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V/R, Co-site Administrators Joan Lucchesi ('60) and Gary Wegener ('66)

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(you always have the option to edit or delete your post). 

Dan Ree (Ree) (1964)

Don...remember Viento Ln. well...my Grand Parent's lived at 1301 Viento Lane...on the corner....John and Anna Ree...I and my brother's would visit on Week ends  and play with the kids on the block many times...I do remember the Old Raley's and the fire..........As Far as That ' SQUEAK ' THING...     I wrote to the WD-40 Company and they replied...." THERE IS NO PRODUCT WE MAKE TO SOLVE THAT TYPE OF SQUEAK.....LOL!!!

Aileen Jull (Martinez) (1964)

Thanks Tom for the beautiful pictures of your town.  Where did you say you live?  Ireland?  How long have you been there?  And why did you chose to leave the U.S.?  I would love to move out of California but I don't think I'm brave enough to move out of the country.

Robert Cowing (1965)

Details behind the "Christmas video" Vern Larson posted above:

Robert Cowing (1965)

Gail Smith (Maxwell) (1964)

Vern, a wonderful video that really put me in the Christmas spirit.  Thanks for sharing that.

Tom, gorgeous pictures and everything looks so idyliic there.  I too am interested in what made you leave the states and how you ended up in Ireland.

Merry Christmas to all!

Don Murdoch (1962)

Monte McCray,   I don't recall you ever being in my house.  I don't even recall ever meeting you.  We were never in high school together as I was a senior when you were in the 8th grade.  Am I missing something  here or am I just plain losing it.  LOL.

Monte McCray (1966)

Don. could be mistaken but I went to someones house over there, Thought it was yours.

Don Murdoch (1962)

Monte,   Mimi Hawk lived next door.  She's in your class.

Janice Bell (Killian) (1966)

Carol Dunton (Stone) (1968)

Thanks Paul.  I'll send you my phone number on Facebook and see if I can get in touch with Bibbet. Let's stay in touch. 

Monte McCray (1966)

Don, I rember Mimi Hawk, Beautiful girl. Unfortunatly at that time in my life Mimi was way above my pay grade.

Bill Means (1961)

Tom.

Your pictures reminded me of the 4 years I spent in England and how the English really regail at Christmas. Every window in Cambridge and even in my little town of Brandon would have scenes like the ones you showed. They take Christmas very seriously and virtually no business is open on Christmas day - including restaurants. All the hotels are booked months in advance and their small restaurants are only open to guests, not the unruly peons who don't know that tradition requires booking in advance - which I found out the first year I was there. My date and I ended up in Cambridge in a long line to eat at an Indian restaurant - I never saw her again..

Is the Reverand Ian Paisley still spouting off in Northern Ireland? You'd better not answer that as the Irish NSA might be listening in to this conversation.

Enjoy the beautiful green country and the wonderful Christmas time.

Bill

Linda Lopez (1967)

Tom Stewart (1969)

JoAnn,

I totally agree, and I have no desire to have any interaction with my brother here, privately, or anywhere else.  This is certainly NOT the place.  I apologize for the intrusion and wish there was some way to stop it in the future.  Not really sure how to handle this.

Vern Larson (1960)

Tom - I am so sorry you are having problems with your brother Don. When I read his post I could see he was having some very serious problems with himself and is retaliating against you. I also don’t feel this is the place to correct family or any other problems we may be having, because we ALL have them to some degree or another. NO ONE IS EXEMPT.  I was also relieved to see his post had been taken down. I don’t wish to over simplify family problems, but I recently made light of a situation by using LOVE, PATIENCE, & RESPECT as a way to help ease an issue. Even though I was using humor, I was also dead serious about what I said. 

I love Christmas and the feelings it brings out in us. JESUS CHRIST is the ONLY way to complete happiness, no matter what happens in our lives. He has paid the price of our sins through his atoning sacrifice, so that as we repent, and strive to obey all his commandments, we may once again, return to our Heavenly Father, when we have finished our work here on earth.

HAVE A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS CLASSMATES!

Tom Stewart (1969)

Vern Larson....thanks for the thoughts.  I agree with all you say and this has been a massive embarrassment.  My first reaction is to try to defend myself to a whole group of people who don't know me, but that is nearly impossible.  I kind of did that, then I deleted it.  I accidently deleted a previous comment that had nothing to do with this situation.  It is a rather lonely time of year for me anyway, and this certainly does not help.

I have always envied those families who remain close to each other, love each other, and support each other.  That has not been the situation in my family.  So sad.

Janice Bell (Killian) (1966)

Gail Smith (Maxwell) (1964)

Not only do England and Ireland really know how to celebrate Christmas, but so do many of the countries in Europe.  We took a Christmas cruise one year, mostly through German cities, and were amazed at how they celebrate.  Every city we stopped in had a Christmas fair, with booths set up selling food, drink, homemade goods and gifts galore.  The stores go all out with their decorations.  It is different from here, not so commercial but celebrating the real meaning of Christmas.  This was the fair in Nuremberg.

The picture above is of a Romanian mother and daughter, whom we became friends with on the ship.  This was the church we went to on Christmas morning.  It was beautifully understated, with lots of gorgeous wood.  Above, they are kneeling in front of a beautifully carved wooden creche.

We were in an adorable little city called Rudesheim on Christmas Eve Day, where we could have stayed and shopped forever.  But, they closed everything down at 3:00 that day and then the stores don't open up until 12/27.  Nice way for them to spend Christmas with their families!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Duane Jackson (1965)

Morning All..............I don't post much on this, but I do read it off and on......One small comment about families and things they do.....I've lived long enuff to see my family fall apart and split from the group of the past....I don't like it  and wish there were things that can be or could be done to keep the group together, but that aint going to happen no matter what I wish or want......If I didn't have such a strong love for my wife, life would be tuffer........anyway, wishing all the best......Big post "Remember Pearl Harbor and Dec 7th"  Never Forget...Peace Y'all

Tom Stewart (1969)

Gail Smith (Maxwell) (1964)

You are so right.  I remember being in Prague just before Christmas and it was taken over by all the street vendors and booths.  Amazing displays and programs.

Don Murdoch (1962)

Someone please help me.  Do y'all think that foam AND WD-40 will fix the squeak?

Linda Lopez (1967)

Dear Don,

I find scroll and delete work well with this site.

Don Murdoch (1962)

Someone feels guilty.  I didn't name names. But, like my 57 Ford, the squeak is still there.

Tom Stewart (1969)

In regard to recent events (posts) I would like to offer a bit of personal insight.  I think I might have posted this information previously, but I am not sure.  I have a personal page on FB and I also have three groups I administrate so I can't always remember where and when I posted something.

Over the past five years I have come to the realization that MOST people don't change in ways we would like to see, and we are not going to change them.  Some people can bring great harm to us, especially if they are key and foundational people in our lives.  We are often molded and defined by those around us.  Beginning in childhood we find that if those around us say we are fat and ugly, we can't sing, we are stupid, we are worthless, etc......we begin to define ourselves that way.  About two years ago a friend of mine who does counseling asked me where I got this image of myself.  We talked about my childhood and many other things, and she pointed out that my current self image was more likely due to people in my life in the more recent decades.

A friend of mine recommended a book which I bought and read about the same time.  It is entitled "Safe People" by Cloud and Townsend.  It isn't the most perfect or best book I have ever read, but the basis of the book I found quite interesting.  The book points out different kinds of people who are "dangerous" to you.  In some cases it is impractical or impossible to actually eliminate people from our lives, such as children (yes, your child can continually give bad messages to you), so you have to identify the "message" and not allow it to influence you.  In some cases you can just eliminate the person from your life, as I have done with some family and other people.  On facebook we simply "unfriend" a person and remove them from access, which is pretty simple, but in real life it can be much more difficult.

Anyway, I came to the realization that people are people and we can either complain and suffer, day after day, letting them wreck our head, or we can find a way to deal with it.  IF you want, need, or must have a person in your life, then it is important not to allow them to destroy you and not to live according to their message.  Recently a relative posted and provided his definition of me.  I have not communicated with him for over 17 years, and possibly the reason is now apparent.

I read comments here where many post about their frustration concerning this individual or that individual.  Some people stop using this blog because they just don't want to read the comments and eliminate the people by eliminating the site.  Others just pop in occasionally to check things out, and still others fight the battle daily.  With social media we find ourselves often locked into battles which aren't all that healthy, productive, or beneficial.  We live in a new era where we can find ourselves not only dealing with the same old friends and family, but now we are dealing with friends of friends and people around the world we have never met.

Once you begin to see how people influence you it is possible to reduce or cease the ongoing damage.  Once you realize the other person is very likely NOT going to change you have a clear choice, deal with them understanding they are what they are, or stop dealing with them.  I hope this makes sense at some level.

I hope all of you are enjoying the season and that all of you have a great holiday.  Seasons like this are prime times when we have to deal with people who can be hurtful and destructive to us.  There are multitudes of movies based on the premise of family Christmas or family Thanksgiving which are filled with turmoil and animosity. Be safe.

Monte McCray (1966)

Hey Don, Sometimes we unfortunatly have to put up with those annoying squeeks but I will gladly help you repair your glass house.