here at the Oasis Country Club in Palm Desert. I tell Dolores that I'm not going to walk like that, the slow gait hunched over walk, and she told me to keep exercising and stretching. I also noticed that I'm putting some poundage around the midsection that I can't seem to lose. I blame it on the broken arm.
Denny and Brigid Crosby are buying a new motorhome getting ready to hit the road with their 4 dogs.
We are visiting Karen Vedder toward the end of the month. She is getting over a bout with bloodclots.
Maybe we can have a NileHi luncheon in late April. Iris is our organizer.
It seems all of the academy award nominated pictures were heavy and depressing, maybe not Gravity or American Hustle. We didn't see "Her" yet.
I'm not looking forward to returning to Chicago in early May. The weather has been spectacular out here on the desert. Next year we will stay until June.
 That's all for now.

WINDING DOWN

Well, we are into our final 2 weeks in Palm Desert. It has been outstanding. Even without DVR we filled every beautiful day with fun activities. Hiking, walking, golfing and eating out at happy hours are just some of the things we loved. Happily my sister and cousins will be coming out to finish the next 2 weeks and soften our departure. I look forward to getting home to Chicago, my birthplace and home for 67 (almost 68) years. We are already looking forward to next year's snowbird trip. Several candidates have popped up but we haven't decided yet. We sat through a thumb bending time share session the other day to be rewarded with 2 free rounds of golf. It wasn't really that bad compared to previous timeshare sessions we had been exposed to. Just not ready to commit to that type of lifestyle yet. My wrists are sore today after hitting a bucket of balls at the driving range. I have hit more golfballs in the past 2 months than I ever did in the previous 55 years of playing. Emil Lazar and I used to ride our bikes to Chick Evans Northwestern golf course when we were 12 and play all day. We would only stop to drink some water and eat mustard (it was free). I still like mustard and water but I couldn't play 54 holes in a day.

I'M NOT ALONE

I checked the stats today for the first time and found that I'm not just talking to a wall. Now I have to watch what I say. NAHHH.
How about a perfect world where everyone got along. It might be a little boring. Difference in opinion has always been around as far back as we can document. To a degree it has become more civilized replacing the club with a talk show host. I see the basis of confrontation stemming from mine and yours. If you don't covet mine, I don't covet yours and we each keep a safe distance we get along fine but when any of those boundaries are crossed it hits the fan. You see this while driving a car, waiting in line for a dinner table, watching your kid's or grandkid's ballgame, etc. We have come so far to be nowhere. Because we live in a free world that allows us to think we know what is best for that society. Unfortunately we don't know squat but allow our thought process to be influenced by TV idiots who claim to be experts when in reality they are only hate mongers looking for ratings. If you really want to know about a topic do some research and get several points of view and for gosh sakes don't forward on an e-mail until you have checked it's validity.

NOT AN EASY JOB

I have a great respect for all of our past and present presidents. Can you imagine if that was you having the position of keeping a large country going? Some were groomed to take that position, whether by family or political kingpins. Put yourself in their position. Being surrounded by a staff of advisers makes the job easier but with a fractured society you are wrong no matter what decision you make. If you have ever been a president or chairperson of any organization you must realize what a monumental job it is to just get 30 or 50 people to agree much less 275 million and then you have to factor in the rest of the world who depend on our country's decisions. In my lifetime I was aware of presidents Eisenhower through Obama and I salute every one of them and will always address them as President.

WHEN DID IT ALL CHANGE

We are visiting some friends in Las Vegas and last night we went to Bellagio Hotel. We watched a fantastic water display playing to beautiful music. As I looked at the crowd both outside and then inside The Bellagio I couldn't help but notice a slovenliness of dress. What happened to the crowd who enjoyed and felt obligated to dress up when attending a nice performance or staying at an elegant hotel. Now the outfit of the day was ripped bluejeans, shorts, T-shirts showing a general disrespect for their surroundings or fellow participants. Is it so difficult to put on a nice pair of slacks with a collared shirt and maybe a sweater? My grandfather was a toolmaker from Sweden who came to this country with that sense of formality and, even though he would go to work in a machine shop, he would dress in a suit every day and change at work. I can understand the idea of feeling comfortable but it doesn't have to be in a Bears football shirt.

IT'S A BIRD

My new friend Rich from Minnesota and I are both restarting our golfing activities after long layoffs. We are starting easy with many trips to the driving range and then rounds at par 3's. Yesterday we played a very small but interesting par 3 in La Quinta called Palm Royale. This course had plenty of water holes and strategically placed sandtraps making it a challenge. The greens were also very difficult with changing contours of hills and valleys. I put a few in the water and I also found the sand but I needed the practice (in the sand not in the water). Coming up to hole 17 I was a little discouraged by my play but when I hit my 8 iron on the 125 yard hole it landed 2 feet from the pin and I holed it for a birdie. I love this game. We will be back there tomorrow at 7:07 A.M. I hope to improve and then on to bigger courses setting up the match in Tucson with Lloyd Kuehn and Bob Rhodes.

I LOVE THIS GAME, I HATE THIS GAME

As you may have noticed in a recent entry I have taken up golf again. Bob Zender and I started at the same time of life but he went one way and I went the other. Now that I have more time on my hands I thought I'd give it another try. I didn't have any clubs so I went to Craigslist. $40.00 later I had a complete set with a bag. I've started at the driving range and then playing on a par 3 course in Indio. I found that playing with gym shoes doesn't work so i bought a pair of golf shoes. Now, after 6 trips to the range and 2 games at the par 3 I feel more comfortable and I know I'll be ready for The Ira Berger Invitational in September. I hope the course isn't too long. When I get home to Chicago I'm going to get a nice set of clubs and then find partners to play with.

GOOOOOOO BEARS

In the long rivalry between the Bears and Packers they have only played each other once in the playoffs and that was back in 1941 (Bears won 33-14). After watching the Bears at the start of the season I didn't think they had much of a chance to excel and with the variety of injuries on the Packers I didn't give them much of a chance either. Ironically it was the Bears loss to the Packers in the last game of the year that allowed the Packers to get into a wildcard position. The way I see this game the Bears have to control the ball with Forte running his a** off. They talk about the weather but I don't think either team enjoys playing in 19 degree temperatures.
Lovie was almost run out of town after, following a hot start, the team fell on hard times but something kicked in and they finished very strong. If there is a coaches factor ask any Packers fan about McCarthy. They think he isn't very good as a decision maker.
We are going to The BeerHunter in LaQuinta to watch the game and there will be hundreds of fans there watching on over 50 TV screens. If the Bears can't do it today I will be very disappointed and it will take me a few hours to adjust but then I can turn on The Bulls or Blackhawks and then it's the wait til next year Cubs who will go all the way this year. (Your heard it here).

WATCH OUT, ANOTHER HOOKER

Since we are going to be in Palm Desert for 3 months I thought this would the best time to take up golf again. I started playing when I was 12 and since I was living right across the alley from Bob Zender I was learning from the best. Bob's dad would take us to Maierhofer's back lot and show us how to hit the ball. Bob picked it up very easily but I picked up bad habits and never achieved more than a 95-100 range. Emil Lazar and I would ride our bikes with the clubs on the handlebars to Northwestern (Chick Evans) course and play from 8:00 in the morning until dusk only stopping for some water and mustard (only things that were free). Several years ago I fell away from golf, probably since Chuck Worthington passed away. Chuck, Emil and I would play up in Wisconsin a couple of times a year.
Last week I went on Craigslist and found a complete set of clubs and bag for $40.00. I had to buy a sand wedge and a 5 wood and after a couple of trips to the driving range I was ready for the Par 3 course in Indio. I lost 7 balls (several ended up on the driving range and I wasn't about to go out there to retrieve them), but nobody got hurt and I made it through all 18 holes. I can see I need more work but it was fun and I have to get into playing condition for our Ira Berger First Invitational Classic during our reunion in Sept.

PHILOSOPHY TO TRAGEDY

As we all have probably seen there was a terrible tragedy in Tucson yesterday. As I have been doing the nilehi website I have been exposed to all sides of our political views. Where do these viewpoints come from? First we are influenced by our parents. They were influenced by their lifetime of exposure to their parents, friends, teachers, religious leaders, etc. I would hope that the individual mind is developed enough to filter out the bad ideas and encourage the good ones. Now the question arises what is bad and what is good. My bad might be your good and if we can't discuss it rationally we become polarized. Mankind has evolved from the caveman to the present going from a simple mind who saw and reacted to todays more analytical approach where we evaluate a situation and decide the best course of action. We, unfortunately still have a part of society with a caveman mentality which knows only one way to solve a problem and that is to use the club.
If Tucson's tragedy has taught us anything, although I don't think it has, I hope it would be to open up more rational conversation and find that we all are trying to attain the same goals.

HELP, I CAN'T GET OUT

I know I'll get no sympathy from those of you suffering through yet another cold winter. We retired in August and decided to leave Chicago for the winter. This is the first time we have had the opportunity to escape for more than 2 weeks. We ended up in Palm Desert, CA and although it isn't warm it is in the 50's and 60's. we rented a condo and for the most part it is nice. Unfortunately it is in a gated community which needs a remote or keycard to get in. We didn't get a remote so when people come over I have to walk to the gate (about 2 blocks) to pass the keycard through the gate for them to get in. Going out, the gate opens automatically if you drive out but if you are walking you need a remote to open. The only way I can go walking is to drive our car out of the gate, park and walk from there. If this isn't rectified soon it will leave a bad taste in my mouth when the condo review comes up.

CHRISTMAS KARAOKE

Christmas Eve, in our family, is the Swedish side of our family's day of celebration. We have been travelling to my Aunt Myra's home for 30 years. This year we thought it would be fun to break out of the traditional mold and add Karaoke. There was a microphone and background music and lyric sheets aiding us and after several glasses of Glog I went to the mike and sang Silent Night. It had been quite a long time since I had been on the other side of the mike but I nailed it. Granted theses were my relatives in the audience making it much easier. I can remember standing in front of as many as 5000 people at The Aragon. There were four of us which helped and it was so loud that nobody could hear us anyway. Back to Christmas, I had to reflect on the recent passing of another aunt, Corky, who was my mother's sister and always fun to be around. My mother passed away at an early age and Corky was my connection to my mom since she knew her better than anyone. Bud Morten did an interview with his mother and documented her life for generations to follow. I wish I had done that but now I have to rely on my memory. I will work on it and put it in this blog next year. Have a good new year and help bring joy to others.

This past July we sold our house and moved downtown. We went from a big house to a 1 bedroom 1 bath loft. We had to shrink our possessions down by 75%. With garage sales, donations and trashing we pared our lot to fit into our little home. Now we have decided to remodel the loft so while we are snowbirding our loft will be torn apart and put back together in a completely new configuration. Right now we have to pack up our possessions and reduce them again. At this rate of progression we will soon be living on a coat hanger in a closet. This brings to mind the saying you come into this world with nothing and leave with nothing. What we do have is each other.

FIELD MUSEUM

Is it a sign of aging, or maturing as I like to call it, going to the Field Museum and actually enjoying the day. Recently we met Lloyd Kuehn and his wife, Joan, at The Field Museum. My museum of choice had always been Science and Industry but I was pleasantly surprised how interesting The Field has become. We took a guided tour of the Egyptian exhibit and we were amazed with the technology of that ancient culture. Cecil B. DeMille took liberties in his depictions of ancient Egypt and in reality the pyramids were not built using slaves but rather paid workers. Most pyramids were raided, some soon after being sealed, even though precautions were take to discourage that practice. The art of mummification was intriguing. It took 40 days and 40 nights, sound familiar, to extract the inner organs and soak the skin in natron for preservation.
We spent 6 hours and didn't see half of the free exhibits. 1000 years from now we will be in museums on the other side of the glass typing on our archaic computer keyboards.

INCENTIVE

This morning I got up and started to dress for a cold walk. Thermal underwear followed by a jogging suit followed by a rain resistant golf coverall. A towel around my neck, a warm pulldown hat and a pair of winter gloves. It was 24 deg. out and when I hit the outside I started to think what a foolish thing this was. as I walked under Lake Shore Drive and emerged at Grand Avenue Beach I see this guy coming OUT OF THE WATER in a swimsuit. He starts to towel off and all of a sudden I don't feel the cold. I couldn't believe this. That water has to be 40 degrees and the air 24. This made my walk much easier to endure.

CABARET

Dolores and I met her brother at Peterino's Restaurant last night for dinner and a musical treat. It was Open Mike Monday and a dozen entertainers each took the mike accompanied by Becky Menzie on the piano. Some had played here before but some were new and Becky played their music perfectly. They ranged in age from 30 to 84 and for the most part were very entertaining. The 84 year old had been in several movies early in her career and did herself proud belting out tunes. If you get a chance to see Becky Menzie I would encourage you to go.

PROSPECTUS OR CAMOUFLAGE

Why do I hate receiving those stock market prospectuses, I'll tell you why. They give me a headache by trying to confuse the investor trying to justify why their portfolio isn't growing in the proper direction. As an example here is the opening line from a recent prospectus sent to me today: "New normal long-term outlook---marked by a shift in global growth drivers, deleveraging and re-regulation---points to the possibility of a desynchronized global recovery. As such, the economic growth rate in developed economies will likely be lower than in previous recoveries, but higher for developing and emerging market economies. for investors it is important to adjust portfolios to meet the challenges of this changing and uncertain investment environment".
I would rather hear: "Since our last idea isn't working due to lousy foreign investments, we will switch our investing from England, France and Italy to India and China".
Where do these financial advisers come from? Are they schooled to invest properly or to sell the investor on their expertise. We are trapped into following their advice since banks and mattresses give you zero growth. Maybe I'll invest in a pawn shop.

CUBS, I'M BACK

In this busy world we live in there is only so much time to spend on any one activity. I started supporting the Cubs back in the late '50's to early '60's. I was an occasional fan and went to a few games every year. As I grew older and raised a family I found more of an allegiance to the Cubs and started to become the true definition of a fan (fanatic). I suffered through the highs and lows over the years and , although they never won the golden ring, the did offer an exciting product. When the Bartman incident happened, not really his fault, I was disappointed but stuck with them. Then they brought in LOU and we were convinced he would lead us to the promised land. I watched every evening and weekend games and listened to the rest on the radio. Now they have a big season and get to the playoff only to lose three straight before I could get comfortable on my easy chair. The following year we do well again and start with "the never can win the important games' Dodgers. Boom, Bang, Zip and the mighty Cubs are done. Well that was it. I got rid of all my Cubs memorabilia and clothes and vowed never to watch them again. I was true to myself and found so much extra time to do other things (much to Dolores's delight). Two seasons went by and I went to a game late in the 2010 season at the request of some friends. We sat up in the upper deck and I hardly recognized any players on the field. Late in the game this fellow was wandering the stands and plopped down next to us. This was Tom Ricketts (the new owner of the Cubs) and he was a regular guy. The 3 of us talked for 5 minutes and we told him he should hire Mike Quade as new manager. We shook hands and he went on to other eager hands to shake.
I will give it a trial run next year but only as an occasional fan. Now that we have retired there really isn't enough free time to waste on many ballgames.

DIRK PITT

Yesterday I went to the Union League club to hear Clive Cussler speak at a luncheon book review. Along with his son, Dirk Cussler, they wrote their recent book "Crescent Dawn". I know his books are formulaic but once you start it is difficult to put down. I will review the book in a future blog (since I haven't read it yet). The Union League Club is an old establishment that caters to the city's wealthier people. The food was very good and the room was beautiful. I would never join a club that would accept me as a member. They have a dress code there as they do at The Standard Club but it isn't what you might think. They only ask the men to wear a shirt with a collar and dress slacks (no shorts or blue jeans). Personally I like to dress up occasionally.It shows some respect for the history and tradition of an old organization and respect for your fellow attendees. Happy Thanksgiving to all and don't eat too much.

Hi. I'm Keith and I'm a walkaholic

Every day I walk since we got rid of our cars. Every other day I take a long walk (10-12 miles). Like running you get into a zone and the miles pass swiftly. Scenery is important and I couldn't ask for more than the Chicago lakefront or Lincoln Park. I have to take care of my feet so I treated them to some new walking shoes. Yesterday I used a groupon and had a 90 minute massage concentrating on my hands (slight arthritis) and feet. I don't use earphones or mp3 systems but instead listen to the sounds of the city. I try and greet all oncoming walkers/runners/bikers if they make eye contact. Amazing how a smile or hello can change your day. I have taken back some hellos from grouches but they won't spoil my day. If you read Jack Spatafora's blog about tabernacles you know where the grouches are coming from. The fringe benefits of walking are obvious. It is so difficult to keep a balance of calories in and calories out. I used to burn more calories thinking about a Big Mac than it produced, not now.

OH CAROL

Carol I hardly knew you but the news of your passing cut through me as if you were a close family member. You were one of the cheerleaders, the in crowd, popular and pretty. I, as a shy and introverted teen could only dream of dating any of you. In meeting you this past February in Florida I was impressed with how easy it was to talk to you and Karen and Diane. Life is so unpredictable and to allow any of it to just pass by without enjoying every minute is tragic. You and Les were a nice couple. Our class will miss you at the reunion but when we sing the NileHi fight song we will dedicate it to you. GOOOOOOOOO TROJANS

Girl and a Goat

On Wednesday we met my sister and to celebrate my daughter's birthday at "A Girl and a Goat" on West Randolph st. in Chicago. The restaurant was started by Stephanie Izzard who won the Top Chef television competition a couple of years ago. We had 4:45 reservations and by the time we were finished the place was packed. I enjoyed some of the food but stay away from their pizza. Thursday I went back to Northwestern Law School to sit in on another class. Interesting and stimulating to watch those young minds work. They reviewed the Ford Pinto case from several decades ago. Now I am having a flareup of a root canal which was done a couple of years ago but not completely finished. Antibiotics for a few days and painkillers will handle it. Tomorrow is the new season startover for the Bears.

REJECTION

I recently signed on with an online writing company to see if I could contribute an occasional vignette to review some points of interest in Chicago. I have the time and the pen but they rejected my offer. They tossed me a softball excuse like "we have so many requests for this position" yadayadayada. It boils down to them not liking my writing style. Am I disappointed, NO, will I keep writing, YES.
We went to the Pilson neighborhood today and visited the Mexican Fine Arts Museum. They were highlighting the "Day of the Dead" which is celebrated Nov. 1 and 2. They feel that every year their dear departed come back to life in their hearts if not in person. They display the departed's favorite foods and hobbies with many pictures to surround the display. In a way we probably all have done this by visiting our parents gravesites leaving flowers and speaking to them. I haven't gone back for several years but I am going to do it soon.

BEGGARS NIGHT

Beggars night was a tradition in our Skokie neighborhood while I was growing up. When you mention this to people from other parts of the country they hadn't heard of it. We would dress up in costume and get a jump on the treaters who followed the traditional timeslot. As we were often rejected by traditionalists we had to resort to tricks. Nothing too maliscious but the dog poop in a flaming paper bag on the front porch was a classic.
Last night Dolores and I took the train to Palatine to go to dinner with Rod Bartels and Jan Jacobs Warsaw. We met Var and Carol Lordahl at Biagis and had a very nice dinner. Back on the train revelers in costume dominated the ride in very colorful costumes, heading to the city for parties. They were still sober and harmless and we could only hope that their evenings ended in safety, although we did hear of a couple of party-related tragedies.

INTERNATIONAL LAW

Today I sat in a class on International Law at Northwestern University School of Law. I didn't know what to expect since I hadn't been in a classroom or lecture hall for over 40 years. This was a smaller lecture hall with tiered desks and comfortable leather chairs. There were about 20 people there mostly early 20's, one dude in his 50's and me. They discussed hate speech vs. freedom of speech. US law didn't classify hate speech as illegal whereas the European community did. They brought up the illegality of denying the Holocaust. About half of the students participated with 3 doing most of the talking and I sat there with my muzzle on trying not to say anything. This was quite enjoyable and I plan on doing it at least once a week. Next will be The School of Medicine.
At the start it took the professor 10 minutes to find a time to have a cancelled class made up. He chose 15 different dates until he found one where all but 1 student could attend. Sounds like our committee meeting planning.

NOTHING

I got nothing today but I'll write anyway. They're selling an apartment in my daughter's building for $40,000.00. It is bank owned but this devalues all of the other apartments in the building.
I walked to Office depot this morning and bought a filebox to store our papers. Woohoo
I talked with my friend in Las Vegas. He is a professional gambler. He told me he is playing $1-$2 no limit holdem. He buys in for $100.00 and that is the most he might lose. He plays about 10% of the hands and waits for the good one. We will visit him and his wife wile we're out in Palm Desert.
Dolores is volunteering at The Anti-Cruelty Society dealing with adopted dogs. I told her not to come home with 2 dogs under each arm (our building doesn't allow dogs). She also is volunteering at S.O.A.R. (Streeterville Organization for Active Residents). I have to look into doing something. When our reunion is over I will have even more open time. I can only walk so far in a day before my feet fall off.
Haven't heard from Donna Miller Hitchins in quite a while, hope she's OK.
I hope this has enlightened you today, let's hope tomorrow is more exciting.

GHOSTS ON THE STREET

As we walked home from the train on Saturday evening we would move at a brisk pace to cover the 2 mile distance. I was carrying a take home bag from our dinner with Lloyd and Joan. Silently we would be approached by a homeless person who would ask for the carryout. I felt bad in denying him (in fact several hims) and for selfish reasons. I wanted that sweet and sour pork for lunch the next day. They would ask and then fade into the crowd to ask another. Sometimes I would turn around after denying them and they were gone. This homeless phenomenom is not uncommon to any major city or even smaller cities. I would like to stop and talk with them to find out what had caused their paths to be lost but I'm afraid that would be a waste of time. They probably don't know why they are there or what led them to this place in their lives. I do know one homeless person, John, up in Waukegan who was a quality control engineer until alcohol took over his life. He lost his wife, his job and his home in a short period of time. When I see a homeless person I think of John.

A CENTURY

This morning I went for a walk on the lakefront. What a beautiful morning it is with temperatures reaching to 77 by noon. My sister (Lynne Anderson Valentine '59) and I are taking a bus to Humboldt Park today and having our picture taken in front of Leif Erickson's Statue. Our grandfather (A.I. Peterson and his brother E.I. Peterson) stood in front of that statue exactly 100 years ago and I will post both pictures on the website this afternoon. I wonder if I'll feel the vibes while standing there.
The warmup party in Southern California went quite well from all reports with 14 classmates attending. Chuck Scharf is sending me pictures and names soon. Gotta go and meet my sister, more later.

I'm Back

I know it has been over a year since my last blog. Plenty has happened since then. We formed committees for the 50th reunion and have held 4 or 5 meetings. The list of found classmates has grown to over 850 with less than 70 on the lost list. We settled on a venue, The Standard Club in Chicago, and we instituted a donors club to assist with the extra costs surrounding the event.
Dolores and I put our Northbrook home on the market and much to our surprise it sold on a week. This precipitated our move into retirement sooner than expected. We moved downtown to our tiny loft and gave up most of our furniture. Going from a 5 bedroom, 3 bath home with 2 cars to a 1 bedroom, 1 bath loft with no cars has been an adjustment. We walk and take buses and trains everywhere. We took a 1 month trip to visit our son, Bret, in Seattle and left him with our last car and flew home. We are planning a 3 month stay in Palm Desert, CA to avoid the Chicago winter for the first time in 67 years. When this reunion is completed I will have to find another hobby to fill up the time regularly spent on the computer running the website. I had lunch with classmate Steve Schada the other day and he mentioned that this will probably be the last opportunity to have a large reunion from our class. I'll try and write more often.

I could learn to like this

This past week I took off from work since our plant was closed until Jan. 4. Dolores still had to work Mon.-Wed. so I became house husband. We recently watched Julie and Julia which prompted me to buy Julia Child's book. Monday night I started with a potato leek soup followed with Supremes De Volaille A Blanc or chicken breast with cream. Also Petit Pois in mushroom sauce. I must have used a whole stick of butter along with a pint of whipping cream. Last night I prepared the dough for the shell to be used in Quiche Lorraine. I prepared the quiche this evening and it was fantastic. It also had butter and heavy cream. We had enough left over for 3 more meals. Tomorrow we head downtown for and evening at Bandera Grill followed by going to the roof at our loft's building and watching the Navy Pier Fireworks at midnight.
Getting back to the time off idea, if I felt that I could make the break and hang it up, I would but we plan on at least another year and a half until Dolores qualifies for medicare.
Happy New Year to both of my loyal readers and I hope to supply you with more offerings next year, Keith

The art of conversation

This morning we were getting ready for work, preparing breakfast and lunches. Dolores was slicing carrots for a soup she would throw in the crock pot. As she chopped she had the unwanted parts to dispose of and she had to scrape them into the sink with her left hand because the garbage disposal was on the right side sink. She wished that we would have put the disposal on the left side and I commenced to explain that you want the disposal in the smaller sink because you use the larger sink for hand washing and ---boom she stops me and says she understands and doesn't need a whole dissertation on the problem. I, of course being wounded, had to mention that her stories tend to drag on where she uses 10 minutes to describe a 1 minute situation. This leads to the eternal problem between men and women. In my observations of our species the female loves to talk and they can go on and on where the male sees a problem, analyzes it and solves it ba-dah-bing, ba-dah-boom. I guess if we left it up to the men there wouldn't be much conversation at all.

The Ugly Duckling

Lincoln School was my home for 7 years. I met many of my friends of the future during that period. Emil Lazar, Chuck Worthington, Bob Zender, Bruce Mau, Bronson Davis, Fred Denkman, Denny Crosby, Jim Boosales and many more. As you notice they were all of the male persuasion. I was so shy around the female species that I can't recall ever talking to one girl. Not that I didn't want to. It was an awkward age for me. I hadn't hit my growth spurt yet and I was missing a front tooth right in the middle of my chubby cheeked face. Thanks to heredity and Dr. McLean (Orthodontist) I turned that ugly duckling into what I am today. In talking to so many old classmates I found that I wasn't alone. Many had image problems and insecure feelings about themselves. With age comes the confidence that so eluded me in my youth. Lincoln School and I still stand after 66 years and now I can talk to Rosanne Schiff, Susan Seedorf, Lynda Doner and several of the other girls from our class with a relaxed feeling. Maybe this evolution of Keith was purposeful. It saved me for my lovely and wonderful wife (Dolores) and allowed us to raise two wonderful children who we have watched grow into fine adults. All of you have your stories which I can't wait to hear. A 2 day weekend reunion won't be long enough.

Nice Weekend

We took the train downtown for a nice weekend. September in Chicago, you can't beat it anywhere in the world. We arrived at Union Station and walked to the ShoreLine Water Taxi. Floated down the river to Michigan Ave. and walked to Dominicks to pick up some provisions. On to our loft and up to the roof deck to grill some sausage and burgers. The view was spectacular from north on Lake Shore Drive past Grand Ave. Beach, Navy Pier and on south toward the Planetarium. We went out to the show and saw Extract. A light comedy with Jason Bateman that was enjoyable. Saturday morning we went to Milleneum Park where Dolores participated in a group Yoga class outside while I walked on to the Aquarium. Next we stopped for breakfast at Rock n' Roll McDonalds. Then on to The Sliding Door company to look for room dividers for the loft. On our way back we went into Room and Board to buy some Jake chairs to go with our Bent Leg dining room table. Then on to the hardware store for some odds and ends. Back to the loft and then after charging our batteries we went to Grant Park for the Celtic Fest. Some nice music and dancing followed by a trip over to Buckingham Fountain to see the beautiful colored lights. On our way back we stopped at a nice Italian Restaurant for dessert. We were exhausted by then after walking over 15 miles and so we missed the fireworks. Back to Union Station on Sunday morning and home. Now I am waiting for the Bears game to come on and then back to work tomorrow.

The Soul-Heirs big night

When Emil and I were 24 he was teaching in Cabrini-Green and I was still chugging through college at North Park. To earn a little side money we started a Blues band which at the time seemed fine but looking back on it what Blues did we experience growing up in white, semi-affluent suburbia. Emil had been playing around with the Blues Harp (harmonica) and he talked me into buying a bass guitar and amp.We formed a group called "The Soul-Heirs." Through a few transitions of players we ended up with a black drummer, a drug addicted guitar player and then Emil and me. We auditioned at "The Cheetah", formerly and currently The Aragon, and somehow won the audition. The headliners were Wilson Pickett and also Arthur Connelly. There were over 5000 people in attendance and we got to open the whole program. This was quite a thrill that I'll never forget.

Dolores and Keith The Gypsy Wanderers

I wonder if this would work. We sell our house and stay with my classmates for the next 20 years or so. So far we stayed 1 night with Ron Hauser and 1 night with Pat Rice Foss. We have a few nights lined up with Bill Fisher in March. If there are around 900 living classmates, deduct about 6 couples who were both in my class, deduct everyone in the Chicago area ( who wants to stay here), deduct the mean and nasty ones who don't like anyone, deduct David Silverstein in Kenya (Dolores doesn't like coups), deduct the classmates who never did like me, deduct my old girlfriends (again Dolores) and finally deduct the 250 people we just can't find. That leaves maybe 3 to 6 people. Divided by 365 days we will have to stay with you at least 2 months and maybe 4 months a year. I hope the 3 to 6 of you know who you are and we do prefer tempurpedic mattresses. If you need references please contact Ron and Pat, ( well maybe not Ron I didn't mean to drink all your beer). I'll leave a list at the bottom of this entry. Please hurry we are booking up fast.

CHICAGO

Whatever you have heard about Chicago and it's colorful mayor is probably true but his tactics and the city council members make this beautiful city work. Sit down sometime with a group of people and try to agree on any issue. You know there will be several opinions and by the time the meeting is over nothing is done. I don't agree with the payoffs and kickbacks allegedly happening but without some lubricant to grease the wheel it grinds to a halt. You can be sure that the mayor has this city's interest squarely in his sites. I walk down the lakefront to Adler Planetarium or Shedd Aquarium every Saturday morning and enjoy every step entranced by the skyline views and sailboats floating in the harbors. For you that have moved away from this area plan on a return, in the summer or fall preferably, and see what I see.

Dear Diary-Hooray for us

I can't write nearly as often as Jack Spatafora. Too many distractions with work, travel and going to our new loft downtown on the beautiful Chicago summer days.
Recently I sent a general information e-mail to our 39 committee members, half of whom live away from the Chicago area. The response was overwhelming, informative, humorous and warm. The wealth of knowledge in just that small sample of our group really impressed me. We all have more to offer having gone through 66 years of life and this seemed to be the focus of the conversations. Not a run of the mill, cookie-cutter reunion but a more open weekend where reconnecting is the keyword. There will be traditional activities such as a meet and greet gathering on Friday, a nice dinner on Saturday and some sort of a Sunday brunch and farewell gathering. Between those events we will have tours, golfing and tennis tournaments, seminars revolving about our life experiences and much more. By 2011 I would imagine most of us will be retired and not confined by specific days of availability. This could lead to more visiting before and after our planned reunion. There will be updates as we plan our great event.

Dear Diary-How did they get there

We were in downtown Chicago today and every corner had at least one homeless, pathetic person begging for a few coins to feed themselves. So sad and I wondered how they got to that awful place in their life. They were young once, like us, and probably went to a decent school. Enjoyed rather normal homelifes but something went wrong. Some traumatic event sent their world to a dark place. It might have been the war or a divorce or alcoholism, who knows. My first reaction wold be "suck it up and get back on your feet" but that may not be an option for them. I wouldn't be surprised with a class our size that we have some members of that terrible group. The 600 people we have found are fine but the 300 we can't find may have gotten lost on their trip through life. I applaud groups like The Salvation Army and PADS for their work in trying to help them. There will probably never be an answer to this problem but in our relatively short timespan on this earth I am very grateful to have a nice family, good friends, wonderful classmates and a decent place to live.

Dear Diary

We were in the Ozarks at Bull Shoals, Arkansas last week visiting with Dolores' relatives. They have met there every Memorial Day for the past 30 years. Aunts, uncles, cousins and their children attended with the oldest being 90 and the youngest 4 months. I really blew my diet with some outstanding food. we played basketball, volleyball, horseshoes, badminton and a little fishing plus the boating on the lakes. Then at night we had a bonfire which we sat around. Very relaxing. On our way home we stopped at Ron and Mary Hauser's place and, along with Jim Copeland and his wife, reminisced about the old days at Nilehi. Ron is a very good artist and we bought a horse lithograph to match one that we bought last year. Jim and I went way back to grammar school and Boy Scouts. Now we're home and getting back into the groove. Hopefully by this time next week we will be closing on a small loft condo downtown that we will use on weekends. On June 10th we will fly to Denver and attend a wedding in Estes Park at the Stanley Hotel (The Shining). On our way to Estes Park we will visit with Pat (Rice) Foss. More later.

Dear Diary

I had breakfast this morning with Howie Moldofsky, Larry Fisher and Rod Bartels. While we were there at "Once Upon A Grill" in Northbrook I noticed other tables of people meeting with old friends and for that moment living back in a time we all remember so fondly. Since our table was all guys the topic of this girl and that girl came up, (don't tell our wives) and we covered issues of finance, politics, business and old friends. Amazing how much you can catch up on in such a short time. If I didn't have my honey-do list and the hockey game I could've stayed for another couple of hours. As we reflected on the past we discussed current issues briefly, mid-life issues briefly and families briefly but the focus seemed to always go back to high school. We are not alone. My friend, Emil Lazar, has always said "you can make new friends but they will never replace your old friends" and that is true. This reconnecting is a rather contagious thing. When I do my phone calling for the most part, even though they may not remember me, we talk freely like we have been friends for 50 years. Life challenges come up and how those challenges were met. I hear the joy in their voices as a new, old, name come up. Modern technology has made everything so accessible and that includes e-mailing an old friend and after that a phone conversation.As we are approaching the end of our lost classmate list I find more time to enjoy who we have found. I predict that we will have located everyone form our class by the end of the year and I hope we don't find any more in that purple box.
This has been a rather bland entry but give me a break, I didn't walk today and walking is my idea factory. My wife cringes every time I take off on a walk for fear of what new idea pops up.
My new ending is "The Best Is Yet To Come"

I HATED HIGH SCHOOL WITH EVERY BONE IN MY BODY

This was a recent comment I heard while doing one of my phone sessions trying to discover long lost classmates. I felt bad that such resentment still festered in a person 48 years after we graduated. This classmates's complaints seemed to center around the cliques which were prevalent then and still are today in schools. There were the beautiful people, the athletic people, the extremely intelligent people and the people with outgoing personalities. Some of our classmates were lucky enough to have more than one of these attributes and this was how the groups were formed. I, unfortunately, was not in any of those categories but I had my friends and we had fun. Everyone wants to be noticed and be included but that was not to be. I tried to convince this person to give it another chance since years have passed and our group of diverse personalities have melted down to a common ground where all we think about is how to enjoy our wonderful age of gold. I hope we are past that time that so divided us into castes and we can open up our arms to embrace everyone and enjoy with them the accomplishments, no matter how large or small, and just say "Hello Trojan".

I DON'T WANT TO BE LIKE HIM

Yesterday we went to a surprise 70th birthday party for a friend whom we've known for over 25 years. There were 30 people at the party and except for a few they were all old. I don't mean chronologically old but physically old. Bent over, balding, shaking, overweight. It doesn't have to be that way. Yes life takes its toll on us all but there are ways to slow things down. We have heard them all, diet, exercise, mind stimulation. Genetics enters into the picture but we can't blame all of our problems on mom and pop. Stress from work or tragedy add into it and the ease at which we can be so readily entertained without moving is also a factor. I haven't retired yet but I can see where that would lead to a sedentary lifestyle. The most exhilarating time of the day for me is while I am power walking to the health club and back. I might be tired after work but the walk refreshes me instantly. Irony would be me getting hit by a bus on my walk and he was on that bus riding to the casino.

$$$$$$ REVISITING CREDIT VS DEBIT $$$$$$$

A couple of weeks ago I proposed an idea to do away with currency and credit cards. I have been convinced by my friends that we will always need currency but if we ended the credit card usage and went to debit cards people would not be spending beyond their means. This move, though, would probably send us into another recession because buyers would stop buying if they had to pay directly from their checking accounts. It would be an adjustment but over time I'm sure we could make it work. This idea will get me off of the tip dependent workers hit list but onto the banks list. Why do we think that we deserve something that we cannot pay for. It has been an ideology started with the Diner's Club Card just because some fellow forgot his wallet at home and couldn't pay for his dinner.In 1949, Frank X McNamara went out to eat with two of his friends. At the end of the meal, McNamara reached into his pocket for his wallet so that he could pay for the meal (in cash). He was shocked to discover that he had forgotten his wallet. To his embarrassment, he then had to call his wife and have her bring him some money. McNamara came up with a new idea - a credit card that could be used at multiple locations. What was particularly novel about this concept was that there would be a middleman between companies and their customers. In 1950, McNamara started a new company - the Diners Club, which was going to be a middleman. The Diners Club was going to offer credit to individuals for many companies (then bill the customers and pay the companies). That one incident has blossomed into a multi-billion, nearly a trillion dollar industry. That is money that is, for the most part, fiat money (a promise to pay). You don't have it, they don't have it but you have their goods and services and they have your promise. Truth be told I have 2 credit cards and no debit cards. I think it is more of a bookkeeping issue with me. I will look into getting on the debit card wagon. Come and join me.

---------FROM GULLIBILITY TO SKEPTICISM-----------

I was brought up in a family where honesty was a virtue. When you were told something you could believe it. As I grew older it was difficult not to believe people at their word, oh how foolish. Even today I find it nearly impossible to lie but I listen with more jaded ears. If it comes to financial matters I believe nobody, not even my investment counsellor, especially my investment counsellor. Everyone has an angle and some new way to make theirs what is yours. There are people who have done quite well, financially, but at what price. Obviously their line between gullibility and skepticism was crossed at an early age. Was this taught or did it just happen. In my mind when the final bell tolls you have to quantify what benefit you have been to mankind. Has our short time on earth been helpful to our brothers and sisters of the world or has it been to accumulate material goods. There is a rather stupid show on TV called "Earl" that addresses the issue of a fellow who wants to make amends for all of his indiscretions in life. He was a taker and now wishes to be a giver. Let's open our hearts and minds and help others to improve their lives.

----------------MY 15 SECONDS-----------------

We have all had our 15 seconds of fame in varying degrees. Mine came in my senior year at good old NTHS. I was a benchwarmer on the basketball team, usually playing in the games that were blowouts whether we were up or down. Coach Fabri had his '40s style pick and roll offenses for us to blindly perform never allowing any room for individuality or inventiveness. Well we were playing the defending Suburban League Champs, Evanston, and our rock solid starting offense was sputtering. Evanston was not the team from the year before losing 2 of their big players. Coach looks down the bench and says "Andy, go and check in". I practically trip over my feet rushing to the scorers table worrying that the coach might change his mind and also wishing he would change his mind. We set up in our usual cookie cutter offense and one play has me setting up at the freethrow line and receiving the ball from a guard. Then both guards are supposed to run past me trying to lose their defenders on picks. If they aren't open for a pass I am supposed to pass the ball back out and we do another basic setup. Well I thought "this is my chance to break the mold" so I turned quickly and drove to the basket. I could dunk back then and that would've been a real crowd pleaser but I played it safe and laid it in. The move still was appreciated by our loyal Trojan rooters. Mind you this was the 2nd quarter of the game. I went on the score 3 more baskets and 2 freethrows for a total of 10 points in 1 quarter. We went on to win and Monday morning the sports reporter on our morning show heard in all of the rooms mentioned my name and I was so proud in front of all my homeroom classmates. After that game I got more playing time but that was my night.

$$$$$$$$ CURRENCY IDEAS $$$$$$$$$$$$$

Two things related to currency. In the Tribune Sunday there was an article about pennies and nickels costing more to make than they were worth. That is true but the coin conservatively lasts 10 years and probably is used at least 10 times a year, therefore the nine cent cost for a nickel would amortize to .0009 cents over it's life. The same would be true for pennies. Now I propose doing away with all currency and use debit cards for all transactions. Not credit cards because that encourages spending money you may not have. The younger generation seems to be doing this already. Our currency is no longer backed by gold and silver but by Fiat Money which is basically a promise by the government to support the currency. This leads to my 2nd point. If we don't back the currency with gold then why not sell some of that 147,399,000 troy ounces of gold held in fort Knox and use the proceeds to pay down our national debt. That works out to be almost $132 trillion. We could sell 1/10 of that and we're back in business. This would have to be done gradually or the price of gold would drop but I'm sure the bean counters in Washington could figure it out. These ideas have probably put me on several hit lists such as people who count on tips and people who own gold.

--------THE COMPETITION--------

I basically grew up in Skokie. My very early years were on North Christiana Ave. in Chicago but we moved to skokie when I was 7. My father was born in Sweden and moved to Chicago at the age of 12. He didn't know the language but even more important he didn't know American sports. I remember the first baseball mitt that he bought for me was for the wrong hand and I had to put it on backwards. This put me at quite a disadvantage trying to play little league baseball. Back in the '50's they didn't take everyone like they do now. I didn't make the cut but my good friend, Emil Lazar, did make it. I persevered over the next couple of years and finally learned enough to make a pony league team. Emil peaked at little league and stopped. I played freshman baseball at NTHS but, and this might sound like sour grapes, the coaches had their ideas as to who was a good athlete and who wasn't. After a bad experience with frosh football and baseball I was type cast. The summer between freshman year and soph year I went to California to stay with my aunt and uncle for 2 months. When I came home my parents were surprised to see that I grew 6 inches. I played basketball and had a modicum of success but nothing great. Moving on through marriage, children, coaching T-Ball through colt baseball (7 yr olds to 17 yr olds) I decided to play senior men's baseball. I was 55 yrs old and those 90 ft. bases were a long run. I enjoyed it so much that I invited Emil to come and play. Needless to say Emil and I have had an ongoing competition going over just about everything. He was really in bad shape but we played a whole summer. Well we are in the last game of the season and I'm hitting a couple of points better average than Emil. He gets a couple of hits and I get a hit and came to bat for the final time with everything on the line. I hit one up the middle (right over 2nd base) and their shortstop races over to get the ball. I am streaking down the line trying to leg out a hit. The shortstop gets to the ball but because it was a difficult play he juggled it. When he recovered he threw to first but missed getting the blue flash. The manager on our team was sitting next to Emil on the bench and I know there was some money being transferred when he called it an error and Emil won the batting competition (TILT).

////////////THE DAY I LOST IT?>?>?>?>

It was a nice day. The sun was shining, my son was getting married, all was well with the world. I just got back from the hair salon after getting my hair styled ( never before, never again) and the out of town guests were arriving. My cousin and her husband were staying with us. My brother-in-law was stopping at our house after work to change. We were late so I told him to leave through the garage and close the electric garage door with the button. The wedding went off beautifully, I found out later that a pair of butterflies were trying to nestle in my coiffed hair. After the dinner and dancing my cousin and her husband wanted to head back to our house so I gave them the garage opener. As we were saying goodbye to the last of the drunks my brother-in-law came to me and told me that he locked the entry door between the garage and house for security. Oh No, there isn't a key for that lock and I had meant to change the door knob. Aarghh that was the second time he had locked us out of our house. We jumped in the car and rushed home to let my cousins in. As we approached the house I realized that I had left the house keys inside so as not to bulge my pockets. Now I'm getting mad. I picked up an ax and proceeded to smash the doorknob to smithereens to the horror of my cousins. Just then, of course, my daughter showed up with the house keys and let everyone in the front door leaving me standing with an ax, broken knob and red face. That was 8 years ago and I just recently allowed my bro-in-law back in our house, under watchful eye.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoLOVExoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

The other day my daughter and I were talking about her car. I didn't think she needed it since she takes the train to work and plans on moving to downtown Chicago where mass trans handles your travelling around. She said, "But I LOVE my car". I told her I never remember loving any car. Well in a fit of confrontation she stated that I don't love anything. I started to think about that and questioned just what is love. According to Wikipedia (disambiguation) or Love is any of a number of emotions and experiences related to a sense of strong affection[1] and attachment.
My heritage is Swedish and I believe there is something to the theory that Nordics have a more distant approach to relationships. I, of course, have a strong affection for my wife and children.
Wikipedia goes on to say that the word Love is not a single feeling but an emotion built from two or more feelings. Anything vital to us creates more than one feeling, and we also have feelings about our feelings (and thoughts about our feelings).
I would rather use the word ENJOY when pertaining to inanimate objects.
Sometimes we hold back our feelings to avoid heartbreak if those feelings are crushed. Whether we LOVE or ENJOY is a far better option than hate.

++++++++COMPLIMENTS++++++++++

Recently the Chicago Tribune ran a front page article about 2 college boys at Purdue who would stand outside the Chemistry building every Wednesday for 2 hours giving out compliments to all passersby. I did say FRONT PAGE. We need more happy news like this rather than the usual tragedy of murders and political crime. We had recently cut our Trib subscription to 4 days a week just because their content was so depressing. There is a link to the boys: chicagotribune.com/compliments

The article also mentioned a man with a sign giving out free hugs on a busy street corner. Another about a bus driver leading holiday singing on his route. At first thought these acts may seem a little over the edge but maybe we need a little more of this. It's too bad we have to live in such a guarded world where we can't trust anybody or their actions. I guess the P.T.Barnum saying "There's a sucker born every minute and two to take him" has caused us to calcify a veneer around us. Well I believe kindness breeds kindness and I'll stick to that philosophy.

50th?????You must be kidding

When I call our classmates and mention that we are sneaking up on our 50th reunion they are surprised, almost disbelieving. I look at the pictures sent to me of Bronson, Bill, Fred and Dick and haven't changed much at all. We move a little slower, ache a little more and clear our throats more often so as to not sound 90. I hear sad stories and happy ones. From recently lost loved ones to new born grandchildren. I'm glad we are all revisiting each other now rather than all at once for one weekend of celebration that when it is over its back to the routine. Pat Paul Leider told me she talked for 40 minutes with one old classmate she hadn't seen in nearly 20 years and Carol Woods Houston mentioned the same thing. Try it. Call someone and see how they are. Laugh with them or cry with them but in the end you feel good. I've been talking about this bond we have. Our parents came to Skokie, Morton Grove, Niles, Glenview and Lincolnwood so that we could enjoy a better life and we did. Now that we've scattered all over the map technology has given us the opportunity to reunite in a phone call or an e-mail or in a blog. When we were in school there were jocks, greasers, Harvey Nilehis and of course the India Plaid Society ( hey it's my blog and Chuck Worthington would like me to mention that obscure club). Now we are all in the same boat. My only concern is that there are literally hundreds of girls (now women) out there that we may never find to say hello again. Why didn't you gals keep your maiden names after marriage like they do today. And why did the Smiths name their son Bill or the Browns naming their son Howard.
Well I'll just keep searching with White Pages.com and with your help maybe we'll be able to circle all the names as found.

RED CARPET NIGHT

Before I start I'd like to allay any concerns and correct one thing. I posted an e-mail that I received from Mel Rieff. He wrote the nicest note to me about the website. The concerns may stem from my blog about prostate woes. If you read the blog I let you know that all is well and even if it wasn't it takes that rascal at least 10 years to do you in. As to my health I walk 5 miles every other day and work out at Ballys on those same days. Dolores keeps us on a rather healthy diet and I practise yoga a couple times a week.
Now for the correction. Mel mentioned this is MY reunion. I hope that isn't what you are all thinking because this is OUR reunion. Pat Paul Leider, Howie Moldofsky, Barb Kalfen Halegua, Rochelle Laskov Zuniga and Iris Daglas, to name a few of you, are helping out by calling classmates and bringing them into the site. There is still a long way to go and I'm afraid there are old friends that we will never find. Now to the title "Red Carpet Night". We, Dolores and I, get rapped up in the Academy Awards every year. We try and see all of the nominated movies before the event and I love the pre-show Red Carpet. I know how hard those beautiful people must work to look like that. To quote a line from today's Chicago Tribune "The Red Carpet is one big permission slip to let your inner shallowness roam free. I pretty much set out a bowl of milk for myself at the start and start meowing", Barbara Brotman
That's it for now, Keith

We are a happy group

In talking to and swapping e-mails with many of you I find us a rather happy group. Family life was centered around an extended core including grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins and even neighbors. Rarely did anybody move away so we had a good solid core. In generations following ours that pattern changed. Families were uprooted by job transfers or job offers too good to pass up.
I remember talking to aunts and uncles about problems that I would never want to discuss with my parents. We had summertime together with the dinner table often seeing a dozen or more of us sharing the days experiences. I look at today's generation distancing themselves from each other via e-mail, text messaging, twitter, etc. There is little personalization anymore. Soon they will have virtual sock hops and proms (sock hops, what are they). I agree that the advent of computer technology has its advantages, allowing web pages like ours and instant communication with e-mails. I can see that I am boxing myself into a corner here but I hope you can see where I am going with this. I don't have any background in psychology so these are just my personal observations. Now I want to hear your thoughts. Are there any answers? Is the world going in the right direction? Does anybody want to skip school today?Click comments below to start your rebuttal.

I REALLY HATE CHICAGO WINTERS

After 65 winters in Chicago you might think that you get accustomed to suffering but alas it seems to be getting worse. Maybe I feel this way because we just returned from sunny California where it was beautiful day and night. Why don't you leave, one might say, and I answer, in a heartbeat, except the 401K and home values have pushed that dream off a while. I walk to my gym every other day and now I have to climb over huge piles of snow that the plows have pushed onto the sidewalk. OK enough whining Keith. Lets talk about something more pleasant. Iris Daglas had an idea as did Gari-Sue Greene. In conjunction with our reunion, preferably after, why don't we take a nice cruise for a week or two. Gari-Sue said she could arrange the whole thing, just a thought. Think spring, Keith

-------------DROP A DIME-------------

IT TAKES SO LITTLE TO SIT DOWN AND E-MAIL OR CALL AN OLD FRIEND. YEARS HAVE SEPARATED US BUT IT FEELS SO GOOD TO RECONNECT. AT OUR LATEST DINNER THE TIME WENT BY TOO FAST. I WAS A LITTLE TIRED WRAPPING UP A 10 DAY VACATION BUT THE MEMORIES WERE FLOWING OUT AND IT FELT GOOD. CHUCK SCHARF, IRIS DAGLAS, ROCHELLE LASKOV, BEV DUFFEY AND VAL IVERSEN. I HOPE THEY CONTINUE TO MEET AND INCLUDE MORE OF OUR CALIFORNIA CLASSMATES. IT IS SO DIFFERENT NOW. BACK IN SCHOOL THERE WERE CLIQUES BUT NOW WE ARE ALL AT THE SAME TABLE JUST TALKING ABOUT THE OLD DAYS. EVERYONE SEEMED TO HAVE STORIED LIVES AFTER 47 YEARS. LASTLY I WOULD LIKE TO CHALLENGE YOU INTO LIVING A HEALTHIER LIFE SO WE CAN SEE YOU IN 2 YEARS. DIET AND EXERCISE ARE DRUMMED INTO US CONSTANTLY BUT FOR GOOD REASON. KEITH