Magical Mystery
Tour of Our Old Stomping Grounds
Saturday, October 22, 2005
PART I, 10/28/05:
On 10/24/05 I gave
you an abbreviated report of the weekend. This would be the more
complete version.
You do recall how we were offered a guided tour through
Our Old Stomping Grounds, do you not?
Well, incredibly, only nine of us took advantage of this opportunity, but
that played to our advantage at least twice. So here are the players: |
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DRIVING: | NARRATING: | SECOND SEAT: | THIRD SEAT: | FOURTH SEAT: | BACK SEAT: | |||
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HS PHOTO UNAVAILABLE |
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Dave Arnold ('65) of VA |
Dave Spriggs ('64) of VA |
Jean Poole Burton ('64) of RI | Carol Buckley Harty ('65) of NC | Eleanor Buckley Nowitzky ('59) of NC |
Pam Smith Arnold ('65) of VA |
Janice McCain Rose ('65) of VA | Fred Rose of VA |
Mike Miller ('65) of NC |
Let me say at the outset that the three women in the second seat had a near terminal case of the raucous, rowdy giggles the entire time, and no doubt drove the six normal people quite insane, but they did have fun! ![]() See, I should have kept a log of the exact order in which we visited everything, but on those rare occasions when I wasn't laughing, I was too mesmerized by what I saw to record anything. I think the first images we shot were at the Mariners' Museum Park, and you've already seen some of those. My sister wouldn't let me crawl up on the lion, 'cause she didn't trust me not to fall and break my leg... And we went downtown and saw a whole bunchalotta places. We drove down West Avenue past the Library, and then we spotted the house where they held Tri-Hi-Y and Y-Teens in the seventh grade, and I actually recognized it out of the clear blue. If you're not impressed, you just don't realize how many of my brain cells have gone the way of all flesh. We pause to interrupt our narrative for a case in point. Janice had to remind me of the entire Y-Teen experience, and how we caught the bus at Walter Reed and came downtown to that house for meetings. (No, I didn't date Janice, but we were best friends.) After much difficulty, I do vaguely remember all that. But then she started in about how we Y-Teens took a trip to DC and visited the Washington Cathedral, and we covered our heads to enter and she somehow lost her glasses. I would have bet big money (and it's obviously a good thing that I don't gamble) that I had never seen the Washington Cathedral, not the outside, not the inside, not then, not later. But she's adamant on this point, and that we were together. The closest I can come to remembering is of standing in the vestibule and picking up a hankie to cover our heads so that we could enter. If anyone can supply any further details of this whole episode which transpired in 1959-60, I would be eternally grateful. That was the year my daddy died, and I'm afraid I was in a bit of a fog..... (And the fact that I don't remember this when it obviously happened is no indication that I snuck out of my bedroom window at night to go meet guys. That scenario remains totally impossible!) But back to our story. |
The moral of this story is, "Ask, and it shall be given unto you." And we had an incredible fantasy actually come to life.
After this we went to see other wondrous places, but we'll save that for another Newsletter. Stay tuned.
PART II, 10/31/05:
If I haven't made it clear - and the childlike expressions on our faces haven't
amply demonstrated the joy
that we felt - I'd just like to once again thank all those who made this magical
time possible. I'm not sure
that I even know all those responsible, as I do so dislike checking into details
on something as enchanting
as this was, but I do know that these people deserve a special thanks: Kathy
Pilgrim Clark ('63 of VA)
for suggesting it originally; Chip Clark ('65 of Northern VA) for
apparently encouraging this in such a way
that brought it into fruition; Dave and Pam Smith Arnold (both '65 of VA)
for arranging for the
transportation; Dave Arnold for driving us; Pam Smith Arnold
and Mike Miller ('65 of NC) for convincing
the Pinkerton guards at Huntington Hall into not only letting us in, but for
giving us a guided tour "within
these sacred walls" once more; the Pinkerton guards themselves,
Captain Paul Lilly and Officer
Taniesha Holmes for their courteous accommodation of us, and Mr. Michael
McPherson, whom we did
not meet, but who granted us permission for the tour of the building: Fred
Rose (of VA) for his good
natured taking of countless photographs on the myriad cameras which were handed
to him, and most
especially to Dave Spriggs ('64 of VA) for his matchless expertise,
knowledge, and recall in narrating
and pointing out to us the cherished places of our youth and the former homes of
our friends.
This was an amazing
opportunity for all who were privileged to be a part of it, an unforgettable
delight,
truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and if our exuberance at times spilled
over the top, it was merely an
indication of our deep appreciation and gratitude to the sacrifices made by
those who loved us enough
to arrange it for us. On occasion I may be prone to exaggeration, but I am
not stretching anything when
I say to one and all, thank you, from the very depths of my being.
From Janice McCain Rose ('65) of VA - 10/24/05:
From Eleanor Buckley Nowitzky ('59) of NC - 10/28/05:
Thanks, Eleanor! These images are just fabulous!
Magical Mystery Tour
- Paul McCartney and JohnLennon
(The Beatles,
Recorded: April 25-27, May 3, November 1, 1967)
Roll up, roll up
for the mystery tour.
Roll up, roll up for the mystery tour.
Roll up AND THAT'S AN INVITATION, roll up for the mystery tour.
Roll up TO MAKE A RESERVATION, roll up for the mystery tour.
The magical mystery tour is waiting to take you away,
waiting to take you away.
Roll up, roll up for the mystery tour.
Roll up, roll up for the mystery tour.
Roll up WE'VE GOT EVERYTHING YOU NEED, roll up for the mystery tour.
Roll up SATISFACTION GUARANTEED, roll up for the mystery tour.
The magical mystery tour is hoping to take you away,
hoping to take you away.
Roll up, roll up for the mystery tour.
Roll up, roll up for the mystery tour.
Roll up AND THAT'S AN INVITATION, roll up for the mystery tour.
Roll up TO MAKE A RESERVATION, roll up for the mystery tour.
The magical mystery tour is coming to take you away,
coming to take you away.
The magical mystery tour is dying to take you away,
dying to take you away, take you away.
"Magical Mystery
Tour" midi courtesy of
http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/2729/index2.html
at the suggestion of Dave Spriggs ('64) of VA - 04/15/05
Thanks, Dave!
"Magical
Mystery Tour" lyrics courtesy of http://www.iqm.ro/beatles/plyri.html
- 11/09/05
from this site given to me in the summer of 2003 by Dave Spriggs ('64) of VA
Thanks again, David!
Animated
Cheering Smiley
clip art courtesy of Al Farber ('64) of GA - 08/18/05
Thanks, Al!
Peach Flower Divider Line clip art courtesy of http://www.wtvzone.com/nevr2l82/bars5.html - 04/05/03