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Richard Meek '65

Cephus, if you need a grape snow cone go to the corner of Ella & 43rd, next to the Mobil Station there is a bright yeller snow cone stand. They have picnic tables so you can sit in the blazing sunshine and watch your snowcone melt faster than you can eat it. As I remember when we used to get snowcones from the stand across from the Oak Forest pool we were more interested is that sweet syrup they put over the ice than the ice. Normally WABEC meets two weeks after the Fudd meeting. Can you wait that long or to we need to move the meeting up?

I'm looking forward to seeing a whole bunch of  Waltripians at Fuddruckers next Tuesday. Yes that's the day, Tuesday the 14th. You can like us at Fudd's and you don't have to go on line to do it. We will have a special guest with us. City Councilwoman Anita Marbury from Durango, CO will join us. I personally will bring her to the evening's festivities. I think she had heard about my HOT CSUV and can hardly wait to ride in it. It is a breathtaking event, no doubt about it! She is going to give a complete report to the Durango City Council about our Senior Consultants Networking Group. With particular emphasis on our Whirld Affairs and Burger Evaluation  Committee (WABEC).

Keep On Dancing,

Rich LH

Stay Calm, Carry On

Beau Wann, Jr.

Well, if you bringin a date, and all the way from Colorado too, maybe I'll make cookies and a cake to celibrate lots O BDs this month...might ride Pegasus, if it doesnt rain...yeah, rain, thats a good one eh??? of course, if it isnt raining, its 105 gredees...yeah well, ok on the WEBEC meet...two weeks after fudges...

Annie-bob loves to get under things...

Paige Talley (Meek)

Mornin' Ya'll

It's the weekend eve and I for one will be happy to enjoy some days away from the prairie.

I am looking forward to travelin' south-ish to Fudd's next Tuesday. It has been so long since I have had the chance to visit with ya'll I may have forgotten a name or three, but never the wonderful smiles and laughter. Besides, I can't wait to see Sweetie !!! Beau, birthday month celebration is a great idea... I love your cakes (and just bout anyone else's, too. 

For you dog aficionados ... last night as I was leaving the "silly-sylum" (Mom's place) there were some ladies sitting out front (not from the home although I think maybe... oh never mind) anyway, they had a dog or three bent on sniffing around me. These fierce pups were of the cute-zee size of about 1/2 lb to 5 lbs each with bows and such pinning their ears and hair from their eyes. They also were wearing dresses... yes ruffles with shoes to match (now I thought the shoes thing was OK). Anyway as I listened my brief exposure to their conversation I was left with the impression that the dogs were interested in me because I wasn't one of "them", but had actual exposure with a real wonder-dog that did not wear dresses! Liz may be unruly (she is learning still) but she is a real man's dog that they could use as a role model. They barked with the fiercest squeak you ever heard and I naturally barked back. I am not sure just what our conversation was about, but they all jumped in their doggy stroller and hid under the blanket. I made a quick exit before the ladies figured out that I might have told their pups to shed the dresses and be a "real dog".

Did I mention that the ladies were dress coordinated with the pup apparel 

Ran across this article... 

The History of Oak Forest
Ruth Metzger

Development of the Oak Forest Subdivision started in 1946. The first house, which served as a sales office, was built at the corner of Golf and Fisher Dr. Almost all of the first houses were sold to World War II veterans. My husband, who had been a Captain in the Army in WWII, and I bought our house in April, 1947, when it was only a slab and moved in on June 1, 1947.

Oak Forest Realty Corporation, founded by Frank Sharp, built houses only in Section 1 (Golf Dr. to Oak Forest Dr., and Dubarry to W. 43rd. Mr. Sharp continued to develop the neighborhood for 17 more sections, by building the streets and installing utility lines: however, building contractors would then build the houses.

We had no telephone service. The only telephone were in the construction shack on the corner of Wakefield and Kinley Ln. and in the house of Frank Sharp’s niece at on Wakefield. We finally had telephones about the middle of 1948. Sufficient acreage in Oak Forest was set aside for building churches and many denominations have taken advantage of this.

Also space was made available for parks, and Oak Forest has four parks within the area: T.C. Jester, Candlelight, American Legion and Oak Forest Park.

Areas were also set aside for commercial development and this accounts for the many grocery stores, cleaners, service stations, etc., which are located on W. 43rd St. and Ella Blvd. Oak Forest was annexed by the City of Houston about 1949. In the year 2000, there were 5,523 homes in Oak Forest with a population of over 23,000.
Oak Forest was the largest subdivision in Houston until Mr. Sharp built Sharpstown. Now the area is the third largest after the annexation of Kingwood.

The original Oak Forest Elementary was built in1951, followed by Black Junior High School in 1958 and Waltrip High School about 1961. Stevens Elementary was added as the area was built up.

Mr. Sharp was born in East Texas and moved to Houston to build a small house or two near the ship channel for workers who were building ships for use in World War II. Then he sold those two and built four more and soon he had built a small village known as Jacinto City.

The first houses in Oak Forest sold for $8,000-$10,000. Larger houses built in the 60’s sold for $15,000-$20,000.

Even though it is the weekend eve, it is not quite here yet and I must clear these projects from my desk... Did I mention that I really do love my work and just how thankful I am for wonderful employers... True!!!

Been wonder'n about being a pirate and what the attraction might be. I think it is the cute head wrap and the swash bucklin' gear... Oh and the boots and the water and the boats and the adventure and the doubloons.... yea for sure the doubloons!!!

See ya'll...

Pirate Paige

Richard Meek '65

Paige it sounds to me like those women dressing like their dogs or vice versa should be residents at the "Silly Sylum" if theey're not already. Dogs deserve a little dignity in life and dressing them up like that is not the way to give it to them. Here again that is my opinion. Maybe you should have barked at the women instead of the dogs. Or maybe not. You  probably don't want to be a resident at the Silly Sylum any time soon.

Beau if you're going to bring cake and cookies how about just throwing in a few racks of ribs, cole slaw and potato salad. I'm sure the folks at Fudd's won't mind. Oh and how about a few bar-b-qued chickens. I'm sure Dr. Jon and Jim Tayor will buy a few rounds for everyone. That would be a grand way to mark Councilwoman Marbury's visit. What do you think? Maybe you gould bring your geetar and we could get Paige to sang a few tunes or you two could do a duet. This is gettin' better and better. See everyone on Tuesday at Fudd's. Be sure to thank Beau, Jon and Jim!!!

Beau Wann, Jr.

Hey Rich the LH, sounds like you been into the catnip...ah aint a gonna fix no BBQ...nor sing a song...but ifin yall are rail nice, ah might just bake some O mah whirld famous choco chip cookie...of course, ah still have some O that fruitcake from christmas two years ago, or was it 3???? Youse know, that stuff has a shelf life of a thousand years to the 10th pawr...how bout some corn bread???? just found a big bag o the makins...

Was gonna go to ye olde country estate today, but the little woman fell and hurt her right knee, leg, and ankle...Oh, nothing serious...been applying ice and heat...now we have to stay home and keep er leg propped up...I just cant believe she could be so inconsiderate of my feelings, and go and get herself hurt, causing me to miss out on going to the hamptons...plus ah have to wait on her hand and foot now...of course, thats nothing new, I allus do that anyhow...

Well, it is almost 2 am, and I am typing with my eyes closed...Jimmie lee would sure be proud...
Been waiting for some taters to cool so I can put them in the fridge...they ought to be bout ready...
Good night,  John Boy...
 

Post Script: Hey R the LH, you want to call Sheila J L???  We could have a couple O guest speakers, Arnold S and Weiner...they could shed some tears and apologize to each other for a couple o hours...Ol Weiner could give Oscar Mayer a bad name...

John Burgess Webb

thats no pirate story paige;it spoke of a man of vision and genius so great that it attracted the fortune seekers and like howard huges,lost control to lesser people.oak forest was half finished when we moved to 1522 chippendale;we learned and enjoyed.

the history is important;a great middle class was encouraged by the visionary's about the same time as our birth;with defferance to those who searved and got a 'hand-up' by those who had confidence in the fighting man of that day.most of us became responsible consumers and and the creaters of of the newest thing going.when i saw the picture of the brand new oak forest elementry school,it stuck in my mind like a cryptic mosaic,even into my dreams.they were good dreams and i thank all who respond with or read this forum from time to time.it makes me remember the 'warm days'on chippendale and piney woods.this was paridise to a six year old.

thank you again paige for a part of oak forest history,a place put apart for a great bunch of people.thanks also to mrs metzger.

Teddie Jordan

We moved into our house at 1223 Overhill in Oak Forest in 1948 when I was two. We had been living in a duplex on Wichita St., about 2 miles east of the Sears on South Main, since we came back to Houston at the end of the war. That was shortly after my birth at Camp Chafee in Ft. Smith, Arkansas, where daddy was stationed when he got discharged early in 1946. I was 3 weeks old when we rode a train from Arkansas back to Houston. As they say I wasn't born in Texas but I got here as fast as I could. I am a  fourth generation Texan on both sides of my family. I think we paid about $4,000 for the Frank Sharp built home.

My dad never thought much of Frank Sharp and felt like he used shoddy construction practices. There were always rumors of some of the tricks he used. Like unitizing the rebar in a foundation, and right after the VA inspector had verified it and before it would be poured with concrete, lifting the entire rebar assembly out and placing it in forms that had been set for the exact same floor plan two doors down. Right or wrong daddy always thought Sharp was a crook.

Sharp's sister lived in the house at the corner of Ella and Overhill and was a nice lady. One time after they opened Sharpstown mall our family went out to see it and as we were leaving the mall that night a black Cadillac limo pulled up to the curb and out popped Frank Sharp himself. Daddy said he ought to go over and give him a piece of his mind, but Mama thought otherwise and we  left. Just a year or two later the Sharpstown scandal erupted and we felt satisfied that Sharp had gotten his come uppance.

Fran's dad and grandfather were framing contractors and built a number of houses in Oak Forest. I used to love to ride around the neighborhood with Fran's dad, Ernest Mitchell Webster. You could go down any street in the area and he could tell you who built which house and in what year. Jimmie Lee Smith's father was a old friend of Fran's dad and also worked on a number of the houses in our area.

 As I have stated before, I feel like we are all very forunate to have grown up in the place and time that we did. The Oak Forest, Garden Oaks community was about as safe and nurturing as any I can imagine. We had wonderful teachers and preachers and neighbors and friends and the 50's and early 60's were an almost idyllic period. Much different than the times we live in now.

Fran and I hope to see everyone at Fudd's on Tuesday.

Jimmy Brown '65

 Teddie my father always said Frank Sharp would have

to nailed in his coffin he was so crooked. Still we had

the best small town in houston ,Oak Forest Bank,

Madings Drugs,Oak Forest Bowling Ally,Whites,Tally's

record  shop,Tiny Tim's Toy Store,Palais Royal,Weiner's,

Western Auto,Wyatt's Cafeteria,Weingarteins,U-Totem,

and so on . Then you could always go to Sears,Pennys,

Garden Oaks Theater and so on. The YMCA on34th,

Chuck Wagon Barbeque Inn, Doyles Delicatesion.

We went to Garden Oaks Church of Christ.

Yes we grew in in a special time and place !

By the way we moved into Oak Forest in March1947

I was 6 months old.

Happy Trails Til We Met Again!

Jimmie Lee Smith (Brawner)

Teddy, actually my Daddy worked for "Mr. Webster" and Ernest Mitchell.  Several years after my Daddy left the construction job, he and my Mother bought a lot on West 39th Street and cleared it and then had the Websters build our home we moved into when I was in 5th grade.  So, believe me, the Websters were a first-class act and the reason my parents chose them.

And yes, my parents always knew Sharp was a crook, too.

GO MAVS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Beau Wann, Jr.

Yes. Oak Forest was indeed an idyllic place to live...still not too bad today...all the places and things Jim mentioned...our good ol barefoot days...how fortunate we were..and we always thought we were poor, or at least not as well off as most...how wrong was that???? We were probably the richest kids in the city...Thinking back on that time, conjures up some of the best memories ever...but knowing no other kid will ever enjoy what we had...is sad... My favorite show was Andy of Mayberry, the black and white years with Barney Fife...thats almost how my view of Oak Forest is...Mayberry...

And the little country church in the city, was there back in them good ol days, and still there today...started in 1948 methinks, and building dedicated in 56 methinks again...I'm afeard that we may disappear someday...28 of the usual suspects were in attendance today...even though there are just 4 members in the choir now, they still sound pretty good...I was in the choir along with my beloved, when we filled up both sides of the choir lofts, about 24 folks...good rich sound that was...

Today was Pentecost Sunday...I wore my Pentecost tie, with flames...Everyone was suppose to wear red today, plus we had Red acouterments, or sash's worn around the neck in honor of pentecost...had all our banners hanging ...I love seeing the church decorated up for whichever season it is...

Mr And Mrs Theissen were in attendance, as per usual...got my kiss from the Mrs, and a good handshake as per usual from Mr Theissen...they both had on red shirts...Mr Theissen had on his 34th INFANTRY (RED BULL DIVISION) SHIRT...he saw plenty of action in WWII as did all the 34th...I think it originally came from ireland pre civil war...wound up as National guard from North and south Dakota, Iowa and Minnesota...Minnesota named all of I-35, 34th div; Red Bull Highway in 2000...

The 34th was in 6 major campaigns, and about a dozen or more other battles, including the fights for Tunisa and north Africa, and for Salerno, Monte Cassino, and Anzio...They almost took Monte Cassino...it later took 5 infantry divisions (about 100,000 men) to take monte cassino, something the 34th almost did by itself...the 34th suffered 80 percent casualties; 3,737 KIA; 14,165 WIA; 3,460 MIA for a total of 21,362 casualties...the 34th was on front line combat for 517 straight days; more than any other division;

The 34th was awarded 3 Distinguished Unit Citations; 11 Medal of Honor; 98 Distinguish Service Crosses; 1 Distinguished Service Medal; 1,153 Silver Stars; 2545 Bronze Stars; 116 Legion of Merit; 54 soldiers Medals, and 34 Air medals; and 15,000 purple hearts; I would have thought that there would have been 21,362 PHs; But I guess they dont award the MIAs anything...but according to the numbers, that still leaves some 2,902 KIA or WIA unacounted for...that should have been awarded the PH...well, not my call is it...

The Army Rangers came from the 34th...led by a capt Darby, and later became famous as "Darbys Rangers"...

Mr Thiessen told me one story when he was in Italy, about he and a couple of guys getting on those old green Harley Davidson Army Motorcycles, and heading down the road to go into the next town, and I dont remember if he mentioned the name of the town, but as they got away from their encampment, or lines, they rounded a bend, and came face to face with a group of Panzer tanks...needless to say, they skedaddled back from whence they came, and successfully too I might add...wow...talk about something that could make your heart stop...the phrase "feets dont fail me now" comes to mind...

The 34th was deactivated and reinstated several times over the years...Elements of the 34th are now serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, and other places in the whirld...

Lots of walking history out there...
I know lots of our classes fathers were in WWII and Korea...I remember Teddie talking about his dad serving and posting pictures...something to be very proud of for sure...

Guess I got carried away with too much info eh!!!! I love history, and if I can stand next to it and talk to it in person, then I am the much richer for it...A lot of history has been lost and will be lost, because some folks just dont want to talk about it...My Uncle Richard was that way...I was taught that a kid did not ask questions, and should be seen and not heard, so unfortunately I followed that line of thinking...didnt learn doodly squat about my family, or at least not enough...

The only person Uncle Richard talked to about his D-Day and WWII experience was my son Kevin...Well, things turn out the way they are suppose to I suppose...
and I suppose I should turn in for the eenin, well, it is Monday morn already...guess I got a good jump on the day then, eh???? Beloved already asleep...I'm not sleepy, but will be come sunup...maybe someday I can get my days and nights back in order...if not, well then, I wont...

My beloved and I cruise around Oak Forest all the time, looking at the new homes being built, and the old ones being renovated, and those that time hasnt touched since, they were built...Drove by Phil Youngs old house on the corner of DuBarry and Wakefield, and always wonder what happend to him...neat guy, kind of quiet and shy, but good smile, good eyes, soft voice...

The new homes being built, are monstrous, and somewhere in the neighborhood of 500K or more...the old ones range from around 200K upwards past 300K, depending on the degree of remodeling...Market is of course, depressed, to say the least...and I hear tell, it is going to get much worse, sinking into the "disastrous" range...Oh goody!!!! I hope they are wrong...I certainly would like to unload this monster and move to something a bit more manageable...Had no clue that I was gonna grow old and decrepit...cant get on the danged roof anymore, or in the attic...I may try to get on the roof one more time, cause I need to cut away some limbs rubbing on the shingles...tree people want too much for just a few minutes work...well, we will see what we will see...

Ok, I yawned, maybe I can shut er down and catch some shuteye...maybe conjure up some images of our old DuBarry Days and slumber off to heaven...a tiny kitchen with giant mouth watering aromas emenating from the 4 burner stove and oven...I can hear my mom singing an aria from some opera, dont know what, but sounds like and angel...smell that chicken fried steak, the first smell of flour sprinkled into whatever grease was in the iron skillet,  turning into the best gravey that has ever graced a young palate, or any palate for that matter...fried okra, some burned black, (those were the best)...fried green tomatoes, plus fresh sliced red tomatoes, that I swear you could smell all over the house once a knife had been put to them...

Tea bags steeping in the hot water for some good ol southern tea, tea so dark and rich, you couldnt see the ice cubes in your glass...sweetened of course, and with brown sugar, (thats how I make tea today)...steaming green beans with an inch of bacon grease garnishing the top of the water they were cooked in...maybe a ham in the oven, or some homemade biscuits or bread, with real butter oozing from every nook and cranny...And just maybe, just maybe, dad breaking out the hand cranked ice cream freezer for some of the best homemade vanilla ice cream this side of Brenham...just about wet my britches when the ice cream freezer came into sight...I was and am a food oriented young man...didnt mind my arm falling off cranking the handle on that old oak bucket...the end justified the means, I allus say...when it came to homemade ice cream...

If we were REAL lucky, and so far, the aforementioned supper could be classified as REAL LUCKY, we might have a piece of cake with that ice cream...angel food, or some other delight wrought from the Okeefe and Merit in the tiny kitchen at 1352 DuBarry...a lad, could not want for anything better, and to think, back then, I thought there were things better...I know better now...

Gone and made myself hungry and homesick, still not sleepy though...guess I'll give it a try though...
Pleasant dreams to all...
DOD

Richard Meek '65

Good mornin' Waltripians. I think you all have done a great job summarizing our growing up years in Oak Forest. We arrived a little later than some of you. We moved into our house on Cheshire in February, 1950. I think we all owe Frank Sharp a thank you for developing Oak Forest. Apparently it was pretty close to unanimous that he was a crook. Proved out that way with the Sharpstown Bank scandal. It is amazing isn't it how guys like that just can't quit while they're ahead. Mr. Sharp's houses and his ethics did not stand the test of time.

I think one of the things I really miss about the early days was how wonderful it smelled when it was time to head home for supper and you could smell all the wonderful smells coming from all the neighbors kitchens as you headed home. Air conditioning put an end to that pretty much. You can still get a little touch of it in the Spring and Fall if you walk around the neighborhood at supper time because some people will have their windows open if it is cool enough. I wouldn't want to go back to the pre-AC days but there were some good aspects to everyone not being shut up in their hermetically sealed houses. Beau is right though living in the OF area is still a pretty pleasant experience. We had dinner Saturday night at a relatively new wine bar named Plonk. We had a really good pizza and salad with a really good bottle of wine. What a nice evening sitting on the patio with fans. It's located in the newly rebuilt shopping center on 43rd where Minimax and a drugstore used to be (Madding"s?)used to be. Stop by and give it a try.

Like Beau I'm looking forward to @nd Tuesday at Fudd's. I hope as many of you as can will come on out. Be there or be square!

Congrats to all you Dallas Mavs fans. I was really happy that they won the NBA Championship for two reasons. First because they're a Texas team. Second because it was really great for that group of arrogant, ego maniacs from Miami to NOT WIN!!! GO Mavs( except when you play the Rockets) !!!!!!!

Keep on dancing,

Rich LH

Each day is a gift, unwrap it!

Jackie Crowe (Finch)

Reminder - Fudd's tomorrow, Tuesday, June 14

Ya'll have fun, I'm on vacation and will see you next month!  Please tell Anita (Sweetie) Marbury, sorry that I missed seeing her - Hug, J

Next Date - June 14, 2011

Fuddrucker's Houston Gang - 2nd Tuesday of each Month -- join the fun! Starting at 6:00 p.m. or whenever you can get there.  290 feeder between Pinemont and Tidwell (13010 Northwest Freeway - 713-462-2639 - call them if you need directions). 

Beau Wann, Jr.

Ah do believe...AH SAY BOY, AH DO BELIEVE, yall are bein a might hard on ol Frank...he had a dream, but so what if it was to take yore money, somebody, AH SAY, SOMEBODYS GOT TO TAKE YORE MONEY...ah just love Foghorn Leghorn...donchew????

What I failed to mention in the aforementioned, was PEACH AND OR BLACKBERRY COBBLER with the homemade vanilla ice cream...the blackberries, fresh picked where good ol S P Waltrip sits today...fresh peaches picked from where Minimax use to sit, or Mangum SuperValu...Friends, AH SAY FRIENDS, now thats heaven...

Remember when FISHSTICKS were a treat, or a Swanson Frozen pot pie..???? Can you imagine giving up a real meal for FISHSTICKS???? They were a novelty back then, but now an anoyance, at least to me...our grandkids like fishsticks, but I dont think the ones today qualify in any way of being made out of fish, or at least a fish that we would recognize...probably the dregs from the cannery, shaped into a stick, sorta like cat food...now thats a stinky proposition...besides, who has ever seen a rectangle fish????

Hey, AH SAY HEY...yall want some cake for Fudddddssss???? what kind would you like???? I will also bring coffee, since Fudds doessnt have any...they wont mind, we've brought other goodies before to share with our friends...Besides, it's to celebrate all the BDs in June, and heretofore...plus a few anniversaries, and Fathers day and Mothers day...and flag day...and any other day we might want to celebrate...

My youngest son, Kevin, or Mr. Titanium Leg, 41st BD is Wednesday; Dianes and my Anniversary is Thursday; My 29th BD is Friday, and Fathers day is Sunday...we planned our wedding in between the two BDs, thinking, it would be easy to remember that way, like I'm ever gonna forget our wedding date...Diane might forget, but never me...anyway, the four special days, are way yonder too close together...puts a lot of pressure on things...it does, however, get all that out of the way, in one swell foop...Hindsight bein 20/20, we both agreed we would pick another date for the wedding...of course, just because something special falls on a certain day, doessnt mean you cant celebrate in another week or month, now does it...

Sorta wish I'd met Diane earlier in life...looking forward to at least 50 years of wedded bliss, but bein this is only our 27th, got another 23 years to go...a good reason to remain healthy wouldnt you say...hmmmm lessseee, I'll be 89, when our 50th rolls around (and ah figured that out without using algebra or my fingers)...If I'd met DW, say, when I was 18, she woulda been, lessee, hmmmm OH, 10 years old...Ah dont, AH SAY BOY, AH DONT THINK THAT WOULDA BEEN KOSHER...probably got laws agin that sort o thing...oh well, ah will take what we have as a blessing, and it is for sure...

All you good folks, Jimmie Lee and Charles and Teddy and Fran, and whoever else hass been married fer quite a spell, CELEBRATE YOUR 50TH...WE had a surprise 50th for my mom and dad back in 89, and they were just blown away...they werent revelers or celebraters much for anything, but they really enjoyed the party, and the surprise...threw a 50th and 60th for Dianes Mom and Dad, and they enjoyed it very much...it wasnt a surprise, but it was fun...Had the 50th at the same hotel, and ball room we had our 45th reunion in...had the 60th at the church...I was asked to provide the music, imagine that...played all their favorites, and Diane set up a slide show of their lives...she did a magnificent job...Kevin, ol Mr Titanium leg, catered the affair, and the food was excellent...

So, CELEBRATE WHEN YOU CAN...ah just, AH SAY BOY, AH JUST LOVE A CELEBRATION...what the heck got me started on the Foghorn Leghorn schtick???? Ah know, AH SAY BOY, AH KNOW...it's the commercial thats on the boob toob...dont know what their hawkin, but ah like, AH SAY BOY, AH LIKE IT...ok enough...

looking forward to seeing everyone at fudges...A CELEBRATION OF FRIENDS...

Ok, the little woman should be on her way home...got to get supper on the stove...gonna have my whirld famous HASH and other fine trimmings...hash is real easy to make...cook a CHUCK ROAST in the slow cooker till it falls apart when a fork is applied to it, cook whole potatoes with it also too...DO NOT ADD ANY FLAVORINGS, CEPT MAYBE SALT AND PEPPER...then put it in the fridge, after it is done of course...take it out the next day, chop up the meat, skin the taters and chop them up, put em in a skillet with the au jus from the day before, and heat till hot...like I said, you only need salt and pepper...dont get cute with it, or you will ruin it...THE FLAVOR OF CHUCK, STANDS ON IT'S OWN MERITS...this dish is something you can heat and eat and reheat and eat, till it's gone...not hard atall...if you have any homemade bread, or even store bought bread, put that on your plate, and pour the hash over it, and pardner, you got a deeeelicious meal...

See Ya...DOD...chef extrodinaire...

Charles Charlie Brawner

So, a couple of days ago, the police knocked at my door.  They tell me a neighbor has complained about me running around on my patio in my underwear.  So, I asked the officers,"Who's underwear should I be wearing?"  They were looking dumbly at each other when I shut the door.

Hope ya'll have a fun time at Fud's tomorrow nite. 

Teddie Jordan

Charles, there are counties in California where a man can be ticketed for smoking a cigar on his own patio!

Even closer to home I spoke to a friend last week who lives in the Heights area of Houston and was ticketed for parking in the street and blocking about 6 feet of HIS OWN driveway. He went to court and protested the ticket with a paid water bill showing that he owned that property, but judge upheld it.

On a much more positive note, congratulations to classmate Gary Keith who has been recognized again this year with awards from the Arkansas Press Association for two of his weekly newspaper articles. Jackie is going to try to post them soon and the one about Grandpa will make you laugh out loud, I guarantee it.

Richard Meek '65

Mornin Waltripians. After much diligent research I uncovered the fact that today is Flag Day. We celebrate this day that we adopted the red/white and blue as our flag in 1777. Full disclosure, my research involved taking The Houston Chronicle out of the plastic bag and reading the front page.

Beau, I think a cake would we nice. You wouldn't mind whipping up an Italian Cream Cake would you? Maybe you could collaborate with Doug Romans and bring a supply of cookies. Either one goes well with wine or beer!

Charlie I love your response to the gendarmes. If they come again maybe you should ask them if the neighbors would prefer that you leave the underwear in the house.

For those of you who haven't been paying attention, it's pretty cool that A&M and UT are going to the College World Series. Play begins Saturday. Everyone root for your favorite but root for a Texas team to win it all. Does that mean that we have a new cheer for the start of the series, Gig'Em Horns?

See Yall at Fudd's tonight, AH SAY, AH SAY BEAU  that includes you!

Keep on dancing,

Rich LH

Every day is a gift, Unwrap it! 

Teddie Jordan

Just got back from a memorial service for Johnny Doyle, a Garden Oaks and Reagan '59 boy, older brother of our classmates Jimmy and Bobby Doyle. It was sure good to see both of them but sorry for the reason. Johnny was a lifetime director of the  Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo and also a Marine. So it was colorful with the patriot guard riders and lots of rodeo people.

Hope to see all you old folks at Fudd's tonight. Oops did I really say that?

Richard Meek '65

Ted, you've got to get the hang of this. It's OLD-ER !

John Burgess Webb

way to go charles;no one asked them to look.carry on.

burge

Richard Meek '65

Afternoon Waltripians. Today the speaker at my Rotary Club was Steve Howell, Executive Director of The Battleship Texas Foundation. He is a good public speaker if any of your various groups need one. He mentioned that when he took this job it appealed to him because where else was a former Navy Lieutenant going to command a battleship. One of many interesting points he made was that USS Texas always flew the Texas flag as well as the US flag. At one of his presentations he was asked if they had permission to do that. His response (true) they never asked. He showed the renderings of the new dry berth that the Texas will have hopefully by 2017. It's great that they are going to preserve her. She is the last of the dreadnoughts left in the world. The people of Texas, led by Admiral Chester Nimitz and Gov. Jester and others preserved the Texas they did us all a favor. Texas sister ship the New York is at the bottom of the Pacific. The Navy used her for target practice. The Texas was the first ship to ever have 14 in. guns. When Congress approved the construction the feeling was that if the best the British can do is 12 in. guns we'll have 14 in. 

Another interesting tale from WWII. During the Normandy Invasion while providing fire support a British Spitfire pilot spotted a massing of German armored units. Obviously organizing for a counter attack. They radio the ships asking if anyone could help with shelling the coordinates they gave them. A last bit of info was that they were 14 mi. inland. The Texas could only fire 12 mi. in compliance with a Naval Armament treaty signed in 1922. Which was accomplished by welding stops in place. So the captain of the Texas (unfortunately he was from NJ not TX), his chief engineer and the fire direction officer put their heads together.  So with the port side to the shore they took on extra ballast on the starboard side. So with the Texas listing 3 degrees to starboard they began a 2 1/2 hr. bombardment. They fire 146/ 2,000 lb. shells. After that time they got a radio message from the Spitfire pilots. They simply said. You can stop now. The problem is solved.

During the actual landing at Normandy The Texas bombarded Point du Hoc to clear out any Germans so the Rangers Could scale those sheer cliffs. Steve showed an aerial picture of Point du Hoc where the German Installation were. To this day there are still 20 ft. craters where those two thousand pound shells landed. If I remember correctly Earl Rudder was a battalion commander of the Rangers. He was later President of A&M.

I could go on and on but I need to get back to work. I know some of you were probably bored to tears and some of you are probably feverishly research this information to see if it is accurate. If you haven't been to the battleship in a while go see it soon. It is still a fun excursion!

Keep on dancing,

Rich LH

Stay Calm, Carry On

Jimmy Brown '65

 Richard I never knew about the stops on the guns

or much any thing else about the Battle Ship of Texas.

My cousins and I played on the ship like it was really

at sea and we manned the guns and shelled many 

enemy placements our selves.We would spend all

day playing on the ship and the Monument. All my 

male cousins went into the Navy and I believe the

Battle Ship Texas had a lot to do with it.

 I don't know any old folks at Fuddruckers except

maybe Llynn Roff.

Happy Trails Til We Met Again !

Beau Wann, Jr.

We musta rescinded the 1922 lawr on big guns, cause the Mighty Mo had 16 inch guns, as well as all the Iowa class battleships, and the Yamato and the other jap battleship, had 18 inch guns...Oh, yeah, I forgot, generally the U.S. is probably the onliest one that ever follows a treaty, except when it comes to Native Americans...then it's "what treaty", "oh that one", "well, we didnt mean it"...plus it's for the good of the nation...etc etc etc

Played on the Texas a few times...my favorite gun was the 40MM BOFORS antiaircraft gun, or commonly called the "POM POM" gun...sure would like to have me a couple o batteries of the BOFORS...Well???? What???? I need those guns...!!!!!!!! After all, it is my birthday, and anniversary and fathers day....

Got to see the New Jersey fire a salvo or two off the coast of Viet Nam...fired all 9 16 inchers...mighty impressive sight...shoots a 3002 pound shell, bout the size of a volkswagen...could lob em 26 miles and put em in the backpocket of a moving target...plus, they had "nucular"rounds they could load up, ifin they wanted to...never got to see one of those fired off though...a pity...

when they fired those big guns, it slid the ship sidways for about 100 yards...

Rode up to Krolczyks in Hempstead...sad to report, no TRUE GRITS...gave me my money back,  so I promptly bought a BEEYOOTEEFUL chuck roast...their meat counter is very good...I think Jimvet has been there, he can verify...SO, NO TRUE GRITS...

Yesterday, had lunch with my son and grandson, and toured Bass Pro Shop...again...for the millionth time...cant get enough of that store...found a boat I'd like to have...dont know why, I dont fish or ski, but I could park it up at the ranch and just sit in it and pretend...whats the harm in that???? Boat was only 13 K...maybe set up a battery of BOFORS guns on the bow...what da ya think???? yeah yeah yeah, I know, I'm crazier than a loon, but still lots O fun...

After lunch, went by TRACTOR SUPPLY to try and find an anniversary present for the little woman...bought a couple of "gate wheels"  for her, (gates are sagging just a touch), but thought she should have something a little more personal...how about a welding machine???? Nah, too hard to wrap...They do have some GIRLIE things there, believe it or not...socks and boots and kerchefs aka scarves or bandanas...but lo and behold, I see a MONTANA SILVER display, where the real girlie stuff is...bracelets and necklaces and earrings, belt buckles, all in silver and other stuff...

A woman came over to open the case for me...I picked out two boxes of items, and asked in my best texas/country dialect, "are these necklaces for a full growed woman or for a little girlie girl"
(I try to talk like the natives, as it makes em feel like we're sorta kin)
To which the sales lady replied in her best "queens english from london" , "I beg your pardon sah. Could you please repeat what you just said"....UH OH...didnt know I was gonna encounter the Queen of England in Tractor Supply...So I deftly switched to me cockney accent..."So sorry melady, I wasnt aware you were going to be in America today"...to which she said in what I'm sure was her best texas/john wayne dialect, "well pilgrim, dont let it bother ya none, cause I'm a gonna take care of ya"...so, not to be outdone, I switch back to my country/Texas/tha Duke dialect, and say, "well, ah ha little lady, ah don believe we have been properly introduced. ah say,  AH SAY BOY, HAVE WE MET BEFORE" ... oops, too many dialects goin on here, brain and mouth got all sidways on me...she giggled and I laughed, and the customers close by, were rolling their eyes, and pushing the kids out the door, "get in the car martha, run..."

Ah do meet some right interesting folks out there...But anyway, to make a short story even longer, ah bought the girlie doodads for my beloved and gave em to her this morn...and she is ever the gracious receiver of gifts, saying they are as lovely as anything she has ever seen...ah kept the receipt just incase there was something else more lovely...

Fudds was fun, as per usual...saw "sweety" Marbury, and wanted to talk to her, but got a real bad case of the "shys"...so I just looked on and marveled at how young and pretty she lookd, and what a great smile and eyes she has...mabe next time I'll say howdy...Of course all the ladys there are young and pretty and also have great smiles and eyes...

Well, the little woman is home form a hard day at the office, and we uns are going out to dinner for our anniversary...now to decide where to go..."oh I dont care, where would you like to go", Oh I dont care, where would you like to go", and on and on it goes...we really dont have a favorite place, we just like good food and good food and cheap prices, with good parking, for free...

As JB says...HAPPY TRAILS...
keep the sun at your six, or otherwise behind a cloud, and ride boldly ride, with the AC on...
your friend and resident knut, Beau Cephus

John Burgess Webb

i really enjoyed the battle ship texas;was there before they closed off the engine room to the public.it was all steep ladders and oil soaked cat walk on the floors of the engine.dark,hot and oily.so many people slipped down that it was closed to the public.a leak and failed pump almost sunk it in its old mooring but it was worth saving as the last of its class,the 'dreadnaught'.i also enjoyed the re-finished texas and thought it was brilliant,decks were beautiful and the paint camoflage made it appear to cut across the water at full speed.fine job.

Paige Talley (Meek)

 Good fun is always worth retelling... which brings to mind not only the elementary school trips to the San Jacinto Monument and the Battleship Texas, but train trips to San Antonio to see the Alamo and to Austin to see the Capitol. Everyone had a sack lunch (brought from home) and we ate on the grounds of wherever we were. I once rode the train to Beaumont all by myself, well except for the other people on the train. I felt very grown-up for a ten year old. Went to visit my Dad's sister, Aunt Clyde.

The train station in downtown Houston was an exiting place. I still like trains. My office is near the rail that runs through CS. The "whistle" at the crossing is a soothing sound. In fact, you can hear that train whistle just about anywhere around here if you tune an ear. 

ALTERNATE ROUTE TO THE COAST?

Houston-Galveston line could roll again

Push to revive Texas' oldest railroad renewed

By HARVEY RICE Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle

Jan. 29, 2007

+ five years would make it next year when this route should open again... ???

The train at Rusk... 

The Texas state prison system established the railroad in 1881. Inmates built the line, which was used to transport hardwood which was used as fuel for the furnaces at the prison-operated iron smelter at the Rusk Penitentiary. The furnace supplied the State of Texas with iron products, including the columns and dome structure for the capitol building in Austin. The original construction was a narrow gauge line but was later built in standard gauge in order to join into the main line. (there's more and it is reallyinteresting) 

http://www.texasstaterr.com/about.php#history

Roundtrip excursions with one of our historic steam engines departs from the Rusk depot at 11am and returns at 3:30pm. The trip is 1 ½ hours each way with a 1 ½ hour lunch layover at the Palestine depot for a total 4 ½ hour experience.Ticket includes a box lunch. Beer, wine, beverages and snacks are available for purchase in the concession car.

 

Richard Meek '65

Howdy all. I sometimes wonder who started using Howdy regularly was it the Aggies or Minnie Pearl?

A little more information on the Texas and her 14" guns that only fired twelve miles because of the stops welded in place. The Naval armament treaty called for guns on ships to only fire 12 miles because that was in the time before radar and other high tech identification equipment. In that day on a clear day and a calm sea using a good pair of binoculars ships could identify other ships up to twelve miles away. The intent of the treaty was to keep ships of war from just blowing ships out of the water even if they weren't sure what country they were from. The Texas had stops welded in at 12 degrees. Her guns are calibrated so she gets and extra mile of range for each degree of elevation.

Burge if you want  to inspect the engine room again they have one of them open to the public. I think it is the starboard engine. They are restoring the port engine room so it will be open also. They are pumping water out of her all the time. I think it is about 9,000 gallons a day because she leaks so badly. The hull that was originally 1/2 inch armor plate is now paper thin due to sitting in the pristine waters of the San Jacinto river and lack of maintenance. Hence the restoration plan to put her in a dry berth. When that is completed you will be able to walk under the hull. You will also be able to see a part of the hull that you've never seen before. The Texas was built with a partial ram bow. Back in the days of her construction they still built ships like they did in the Civil war so you ram the enemy as a last resort. The Texas has ten 14" guns. As I mentioned each shell weighed 2000 lbs. The shells were loaded with a chain hoist. It took 5 bags of powder (90 lbs. ea.) to fire the shell. Those were loaded by hand. Can you imagine what it was like to be locked in those gun turrets with no air conditioned doing that kind of work?

Just a little baseball trivia. Yogi Berra played for 19 years. He played in 14 World Series in that time and was on the winning team 10 times. Pretty amazing.

AND LAST BUT CERTAINLY NO LEAST HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU, HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAGIC WANN!!!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU AND MAAAAANY MOOOOOORE!

Keep on dancing

Rich LH

Dance like no one is watching