TEACHERS, PADDLES, WET PANTS & MORE ~ PART II

EDITOR: Before we get down to the continuing saga of the big guys' conversations, I have a couple of unrelated items also received recently: 

From PAUL MOTA: (Happy Birthday, Paul. It's Sunday, January 25th!)

"This is a story in a different way than the one about school in Ballinger. I wanted to relate a few memories about the house that recently burned on 6th Street. 

My mother and several sisters and brothers grew up in that house. It was moved from another location out in the country and fixed up for her and the other family members to live in. 

I was in the Air Force during most of that time so I mostly came and stayed there while on leave. Although, my family and I did stay there for about six months in 1975 after I retired from the service and before I moved to San Angelo. 

There was a kitchen table there and the breeze came in the open window and it just felt so good and so quiet and peaceful. All the cares of the world were gone while sitting there. Maximum stress relief.

I am sure my other brothers and sisters have much more vivid memories of that house. I am sure one of my daughter’s best memories of that place is how my mother would make her and all of us fresh tortillas and freshly cut french fries when we visited her. Those tortillas and fries are nowhere to be found anymore. 

Just a little story about a place in Ballinger."...PAUL

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From DOROTHY BISHOP ROGERS:

“Not a lot of news from Midland. We had a very quiet holiday both at Thanksgiving and Christmas. We were able to share some good times with our nursing home patients with filled stockings and visits. (They do love their candy!)

My husband Grady has had another round of surgical procedures. As so many fair-skinned young men of our era, he worked on the farm without a hat and sometimes without a shirt; therefore, skin cancer abounds. This round was tumors of the squamous cell carcinoma kind on both ears. They did surgery at Texas Tech last week. One ear had a complete excise at first try, but the left ear was considerably worse. They had to go in three times in order to get all of the tumor. They then cut a wedge out of his ear to pull it back together. 

This took over an hour with two doctors taking turns. Pain and sitting up in his recliner to sleep for a week has not been fun. He laughingly says he now looks like a 'lop-eared' dog, but knows I won't leave him anyway so it's okay. Ha-Ha! He really takes things so well regardless. We can hardly wait for better weather so we can do a little traveling again. He gets cabin fever, but I would cocoon all the time if I could.

I was so glad to hear that Irene is doing so well. It has been a bad year and I know she looks forward to a better 2009. As always, the news is so appreciated. Doesn't June look great?

Until next time.”...DOTTIE

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From JAMES HAYS: “You have brushed some of the cobwebs from my demented brain so I now remember having Mrs. Bridwell in the first grade. I was terrified of her and afraid to not pay attention. I later found out that I was considered an expert little phonics reader and was used to demonstrate to the first graders how to read at the mature age of 7. Mrs. Loika was married to Eugene L. My dad liked her and her family and disapproved of Eugene whom I saw only once or twice. He thought she married below her station. Funny how I remember such trivia. 

Both Grider and I had Bird Legs Louder, of course not her name to her face, named for her spindly legs which fascinated me to no end. She remarried again and changed her name or the last half of it. I remember how terrible I was the last day of school in her 6th grade class. I also remember that year because I developed a crush on IRENE, but was embarrassed because IRENE could outrun me in a foot race. 

In Mrs. Ramsey's class, 7th grade? I would catch wasps on the way to school and pull out their stingers, one of my most enviable talents, and every two or three days, slip the disarmed critters into her desk drawer and watch her scream when she opened the drawer. The janitor spent half of the year trying to find the wasp nest. The room reeked of DDT. Now I wonder why Santa Claus didn’t black-ball me.”….JAMES 

JERRY EOFF says: “I think you might have made Mrs. Ramsey cry." 

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From BILL KING: “I don't really remember Mrs. Dimmer since I went to the first grade at the Blanton school. Sounds a little familiar that Mrs. Bridwell was a teacher also. All I know about her was I never feared anyone more than her. I remember hearing the stories about Mrs. Bridwell's paddle also. I don't remember ever getting the paddle used on me in grade school even though I probably deserved it.

I vaguely remember being in the hallway but don't remember for what reason or who with. Very well could have been you and me. 

You said Miss Loika. Remembering back I thought she was married and was pregnant while we were in the third grade. Do I remember right or have the cobwebs clouded my memory again? I know if she were pregnant at the time she would not have been Miss Loika because she would have been run out of town on a rail. Today it would not be a big deal. I was also so afraid of her that I had the same problem in asking to go to the bathroom and ended up the same way you did. I remember moving around a lot in my desk hoping my jeans would dry because the wet part would really show when I stood up to leave the room. 

Isn't it strange about some of the things we remember? Nice to know you were concerned about me when you found out I had polio. During the time I was told I had polio I never ever had a thought that I would not make it. I guess I never heard anyone say anything about how bad it could be. My parents probably shielded me from that. I don't think I realized how bad it was until I returned home after three weeks in Shannon Hospital and couldn't walk but a short distance even with crutches. A lot of people traded at Beddo's Phillips 66 station and a lot of information changed hands there. I still remember my dad trading there and every time we stopped to fill up with gas I could get a soft drink and possibly a candy bar. Boy was that a treat.”…BILL 

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From GLENN SMITH: “Bill, I think Jerry had Mrs. Bridwell as a teacher for first grade. I never got the paddle either. I think JERRY told me that Mrs. Bridwell was much nicer than our fears of her would suggest. Is that right, JERRY? JERRY, you no doubt remember a lot of details that I have forgotten. I think Miss Dimmer got married not long after the year when some of us were in her class. I don't remember her married name And I don’t know if she kept teaching. 

I'm not certain whether it was Miss or Mrs. Loika--all this time I have remembered it as Miss. I vaguely recall her as young and not pregnant but don't trust my recollection. JAMES, do your remember? Or maybe IRENE recalls. 

In my "wet pants" episode, I ended up in the bathroom sitting on the radiator to dry out. I recall feeling like a criminal on the lam. 

I have two other second grade memories. One was the only fight I remember being in. The other was about the first book I read all the way through. 

The fight: There was a boy whose name I don't remember but who was suddenly always on the playground. He was our age but left Ballinger around the beginning of sixth grade. Every day in second grade he bullied me at recess, including a lot of shoving and insulting remarks. After a few weeks and a torn shirt, I told my mother because, although teachers were not far away, none intervened. 

‘Well,’ she said, ‘I believe I'd tell him that the next time he shoves you, you plan to hit him on his nose. Then, if he does it again, hit him straight on the end of his nose just as hard as you possible can.’ Next day he shoved me. 

‘I am going to hit you on the nose for that’, I said, feeling nearly too scared to get the words out. 

’YOU ARE NOT!’ he yelled as he shoved me again. ‘YOU'RE TOO YELLOW.’ 

I clinched my right fist, planted my feet, and from somewhere found unusual strength and hit him on the nose. As he went over backward into the West Texas dirt, blood spurted all over his face and shirt and pants and the ground. By the time two teachers reached the scene, dirt had caked on the blood. He looked like a war casualty, still screaming with lots of tears. I'm surprised I didn't get a dose of Mrs. Bridwell's famous paddle, but one of the teachers grabbed me by the ear and sat me on a short post with the admonition that "we don't fight on the playground." The other teacher directed the bully to sit on a nearby post. The two teachers then stood not far away and shielded their mouths behind hands and tried not to laugh but they giggled anyway. After about fifteen minutes I was allowed to leave the post but he had to stay seated. He never bothered me again. 

The book: Someone not in our class--maybe a fourth grader--had a biography of the Lone Ranger. The boy wanted to get rid of it, in fact he wanted to give it away. I accepted it because no one else seemed to want it. Took me about a week to read all of it. I had learned to read at the end of first grade. Tonto and the Lone Ranger were much more interesting than "See Spot Run." When I finished it, I took it to recess where an older kid bought it for a quarter. 

Remember the snack store that was at the edge of the elementary school ground? I took the 25 cents there after school and spent it all on an unthinkable amount of wax whistles and drinks and candy and gum. I couldn't hold all of it in my arms and both hands. Shared that with two classmates, but as usual I don't recall who. We three had enough goodies to make us stuffed, almost sick. 

I still think of that as the most satisfying intellectual experience of my life.”…GLENN \~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

From IRENE PIEL BATTS: “GLENN, I think I remember that Mrs. Loika was pregnant while we were in elementary school. She was Mrs. Eugene Loika. I believe her maiden name was (Mary Ruth) Duke -- maybe John Duke's aunt. And I think you're correct that Miss Dimmer married. Seems that she married a man in the Bridwell family. Am a bit shaky on this last one, though.”…IRENE 

From GLENN: “Thanks IRENE. I have a hunch that Mrs. Loika was a nicer person than I thought she was. It would be annoying to have someone walk into class late every day. Of course the solution would have been for me to get my father to drop me off at school before going to the creamery with the milk. I did ask him to do that but for some reason it didn’t happen, or it didn’t happen soon enough.” ...GLENN 

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Once more, JERRY EOFF chimed in: “Y'all keep talking about that big paddle but no one has mentioned the fearsome ELECTRIC paddle that was stowed somewhere on the premises.

You guys had bum luck with your teachers I have no tales of fear specific to any of mine. Mrs. Bridwell commanded respect, but I have some good memories there too. 

I didn't have Miss Loika but it seems like it was she in the first grade that came and slapped my hands soundly for drawing swastikas on the planes that I drew getting shot down by American planes. Even a few months after the war was over I thought that was out of line considering they were getting shot down. I don't know why she was even around to do it. 

Miss Morgan was just there. All I remember about it was that her room was on the second floor and the windows faced the main building and blocked the view out. Some of my best education came from looking out the windows. Mrs. Tisdale's room looked out toward the high school and I first learned that the angle of the sun changed shadows on brick walls as the season changed. I learned a lot about building construction out Mrs. Louder's windows while they were building the new Jr. High wing out them. There was a whole world to be seen out study hall windows in high school and with the windows open you could always tell by the smell when the river was flooding. Did I mention that I probably had the lowest grades of any person in history that got into dental school?”...JERRY

BILL KING responds to this: “JERRY, I have remembered the talk about the electric paddle over the past years but it had slipped my mind recently. I wonder if the thought of that paddle ever stopped anyone from pulling some of our stunts? Probably not, since in most cases we acted and then thought about the consequences, if we thought at all, and by that time it was too late.

I also remember being in a classroom and watching them build the new Jr. High wing. It might have been in Mrs. Louder's room also but I can't remember. I was totally fascinated by the construction since I had never seen anything like it before. I remember those construction guys hauling wheel barrows of cement up a narrow plank from the ground to the area being built. I think they were mixing the cement in individual mixers also. Those guys earned their wages.”…BILL

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More from BILL KING: “GLENN, I don't remember anything about your fight but I do remember one kid leaving Ballinger, I think during the time you are talking about. His name was Johnny Cowan but I don't remember him being a bully.

Do any of you remember Dwight Davis that was in our class maybe even in Jr. High? Many years ago I was on a company trip and was changing planes in Dallas Love Field and someone got my attention from an upper level. We remembered each other but were both on a schedule to catch a connecting flight and didn't have time to exchange information.

GLENN, I remember the store across the street from school. We called the street the bus lane. If I remember correctly we call the store "The Stand". It was a very small place and the area we placed our orders was inside of The Stand, but it had a dirt floor. I think the area where the food was prepared had a wood floor. The Stand was operated by people by the name of Green I think. An older couple and their son and maybe another person were always there. You could take a quarter and go to The Stand and get a burger or hot dog with chili, a drink, candy or push-up and be stuffed. After eating in the lunchroom for a while I would get tired of the food and take my lunch money and pig out at The Stand. I would like to hear other stories about The Stand.”…BILL

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More from GLENN: “BILL, I do remember the name Dwight Davis. I have a picture of his face in my mind, but I don't know if I am remembering right. I recall him as a nice person.

The cars on railroad tracks antics sound like things some of us talked about, but I don't remember. I think a doctor drove his car down the Abilene Southern tracks to cross Elm Creek to deliver a baby. Does anyone else in the class recall that story?”…GLENN 

EDITOR'S NOTE: I think RODNEY FLANAGAN was born at home. He told me something about the doctor having to put his car on the railroad tracks to get to their house in the country. It was December, so the bridge may have been iced over. Anyway, RODNEY's dad helped in the delivery. If my memory is fuzzy on this one, please correct me RODNEY. 

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JERRY EOFF said: “I guess I married the whole county! Dwight is another cousin courtesy of Shirley. Shirley's aunt on the Fry side married Foy ‘Buster’ Davis, and Dwight is his nephew. The last load of stuff I brought back from cleaning out the Eighth Street house had his Scout Handbook in it. Not sure why I had it. I see him at the occasional funeral. They moved to Rocksprings from here. Not sure where he lives now. Mary Ellen was Buster's daughter. Someone might remember her from the first grade. I think she is a year older and they moved to Hobbs after our first grade. 

Push-ups were fine inventions. Eugene Green had The Stand. He invited me out for some insubordination that I didn't realize I was committing. Seems like I did that every once in a while including once to Mr. DeShazo (so much for sainthood). Later I did an ID photo for Gene’s application for a job in Abilene. There were also two stands at Jr. High. Mrs. Hamner had one. I don't remember who had the other. One was across Eighth Street from the playground, the other across from the Eighth Street entrance to the new wing. I suppose they were the vending machines of the time."...JERRY

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From BILL KING: “JAMES, I remember Eugene Loika being married to Mrs. Loika. I believe Irene said her name was Mary and that sounds right. I also remember Eugene standing around talking to people on Saturday afternoon and comments about him being a big talker and not much of a worker. I probably heard that from my dad.

I also remember ‘bird legs’ Louder. I don't remember anything about her except what we called her. I had forgotten who we called ‘bird legs’ until you connected the dots for me. (EDITOR’S NOTE: I remember hearing Miss Smith called ‘bird legs’ in high school.)

JAMES, I am glad you brought up the 7th grade teacher Mrs. Ramsey. I could visualize her but couldn't remember her name. I think the whole class was very unkind to her due to her reaction on many things. The wasp thing does sound a little familiar to me. She appeared to not be a very strong or stable person and the worst thing she could have done was be a Jr. High teacher. I remember something about her husband being in very ill health and she had to take care of him so along with dealing with us she probably had a difficult life. As I remember when anything in her class went wrong she would walk around the room crying or go to her desk and put her head down in her hands and cry. She lost control of her class early on and most everyone played on that. With our life lessons learned we would have been more kind today but we were Jr. High kids then.

In Mrs. Ramsey's class I became more aware of what war does. I had five brothers in WWII at the same time but they all came home safely. Then came the Korean War. As many of you probably remember, KENNETH DOTY came from a large family of about 10 children if I recall correctly. We were told one day in Mrs. Ramsey's class KENNETH had lost a brother in Korea and that left an impression on me. I couldn't really grasp what that meant since I had not had to deal with death in my family at that time. That had to have been total hell for KENNETH and his family. If I am not mistaken KENNETH lost another brother in Korea during that same year or soon after. Maybe some of you can add to or correct me on this.”…BILL 

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More from BILL: “JAMES, you touched on the polio again so I just wanted to bring back some more memories. Three in your family had polio during the main epidemic. I just wanted to be first so I started a year ahead of you guys, but my brother was admitted to Shannon eleven months to the day, July 1949, after I was, and he has memories of the staff talking about the possibility of him not making it either. They didn't know he was aware of what was going on. He survived with minor problems.

During the summer of 1949 the epidemic was in full swing. During that time movies, schools, churches, swimming pools and almost any gathering place was closed for a period of time. People even hesitated to shake hands. People were also scared out of their minds. DDT was used without control to kill just about anything and it's a wonder people didn't die from it. People were obsessed with mosquitoes, and fly control and foggers were used to fog out DDT. One type of polio was the bulbar polio that attacks the brainstem that controls breathing, swallowing and other vital functions. For bulbar polio someone could possibly be confined to an ‘iron lung’ to keep them from dying. If power were disrupted to the iron lung, the hospital staff would have to manually pump the respirator to keep the patient alive. One of the iron lungs is now on display in the Fort Concho Hospital building in San Angelo.

JAMES, do you remember Dr. Spencer and the therapist Lanier Bell and a very large black guy that also did physical therapy? I have tried to find out the black guy’s name but can't. They were the best, tough but gentle. I have tried to retrieve information about me and my brother from Shannon archives but none exist. I contacted Dr. Ralph Chase here in San Angelo for assistance and he told me that records during that time most likely were kept in the shirt pockets of the doctors and therapist and were never officially recorded.

A thankful polio survivor.”…BILL

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JAMES responded: “I remember all too well my brush with polio. I was tortured every 4 hours with ice-cold shots of penicillin until it finally broke me out with an allergy to it. After I was free of fever, they sent me to a ward with five other boys and switched the torture to Kinney Packs developed by a nun whom I was convinced at the time she was a demented sadist. I realized later that she was a saint. It worked like this: The physical therapist, I remember Miss Smyth, would pin me down with clever wrestling holds while an assistant kept me from escaping on the other side of the bed which was no great shakes as I was weak as a kitten from the polio, and then from a steaming pressure cooker on wheels they would pull out hot pieces of old army blankets and wrap my arms, legs, and torso nearly scalding me and finally removing them after they ‘cooled’ as much as they could in July in San Angelo. Happy tenth birthday, James. But it worked, and I had little or no residual problems after about 6 months. Grider did well after his first two or three days and my dad had a slight weakness in his shoulder for a few months which recurred when he had a slight stroke 28 years later.

I was in the hospital with a boy from Winters named Buddy Dyess. I found out later he was closely related to Edwin Dyess, an Air Corps pilot who was a one man air force in the early part of World War II, until he got the last P-40 shot out from under him and was captured at the big surrender. He escaped from the Bataan death march and got home just to get killed in an accident stateside. Medal of Honor and Dyess AFB named for him.

I remember very well a year later on the 25th of June 1950 when the Korean War broke out. Nobody could find Korea on the map because the maps still had the Japanese name for Korea on them. I was one of the first to find out where it was, and for a couple of days I got to show some adults where Korea was. A Ballinger boy, Billy Jack Middleton, was captured in late 1950 when the Chinese entered the war, and I marched in the band in the parade when he was repatriated in 1953. His mother, Mrs. Middleton, was the high school librarian.”…JAMES

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EDITOR: Well, everyone, I hope reading all these reminiscences brought back a lot of memories for each of you of your years spent growing up, whether here in Ballinger or somewhere else. If you wish to share any of those memories, send them on! And if you have answers to any of the guys' questions, either email them personally (remember email addresses are in your handbook, or you can copy it off the emails I send to the class.), or send it to me to publish.

Again, I'll remind you that you can doubleclick on any photo to see it enlarged. If you doubleclick on the slideshows to the left of the blog post, it will send you to the web albums where you can view each picture with captions underneath. You may enlarge them there, too. You may also change the music that is playing by clicking on the forward or back arrows.

Of course, you can also go through the archives to see all of the past blog submissions. Just click on the week you wish to view. 

Until next time, let the "good stuff" happen!

Peace and love,

Marilyn

TEACHERS, PADDLES, WET PANTS & MORE ~ PART I

EDITOR’S NOTE: The last blog post generated a lot of comments from the guys. Since I am not sure how many of you read the “Comments” on the blog, I thought you might like to read some of the emails I’ve received . First I received the following from JIM COWLISHAW:

"Times have changed. I remember growing up also in a family that considered the *colored* families a different class. We had a couple of folks that helped us. One was a grand old woman that helped mother with the kids and housework. I was really young, about four or five, we called her n***Polly. Her husband helped dad round the house. We called him n***Jessie. What a put down, now that I recall. Wasn't that a shame?

When I was moved to Winters, I had two black men working in the lumber yard. R.L. Johnson and Lewis Johnson. They were paid $100 a month. This was 1971. After I got the feel of the operation, I was to report the changes that should be made to make the operation productive. One, and the first request, was to double their salary. This caused some concern with the upper management, but was allowed. I told them that these two men were so poor and downbeaten that they couldn't even look for other work. I recall going into the back room of the cafe, having coffee with R.L. because he was not allowed in the front.

Times have changed, my upbringing taught me to look down on these folks, and it is a daily reminder to change.

Good work on the blog. Good things are happening. Thanks!"...JIM

EDITOR: I replied to JIM that it took a lot of good people committing acts like his that helped create the United States we live in today. Thanks, JIM, for being conscientious during a time that it was not popular to do so. Especially in small town Texas.

Somehow, some of you have had memories of your elementary school days surface ,and started an ongoing dialogue. I am posting the first of these now. Believe me when I say, there are more to come! If any of you wish to join them, and share your childhood memories of going to school in Ballinger, please feel free to do so.

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JAMES HAYS sent the following email:
“Great to hear of IRENE's progress and good news. Perhaps our prayers have been answered. I know that it has been a tough row to hoe, and I know that Irene must be relieved. About ten years ago, I got word from medical news channels that now (then) over 50% of malignancies had been cured and that’s excluding skin cancer. (I fix one of these every month or so and that’s on a part-time basis.) I hope Irene will continue to heal and stay in that top 50%.

Good to hear from JUNE and her family. I wish the newlyweds all the happiness.

GLENN, I’m sorry to hear about Neuman Smith. Grider thought a lot of him, and he was a storehouse of information on Runnels County history. Perhaps they are comparing historical notes now and looking down on us and laughing at our feeble efforts.

BILL, give us an update on your broken foot. I hope you heal it up OK. As I told you, my earliest recollection of you was the second grade, and you were stumping around on crutches and braces from polio – so you don’t need too much damage to your legs!” JAMES 

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The following subsequently came in from BILL KING: 

”I agree it is great to hear about IRENE's positive progress in her battle. Isn't it great to live in a time where progress is being made in the treatment of most all cancers? IRENE, do you remember Emmitt Eggemeyer? He remembers you well. I see him and talk with him a couple of times a month and just talked with him tonight. He went through cancer treatment in his mouth about four years ago and is doing fine now. Just as JAMES said, I also hope you stay in that top 50%.

I didn't know Neuman Smith very well, but we never like to hear about the loss of someone's relative. The one thing I do remember about him was him burning up the road at about 30- or 40-mph in his old car that he had for so many years. I think the car was about a 1950 Plymouth, wasn't it GLENN?

My old broken foot is doing great and never hurt as much as I expected. I have ditched the crutches, but will have to wear the boot for another three or so weeks.

JAMES, I think it was the third grade when I had polio and had the braces and crutches. I think it was in Mrs. Williams' class. I had polio in about late August of 1948 and didn't get to go back to school until somewhere around November, just a short time before my tenth birthday. After going back to school I had my own personal servant by the name of JERRY EOFF. JERRY was working on a scout merit badge, so every day just before lunch he would go get my food tray and bring it back to the room for me, and I would eat in the classroom while everyone else went to lunchroom. Thanks to JERRY for his help. Later, as I could walk on the crutches better I would play baseball by batting and having someone run the bases for me. Just enjoyed batting and didn't have to put out all of the effort to run. 

I don't have anything but good memories as to how I was treated by my teachers and classmates during those times.”…BILL KING

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This came in from JERRY EOFF:

“To cousin (she's Shirley's cousin-in-law removed) IRENE: Glad to hear you have the beast on the run.

I suppose I should likewise pass on a good word for our bunch. 

Mother warned me early on that I would likely get some teasing, and (said to) just say that the scar was "from my second operation" whatever that was. I didn't know what she was talking about. However I never had to use the ammunition. I can remember no time in the entire Ballinger school experience that the subject was ever brought up by a classmate, or school mate either. I have talked to and heard about others elsewhere with much different stories. Of course I also had a better "2nd operation" than many. My dad scrubbed in on it. He used to do them at the Shriner Hospital in Dallas.

A pretty good place to grow up and a good bunch to do it with.”…JLE 

P.S. BILL, 'twern't no merit badge involved, just doin' my good turn, daily as it turned out, and felt important to boot. Quite welcome. That bug hit a lot of kids back then and was feared nearly as much as cancer. You happened on a worse dose than many did and not as bad as a few.”…JERRY

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Now it’s GLENN SMITH’S turn to jump in:

“JAMES, thanks for the kind words about Neuman. You too, BILL. ‘Til you reminded me, I had forgotten about Neuman's '50 Plymouth. He always kept it waxed and drove slowly. I think he drove it about 25 years, and that it met some sort of untimely end. 

BILL, I had Mrs. Williams for 2nd grade. She made me sit in the back of the room because I talked too much. Were we in the same class? Hope I didn't get you in trouble. 

I’m so glad you recounted how JERRY brought you lunch. JERRY was such a Zane Grey quiet hero – always doing the right thing, watching and helping out when no one knew.

IRENE, keep getting well and feeling better and better.”…GLENN

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To which BILL KING responded:

“OK, JAMES, JERRY, GLENN, and IRENE, I need for all you to help me shake the cobwebs out of my brain. I went to the first grade in the Blanton country school where we had 8 grades in the one room. DORIS STOKES (WHITE) and I were the only first graders along with a few others scattered across the other grades. DORIS and I had a lot of recess time. Now here is where I need your help. If Mrs. Williams was the second grade teacher, who were the third, fourth and fifth grade teachers? Was Mrs. Loika the third grade teacher? You don't have to remind me who Mrs. Bridwell (spelling?) was! She was the grade school principal that ruled the lunch room by twisting ears. I remember her twisting my ear in the lunch room for talking and I would almost bet that each and every one of you had the same experience. I think it only happened to me once and I thought I had lost an ear so I was very careful from then on. Remember we could not talk a lot at the lunch table except to ask for something to be passed to us and when we did talk it was in a quite voice. Haven't things changed? 

GLENN, I don't know if we were in the same class or not. If you talked too much in Mrs. Williams class I know you received an ear twisting in the lunch room. 

JERRY, you and I had to deal with our own situation that could have been very devastating to either of us if others had chosen to make it so. I guess neither of us gave it a lot of thought since no big deal was made of it. Aren't you grateful we went to a small town school with schoolmates that were understanding? I know I am. GLENN, I agree with you about the type person JERRY is. 

Looking forward to your answers.”…BILL

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JAMES HAYS responds:

“BILL, as I remember it, there were three first, second, and third grade classrooms and we were shuffled like a box of dominoes every year. We only got together at recess or lunch. I don’t remember who I had in the first grade, but I had Mrs. Johnson for the 2nd grade; she advised me to study medicine because of poor handwriting. I finally followed her advice. I think I had Mrs. Loika in the 3rd(?) grade.

I had contracted polio in June 1949, and my dad and I went in the same ambulance to Shannon Hospital, where Grider was convalescing -- all three of us at the same time. Grider came close to dying, but he recovered faster. I missed the first 6 weeks of the fifth grade and went mornings only the second six weeks. I recovered enough that one day that spring I got tired of SANDRA PATTERSON’s pigtails knocking my pencils off of the desk. One Friday, just before school was out, one of her pigtails somehow entered the inkwell. It was a magnificent study in capillary action. She said her mother was not amused. Sandra turned out to be a very attractive lady.”…JAMES

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Then I heard from GLENN SMITH again:

”BILL, I had Miss Dimmer for first grade. I believe that Mrs. Bridwell was not only the Principal but that she also taught first grade. I don't remember getting any ear twist from Mrs. Bridwell, although I do remember fearing her. 

I don't recall who the other first grade teacher was, and I don't remember any of the other pupils in Miss Dimmer's room. One afternoon a month or two before the year ended, we were each to cut out a small figure from a page in our workbooks and paste it onto a spot on a different page. I had my cutout on the desk. When I reached for it to do the pasting, it was gone. Of course I should have told Miss Dimmer and I thought about it, got up to go tell her--but fear stopped me. In desperation I decided that since someone had stolen my cutout that I'd steal one. I sneaked one from the desktop of a girl. She did what I should have--she told the teacher, who flew into a tirade of generalized reprimand with an endless commentary about the horrible person who did the unthinkable and unforgivable theft. I was soooo ashamed, wanted to confess and beg for mercy, but it was obvious that would lead to Miss Dimmer's dragging me down the hall to Mrs. Bridwell's office. Rumor had it that the Principal had an enormous paddle--with big holes in it to cut down on drag--that could flatten a grown up. I didn’t breathe easy ‘til the year ended.

(My belated apologies to the classmate whose cutout I swiped. And no hard feelings to the one who took mine.) 

Mrs. Williams in second grade seemed less threatening to me. She did move me to the back of the room, and I believe another boy with me. Then she dragged me by the ear into the hallway and left me there to think about talking in class. She dragged the other boy out also. I keep thinking that was you, BILL, but I am not at all certain that it was. I got taken or sent to the hallway several times that year. 

Third grade was a really bad experience for me. Miss Loika was in her first or second year of teaching. I had ridden the bus during the first and second grades, but at the beginning of third grade, my father drove to town every morning with the milk from about ten cows. He took me to school but only after he left the milk at the creamery. I was late every morning by about ten minutes. "WELL!!!!!!!! Old Grandpa has decided to grace us with his presence," was Miss Loika's loud greeting as I tried to slip into my seat. "We're so glad you decided to join us, Grandpa." Some variant of that comment, in a sarcastic voice, greeted me every morning. That year lasted forever. I so feared Miss Loika that I wet my pants rather than ask to go to the bathroom. I started developing pretend stomachaches after lunch. I walked to my Grandmother's house on 7th street, and enjoyed her stories until late in the afternoon. "Glenn needs to apply himself more" was in the report card comment section nearly every grading period. 

Fourth grade was with Mrs. Caskey, the Superintendent's wife. She saved my life. She approved of me, asked me questions that I knew the answers to, and let me flourish. It was enough to get me through the next thirteen years of schooling. I don't remember much of the fifth and sixth grades or of junior high, except for the commanding figure of Mr. Funderburk. He put on a gruff exterior, but I always thought he was kind and a gentleman. Of course there were some very good teachers in BHS. I got through college on what several of them taught us.

BILL, I remember being with my father at Curt Bedoe's service station in August before third grade. Someone told him about you having polio. I remember feeling scared for you. I was afraid you were not going to make it. I was happy to see you when you finally got back to school. Of course you were quite a figure with your braces and crutches. 

JAMES, I suppose you and I must have met in Miss Loika's room. I was so traumatized that I don't remember.”…GLENN 

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EDITOR'S NOTE: By now I could see these guys were really getting into this trip down memory lane. This is when I asked them if they minded if I posted this lengthy back and forth discussion on the blog. All agreed, except for this humble statement from JERRY EOFF: 

"I'm not sure about exposing my apparent nomination to sainthood to the world on the 'net though". 

BILL KING quickly shot back: 

"Maybe the nomination to sainthood came a little too quickly. I had this vision of 2 or 3 guys lowering the air pressure on a 1955 or so Buick and putting it on the railroad track with success less than expected. Sure glad the Abilene Southern didn't appear on the horizon. Do you recall anything about that incident?"...BK 

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JERRY: “I remember less about that than Ronald Funderburk and me in his Model A. We got about halfway from the 4-mile crossing road of the railroad near GLENN's, and none closer to town before we lost it. Even bounding the ties, I suspect the Abilene Southern Bullet Express would 

never have caught us. I think the Buick ('53 actually) experience was so much a flop that the details escape me. I think we just made a few feet in it, and never even cleared the road??? 

Several things like that, handed down in tales from preceding generations, never seemed to work the way they were presented ~ such as methylene blue and others."...JLE 

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BILL: "I guess I never heard about the Model A incident. 

I don't remember who was the third person with you and me when we had the hair-brained idea to put that Buick on the railroad tracks. I remember letting a little amount of air out of the tires so they would conform to the rails and proceeded to line up for the coming disaster. We were at the first railroad crossing just down the road from the one-mile crossing. The first few feet went well, probably less than 50 feet but it all fell apart. I think we just cleared the louvered cattle guard on the track when the car fell from the rails. That Buick was very heavy and low to the ground and we thought we were stuck. We were able to push and drive the car off of the rails without tearing out the undercarriage and came out of a gate to get back on the road. If the car had fallen off of the rails over the cattle guard area I think we would have waited for the Abilene Southern to remove it.

If our parents had found out about this we would not have lived to write about it."...BILL

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TO BE CONTINUED 

Tell me this is not "good stuff"! 

MARILYN

THE COLOR OF THEIR SKIN...

ANDREW JACKSON SWEARING IN ~ 1829

The above painting depicts the very first Capitol Inauguration. History will be marked again by the swearing in of Barack Obama this coming Tuesday. No matter what your political leaning, you must admit there has been nothing like this in our lifetime. My grandchildren ~ other than the older two, have the attitude, "what's the big deal?" And, indeed, to them it is not a big deal. A black president doesn't appear to be anything special. Ahhhh. The blessing of non-prejudice in most of our grandchildren is readily apparent. The next generation of children will be appalled to read in their history books about all the dissension this country experienced over race. And right they should be!

I still remember waiting in our living room to catch a ride on the school bus in the 50s... watching in anguish the images on TV of young black teenagers being escorted to school by the National Guard in Arkansas or Alabama. I was horrified that this was happening, and my dad could not or would not give me an answer as to why it was! 

By this time we had lived in several parts of the country, and I had experienced different views and prejudices. As a young girl in San Antonio, I was extremely curious about the ways in which black people were treated. I would often sneak a drink of water at the "Colored" water fountains to see if their water was different than ours. I would sit at the last row on the bus before the "colored" section, hoping I could listen in on their conversations. I thought they spoke another language. I thought maybe it was a language they brought with them from Africa, and I was a little in awe of them. Not fearful, but very curious. I truly thought at that time that they were being given "special" treatment. I later learned what "discrimination" meant.

I had several experiences with older black people in my very young childhood. One was when we lived in Arkansas and I was 4 or 5 years old. My dad was stationed at Fort Chaffee, and only visited us on weekends. I must have been a lonely child, because I sought out older folks who were like grandparents. I do not remember where I met them, but there was a wonderful old black couple who lived in a garage apartment at the rear of a big house near our apartment. Looking back, I think they must have worked for the owners of the house. These were what were known then as "servant quarters".

I would go visit them in their apartment, and the old man was always delighted to see me! His wife would be upset from the time I arrived. I remember he and I would play dominoes or cards at the kitchen table. She would be banging pots and pans around the stove and sink, carrying on something fierce about how much trouble they would be in if I were found in their home! I would worriedly look at the old man, he would wink and grin at me, and tell her to stop her fussing so we could continue our game. I didn't understand at that time what she meant when she said they would "be in big trouble", but looking back, I know what a risk they took during the 1940s in Little Rock, Arkansas! I just know that I loved that old, graying black man and the card games he taught me to play. Treating me like a big girl, and his co-conspirator! I have indelible images of his kind, smiling face to this day.

I had more experiences with kind, wonderful black folks while I was growing up. Here in Ballinger, we had an old black woman Mother used to bring to the house to help her with housework and ironing. I remember visiting her home. Her house was immaculate, and my mother used to ask her if she got mad at my dad, could she come stay in her guest room? She (her name was Irene) was so fussy about cleanliness, she even took her own sheets with her when she visited relatives! My first child, Craig, loved her, too. I can remember watching him at about a year and a half of age run into her arms when we took him to visit her after she was too old to work for us anymore. She was such a dear, interesting woman. I remember her telling me she played the drums in her church here. At that time, I had never heard of drums played in a church! I longed to go and hear her play, but that was so taboo here in Ballinger at the time. It may still be, I don't know. If that Irene were still alive and playing her drums at her church, you can bet I would now go to hear her play, and stay for the sermon, too!

My children grew up in a home that was as liberal as I could make it in a conservative place like Texas. I was really happy to live in Albuquerque, where I didn't have to work so hard at practicing the beliefs I wanted them to share. I remember a funny incidence that happened when we lived in Midland. My daughter Carajean was only three when we were driving down the street. She had the window down in back, and suddenly leaned out, pointed her finger, and started yelling, "Mommy, Mommy, look ~ a chocolate man!" Her dad and I looked at each other and laughed. She had never seen a black person before! It was also while we were living in Midland that my husband was overheard explaining to a friend that our son Craig was "the only 6-year-old in Midland, Texas who had a slingshot instead of a n*** shooter"! A word that was not allowed in my home ~ ever! I still squirm when I hear people use the word.

It's a brand new world....

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I recently received the following email from GLENN SMITH:

"This afternoon I was in Ballinger for the funeral of my father's youngest brother, Neuman E. Smith. I knew him as Scooter. He died quietly at age 92. He was married twice but had no children. In my youth I thought him intelligent because he worked only 'til noon on Saturdays, then took a bath and went to town for a strawberry milkshake. Neuman was a peanut and watermelon farmer in South Ballinger but always thought of himself as a cowboy. He liked riding his horse in parades and loved telling stories of his early days as a ranch hand. The only music at today's service was an a capella rendition of Home on the Range. That song was arranged and made famous by David Guion who was born in Ballinger and grew up there. He and Neuman knew each other.

Neuman's body was cremated, but there was a ceremony in Evergreen Cemetery in which his cowboy hat and handmade boots were buried. Neuman was said to have requested that everyone let the Noyes monument on the Ballinger courthouse lawn remind them not only of Charles Noyes but also of Neuman. (He and Noyes knew each other also).

Something about the simplicity, authenticity, and sincerity of the afternoon's events left me with a smile. Not many funerals are such happy celebrations."...GLENN
(Photo of Noyes Statue by Glenn Smith)


IRENE PIEL BATTS recently wrote the following:"..it's such good news! Almost out of the blue Dr. Huchton said, "We all (the doctors) consider you cured." Coulda knocked me over with a feather and I said, "You do?" And then he talked about the five year period before they could really say "cured." Will be seeing him every few months for the next five years. On Monday, the radiologist said that he was very pleased with my progress and I won't have to see him again, but "call if you need anything or have any questions". He thinks my sense of taste will return 6 to 7 months after the last treatment. That should be April or May. I can't help but wonder if Dr. Cummins (oncologist) agrees with this optimistic prognosis -- he's the one who put my chances at 50--50 if I did it all - surgery, radiation and chemo?"...IRENE

I say, "A pox on that oncologist!!" I know doctors worry about liability these days, but I cannot imagine a doctor giving such an unsolicited pessimistic outlook to a patient. If it's true that "we are what we believe" and I believe it is... then I would think doctors would want to give as much hope as possible to patients. And then, there are always "miracles". Which I believe we had a part in while praying for IRENE'S wonderful recovery. She came to my home recently - even drove herself! It's almost like old times. Once she's able to comfortably eat solid food, we will have a feast of a celebration!

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From NYDAH ELLET: "Greetings from the Northland! I love the snow, but the really cold weather is not fun. It is too cold to do almost anything outside! Certainly no naked snow angels... It was -8 degrees when I got up this morning. Now at noon, it is up to -2. My bedroom windows were frosted on the inside when I got up!!!!! I sleep with even my head covered up with the blankets, quilt and feder decke. (a German feather comforter). I also have the intermittent help of my 4 kitties too. The sun is shining, so when it gets to 0 degrees, Pepper and I will try a walk. Probably a very short walk through the deep beautiful snow."...NYDAH

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The beautiful bride to the right is JUNE HASH CURRY'S granddaughter who married in December. (I'm sorry, JUNE, that I didn't ask her name!) The lovely silver haired lady in the long black dress to the bride's right is none other than our JUNE!

I am still awaiting photos of BARBARA SHARPES BROOKS' granddaughter's wedding, also held in December. I know that BARBARA planned to dance at that wedding!!


The young man on the left is the new Potter County, Texas Junior Spelling Bee Champ. Otherwise known as my grandson, Tanner! He will compete for the Senior Spelling Bee Championship the 30th of January. Way to go, Tanner!

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I don't know how many of you listen to the music on the blog, but you might be wondering about the current selections. Some are musical artists who passed on this past year... Isaac Hayes, BoDiddley, Eartha Kitt, and Odetta. I also put some by artists who were honored recently at the Kennedy Center. Who can ever forget George Jones and his "The Race is On"?? Or Barbara Streisand's "The Way We Were"? Ah, yes... the way we were.

Lots of "good stuff" happened between then and now. Let me know your latest. And send pictures!

Peace and Love,
Marilyn