Roberto,
I've always enjoyed the stories about your road trips, so I thought I'd tell you about ours.
Gloria
Gloria
and I traveled 4,300 miles and were gone 20 days.
We left Eufaula about nine o'clock and made it to the outskirts of Knoxville,where we spent the first night
before heading to Lexington, Kentucky.
We made no reservations and no concrete plans but winging it
We made no reservations and no concrete plans but winging it
was part of the adventure and we loved it.
The horse farms around Lexington are beautiful. Riding around in the country is right up our alley, so the narrow roads
lined with ancient stone fences kept us occupied the first afternoon. Most of the stables were fancier than any house in our area.
The next morning, on Derby day, we left the Hampton Inn at six o'clock and headed for Keeneland to have breakfast at the track kitchen with the jockeys,trainers,and owners. The kitchen is open to the public.
Even though the Kentucky Derby was eighty miles away in Louisville, 25,000 people packed into Keeneland Racetrack to watch
the event on big screens. Keeneland is where most of the Derby horses were bought at auction, trained, and boarded. Gloria and
I took a tour to their training facility where we stood by the training track fence and watched the horses run.
Standing a few feet from
Standing a few feet from
a world class thoroughbred running full speed is awe inspiring.
We left Kentucky and headed across Ohio, then northward, on our way to Niagara Falls, New York and Niagara On Lake Ontario.
Gloria had never seen the falls and I was excited about seeing them again with her.
We stayed in Niagara N.Y. and got our first
We stayed in Niagara N.Y. and got our first
look at the falls from the American side.
What a sight !!!
Now I know what inspired "HOW GREAT THOU ART".
The spectacle brought
What a sight !!!
Now I know what inspired "HOW GREAT THOU ART".
The spectacle brought
tears to our eyes.
The next morning we crossed the border into Ontario.
Everyone told us the falls were more impressive looking
The next morning we crossed the border into Ontario.
Everyone told us the falls were more impressive looking
from the Canadian side and we agree.
We donned the provided plastic rain suits and boarded the MAID OF THE MIST.
This boat
We donned the provided plastic rain suits and boarded the MAID OF THE MIST.
This boat
and others like it have taken tourist to the base of the falls since 1890.
Niagara On The Lake,Ontario is a cool little town with it's
Niagara On The Lake,Ontario is a cool little town with it's
quaint shops and restaurants.
The George Bernard Shaw Theatre attracts people from all over world to this town.
The Shaw Festival
The George Bernard Shaw Theatre attracts people from all over world to this town.
The Shaw Festival
is famous for it's theatrical presentations and rivals the Falls as an attraction.
We chose Lancaster Pa. and the Amish country as our next destination. Driving down through upstate New York, in the
foothills of the Catskills, we had an unexpected adventure. We started looking for a motel about five o'clock that afternoon, but
that mountain road was void of anything but an occasional country store with a rusting gas pump.
By six we began to get worried.
By six we began to get worried.
No motels, no hotels, no restaurants, and no road signs advertising one just ahead.
Finally I saw a small, dilapidated sign advertising Chestnut
Finally I saw a small, dilapidated sign advertising Chestnut
Inn.
It had an arrow pointing toward a narrow road.
We drove down that abandoned looking road about two miles when Gloria said "Oh no
It had an arrow pointing toward a narrow road.
We drove down that abandoned looking road about two miles when Gloria said "Oh no
we're headed to the Bates Motel!!!!"
Trudging on, we started seeing welcomed signs of life.
Through the trees, we could see a lake with
Trudging on, we started seeing welcomed signs of life.
Through the trees, we could see a lake with
beautiful homes surrounding it.
At last, we saw Chestnut Inn on the shore of idyllic Lake Oquaga.
We went in and asked for a room, to find
At last, we saw Chestnut Inn on the shore of idyllic Lake Oquaga.
We went in and asked for a room, to find
that we were the first guest of the season. [ed. note: the Wiregrass early bird gets the worm!]
They were only open because they were preparing for a large Mother's Day celebration coming up.
They were only open because they were preparing for a large Mother's Day celebration coming up.
This place was first class,double first class-
Fine china and silver adorning every table and a full staff serving no one but us for dinner.
We learned that New Yorkers have been vacationing here since 1928.
They've built beautiful homes on the lake and had their weddings and
parties at the Inn.
What a well kept secret !!!!
What a find !!!!
Lucky us !!!!!
What a well kept secret !!!!
What a find !!!!
Lucky us !!!!!
You know you're in Lancaster, Pennsylvania when you start seeing horse drawn buggies on the roads.
This is the oldest Amish community
This is the oldest Amish community
in the U.S.
We took a tour through the Amish farm area and found it fascinating.
The farm country is the prettiest we've ever seen, and that's
We took a tour through the Amish farm area and found it fascinating.
The farm country is the prettiest we've ever seen, and that's
saying a lot, since we'd recently seen the Kentucky horse farms.
The people are plain,with the women all dressing alike and the men with their
The people are plain,with the women all dressing alike and the men with their
beards and black hats.
The word tidy is an understatement when it comes to their farms and homes.
Everyone lives by a strict set of rules.
The word tidy is an understatement when it comes to their farms and homes.
Everyone lives by a strict set of rules.
Surprisingly, ninety four percent of the children come back to the Amish faith and lifestyle, even though they are given their freedom at 17.
Most of the kids leave home and sow their wild oats.
Some of them buy cars, only to give them up when they make the choice to rejoin the
flock.
We visited their stores where they sold quilts, homemade cakes and cookies, and all manner of Amish memorabilia.
Amish restaurants
We visited their stores where they sold quilts, homemade cakes and cookies, and all manner of Amish memorabilia.
Amish restaurants
serve their food family style, reminding me of Sunday dinner at Grandma's house.
Our afternoon rides through the farmland are something
Our afternoon rides through the farmland are something
we'll never forget.
The spot where Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg address is one the most sacred spots in this country.
We arrived in Gettysburg
We arrived in Gettysburg
too late in the day to do anything but check into another Hampton Inn and have dinner in a local restaurant.
The next morning we
The next morning we
stood right where Lincoln delivered his short but historic speech.
Driving through the Gettysburg battlefield we realized what a tragedy
Driving through the Gettysburg battlefield we realized what a tragedy
the Civil War was.
Thousands of men, both Yanks and Rebels, died brutal deaths here.
Hand to hand combat was the order of the day.
Thousands of men, both Yanks and Rebels, died brutal deaths here.
Hand to hand combat was the order of the day.
It was the battle with the most casualties of the war [51,000] and the beginning of the end for the South.[ed. note: new research argues that Gettysbury & Vicksburg had little impact upon public opinion during the Civil War]
We headed toward Williamsburg, Jamestown, and Yorktown,Virginia for more American history. The museums and re-creation of
these townships would make a terrorist feel patriotic.
The hardships those patriots endured is hard to imagine.
Gloria walked me until
The hardships those patriots endured is hard to imagine.
Gloria walked me until
I had blisters on my feet.
After two or three days, I had enough history and we headed south toward Cape Hatteras and the outer banks.
After two or three days, I had enough history and we headed south toward Cape Hatteras and the outer banks.
By this time, we were getting road weary and a little homesick.
We drove through Kitty Hawk and all along the extreme east coast.
We were amazed at
We drove through Kitty Hawk and all along the extreme east coast.
We were amazed at
the velocity of the wind and understood why the Wright Brothers picked this area.
Cape Hatteras is serenely beautiful and the windblown
Cape Hatteras is serenely beautiful and the windblown
sand dunes looked like a moonscape.
One of these days we're going back to do more exploring.
One of these days we're going back to do more exploring.
We pointed our car toward Eufaula, looking forward to seeing our dog Sadie and beautiful Thomas Mill Creek.
We started planning our
We started planning our
next road trip as we headed home .
Buddy Buie
Buie & Justo in Tampa Bay
My musical odyssey took another turn, by way of a close friend named Ed Rothchild, whom I met here in San Francisco, early 70's.
He was a generous man, and loved company. He was one of the pioneers of computer chips, and by the time I met him, he was wealthy beyond belief, and generous to a fault, if his friends were concerned. He had left National Semiconductors over some flap, and was a man of leisure when I met him. He loved to fill his car with friends, and take us on unbelievable drives up and around the Bay Area, sound blasting opera, concertos, and anything else Classical. I'll say now, he was my main mentor for learning Classical music, and had over 5000 LP's in his modest apartment, a library of music few will ever know. He loved to record them for his car, and had a huge library under the driver's seat and glove box, replete with a typed out "menu" of what he had.
One day in 1974, he asked if I wanted to accompany him to Los Angeles, for a convention of electronics, and I accepted.
I saw prototypes of what was to become CD's, and DVD's, a sensation at that time, and highly revolutionary for the stilted format of phonograph records we all collected. I had no idea I was seeing the future of musical formats.
As if the convention wasn't enough, he suggested we "drop by", and have a visit with his brother. We pulled up to the Warner/Electra studios, there in LA, and I walked blindly into his brother and engineer, melting down some work done by the "Outlaws".
I was amazed! It was the same studio Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, and others had their first, and on occasion, last sessions. It's also in both movies Rothchild was associated with The Rose, and The Doors, with it's song booth all the way in the back.
We spent over 7 hours there, strong coffee, cocaine, and high grade pot offered every turn, as they "melted" down one tune, done by the Outlaws. I was amazed at the dexterity of the engineer, Fritz Richmond, and he took a liking to my natural inquisition to the whole process. Did you ever see an engineer cut 3 feet of 30ips tape, drape it around his shoulders, and never miss a lick on the soundtrack? I did, and was in hawg heaven. I asked about the power that drove the massive speakers in the control room, so he showed me a stack of Crown Dc-300's. When I suggested the notion of what was called "four way sound", he promptly put on a cut of BREAD, recorded there in full quad, possibly the best sound I ever heard. Those people were pieces of memories I'll never forget, never forgetting my roots in hand on band activity at an early age, my love of music, or the people who made it possible.
Tonight, I watched "The Doors", a movie I've not seen in some time, and saw Paul Rothchild in a cameo role, as an assistant, backstage of Whiskey A-Go-Go, with a performance of the real Rothchild played by another actor.
It's strange when you see a person in a movie where you recall the fact "I knew him".
LSD
LSD
HEY ROBERTO
I discovered your blog several months ago looking on google for pictures of the Allman Joys. I couldn't believe the stuff you had on there. I grew up in Pensacola and I knew the Sandpipers and used to hang out at their house before they hooked up with the Allman Joys. Two of my friends were dating Charlene Kilpatrick and the other girl, not her sister. I remember the Allman Joys playing the Sahara club fairly often. I was too young (15) to go there, but it was always a big deal on one of the local radio stations and they broadcast live from the club, when they were there. I would listen in bed on my transistor radio earplug. Also saw the Allmans as the Hourglass at the Electric Experience, a teen club owned by Fran Kilpatrick. That's also where I first saw the Candymen. Man they blew me away. I also saw them at the Place, a teen dance thing on Pensacola Beach. Wow. They are the best cover band I've ever heard. I've learned a lot from your blog that I didn't know.
I played guitar in a Pensacola band. We were like second tier so not that well known, but we hung out with most of the musicians around and coming through town. We played Milton, Ft. Walton Beach and a few other areas around. I have a lot of memories of that time. If you'd like me to share my experiences on your blog, I'd be happy to do so. Just let me know how.
By the way, I'm 59, but still am 16 in my head.
Thanks,
B.P.
B.P.
B.~
I may post tonight & if I do, I'll use your post.
Hey, I'm 59 too.
Anything you gotta say I'll publish.
Rodney Justo, lead singer of the Candymen, still hates Papa Don's guts.
Any Papa Don Schroeder stories will be appreciated.
Any Papa Don Schroeder stories will be appreciated.
Here's a Pensacola story from '63 or '64.
I was in the eighth grade in '63 about the time that Wallace took his stand in the schoolhouse door ,the B'ham waterhose riots and the church bombing that killed the four little girls.
To say the least, racial tensions were high here in Alabama.
That fall I was in my first year as manager of the Young Junior High School Baby Tigers football team. During the two years I was manager, we never lost a game and we played bigger junior highs in Montgomery, Panama City, Tallahassee and Pensacola.
The thing that sticks in my mind to this day was traveling to Pensacola to play a team who had black players in the fall of '63. It would be two years before the first school in Alabama integrated so going up against blacks in competition was a first for us.
Coach Jenkins played it down and on the long bus ride to Pensacola, he never mentioned it because he didn't want the players to get their mind off the game.
It was a real big deal for me. I guess I was convinced that Alabama was gonna secede from the Union again and we'd never integrate because that's all I ever heard.
Well, we got to the stadium and the first time I met any of the Pensacola crowd I started asking them about integration and their black players. I guess because they had the Naval Air Station and were a big port, the students didn't think integration was any big deal. Their unconcern kinda infected me as well as our team so the whole thing about playing against blacks just became "no big deal."
I swear that after we won the game we felt so sophisticated because we had been in an integrated setting where noone showed any concern about anything being unusual.
I can't speak for everyone at Young Junior but I know with me and my buddies, this first encounter in our lives with integration in Pensacola was nothing but positive and was really a peak experience.
best,
Roberto atlasofalabama.blogspot.com
B.P. wrote Roberto:
Good to hear from you Robert.
I'll put together some of my memories, in installments, and send to you to post or not. No pictures I'm afraid. I wasn't much of a camera guy at the time. I found the COO COO CA CHOO facebook site and good to see Rodney still gettin with it. Just wish there was more songs/vids from them. For some reason the Candymen versions of Georgia Pines have all been removed from youtube, etc. That was a great song. Until I found your web site, I didn't realize how much of a music scene there was in the Northwest Florida/Alabama area as far as local bands. Never knew where the Candymen were from, except they backed Roy Orbison. Well, enough for now. Be back at ya soon. By the way, my ancestry goes back to Alabama, the Geneva and Dothan area. One of my great great grandfathers founded the first Primitive Baptist Church in Alabama. The building is a historical site. Can't remember the town, but it's on the AL/GA border near Dothan and they used to baptize in the river there.
I'll put together some of my memories, in installments, and send to you to post or not. No pictures I'm afraid. I wasn't much of a camera guy at the time. I found the COO COO CA CHOO facebook site and good to see Rodney still gettin with it. Just wish there was more songs/vids from them. For some reason the Candymen versions of Georgia Pines have all been removed from youtube, etc. That was a great song. Until I found your web site, I didn't realize how much of a music scene there was in the Northwest Florida/Alabama area as far as local bands. Never knew where the Candymen were from, except they backed Roy Orbison. Well, enough for now. Be back at ya soon. By the way, my ancestry goes back to Alabama, the Geneva and Dothan area. One of my great great grandfathers founded the first Primitive Baptist Church in Alabama. The building is a historical site. Can't remember the town, but it's on the AL/GA border near Dothan and they used to baptize in the river there.
B. P.
image courtesy of www.myspace.com/theacoustixmusic
Hey folksizzzzzzzzzz, ACOUSTIX http://www.thebeachcomber.org/acoustix.htm
be playing Schooners, Hooks & the Treasure Ship this week!!!!
This past weekend I was really impressed with the warm & lavish hospitality accorded me by MUSIC FOR MEDS http://myspace.com/music4meds plus I loved me some Big Spring Park, The First National Bank Building, Twickenham, Eustis Street, Echols Street, Franklin Street, The Furniture Factory Bar & Grill http://www.facebook.com/pages/Huntsville-AL/Furniture-Factory-Bar-and-Grill/51920918385
, Bankhead Parkway, Monte Sano State Park, The CrossRoads www.myspace.com/theroads
and Microwave Dave & The Nukes http://www.microwavedave.com/
Noone other than me can understand how utterly stunned & overwhelmed I was by the flood of emotion I experienced when I first walked into Maple Hill Cemetery at dawn on Sunday morning & recognized Major Thomas Freeman's tombstone from a good distance away. www.forestry.state.al.us/Publications/TREASURED_Forest_Magazine/
WAITING IN VAIN by Bob Marley http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Marley
courtesy of http://www.lyricsfreak.com/b/bob+marley/waiting+in+vain_20021730.html
I dont wanna wait in vain for your love;
I dont wanna wait in vain for your love.
From the very first time I rest my eyes on you, girl,
My heart says follow trough.
But I know, now, that Im way down on your line,
But the waitin feel is fine:
So dont treat me like a puppet on a string,
cause I know I have to do my thing.
Dont talk to me as if you think Im dumb;
I wanna know when youre gonna come - soon.
I dont wanna wait in vain for your love;
I dont wanna wait in vain for your love;
I dont wanna wait in vain for your love,
cause if summer is here,
Im still waiting there;
Winter is here,
And Im still waiting there.
---
/guitar solo/
---
Like I said:
Its been three years since Im knockin on your door,
And I still can knock some more:
Ooh girl, ooh girl, is it feasible?
I wanna know now, for I to knock some more.
Ya see, in life I know theres lots of grief,
But your love is my relief:
Tears in my eyes burn - tears in my eyes burn
While Im waiting - while Im waiting for my turn,
See!
I dont wanna wait in vain for your love;
I dont wanna wait in vain for your love;
I dont wanna wait in vain for your love;
I dont wanna wait in vain for your love;
I dont wanna wait in vain for your love, oh!
I dont wanna - I dont wanna - I dont wanna - I dont wanna -
I dont wanna wait in vain.
I dont wanna - I dont wanna - I dont wanna - I dont wanna -
I dont wanna wait in vain.
No, I dont wanna (I dont wanna - I dont wanna - I dont wanna -
I dont wanna - I dont wanna wait in vain) -
No I - no I (I dont wanna - I dont wanna - I dont wanna - I dont
Wanna - I dont wanna wait in vain) -
No, no-no, i, no, I (I dont wanna - I dont wanna - I dont wanna -
I dont wanna - I dont wanna wait in vain) -
Its your love that Im waiting on (I dont wanna - I dont wanna -
I dont wanna - I dont wanna - I dont wanna wait in vain);
Its me love that youre running from.
Its jah love that Im waiting on (I dont wanna - I dont wanna -
I dont wanna - I dont wanna - I dont wanna wait in vain);
Its me love that youre running from.
Please do yourself a favor
& check out http://www.royorbison.com/
They have tuned that mug up.
Gives you the feeling The Big O is still with us!
Robert Register:
You are a god damned liar - you son of a bitch. You told everybody, all my friends at Egan's, that I was a narc. You told everyone that I narced on that skinny blonde headed boy. I don't even know his name. Well asshole, I am not a narc. I did not narc on that boy or anybody else. Trouble is when you gossips were running around saying "we found the Egan's narc", the real narc was still there narcing !
Ever since I heard what you told on me I have been worried for my family's lives. The last time I saw Weatherby he said "Fuck You" to me. The time before that he wouldn't shake my hand. It took me years to find out why. I remember, barely, the last time I was at Egan's before you started telling lies about me. You were sitting next to that blonde headed boy and called me over and told him I was law enforcement. I guess the conclusion was drawn then. I've never done more than write a ticket for burning without a permit! You stupid son of a bitch. I'm retired now, Register. I have too much time on my hands. Sometimes I get to worrying. And when I worry I think of ways I can get back at people that "have done me wrong." You are close to the top of that list. What do I do to get even with you?
I used to come to Egan's to get pussy. You sure did fuck me.
Sincerely,
P.D.
P.D.
P.D. wrote:
HEY SHITHEAD I"M WAITING FOR A REPLY>
RR wrote to P.D.:
Hey, I don't know what you're talking about.
I have been banned from Egans since February of 2002.
I don't ever recall calling anyone a narc in my life.
If somebody blamed it on me, that's par for the course.
Oh, I think I know where all of this originated.
You had gone through the law enforcement academy through the forestry service and that may have been misinterpreted by some of the Egan's crowd. You were bragging about your police powers at the bar & some people are growers in the Talladega National Forest.
Sorry you got an attitude.
P.D. wrote to Roberto:
Robert,
It must have been like you said. But someone did tell me you had said I was a narc. This was back in the mid 90's and I heard about it in probably 1999 or so. I just stubbled on your email address the other day.
P.D.
Roberto wrote to P.D.:
P.D.
Roberto wrote to P.D.:
Hope you are doing well.
P.D. wrote Roberto:
What ever happened to that boy? Did he go to jail? What do I have to worry about him?
