Short Walk Down Memory Lane
By Ben Herman
I'd like to share some rambling thoughts that people have shared with me.
Ralph Thomas was a sergeant for many years with the National Guard. He told about two brothers who were going to active training in mortars. They thought that would be a good, educational experience because they thought it had to do with construction, like laying bricks and blocks. They did not realize it was training with a form of artillery.
 Someone left some old neckties down at the tractor lot on Cookeville Highway. Two good friends of mine, Doston Caplinger and Glen Ferrell, decided to tie them on the tractors and equipment. When I sold one of the tractors, the tie went with it, flopping in the wind as the new owner hauled it down the road on a trailer. It took a while to find out who tied the ties on the equipment but Doston and Glen told me they did the work.
Just wondering how many of our readers remember when Donnie Driver served as sheriff for a while. Harry Foutch was the county judge at the time. We will jog your memory to see if you can remember the circumstances that put Donnie in the sheriff's office.
Faye Pollard, one of DeKalb County's good school bus drivers, likes to blow the horn at me every time she sees me on the road. The other day, I was stopped at a traffic light and she came up in the next lane and blew the horn. I could not figure out why someone was blowing their horn when the light was red. As I looked behind me and all around, I spotted Faye. Then I knew who, and why, someone was blowing the horn.
Brenda Hooper Robinson stopped by our booth at the fair. As she was filling out the little contest sheet, she comment that it had been a long time since I had given her a test. She was a student of mine in driver's education back in the early seventies.
Danny McGinnis was driving a 1964 D19 Allis Chalmers tractor at Stribling's Chevrolet the other morning. He said the tires were the original and they were 41 years old.
When I was teaching at the high school, we would have two or three classes in the cafeteria at the same time, or we might find a broom closet in which to hold classes. In any event, we did not complain. We were happy to have a job. I think more people need to feel proud of their jobs since there are so many who do not even have a job.
At a very good breakfast held at the Liberty Lodge the first Saturday of every month, you will meet some very interesting people. The main cooks are Ricky Taylor, Danny Adamson, Cliff Cudney, Pat Adamson, Christian Adamson, Inez Farler, Debbie Mathis and Mary Grizzle, along with some other good volunteers. I enjoy seeing people that I have not seen in a long time, as well as meeting new people, such as Odine Lawrence, who used to play steel guitar years ago. His son, Hugh, operates L & C Sporting Goods in Smithville. Virginia "Tootsie" Huddleston, who was secretary at Watertown High School when I taught there in 1963. Mr. Herman Chumbley was principal there at that time.
thers came in for breakfast while I was there including Jewell Huddleston, Kenny Hutchson - retired military, Jeff Woodside, Tom Newkisky, Wayne Story, Robert Robinson, Don Adamson, John and Jack Underhill and their wives and Jeanna Johnson. Joe Collins usually goes down earlier.
Joe's nephew, Sam, brought an egg scale to Stribling's the other morning. No one there had ever seen one of those contraptions. It was used to grade eggs years ago. We learn something new everyday. The old saying that you never stop learning is true.
Short Walk Down Memory Lane is proudly sponsored by Carol South of Pizza Inn, DeKalb Market - open 24 hours a day and offering Shell Gas, and by Estes Furniture - home of Maytag and GE appliances - home of Maytag and GE appliances. |
