On May 5, the Old Men of the Mountain met at the “Your Way Café” in Schoharie. Years ago, there was a “My Way Café” on Route 9 around Clifton Park. This particular café was all done up with Frank Sinatra paraphernalia; however, the one in Schoharie has no such motif.
It is a clever name implying how you might want your food prepared, but, on the other hand, this may lead to some discussion between patron and cook. There was none of that discussed with the OFs; everything came in large portions, and just as ordered.
The OFs for the most part are grandparents, and a few are great-grandparents, so, when the OFs start talking about their own grandparents, the conversation is going back a ways. That is what some of the OFs were doing Tuesday morning.
They were remembering what they did with their grandparents, and what type of people they were and what they talked about. For instance, say the OF is 80, and the grandparent of the OF was 80, and the OF is remembering when he was 7 to 10 years old, and the grandparent was remembered when they were 25 to 30 years old. Now the OFs are talking of events around 128 to 130 years ago. That is getting back there.
Even though this has been mentioned many times before, we spoke again of how the parents of the OFs went from horse and buggy to men on the moon. Some OFs’ parents went from the Great Depression, to the Regan era.
Most all of the OFs’ parents went from farming with horses to tractors that drive themselves. One OF mentioned that we could see the progression of time then, and even when the OF was in the work force. This OF continued ruminating that now the progression of time is so fast that what is new today is obsolete tomorrow.
One OF said, “I love it. I would like to be 6 or 7 years old now and just see what the world will be like in another 60 to 70 years.”
Another OF chimed in, “Yeah, if this old planet is still here and we haven’t blown it up by then.”
New cars for old hands
How the OFs segued into new cars from this previous conversation is almost understandable, because one OF just purchased a new vehicle for his wife (yeah, right). This might have been the reason for the discussion that followed.
It was brought up that some of the new cars do not supply even a “doughnut” for a spare tire. The vehicle comes with a can of “Fix-a-Flat.”
“That stuff does work,” one OF said. “But it’s a mess, and what if you sliced your tire on a piece of angle iron, how is ‘Fix-a-Flat’ going to fix that flat?”
The OFs remember when cars came with two spare tires, one in each front fender. A couple of the OFs noted cars came with a parts book, and even tools for the parts that required specialty tools.
Along with that, the cars had lines; each make and model was different, and it was possible to tell which model was which. One OF said, when a bank robber was making his getaway years ago, the witnesses could say the car was a 1935, black, four-door Buick custom sedan, and the police would know what they were looking for.
Today, all they can say is, “It was a gray car, Officer, or maybe it was a pickup truck.”
The witness might be able to identify a red SUV. That’s about it. If it was a Honda, or Toyota, Mazda, Ford, Chevy, hey, they all look alike!
When the OFs were YFs, they used to play a game on trips called “name that car.” When a car was spotted coming at them, they would start calling out the name and make of the car when it was just a dot on the horizon.
“Plymouth Coupe,” someone would shout, and everyone else would say, “Oh nuts,” because the friend or sibling spotted it first. It would be rare that somebody else would call a different car.
Plastic tractors
After reminiscing about cars, the OFs talked about tractors, especially lawn tractors, and mentioned the new ads they have seen from Cub Cadet. There was a time when International made the Cub Cadet and it was made like a tractor, now it is made by MTD, and just as tinny.
Only it’s really not “tinny” and an OF implied the tractors are all plastic and that stuff doesn’t last five or six years before it starts to crack, and things loosen up.
Another OF said, “You can’t hammer dents out of plastic, and you can’t weld a stiffer piece onto where you have a problem.”
“Not made to last, like lots of other equipment,” one OF opined. “We are a throw-away society, planned obsolescence, tough and long lasting is a joke.”
Another OF asked, “Have you ever tried to get a part for something older than five years?” This OF said, “If an OF buys something they really like, they should buy two of these products. That way, you can start up the second one when the first one goes bad, and then the first one can become a parts machine.”
“Not a bad idea,” one OF replied.
The frog that got away
Now for a completely unrelated story (and it’s too bad the OF did not have a camera for this one). The OF said that he was out getting the garden ready and he saw a snake trying to eat a frog.
The snake had half the frog in his mouth and the half of the frog that wasn’t in the snake’s mouth was holding on a stick trying not to go down the snake’s throat. The OF relating this tale said that he did not know how a snake could eat something that large.
He also said he got a stick and struck the snake so the frog got away. The OF did not elaborate on how long this took, or how it happened, but that is what he said anyway.
Those OFs who made their way to the “Your Way Café” in Schoharie and inaugurated their first breakfast in a familiar building with the new name were: Roger Chapman, Roger Shafer, Dave Williams, Dick Ogsbury, Otis Lawyer, Chuck Aleseio, Mark Traver, Glenn Patterson, Frank Pauli, John Rossmann, Karl Remmers, George Washburn, Robie Osterman, Miner Stevens, Harold Guest, Bob Fink, Bob Benninger, Art Frament, Bob Benac, Lou Schenck, Jack Norray, Mace Porter, Don Wood, Warren Willsey, Mike Willsey, Bill Krause, and me.
Location:
Sometimes Tuesday rolls around so fast, and at other times it seems like it will never get here. Tuesday, April 28, seemed like it was the day after the 21st; it was here in a flash. On the 28th, the Old Men of the Mountain met at the Country Café in Schoharie.
One of the OFs mentioned he needed new semi-dress pants so the OF bought what was his size, or at least he thought it was his size; when he tried them on at home, the button came nowhere near the button hole. The OF was not ashamed to mention the size he purchased, which was “Dockers 40” x 30”. So the OF looked at the size of the jeans he had on and they were 38” x 29”, and fit perfectly.
In order to get a pair of Dockers to fit, the OF said he would have to go to 42 or maybe even 44. The OF continued complaining that, if he purchased jeans that size, there would be room for another person.
Then an OF mentioned there is the same problem with shoes. He tried on a pair of 10W and they were so tight, they curled his toes — he looked at the shoes he had on and they were 10W.
What is it with shoes and clothes? Don’t they know how to read a ruler?
“If I am building a shed,” one OF said, “and I need a 2x4 cut 50 and 1/8 inches, by golly, it had better be 50 and 1/8 inches.”
How can there be such discrepancies in wearing apparel? 38” is 38” — no ifs, ands, or buts.
The OF with the shoes said he tried 10W by the same manufacturer, only a different style, and that one slipped up and down on his heel, and looked as big as a small swimming pool yet it was marked 10W, on the box, and in the shoe.
The question the OMOTM are asking is: How in the world do manufacturers size clothes? If they screw up sizing simple men’s clothing (which is basically just shirts and pants), what in world do they do with women’s clothes and shoes?
This must be some sort game with these people to see how many trips people will have to make back and forth to the store, or how long they can keep them shopping in the store so they will purchase other items. The question still remains: How can there be such discrepancies because reading a ruler is not that hard?
New bulbs
We have gone from the incandescent lamps and bulbs to those new energy-saving bulbs that can catch fire, and now the OFs say we are into the age of LED lighting. The OFs don’t seem to mind this new type of lighting. Light-emitting diodes seem safe and use very little power.
The OFs still haven’t adjusted to the energy-saving bulbs. These things do not always fit the fixtures, or the lamps. Some of the OFs say they think that the light from the energy-saving bulbs gives them headaches. One OF wondered if there has been a study done on this phenomenon.
Concerns over the fate of fox kits
Switching to another topic, we hear that some of the OFs have spotted red fox around with their kits. Foxes are neat animals to have around. They are timid and not at all aggressive.
“Foxes,” one OF said, “are like snakes. They keep the rodents and other unwanted pests down.”
The first OF said the fox that hangs around his place had four or five kits, which is about average for a litter of fox pups. But the OF said, in the last couple of days, he hasn’t seen the kits, or heard them and he is afraid some other animal has got them (like a cat or bird) because, when born, they are very small, only about four ounces or so.
One OF suggested it might even be a coon that got them because in the same area they have spotted a couple of coons.
Draft could fix brats
The Navy guys were at it again. This time was on how well most sailors eat.
Apparently the cooks in the Navy are well trained, because this has been brought up before. This scribe thinks that a cook aboard ship had better get it right; the cook has no place to run and hide, particularly on the smaller ships of 120 men or less.
When the OFs were YFs, there was a thing called the draft. Everyone was given a draft number and, if that number came up, that was it — you were off to the military.
For many guys, it was the best thing that happened to them (when the OFs were YFs, it was guys; girls did not get drafted — they could enlist but were not drafted). The camaraderie and the stories of events that happened in this period of the OFs’ lives continues well into the senior years to bring people together who have had the same, or similar, experiences.
Some OFs think there should still be a mandatory draft to teach some of today’s spoiled, bratty kids discipline and respect. The back talk and sass some of the kids give their parents and teachers make the OFs cringe, and sometimes it is the way their own grandkids treat their parents.
One OF said, “Should you back talk or sass just once to some tough, old drill sergeant, you wouldn’t say or do that again to anybody.”
One OF had a kid in his unit who was a real wimp, and who couldn’t even ride a bicycle, but during basic training he toughened up a bit and was assigned to a tank division. He became a tank driver, and in two to three weeks he was putting a Sherman tank through its paces as a tank commander. There is a young man who will go home a completely different person.
Those OFs who made it to the Country Café on Main Street in Schoharie, and were all dressed in clothes that seemed to fit, were: Roger Shafer, John Rossmann, Harold Guest, Chuck Aleseio, Dave Williams, Miner Stevens, Dick Ogsbury, George Washburn, Robie Osterman, Glenn Patterson, Mark Traver, Roger Chapman, Steve Kelly, Bob Fink, Bob Benninger, (who got a hug and a kiss from the waitress who is his granddaughter), Lou Schenck, Jack Norray, Gerry Irwin, Mace Porter, Duncan Bellinger, Jim Rissacher, Gill Zabel, Elwood Vanderbilt, Mike Willsey, Gerry Chartier, Harold Grippen, and me.
Location:
On Tuesday, April 21, the Old Men of the Mountain met at Mrs. K’s Restaurant in Middleburgh where the OFs (who the wives kick out of the house so they can have some peace) gather to complain.
One item that has been on the OFs’ agenda for complaints is burning barrels in the country. In most towns, there is a ban on burning barrels
Middleburgh had a prime example of why the banning of burning barrels is important, and necessary. Just south of Middleburgh is Huntersland and on Sunday, April 19, a fire in a burn barrel got out of hand, and 80 acres of woods was eventually burned because of it.
It would have been far worse if the fire departments responding did not get that blaze under control. It took 12 fire companies to complete the task of corralling this fire.
Some of the OFs, particularly those who actually live in Huntersland, were with the second truck there. These OFs spent the whole day fighting that fire; the wind made this quite a challenge.
At one time, they thought they would have to evacuate a couple of homes on top of the mountain but all the work these people did in fighting the fire and the extreme effort these volunteers put out had it under control and it was not necessary to evacuate anyone.
The rains of Monday night were a big help all the way around. The woods were becoming prone to fires because they were so dry. One OF reported that, while Conesville was aiding in fighting this fire, they had calls that two fires had broken out in their own fire district.
This is a good example of first responders, and volunteers in “volunteer” fire companies demanding much more respect than is given by many people. These “volunteers” don’t demand anything, they are our neighbors, brothers and sisters, and it is just what they do. Some day, the family they save may be their own.
Serendipity
It never ceases to amaze this scribe at what transpires around the breakfast tables when the OMOTM are gathered. One OF who we have mentioned in previous columns has a serious health problem and is unable to walk.
With his insurance running out, he will not be able to remain in the facility he is in where he is getting the physical therapy he needs. This OF has a full-size van as a vehicle, which was his means of transportation before his problem set in.
OK! That sets up the following scene.
Some of the OFs go and play cards with the OF who requires the therapy and they were discussing his plight of transportation while playing cards and the probability that he will require a lift van to get in and out to go to therapy. They were talking with the OF in the facility about the possibility that he might need another van, or else try to obtain one of those lifts that goes out the back installed in his current vehicle.
When this conversation was repeated at the breakfast Tuesday morning, one OF pipes up, “Ya know, I have one of those lifts, brand new and complete with wiring, in my garage. If someone here knows how to install it, he can have it.”
You never know when the OFs who collect things are going to have just the thing another OF will need. If one OF needs a siren, another OF will have one.
This scribe has mentioned these types of scenarios before, but this has to be one of the better ones. Who would expect someone to require a wheelchair lift, and another one who happens to be in on the conversation to have a wheelchair lift just lying around. Go figure!
The follow-up will be to see if all this comes to pass. This will be a win-win for all involved.
The OF who needs the lift will have a lift and his life may be much better for it. The OF who has the lift (for no apparent reason other than the opportunity came up) was given it while he was picking up other items he bought at an estate sale.
The OF who now has the lift will have more space to store his unusual, and so far, great finds. To many of the OFs, the Lord has his hand in the pot from who knows when to wind up who knows where when it will be needed.
Keepers and chuckers
At another location at the same table, there was a discussion on the blood connection of a couple of the OFs. The OFs had just discussed cemeteries, and now they are on the same hallowed ground only with a different take — this was taking names from old burial records and matching them to tombstones. One OF brought in the records and it included the genealogy and photos of tombstones and the burial records.
The OFs for the most part are the type of people who respect what has gone on in the past and who the OFs are and how they got here. Most are the keeper type. Then there are the type of people who, if they don’t need or use it in 10 days, out it goes. There is no junk, or collectibles here, but the OFs have found that quite often the early chuckers depend a lot on the keepers, or pickers, or the “some day I will have a use for that’ type of OF.
The OFs believe in the barter system, and, if you have nothing to barter with — neither stuff nor time nor talent — you are in trouble in this group.
The OFs who found room at the tables in Mrs. K’s Restaurant, in Middleburgh, were: Frank Pauli, Harold Guest, Dick Ogsbury, Chuck Aleseio, Mark Traver, Glenn Patterson, Steve Kelly, Henry Witt, John Rossmann, Miner Stevens, Karl Remmers, George Washburn, Robie Osterman, Otis Lawyer, Roger Shafer, Roger Chapman, Lou Schenck, Jack Norray, Bob Benninger, Bob Fink, Don Wood, Warren Willsey, Mike Willsey, Gerry Chartier, Elwood Vanderbilt, Gill Zabel, Harold Grippen, Jim Rissacher, and me.
Location:
Ah! Tuesday, April 14, was finally a decent day. The Old Men of the Mountain who were gathered up by their designated drivers for this particular Tuesday wound up at the Middleburgh Diner in Middleburgh.
As time goes by, and the OFs become older OFs, those who were hard of hearing years ago are now more so. When three of the older OFs who are hard of hearing are seated together, there is a lot of staring off into space because all these OFs hear is the “Peanuts” speak of the TV shows, where Charlie Brown’s Christmas and the adult sounds are wah, wah, wahha, wa, wa.
That is what these OFs hear, because their hearing aids are on the dresser or in a drawer in the kitchen. Those things only work one on one, and only when it is relatively quiet. This scribe speaks from experience because he is one of the three sitting together.
Milk glut
In the column from a couple of weeks ago, the OMOTM mentioned the security of having a job with a farm in the family. Farmers who are involved with the OMOTM shared recent news of there being a glut of milk in our area of the Northeast; the co-op that handles the milk from some of these large dairies in the area are not going to take their milk because they have too much milk.
This became quite a discussion with these OFs. The OFs harkened back to many of the OFs’ heritage that of being farmers.
This is very shortsighted on the part of the co-op because many times when there is an over abundance of any commodity that is used on a regular basis and the powers that be decide to cut back, instead of cut down, eventually the abundance is used up and they have to gear up to meet the new demand.
After the farmers who were in the co-op are forced to sell all their cows because they can’t afford to stay in business, the OFs ask: Now what? It takes awhile to grow a cow.
One OF wondered, who is running this co-op? He asked, “Isn’t a co-op formed just to prevent this type of happening, and shouldn’t it work on behalf of those in the co-op?”
Another OF said, “The final outcome of the problem is still in the air as of this Tuesday.”
There may be a resolution to resolve the problem in the works as this is being typed.
Then some of the OFs got on the doomsayers of the press as they waddle in the mud of doom and gloom. So much for that!
Doom and gloom
Speaking of gloom and doom, the OFs entered into the conversation by speaking about how many of the OFs are having breakfast on a cloud in the sky. The OFs traveled back in time to the beginning and found the group on the cloud is larger in numbers now than the group at the Middleburgh Diner.
The OFs started to include other groups they are familiar with or were part of. One OF mentioned a photograph taken of the department where he worked, and said there were about 40 employees at that time; when he retired, there were five left.
This department kept the photo, and, as individuals left, they crossed off their head in the photo. That is an interesting concept, and a great way to remember those who are gone.
The OMOTM are fortunate because of the introduction of new blood. Many of the OFs had friends when they were still working and when the OF retired many of these friends come and have breakfast with the friends they had while they were working and who retired before them. Those newly retired friends also now have friends that are still working, and you guessed it — the show goes on.
Double urns
Like many conversations, whether it is OFs or not, the above discussion led to death and burials. This conversation was also prompted by the passing of Ted Pelkey, a loyal OF who was cremated and his memorial service was April 10.
The talk of double urns came up and was thought of as a neat idea. This way, one doesn’t have to invest in a huge burial plot, and is a good way to beat that “until death do us part” bit. This way, you can be buried together.
One thought: What about a great big urn with many compartments — then it would be possible to have the whole family with you.
One OF who was a Navy man said he isn’t going to need a burial plot; he is going to be cremated and his ashes spread on the sea.
Another OF thought that, as a gun enthusiast, he is going to instruct his family to find someone who loads their own bullets to stuff his ashes into some shotgun shells and shoot them off into the woods. Cool idea.
However, the ideas came quickly after that; some are not reportable.
Those OFs still on this side of the sod, and able to make it to the Middleburgh Diner in Middleburgh, were: Roger Chapman, Harold Guest, George Washburn, Miner Stevens, Chuck Aleseio, Glenn Patterson, Mark Traver, Frank Pauli, Dave Williams, Robie Osterman, Otis Lawyer, Henry Witt, Lou Schenck, Jack Norray, Gerry Irwin, Don Wood, Bob Fink, Bob Benninger, Bill Krause, Jim Rissacher, Gil Zabel, Harold Grippen, Elwood Vanderbilt, Henry Whipple, and me.
Location:
On a very damp, raw day for April 7, the Old Men of the Mountain headed up the mountain to the Hilltown Café, in Rensselaerville to meet and eat.
Much of the chat this morning was quite repetitive of chats that have gone on before, i.e., worms; honey; honeybees, where is spring (with the desire for that spring enthusiasm); and finally, a few new — not really new but different — takes on some old topics.
One OF who used to do his own maple syrup said he hasn’t made any syrup in the last few years, and was telling about all the work involved in processing the sap into syrup. One reason for his not processing the syrup is because at one time he boiled the sap evaporator too long, and somehow the OF scorched the evaporator.
The OF then explained that he took the evaporator to George Gobel to have it repaired. The other OFs had a quizzical look on their faces as he was telling this story because they equated the name George Gobel with George Gobel, the well-known comedian, and not the George Gobel who lives in the Hilltowns and has a welding shop.
For the under-50 crowd, George Gobel was a very funny comedian who had his own show on T.V. George Gobel had a “crew cut” or “flattop” hairstyle, which stemmed from being a pilot in World War II.
“Well, I’ll be a dirty bird” was a George Gobel euphemism that was a very popular catchphrase in the 1950s and ’60s.
WhytheJapanesedidn’tconquerOklahoma.wmv is a very funny clip with George Gobel, Johnny Carson, Dean Martin, and Bob Hope. In this clip, keep your eye on Dean Martin.
George Gobel died in 1991 after undergoing heart surgery.
Anyway, getting back to the OF and his syrup, the OF said that Gobel Welding repaired his evaporator to a like-new condition. This OF said he is thinking about making syrup again but it will be a lot of work digging all this equipment out from where he stashed it a few years ago.
To the OFs now, that is the key (it will be a lot of work). If it involves a lot of work, the OFs now back off.
Winter water woes
Because this winter, while not the worst we’ve seen, is right up there with one of the worst, the OFs were talking about water problems. Not only have some of the OFs had water problems but we hear stories about a lot of others who have been in the same predicament.
Some water problems were not of the winter’s doing but just parts of their water systems decided to wear out and repairing them now became a winter situation. One OF who lives in the village and uses village water had the snowplow break the valve off at the line going into his home from the main line.
So the OF is without water, and the Department of Public Works decided to move that valve further back so the plow and valve would not come together again. Now the OF’s lawn is all torn up.
Another OF had to change a water pump that went bad, and the pump-repair person was standing in snow up to his knees for hours while doing the job, but at least the well was away from the house. Read on.
Another OF told of a friend who drilled his well and then built the house around it, concluding that this was a smart idea because the well would never freeze. That is true, but pumps do go bad from things other than freezing, and this one did.
The OF said, in order to pull the pump from the deep well, they had to cut holes in the floors and through the ceiling to facilitate the process.
Pranks of old
From last week we talked about pranks we pulled as YFs and these are pranks of old. Continuing this conversation, we noted the occurrences took place more than 50 or 65 years ago.
This particular prank is a classic and it was not revealed for over 50 years because it was done by one person who never mentioned it or told a soul until a class reunion some 50 years in the making. This prank the whole school knew about, and the whole community of Schoharie did also when it happened.
The OF in question just happens to be a classmate of an OF who eats breakfast with the rest of our distinguished group of OFs. In order to perfect this prank, the OF in question (when he was a YF) disguised his voice, which was not hard for him to do since he had lost the high-pitched voice of adolescence when he was in third grade.
This YF called the Schoharie Stone Quarry, which was directly behind the school, and ordered in the name of the school maintenance superintendent, two loads of stone. The YF directed the quarry where to dump the stone, giving the reason that the school was going to repair the drive and it required the delivery first thing in the morning. This way the school could have the job done by the end of the day.
The quarry did as directed; not knowing that, by dumping the stone where they were told to dump it, the stone would block all the school busses from getting out. And it did. In panic mode, school had to be canceled, and parents notified.
In this case, no damage was done, no one hurt, just a bunch of ticked-off school officials, and the stone was used to repair the bus area, and the test that the YF was trying to get out of was given the next day. So there, the school won, and the YF had only one day’s reprieve.
Condolences
Once again, The Old Men of the Mountain must offer condolences to family and friends of another member who has passed away. Ted Pelkey entered into the final, resting peace we all must venture into some day; there is no escaping it.
Teddy was 96 years old and he often said he had been on this planet long enough.
The OFs who hauled their creaky frames up the mountain to the Hilltown Café in Rensselaerville for their candlelight breakfast with enjoyable repartee were: Frank Pauli, Harold Guest, John Rossmann, Robie Osterman, Karl Remmers, Miner Stevens, Dave Williams, Bob Snyder, Jack Norray, Lou Schenk, Mace Porter, Otis Lawyer, Glenn Patterson, Chuck Aleseio, Mark Traver, Jim Heiser, Elwood Vanderbilt, Gil Zabel, Ted Willsey and his daughter Sally, Bill Krause, and me.
Location:
The Old Men of the Mountain met at the Home Front Café in Altamont on the last day of March 2015 and early in the morning it was not too pleasant. The air was cold and the wind was blowing, and the OFs queried, “So what else is new?” At least the Home Front was warm, and had the wake-up smell of breakfast in the air.
Quite often, it is noted how the OFs arrive at the restaurant of the day and what type of transportation they’re using. Tuesday morning, one of the “gang” (as a couple OFs have noted the OMOTM have been called by some of their younger friends) showed up with his passengers in a new Nissan Leaf — a zero-emission car. That alone takes years off being an OMOTM just by the jump into today’s technology.
This vehicle is fully electric, can be charged at home overnight (we don’t know how much that costs in electricity) and it is ready to go the next day provided it is just running around town. At least there are no gas or oil changes to contend with.
There is one question though: How much of the battery will it take to operate the heater and air conditioner? Those two things are energy sucker-uppers.
The body ages faster than the mind
The OFs began discussing how old they are. This topic does not come up often; it is not something the OFs think about much — only when they get up in the morning and have to get the body cranked up.
After that, it is a personal thing and, once the body gets going, age by the numbers is basically gone, and age by the mind takes over. The age on getting up says, “Boy, my 80-year-old body creaks like an old pirate ship in a stiff breeze.”
Once going ,the mind thinks the OF is a 50-year-old. That can get many OFs into trouble because that sack of grain the OFs used to lift (still 100 pounds) now weighs a ton to the OFs of 80 years. Eighty vs. 50 takes over now.
Listening to the OFs say their ages Tuesday morning around one end of the table lets all the OFs know why we are the OMOTM number-wise, but 50 mind-wise.
The age discussion worked its way into retirement and retirement plans. When the OFs were young, retiring, and retirement plans were not even thought of. Many worked on the farm; at that time, the job security was perpetual, from father to son or daughter, and so on.
Somewhere along the line, that changed. The OFs thought it was a byproduct of World War II. A lot of the people of the era before World War II are having tough times now because they are older and body parts are wearing out.
The cost of keeping these people wired together is going out of sight. Many OFs have been retired 20 or more years, and have really learned to manage their money because there is not much money coming in now.
Cemeteries from on high
The OFs went from age, to retirement, to cemeteries. Now that is a progression that is fitting for OMOTM.
One OF mentioned this is the time of year to look for old cemeteries from a low, slow-flying plane like a Piper J3, or some home-built aircraft. From the plane — and some of the OFs have done this — the OF is able to see stone-wall fences meandering through the woods to nowhere.
You might even see the stone fences and old cemeteries by driving down the highway now, because it is possible to look deep into the woods where there are no leaves on the underbrush.
These old family burial plots contain many of the names of the people of the Hilltowns and may fill in the blanks of much of the history of the area. These same cemeteries (location and history) could also explain the reason for some of the stone-wall fences, and why they are where they are.
It was also mentioned that some old cemeteries are abandoned because the family has died out, or those connected with the cemetery have left and moved away. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the town to maintain these plots.
But they can’t do that if they don’t know where these places are. An OF was wondering if it would be a cool project to locate, catalogue, and map as many of these old burial grounds as could be found.
That also may facilitate finding the reasons for all the ghost stories of the hills, maybe even spot a few ghosts. They are around, you know.
Lonely old barns
Without realizing what is going on with the barn in New Scotland by the golf club, the OFs talked about the demise of so many older barns in the hills. The farms are gone, and the barns sit so lonely and no one pays any attention to them.
There is no preventative maintenance and no immediate damage repair — the barns take the brunt of it. Finally, the poor things just give up and collapse.
The reason the OFs can relate to these old structures, with all their history, is because the old barn is akin to many older people. They’re like old barns out in the field left alone to collapse, taking all their knowledge with them.
The OFs did discuss how individuals are restoring a few of the structures. The old post-and-beam barns held together with wooden pegs have been battling the elements for centuries and one OF said many are still as square as when they were built.
One OF thought that these abandoned buildings may still be teeming with life. There are birds finding refuge in their rafters; squirrels, chipmunks, and field mice roaming freely in their stone foundations; and snakes might be raising their young under the old decaying floor boards.
Even after collapsing, the old barn will still offer shelter to all these field critters. One OF said: Don’t forget all the bugs and beetles that will feed off the barn’s decaying structure, then the skunks come and coons, and that decaying barn becomes a world unto its own.
An OF concluded with it being a good thing we at the breakfast table are old barns but we sure are being well-maintained and nourished — look at some of the breakfasts these OFs are packing away.
Those OFs who made it to the Home Front Café in Altamont, and who may not still be square, but who have not fallen down yet, were: Karl Remmers, Dick Ogsbury, Henry Witt, Roger Chapman, George Washburn, Robie Osterman, Bill Lichliter, John Rossmann, Harold Guest, Mark Traver, Glenn Patterson, Chuck Aleseio, Frank Pauli, Lou Schenck, Bill Krause, Bob Benninger, Bob Fink, Elwood Vanderbilt, Harold Grippen, Ted Willsey (2), Jim Rissacher (2), and me.
Location:
The Old Men of the Mountain gather on Tuesday every week at a roundtable series of restaurants. The OFs refer to this as spreading the wealth.
These restaurants are spaced throughout the area like a clock and, as the OFs rotate through the clock, they are able to tell where the next breakfast will be if they miss one or even two. This Tuesday, which was March 24, the OFs gathered at the Chuck Wagon Diner in Princetown.
Any OF that missed the breakfast this past Tuesday will know where the next one is by this constant rotation. Why is this important? The reason is the OFs can’t remember a thing so it is necessary to keep it simple. Read on.
Two OFs planned a trip off the Hill to go to the doctor. The price of gas has gone down but the OFs remember when gas was 29 cents a gallon; now $2.55 a gallon still seems excessive to the OFs so this prompts them to accomplish as much as they can into one trip.
The doctor’s appointment was going to be coupled with grocery shopping, getting the car washed, and a couple of other errands the OF could not remember. However, the main reason for the trip was to go to the doctor, and, when the OFs arrived at the doctor’s office, they found they were there at the right time but the wrong day.
Another OF who has to make real plans to go anywhere (because he requires transportation) also was planning trips around a doctor’s appointment, only this OF not only had things to do but also had time constraints thrown in. This OF thought (and the key word here is thought) that his appointment was for his annual physical, with a prostate check included for good measure.
This OF was all prepped mentally for his appointment for the “oil and filter change” (as the one doing the tattling put it) only to find out that it was the wrong kind of physical he was expecting and the wrong doctor. He was supposed to be at the eye doctor for a checkup with the retina specialist, and again, as the tattler told it, the wrong area of the body was going to be poked.
We OFs have to be saved from ourselves — in many cases, it is a good thing there are people watching over us.
Remembering Iwo Jima
We, as a nation, have just celebrated the 75th anniversary battle of Iwo Jima during World War II. That is the battle where the iconic photograph was taken of the Marines raising the flag, which is now also a very famous statue.
The OFs have a member who was on that island immediately after the initial attack; there were still pockets of resistance from the enemy. This OF was a bulldozer operator and does not talk about the war much.
This scribe has known this OF for a long time. The OF is a licensed plumber and electrician and this scribe has used his services on a number of occasions and only knew he was in the service. That was it.
At the breakfast Tuesday morning, there was another OF who had to tattle. All one of the OFs mentioned to this scribe was, “You know the OF that was the licensed electrician and plumber was in the battle of Iwo Jima” and that was all the OF said.
That was enough to make this scribe ask the OF that was in the battle about any recollections he might have. This OF that was asked said he was there about a month and what he still remembers is the smell, and the smell was of dead bodies because part of his job was to dig trenches where all the dead bodies were placed and then he had to cover them up.
Although not spoken out loud, but implied, it was more or less a joint burial of American and Japanese. Warriors of two nations joined in a final everlasting peace, resting side by side in a communal hole in the ground. That kind of experience is something not many of us would want to remember or talk about either.
Pulling pranks
The pranks the OFs pulled in their early days would today have us in prison, or at least fined. One OF told how, in his one-room school, they caught a skunk and put it in the schoolhouse, and the skunk, in panic, sprayed the whole place.
This OF said it was days before they could get back into that schoolhouse. This OF did not relate if the parents got together and had school held at one of their homes. Apparently not, because the OF would have mentioned it.
Another OF told of how they tied a chicken to the steering wheel of a car and two of the young OFs laid down on the front seat and one operated the clutch, brake, and gas while the other leaned across him and steered.
Two other young OFs sat in the back seat and told the other two where to go. This setup gave the appearance that the chicken was driving the car. They drove the car through the village of Gallupville, and then drove up to West Berne, and Berne, where the drivers would again duck down so it would look like the chicken was driving the car.
If this had any impact or not, the young OFs never knew. No one ever said, “Hey, did you see the chicken driving the car through Gallupville yesterday,” or something to that effect, but it was fun to tell the story in school the next day.
Once this olive was out of the jar, many more stories along these lines were told. This scribe will save those for a later date, when the scribe’s notes from a breakfast are boring, but that is rare with these OFs.
Those OFs who made it to the Chuck Wagon and getting a little too old to pull many pranks (and nowadays some of the OFs’ tickers could not even handle a good prank) were: Karl Remmers, Dick Ogsbury, Roger Chapman, Robie Osterman, George Washburn, Bill Lichliter, Miner Stevens, John Rossmann, Frank Pauli, Chuck Aleseio, Otis Lawyer, Glenn Patterson, Jim Rissacher, Jack Norray, Lou Schenck, Harold Guest, Warren Willsey, Ted Willsey, Elwood Vanderbilt, Harold Grippen, Mike Willsey, Gerry Chartier, and me.
Location:
On March 17, St. Patrick’s Day, the Old Men of the Mountain met at the Duanesburg Diner; the waitresses were dressed in green, and the room the OFs gather in was festooned with green shamrocks and other St. Patty’s Day decorations.
A few of the OFs wore green; one even had a bright green necklace around his neck, similar to the beads thrown in New Orleans and other places that have Mardi Gras festivities before Ash Wednesday.
A routine question asked of the OFs by many other OFs is, “What are your plans for the day? Do you have anything to do?” The answers are generally vague, or met with a blank stare, as “Do? Do what?” Many of the OFs offer smart remarks like, “Take a nap,” which is true in most cases.
A common reply is list what doctors the OF or his wife have on the schedule for this day or week. Some really have something planned, places to go, and people to see.
An OF said he has to check the to-do list that is posted on the refrigerator. This OF thinks that quite often there are so many chores listed that the neighbors sneak in and add to the list because the neighbors know the OF is retired and will be home with “nothing to do.”
The OF says the handwriting of the weird chores are poor attempts at forgery. These notes say things like, “Take care of Blanche’s cats and let them out.” That message is one that has the worst attempts of his wife’s writing.
Yeah, we get those types of jobs on our to-do list but they are funneled through the old lady so the messages come from a bonafide source. One OF said it isn’t possible to put a to-do list on his refrigerator because, with all the pictures of relatives and grandkids, there isn’t any room.
The OF said that once he put a picture of a nude pinup on the refrigerator among all the other relatives, kids and grandkids and it wasn’t noticed at all. The OF said, after a year, he took it down and threw it away.
Gardeners get ready
The OFs who have gardens are talking about getting ready for the planting season and some have all ready started their plants. These are the OFs who are really into gardening and start plants likes peppers, tomatoes, and even some flowers from seed.
One OF mentioned he has purchased a worm composting system. According to this OF, this is a self-perpetuating system because the worms are prolific and multiply quickly. One thousand worms become 2,000 worms in a hurry.
This OF says they will compost anything. When one tray of compost becomes ready, it is time to start another tray and the worms will turn anything that is compostable into dirt, even newspaper, and cardboard.
Comparing prices
Occasionally the OFs start comparing prices they pay for similar items. This morning the discussion was on cable TV, specifically, Time Warner.
The outcome was that not one OF was paying the same for cable that the other was. Some were close but no cigar. It seemed to be the variety of packages offered and what each OF has.
The same inconsistency was observed with car insurance. Some of the OFs shop for car insurance all the time, while others stick with an agent they know. This is where there are large differences.
The OFs did not converse about their coverage and their deductibles. Neither did they get into the ages of the vehicles involved. Some of their vehicles may be clunkers and others may be top-of-the-line vehicles.
One day, this scribe thinks the OFs should have an insurance party where the OFs can bring in information from their policies and compare apples to apples.
This also may be a plan of attack for the cable bills. We should gather all our bills, check and see what is what and show up en mass at the Time Warner kiosks in Colonie Center and sign in as one organization, “The Old Men of the Mountain.”
When the name is called, all the OFs there go to the representative as a group, with our canes, one good eye, limps, and hearing aids that don’t work. This might scare the be-jeepers out of the clerk. The OFs would probably hear “Manager” in a panic tone emanate from the clerk feeling he or she was being swarmed by the undead.
Living in the Age of Google
The OFs who are on computers (and that is many more than people think, many OFs also have smartphones, and there is a good group of OFs who own the latest tech gadgets) play with Google maps. The OFs think it is fun to google friends and relatives, and places in the news with Google maps.
One OF said, while you guys are googling other people and places, they in turn are googling you. One OF added that the places depicted on Google are not very current. This OF said that he has googled his place and the shot used is years old.
He said that plane could fly over when his yard was a mess; however, it could look like the gardens at the Governor’s house in Williamsburg now. The information is definitely not real time.
With all this new technology going on with drones, cameras, with lenses that can take a picture of a match being lit on the moon, and computer maps, the world is nothing but one great big peep show. Where an OF once could take his wrinkled old body out in the backyard and run around naked, he is now going to show up on somebody’s computer in Stockholm, Sweden.
Condolences
The OMOTM would like to offer their condolences to Harold Grippen and family on the loss of their son and brother.
The OFs who showed up at the Duanesburg Diner in Duanesburg, and fully clothed (thank goodness ) were: Miner Stevens, Roger Chapman, Karl Remmers, Dick Ogsbury, Robie Osterman, George Washburn, Ken Weaver, Lou Schenck, Jack Norray, Mace Porter, Chuck Aleseio, Glenn Patterson, Mark Traver, Otis Lawyer, John Rossmann, Harold Guest, Frank Pauli, Bob Benninger, Bob Fink, Mike Willsey, Gerry Chartier, Harold Grippen, and me.
Location:
On March 10, the Old Men of the Mountain met at the Country Café in Schoharie. Finally some decent weather, but the OFs that make the breakfast — make the breakfast. Not many will come out of the woodwork just because it is nice out; they will come anyway.
The places that the OFs frequent are always staffed, the cooks are there, the waitresses are there, the restaurants are open and warm — all this regardless of the weather. Dedicated people own and operate these establishments (they have to be) because the OFs start banging on the doors at 7 a.m., canes in hand and hungry.
The local area has seen its share of fires during this miserable winter. Each time winter stories come up, the OFs say this: “We have seen bad winters before but for some reason this one is a doozy.”
The latest go-round was the fire on Jay Street in Schenectady, then the one in the town of Bethlehem at the industrial park — two biggies on the same night. Then there was a fire in Reidsville about the same time. The OFs are wondering where the next one is going to pop up.
Some of the OFs say they are double checking their woodstoves, wood piles, and furnaces, and many are unplugging their electric appliances. The OFs are just being cautious, but not paranoid. One OF mentioned the strain this must put on organizations that assist people in these types of personal tragedies.
Another OF mentioned how neighbors help out when something like this happens. The OF said it is not only small communities like the Hilltowns, but the individual neighborhoods of larger cities possesses the helpful spirit for those in need.
One OF noted that neighborhoods are similar to a collection of small towns bunched together to form a city, so he could see why this impulse to help those you know that are in trouble happens. It doesn’t make any difference if the one in trouble is on a farm in the Hilltowns, or in the middle of Manhattan, or Tokyo, or Sao Palo.
Pinochle pals
The OFs started talking about playing cards, especially pinochle. Some of the OFs travel to visit another OF who is having serious physical therapy and does not have the use of his legs, so the OFs visit and play pinochle with him.
Some of the OFs were saying that the OF who can’t walk partners up with a relative and they think these two have secret signals because the remaining OFs have yet to win a game. These OFs said they came close to winning the last time but didn’t make it.
Pinochle was a card came popular in the military, and at the work place; hands are fast and challenging. At lunchtime, it was possible to get many hands in before it was time to go back to work.
The OFs said that the pinochle game was a form of release on the troop ships going over to the front. Most of the soldiers spent their time on “deck” to get away from the smell of the “hold.” That sentiment was echoed by other OFs in the same boat.
One OF said they came around every morning and swabbed the sleeping areas, but it still smelled like “puke.” Another OF said he spent only one night in the hold and along with almost everyone else he slept on deck and played pinochle.
There is another card game played by seniors that these OFs have heard of, but they did not play it. That game is called Hand and Foot and one game might last for hours. It’s a very popular game in Florida and is played by many retirees.
Big Brother big time
The coming event of cameras at the red lights in Albany was another topic of discussion. Tuesday morning, the OFs were all over the lot with their thought processes, time jumping from one minute to the next. We heard about going to battle an enemy way back when the OFs knew what they were up against, to red-light cameras not even installed yet.
Quantum leaps have nothing on the OFs; they do it all the time.
The OFs seldom go to Albany anyway but now they will be especially sure the trip is really necessary. Trusting government, outside of where you can go to the town supervisor’s home or the local town board member’s and hash out your problem, is not in the OF vocabulary.
This is Big Brother big time. The officials can give all the holly golly they want on what these cameras will do to protect the public, but trust them? No way.
One OF said it is just a money grab. This OF says they will adjust the yellow to just a quick flash, then nail you for running the red light.
Another OF thinks they can alter the film and, if they are not making enough money, they will have the camera showing a car running red when the light was actually green. One OF suggested staying out of Albany altogether, or find alternate routes that may take a little longer, but at least the OF will be able to avoid those cameras and not get caught in their nefarious trap.
Grateful for camaraderie
Many of the OFs have mentioned how ad-hoc organizations like the OMOTM have certain camaraderie among those that belong to these made-up groups. These factions are just like the Elks, or Moose, or Masons, or the Veterans of Foreign Wars, or the American Legion (to name a few), including churches or the local bridge clubs, which have an unmentioned togetherness.
One OF said he would like to thank the group for being the group. In essence, what the OF was talking about was how many take the familiar for granted, for those we know, and fail to say thank you for being there.
This scribe thinks this is way too true and agrees with the OF who brought this up; this OF and all the other OFs should thank each other just for being there.
Those OFs who hauled their aged butts to the Country Café on Main Street in Schoharie and plopped them down for a hearty breakfast were: Dick Ogsbury, Karl Remmers, Glenn Patterson, Otis Lawyer, John Rossmann, Robie Osterman, George Washburn, Mark Traver, Harold Guest, Frank Pauli, Roger Chapman, Lou Schenck, Mace Porter, Jack Norray, Miner Stevens, Bob Fink, Bob Benninger, Mike Willsey, Harold Grippen, Ted Willsey, Gerry Chartier, and me.
Location:
On March 3, The Old Men of the Mountain met at Mrs. K’s Restaurant in Middleburgh.
Beware the ides of March, we are told. The ides of March, was March 15, way back in Julius Cesar’s time; however, other months had ides, which, in ancient Roman times, were the 15th day of May, July, and October, and the 13th day of the other, shorter months.
The soothsayer told Julius Cesar to beware the ides of March, and we all know what happened then. How the ides of March became hooked onto the weather we don’t know; how that rodent became a foreteller of the winter is also in question; however, right or wrong, that snaggle-toothed varmint predicted six more weeks of winter.
This winter seems like six is going to be on the short side — to the OFs, it looks like 10 more weeks would be a better number.
The OFs continued their discussion on the weather. Part of this discussion was the amount of snow that is protecting the nasty ticks. This bit of information was in the newspaper and the newspaper said that this spring ticks are going to be on the severe side.
The OFs also mentioned the frozen water-pipe situation again particularly because Cobleskill is on a boil-water advisory right now — for the second time. One OF mentioned that the same reasoning about snow protecting the ticks may apply to snow protecting water pipes: The removal of the snow on the streets is what may be causing main water lines to freeze.
Snow is a pretty good insulator by itself. But, still, in many places, the frost is down quite far this winter especially where there is open ground.
The OFs are still blaming the weather people (who really have nothing to do with the weather we get) because of their interpretation of the “models” and “charts,” which causes all of the hubbub. Generally, the weather people are OK but, when they miss a big one, it generates lots of problems.
On Tuesday, the OFs complained about the use of the word “overspread” by the weather people. Case in point: It is dry as a bone out and the weather people say, “Rain will overspread the area,” and the OFs say, not possible.
In order to “overspread” anything, whether it is rain, snow, salt, or pepper, there has to be a predetermined something already there. In this case, an arbitrary number of inches of water already has to be on the ground — it can’t be dry and “overspread.” In this case, rain will “spread over the area” until it reaches that arbitrary, predetermined figure then it can “overspread” the area.
One OF used the analogy of shaking salt on his eggs. He said when the eggs are served to him, he spreads salt on them, but, if the cap falls off the shaker, then he has really “overspread” his eggs with salt but not until he has “spread” as much salt on the eggs as he likes; that is the predetermined amount. Anything more than that is “overspreading.”
Along with the cold weather, the OFs were talking about keeping warm. Those who burn wood, and planned on a historical use for them (on the amount they would require for a winter season), are finding that this year they are running low. Some of the OFs figure they may even run out so they are looking at some of the OFs who may have excess wood, or some they could buy, in case it arrives close to the point of running out and a cold spring.
A few of the OFs used to burn wood, but, as the OFs get to be older OFs, they have given it up. Burning wood is nice heat, but it is a lot of work. It is much easier to have the oil truck pull up and have the driver fill up the tank, and then all the OF has to do is turn up the thermostat and pay the bill.
Reading maps is becoming a lost art
Old maps were a new topic discussed by the OFs. This is unusual because this scribe does not think this has been touched on before.
The maps the OFs were talking about were the Geological Survey maps. One OF said he had a collection of every section for New York State. That is a lot of maps.
Old survey maps of localities are interesting, one OF said, because they show houses that are no longer there. People who are serious bottle collectors can use the maps to locate these now-gone homes and use them for dig sites for old bottles.
Another OF said that, back at that time, many family cemeteries were around, and these old maps can also be used to find these cemeteries. Some of these old maps can be used for those that do gravestone rubbings as a hobby, and some for finding where Great-Great Uncle Harry was buried.
All the knowledge on how to read maps of any kind may soon disappear, unless you happen to be a Boy Scout or Girl Scout. Tuesday, one OF said, all you need is a global positioning system; it was added those things aren’t always right either.
High-decibel din
It was also noted at Tuesday’s breakfast that the chatter at the OMOTM breakfast is a tad on the loud side. One OF noted it is because, at the ages of most of the OGs, hearing is a problem, so the speech decibels have to be raised to be sure the person next to you can hear.
If each OF raises his voice so the people around him can hear, it becomes loud in a hurry at the gathering of OFs. This must drive other patrons in the restaurants nuts because, even though they might not have hearing problems, they have to join the shouting match so the ones they are with can hear.
What a cycle. The OFs who wear hearing aids say they aren’t worth a darn in situations like this and leave them home.
Those OFs who found their way to Mrs. K’s Restaurant in Middleburgh by using geographical maps from the 1940s and not getting lost were: George Sokol, Harold Guest, Frank Pauli, Glenn Patterson, Mark Traver, Chuck Aleseio, Mark Traver, Roger Shafer, Roger Chapman, Steve Kelly, John Rossmann, George Washburn, Robie Osterman, Jim Rissacher, Don Wood, Jack Norray, Lou Schenck, Mace Porter, Bill Krause, Ted Willsey, Bob Benninger, Bob Fink, Elwood Vanderbilt, Harold Grippen, and me.