Hey and to make that just a little more ambiguous, let me say that I am happy that went to Hyde.
That's original. Why are you happy you went to Hyde?
I enjoyed summer nights with Nancy Hart; a canoe trip to Moosehead Lake, with some surprise whitewater canoeing, and a moose watching us from the bluff; lobster at Montsweag Farms; interviewing local fisherman and the like for the school newspaper with Raul Sanchez and never writing the articles but getting fed lots of goodies; a day-long hike with buddies Raul, Todd Davis, and Craig McGill to a swimming-hole fed by a stream, with a laddered sluice full of eels; pizza with Jan Holland at a pizza joint down the hill near the river; the countryside in general.
But academically and emotionally, those were wasted years.
Thanks I try to be original. Jan Holland. MMMMM I remember Jan. Jan is dead I hear. I had an awlful jones for her. She knew it and was merciless to me. I remember her and Kathy Lampias hanging around together. Funny I was tring to remember Todd Davis' name. He went into the AF. I remember Craig and his sister. Todd taught me the words endomorph and ectomorph. Todd was an ectomorph with curly hair.
I was pretty screwed up as a teenager - young adult. Having my Mom send me was probably the best thing he could do at the time. I went to a shrink and I just got worse. Going to Hyde arrested my spiral. My family situation was dysfunctional, as they say these days. As you know it you don't succeed at hyde it is because _you_ failed. There is a tautology for you. I told my mother that Hyde was fund raising and was asking me for money "Don't give them a dime. You don't own them a thing." she said. Then there was that incident with a certain highly respected figure at Hyde which she was too proper to mention that I think colored her memories of the old Blue and Gold. I heard about it second hand from my class mates "Hey did you hear about your mom and *******" I was non-plused. She was not impressed. I am just glad Gigi is not my step sister.
I kind of coasted along no one really noticed me or really thought about confronting my attitide as it was called in those days. I think many of the things that were good for me in the long run were unitended consequences of the school not a direct result of some didactic intent on Hydes part.
The kind of things you are alluding to are the things that I love about that time. Sound like you went on the canon trip with Tom Terriffic. I can barely remeber Raul or Nancy. Can you describe them.
Emil Nightrate
I'm sorry to hear that about Jan. I remember her as being mature beyond her years, and guarding a secret under that mysterious smile. Kathy Lampias would join us for pizza. Kathy had a sharp tongue, and knew how to use it. She was merciful to me, though, I suppose because she had been Nancy Hart's roommate. Nancy was a cute blonde from London, a self-styled wild child who ran away early in the school year, so I'm not surprised you don't remember her. Tom Lynch was on the canoe trip, and my roommate in off-campus housing (have you nailed me down yet?). I don't think any of the others I mentioned --- Raul Sanchez, Todd Davis, Craig McGill --- finished out their senior year. We were all there "under protest."
I emerged from a situation of child abuse into, well, a situation of child abuse. At least that's how I would describe "Mr. Gauld's" totally berserk slapping and terrorizing of a girl for not having sufficient personality, in his opinion. I developed a strong aversion for him on the spot, along with anyone else who was a part of that system. I have it on good authority (victims' own testimony) that such incidents were not infrequent at Hyde, if not so brazenly public.
As you said, the good times were all off program, and they were very, very good times. But, unfortunately, there was a tradeoff.[/quote]
Tom Lynch. I remember Tom.
So we were in the same summer school. One of my enduring memories of Joe is the school meeting that summer where Joe for some reason blew a fuse and started to rant. "You people smell like Westbrook! Westbrook! Get you of here. Get out of here. I don't want to smell you any more." and he was spitting, standing at the edge of the stage and spitting as he spoke. I will never forget it.
That was the thing that was freaky about him: you could never tell which way he was going to go. Was he happy? Was he sad? Was he angry? You just could not tell. He would start one way and then BANG massive mood swing and he would be ranting or crying.
I loved the cartoons that Phil Staples drew of him. He had him nailed in one where he used the coffee machine as a metaphor for Joe. The dials on the machine pegged the machine built up pressure and exploded. Then Joe gets a cup of coffee and sit down on the chair on the stage with the plaid golf pants and bad comb over. Phil was back for the '76 reunion and recieved a diploma.
Jan died of breast cancer IIRC. The announcement of Jan's death was in the alumni news letter. It is funny to go back because the disconect between those days and present day is pretty clear. Basically you've got Joe, Joe's offspring, Hydites that married Joes kids, Francis Murray and John Braun. Every one else is gone from the staff in those days.
