The message forum is an ongoing dialogue between classmates. There are no items, topics, subtopics, etc.

Forums work when people participate - so don't be bashful! Click the "Post Message" button to add your entry to the forum.

James Hamilton, M. D.

Bonnie Jonas (Jonas-Boggioni)

Not on here too often, but I read your first 2 sentences every day! 

I want to add a bit to the allergy/immunity thread!  When I was a patient of Dr. Mitchell, I did not know HALF of what I have learned since!  AND, now that I am immune-suppressed AML patient, this flu season and measles outbreak has me being VERY reclusive!  My food allergies are mostly from analine dyes (coal tar derivative) like Red # whatever and Yellow #   whatever...hidden in so many foods!  In plain sight, are medications...My first oral Prograf (antirejection drug) was a liquid suspension the pharmacy had to compound to the tune of $500 for 4 ounces.  We found white capsules that I have been taking ever since.  My Cel-Cept (another antirejection drug that I only took for 2 months) was a blue and brown capsule that I would open and pour into a plain vegetable capsule...8 a day!

 My food allergies are a mix of genetics and avoidance.  Does nothing for the air-born pollens! Used to be just about every March I would end up with pneumonia.  So far, so good!  

BUT the anti-vaxers are driving me NUTS!  I have no idea when I will gain "natural" immunity, but I get to start the flu & baby shots in October.  We have so many "Opt-Out" kids in TX, that the "Herd" isn't very large!  For the sake of others like me, PLEASE do all you can in your community to spread the good word about vaccines!

James Hamilton, M. D.

David Mitchell

Bonnie,

EXACTLY  GIRL ! 

The vaccines are a very different animal than repeated uses of penicillin for a common cold. 

Michael McLeod

I put anti-vax and flat-earth folks in the same category.

I remember how foolish I was, years ago, to think that the Internet would be a source of enlightenment.

I was half right.

It absolutely is. There are more well informed people in this world than ever before.

But as to the percentage of nincompoops vrs. relatively enlightened souls, I think that may be a constant in our species. 

Mark Schweickart

Not that I am not enjoying all the heaviosity permeating the posts of late, but I thought I would throw in this bit of silliness I recently came across to lighten the mood. Reminded me of the godd old Monty Python days of yore.

Janie Albright (Blank)

Columbus gets a NYT Shoutout. 

https://614now.com/2019/leisure/insta-famous-new-york-times-features-7-columbus-attractions

Mark Schweickart

For those of you who still go out to the movies, look to see if Apollo 11 is playing anywhere nearby and scurry on down to your theater. This is not to be confused with First Man (which I admit I haven't seen yet) which was a dramatic recreation out last year. Apollo 11 is a documentary made entirely of recently resurrected footage from the archives, along with similarly resurrected audio from the Houston control center. There are no talking heads, only stunning footage that takes you day by day though this incredible human achievement. Somehow they had cameras mounted seemingly everywhere during this endeavor, and these were film cameras, not video cameras (except for those B/W images transmitted back to earth during the voyage). How they timed activation of those cameras remains a mystery, and I cannot imagine one of the three astronautswas crawling around reloading film, and retaking light meter readings. How in the world they did it (or should I say, out of this world), they achieved truly amazing results. Seeing all of the complexity of the launch pad, the booster rockets, the row after row of people manning the command center, the footage of the different rocket stages releasing, etc., etc., really was a a humbling experience. It is hard to imagine the co-ordination and brilliant thinking that went into accomplishing this. I know, I know, this is old news. "Mark, you're acting like you never heard of this, or were asleep when it happened." Well, in truth I was sort of asleep, well, not asleep exactly – more like willfully uninterested. I think I was so disgusted with Richard Nixon, and the country in general back then in 1969, that I paid no attention to the event. It seemed like too much USA cheerleading to me at the time. My loss. But even if I had been interested, what I would have seen on a little black and white TV at the time would not come anywhere close to experiencing this film, which takes you all the way to the moon and back with the astronauts in a way that makes it really feel as if you are both alongside the astronauts on their ride, and simultaneously waiting anxiously in the control room. Terrific stuff.

David Mitchell

Mark,

I cannot wait to see the Apollo 11 film. And speaking of great documentaries, I got to watch "Free Solo" (see elow), the Oscar winning documentary about the kid who climbed El Capitan in Yosemite without ropes (first ever to do it). That he could do it is simply mind-boggling, but to have it photographed is also amazing! 

And as for your comic relief video - I haven't laughed that hard in a long time. OMG that is Funny!!

I thought my own "front was about to fall off." 

But Mike, David, and Janie, I have a request. If we are going to keep loading up with New York Times articles about nothing but serious topics, I may have to go back to school to learn to read. 

Lawrence Foster

I was enthralled with the space program.  When Apollo 11 landed on the moon I was home from the Army for 1 week of convelscent leave and I watched all of the flight over those 4-5 days.  In 1997 Buzz Aldrin was doing a book tour and signing copies of his book.  My daughter and I went to listen to him and then we got his autograph.  The book store folks were hurrying everyone through but Becci and I were the last ones in line - group H which meant we were between 176th and 200th in line.  There was no one behind us so as I approached the table I extended my hand and he very politely responded and shook it.   As we were leaving he reached out and shook Becci's hand.  Classy guy.  When he was on Dancing with the Stars I voted for him!

Joseph D. McCarthy

Dear Dave -WHAT have you done to Fred.  Hopefully you only placed him in a state of suspended animation with your discussions about B-I-N-G-O.

In an effort to bring Fred out of that "Trance/Suspended Animation" I would like to interject the following bits from my tired out memory. 

At one point certain people learned that there was a LOT of money to be made in running (legal gambling) bingo in Franklin County and elsewhere.  I believe that either a city code, county code or a state law was passed (I believe with wording provided by the Catholic Church) that permitted Bingo to be conducted only by allowed charities ( read church affiliated entities), and only for a limited number of days in a week or month.  Things went very well (read lucrative) for churches.

Then one day a certain person actually READ the law and found he could still make a fortune with Bingo.  He contacted a number of smaller churches/charities and offered to conduct bingo for them one day a week, that is one day a week for EACH ofthe small churches/charities.  He contracted with landlords throughout the city and set up BINGO Halls.  He provided the "Management" and workers and at the end of each night gave a check to the pastor of that night's event.  As I remember the event went on for a number of years till the Cattholic Church protested to the powers to be. 

One thing, there is a difference between "NON PROFIT" and "NOT FOR PROFIT".  Any Lawyers out there want to explain?  An example, Battelle Memorial Institution is now considered, I believe, a Not For Profit. 

Remeber Dave you started this.

Michael McLeod

here is the difference between me and the el cap guy: I can't even watch that preview without peeing down my leg.

Mary Margaret Clark (Schultheis)

Mary Clare Hummer (Bauer)

Jeanine, We’re thinking of you during these sad days for New Zealand and for all of us, really. I know your presence and compassion will be a source of comfort to people you meet there. Be safe. 

Clare

Timothy Lavelle

Hey, sorry the pic is sideways. I have wanted to go to a Comic-Con for years. Finally got to go up in Seattle yesterday. The world of fantasy and sci-fi is a sub-culture I have always enjoyed but from a confused/comfortable distance. Apparently it is WAYYY Bigger than I knew anything about. We guessed that something like 40 percdnt of the attendees dressed in costume and every booth or event is also completely kitted out in other dimensional weirdness. As you can imagine, some costumes are just OK, while some are truly realistic and gorgeous. Great imaginations! 

John Maxwell

Mary Margaret Clark (Schultheis)

Jack,

If you know Him, you will recognize Him.

James Hamilton, M. D.

Jeanine Eilers (Decker)

We are in Dunedin but go to Christchurch tomorrow.  People here are horrified that such a thing would happen in their peaceful country.  We are being very sympathetic (since our president has no classless empathy)  and the locals are grateful.  Don’t know what tomorrow will bring.  Thanks for the warm thoughts, Clare.

Jeanine Eilers (Decker)

We are in Dunedin but go to Christchurch tomorrow.  People here are horrified that such a thing would happen in their peaceful country.  We are being very sympathetic (since our president has no classl or empathy)  and the locals are grateful.  Don’t know what tomorrow will bring.  Thanks for the warm thoughts, Clare.

John Jackson

OK, nobody else wants to touch it but I’m going to address the elephant in the room – it’s St. Patrick’s Day!  Despite my affectations to the contrary, I’m actually only about a quarter Irish - my father’s mother was a Yates and her parents came over from Sligo during the great wave in the second half of the nineteenth century (could we call it a caravan?).  I’d love to tell you all that “Yates” is a corruption of “Yeats” and I’ve got a few drops of Nobel Prize winning blood in my veins but William Butler Yeats (also from Sligo) was an Anglo-Irish aristocrat and my Yates forbears came over with pretty much just the shirts on their backs.

Last night we had a group of 40 people over for a pot-luck dinner – lots of great food and of course a wee drop of drink for those who fancied it.  We all then went to a small community theater a few miles away for a concert by Mick Moloney and his group the Green Fields of America.  Mick was born in Limerick but came over himself in 1973 and got a PhD at Penn in ethnomusicology (he was obviously after the big bucks).  He has since taught off and on at Penn, Villanova, Georgetown and NYU but is primarily a musician.  Both his academic and musical shtick, not surprisingly, is the experience of Irish immigrants in America up through the late 1920’s when they finally started to gain social acceptance and political power.  As he sang and played and riffed between songs on the tribulations the early immigrants faced, the parallels to today’s immigration debate (and how luminaries on the right like Sean Hannity, Bill O’Reilly and Ann Coulter have come full circle) were hard to ignore.

His signature song (which he neither wrote nor performed last night!) is Kilkelly.  Each verse takes the form of a different letter an aging father sends to his son in the New World over a period of thirty years with news about births, marriages, deaths and other news in the village of Kilkelly (county Mayo) and how wonderful it would be if they could see each other again (which was not in the cards – if you emigrated, you pretty much gave up any hope of seeing family members again unless some followed you over later).  The final verse is taken from a letter written by an older brother with the news of the parents’ passing.  It’s maudlin, a real tear jerker, but it still gets me.  Here’s a link if you’re interested: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mq8FASqnohU

Michael McLeod

Here's my belated contribution to St Patrick's day from one of my fave Irish poets:

On Raglan Road

by Patrick Kavenaugh

David Mitchell

I got off the grid for a few days while up in NC at a retreat. (We go phoneless for the two and a half days.)

So may interesting posts - so little time!

A few reactions - In no particular order;

John,

thanks for your the reminder of my second favorite day of the year, the day we celebrate how close Patricks' day come to a really important date. And it reminds me of one of my favorite moviess of all time - "The Qiuet Man". My youngest daughter Meg (Watterson about "92) just sent me a text thanking me for introcuding them to that wonderful film.

----------------

Jeanine,

Been thinking of you guys and how sad the circustances to be on a "pleasure" trip. I read where "POTUS" had to immedaitely delete a very threateing tweet he had just made about his supporters being "tough" and warning that "there will be trouble", after he heard about the shootting. Jeesh!

------------------

Joe, 

Why an I not surpised that you would know this? (and Fred has retired to sending private email jokes)

Careful Mary Margaret. Better count all the money before and after.

--------------------

Mike,

Don't be silly. I bet you have to climb all the way out of that pool wihtout any ropes.

-------------------

Tim, 

Could it be that we might know the identity of the two, uhhh,,,,, aliens in the photo?

David Mitchell

Oh, and Jack,  (you knew I couldn't lay off that one - lol)

I think I might have seen Jesus this weekend. HE was at our closing ceremonies of another Marked Men for Christ retreat, full of hugging and laughing and crying. I think I know what is better than "Chicken Soup for the Soul". It might be hugging a huge black man, (just recently released from one of No. Carolina's Correctional Institutes, with poor language and social skills, and dreads down to his knees), while he is crying like a baby in your arms!  Yup, I think that was HIM alright. 

After a weekend starting with doubt and fear, we turned it into a celebration of Joy. 

--------------

bragging here;

Saturday night, standing around with in a group with most of the staff, the leader (who I have known through about 6 of these retreats now - and love the guy - a formert airline piltot turned minister) started to announce what I though were the next set of instructions to the group of about 50 staff members. As he went on he began to sound curiously like,,, well something different was coming. He was talking about a guy who was older than most of them,  and that he hoped the younger guys (mostly 30 to 55) would keep coming as late as "this guy".  

Then he announced to the whole group that it was my 70th Birthday. Everybody cheered and I was shocked. Then laughing, had to yell out that it was my 71st. Then I took the moment to shout out a favorite funny brag - "Yea, the only living helicopter pilot in the history of the world to successfully bomb the Mekong River with a pizza oven."  They loved it !  

Fun moment - and a joke about a true strory. 

Frank Ganley

John a loovvely ode about old Ireland. If you’d like to know why we the irish left listen to a mourful ballad titles “sibbereen”https://youtu.be/DP8PB3viZck the youtube link. My family treee is almost completely irish but one of my best friends came over here 25 years ago and has unendingly refered to me and all those of irish decent as”plastic paddys”. I had to remind him that his son Kieran is a plastic paddy. If you listened to the song skibbereen you now know then why they left and came to America. They came to Boston which was mostly english, who hated the  irish and signs offering employment had attached at the bottom”INNA” which stood for Irish need not apply. That sent them west to work on the railroads where it was discovered no one worked harder than them. They also played harder but never missed work. This however is not the point of this post. Due to my career as a PGA pro i had been wearing out my bones and joints from constant practice and play. On one occasion I was having extreme pain in my shoulder and neck and I had to see a nueroligist. I had to get a nerve induction study. Perhaps brother hamilton will explain how it works and performed with needles and a calculator, precomputer age.He was a most handsome spanish gentleman approaching 80 and he asked me if i was from argentina. I scoffef and said no my family is from ireland. As miracle max so eloquently stated in princess bride, oh you who know so much. He went on to tell me that he was from argentina and his best friend throughout his life was named Ganley. No way i said in somewhat questioning way. Yes way he said. He went in to explain that when letters from america came back to the motherland and read that the treatment of the irish was almost as bad that they were enduring from the english. Hearing this thousand flocked to argentina and quickly assimulated into that way of life. The smooth talking irish boys succeeded in charming all the rich landowner and ranch owner’s daughters and the beautiful irish lassies did the same to the boys. Today after spanish and the german have one of the highest populations of irish decent. And there my friends is a chapter of history we never hear abouthttps://youtu.be/DP8PB3viZck i put here again so you don’t have page up