Richard Meek

Good morning Waltripians. Those of you who weren't at Fuddruckers Tuesday missed a good evening. Plan to be there in June. You folks in the Austin area, I think the highway is still open between Austin and Houston.

It's summer folks, time for the national pastime, baseball. Here's a little baseball trivia for you. the first team to field four 30-homer players in the same season were the 1977 LA Dodgers. They were led by Steve Garvey,33, Reggie Smith, 32, Ron Cey and Dusty Baker, 30 each. The Dodgers won the National League pennant in 1977 and 1978. Here's another one for you. Ty Cobb batted .300 or better 23 years in his career. Which is amazing. Second Place is Tris Speaker with 18 seasons of .300 or better. No small feat in itself.

It rained last night in Houston. Yeah!!! I had to turn on my windshield wipers driving home. It's supposed to rain more this afternoon and tonight. Yeah again!!!. Hope you all got some where you live. Unless you live along the Mississippi or its tributaries.

Keep on dancing,

Rich

Stephen Ray Puckett

Hello, fellow Waltrippers,

Well, if you are reading this, you probably were not sucked up by The Rapture or it happened without you or something was terribly amiss.   I for one am happy to be alive and well.  Maybe it was just a calculation problem or the calendar that was used:

Our computer system in Saudi Arabia had to deal with 3 calendars: 1 lunar one (muslim=hijri) and 2 solar ones (the usual western one and a zodiac one so that reports could have a solar date but certain folks would not have to see a western name. Today is Gemini 1, I think).  That was fun, especially when someone spots the moon, the cannon is fired, and the 9th month of Ramadan starts a day early and we the system calendar accordingly.

We leave Tuesday for about a week in Alaska, our first trip there.  A day in Anchorage, a day at Denali, and the rest of the time in Fairbanks where the eldest son lived.  I'll let you know how it was.

Until then, Ciao!

P.S. to Jan.  I've noticed for some time now that the contents have changed - don't know why. To find out who has recently updated their profile:

- Click on Classmate Profiles

- Click on Last Updated (to the right of Show by)

Kay Watters (Greene)

Hi all,

Just checking to see if the end o the world hit here on our website.  I, for one, have not been very chatty, got a lot going on right now with school, stuff....no reason to not visit though.

We finally got 2" rain out here in Grimes, so needed.  BurnBan is still on. We are all behind two hay seasons we can't make up, but if we get enough rain, herds and farms can continue. Folks, this is serious as no dairy herds, no milk, etc. ranchers are selling their herds, can't feed them.  hopefully the U.S. won't falter and the foreign countries move in for the profit.  Eat, speak, shop and pray American!

Any thoughts on our misled end o the world prediction?  I started that morning out putting grass seed all over and vaguely thinking of it 20  min. before 6:00 p.m., never did I think it was really going to happen....the Bible says there will be no prediction....we'll just end.  I'm beginning to think it may be starting to happen with all the disasters in the world.  I don't see how the government can pay for all this ongoing destruction.  I am happy I live in Texas though.

Yesterday I attended a Tree Dedication for Michael Greene.  The whole Anderson-Shiro ISD school turned outside for it, sang songs, prayed, took their shoes off if they wanted too, in respect to how much Michael loved being bare-foot, a plague was presented at the tree, and green balloons released. It was a joyful and happy release, I am so proud of my community. Todd and Cheli attended, still physically healing, and emotionally tender, but we are all doing well.

And of course, always interested in hearing everyone's chats

Richard Meek

Howdy to all you Waltripians. I hope the impending Memorial Day Holiday finds you all with plans for whatever makes you happy! I don't have anything  as Stephen but I'm looking forward to a trip to Caney Creek to enjoy the sea breeze,  good company,good food, good wine and a good cigar with some good music to make it all complete. Oh yeah throw in a good book too. I might even fish a little or not. That the beauty of this kind of long weekend, just take it as the spirit moves you. No agenda, no place to be at a certain time. Pretty close to ideal at Sargent , TX.

Be safe and have fun this weekend. I hear that Pete Biggs has a garden at his place at Caney. I may go and see if I can barter a cigar for some fresh veggies!

Stay Calm, Carry on

Rich

Keep on dancing

P. S. Let's get some regular postings going here folks. Surely you've got something to say. If you've passed away just let us know, ok?

Anita Marbury (Marbury)

I woke up and it was summer. The flowers are blooming, the sun shining like mad, and the grass is green.

Durango kicks off summer with the Iron Horse Bike race. That means all those bike folks prepare all year for chasing and beating the train to Silverton. Sometimes Mother Nature drops snow and ice on the pedalers but today it looks like a postcasrd.

Skinny legs, flashy outfits, expensive bikes invade Durango for a great weekend. The event is celebrating it's 40th Anniversary. I noticed the grocery store was packed with shoppers that means sales tax too this City Councilor.

Durango has the Animas LaPLata Damn otherwise known as Ridges Basin recreation that will open next year. Fishing, hiking, beach, boating will be in our lake that is only 2 miles from the center of town. I encourage all my Texas friends to plan a trip to Dgo. and mention my name if you get a parking ticket.

Coming to Houston June 12th to see the Big City. Come to lunch June 14 at Doyles near Waltrip at 11:00 for lots of laughs.

The Durango Kid

Nathan Wayne Hollis

         Yes Jan that is right, God bless them all. 

              Linda and and 2- other couples rode our bikes to Garner for Memorial weekend, left friday morning. Did'nt try to go into Garner until Sunday afternoon, could'nt get in it was filled to capacity.    Am going back real soon.

       That was a 930 mile round trip

                                                                            LOL   Wayne

Jan Barnes (Nimtz)

 
Attention AGGIES (or not).

I'm just trying to drum up some business in this down economy for my middle son who has had his own design business for the last eighteen years.  He is a graduate of Texas A&M University College of Architecture and is an Associate Member of the American Institute of Architects.  If you or someone you know is looking to design a home, retirement home, second home or vacation home, remodel or add on to your current home, check out his website at www.nimtzdesigngroup.com.   He will work hand in hand with your chosen builder or general contractor to create residential designs to your specifications.

He recently created the design for a multi-million dollar ultra modern estate on Indigo Lakes which has now been completed.  There is a separate portfolia of its pictures on his website.  However his designs vary according to his clients needs, whether contemporary, traditional, or otherwise. 

Thanks for your attention.  I know he would appreciate your referrals.   eric@nimtzdesigngroup.com

Anita Marbury (Marbury)

Dear Friends,

I am coming to Houston June 12 for my annual Texas "boy it's hot visit."

I plan on going to Fuddruckers for the get together June 14th.

Please join me for some fun and a toast to all of our Waltrip friends.Hope to see you there.

Sweetie

Stephen Ray Puckett

Hi, all.  We just got back from a great week-and-a-half trip to Alaska (Anchorage/Denali/Fairbanks).  We went there to see family friends and also see a few sights on the side.  The weather cooperated so we could see Denali.  The animals also cooperated so we could see them near the road & rail: bear, lynx, caribou, moose, golden eagle, dall sheep, ptarmigan, and snowshoe hare.  Now we can finally see why our late eldest son Kennon moved there years ago and loved it so much.

Man, 13+ hours in airplanes each way makes for a very long trip!

The scenic railway from Anchorage to Denali.

Happy diners.  I am eating caribou stew.

Denali, a huge beautiful mountain.

A caribou, just getting up from resting.

Many thanks to friends, family, & Providence who helped us to go. 

Richard Meek

Howdy fellow Waltripians. Hope you all had a great weekend. We had a great time Saturday eating at the local wine bar named Plonk. It is in the newly rebuild shopping center when Minimax and Maddings(?) Drugstore used to be. Had a great pizza and salad. The greens for the salad were picked from a garden in Cat Springs. Man were they tasty.Plonk is just a quality place. Not pretentious just good food and wine. We sat on the patio. With fans out there and low humidity it was a great evening. If you can stop in a give it a try.

Want to remind everyone that tomorrow is 2nd Tuesday at Fudd's on Hwy. 290. I'm not sure why but we can't seem to get many people from the class of '65 to come out consistently. The folks from '64 severely out number us.  Come on out if you can. You'll be glad you did!

Rich

Every day is  a gift, unwrap it!

Richard Meek

Good morning all. Today is National Flag Day commemorating the adoption of our flag in 1777. Display your flag proudly today or every day would be an even better idea!

Stephen Ray Puckett

For those interested, following was my itinerary.  All flights were Delta except for Alaska for Seattle->Anchorage.  The flights were good. Because of my back I sat upright through most of the trip.  My back survived but I didn't get much sleep that way.

5/24

Depart Albany 1:20 PM EDT  Arrive NYC/JFK 2:30 PM EDT

Depart NYC 3:55 PM EDT Arrive Seattle/Tacoma 7:20 PM PDT

Depart SeaTac 8:20 PM PDT Arrive Anchorage 10:52 PM AKDT

Total Albany->Anchorage about 13:20,

not counting time in airports before and after the trip.

About 4,000 miles.
 

5/31-6/1

Depart Fairbanks 9:40 PM Arrive Minneapolis 6:08 AM CDT

Depart Minn. 8:49 AM CDT Arrive Detroit 11:29 AM EDT

Depart Detroit 12:30 PM EDT Arrive Albany 2:03 PM EDT

Total Fairbanks->Albany about 12:23,

not counting time in airports before and after the trip.

About 3,500 miles.
 

Richard Meek

Hello Kay, I gather there is a lot of wildfire activity around  Anderson. How are you fairing?

Rich

Kay Watters (Greene)

The great fire is on the way out...I woke up this morn. at 3:34 a.m. to hear the blessed sound of rain....good rain.. and it continued until around 10:30 a.m.  may get more tonight or tomorrow. It was a game changer in that the fire is 75% contained, 30 houses out, but it could have been so much worse.  We may even be able to burn again!

Stephen Ray Puckett

That's great news that at least some parts of Texas are receiving some much-needed rain. I read an analysis that the weather patterns seem to be changing to allow for more rain hit Texas, at least in the sort term.  That's good news as well.

Here in the Northeast folks are complaining about too much rain, with some localized flooding.  We're still much better off than folks in the Midwest who have gotten it far worse. My mom and stepdad lived in Minot ND for 2 years so we are following flood news there - horrible! Some good news here: It has kept the temperatures cool, kept the pollen out of the air, kept it green, and I love the smell during and just after a rain.

Bernard Brady

Stevie Ray- I love your rainy day graphic. We here in West TX love the looks of it. In my old life in TN. we got rain at least once a week. This year has had even more there. Susan and I spent the first two weeks of April, 2011 cleaning up her Dad's home place in Harvest, AL.  It was scheduled to be auctioned 5/7/2011 but the tornado that hit Tuscaloosa mosied over to Harvest, AL and made a direct hit on Dad's home and his woodworking shop. The State Farm claim adjuster was a God send and we got a check two weeks ago for $104K and Susan and her sister still own the acre and a half that it was sitting on. FEMA has agreed to pay for half of the debris removal. We feel so very blessed out of the tragedy. Susan's uncle Fred next door was killed. But her aunt Peg is now out of the hospital and is doing well.

San Angelo, TX has been very good to us. Susan and I met in Houston in 1974 and it is so good to be Texans again. Even with the heat and the drought we love it here. For those in our class who live out-of-state (and we were gone for 36 years), come back and take a look at Texas. You might just fall in love with your roots. The Texas people are in a class of their own. They know how to work hard and play hard. And let me tell you, the food is phenominal here. The fellowship is wonderful because Texans just know no strangers. Even with the drought, there are plenty of beautiful lakes and rivers to enjoy.

We send our love to all !! BJ Brady

Richard Meek

Good morning all. I hope you had a grand and glorious 4th. Even if most were without fireworks. Houston had theirs and I'm sure it was great. I was down at Sargent's Beach for the weekend. The breezes off the Gulf were great. There is something therapeutic about sea breezes.

Jan I think the thoughts you printed are great. One I saw recently from a not often quoted past president was "Any government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take away everything you have." Gerald Ford said that to a joint session of Congress in 1974. Another one that I like that I believe was is from Thomas Jefferson is "The price of liberty is eternal vigilance". A friend recently returned from visiting his wife's family in Patmos, Greece. They were in Athens at the time of the recent riots and almost got swept up in one. The relatives were telling my friend how impressed they are with what they see of America on television. they also commented on how proud we should be of what we have built here. I think that sums it up pretty well. We should be proud and we should be willing to  fight like tigers to preserve and improve it. We should also offer a prayer of thanks every day for the blessing of being born in this country.

I hope you all have a grand summer. Stay safe and well.

Keep on dancing,

Rich

Dance like no one is watching

Jennie Anderson (Dylan)

 I just found out I have the wet form of age-related macular degeneration.  I am having to have injections in my eyes.  First noticed it, when I couldn't read the math exponents or small print  of math problems on ACT and SAT practice tests which I have to tutor for my living.  Does anyone have AMD, b/c I would like to talk to them.  This could interfere with my bike riding and that is my worry, not to mention general life!

Jennie

Jennie Anderson (Dylan)

 I love your new photo!  Thanks for the encouragement. What a valuable gift our eyes are and the thought of missing seeing anything is daunting.  I will continue to do what I need to and appreciate your words for others to keep a check on theirs.

Richard Meek

Jennie, I'm sorry to hear about your MD. My dad had the dry kind and he was able to live a normal life. Other things over came him before MD got to a chronic situation. Just follow your docs advice and keep a positive attitude. For those of you who haven't looked into regular eye exams you should get one regularly. That doesn't mean every 10 yrs. whether you need it or not. Fair skinned ,blue eyed people are the most at risk but anyone can have it. My Dr. recommends taking a supplement for good eye health, 6 mg. of Lutien per day. Be sure to check with your doctor first before you start it.

Keep on dancing,

Rich

Dance like no one is watching

Jennie Anderson (Dylan)

 Richard, yes the vitamins you mentioned are a big key too for people our age showing any signs of AMD.

Off to ride my bike, hope all of you have a great day!  I am waiting for my youngest daughter to have a baby girl this month.  This will be my 5th grandchild.  Since they live in Austin I plan to be back and forth for a while with breaks to the beach in between.  Love the Gulf, right across from San Luis Hotel.  Chair rentals, clean beach and cool people.  Could sit there all day every day!

Jennie

Richard Meek

Jenny, if you make all those trips on your bicycle you'll really be in excellent shape by Christmas! Or exhausted.

Richard Meek

I will presume that this Forum is still active even though there have been no postings since the 12th. There will be an impromptu & irregularly scheduled meeting of the Whirld Affairs and Burger Evaluation Committee (WABEC). If you can fog a mirror you are eligible to attend. There is no agenda and no speaker. The business meeting usually last 30 seconds. So all you have to do is enjoy some good food and good fellowship. Come meet some new friends and see some old friends. You''ll be glad you came. Meeting is on Tuesday, July 26th at 11:30 at JAX Grill on Shepherd south of I-10. See you there!

Stephen Ray Puckett

We got back a few days ago from Groundhog Mountain, SW Virginia, where we attended the annual Puckett Reunion.  Imagine 250+ Pucketts in one place!   Lots of fun and eating and Visiting and eating and playing music and eating...  We had planned on doing some sightseeing on the way back but were appalled at the idea of trying to get something out of Mt Vernon when it was 95+F and muggy in the greater Washington area.  We must be getting older but we Just Didn't Wanna Do It.  We ended up mostly just driving back early, seeing a few lower-level sights on the way.  We will instead use the vacation time at some later date - hopefully cooler.

I notice that many of the places around the US are experiencing high heat in the next few days.  It will get hot here in Albany as well but we do not have the advisories of areas a few counties south of us.  Folks here start complaining when it reaches 80 F so they should really fuss when it hits 95 F on Friday!   My Dad and sister who still live in Portland OR are complaining because it has been cooler than usual there.  Ha! I guess rarely is it Just Right although I recall that the dry desert was pretty nice for me many days in late Fall, Winter, and early Spring.  Perhaps we should move there when we retire.  I can always dream...

Stay cool and have fun!

Stephen Ray Puckett

Remember Sonny Look's restaurant?  We went there a couple of times.  I remember enjoying seeing the guy in armor riding around on the horse: Sir Loin.

Here's a record album cover with Sonny Look his own self: