On Tuesday, Dec. 27, the Old Men of the Mountain met at the Your Way Café in Schoharie. This was a sad meeting because the OMOTM were advised of the death of Loretta Kennedy.
Loretta was the proprietor of Mrs. K’s Country Kitchen in Middleburgh and a good friend of many of the OMOTM. Some of the OMOTM sat next to Loretta in many of her classes when she was at Schoharie Central. She was in the same class as this scribe and graduated with him in 1952.
As reported last week, the OMOTM were at Mrs. K’s for their annual Christmas party and Loretta was taking orders and conversing with all the OMOTM and doing all this while supporting herself with a cane. The OMOTM’s thoughts and prayers go out to Patti and her family at this time of sorrow.
The sorrow is for all of us but not for Loretta. God already has put her to work waiting on all the OMOTM who have gone on before (and that is a big group) on a cloud held especially for the OMOTM and their heavenly breakfast.
Lowlifes
This scribe does not know how much of the news becomes information for the OFs because so many of the OFs claim they don’t watch the news (and some do not even get a newspaper) but again many OFs were upset about the lowlifes who steal Christmas presents particularly those intended for the needy. What kind of person would do this?
The OFs wonder what kind of rock they crawled out from. One OF suggested it isn’t a rock; that is too good a home for them. It must be they oozed from some festering cesspool to pull stunts like that.
Many of the OFs don’t understand why anyone takes something that belongs to someone else in the first place. What happens to them when, or if, they get caught was a rhetorical question. Nothing, was the basic reply. At least the OFs never hear of them getting caught.
Logman
In the Your Way Café was a neat snowman made out of pieces of logs. The bottom of the one in the window was about 12 inches in diameter; the middle was about 9 inches and the head was about four-fifths of an inch. All the pieces were about 2 inches thick, and of course the hat was wood as was the nose and extremities. It had a scarf, too.
The OFs thought it would be possible to make a whole family of these for the front yard; they thought it looked like a fun, easy project that the whole family could get into.
“But,” as one OF said, “only if you have a chainsaw.”
Unwelcome vines
Maybe the OFs have mentioned this before but they think they have a use for kudzu. Now all we need is a good use for wild grape vines other than making wreaths.
The OFs talked about what a nuisance this stuff is. The more the OFs cut it back, the more it grows. The OFs wonder if it does any damage to the trees that it weaves its wicked vine around.
The plant crawls along the ground and starts new shoots that search for trees to climb. It is difficult to control especially along hedgerows and fences where it gets a start. If only grape vines that grows grapes for harvests were as hardy and productive.
Car complexities
The OFs drifted into one of their generic topics — cars. This time, the talk was on how complicated they are becoming.
There seem to be more dashboard lights, buttons, and switches than ever before.
The touch screens are like computers with no “oops” button in case the OF inadvertently touches the wrong part of the screen or the screen time is not long enough for the OF to interpret what it is and what to do with it. By the time the OF decides that is what he wants, it changes to something else just as the OF is ready to push it.
The OFs still maintain all they need are a few simple toggle switches: one for lights with the dimmer on the floor, and a two-position toggle for the wipers — one for slow, one for fast. A horn ring without the horn button hidden someplace in the center of the wheel because now, when the OF pushes where the OF thinks the horn located, nothing happens. A simple key to start and lock the car.
The wipers would have simple double-toggles: one for the heater and one for the air, with a simple knob to turn that indicates warmer and cooler. The radio would be on/off with a volume knob, and a tuner knob.
The OFs think that should do it. And to boot whatever happened to the small triangle windows on the front windows that could be pushed out to scoop air in as you drove? Those little air-scoop windows worked better than air-conditioning.
Now in some of these vehicles the OFs need a master’s degree in computer science just to turn the dumb thing on. Careful, one OF suggested, you have just admitted the car is smarter than you are.
The OFs who made it to the Your Way Café in Schoharie in their new fancy cars with all the gadgets and managed just fine, regardless of their grumbling, were: Ted Willsey, Warren Willsey, Mike Willsey, (with his daughter Amy who brought some information that might bear watching about an outbreak of flu in cats in New York City. So far there is only one suspected case of it being transmitted to humans. Something else for the OFs to worry about), Chuck Aleseio, Ray Frank, Miner Stevens, Bill Lichliter, Roger Shafer, George Washburn, Robie Osterman, Roger Chapman, Mark Traver, Glenn Patterson, Harold Guest, Lou Schenck, Jack Norray, Mace Porter, Gerry Irwin, Wayne Gaul, Ted Feruer, Don Wood, Bob Benninger, Bob Fink, Rev. Jay Francis, Gerry Chartier, Russ Pokorny, Elwood Vanderbilt, Richard Vanderbilt, Marty Herzog, Jim Rissacher, Harold Grippen, and me.
Location:
The Enterprise — John Williams
Savoring the seasons: The Old Men of the Mountain enjoyed listening to music played by Roger Shafer, Gerry Irwin, Tom White, and Debbie Fish while they ate their breakfast on Dec. 20, Mrs. K’s restaurant in Middleburgh.
On Dec. 20, Mrs. K’s restaurant in Middleburgh welcomed the Old Men of the Mountain for their annual Christmas Party. The restaurant always puts on a great spread for the OFs as they get ready to celebrate the Christmas season. Usually there is live music (as opposed to dead music) for occasional sing-alongs if the OFs know the tune and stop talking long enough to give the musicians some attention.
The chatter at the breakfast is similar to the chatter that proceeds church as people come in, or any meeting where people who see each other once a week or so get together. In some cases, the persons at these meetings have just visited with each other the day before, but that does not deter them from conversing before the service or meeting starts.
The OMOTM breakfast does not have a beginning or end, no one bangs a gavel, or rings a bell, or comes down the aisle with lit candles to indicate that whatever is going to happen, is going to happen, so the chatter continues until the last OF pays his bill and goes home. This is what the musicians have to contend with as they continue to play through the breakfast with the noise and chatter, and they appear to have a good time doing it.
Much of the conversation among the OFs consists of bringing people up to date on each other’s activities during the week, and some is a continuation of conversations of last week. However, this week we had one OF bring us up to date on his travels to South Africa.
The OF was asked many questions and the OF related tales to us about what life was like during his stay in that country. One thing he mentioned more than once was that the water in the South Atlantic was very, very, cold. The OF said it turned one’s legs red. He thought it was colder than the ocean in Maine and most OFs could relate to that.
Home repair project goes out of control
Another thing the OFs could relate to is, when starting a home-repair project how many times the OFs have to go to the hardware store to purchase additional parts so they can repair parts on something that broke along the way. Fixing one simple thing leads to either breaking something further down the line, or a part is rusted solid and adding a pipe to the wrench is generally not a good idea.
Then the OF finds that he can’t get the part because the guy behind the counter says “How the h--- old is that thing? They haven’t made parts for that in years.”
Now the OF is stuck paying a couple hundred bucks for a complete new whatchamacallit instead of the two bucks he thought the part would be. Then the OF says he gets home and the new part doesn’t fit because it is different in length and width and none of connections join up.
Back to the store, and by now the OF mentioned he was really ticked off, and didn’t know how much more would break somewhere down the line, so he buys more parts than he needs just to be sure.
One OF piped up, “Why didn’t you just call a plumber?”
“What,” the other OF says, “and admit defeat! Never, even if cost me a grand.”
Another situation the OFs could relate to. Many of the OFs have started to repair something and chased it to the end after all the trips to the store, and days later to find they have replaced the whole thing, which they should have done in the first place.
Key West is now costly
The OFs went from South Africa, to right here at home, to the Florida Keys. Now that is a lot of geography. When the OFs were at the Keys (especially Longboat Key, Marathon, and Key West the first time and they were younger) prices were cheap, and Key West was, in their opinion, sort of dumpy, but even at the way money was then, it was a cheap vacation.
Today, what a difference! Key West has been spruced up, and the OFs say it is necessary to have a real pocket full of change, just to eat. The OFs said that, when they were younger, it was possible to take the family on vacations and it wouldn’t break the bank.
As one OF put it, the really upper middle-class and the rich can travel there now, but as it stands currently these type of trips are out of reach for the OFs and many of their kids.
Out-of-touch government
One OF added he does not know what planet the government is from because there was no increase in Social Security, and some OFs even took a loss after the increase in Medicare hit their Social Security checks — the reason given by our wise politicians that there was no rise in the cost of living.
The OFs say, “Say what!”
As one OF commented, “The CIA should look around and find out where the officials who came up with that information parked their space ship!”
Those OFs who enjoyed the music, supplied by Roger Shafer (OF), Gerry Irwin (OF), Tom White, and Debbie Fish, with the hors d’oeuvres (almost a meal, supplied by Mrs. K’s Restaurant) at Mrs. K’s Restaurant in Middleburgh were: Marty Herzog, Jim Rissacher, Robie Osterman, George Washburn, Bill Lichliter, John Rossmann, Harold Guest, Roger Chapman, Jim Heiser, Chuck Aelesio, Ray Frank, Otis Lawyer, Glenn Patterson (at the table, exactly one week from being under the knife with a complete hip replacement ─ the wonders of modern medicine), Mark Traver, Bill Dergosits, Ted Willsey, Don Wood, Sonny Mercer, Wayne Gaul, Ted Feurer. Jay Francis, Lou Schenck, Mace Porter, Jack Norray, Bob Fink, Bob Benninger, Warren Willsey, Russ Pokorny, Elwood Vanderbilt, Rich Vanderbilt, Harold Grippen, Mike Willsey, Gerry Chartier, and me.
Location:
Christmas is getting closer. On Tuesday, Dec. 13, the Old Men of the Mountain met at the Country Café on Main Street in Schoharie.
A couple of OFs mentioned that, if they had a million dollars they didn’t know what to do with, they would use some of it to purchase the Parrott House and fix it up.The OFs mentioned, with the lights and decorations of the Country Café, to see the Parrott House all lit up too would be great. Done right, the OFs thought it could be like the Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, only a tad smaller.
The weather guys were at it again by making all the OFs believe that we were in for some snowfall and really bad weather. Some of the OFs did get some snow but nothing to write home about — most OFs just received a dusting. This dusting covered a considerable amount of geography and not just a few spots here and there.
“Work” a dirty word?
One OF mentioned to another OF that he thought that this one OF should go back to work. The other OF bristled and told the first OF to wash his mouth out with soap and not use that kind of language around him again.
It seems like the second OF has really latched on to this retirement bit and likes it. Other OFs like to work and keep on doing work of some kind.
The OF who took offense at being told about going back to work, works a ton and doesn’t know it. He volunteers in the fire department, the ambulance squad, his church, and in many different capacities, so the OF is constantly busy — it just isn’t “work” work.
Shaving
Most of the OFs shave, although there are a few with beards, and some don’t shave that often. One OF came to breakfast Tuesday morning and announced that he read that vinegar makes a great aftershave, so this morning he tried it. One thing he advised the rest of the OFs was, “Don’t try it because vinegar stings.”
An OF said, “Yes, and you go around all day smelling like a pickle, or a salad.”
“No, you don’t,” the first OF said. “Can you smell it on me now?”
The other OF leaned over and took a whiff of the OF’s cheek and, by golly, the OF could not detect any scent of vinegar.
The other OFs started talking about what they used and it ranged from astringent, to aftershave, to different kinds of lotions. The OFs were wondering when their beards went from hair to wire, and how hard they had to pull down on their cheeks, and stretch their necks out so they can hacksaw off all the hair (also now known as wire) in all those crevices.
The OFs complained that, in the commercials and on the packaging for razors and shaving cream, they show all those young bucks who only need soap to cut off that peach fuzz. How about something for us OFs that will at least straighten out the twisted wires protruding from our faces, so the beards will be soft enough so it is like hair again and the razors will cut it instead of pulling each individual hair out?
Pig: 1 - Car: 0
The next topic was deer (again) so this scribe is not going to touch on that much, but what happens when a car hits a pig? One OF said his brother hit a pig that was in the middle of the road and he did not expect to see it there.
The OF claimed the brother smacked the pig dead on. This was before seat belts and airbags so the impact was felt by the driver who thought he had hit a brick wall. The outcome was the car was totaled, and the pig walked away.
This does not seem correct. Of course when the car hit the pig, that pig wasn’t fastened to the ground so it moved with the impact. The result was Pig: 1 - Car: 0 as the pig ran off bruised and disgruntled.
Still shopping
The OFs are still shopping for Christmas and some will be at it until the 24th but the OFs say grandkids or even their kids must have a hard time shopping for them because the OFs claim they really don’t need anything.
Socks and underwear will do, or tickets to a show, or something special to eat, but stuff? The OFs say they don’t need it. Some of the OFs say they are trying to get rid of stuff, and nobody seems to want it.
Plum Island mystery
A couple of OFs who sat across from this scribe were in the service at about the same time and in the same locale, plus they also lived there for quite awhile. They were talking about an island off Long Island called Plum Island.
According to the OFs, this island is a United States federal research facility dedicated to the study of animal diseases and we really don’t want to know what goes on there.
Under the knife
One OF who should have been at the breakfast but wasn’t had a very good explanation so he would be excused rather easily when the board meets to reprimand those OFs who miss breakfast for no good reason.
This OF was going under the knife to have a hip replaced at the same time the rest of the OFs were putting a fork full of over-easy eggs to their mouths at breakfast in the Country Café.
The thoughts and prayers of the OFs are with this OF and also with the doctors doing the surgery. We pray that everything turns out OK and he is back at the table soon with the rest of this bionic clan.
Those OFs that made it to the Country Café in Schoharie through the snow (?) were: Roger Shafer, Roger Chapman, John Rossmann, Harold Guest, Robie Osterman, George Washburn, Dave Williams, Otis Lawyer, Mark Traver, Ray Frank, Chuck Aelesio, Wayne Gaul, Ted Feurer, Bob Benninger, Bob Fink, Lou Schenck, Mace Porter, Jack Norray, Gerry Irwin, Warren Willsey, Ted Willsey, Marty Herzog, Mike Willsey, Gerry Chartier, Russ Pokorny, Elwood Vanderbilt, Rich Vanderbilt, Harold Grippen, and me.
Location:
Tuesday, Dec. 6, the Old Men of the Mountain met at the Middleburgh Diner in Middleburgh. Rarely does this scribe and his riders arrive at the eating establishments first — there are always a few of the OFs already at the tables. This scribe does not know what time these OFs wake up but it has to be early.
Sometimes the OFs are at the restaurant’s door, waiting for them to open up. The owners are so familiar with the OFs, they should give these early OGs a key to the place so they can open up and get things ready.
Last week, the talk at the table, for the most part, had a general theme. This week, it was all over the place: Truth and trust (the OFs have covered this before but this was a new take); the election; China; the economy; the fires in Tennessee, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Oakland, California; cost of heating (again); ministers; what things are like in different parts of the country, along with same things going on all over the world, the universe, and this was not all of the subjects covered at Tuesday’s morning’s breakfast so there was not much depth in any one topic.
Fires rage and enrage
The OFs talked about the fires that seem to raging all over. Some of the OFs have been to one or more of these localities where the fires were.
Cambridge a classy address in Massachusetts where the OF who was there said he could almost visualize where these buildings were that burned but wasn’t quite sure.
A couple of the OFs have been to the smoky mountains of Tennessee especially Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg — they remembered these places quite vividly. And a few have been to Oakland, California, but had no recollection of the area where this warehouse was.
One OF mentioned how dry it has been in the Northeast and he knows how dry it has been in Tennessee because some friends of his who live there were complaining about the dryness and the concern for wells and ponds, just like here.
Politics conscribed
In the discussion on politics, as far as the OGs are concerned, this was not really politics because in the bylaws of the OMOTM politics and religion are a no-no. However, the OFs do manage to skirt around both of these topics.
On politics Tuesday morning, the OFs talked about how many United States presidents the OFs have lived through; at our end of the table, we came up with 14. The election when most of the OFs first voted was when Truman was elected.
There is no truth to the rumor that our oldest OF (who will remain nameless, but the initials are MW) voted for Millard Fillmore. The point is, the OFs have lived through them all: good or bad, Republican or Democrat. The OFs even lived through the confusing time of trying to find out what the definition of is, is.
The OFs also lived through the time when we had drills in school and were told to duck under our desks in case of a nuclear attack.
Religion evolves
Following the same vein, the OFs discussed ministers they have known or encountered over the years as they grew up. The ministers fell into the same type of categories as the presidents only with different titles to the classifications, i.e. really good, good, not so good, and awful.
The OFs were able to go back further than presidents since some were in school in 1920 to 1930, when they were 6- or 7-years-old and in Sunday school. Some of the OFs had trouble going back that far, trying to reach through the cobwebs of their memory to pull out information.
Religion, like life, has changed and evolved. The OFs wonder if some of the old preachers they had could come back and see how religion is today would they even recognize it.
“Hey,” one OF said, “that goes for a lot of things. I used to think one plus one was two; today I am not too sure of that.”
Not economists
The OFs are not real economists but have just enough knowledge that the OFs could be dangerous to themselves. They are now watching this unexpected growth in the stock market, which has been setting all kinds of records after the election.
The OFs are wondering how long this type of growth can be sustained and if the bubble will burst, or will there be a leveling-out somewhere along the line and the new numbers become the norm. The OFs think there are a lot of crystal balls in use right now on the economy, and, as stated, the OF are not economists.
Elusive deer
It is that time of year again and it not Thanksgiving or Christmas but time to thin out the herd of deer. The OFs were asking each other about seeing any deer their way. Most have seen them in some areas and some say they are all over the place.
According to the OFs, all they have to do is grab the bow or get the gun and the deer are gone. The OFs think deer have the same sense as crows, and they have spies out watching the OFs who are hunters. Once the OF who hunts leaves his home in camouflage and with his weapon of choice, the warning signs go out just like the participants in the Anti-rent Wars with their tin horns and calico.
Those OFs who missed all the deer in the road on their way to the Middleburgh Diner in Middleburgh, and were wondering where they disappear to when the OFs get home were: Roger Shafer, Dave Williams, Miner Stevens, John Rossmann, George Washburn, Robie Osterman, Harold Guest, Roger Chapman, Don Wood, Lou Schenck, Gerry Irwin, Mace Porter, Jack Norray, Wayne Gaul, Sonny Mercer, Ray Kennedy, Bob Benninger, Bob Fink, Warren Willsey, Mike Willsey, Gerry Chartier, and the Willsey’s guest Winnie, Elwood Vanderbilt, Harold Grippen, and me.
On Tuesday, Nov. 29, the Old Men of the Mountain traveled to Kim’s West Wind Diner in Preston Hollow to have their last breakfast in November.
Now the month of “Hectic” starts — also known as December. Christmas is supposed to be the time of peace, love, and joy but somehow it becomes push, shove, and “that is mine.” Underneath it all though this time of peace, love, and joy does shine through all the hustle and bustle; most of the OMOTM can attest to that.
The OFs who have to travel quite a distance to Kim’s West Wind Diner must get up early in the morning, but most are up anyway so that is not new. On this particular Tuesday, the OFs out on the road while it is still dark had temperatures in the high forties and low fifties, and yet many encountered salt trucks spreading salt. They must have known something the OFs didn’t.
Usually the OFs skip all over in their conversations, and Tuesday morning they did follow the pattern somewhat but most of the conversation was on homes. They spoke of maintenance, the environment’s attack on homes, and how the cost of upkeep is outpacing the OFs’ incomes.
The last part may be because many of the OFs are on fixed incomes and the planned rise of inflation did not match the actual cost of inflation on items that affect many of the OFs such as taxes, medicine, food, and gas. Even the price of paint is way out of proportion to what a gallon of paint cost 20 years ago.
Window worries
Some of the OFs are in the process of replacing the windows in their homes and they discussed the effort in keeping the older windows clean, and how some of the windows failed because of poor construction. Design flaws the manufacturers did not see coming caused windows to leak, sag, and rot.
In a previous time, the old-fashioned double-hung windows with their ropes and weights could be repaired by the homeowner; however, these windows are not very efficient in keeping out the cold and drafts.
The OFs now look to windows that tip in to clean instead of having to leave the outside of the upstairs windows dirty because it takes a 20-foot ladder to reach them. Cleaning becomes a real chore especially if these are six-over-six windows.
Another reason is we do not need any OFs falling off 20-foot ladders. They would make an awful splat on the ground and, with their ancient bones, they would shatter like glass. What a mess!
Tilted but solid
The OFs topics covered painting houses with white lead paint and how long that paint lasted. Some OFs said that houses they painted with white lead 50 years ago are still in good shape, and a properly used pressure washer to clean off the grime makes the house looks like it was just freshly painted.
The OFs also noticed that metal roofs are making a comeback. It used to be that a metal standing-seam roof was the roof of choice and those roofs, if painted every now and then, would last a lifetime and maybe one or two more lifetimes.
One OF wondered if the new houses of today will be around 150 or 200 years from now, like many of the houses in the Northeast and South. If you drop a marble (in a 200-year-old home) in one end of a room you might see it roll to another corner of the room on its own. Some of the doors might not shut tight, but these homes are still being lived in today. Even though a little tilted, the home is still solid as a rock and will probably outlive a home built in the year 2000.
Home conundrums
On OF mentioned how the wood on his home is aging. This OF thinks it is causing a dust to settle not only on the windows but on other things on the outside of the home.
One OF years ago had a deck painted white on the back of his home facing west-north-west and in a few years the OF noticed a grayish-black coating on the deck, yet the paint was fine. The OF also noticed the same discoloration on the part of the roof that faced in the same direction.
This OF had the problem checked out and was told the discoloration was caused by acid rain. This OF said he has not noticed it in recent years.
The OFs also had experiences with housing mistakes where the manufacturers (on mostly rehab jobs) measured wrong, or sent the wrong materials. In almost all the cases, the manufacturers did not want the mistakes brought back.
Apparently all they would do, if returned, would take up room in their warehouses. What are they going to do with them?
One OF said a friend of his selected a prefab home that was stick-built and it was shipped to him on trucks. When the contractor was putting it together, he found the company shipped halves of two different houses.
The contractor said the OF’s friend had two choices. The contractor could jury rig the two-mismatched houses or the friend would have to wait quite awhile for the manufacturer to sort it out. The OFs friend said, “Go ahead, hook ’em up,” and so they did.
The OFs think at their ages there is a lot to be said for either renting a home, or buying a condo — to heck with this house work, let someone else do it.
Those OFs who made it to Kim’s West Wind Diner in Preston Hollow after they finished the house work were: Mike Willsey, Warren Willsey, Roger Chapman, Karl Remmers, Bob Snyder, Chuck Aelesio, Richard Frank, John Rossmann, Harold Guest, Don Wood, Otis Lawyer, Glenn Patterson, Mark Traver, Lou Schenck, Mace Porter, Jack Norray, Gerry Irwin, Robie Osterman, George Washburn, Elwood Vanderbilt, Ted Willsey, Jim Rissacher, Marty Herzog, Harold Grippen, and me.
Location:
Well, we have finally seen winter! The Hill received more snow on Nov. 20 and 21 than the Hill saw all of last year. This correlation may be a little off but the weather surely seemed like it.
Anyway, even with weather like this, we were at the Hilltown Café in Rensselaerville, on Tuesday Nov. 22. The Hilltown Café is the restaurant with the highest elevation (at 1,651 feet) that the OFs frequent. This gave the OFs a good drive to sharpen their winter driving skills.
The OFs talked a lot about energy, and why not with the onset of winter getting such an early start this year. The OFs mentioned how dirty a fuel coal is, and how we should get away from using that. However, that would cost many jobs, and coal is so plentiful.
What can be done is that instead of ignoring coal we add it to the many types of energy that are already being used (wind, solar, nuclear) by using the talents of engineers to develop scrubbers, or ways of cleaning up coal, and throw that into the mix and eliminate the dependency on fuel oil as a source of energy.
This leaves the limited supply of fuel oil to be used for other things like medicine, and macadam, along with all the other products that rely on petroleum as a part of this mix.
The OFs also not only think, but know, the internal combustion engine can be made to develop more power on less fuel but they also think the big oil companies and the automotive manufacturers are in cahoots and won’t let this happen. It is the view of the OFs that suppression of this technology is a plan the big companies work on together. The OFs are of the opinion that all the technology is already here but being kept under wraps.
One OF reflected, “Could you imagine all the people that would be put out of work if even a portion of this technology was invoked in a year?”
Maybe cooler heads are prevailing here and the plan is to ease into some of these advancements so the populace has a chance to adjust. Especially with the OFs — their heads can only take so much information at one time.
Pondering pickers
A TV show that is mentioned from time to time and one which many of the OFs watch is “American Pickers.” The OFs are amazed at how many places around the country have hoards of just plain old stuff. One OF said these places look just like quite a few of the OFs’ barns and backyards.
It does not take much imagination to see how the OFs would take to too much technology when they are still so concerned about the old stuff. The OFs at times still don’t know what the heck is going on; some are still amazed with how much a 3- or 4-year-old knows.
One OF commented on what some of the old junk the pickers look at and how much it is worth. The OFs say, “We were just ready to take something like that to the dump.” Now the OFs are leery about throwing anything away.
One OFs said he watches the pickers on occasion where the locality they are picking is in a place where the OF is interested, particularly when the area is local or at least close to local.
Protecting our flag
The OMOTM continued dropping off their flags by giving six flags on small wooden holders to the Hilltown Café. The OFs have no idea how these flags will be used but figure in today’s world the flag is not getting the respect it is due.
For all the work so many have done to keep it flying, our flag deserves more attention than it is getting. The effort many people have put into protecting the flag so a few have the right to burn it — how sad it is to see it treated this way.
Like drunk cows?
Some of the OFs did brave the winds of Tuesday, Nov. 22, and made it to the Hilltown Café in Rensselaerville. It is a good thing the OFs travel all the distances to the eating establishments and they are always open. If, for some reason, one was closed without notification, the OFs would be milling around like cows drunk on apples, trying to find their stanchions.
So it was a very good thing that the Hilltown Café was open and able to take care of the OFs who were: Robie Osterman, George Washburn, Karl Remmers, Bob Snyder, Harold Guest, Bill Lichliter, Mark Traver, Glenn Patterson, Lou Schenck, Jack Norray, Gerry Irwin, Mace Porter, Ted Willsey, Jim Rissacher, Marty Herzog, Elwood Vanderbilt, Rich Vanderbilt, Mike Willsey, Warren Willsey, Harold Grippen, and me.
Location:
Tuesday, Nov. 15, the Old Men of the Mountain met at the Home Front Café in Altamont.
Someone must have returned from Florida because the restaurant had a huge bowl of oranges on a table in the back. Each of the OMOTM got an orange. We feel the Home Front wants to keep the OFs healthy so there are enough of the old goats to continue this round robin of restaurants.
Particularly Tuesday morning at the Home Front, at one table two of the OFs sat side by side and there were 183 years of living between them. Someone should sit them both down and compile that many years of living history. It would not only be local but national and international in scope.
There is an update on the old cars topic: An OF (not of this group because of geography) mentioned the Pierce Arrow that was made right here in New York State. According to this OF, it was produced in Buffalo, New York.
This scribe should have remembered this vehicle because it was one of the vehicles that convinced this scribe he should give up sign painting. This scribe was given the “chore” of striping a beautifully restored Pierce Arrow — talk about nervewracking. Maybe this scribe tried to wash that experience from the gray cells that have it stored somewhere in his brain.
Busy election
The election was briefly touched on and a strange phenomenon popped up as many of the OFs did not vote for one or the other, rather they voted against one or the other. One OF who works at the polls said that this election was the busiest he has ever seen and he has been doing it a long time.
The OF said the poll workers did not even have time to eat. They caught a bite here and there as the evening went on.
The OF said they usually (in the town of Knox) have pizza brought in or they call for take-outs. Not this year — no time to do that. This OF also noted that the preponderance of young people voting was really noticeable.
All the OFs are glad the election is over and they can watch TV, and laugh at the Geico and Aflac ads, along with some others that are so interesting the OFs say they forget what is being advertised.
Nap experts
The OFs commented on the new trend of taking naps. The OFs are masters of how to do that. The OFs could write a book on nap-taking.
Most all the OFs say they feel refreshed after taking a nap. The duration of the naps and when they take them do vary, but basically the results are the same. One OF did mention that he does not nap because, when he does, he can’t sleep at night.
A couple of the OGs said that they have trouble sleeping at night and take naps all through the day. For them, this seems to work.
Some notable people who napped or got along on very little sleep were mentioned. One was Thomas Edison who had strange sleeping habits. One OF said that Edison thought ideas were in the air for anyone to grab and Edison figured that, if he were sleeping, he would miss some of these ideas.
One OF mentioned that he is tired all the time and all he has to do is sit down and he is asleep. How soundly the OFs were asleep in these naps did not come up but most claim they were actually asleep, and could tell by how much time had gone by that they did not realize had gone by.
One OF said he wakes up from his naps quite often for the same reason he wakes up at night — he has to go to the bathroom.
“Isn’t it funny,” one OG remarked, “that, even though the body is asleep, the plumbing keeps right on working?”
Fuel for the fire
A conversation that is common at this time of year is about the woodpiles of the OFs who burn wood for heat. Some have stoves; others have wood-burning furnaces either in the cellar or outdoors. A few have the outdoor furnaces that they run all year-round because they also use the furnace for hot water.
One OF said that, in his furnace, he uses wood that, for the most part, came from trees that have fallen or are dead. This helps keep his wood lot clean. With the outdoor furnace, it is possible to burn just about anything since the furnace is a good distance from the house so, if a chimney fire from creosote happens, it is not a problem.
What is a problem is to feed the dumb thing when it is 10-degrees below zero and there are two feet of snow outside to wade through. This makes it necessary to bundle up to put another log on the fire.
Just like cows: If the OF doesn’t feel good, the cows still have to be milked, and, in this case, the fire still has to be fed. Yep, it has to be done unless there is a good backup in case adversity happens.
Condolences
The Old Men of the Mountain would like to offer their condolences to the family of Dick Ogsbury who passed away on Veterans Day. Dick was ill for a long time and courageously dealt with it.
No scurvy
The Old Men of the Mountain who made it to the Home Front Café in Altamont, where the restaurant made sure the OFs would not get scurvy, were: Miner Stevens, Bill Lichliter, Roger Chapman, Robie Osterman, George Washburn, Wayne Gaul, Ted Feurer, John Rossmann, Harold Guest, Roger Shafer, Chuck Aelesio, Richard Frank, Dave Williams, Mike Willsey, Jack Norray, Gerry Irwin, Mace Porter, Mark Traver, Otis Lawyer, Bob Giebitz, Jim Rissacher, Bill Rice, Henry Whipple, Ted Willsey, Elwood Vanderbilt, Rich Vanderbilt, Marty Herzog, Harold Grippen, and me.
Location:
On Tuesday, Nov. 8, another gorgeous day, the Old Men of the Mountains met at the Chuck Wagon Diner, on Route 20 in Princetown.
The election weather was going to be nice, at least in our part of the country. This should make for a good turnout. Some of the OFs had already voted before the breakfast and others were going to vote right after.
One OF was working the polls, so another OF ordered a breakfast sandwich and delivered it to the one at the polls. Even though he was “working” at the polls, should we consider him an absentee at the breakfast? The rules will have to be checked for this.
The OFs had a good discussion on weight and weight control at the breakfast table and, looking at some of the breakfasts ordered, it must be that, for some of the OFs, it is only the one meal for the day.
It was discussed that even people who do not have diabetes could consider following the diabetes diet. Those OFs who do eat that way say it is a very bland diet, with no salt and many food items not allowed, especially sweets and many types of bread. What fun is there in that?
One OF thought that eating is for health and sustenance and not supposed to be fun. Say what!
At our age, for many of the OFs, eating is the only fun we have left. Sex is out, hiking is out, driving fast (if driving at all) is out, skydiving is really gone, scuba diving — forget that, but the OFs can still raise a knife and fork.
Summer stretches on
Some of the OFs are still mowing their lawns because the grass is still growing. One OF reported that the bees are even now working what flowers that are still around, and lady bugs are all over the place, at least up on the Hill.
One OF reported that, while sitting at the kitchen table, the lady bugs would seem to drop out of nowhere. He exclaimed, “It is particularly frustrating when they fall in my coffee cup while I am still drinking it.
Another OF mentioned that he was getting ready to shave and reached for the soap and it moved. The OF said he snapped his hand back and said to himself, “What the heck is that?” There were three live lady bugs trapped in the soap and those bugs were really ticked off.
These bugs are portrayed as cute little things (and they are) with their red wings with the black dots, but these suckers can bite.
How best to teach kids
The OFs do not remember dunce caps, but they do remember being put on a stool in the corner in school if and when they acted up. The OFs don’t know if they do that today or not.
One OF remembered a teacher in Schoharie who was a former United States Marine and then went on to become a teacher, and it was a good idea not to fool around in his class. This teacher had his own idea of the dunce cap and that was to have the one misbehaving stand in the front of the class with his or her arms outstretched until they felt like they were going to fall off.
This ex-Marine was a good teacher; the kids knew and understood what was going to be on a test, and this Marine was not afraid to hand out “A’s”
One OF said that the kids today get awards even when they lose. The OFs don’t quite understand that.
One OF said, “If you are in something to win, why bother when you are going to get an award even if you don’t try?”
Another OF said he did not think that was really the gist of it; this OF thought it was the perception of self-esteem that some kids are never going to be winners but should be rewarded for effort and at least trying their best. In their minds, this will make them a winner of sorts.
An OF said he can see this in some situations but not all. Some other OFs agreed but they did not elucidate as to what the differences were — sports, art, music, academics — or who was participating.
One OF liked the idea of having the smart kids in a smart class where they could be challenged. This OF thought the schools are dumbing down to the lowest common denominator. This is why we are being left behind by other countries.
This OF said he was in the slow class, and turned out alright, and had more fun in school than the egg heads. Another OF summed it up by saying that the ones running the show want to throw everyone in the same basket; however, people are different and there should be many baskets, but all baskets should be the same. Somehow this scribe understands that.
Bygone models
The OFs talked about the cars they have had and the names of some are really weird. Some of them they just rode in because they never could afford them — just like today.
The Duesenberg, Hudson, White, Whippet, Reo (truck), Studebaker, Packard, Willys, Nash, Hupmobile, Vauxhall, the Brewster with its bat-wing fenders and heart-shaped grill. Stanley Steamer, Franklin, Jack Benny’s Maxwell, Checker the yellow cab, the little Bantam, Auburn, the Kaiser with its double-arched windshield — these are just a few the OFs came up with and now these vehicles are no longer made.
Some the OFs could describe but could not come up with the names. Then there was the Tucker but that is another story. Probably those reading this can come up with some that are not listed. The OFs were not talking about the companies still manufacturing cars, like Ford, General Motors, Chrysler, and the like.
Those OFs who motored to the Chuck Wagon Diner in Princeton Tuesday morning, in cars with names just as strange only with names in languages from all over the world, were: Robie Osterman, George Washburn, Bill Lichliter, Roger Chapman, Chuck Aelesio, Richard Frank, Wayne Gaul, Ted Feurer, Roger Shafer, John Rossmann, Harold Guest, Bob Fink, Bob Benninger, Gerry Irwin, Glenn Patterson, (the OFs wish him good luck on his hip replacement,) Mark Traver, Jack Norray, Otis Lawyer, Mace Porter, Andy Tinning, Elwood Vanderbilt, Jim Rissacher, Marty Herzog, Gerry Chartier, Mike Willsey, Ted Willsey, Harold Grippen, and me.
Location:
When there are things to do and people to see on a repeat basis, the day that these activities are to to take place seems to roll around so quickly, the week seems to have only three days. So it is with Tuesdays.
The Old Men of the Mountain met Tuesday, the first day of November, at the Duanesburg Diner in Duanesburg. Wasn’t yesterday Tuesday? The day pops up much faster than a Thursday.
In a previous column, an OF mentioned the Army Air Corps. Another OF said it should have been the Army Air Force.
This information sent this scribe to the net to check it out. Like anything with government involvement, it became very convoluted. The OFs were each half right.
It was the United States Army Air Corps. from 1926 to 1941.* (That asterisk is where the confusion lies.) The Air Corps was discontinued on March 9, 1942 but in paperwork only it continued to exist as a branch of the Army (similar to the infantry, quartermaster, or artillery) until the reorganization act of 1947.
It took two years to complete the transfer of all military and civilian personnel to the Department of Defense and be called just the Air Force. So it became the USAF on June 22, 1949.
The semantics of this type of information is what makes discussions and arguments go on forever, both sides using their points and refusing to budge. As said, both are right, and both are wrong.
However, the patch was changed from the three-bladed propeller, to the wings and star in March 1942, which would help the argument of the U.S. Air Force being used while it was still a division of the Army until 1949. During the limbo period of 1942 to 1949, it was called the USAAF: United States Army Air Force. And, in 1949, the “Army” was dropped. Now you know the rest of the story.
Figuring inflation
The OFs tried to compute the price of inflation and what many items cost today. Many OFs mentioned what they paid for their first homes in the early forties and middle fifties and what the same house would go for today.
The OFs also included vehicles, and some items of clothing. Then, of course, there was the price of having a baby in the late forties, and early fifties and what it costs today. Within this topic, education and medicine were mentioned.
To the OFs, the current price of many products and services seems to far exceed the rate of inflation. Somehow we need a good reporter in the paper to scope this out and write an article in simple terms that the OFs can understand. Along with this, it was suggested large jumps in pay could be justified.
Growing up with bullies
The OFs took on the subject of bullying. Many of the OFs (this scribe included) said they had to contend with bullies and it was part of growing up,
And, as far as the conversation went, the OFs dealt with it, some with help and some by themselves. Only a few had to deal with gang bullying of a sort that was hard.
Is this something that has really gotten out of hand and with the advent of the internet a more serious threat? The OFs did not have to deal with that.
They met the bullying head on; if it was the physical kind, it would be similar to Ralphie in “A Christmas Story.” The mental type is a harder battle to win; the OFs thought this was the type you really needed help on.
The OFs also thought many of those who were bullied turned out better later on in life because of the experience than the one doing the bullying. The OFs could not remember anyone with physical or mental handicaps being bullied, but as one OF said: Back then, they were mostly in institutions and not out in harm’s way.
One OF said that the OFs had to remember we were in small schools, with small classes, and anyone who started out bullying only had to do it a couple of times and they were well taken care of and wouldn’t even think of continuing on with the practice.
Sharing fears
Along with this was another topic which came up later but is related because it is a problem the OFs deal with and work their way through — phobias.
The OFs talked about some of the phobias they have like claustrophobia, and acrophobia, and whatever name they attach to the phobia of bridges.
One OF mentioned that, when he drives over a bridge, his hands grip the wheel so tight that, if he were much stronger, he would crush the steering wheel. The OF said he looks straight ahead and is sure he does not blink. Some bridges he even slows down a bit before starting across.
Fear of flying was another one, and an OF said that this was more common than people think. Another OF added that he hates closed-in, tight places and thought that this might add to the fear of flying; it is not the flying but being closed in that the OF said was his problem.
All these OFs, though scared silly, did fly, and did drive over bridges. The OFs also talked about their fear (and this scribe began to get the feeling it was more a dislike than actual fear) of snakes, bats, and spiders. On the Hill, these critters are a part of the landscape and most who live there learned to cope with them.
Those OFs who made it to the Duanesburg Diner in Duanesburg and ate well even though they had to drive off a bridge to get there were: Robie Osterman, Miner Stevens, Roger Chapman, Chuck Aelesio, Richard Frank, Bill Lichliter, Roger Shafer (who is going to be playing and singing at Mrs. K’s on the 17th of this month), Harold Guest, John Rossmann, Jack Norray (who again brought flags for the Duanesburg Diner), Wayne Gaul, Mace Porter, Glenn Patterson, Otis Lawyer, Mark Traver, Bob Fink, Bob Benninger, Elwood Vanderbilt, Richard Vanderbilt, Mike Willsey, Gerry Chartier, Ted Willsey, Jim Rissacher, Henry Whipple, Harold Grippen, and me.
Location:
On this Tuesday morning, it was reported again that around 6:30 to 7 a.m. the wildlife was very active and out running around. No time to be late for work and scurrying down the highway because our friendly critters are out there scurrying too. It may be the weather, because it was a tad chilly on Oct. 25 and the wildlife likes this weather so they become a little perkier.
Tuesday morning, an OF used a statement that the OF must have read from one of these cute signs that are on a lot of refrigerator doors, or hung in many restaurants, because a perfect time came in one of the discussions where the OF could use this little ditty: “If I thought you were right, that would make both of us wrong.”
That is another witticism that can be stored is some gray cell to use at the appropriate time in a discussion, particularly one on politics.
The OFs seemed in a nostalgic frame of mind. They went back in time (the 1940s and ’50s) to when Schenectady was a completely different city. Some mentioned how much the city has changed physically on State Street and Erie Boulevard.
One OF mentioned that it now looks a lot like what they did in Oneonta years ago, with landscaping and benches and lighting. The OFs said it is still not the old Schenectady when the Carl Co., Wallace Armer, Woolworth, and Grants were in full bloom and in business in the city.
The OFs remembered getting your change from vacuum tubes that ran around the store. One OF thought Wallace Armer had the tube run around on a trolley system. The Carl Co. had an elevator with an elevator operator.
The OFs also remember people walking all over the city, especially State Street, Erie Boulevard, and Broadway. There were many active stores from the Van Curler Hotel, up the hill all the way to the park. Going to Schenectady was more fun than going to Albany.
Bad ads
Again, the OFs discussed the political ads on TV. They are so nauseating.
With the ads running continuously and saying nothing, the OFs think both major parties want us not to vote because they think a low turnout will favor them; therefore, they run these vile ads to get the populace so fed up they stay home.
Whoop!
A fellow stopped in the restaurant not to eat but to get directions. Whoop!
Asking directions from this group, which requires four guys in a car each Tuesday morning just to be sure to find the restaurant where the breakfast is going to be, is one big mistake. But the OFs were nice and only let three or four OFs give the lost soul directions.
The directions sounded correct to this scribe and this scribe knows a little bit about the village so it made sense. The OFs hope the gentleman finds Bridge Street.
One OF said, “Did you ever think, when giving directions in a case like this to a complete stranger, that you might be giving directions to somebody who does not have the best intent on doing whatever he is going to do when he gets to where he is going?”
No, was the collective answer.
Droning on
Drones were another topic of discussion. These new toys are becoming more than toys.
One OF said that some youngsters are making platforms with the drones under them and flying them by standing on the platform. The OF said that these daredevils now are going as high as 50 to 60 feet in the air, and maneuvering them by leaning on them one way or the other and leaning forward to go faster. Then they seem to be using the radio controls to hover and go up and down.
Some of the OFs said, if they were younger, this looks like it would be fun. Some OFs did not know if these were truly drones, or an improvement on the boards that were used awhile back, using fans and Venturi tubes to direct the flow. (Giovanni Battista Venturi (1746–1822), was an Italian physicist. The Venturi effect is the reduction in fluid pressure that results when a fluid flows through a constricted section — or choke — of a pipe. So says Google).
Who knows, maybe this is how we will be visiting our friends and neighbors in the future. “That is until something else comes along,” an OF said.
One OF thought they can only be used in good weather, it can’t be raining, or too windy. That is right for reasonable people, but kids think they are never going to die or get hurt and when these things become popular the kids will use them in a snow storm.
Blind spots
Apparently there was an accident in front of the Carrot Barn, which is only a few miles down the road toward Route 7 from the Your Way Café and it brought up a pretty good discussion on how many blind spots there are on the roadways. The OFs started listing some that are really bad.
One was the intersection on Route 443, where county Route 1 (Switzkill Road) crosses 443 just west of the Berne town park. Vehicles heading east on 443 and coming over the little knoll by the cemetery have to be particularly leery when approaching this intersection. When vehicles crossing 443 at this intersection, the sight distance to the top of that rise — the OFs guess — is only about 100 feet or so.
Another bad spot is from the optical illusion on Beebe Road in the town of Knox. Beebe Road appears to continue without a road crossing it. Route 146 (which is the main road) has an intersection where Beebe road crosses, and to strangers driving Beebe it appears like 146 isn’t even there until the driver is upon it and sees the stop sign.
One OF remarked, “If he even sees the stop sign!”
The optical illusion, this OF thinks, relaxes the driver enough not to even expect road or sign.
The OFs talked about many other risky areas, especially driveways that enter the road at dangerous locations.
Driving is a challenge: animals that can’t read, bikes that play car and ride in the middle of the road, dead limbs that can fall out of tree at anytime, drivers texting who don’t even notice what lane they are in, and then the OFs with their legs that don’t work and only one eye— they are all out there. It is pure luck anybody gets to where they are going.
The Old Men of the Mountain who accepted the challenge of driving, drove to the Your Way Café in Schoharie and these OFs were: Miner Stevens, John Rossmann, Harold Guest, Robie Osterman, George Washburn, Chuck Aelesio, Richard Frank, Roger Shafer, Wayne Gaul, Lou Schenck, Sonny Mercer, Ray Kennedy, Roger Chapman, Don Wood, Bob Fink, Bob Benninger, Greg Hawk, John Jasniewski, Ted Feurer, Jim Rissacher, Marty Herzog, Elwood Vanderbilt, Mike Willsey, Harold Grippen, and me.