Update 6-16-09

Hi,

A couple of quick memories of Ralph Foster, whose death we may have discussed before, but no one seemed to remember that.  Still, I've never heard this story of Jay's, and I've never told my pair before.

From Jay Berliner:  I was really upset to learn of Ralph Foster’s death.  I remember having him as a track coach and 9th grade science teacher.  In order to save money, the track team had to spread the cinders on the track and field runways and hop like bunnies to compress the cinders into the clay.

[Rich -- In 8th and 9th grade, I was one of the managers for the JV soccer and track teams.  I was never an athlete, but many of my friends were, and keeping track of stuff seemed like a good way to keep hanging out with them.  Rick Glickman and I both signed up in the fall of 8th grade, but Foster's yelling must have quickly gotten to Rick, and he stopped coming to practice.  Still, when the cut list came out, I was the manager cut, maybe proving that Foster couldn't tell a Rick from a Rich -- or, in those days, a Ricky from a Richie.  When I asked Foster about this, he didn't admit he'd made a mistake, but he told me I could stay on the team.  When spring came, I asked if he needed a manager for track, and he didn't say, "No."
    I kept at it for almost two years, having also listened to Foster's strong opinions in 7th and 8th grade science classes.  But I kind of liked him, and I kind of got used to the yelling, even though I sometimes, unfortunately, passed his abuse on to some of the younger guys.  Then, one spring afternoon towards the end of track season, he told me to "Get some sticks."  Of course, he meant relay batons, but he'd never called them sticks before, and I must have been having a really dense day.  Though I remember thinking, "Why would he want sticks? and "Where am I supposed to find them on the damn track?"
    But Foster sometimes seemed so irrational and strong-willed, I figured he had something in mind, so I managed to scrounge up some twigs from the soccer field.  When he asked for the sticks, I handed him these dumb branches, and he just started screaming what a moron I was.  In front of the whole team.  After two years of my work.  So I walked off the field without explaining and never went back.  For the next three years, we saw each other around school all the time, but neither of us ever mentioned it.]

On a livelier subject, from Barbara Blitfield Pech:  As I may have mentioned, for me, Facebook friends finder is better than Google or the other search engines.  I pop in a name, and voila, information comes out.  This week I tried “ED, FRANK, GARY, JULIA, JOHN BONLARRON VALLEY STREAM NY” and I quickly got a profile for a Todd Bonlarron.
    I wrote:  "I was a neighbor of the Bonlarron family in Valley Stream, New York.  Are you any relation to them?  I’m particularly looking for Paula, the wife of Ed.  My maiden name was Blitfield."
    And Todd Bonlarron wrote back:  "I am a relative.  I haven't seen Paula for a while, but I'll contact a few people and see if I can get her information."
    I will advise you all further as the news comes in.

Barbara also sent this link for New York tourists:  http://www.coneyisland.com/museum.shtml

From Peggy Cooper Schwartz:  As of June 12th, I will have a new e-mail address.  It's:   pegcoop@hotmail.com   Thanks.
    Hope all's well with everyone.  I also want to mention that we have a new grandson.  His name is Wyatt Ian Kaufman, and he was born on April 12th to our daughter and son-in-law.
    Warmest regards to all.

[Rich -- Congratulations, obviously.]

From an anonymous fan:  The class of '65 newsletter is a bright spot in my "Inbox."   It's very nice to receive on a consistent basis.  I like consistency.

[Rich -- And, less flattering, from two other, well meaning folks:
    Yesterday, I was told I was "very well preserved."
    Today, a college student asked me, "What color did your hair used to be?"]

Another reminder that Booker Gibson Night at the Irish Coffee Pub is on Wednesday, July 1st, starting around 6:30.  The Pub is at: 131 Carleton Avenue in East Islip.  The phone number for reservations is:  631-277-0007.

Finally, some words of advice from Zelda White Nichols:  The next crisis has already begun.  We've survived a financial meltdown, and we're working through a recession.  But another phase -- when all the money printing melts down the dollar -- is just getting started.  Here's an article by Bill Fleckenstein at MSN Money.
    "This week I'd like to update readers on the funding crisis.  That's the third in the three-baseball-game analogy that I dreamed up last fall (read "Economy Sinks As We Save Bankers") as a way to think through the enormous problems we faced.  The first and second games (crises) -- the credit meltdown and the economic downturn -- have been pretty easy for folks to understand, as they were front and center in the news..."
    The full article at: http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Investing/ContrarianChronicles/printing-money-isnt-the-cure.aspx

The South '65 e-mail addresses:  reunionclass65.blogspot.com


Rich