1979
You know those little green cards. No, not the alumni reunion cards but rather those newsletter "Take A Minute For A Message" cards. Well, Mark Horton sent me some of those cards and it made my day because 90 percent of the information in this particular column is the result of Mark's gracious and unselfish act. Could this be a trend? Is Mark really a nice guy? What does Megan think? Obviously these questions and others will never be answered in this column.
What I would really like you people to do is to send me some very clear black-and-white photographs. All that I would have to do then is submit the photo for this 1,000-word-limit column. Ho, ho.
Phyllis Chang sent in a gorgeous picture postcard of Tibet but then confessed that she had last been to Tibet 18 months ago. I was crestfallen, but my hopes rose again when she explained that she had been studying in Beijing, China, prior to the Tibet excursion. Could she possibly be back in that exotic and mysterious land? I read on. Phyllis was not in China. Phyllis, instead, was studying law at Berkeley. It would seem that her traveling days might not be over, though. She will spend half of this summer working for the State Department.
Some people who wrote claimed to have made some important decisions and changes regarding their life-styles. I'll be the judge of that. Peter Habein's life has evolved in this fashion: married in August 1979 to T. Anne, a registered nurse; recipient of an M.A. in English from the University of Virginia in 1980; recipient of a J.D. from the University of Montana Law School in 1983. These events
sound major enough. Peter is clerking for a U.S. District Court judge in Billings and will stay in Billings upon completion of the cattlerustling cases that he has been working on. (Does that still happen?)
Dave Klinges mentioned two major changes for 1984, but I could only pin down one of them. Dave is now assistant to the vice chairman at Shearson/American Express and will be married to Dana Burroughs '82 "the summer following her first year of law school." Dave didn't mention whether Dana had even applied to law school. It looks to me like a unilateral contract no marriage until the performance of the first year of law school. What do you think, Dana?
I never met Dave at Dartmouth but any future impressions will undoubtedly be warped by the image that I keep of a sign that I found in Topliff's storage room: "If you take this table, I will track you down and kill you. Signed, Dave Klinges." Does Shearson know the whole story behind this man?
Other mysteries appear to be abounding as well. For example, Mark Caulkins is being graduated from Albany Medical School this spring. Caulks already had A.B. and U.D. after his name but I guess he really wanted those final initials. The Buddha will no doubt continue to use his smiling ways to spread cheer as a surgeon.
Mark also sent word of his forfner partnersin-crime. Charlie Vieth remains married and in Baltimore at the same time. Hank Barrett is said to be alive and well on the lakefront in Chicago and is "making all kinds of money." I am assuming that Henry is not involved in a counterfeiting operation. Also, Kevin Sullivan continues to monopolize the bar business in San Francisco. Better gear up for all of those disconsolate Mondale supporters, Sully. Yeah, yeah, I know, keep it clean.
You observe some interesting things about these green cards. Some people apologize for not having done this sooner, some remark that this is their "first one," and some actually type their comments for fear that the space on the card will be inadequate. We're going to make some snap psychological evaluations here.
Tish Davis turns out to be healthy of mind and soul. She works as a seaman on the tugboats of Crowley Maritime Corporation. The tugboat business takes Tish everywhere from Alaska to Florida. She claims that it's fun. Of course, the only stories that I hear of tugs are from sailors who worry about being run over. I suppose it would be fun watching some irritated skipper yell at a crew turned deaf-mute with horror. Phil Odence, who signed on to a boat bound for the Caribbean last winter, could probably relate a few stories from the viewpoint of the crew.
The cards that I liked the most were the ones reflecting a proper perspective on the part of the author. Sam Weinbaum told me all about Switzerland, where he lives, and of the cross-country ski races that he had entered. Sam won 19th place in the European Mountain Racing Championship Cup. Finally, Sam spoke of his search for powder. (Come on, guys, this is Switzerland, not California.) Oh yes, in the postscript Sam maintained that he still found time to work at selling glass. Great card - I liked it.
Lisa Mendleson Mourning wrote about her new job at the district attorney's office in Manhattan. Lisa, as well as Miriam Shire, who is also in the Manhattan DA's office, chose to fight crime in an organized and structured fashion. There are those of us still waiting to be hit by a burst of cosmic rays so that we too may do our part to battle evil.
Finally, this will be the last pep talk that you get about reunions or fund drives. As far as the reunion goes, come if you want to (June 15-17). It's time for a little nostalgia and besides, Dartmouth is a very pretty place in June. As far as the fund-raising drive goes, Dartmouth is our school. I recall resenting the alums when I was a student, for what seemed like interference and meddling in situations which affected only students. The relationship between the alumni and the College is complex though, and in the end each has an obligation to the other, for each had something to do with the making of the other.
5th'79In The Fellowshipof The Fifth
1229 Massachusetts Ave., SE Washington, DC 20003
