A Blast From The Past

That term started years ago on the radio to identify the great music from years gone by but was something I experienced firsthand last weekend in a different but certainly an equally enjoyable way.

Last Saturday night I attended my 40^th class reunion in Connecticut for the New Britain High School Class of 1971. Without a doubt it was a blast to see all those faces of the past.

Now; there are those who would say that they don’t remember their years in high school fondly & so wouldn’t be part of such an event. But for me….for the most part….high school was a time I remember with nothing but those fond memories. So the reunion gave me a chance to re-connect with some of the people (most of whom I hadn’t seen in more than 20 years) that helped make those memories happy ones. If nothing else, it gives you a chance to put life’s everyday worries aside for a few hours and remember how simple it once was.

I think that was the lure of it all for me. Seeing old friends & faces from a time when life was so much less complicated. When each day was more about who was dating whom or who would get caught smoking in the lavatory than it was about anything else. And everyone there had shared those same, and so many more experiences together. The amazing thing about those faces: although 40 years have gone by, there were very few of them that I didn’t recognize right away. Each of us wore a name tag with our graduation picture on it so anyone that wasn’t instantly recognizable to someone else didn’t have to wait very long for that “Oh My God!” reaction when the connection was made. It was a good feeling to see the faces of once close friends and knowing after all these years they were doing well and enjoying life. I had the extra good fortune of spending the evening with the lady that shared the title of “class couple” with me all those years ago…..but she was very easy to recognize. I have been married to her for almost as long as we’ve been out of high school!

John Lennon wrote: “life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans”….and that was certainly true for each of us in that room last Saturday night……but….for one evening of our lives we all stepped into the past for a handful of hours ….. and for just a little while we went back in time. We were all kids again. And that was a blast!

The Greatest Of Each Generation

This Veteran’s Day morning seemed like a good time to share a few thoughts with you.

On the website of The Department Of Veterans Affairs it explains the beginning of Veterans Day in these words:

In 1921, an unknown World War I American soldier was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. This site, on a hillside overlooking the Potomac River and the city of Washington, D.C., became the focal point of reverence for America’s veterans.

On Memorial Day 1958, two more unidentified American war dead were brought from overseas and interred in the plaza beside the unknown soldier of World War I. One was killed in World War II, the other in the Korean War. In 1984, an unknown serviceman from the Vietnam War was placed alongside the others. The remains from Vietnam were exhumed May 14, 1998, identified as Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Joseph Blassie, and removed for burial. To honor these men, symbolic of all Americans who gave their lives in all wars, an Army honor guard, the 3rd U.S. Infantry (The Old Guard), keeps day and night vigil.

If you have ever been present at The Tomb Of The Unknowns during the changing of that guard you probably have a greater understanding & deeper respect for those who have both given years of their lives to the service of this country & those that made the ultimate sacrifice to keep our country free.

Tom Brokaw wrote of The Greatest Generation. I’m proud to say that my own father served this country as part of that generation as did many of my relatives. But each generation has had those who have shown their greatness in serving this country. From even before that first unknown soldier in 1921 to those serving today, both men & women, we owe a deep debt of gratitude. On this Veterans Day we should all put our petty political views….and that’s exactly what they are in comparison to what our men & women in uniform deal with every day on the front lines of some far off land that none of us would otherwise give a second thought to…..Today, put them aside.

WWI: 116,500 dead

WWII: 405,399 dead

Korea: 37,000 dead

Vietnam: 58,210 dead

Afghanistan: 10,000 dead

Iraq War: 31,965 dead

The Civil War: 625,000 dead

The American Revolutionary War: 25,000 dead

Put them aside; and for just a moment remember why this country, with all its faults, is still the greatest on the face of the earth.

Reflections

It's been quite a few weeks since I posted any new reading on The Daily Drive. The summer has a way of changing daily habits & can keep you outdoors more than in front of a computer screen. Now though as I look back on the weeks since my last post so much has happened in my family & in my community that it is no surprise that I suddenly had more important things consuming my time than an occasional post on a blog. First; in the middle of July as my wife & I waited to begin our trip to see our daughter & her boyfriend in San Diego we got a call from her to tell us that Evan had been in a serious accident as he crossed a set of railroad tracks late at night in the dark. Suddenly our planned trip to California for a few days of sight seeing & just enjoying family became one of frantically making our way across the country to be with her as we waited for word as to whether or not doctors could save his leg. After several days & as many surgeries we received the good news that he would walk again. We returned home however not knowing how long he would be hospitalized or exactly what their idea of "walking" meant. Then, just weeks later, tropical storm Irene made her way through New England. Like you I was stunned at the devastation that she left in her wake. My family in Connecticut was safe, but out of power for several days. Here in Vermont & more specifically Rutland County it was much worse. I saw the devastation first hand as I traveled up & down route 4 just a day or two after Irene struck. Mile after mile I wondered how in God's name any of route 4 could be repaired before winter set in or how we would get to those who were cutoff from the rest of us before summer turned to winter and made it that much more difficult to help them.
However, even before I took that first trip (on the Tuesday after the storm) up route 4 toward Killington, local contractors were already on site repairing the damage. The Belden Company & Cassella Construction, both Rutland based businesses, took the lead on getting things done in record time. In less than 3 weeks, working non-stop around the clock, those businesses & others along with members of several branches of the National Guard completed a job that normally would've taken months to finish. There are still many at this writing whose lives are far from back to normal and there is still much work to be done, but as many others have said over the last several weeks it is a wonderful feeling to be part of a community like ours & like so many others all across this state that helps people they don't even know & makes Vermont a special place to live.

Today there is also much work to be done in getting Evan back to a full recovery but I am happy to write that he improves every day and although his physical therapy is difficult he faces it with an attitude found only in a special few. And because of that the days ahead look promising. Just as they do here.... in a special community we call Vermont.

One Special Moment

A couple of Saturday's ago I was in Boston. This time it was for more than a game at Fenway Park or dinner and then a walk through the North End. Both of those are two of my favorite things to do. However, this time my visit to Boston filled me with much more pride than a Red Sox win ever could and much more satisfaction than a wonderful Italian dinner in the North End could ever bring. On May 21st my son Kevin received his Masters of Education from Suffolk University. Like most people, parent or otherwise, just the anticipation of sitting through what feels like hours of speeches to witness one special moment in your life can seem like that moment will never arrive, no matter how interesting those speakers might be. But an amazing thing happens to a parent when they realize they are witnessing a special moment in not only their own life but in the lives of every other person seated in that room student or spectator. You realize that you are part of a defining moment, a time when endless possibilities actually seem to be within reach of your child's hopes & dreams. But at the same time you swell with pride knowing that the moment didn't magically appear in one instant. The moment was slowly crafted by that child that you held in your arms so many years ago for the very first time. Then, as a young man hours of study became years of commitment, but somehow tucked in between a full time job and life itself that moment arrives. You are in the mist of that defining moment as you watch your child take the stage as his name is called to receive his so well deserved honor. And then your defining moment comes at that instant.....when you realize that as they honor him, he unknowingly honors you.

Next!!!!

So the truth of the bin Laden death is that it will not end terrorism against this country. It will not end pat downs at the airport or delays as we travel. It doesn't make Al-Qaeda any less dangerous or end the war in Afghanistan. But what it has done is given still grieving 9/11 families at least some satisfaction in knowing that the madman that caused so much suffering in their lives a decade ago has now been brought to justice. And it has given the rest of us a much needed sense of pride in our country. I only wish in those final seconds before he was brought down by the best special forces in the world that he had suffered more. A quick death was too good for this mass murderer. But his time finally came & when it did the Navy Seals carried out their mission with precision. We all owe a debt of gratitude to each of them. Now who's next on the list?

Time To Roll The Dice?

I wasn't too terribly worried with the Red Sox start away from Fenway this past week. It's true that no one wants their team to be 0-6 before they even play their first home game but when you've got "Friendly Fenway" to come home to it makes a start like that a bit more bearable. That is until you see that things may not be quite what Sox fans had hoped for at home before the season began, especially when it comes to pitching. Things do seem to be settling down a bit. Both Lester & Beckett looked much better their second time out.....but Dice-K, now that could be trouble. Here's what The Boston Herald wrote this morning:

When Matsuzaka walked the Green Mile to the dugout, he was literally booed off the field. It was worse than the booing rained upon visiting villain Johnny Damon, who in the first inning hit the first pitch he saw from Matsuzaka for a home run. In fact, it’s quite possible that no Red Sox player in recent memory was booed as badly as Matsuzaka was last night.


It takes a lot for Red Sox nation to collectively turn on a player, but when they do they rarely let them back in their good graces. But is it time to "Roll The Dice?" I'm all for giving a player a chance to adjust at the start of the season, but Matsuzaka's problems go back to last season and it doesn't look like things have improved very much for him. If anything, based on last night's outing it looks like Matsuzaka may actually be worse! John Lester takes the mound tonight, so we'll see if he can keep pitching the way everyone expects him to & help to make fans slowly forget about the dismal start to the season......but as for Matsuzaka, it may be time for the Sox to cut their losses......and cut their ties with The Dice.

When One Of "The Least" Becomes One Of "The Elite"

When the men's NCAA pairings were set a couple of weeks ago most of the conversation (OK, it was mostly argument) surrounded the eleven teams being picked from the Big East. Almost immediately everyone was calling them "The Big Least" even before they started falling like so many bowling pins. Now on this Friday morning only one Big East team remains: The Huskies of UConn. The naysayers will claim that it proves those eleven teams didn't belong in the tournament to begin with and after the shellacking the conference has taken so far in the tournament that's a hard argument to oppose.....until you look at this mornings tournament standings and see Uconn sitting there waiting to play in the round of the Elite 8". Yes, UConn won the Big East Tournament like a steamroller but many saw Connecticut falling before Pitt, Syracuse and even Notre Dame, but The Huskies just kept on winning. Whether or not they have enough to get past Arizona this weekend remains to be seen. As tough a road as it's been for Jim Calhoun's team to get this far, they just might continue to surprise everyone. Although no one should be surprised any longer that this group of guys from a small state in New England have gone from being viewed as one of the "Big Least" to one of the elite teams in all of college basketball.

Making The Most Of It

I took the title of this entry from something my daughter posted on her Facebook page earlier this week. Along with that title she posted several pictures from the memorial for my cousin Patrick who I wrote about here in my previous post. And make the most of it we did. By my estimate more than 300 family & friends joined in on a wonderful goodbye to a wonderful & talented young man. Though somber at times, the gathering was full of fond memories, laughter & music....and most importantly was a chance to revisit with members of my family that I haven't seen in far too long. It was at times a tough day........but mostly it was one of those days that you hold in your heart & never forget. A day to reconnect with family, share memories and take what started as a sad goodbye....fill it with the closeness of family &......make the most of it.

The Hand of A Friend

I read somewhere long ago that you can count your true friends on the fingers of just one hand. That when you need them the most they are the ones that are there for you no matter what the circumstances. Well I guess I've lived long enough to exceed those expectations but can't really tell you why I've been blessed enough to reach that point. Nonetheless, the truth is that those close friends have been there for both me & my wife this past week during a very difficult time.

On Tuesday February 1st I lost my cousin Patrick Halloran in that terrible crash on route 4 in Mendon. Pat's mom & mine were sisters & though he was 20 years my junior we always had a great time together when he came to visit and play at McGrath's Irish Pub at the Inn At Longtrail. Pat was heading down the mountain from the inn where he had played the Friday & Saturday night before to spend a couple of days at my place before heading back to Pennsylvania to watch the Super Bowl with family & friends there. The bad weather & fate that afternoon would never allow that to happen. From almost the moment that word got out about Patrick's accident those friends were there with the support that was so badly needed. There's no need to publicly acknowledge them here because whether it was at the hospital that afternoon; my home later in the day or just a phone call or email, those friends know who they are. They certainly filled more than just the fingers of one hand and I am truly grateful to them all.

Patrick Halloran was a unique talent that will be missed not only by the family that loved him....but by those who knew him through his music. Irreverent.....off color......corny; his music was all of that.....but it was also well written & most of all fun! And for that too I will always be grateful.

Until we meet again Pat.....Slainte!