170424 April 24, 2017
For the Record
Niles Prestage
LHS '65
I left you last week in my storage shed, attempting to rid my life of stuff by the truckload, when I ran across my trunk that went with me to college in Tuscaloosa, back to Huntsville again and through six moves in almost 47 years of married life, to the storage shed where it now resides in Maysville, AL.
While looking into the contents of my trunk I saw a lot of mementos from LHS, my college days, and travels, events and friendships from so many years ago. As I dug deeper I found some of my earliest and most treasured teen, and pre-teen possessions, many of my old 45's! Haven't seen this stash of musical memories in so many years, but as I looked closer I began to notice that it was not totally MY collection! Part of it was YOUR collection! How did I accumulate such a great collection of mostly my classmates' 45's?
Did we have "Swap Day"at LHS for our record collections? I don't remember one. Did I come to your home and sneak a few of yours into a stack of mine while you weren't looking? Was it widely known at LHS that I was a record setting record thief, and that in a conspiracy of niceness the whole class didn't "out" me, hoping I would make a change for the better in my later years?
Regardless of how yours became mine, I offer a few examples of OUR collection.
No real mystery who this one belonged to,. Maybe I thought by removing the first name that no one would ever guess who the real owner was, with all of those"Moneymakers" out there. Notice that at some point I also put my initials on this one, didn't fool anyone!
The next 45 simply says "Billy". No doubt who this one belonged to my, just up Beirne Avenue, friend Billy Byron. Probably spent more time spinning 45's with Billy than anyone else. Heard my first Jimmy Reed selection "Goin to New York" and others at Billy's house. How did I come away with only one of his 45's?
Pretty obvious who the former owner of this one was. I didn't take them from Mr. and Mrs. Becks. I think my friend Sylvia was the victim, and I have several of hers, most all of them by Jerry Lee Lewis. Easy pickings, apparently! Sorry, Sylvia!
This one belonged to Judy Prince, our former classmate turned Rebel, that is, Butler Rebel. Wonder if her diminishing collection of 45's is why she left? (Notice again parental return address stickers) Kids didn't have them back then, except one...
This last record belonged to me. Two observations: I somehow had my own label (although it could have been my dad's since am a "Jr"). This record by the Ventures was released in 1961, so I had these labels from my Freshman year at LHS on. Know how many records that I found with "my" label? ONE, this one only. The rest were probably, you guessed it, YOURS! I have quite a few more. Any of you have a similar collection?
Memphis, TN - Coming to the support of Niles, back then whenever we had a party we all pooled our records for entertainment. 45rpm records cost $1.00 each then, and no one could afford to buy all the good songs we heard on WAAY radio. So, whenever the word got out someone was having a party everyone collected up their own records and took them to the get together. That's why we all put our names on them, so at the end of the night we could redistribute them to the rightful owners. Most people did not have address labels in my crown. Ball point ink or fingernail polish was the medium of choice to my recollection.
I asked Niles if he had my LP of Chubby Checker name "Your Twist Party." I remember taking it to a backyard "dimly lit" party at Dianne Hughey's house and it disappeared. That was a big monetary loss to me in those days. LP's cost between $3.99 and $4.99, depending on whether they were recorded in monotone or the newest sound around "stereo."
Lee Lunch Bunch
Thursday, April 27, 2017
11:00 a.m.- until
Logan’s Restaurant –Fireplace room
Balmoral Drive
Huntsville, AL
Please let me know if you plan to come so I can give them a fairly accurate number by the day before. Hope to see you there!
Patsy Hughes Oldroyd ’65
Or
Judy Fedrowisch Kincaid ‘66
Lee High School Teachers
John Drummond
LHS '65
Last week Craig Bannecke sent me an advance copy of his submission to the paper. I was suddenly struck by how many of our classmates are such excellent authors, sending you insightful and articulate stories, We must have had some doggone good English teachers at LHS.
I expected no less from Tommy Towery (Journalism Major) and Rainer Klauss (English), but Skip Cook (Engineering) and Mike Crowl (a basketball player/jock, no less) and others too numerous to mention are so talented with the written word.
My favorite English teacher was Penny Moore who grew up in Sylacauga, a friend and classmate of Jim Nabors (TV's Gomer Pyle). I vividly remember reading (more like devouring) and discussing in class Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird" long before the wonderful film was released, winning an Oscar for Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch.
On the science side, I learned Chemistry and Physics from Mr. Fox (Tommy), who grew up in Auburn and went to college at The Evil Empire in Tuscaloosa. It broke my heart when he quit LHS to go to work at an engineering firm in town, because he could not raise his family on a high school teacher's salary.
While we were blissfully unaware of our educational fortune in the 1960s at LHS, we were truly blessed and very lucky to have been taught by so many dedicated teachers; I think there must be a special place in Heaven for them. right alongside pastors and pediatricians.
I invite my classmates to send in an anecdote, special memory or whatever about a favorite teacher (or maybe even a despised one) to share with the rest of the group.
From Our Mailbox
Subject: Stuff Continued
Mike Crowl
LHS '65
Your story still has me energized. My wife and I have always been gypsies. Between our blessings and jobs we have lived all over Texas , now back in Alabama and Tennessee.
Every move we have done like Niles in the 80's. Sold, gave away, donated, just about everything before each move. We now are in the process of moving back to Texas. I can remember telling my wife let's not take anything we really don't need when we move to Alabama. Well when it came time to move I thought we had done a good job getting rid of stuff.
Keep in mind we did not move any furniture or bedroom sets , just the necessities! Once everything was boxed I made an estimate of what size U Haul we would need.
We ended up with a 20-foot truck. Yes I didn't have one inch of space left. Full to the brim!
We're now planning to move back to our home in Texas . We've sold our home in Alabama with all furnishings, pictures , outdoor furnishings and are in the process of selling our home in Tennessee. Yes also with all furnishings!
I was sizing up what we will move back to Texas. Surprisingly it looks like everything should fit in a 8x12 covered trailer! If this holds true we too have eliminated a lot of stuff the last two years. Please don't hold me to that 8x12 covered trailer just yet! I will give y'all an update when the final day to move comes.
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