Jerry Ochs

Dale,

Talking about fake news could trigger a political discussion.  Shhhhh.  

BTW, I use Facebook and Twitter but I was denied access to the videos on Facebook.

Ann Shepard (Rueve)

Jerry, you should be able to view the videos. They are set on "public sharing". Send me a Friend Request on Facebook and I'll "tag" you. 

I have found a way to download the videos to my laptop then I'll be able to post them to You Tube. I'll do that as soon as I get a block of time to work on it. I rarely use my laptop running Windows 10. I prefer my using iOS on my phone and iPad.

Stephen Collett

Dear Nelson. We hear that Cindy has finally blown up and is giving you a hard time. You knew it was coming? It will blow over.

Gail Weintraub (Stern)

The second and last video from our LXX Birthday Bash is now live. Click on the tab titled "Video: LXX Talk Around 2016" and listen to classmates' comments on the impact that WHHS had on their lives today.

Philip Spiess

I'm glad to report that, as far as I know, The Chatterbox never reported any "fake news," only school gossip and incredibly bloviated faux comedy, wit, and derision (cf. "Notes from the Padded Cell").

Henry Cohen

I know, as co-editor of the sports page ( Larry Klein had every other week), that my insightful Sports I View column would never publish anything unless it was checked and rechecked using the most rigorous and ethical sources. It was using that technique that I was able to break the Black Sox scandal, predict Watergate, and identify that a bad athlete by the name of Bill Gates was a guy to watch. Of course my esteemed editors Jonathan Marks ( no relation to Karl) and Frannie Grace ( no relation to Princess) were very strict on what was allowed to be in print.  Chatterbox and Fake News go together like our lunch room's wonderful pork chops and Phil's beloved scotch garnished with turpentine.

Nelson Abanto

Okay, I have a truly funny one about a misunderstanding between Steve Collett and me.  

When I saw his post addressed to me (2984) I was climbing in Colorado and I thought "uh oh, what did I do this time?  He clarified that he was talking about "Hurricane Cindy".

 Of course, we all know that my Cindy would never get angry with me.

Nelson

Ann Shepard (Rueve)

I had to leave the Talk-a-Round early to help set up for the dinner.  I am so glad to be able watch the last half hour.

Ann Shepard (Rueve)

Jeff, your wish is my command.  Here are the links to YouTube of the home video I had recorded on Facebook Live.

https://youtu.be/7ZkMvmyCLtU

https://youtu.be/Pv51MSCvbWo

https://youtu.be/QQhY4Nx8jms

https://youtu.be/Ju9UCTYQzfM

To everyone else, do you remember at the beginning of the LXX B'day Bash 2016 that is posted on this website, and when Rick is just beginning his remark then suddenly says,"Bye Bye"?  I was just beginning a LIVE Facebook video of his remarks and saying "bye-bye" before turning the screen around to start my video.  I didn't think I was talking loud, but he must have heard me and responded.  So silly.  I'm not posting that video, it is rather lengthy, and, the remarks alrady have been captured much better by the professionals.

Jeff Daum

Thanks so much Ann!  Better than a genie in a bottle   Will be enjoying them shortly.

Philip Spiess

The Washington Post Magazine reports this morning (p. 14) that Cincinnati ranks #6 among cities for "staycations" (i.e., cities where you would rather stay in place than go on vacation).  The reasons given?  "Has the most nature parks per capita -- two per 10,000 people.  It also ranks second for number of public pools per capita." 

Stephen Collett

General question. Is there anyone who works or has worked with stroke patients, or has ties to stroke patients as family or friends? A close friend of mine suffered a cerebral hemorrhage ten years ago, as it happened in my house, on my sofa as we got ready to go in to dinner.  Several years later he managed to dictate a book about his experience of being put down and coming up again, so far as capacities would allow. He is confined to a wheelchair and wholly dependent on home nursing –a blessing of the Norwegian health system- but his memory and cognition are intact.  He will turn eighty in July and has had new strokes and is less capable than before, but still engaged.

I have translated his short book to English, running about sixty pages. It is titled The Living Cage, a reference to a persistent hallucination during his time in the intensive ward.

He would be interested in any ideas for publishing the English version. The Norwegian version has sold out; it was required reading for nursing school for several years. It has parallels to the French book and then movie a few years ago, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, though in Per´s story the patient returns home and to a life of just barely acceptable dignity. While telling a very personal story, Per´s focus is on the needs (and trials) of the stroke patient and the responses of the health and welfare systems –how they are helpful or not. His interest in publishing is to share this information and perspective. The book is full of humor and insight.

I can send an electronic copy to anyone who is interested, if you give me an email address. We are interested in any feedback.

Gene Stern

Steve:  Sounds fascinating. Please allow me to read your electronic version and I will see if I can assist in your request.

Stephen Collett

Regarding the book on stroke:  My email is   collett@online.no

If you would like to see an electronic version of the book on stroke, please send me your private email address to my email.

Steve

Jerry Ochs

Here in Japan, it’s the time of year when millions of sea bananas begin their migration towards their autumn mating grounds.

Philip Spiess

A most untidy tide!  Re-peel and replace!

Jerry Ochs

For those who cherish the English language, here is a link to a list of words that first appeared in print in 1946.

https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-by-first-known-date/1946

Philip Spiess

Okay, Jerry, I'll bite:  as this entry has been sitting here for some days with no response -- and you surely anticipated one -- I'll jump in as your friendly class cultural historian and respond.

And first, let me say, aren't those folks at Merriam-Webster just the best cunning linguists?  Who knew that all of those words were "first used in print" in 1946?  I seriously doubt that; though many, I dare say, were, I think the more probable claim is that they were first "printed in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary" in 1946.  And let's first review the Webster dictionary:  If you ever visit the Noah Webster house in West Hartford, Connecticut, you'll learn a lot about our country's first lexicographer and his role in not just recording the American language, but also in creating an American language (cf., Noah Webster:  On Being American:  Selected Writings, 1783-1828, 1967).  The house also has a wonderful stone sink in the kitchen that throws the waste water into the side yard.  (But where did that Noah Webster house in Henry Ford's "Greenfield Village" in Dearborn, Michigan, come from?  He must have had two.)

And here I must pause to relate a (no doubt) apocryphal, but telling story of Mr. Webster.  As the story goes, Noah is in his study, dictating entries for his An American Dictionary of the English Language (1828) to his buxom (we are told) female secretary, who "happens" to be seated on his lap.  And at this juncture, who should enter the study but Noah's wife, one Mrs. Webster.  Upon seeing the intimate tableau set out before her, she recoils in uxorial disbelief, declaiming, "Noah, you surprise me!"  And Noah, master of correct usage of the English language, imperturbably responds, "On the contrary, madam; you surprise me!  I astonish you!"  (There is a similar, but far more vulgar, story relating to the great English lexicographer, Dr. Samuel Johnson, which I'll skip telling here.) 

So, on to the list of words "first used in print" in 1946.  Faugh! I say, though I only made it into the "D's" in reading the list, which I found tiresome.  And first to those words which I've never seen, and which I dare say never made it into print again:  "anechoic" and "clitic" (which sounds vaguely pornographic).  Next, words which already, by this time, sound antiquated:  "aeromagnetic" (how can it get off the ground?) and "clapped-out" (a polite version of the Vaudevillian "hook," guaranteed to remove an unwanted stage act, before "run-out" was "first used in print"?).  Then, words which seem to say much more than they probably mean:  "fat depot" (a weigh-station on the Interurban, or an overcrowded suburban parking lot?) and "boffola" (obviously a misspelling of "buffalo," or a bad version of the Italian word for "opera comique").  "Anti-integration" is one word that does tell us what's starting to happen in 1946 -- soon to come to an unhappy fruition -- while "coon cheese," whatever its true meaning, has an unpleasant association with "anti-integration" (as in the term "coon song").  "Cafe au lait spot" -- what the hell is that?  Someone spilled French coffee with milk on his trousers, or it's a casual, quiet place to indulge in a moment of relaxation with a friend and "French coffee with milk"?  "Dobe" -- no doubt an early try-out name for the elf in the "Harry Potter" series,or a slang term for a Spanish Southwestern cladding for structures (as in "You wanted a-dobe on your house, but you got stucc-o!").

So we arrive at those words that were obviously in use much earlier than 1946.  "Crown molding" goes back to Colonial times:  the molding was (is) in use in most of the great houses of the period, whether New England, Mid-Atlantic, or Southern.  "Cruncher" -- anybody remember reading Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities (1859) in Miss Keagan's AP English class?  The character Jerry Cruncher was the "Resurrection Man," and his name more than implied what the term "cruncher" meant.  "Charlie" and "charlie"?  What the hell are these?  Never in print before? -- Give me a break!

And so we come to "Caesar salad."  Here we have straight-forward historical corroboration.  Many (indeed most) suppose that "Caesar salad" is named after the late, great Julius Caesar, he of immortal fame, who crossed the Rubicon and lent his patronymic to the titles "Kaiser" and "Czar."  He who -- since we're talking about gastronomic matters here -- was something of a gourmand; when asked by his friend how many "pigs in blankets" (no, it was not a reference to Cleopatra in her rug) he had eaten, replied, "Et two, Brute!"  Yes, the ancient Romans did eat lettuce and cabbage in what we may construe today as salads (cf. Apicius' cookbook, 1st Century A. D.); but no:  "Caesar Salad" was created by Caesar Cardini, a well-known West Coast chef, in his Tijuana restaurant in 1924.  And it took 22 years for the term to make it into print, with all of the advertising I dare say Cardini indulged in?  Again, give me a break!

I rest my case (whatever it was).

Paul Simons

Hi, y'all, I just saw the video of the "Talk-Around", thanks to all who put these reunions together, put that specific event together, all who expressed feelings and opinions or just listened and were there. I'm an NPR addict, I love to talk and hear people talk, as long as they've got something sensible to say. Obviously some media today are filled with absolute garbage so our little discussion group was an oasis in the desert.

Losing Rick Steiner is a major loss to us. Nevertheless I hope the tradition can go forward and that something like a Big 75 can happen. This past reunion was the summer before the election that gave us Trump - I will bite my tongue here - it's hard for me to choose between thinking about the next reunion before the next big election in 2020 or after it in 2021. In deference to the opthalmological community I would have to vote for 2020.

Philip Spiess

Dear Fellow Classmates:

It seems that this site, or at least this Forum, is drying up -- no posts for two weeks (I'm not even sure if anybody's reading any of these entries anymore).  It may be due to the fact that the immediate and newsworthy discussions -- the political stuff -- has, perforce, had to move to an ongoing e-mail chain, which is intensely active among some of us.  Or are we just running out of reminiscent material?

Nevertheless, I shall attempt to revive this Forum once more.  Reminiscence is the recall of memory, and the recall of memory is history.  If we do not (at the moment) have historical reminiscences of our days at WHHS to share, I shall at least (once again) share some history of our hometown, Cincinnati.

And because this site has been drying up, I shall take as my theme:  Water!  Cincinnati was founded where it is because of water; it was a nice landing site on the Ohio River, bounded by the Great Miami and the Little Miami Rivers.  Not too long after its founding, the Miami & Erie Canal was begun, heading northward on the route now known as Central Parkway (it covered the old canal in the 1920s), and nearly paralleling that other important Cincinnati waterway, the Mill Creek Valley.

But none of these are my theme; I wish to discourse on the Tyler Davidson Fountain on Fountain Square (5th and Vine Streets).  It is surely familiar to us all, and yet how many of us have actually studied it?  To my mind, it is one of the most extraordinary fountains in the world!  Oh, yes, there are many more famous fountains existing:  the fountains of Rome, of which the Trevi is, no doubt, the most famous; the fountains of Versailles, of which the most prominent is the Latona Fountain; the incredible fountains of the Tivoli Gardens north of Rome (and their comic counterparts in the Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen); the prankster fountains of Hellbrunn Castle outside of Salzburg, Austria -- I could go on and on (and you know I would) -- BUT I propose that our own beloved fountain on Fountain Square in Cincinnati is unique among the fountains of the world, a gift to the city from Henry Probasco of Clifton, a hardware merchant, in honor of his deceased brother-in-law and business partner, Tyler Davidson. 

I deem it unique because the theme of the Tyler Davidson Fountain is that of -- WATER!  Almost all other fountains, at least those in Western civilization, are themed with Greek and Roman gods and goddesses; even the Neptune Fountain in front of the Library of Congress in Washington features -- Neptune! (and nereids and turtles and such).  (A slight exception is the Tugendbrunnen, or "Fountain of Virtues," in Nuremberg, where the "virtuous maidens" all spout water from the nipples of their ample breasts.)  But the Tyler Davidson Fountain gloriously depicts water's many blessings to mankind, in all of its forms.  Let us examine this (to me) incredible masterpiece.

The central and crowning figure of the fountain is the "Genius of Water," spreading her life-giving water to the land from the fine spray of her hands.  From the center of the pedestal rises a shaft, spreading at the top with interlaced vines and foliage, watered by the "Genius" above.  The four major groups of figures around this shaft illustrate the historic needs and benefits of water:  (1) a farmer with his plow, under the burning rays of the sun, prays for rain, his dog panting with thirst; (2) an old man with crutches lifts a goblet to his lips, the water supplied by his daughter from a pitcher; (3) a mother leads her reluctant son to the bath; and (most modern) (4) a fireman with an empty bucket stands on a burning roof, imploring the heavens for water, while flames burst and curl from a gable nearby.

But wait!  there's more!  The massive base of the pedestal, supporting semicircular basins above (in front of the figures just described), is square, and holds bas-relief plaque representations of the commercial and industrial uses of water (these are not always seen, if the fountain's waters are flowing):  (1) fisheries -- a group of fisherman draw their catch to shore in nets; (2) navigation -- a family bids farewell to friends departing on an Ohio River steamboat; (3) water power -- peasants take their corn to a water-driven mill to be ground; (4) steam power -- workmen hold bars of iron under a trip hammer operated by a steam engine, while railway cars go by in the background.

But wait!  there's more!  There is a niche at each corner of the pedestal, and in these niches children illustrate some of the playful and recreational pleasures that water affords:  (1) a girl adorns herself with pearls and looks at herself in the water below; (2) a boy holds up a lobster which he has taken from his net; (3) a girl holds a shell to her ear and listens to the water's roar; (4) a boy, wrapped in furs, puts on his skates.

But there is still more!  On the rim of the lowest basin of the main fountain there are four figures mounted on pedestals of smaller fountains; these were originally designed for public drinking.  They are:  (1) a boy catching ducks; (2) a boy riding a dolphin; (3) a boy wrestling with snakes; (4) a boy riding a turtle, long ago dubbed "Turtle Joe" by affectionate Cincinnatians.

The original site of Fountain Square, an esplanade running down the center of 5th Street between Vine and Walnut Streets, had been the Fifth Street Butchers' Market; the bequest of the land to the city required that it be used in perpetuity for market purposes.  To maintain this tradition, and to avoid legal entanglements, there is, adjacent to the fountain, a little cast iron flower stand from which civic groups occasionally sell flowers.  (To receive Mr. Probasco's gift of the fountain, the city removed the 5th Street Market, which had become something of an eyesore -- or smellsore -- during the night, using the police force to raze the wooden stalls, over the protests of the butchers, which they did before daybreak.)  The Tyler Davidson Fountain was unveiled on the newly-completed esplanade on October 6, 1871; its weight is about twenty-four tons.  It was restored (1970-1971), turned 180 degrees, and moved somewhat north in 1969, when the new Fountain Square was developed north of 5th Street.

I could add much more to the story of the fountain, designed and cast at a Bavarian foundry from cannon melted down after the Franco-Prussian War, and of Henry Probasco, whose castle home in Clifton, "Oakwood," still stands just off of Lafayette Avenue, who was a major trustee of Spring Grove Cemetery, and whose massive library formed one of the founding nucleuses of the famed Newberry Library in Chicago.  However, I'll leave other stories till other times, including stories of Cincinnati's castellated water towers and discussions of the natural springs that still survive around Cincinnati's environs.

Bruce Fette

Phil,

Lest you think no one is reading, let me affirm that I continue to watch the excellent WHHS message forum. 

Yes truly unfortunate that we dont have superb political discorse to make this blog move along lively, but the email exchange continues on at a lively clip.

As for fountains, you have proven that my memory of Tyler Davidson is slowly dissolving, but is quickly refreshed by following your descriptions and a quick google of the fountain images.  But of course a google image is nothing like a personal presence and walk around the operational real thing. Perhaps someone will attach a link to a video highlighting your points of interest. And by the way only two fountains on your list that I have missed : Versailles and Nuremberg. And yes, Liz and I have thrown coins into Trevi, so that says we are supposed to return. But I am not sure to what extent I could handle the very long flight and the huge time zone shift, as readily as before.

Paul,

Yes, Rick added great value to our class both in the 60s and after graduation. However, many members of our class have added great value each in the domain where they excel. It is so clear that some have added great value to many lives in the field of medicine, or in the training of young minds, music, athletics, and even in the capture of historical connections.  (Let us just imagine a TV show called Connections, where the author is Phil.) Some day I would like to spend a year capturing all the great stories that Phil can tell. I wish we could capture the accomplishments of all of our class members. But alas, I fear everyone would feel too embarassed to speak up.

Henry Cohen

Tough to want to run down memory lane when current events are and should be comandeering our thoughts. These times have moved well past partisanship and have moved into very dangerous and disturbing territory. Party affiliation should give way to common sense which by the way is the most uncommon thing imaginable. Trying to find some humor anywhere like Orange is the new red white and blue and taking a leak has a whole new meaning. 

Dale Gieringer

I second Paul's suggestion that we try to muster our troops for a Big 75 reunion.   As for choosing between 2020 and 2021,  I don't mean to sound morbid, but the sooner the more of us there will likely be.  

On a more optimistic note, looking farther ahead I note that a total eclipse of the sun will be passing along the northwestern outskirts of Cincinnati on April 8, 2024.  Actually, it would be better viewed in Hamilton or Dayton.  Let me just put out the suggestion that we try to congregate then.  In the meantime, I'm flying to Idaho for the coming eclipse on August 21st.  Lest our message forum dry up,  I promise to send back a report. 

 In the meantime, we could discuss the new season of Game of Thrones.  The first episode was no letdown after last season's apocalyptic green wildfire holocaust, which unfortunately incinerated two of my favorite characters, the High Sparrow (played by Jonathan Pryce) and Margaery Tyrell (Natalie Dormer, who also played the best-ever Anne Boleyn in The Tudors), along with a multitude of others.  This season opened with a bang-up Jonestown as Arya Stark steals the face of Walder Frey and induces his entire clan to drink poison.  Bring on the dragons!

Steven Levinson

Paul and Dale:  The sticky wicket (did I actually write that?) is that hardly anybody in the class will be 75 in 2020.  As nice as it is to see as many people as possible, those of us who aren't around in the flesh in 2021 will be around in memory.  That makes us all present.  And it's nice to remember.

Gail Weintraub (Stern)

Plans are very slowly taking shape for a 75th/.75/3/4 Birthday Reunion in June, 2021. Stay tuned.

I never thought that I would hold as much interest in the description of a water fountain as I did, Phil. The next time I am in Cincinnati, I will definitely make a special trip to view the Philip Spiess Fountain. I will never be able to view the Tyler Davidson Fountain without thinking of you.

I will be in Sun Valley, Idaho for the total solar eclipse on August  21st. Where in Idaho will you be, Dale? Will any other classmates be in the area? Do others have viewing plans elsewhere?