Tamaqua Commencement - First Day of School

It seems that my life has been ruled by the school calendar. The first day of school brings back memories of good friends and good times. When we were kids - Labor Day was a holiday that honored workers. In our little coal town - miners were organized into unions. Usually school started on the Wednesday after Labor Day. We did not have fall or spring breaks. We had the week off between Christmas and New Year - and the school year ended early in June if we did not have off too many snow days. Since most of us walked to school - snow did not stop us often. A school year was 180 days.

Dorset School

DORSET SCHOOL

For my first 6 years - I lived in a farm house without plumbing on the side of the Appalachian Mountains. So the first school I attended was Dorset School. It is near the little town of Snyders PA. A school bus picked me up at my front door and drove the 2 miles to the school. It was a one room school with a coal stove and no indoor plumbing. I only spent a month there before we moved to the big city of Tamaqua. Mrs Leah Wertman Fritz was my teacher. This was September - 1954.

North Ward School

NORTH WARD SCHOOL

I remember my dad taking me to the North Ward School - class was already in session. My Mrs. Whetstone seated me behind Gary Miller - who would become a lifetime friend. While the  teacher was not looking - Gary put a piece of candy in the pencil trough of my desk for me. The teacher admonished me with "Where did this come from?" I was there 5 minutes and already in trouble. "No candy."

I loved the 6 years from 1954 to 1960 in that school. There were 8 classrooms then - we did not use the basement. The grades were 1 - 2 -3 - 4 - 5 - 5 - 6 - 6. The extra 5th and 6th grades were for kids from South Ward.

My teachers were -
1 - Mrs. Whetstone
2 - Helen Folk (I later bought our building lot at 221 Catawissa St from her Mom for $3000)
3 - Jane Edwards
4 - Phyllis Wynn
5 - Dorothy Leiser
6 - Mary Kovalesky
The other two rooms were Jane Rieman and Veronica Haggerty.

During a leaky gas pipe incident - we shared the school with kids for Pine Street - going half days until the repairs were over. This school was across the street from St Jerome Church - now a parking lot.

Tamaqua Junior High School

TAMAQUA JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL


From 1960 to 1963 - I attended 7th - 8th - 9th grade at this building on Broad Street on the banks of the Schuylkill River. We used to enjoy our sewage running in the river and people in Philadelphia drinking the same water after it passed through Reading and Valley Forge. What history.

This was the first time I went from classroom to classroom for lessons. We had gym - shop - art - music. Girls had home economics. I can still name all the teachers.

In 1962 - when Tamaqua had their famous undefeated football team - I was on the JV Team. I remember having a card saying I could attend games as a "participant" for free.

Tamaqua High School

TAMAQUA HIGH SCHOOL

In the fall of 1963 - I went to 10th grade in Tamaqua High School. In that fall - my English and Latin teacher - Paul Jewells died. A week later John Kennedy was assassinated. The Beatles became popular in America a few months later. I turned 16 in February of 1964 - got my driver's license - and sneaked my dad's car to school a few days. By the time I graduated in June of 1966 - the war in Vietnam was getting into full swing. I received a draft card that said 1-S - deferment for being in high school. At that time I chose to become a school teacher. I enrolled at Kutztown State Teachers College in the fall of 1966.

During the summer of 1969 - I got a job at the Bungalow Pool asa life guard - and met my future wife. In August of 1969 - I spent a day driving my new VW to Woodstock for a music festival. Lulu had to stay behind because her Mom would not let her go. 

Ever since then - my years have started in September and ended in June. I graduated from Kutztown in June of 1970 - and took my one and only real job as a teacher at the Panther Valley School District.   33 years later I retired from that same job. 

I experience my sons going away to college at Duke and Georgetown - every September and June I hauled their stuff to college and back in a trailer attached to my car. When I retired form teaching - Lulu was hired as professor at Florida State University and she just continued her commencement this year - teaching her new class yesterday. 

I have a theory called September Shock. My idea is that the whole purpose of life is to never experience a September where you are not going back to school to enjoy learning - sporting events - parties - dances - lectures - concerts - etc - all the fun of starting over. Everyone gets new clothes - fresh notebooks and pens - maybe a new ride - new friends - and new experiences. 

I am 70 now - and September commences. FSU has a new football coach that is 42 - as old as my son. He is instilling a hurry up offense and fresh defense. 

Ironically - only one of my four schools is still standing. 

Commencement - everything seems to be moving along as planned. 

Fall In Tallahassee - Lulu Is Off To Work At FSU

The best three things about living in Florida are - fall- winter - and spring. Today Lulu is off to her 15th year as a professor at Florida State University. It has been a wonderful run. It is about 2 miles from our home to her campus office. She usually takes the electric car to campus - but during the first few weeks the parking on campus is terrible. With the scooter - she can park right by her door.

Lulu has just finished a sabbatical where she spent time in Greece - Germany - France - Denmark - Belgium - Netherlands - Switzerland - Lichtenstein - Spain - Italy - Sicily - Malta - Scotland - and Hawaii. Living with her is an adventure. My question is - what does she do for an encore?

The Seminoles are lined up with a new coach and a difficult schedule. No one knows for sure what is going to happen. It has created a euphoric feeling in town - that could turn ugly easily. They play Virginia Tech - Clemson - Miami - Florida - Notre Dame - NC State - Louisville. I see at least 3 losses in there.

In the video above -  you see the home we built 4 years ago - our Roadtrek motor home - and Lulu riding a 2007 Vespa 150 scooter that we bought new. It is the vehicle that we have owned the longest of the 72 cars - trucks - buses - vans - campers - trailers - golf carts - scooters we have purchased.

Happy New Year!  No September Shock for this girl.

Campers and Electric Scooters

ZEV scooter - assembled in West Virginia. 

It looks like a hitch platform.

In 2015 - I visited ZEV Scooters in Morgantown WV. I got to drive several of their scooters and enjoyed seeing where they assemble them. They are constantly coming up with new models.

I recently saw the above pictures on the Internet of a new 3 wheel electric scooter.  I was surprised and happy that it was made by ZEV. ZEVis own by Darus Zerback.

It appears in this picture that it is on a hitch platform on the back of a Class C Coachmen motor home. These scooters are not light - they are full of batteries. I can't imagine a normal hitch receiver being able to take this much weight. Still it is an interesting idea.

I have a Roadtrek Class B and a Nissan Leaf electric car. Golf Carts are a fun way to run around campgrounds - quiet - no local exhaust.

Here is my story from visiting ZEV in 2015 -

http://everhart.blogspot.com/2015/04/on-search-for-perfect-electric-vehicle.html

Starting My Roadtrek After Being Away 75 Days

2004 Dodge Roadtrek - starting after a long summer nap.


We just returned from 75 days in Europe to our home in Florida. I covered the camper in a 20 year old blue tarp. In Florida - we had a lot of heat - sun - rain - and wind. I was happy to see the tarp intact after all that time. I bought the tarp to use as a party tent for his high school graduation in 1995. It has been rolled up in the attic since then.

The camper started right up. It remained relatively clean. The Onan Generator started right up too - as did the air conditioner and the water heater. I just gave it a quick washing - and now it is ready for the road. Lulu has beach written all over her face.

It is a 2004 Dodge Roadtrek Popular 190. It has 18,000 miles on it. It is in excellent like new condition. It is not for sale - I am just showing off a bit. It has all new batteries - all new tires - a new flat screen TV - and a new inverter. Everything works. I have owned it one year. The previous owner kept it garaged the whole time. I paid way too much for it - $32,000 - I knew that gong in - I did not care. It is hard finding a Roadtrek in this nice shape.

While in Europe - we visited Hymer World - Hymer recently bought the Roadtrek factory in Canada.

Off The Coast Of Nova Scotia

We are having a nice flight home. Three hours to Atlanta. Lulu and I got upgraded but no bumps. We will be home by 10 pm. We have free email and texts on the Delta A330.

A Tour Of 12A Bedford Place - London - Our Apartment

We stay here one month every summer. My wife teaches a course for Florida State University at the FSU Study Center nearby. This apartment is one block from the British Museum. We rent it for the month - usually July. This was our 10th year. I do nothing - I am retired.




I did this video today - August 1st - 2018.

PS -  August 2 - 2018 - we had 2 nice flights and got home at 11 PM.




I did this video almost 10 years ago. You may notice I have the same clothing on. :-)

Day 72 Reflection - Last Full Day in Europe (London) Tomorrow We Fly Home

Sandi and Robyn were excited to see Caldecott's home



The Tower of London - William the Conqueror built it in 1078



Biking by Buckingham Palace - Queen Victoria lived here in 1837.




All our guests have gone home - all Lulu's classes are over. It is hard to believe that all the time has come and gone. A week in Greece - a month in Germany - a week in Denmark - and a month in London. Throw in a wild weekend in Nancy - France.

The best part is all of our family and friends that gave their time to come to see us. There is nothing better than traveling with people you love. I am really appreciative of Lulu's work providing these opportunities. It is not bragging to say that we go home richer than when we came. Not just money - but shared experiences. I doubt that we could afford this - if I had to pay the bills. An old school marm's pension wasn't meant to travel the world.

Tomorrow at 10 AM - FSU sends a limo over to take us to Heathrow Airport. We leave London at 2 pm - go to Atlanta - then arrive home in Tallahassee around 10 PM.

Hopefully - all of the above paragraph is wrong - our plane is booked solid and we are hoping to be bumped.

The best part of the EuroFest is easy to say - tooling around with Max in the taxis - buses and tubes. The second best part was getting the $4000 bump from Delta on the trip over. Just sitting at a table on the main plaza in Nancy-France with my bride on our anniversary was special. Finally - frowning and crying in Nuremberg at the Nazi parade grounds and court. We have been excited - happy - melancholy - sad - pensive - and content. We really enjoyed this place - but we are eager to get home and get on with life.

Autogyro at air show - not a helicopter - safer

Honda 3 wheel - neat scooter

No screen time for these kids

I like these pay toilets - pee for 40 p

Supper in our courtyard with Lulu's class

Enjoying tea in the Shard

The Tower Bridge - once powered by steam engine

HMS Belfast in Thames - take a tour

St Pauls Cathedral.

My favorite bathroom

High tea at the Shard

Restaurant up on the Shard. Observation deck is 25 pounds a person. This restaurant is free when you buy drinks. We enjoyed an hour there with drinks - 18 pounds total for 4

Food Tour with JP and Wanda - also Brooks - Claire - Meg - Lulu

Neat deejay jeep. Top cranks up for deejay stand

It is fun to go in a museum and see your Tallahassee neighbor - George Clinton - King of Funk. 

Hula hoop show at the Somerset House

Lion King in background along The Strand

Bike Saturday in London - carless main streets

St James Gardens

Wind Relief Medication

To me - this Victoria House reminded me of my old school - The Panther Valley Middle School

The Beatles played Royal Albert Hall

Royal Albert Hall is so big - it had a cloud forming inside

The Proms at Royal Albert Hall

Symphony and Choir

Robyn and Sandi - Nancy - Royal Albert Hall

The Tube was crowded because bikes closed the main streets

The National Train Museum in the City of York

The Duchess of Hamilton

This train was pulled by horse. It still had 3 classes. Third class rode the bench outside.

You could view the train from skywalks

The York Cathedral downtown. 

Crosskeys Pub - chicken sandwich - bacon - cheese - chips - salad - plus a pint of wild berry cider - 12 pounds

Monday - all of our guests and Lulu were busy - on tours or in class. I wanted to see the National Train Museum and time was running out. 

At 8 AM - I walked to Kings Cross Station. I bought a round trip - anytime ticket - to York. Because I bought it the day of travel it was not cheap - 72 pounds. It is 209 miles to York - yes that is the city New York is named after - and it took about 2 hours to get there. My little iPhone app was saying were were going 127 MPH! The train was full of day trippers like me - some were going on to Edinburgh in Scotland. 

We pulled out at 9:15 AM and got there around 11 AM. You can walk directly to the train museum from the station. The biggest train museum in the world is in France - but this museum kicks their butt with attendance - because it is FREE. It is so nice seeing large families going into the museum - not having to fork out 10 pounds per kid. You do not feel like you have to stay there forever to get your money's worth. There is so much there to see - giant buildings - and lots of outdoor displays. 

First thing I did when I got there was to have lunch. There are 2 food courts - and you eat right in the middle of the trains and displays. They serve food with nice china and silverware. Much of the food is made from scratch. 

It is overwhelming - with plenty of good signage to explain each historic train. My eyes glazed over quickly. You can read about each train on Wikipedia. Even the building is an exact replica of the 1849 - largest train concourse in the world then. 

Another nice thing -you are very close to Sheffield - Manchester - and Leeds. We have passed through here on trains to Durham - Glasgow - and Edinburgh. With a little bit better planning I could have seen this much sooner. I suggest if you are passing through York on a train - you get off - walk around for an hour or two - and continue on. 

After 3 hours - I had enough. I had to pace myself. I took a little train tram to downtown - now I wish I didn't. I will tell you why later. The tram takes you to the famous York church. They call it Yorkminster - I don't get it - so I call it Cathedral. 

I had a nice supper in the Cross Keys Pub. Cross keys is the symbol of the city. It has something to do with St. Peter having the keys to the kingdom. I had a nice Hunter's chicken sandwich with a wild berry cider. I am not a big drinker - but cider goes down real well over here - it is sweet - and toxic. 

The best part of York for me - is the old Roman Wall. The Roman's settled here around 50 AD. They stayed until 410 AD. They were there longer than the USA is alive. They build a wall around the city - common in the days before guns - bombs - airplanes - etc. It is about 20 feet high. This wall is in such good shape - you can walk along the top. I did that for about 2 miles. The walkway on top is about 6 feet wide. Some places have parapets and iron fences. There are places where you can shoot bow and arrows out. The wall is a great place to take pictures. Maybe Trump was here when he decided to build a wall. Of course it is worthless now for defense. 

You can walk all the way back to the train station on the walk - that is why I wished I took the wall into downtown - instead of the tram. I could have saved 3 pounds :-)

I had purchased a round trip anytime ticket. I could take any train back to London I wanted. I could stop at any city - get off and on - same ticket. I got to the train station at 5 PM. There was a 5:06 Train going straight to London - no stops - 2 hours - Kings Cross Station. The train stopped - I got on - I sat next to a sleeping guy. I had plenty of power for my iPhone - I read and watched videos the whole 2 hours. He slept. Maybe he was just avoiding me - who knows?

I got off the train around 7 PM - walked home - and told everyone around the table about the trip. The whole trip - 400 miles - two meals - no admission fees - cost me 100 pounds. Not a bad day. Thanks Simon for the suggestions. 

140 more pictures on the following page - Editing is an art I do not have. I love them all. 

I Saw Mamma Mia Today From The Front Row Between Two Tallahassee Girls

Tallahassee Girls - Sabrina - Nancy

Today at noon - Lulu and I left the flat to walk downtown. After 69 dry days on our trip - it rained last night - and really cooled London off. Today it barely reached 70 - it was bright and sunny - but windy. The rain knocked any humidity out of the sky.

Our first stop was at the theatre to check if we could get tickets for the Tina Turner Show. It has been sold out for the last two weeks - the only seats left were a couple of single seats at list price - 95 pounds. We walked on those.

A theatre right down the block has a 3 PM matinee - Mamma Mia. We were lucky to get two tickets in the front row for 25 pounds each. Lulu calls them pity tickets because I point out my hearing aids to the box office person. They have discounted tickets for us "concessioners." She teases me but always has me getting the tickets.

A young lady was sitting in the front row alone. I sat down next to her - and got my phone out. On my phone it said there was a "sabrina" network nearby. I am 70 - but I still recognize a good intro line when I see one. I just said - you must be Sabrina. She was startled but I asked her if she were a local. She said no - she was from Florida. I asked what city - and she said Tallahassee.

The curtain went up. We watched the first act - and it was great. It went so fast. Simply - the story is a girl was getting married on a Greek Island - and she invited 3 men to the wedding. She knew one of them was her father. No more info.

Back to the girl next to me. It turned out Sabrina is a senior at FSU and she has been here all summer studying at FSU Study Center. She lives about two miles from us in Tallahassee. She will actually be going home on the same flight as us - from London to Atlanta. She just loved her London study experience.

The second act is really nice - but the finale is really the crowd pleaser. It is a real rousing medley giving each cast member a chance to show off their chops.

They are really picky about people recording music and video. I had my iPhone in my pocket - and to my surprise the camera was turned on and sticking out. I just got 8 minutes of the finale. The second half is better than the first because I was sitting down and the camera was in my pocket. Still you can see the nice seats we had for 25 pounds.

Some of these actors were in Billy Elliot and Calendar Girls - plays we saw.

I really suggest Mamma Mia as a fun - cheap play.

The place was full - 4 levels.
We were in the front row. 

Here is the video of the finale -

Lulu's London Class This Year

Lulu made a nice dinner for her class.
Picture taken in our back yard.

Lulu started teaching in London in 2008 for FSU. Each year it seems to get better and better. The professor is a walking London Tourist Manual. She knows the streets - the parks - the theatres - the pubs - and the places to shop. She knows who was born where - and who lived and wrote here or there.

We have had lots of visitors through the years to our flat - Drew - Keith - Robin - Jack - Kate - Liz - Max - Marylou - Jeans - JP - Wanda - Sandi - Robyn - Dan - Ann - Dan - Kathy - Manny - and Mia. The first year we stayed in a small efficiency apartment. Later - we learned we could opt for something bigger if we paid extra. Since then we have been staying in this 3BR - 3BA townhouse at 12 Bedford Place.

Probably the biggest improvement we have had is that we buy local sim chips for our iPhones. That way we have our maps and transportation schedules with us all the time. It keeps us up to date on things from back home too. Lulu uses Applepay on her watch and phone - but I still like getting cash out of an ATM machine. A pound is worth $1.30.

We can still watch our TV from home on slingbox - but we do that less and less - instead listening to Sirius radio for CNN and Howard Stern.

We eat all our breakfasts at home - usually eat one meal out - and then gather for supper. We like using the bus and tube - but when 4 people travel together - a black cab is about the same price. The cab takes you door to door - it is good when our tourist guests are trying to save their legs. Mine too.

Today is day 69 of 75 of our EuroTrip. It went way too fast. We have had 2 hours of rain the whole time - and the last 3 days have reached upper 80s! Saturday is supposed to be back to the 70s. It has been good sleeping - it gets down to the 60s at night - and we leave doors and windows open. We have no AC - so we take lots of showers. This is nothing like you expect for London. I have not touched my London Fog raincoat.

Here is an old tour video of our apartment - since this video they added an extra bathroom.

http://everhart.blogspot.com/2012/04/harry-and-lulu-will-be-in-london-for.html

Lulu has two more classes - we go home Thursday.

Flooding In Pennsylvania

My friend Sally Bair just posted these pictures. She lives near Knoebel's Grove in Pennsylvania. When Pennsylvania gets 6 inches of rain - it is much different than Florida. In Florida it soaks in and runs to the sea. In Pennsylvania it funnels into the valleys and the rivers become torrents. Sadly - most of the people live the valleys.

A Day Alone At The Farnborough Air Show

Red Arrow Pilot - that will be 10 pounds!

Real hero of the show - American Miss Helen - P-51 Mustang - this singular airplane destroyed 519 Nazi planes. Look it up on wikipedia.

I spent some time in the Pimm's upper deck.



The second biggest air show in the world is held at Farnborough - a small town 40 miles southwest of London. It was 8 years ago that I went to see this air show with my son Keith - and could not pass up the chance of a repeat. Honestly - it was not as good for me this time. It is much better sharing an event like this with your son. But heck - I am here in England - I have the opportunity - the time - and the health - so I said here we go.

At first - Lulu said she would like to go with me. But after giving her a few chances to drop out - she took one. She was having a dinner party for her students and guests - and could really use the time to work out the logistics. I spent about 100 pounds on admission - train - and food - for the day. She said the extra time and money could really throw a nice gig - and she was right. We had a wonderful party Monday night - photos coming.

Sunday morning - I had a nice breakfast at the apartment - Lulu makes fantastic eggs - toast - and bacon. I felt like a kid going to school for the first time. I left at 9 AM.  Lulu did not pin my money and directions on my shirt - but she did send directions on my email. I took bus 58 to Waterloo Station. There I bought a roundtrip train ticket - I had 2 minutes to get to the train. It pulled out just as I crossed the turnstile. I was bummed thinking I would have to wait an hour. The conductor looked at my ticket and said - track 12 - in 4 minutes - another train. It was a quiet train - it just made 3 stops. Farnborough came up quickly.

At the Farnborough Station - they were shepherding us onto free buses to the air show. It only took me about 90 minutes from my door to the air show. I was the only person in the cash line for a ticket  - it was 45 pounds for seniors. Stupid me - if I bought online it was 37 pounds.

At 11 AM - it was already hot - but we had some cloud cover. There were hundreds of displays in the pavilions - companies selling planes - weapons - hardware - services - you name it. It was a real weapons festival. Outside there were hundreds of static displays - historic planes - modern planes - missiles - and drones.

There were a lot of great food trucks - drinks - souvenirs - clothing - typical festival stuff.

At noon - the aerial displays began. The 4 hottest items for me were the Airbus 350 - the Harrier Jumpjet - the F-15 Falcon - and the Autogyro. I include video.

Pimm's had a cool double decker bus with a bar in the bottom and a lounge in the top. That was a great relief about 3 PM - even the 6 pounds for an 8 ounce drink made sense to me. A couple ladies came up to the bus top lounge and sat at my table with a pitcher of Pimm's. They asked to sit with me - I was hoping they would share that pitcher. They didn't. If you do not know - Pimm's is a drink made something like an air tea cooler. Lots of fruit floating in it. Lulu loves them.

At about 5 PM - I walked a long way back to the gate. Planes were still flying. I caught the bus back to the train station. They were running extra trains back to London. Lots of people fell asleep on the ride back to Waterloo Station. It took no time at all to get back to the apartment.

As they say - the first time is the greatest. I saw a lot of great airplanes - lots of neat displays. The price seemed much higher this time. I did pace myself through the day - plenty to eat - drink - and rest in the shade. It is not as much fun with no one to talk to. I took a lot of pictures - but sometimes they blend together. I took way too much video.

The one irony I did not enjoy - was the Red Arrow Pilots. Britain has an acrobat flight crew like the Blue Angels called the Red Arrows. They have 9 planes they fly in a diamond. The pilots were walking around with a handful of pictures. They looked cool in their flight suits - writing personal messages on the pictures - all the way up until they said - that will be 10 pounds! I hope the Blue Angels do not do that.

I waited all day to see the Red Arrows fly. At 5 PM - they flew - for about 2 minutes. They did one flyby - turned on their colored smoke - and hightailed it to another place they were flying. Bub-bye.

The real star of the show was the USAF F-15. This guy performed twice at 1 PM and 4 PM. He flew a really hot plane - did some wonderful moves - and made a lot of noise. The Brits who seem to love everything American - except Trump - saved their best applause for the F-15. He delivered - and I did not see him selling autographs.

The Red Arrows.

This town is 40 miles southwest of London.

My buddy Pete worked on smart bombs.

Parts manufuacturers.

Belgium Aerospace.

Bowing Pavilion.

Vertical takeoff Harrier.

USA C-17 Transport. From Dover. It brings the bodies home. 

Big generator keeping plane powered.

Ice cream trucks.

USA brought a lot of stuff here - Apache Chopper.

Cruise missile

Engine display. 

This F-15 put on a great show.

F-15 Fighting Falcon. 

Stearman trainer. 

Cessna observation plane

This Mustang killed 519 Nazi planes. 

Harrier Jumpjet

Bombs bombs and more bombs.

Eastern European T-100 trainer. 

Ultimate Drone. 

Lots of heli-planes

Spy Drones.

Experimental planes. 

Russian pavilion was empty - just a place for spies to hide. 

RAF simulator.

It is called a giraffe - good for trimming trees

Sandwich shop used this Morris Minor to heat the buns.

Drones. 

Waiting for the show. 

F-15.

Wing walkers.

Sub chaser. Catalina.

Double Decker.

WWI fighter demo. 

Red Arrows

9 Red Arrows

Plenty of good bathrooms

Private jets.

Apache

Airstream food trailer. 

Little flyer.

Pimm's park

Drinks on the deck. 

Battle of Britain. 

WWII Brit aircraft. 

B-25 Mitchell Bomber - polished. 

P-38 - WWII attack aircraft.

Corsair WWII carrier plane

DC-6 Used for the Berlin airlift. 

1960 Drone 

The famous hero of the Battle of Britain - Hurricane.

Spitfire

Spitfire.

WWI Sopwith Camel. 

First plane to cross English Channel.

Young flyers. 

I loved the Autogyro. the top blade spends from the wind. 

Autogyro.

these guys should be heroes - instead of hawking autographs.