Snow was falling around 1 pm today at the summit of Mt. Washington. I hope we don't see that along the parade route in Springfield in the morning. Brrr! The finishing touches must be going on the float right about now at Barlow's. Have a good night, everyone.

It's a different world up here at the north pole Richard. We're hoping to break out the spring skiing equipment any day now! All this snow sure makes it hard to plant the potatoes.

pat, it's called a yard sale when you wipe out something awful while skiing and your poles go one place, hat another, and skis go somewhere else. do you really still have snow in presque isle?? wow!!

Well folks are converging on Spfld., and I have reunion envy! Travel safely everyone and have a fabulous time this weekend! Hopefully someone will take photos and post them here for those of hosting yard sales this weekend instead of walking down memory lane behind a float. Enjoy everyone........

Float is coming along nicely. We will meet at Barlow's at 6:00 Friday to finish up. Bring a munchy to share. Pizza will get ordered if we choose.
Remember, if you have not paid for your meal for Saturday night, bring it to Deb before the dinner!
Hope to see others there! Happy Thoughts!

i will be flying into springfield airport with my co-pilot, brian king, saturday am. brian is pretty sure that the back roads only take an extra 4 minutes from burlington to spfld. as a myth buster lover, i am all over this. our goal is to hit town at 9:49. we would be there at 9:45 but we will be taking some blue (as in sad and lonely) highways. we will be singing along with some old j geils tunes cuz those are the easiest ones to sing along with (those are some where- if you know the title then you know the lyrics- like freezeframe, now freeze!). okay, gotta finish my ground check and get some stuff packed. wahoo! richard

Travel safely everyone!
I am sure we will all have a good time together. For those of you who can't come, we'll have fun for you, too!
Happy Thoughts to all.....

I'm flying tomorrow morning on Jet Blue. Getting excited!

FYI everybody coming to the parade!
The Parade is starting down at the J&L parking lot on Clinton Street. The parade starts at 10:30, so I would think you would want to make sure you have found the 72 float by 9:45 or so....We are meeting again Wednesday night so if there are any changes I can post them here for you.
Hope for beautiful weather and Happy Thoughts.............

Hello everyone. It's time for me to pop in again and see what's going on. Hi Karen V out there where it's not too late yet. Congrats Eric on this first grandchild! And Pat, so sorry that you won't be making it Saturday after you've been such a splendid spokesperson for it all. (Tears flowing.) My brother does some work in the complex where the McHughs live. Charlie will be turning 90 on July 31, and the mailing address is 9 Pine Brook Lane Unit G5, North Springfield, VT 05150. And Mrs. McHugh will turn 90 on November 5. Ron had to take Mrs. McHugh's Focus down to BF last week to get the oil changed. So they're doing well these days. I too remember being shown how to fold up The Times. What a thick paper to look at everyday! I enjoyed spending time in the sports section. Wrong answer. Well, I look forward to seeing some of you in Cosmoland on Saturday. I should be arriving just before parade time. Where does it start, up on the River Road where the First National Store used to be? Now how many years ago was that? Fred Kolstrom was the manager, and I enjoyed bringing shopping carts back to the store from the parking lot while my parents shopped. I'll check in again later. Jerry

Well that's great news Richard! I'm sure they'll squeeze you right in. It's good to know that even as we get this close folks are making plans to get to Spfld. It'll be a fun time I'm sure.

I'm sorry to hear that your mom isn't doing well Roland. I wish your family all the best and much comfort.

okay. okay. okay. i am going to make it to the reunion. misty guest will as well. is it too late to get a couple of spots at the table?? gotta a million stories i want to hear. please come ready to tell all. i can't wait for five more years. wahoo!!

Hey gang, sorry to say I can't make the reunion I was so looking forward to. Mom is VERY sick and I'm afraid facing hospice soon. I must spend the time there but maybe I can meet up with a couple of you in B town someday or if enough of us were in this area we could gather for dinner or something.

Thank you for all of the kind thoughts. I'm sorry you can't make it Pat, hope everything is OK. Weather still hot down here without much rain. See everyone next week.

Life sometimes does get in the way of things...hope its nothing too serious Pat! Sorry you can't come and have the PJ party at HH.
We are all getting together Friday night at Barlows to finish up the last minute things on the float, so everyone can meet there and decide what to do!
Happy Thoughts...

I'm so sorry to hear that, Patti. We'll really miss you. I was looking forward to seeing you again. Is everything okay?

Well, things change. I will not be attending the reunion. Life has gotten in the way and I've had to change my plans. I really hope everyone has a great time though. I'm hoping that later in the summer I'll be able to visit for a mini get together like last summer. Karen S will you be going to Vt any other time this summer?

Congratulations ! Someday I too will be a grandma. At least I think so. The boys tell me not to hold my breath. Guess that means I need to wait a while.

I'll let you know Eric what specifically but something will happen Friday to get us together at least for supper. The out-of-towners. Debbie and Janice have both mentioned a possible BYOfood BBQ but if that falls through I'm sure something will be set up. Unfortunately, not knowing Spfld. very well anymore it's hard to even just pick a restaurant and say lets all meet there. We ate at the HH last time. It was fun! Keep checking in.

I'm expecting to see Joanne Gordon here soon. She asked John to have an invitation sent to her. More voices, excellent!

Welcome to Grandparenthood, Eric. I have said that its the best feeling in the world. Your baby weighed the same as mine, length too. Hopefully, you are close so you can see her lots. My husband likes them better when they are big enough to play, where I like to snuggle. Enjoy!!!
I am sure everyone will be finishing up the float on Friday night. There is a meeting on Wed so we can find out more details. Happy Thoughts.........

Congratulations, Eric! The birth of a first grandchild must be a really special feeling.

Madalyn Opal Smith arrived 7 Jun at 22:30. She was 8lbs 11oz, 21 in long and is the cutest baby ever. Ok so I might be a little prejudiced :). As my first granchild she is perfect of course. I get to Manchester sometime on Friday and drive over to Springfield. If we come up with any plans post and provide directions and I will try to get there.

Rainy Sunday here. Spent yesterday catching up on all the yard work that wasn't done in 3 weeks! Glad I stuck to it. Now I have plants to put in the ground and I'll be caught up.

Congratulations Karen V on your 4.0. Makes you feel good to know you can keep up with those "young wippersnappers"! Sorry that you can't make it to the reunion, but we could have another little "mini" one when you do come.

I am excited that there are only 3 more days of school for me! You can always feel that it is time for the kids to have a break...they start doing behaviors from the beginning of the year, are whinny, tattle...all with the unknown of summer. School is sometimes the only constant, safe place in their lives, unfortunately. But I am ready for summer vacation. That is the best thing about working at school...the break...only draw back...it doesn't pay during the summer (for Paras anyway). Luckily, I stretch out my check for that time.

Happy Thoughts, meeting on Wednesday at Barlows to work on the float. Anyone who is interested!

P.S. It's only 9:30 out here. I know it looks like I'm up late. Well, I usually am, but it's not late for me yet...

Wow! I'm baaaack!!! Twice in one day... Wonders never cease! You can rest easy, now Richard. :) Thanks for your thoughts on things.

I must say, again, I'm realllly bummed that I can't come back for the reunion.

so if i told karen v. a few things when do you think she would read them? i believe that information is not information if it is not communicated. this is a transmitter and receiver problem that perplexes this radio frequency engineer. i don't like it. i don't like it at all. so at the risk of so much jibberish until september when she checks in again, i will say this. the 4.0 is brilliant! that you want to stay healthy, too, is really great. i got very unhealthy by the end of four years with only a 3.4 in my mba program. it was a little more than others had accomplished and i had a little less gas in the tank because of it. it opened the door to the rest of my life. i would do it again in a heartbeat.

Now I feel guilty about trying to make Richard feel guilty..... so I'm glad you're guilt-free, Richard.

Good to see you here, Karen V. You're our best student of the year! Congratulations.

Hi all!

Couldn't sleep so logged on to the blog and have spent the last couple of hours catching up on all the old blogs. (Am I a slow reader?!) I last logged on in March! Have been so busy with school. Have to brag though - I managed to get another 4.0 last semester!

I was back East in April for my brother Tom's wedding. Had to take a detour to CT so my boys could see my ex's dad who was ailing. (He passed away May 27, a month after they saw him.) I only had one full day in VT and I spent it doing homework. (Am I dedicated, or what?!) However, this left me very cranky and depressed from not having enough time there. So, I've decided to come back when I can have more time to unwind and enjoy VT, probably early Aug. But, reading the blogs makes me wish I could be at the reunion. It's just too difficult with homework, though. Plus I'm trying to stay healthy and not get run down.

Kathi, Congrats on the new granddaughter!

Richard, Your blogs are very entertaining and crack me up. My life is pretty boring compared to yours.

Lori, Glad you had fun in wine country. Was there once with ex & boys during spring break about 5 years ago. Loved it there.

Pat, Sorry about the flood. I would be very upset if I lost any memorabilia.

Jerry, Sorry about your mom. That's never easy.

Karen, Congrats on the Mother's Day thing. You must be doing something right.

Hi Brian!!!

I did have a suggestion for the reunion. I had it for the last one but it never materialized. I thought it would be fun if we all had a one page summary of our life, answering fun questions, maybe some pictures, that we could combine into a booklet. Or maybe e-mail them. I'd be willing to spend a few bucks on a copy. That would also help out those of us who can't come to still feel part of the reunion.

Sorry to miss the fun. I'll just have to get out the yearbook and reminisce by myself instead. Too bad we can't videoconference! Send me pics, OK?

I'm glad you're guilt free Richard. I don't want you to feel guilty I just want you to show up. If you possibly can.

hi. i am guilt free. you know that i would love to start with the first barbecue and go until the last song at the last party and maybe i will. my undisclosed guest has not been in touch, i am a single parent that gets little time to myself, and i am traveling early monday morning after the reunion weekend. that is the bad news. the good news is that i smile a lot, that i think you guys are great, and i will do my best to wang chung with chicks in jeans or dresses (maybe guys too).

You seem to be traveling a lot lately, Karen. Sounds exciting. It's good to get out of the routine once in a while.

Okay, Patti, I'm throwing some more guilt at Richard .... What? You still haven't sent in your RSVP????

I'm glad Brian Davis will be coming. We used to talk a lot in high school, and I haven't seen him since.

I heard from Debi (Lamphere) Lopes today and she will not be able to make it. She be in town for a family event the weekend before. Timing is everything. Karen V will be busy at summer school. Drats.

Debbie is compiling a list for me of who is coming so far. Karen I'll need your snail mail address to send it to you. You can send it to my email. 1ckmom1@maine.rr.com., rather than post here on line.

Richard, this me, shaking my finger at you and saying "shame, shame". Debbie tells me that she has NOT received your RSVP for the reunion. What's up with that? Don't you let us down...........

Karen, I expect you to weigh in here and convince him to take care of business! Come everyone, lets apply a little loving, pressure! Do you feel the love Richard????

I'm pretty sure I'm wearing a dress on Saturday. I look forward to opportunities to dress up because I work in such casual clothes.

Mr. Paul is still there?!!! How old is he?

My friend asked me what I'm wearing to the reunion. I hadn't even thought of that. I'm always in jeans. Are we supposed to get dressed up for the dinner?

Hi Everybody.
I am back home again!!! I miss my daughter and little ones but it is so nice to be in my own house.
Back to Kindergarten today. Rainy Monday so they will be inside, hopefully glad to see me and not too hyper!
I remember reading the New York Times and the questions on the board. I think we might have all been in the same class. I used to see him around town but haven't in a while.
Mr. Paul still teaches American Studies.
Have a great day and Happy Thoughts.....

I remember one very interesting concept from Mr. McHugh and his NY Times. He showed us how to fold it so you could read it on the subway barely moving it to turn the pages. That really stuck in my mind.

3 weeks to go. What to wear, what to wear?

How does a Friday night BBQ sound? We could plan to bring our own meat to grill and pick up munchies and salads to go with. then all we need is Deb and Ron's back yard! What do you think?

I can hear you, Patti. All the way out here.

By the way, are any old teachers going to be at the reunion dinner? My parents are friends with the McHughs and want me to call them when I'm in Springfield. Did any of you have him for a history teacher? I did. He had us read the N.Y. Times every day. That's about all I remember.

I know you can't hear me but right now, I am giggling.

If my order is a choice between prime rib and salmon then it's salmon only because I love it. The elusive Brian is just that. It is quite unknown when or if he will surface. My favorite teachers right now are my yournger son and the engineers I work with in Switz.- it won't be them. It could be my lovely wife. The possibilities are endless, but only until I see you.

If my order is a choice between prime rib and salmon then it's prime rib. Only because I don't each fish. Why a he indeed? Guess I'm thinking about the elusive Brian. Perhaps a favorite teacher? Your lovely wife? the possibilities are endless............

pat the future is so uncertain that i can't say much. you know, it is too soon to say whether it will be an order for prime rib or salmon. why do you think that it is a he? why would we be "glued to each other" if it was a he? i can only say that it is one of my favorite people.

I'm not sure why it's tiny for you Kathi, doesn't seem to be on my screen. I tried to bump up the font size. Let me know how it looks. How do we feel about green? Very spring like don't you think? I'm just having some fun. You click on the customize button and there are several different templates to choose from.

Good news about the attendance numbers. Particularly since we agree to 80 based on attendance at our last reunion; so we have to pay for 80 at a minimum. We need to keep getting the word out. I talked with Brian Cruz Davis and he is now hoping to make it. There are so many people up the Burlington area. Richard maybe you could arrange a little skywriting reminder to the class of 72!


Richard it sounds like we may be about to play where in the world is Richard and ????? Is it someone from our class who said he didn't think he'd make it? Animal, mineral, or vegetable?

pink, tiny, and a nerve that you like to hit. okay! given this , i suppose i could give a little more information on my guest. you will know my guest by the special buttons we will be wearing. i had a couple of buttons made with a mapquest map of spfld and an arrow to the town center with a message that says, "i am here." if my guest and i are not glued to each other, you will know my guest by the button.

This is definitely different! It is pink and very tiny on my screen. I think the count is now up to 50plus so that is great. Did you find someone to be our guest speaker, Richard...someone from our "past" who remembers us!!! Sounds intriging to me also. I am really enjoying the summer weather here. It isn't too hot with a breeze...figure if my freakles continue maybe they will all connect and I'll have the perfect tan! (Not really)....Only 8 more days of school for me when I get back, too! I am so excited. Happy Thoughts.....

Come on, we don't like secrets!

Patti, how did you manage to turn the whole thing pink?!

A special guest; that's intriguing. Spill Richard, we're not good at waiting!

hey now. that is floating my boat. woah!!!! i may be able to come to the reunion with a special guest. let's see what happens.

I did it. I thought it would only impact my view not everyone else's. Isn't it pretty?
Guess I better change it back. Sorry about that.

What does it look like now Eric?

Is it just me, or did the format just change significantly???

I heard from Debbie tonight, the count is up to 44. She thinks a get together Friday night is a great idea and will look into it. She's going to make some calls and try to get some more help.

Congrats on finding your way back to the house. Yes it was hot today, I almost turned on the AC in the car. I'm glad we could have clear weather for your trip, I expect the same in Springfield :). On your way to Durham, exit 297 on I40 in Raleigh, the NC State Farmers market, a stop not to miss.

So glad that your brother-in-law is doing much better! Such a relief to everyone.
I am sitting outside on the deck using Amanda's laptop. I like being able to use it anywhere. I think I will have to start saving my pennies (lol) and get one. It was so hot here in NC today but now there is a beautiful breeze and the bugs aren't out! I am sure by the time I get home the blackflies will have decided to come out. Made a big trip to the library with the kids today. It certainly brings back memories of when mine were little. I got sort of lost coming home from the library....but I knew that I had to keep turning left. I finally drove by Caleb's preschool..to which he was all excited so I was only a few streets off...and I knew the way from there...pretty pathatic! Good news is I made it there and back safely! I will leave Saturday night, spend the night in Durham with my sister-in-law and fly home on Sunday.
Happy Thoughts............

No, I didn't win any money, Kathi, but my friend did. She won $500--or actually $300 after you subtract what she lost first. I had to pull her away from the machine.

Patti, maybe the ignored spouses can have their own party!

Mornin' all! I'm back from Tennessee exhausted but exhilarated. Our team placed 30th out of 74 teams and that is terriffic for first timers competing against scshools for whom Destination Imagination is a part of their school's curriculum. I'm very proud of them. Dollywood was loads of fun and I wish we'd had the time to do the water park across the the way. The ride there from Knoxville was lovely beautiful countryside.

Jerry I'm so glad you kept trying and finally got back in. We've missed hearing from you. I know it's been a difficult 07 for your family. My best thoughts are with you as you know. I'm so very glad you and Carol are coming in June. I've been looking forward to meeting her for a while now. Will you be staying at the Inn?

Lori, even though Dave is coming along, I'm planning on ignoring him most of the time so don't worry about being the only "spouseless" one! I asked Debbie but haven't heard about anything for a supper/float building together Friday night. I heard from Brian Cruz-Davis yesterday and sent him the info. He's looking forward to coming now so our numbers are rising!

I wish we lived a couple hours away or so, then we could visit more often. I hate being 14 hours away and can only come on specific school vacations. Weekend visits would be fun. So Lori, that way you can have your peace and quiet and still visit and get that baby loving. It is still rest time here...which is a mom's/Nana's heaven.
Glad that the wine tasting experience went well. Did you win any money at the casino????
Happy Thoughts........

Hi Jerry. Sorry to hear about your mother, but good to see you on the blog again.

Kathi, I'm getting jealous. I want to have grandchildren to play with, too--though I'm also worried I won't have the energy I'm hoping I'll have! I like my peace and quiet, too....

Well, I'm back from the wine-tasting day. Richard wasn't kidding about the spit can. I used it to pour out some of the wines that were too sour for me. My favorite was Zinfandel and also a desert wine, Orange something, I forget the name. But I guess I'm hopeless as far as wine goes cuz the best part for me was sitting on the terrace looking out at the beautiful view--and trying to absorb as much quiet as possible before we went on to the casino my friend wanted to go to.

By the way, is everyone coming to the reunion with a "spouse"? Avi's skipping this trip, but will be coming on the one to Israel in July.

Can you believe that I am sitting her watching my son's old Teenage Ninja Movie with my little grandson. He thinks it is so cool and wants to grow up to be a ninja...The baby (Chloe) is doing well now and the other two are adjusting to having a new baby in the house. My sister-in-law who lives in Durham, came down and took me to some Outlet Mall yesterday. She found lots of goodies. I didn't buy much...baby things...that I don't have to carry home on the plane! One more week of being a helping Nana....it's always sad to leave the little ones but nice to get home.
Glad that you found your way back on Jerry. I have to tell you that your obvious love for your mom was so beautiful.
Happy Thoughts...

I just realized, Karen, that I spaced it because Jim, Larry, and Martha are not your uncles and aunt, they're your cousins. Their Dad Irving, my old next door neighbor growing up, was your uncle. I wanted to clear that up. Jerry

Hey, can you believe it? I made it in here after previous unsuccessful tries to get a new Google Account. I see that no one was in here yesterday. Yes, a slower time with some people doing other things on this holiday weekend. I see that the last count of RSVPs was 33. Is that just classmates, or does it include guests? Mine is "in the mail" to Deb and Ron as of Friday. So the new unofficial count is either 34 or 35 'cause my girlfriend Carol will be coming with me. She already visited the Hartness House with me back in January when we were in Springfield to visit my ill Mom. Carol liked it very much and was looking forward to reunion time. Is it ok that she's a grad of Concord NH High? Ha! Karen, your Uncle Larry and Marlene stopped by to chat with my brother Ron at 442 South St yesterday afternoon. It was nice for me to see him, your Uncle Jim with Priscilla, and Aunt Martha with Andy at the visiting hours for my Mom at Davis Chapel in February. It was very nice to see Kathi, also, and the dear Mrs. Bingham, the Mom to 12 kids, who's been a longtime neighbor just a few houses away on South St. We just had the committal service for Mom at the cemetery in Georgia Plain just south of St. Albans the day before Mother's Day and what would have been my Dad's birthday. I look forward to seeing all of you on the 23rd, and I'll check in here again. Now I'll see if I can post this. Jerry