Smiley Anders for Sept. 27, 2012
Janet D. Davis, of Leesburg, Fla., comments poetically on space and space cadets:
“Curiosity hasn’t found
Any life on Mars —
Just interesting scenery
Up there in the stars.
Curiosity, please
Look down below —
Is there life in Congress?
We want to know.”
Bring on the brass
Glenn Falgoust, of St. Amant, adds to our brass band seminar:
“Brass bands were on the rise between Baton Rouge and New Orleans in the 1850s.
“During the Civil War, they rallied both blue and gray, but they saw real evolution in the politically chaotic Reconstruction years 1865-77.
“At Donaldsonville, there were a dozen brass bands, black and white, with the same number of fire companies and benevolent societies. Each was aligned politically. …
“Some were the Ascension Brass Band, Colfield Cornet Band, Conway Field Band; Crescent, Excelsior and Independent Brass bands; Silver Cornet Band; and the St. Cecile, St. Joseph and St. Mary Brass bands.
“Then there was the Nicholls Brass Band, which sounded the election of Gov. Francis T. Nicholls in 1876 and the end of Reconstruction and military occupation in 1877.”
Generation chasm
I was surprised when John LaCarna added this one to our list of “Old Words and Expressions That Mystify the Young.”
“Try asking a young store clerk what they give for ‘lagniappe.’ His blank look will give you your laugh of the day.”
Act of kindness
Judy Caprio thanks Dr. William Ratterree, oncologist at the LSU Vet School, for his care and concern at the end of the life of Honey, her 14-year-old basset hound:
“On Sept. 17, tests confirmed that her 23 months of living with cancer were at an end; it was time to let her go.
“I was planning to go to campus when Dr. Ratterree called to tell me the Vet School was in lockdown — a bomb scare.
“The thought that she might spend her last hours and even her last night in a crate away from home was too sad to bear. Late that afternoon, I drove on River Road to the Vet School, but it was still locked down.
“Fighting back tears, I was trying to decide what to do next when my phone rang. It was Dr. Ratterree, and he was in my driveway with my dog.
“He had brought Honey home so she could spend her last night wrapped in love and gentle goodbyes.”
She thanks him, oncology vet techs Jenny Cassibry and Shay Bordelon and the staff and students who worked with Honey.
Nostalgia Corner
Jim Taylor, of Breaux Bridge, like others, recalls the “love seats” at Baton Rouge’s Hart Theater. (He also tells why they were called love seats; a story I’ll save for another day.)
Jim says, “While thinking of that area of Convention Street, I remembered the Paree Lounge and the King Hotel.
“I was recently in the King (now Hotel Indigo), having coffee in their lounge, when I realized I was sitting in the exact spot where I got my first haircut from Mr. Davis, the barber.
“It was a terrifying experience, but I was happily distracted by watching the cars go up in the car elevator across the street at the Auto Hotel and watching the workers come back down on the ‘people belt.’”
The Graduate
Pete Heine, of Baker, says, “As a graduate of Jefferson Military College in Natchez, Miss. (Class of ’46), I want to thank The Advocate for the informative article about this historical college.”
Pete tells me, “I am almost as old as you,” which is not true (I’m MUCH younger…).
But it might be true that he’s “one year older than Clint Eastwood, the same age as Queen Elizabeth and one year younger than Gov. Edwin Edwards.”
Worthy causes
A Celebrity Waiter Roundup from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday at the Rural Life Museum benefits Youth Oasis, which operates a homeless children’s shelter and provides transitional living for youth in the Baton Rouge area. Contact Sandy Morgan at (225) 343-6300 or smorgan@youthoasis.org.
Bless ’em all
Our Lady of the Lake and Rescue Bank of Baton Rouge will host a Pet Blessing and Adoption Fair from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday on the OLOL Chapel lawn in celebration of the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi.
More than 100 rescued puppies, kittens, dog and cats are be available for adoption, and Father Sam Maranto will bless the pets at 2 p.m.
Special People Dept.
Jessie Myrl Rushing, formerly of Amite and Greensburg and now a resident of Nottingham Regional Rehab Center in Baton Rouge, celebrated her 99th birthday Wednesday.
Old news
Joe Guilbeau, of Plaquemine, says you might be a “golden-ager” if:
“Your No. 1 fashion question is, ‘Can I nap in it?’
“The manager of the local fast-food diner calls you ‘Pappy.’
“Your pharmacist calls you by your first name.
“You feel golf is for people who find baseball too exciting.”
Write Smiley at Smiley@theadvocate.com. He can also be reached by fax at (225) 388-0351 or mail at P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821.