Nomad News-Vol.4-No.87

BOYHOOD HEROES: Recently, I received an e-mail titled "The Old Man With a Bucket of Shrimp". It narrated how Eddie Rickenbacker's life was saved by a seagull and how he repaid the debt in latter years. Eddie Rickenbacker was a Wold War I flying pioneer and later on, the founder of Eastern Airlines. He was also, one of my boyhood heroes. I made a "scooter" by nailing a wooden box on a piece of wood. Under the wood was two sets of roller skate wheels. On the top of the box was a smaller piece of wood that served as a steering arm and did double-duty as the airplane's wing. A nearby neighbor had a long concrete driveway on a slope. As Eddie Rickenbacker, I would wait at the top of the slope for Manfred von Richthofen (the Red Baron) to come by and then swoop in behind him in my Spad and "shoot him down". The next day I might reverse the players. I would be the Red Baron in my Fokker D-7 "shooting down" Eddie Rickenbacker. Another WWI German hero was Hans Imelmann, perfector of the "Imelmann" maneuver, rolling an airplane out into level flight at the top of a loop. Later in life, after I had received my pilot's ticket, I was tempted to try an Imelmann but was afraid the 09 didn't have enough power to pull herself around in that attitude and would fall into an inverted spin, from which there is no way to recover. A normal spin is OK. Next to looping, the 09 was happiest when spinning. Back to earth and my heroes. Next was Buck Rogers, a comic strip heroe who flew through space with his Space Belt. I was in space before Alan Shepherd. I wrote about my experience with a "space belt in Nomad News No.58 CLOSE ENCOUNTERS. Then came Charles Lindbergh, "Lucky Lindy" and his solo flight to Paris in "The Spirit of St. Louis". One of my prized possessions was a leather Lindy helmet Finally there was G-8 and His Battle Aces, a comic strip aviator-spy who was always in hot pursuit of Doktor Kreuger, I believe it was. I was never able to fulfil by desire to be a military pilot but perhaps just as well. Maybe my sheltering angel was looking after me then, too. While on airplanes, I might as well relate a couple of incidents involving paper airplanes. When in high school, I would make paper airplanes and while waiting for the teacher to appear, would make a paper airplane and from the back of the room, attempt to land it in the waste basket by the teacher's desk. One day I was near the door and had my arm cocked to launch the airplane when Miss Zimmerman came in behind me and took the craft from my hand. This was an offense that normally would send the student to Bull Reynolds office; Mr. Reynolds being the superintendent. Fortunately, Miss Zimmerman liked me because I was a good student, scholastically speaking, and she just said: "Donald, take your seat". Fast forward to 1942. I'm at Fort Devans Air Base, MA. We would take the train home some weekends, from Boston to Philadelphia. On the Sunday evening return, George Morphesis, whose family owned a Greek restaurant, would come back with a big bag of Texas Tommys, hot dogs wrapped in a slice of bacon with a strip of pickle and cheese on a roll. Upon entering the train, we would proceed to the Club Car and commence washing the dogs down with cold beer. On one trip, one of the guys made a paper airplane from a menu and it took a nose dive on takeoff. I said something to the affect that "I'll show you how to make one that will fly", which I did. I gave it a toss down the aisle and it flew beautifully. Now, in our group there was the First Sergeant, two Tech Sergeants, and three Staff Sergeants of which I was one. About the middle of the car there was a table of four or five officers having dinner, one being a Lt. Colonel. The Colonel came to our table with my paper airplane in his hand. It had landed in his beer glass. He came directly to me, handed me my work of art, and said: "Sergeant, you better keep your men under control". Why me? I said: "Yes, Sir", and gave him an Air Corps salute. An Air Corps salute was a casual two fingers to the forehead and casual retraction. Nothing stiff or formal with us. Things are different today. They, meaning the oppressive government, has either litigated or legislated the fun out of flying. Kids today aren't allowed to dream and without dreams, there is no imagination. The government takes control of them shortly after they learn to walk. They never learn to bond by enjoying such things as "pick Up" sports where they make their own rules, for example Then their self-gratifying parents push them into Little League baseball or Pop Warner football, regaled in big league uniforms. They never learn to have a fun life. Everything is regimented. (copyright 2014 Andrew M. Dolan)

Nomad News-Vol.4-No.83

GERMANY 1945-INTERVIEW WITH RUSSIAN FORCED LABORER:(Part 1 of 4) I was in Braunsweig at the war's end and visited a nearby forced labor camp. At the time I was taking a correspondence course on journalism from the University of Indiana. One of my comrades, Joseph Fobes from New Hampshire, spoke both German and French. With approval of the captain in charge, we spoke with a Russian internee. In my interview, I call him Ivan Skivar, not his real name. Mr. Skivar begged us to intercede and keep him from being returned to Russia where he would meet certain death or a Siberian concentration camp. We went to the captain and he informed us that nothing could be done. Orders from Washington were for all detainees to be returned to their native land. This agreement with Stalin was made by President Roosevelt, I believe. It was a heart-breaking moment when we had to tell Mr. Skivar the sad news. I have often wondered his fate. The following is a rather long interview so I am going to spread it out over several issues of Nomad News. This will be Part One: There was great rejoicing among the Russian internees at the forced labor camp when the Americans arrived. They had been liberated. They were free and happy--or were they? After the first wave of happiness, joy, and enthusiasm passes over and they settle down to rational planning for the future, what problems confront these displaced persons from a foreign land? What obstacles have to be overcome or circumvented before these people can be returned to their homes and settle down to normal community life? What, if anything, do they have to return to? How had interment in a German forced labor camp affected their economic life and their political status as far as the Russian government is concerned? Ivan Skivar, an internee in German forced labor camps since September 1942 was glad to supply the answers to come of these questions. This is not his real name, which must remain anonymous for reasons of his own personal security should he return to Russia. Aged 32, an electrical engineer by profession with five years of higher Russian education and training, he is above average in intelligence. He is keenly aware of the freedoms that rightfully belong to him and to all mankind--freedom of speech, political freedom, religious freedom, and freedom from economic want. Having studied Russian conditions against conditions in other countries, he was able to offer an accurate and reliable comparison and as a result, holds many fears for the future. The Russian Constitution. The new Russian Constitution, he stated, guarantees all Russians and Russian nationalities certain rights, among which are: 1. The right to work. 2.The right to ten years of schooling with an opportunity to continue through to a higher technical or professional education. 3. Freedom of religion. 4. Old age pensions after 55 years of age for men and 50 years of age for women. 5. The people were guaranteed freedom from fear of arrest or seizure of personal property except through legal court procedure. "However", he continued, "the Constitution is only an instrument of propaganda. Most of the so-called Rights incorporated in this Constitution are merely fictitious. "The Constitution claims, as one of its articles, freedom of speech, but anyone who says living in Russia is not good, must die. This same procedure follows throughout most of the Constitution on articles that provide for personal happiness or freedom. It is entirely theoretical and never applied by actual practice except for propaganda purposes. However, all articles that adhere to Soviet principles or that restrict the average man are followed strictly. The only freedom the Constitution provides the average man, is freedom to kill himself." "Article 58 of the Constitution provides that anyone taken prisoner by the enemy; or leaves the country except on diplomatic missions, is considered officially dead by the government. Every Russian soldier must use his last bullet on himself when his position becomes hopeless and he is surrounded by the enemy. This provision also includes civilians who have been taken into Germany as forced laborers. As an example, none of the Russians taken prisoner by Finland in 1939-40 and later returned to Russian hands, ever returned to their homes or were heard from again." (To be continued in Nomad News No. 84)...(copyright 2014 Andrew M. Dolan)

Nomad News-Vol.4-No.82

OBAMA IS NO ORDINARY WEAKLING: The following quote is from an e-mail I received. I couldn't have said it better. That is why I am incorporating it in my Nomad News series: "Obama Is No Ordinary Weakling". Those who compare the bare-chested conqueror of the Crimea wih the metro-sexual ruler of the United States and find our emperor weak to the point of deserving ridicule miss the essential strength of President Obama. It's no ordinary weakling who can turn a once-respected country into an international joke; reduce Congress to a gaggle of sniveling sycophants; turn the world's finest medical system into a failed third-rate socialist nightmare with a sroke of his pen; shatter our Constitution without attempted recourse by the sons and daughters of frontiersmen and pioneers whose blood was used to write that inspired document; and turn the people of our once-united states into a herd of competing minorities who, like suckling pigs are each afraid to lose his lace on the government teat should he raise his voice to protest the ruin of our country. So don't denigrate the nonentity ruler who has overcome his uncertain ancestry and ludicrous incompetence to do what no other king or dictator has been able to do in our 237-year history; he has destroyed America. (signed) Reis R. Kash............... When I write a Nomad News in my blog, my version of Internet Explorer will not let me type in "Compose" but it will allow me to proceed in HTLM. The problem here is that it will not reproduce my writing in paragraphs (everything runs together, no matter how I write it), it will not allow bold or italic letters and it makes for an incoherent message. Just explaining this in case someone might wonder why I do not separate my messages in paragraphs, etc. That said, I know some of my readers are saving all my writings. That's fine. You may have noticed that I have "copyrighted" my issues of late. The reason: a friend is looking into putting my Nomad News writings in some kind of book form and I wanted to have my name to show I have proprietary rights, I think they call it, to Nomad News. Otherwise, you are free to use or reproduce any of my writings you so choose. Lastly, in Nomad News No. 78, I have a quote from Johann Wolfgang Oethe...this should be Goethe. Andrew M. Dolan

Nomad News-Vol.4-No.81

Following is copy of letter-to-theEditor I sent to the Crossville Chronicle on March 30, 2014 for their consideratio I find it necessary to comment on Ms Pat Vaughn’s letter published in your March 26 edition. The most preposterous of the absurdities outlined in the letter is that I, being part of a group of dissents, do not like Mr. Obama because of the color of his skin. She can’t qualify that statement. I dislike Mr. Obama for what he is doing to destroy my country, a country that has allowed me to have a fun life for 95 years and I will not sit quietly by and allow him to finish the destruction of the few years I have left. Four or five years ago I wrote that the Obamas had such a wonderful opportunity to do many good things for our country, particularly in the way of race relations, if they actually believed their promises. Instead, he chose to proclaim: “We are five days away from fundamentally transforming the United States of America.” Following is a quote by Karl Marx in The Communist Manifesto: “The Communists despise making a secret of their opinions and intentions. They openly declare that their aims can be reached only by violent overthrow of the whole existing social structure.” To me, it sounds like Karl Marx and Barack Obama sing in the same choir and that is why I dislike Mr. Obama. I could care less about the color of his skin. What I dislike is the color of his intentions. If you’ll recall, over twenty years ago, Ross Perot said this when commenting on the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA): “That giant sucking sound you’ll hear is that of American jobs going to Mexico.” How prophetic he was. If too many people like Ms Vaughn continue their slobbering love affair with the present administration, the next giant sucking sound you will hear is that of freedom going the way of the Dodo bird. I may not be here to see it happen. You will be. We do not have any children or grandchildren to be concerned about. You do. Do something! (Copyright 2014, Andrew M. Dolan) n:

Nomad News-Vol.4-No.80

NINTH AIR FORCE RECONNAISSANCE GROUP PHOTOGRAPHS SEIGFRIED LINE: (Following is copy of a press release that appeared on the front pages of every London newspaper and was relayed by the Associated Press to all newspapers in the United States. The time was early 1945 and the 33rd Photo Reconnaissance Squadron was part of the 363rd Group that performed that task. As I recall, none of us got any sleep for five days; just cat naps here and there.) "HEADQUARTERS, NINTH AIR FORCE, FRANCE. . .The Seigfried Line and a large part of the Rhine River, two barriers which the Germans hope will stop the advance of the Allied armies, have just been photographed for the first time in three years by a Tactical Reconnaissance Group of the U.S.Ninth Air Force. More than 2,600 square miles of the Reich were photographed in five days despite the obstacles of bad weather, heavy flak defenses, enemy aircraft, and smoke pots which the Nazis used in prodigious numbers in an attempt to save their defense secrets from the probing cameras of the Ninth's reconnaissance planes. Photo interpreters are now busy night and day studying thousands of pictures which reveal changes in these vital defenses - some sand barriers and other improvised obstacles - recently built by the hard pressed German army. Although most of the mapping was carried out at high altitude, P-38 and P-51 pilots had to brave dense flak zones, frequently flying through salvoes of as many as 150 busts. The precision nature of the operation prevented the pilots of taking evasive action Enemy fighters harassed the air spying effort continuously. One plane was lost from the whole operation. As a result of the five days effort, more than 200,000 prints of photographed areas are now in the hands of Allied ground forces. More than 18,000 man hours were crowded into the brief operation for the piloting of reconnaissance planes, developing and printing. The planes consumed 20,000 gallons of gas during the five days. The operation was carried out by a group commanded by Col. George W. Peck, Detroit, Michigan, which because of its disregard for danger in photographic reconnaissance, is known among airmen as "Peck's Bad Boys". It was this same group which worked over the beaches of Normandy at 3,000 feet for 19 days before D-Day, securing the pictures on which Allied operations were planned." (What is not mentioned here is the five sleepless days the Photo Intelligence interpreters spent plotting and interpreting the prints. We received the Presidential Unit Citation for the operation)

Nomad News-Vol.4-No.79

CURRENT AFFAIRS QUIZ: I just took an internet quiz on Current Affairs. I got eleven of the thirteen questions correct. That's better than 85% of the general public. Does that make me smarter than the general public? Not be a thousand light years. What it does, is tell me that I pay attention and attempt to stay current so when I enter the polling booth, I know for what and for whom (or is it who) I am voting. That tells me that a good proportion of the general public don't. That is why we elect these Gombies* to the Congress, state governorships and assemblies. On November 4 we will go to the polls to elect 435 House Representatives and one-third of the Senators. I believe this will be the most important election in the history of our Constitutional Republic, the greatest form of government ever devised by man. A system that has raised more people out of poverty and to a standard of living not experienced by the rest of the world, all the while in an environment of freedom and liberty. November 4 will determine if we continue to be the Land of Freedom, or will continue to slide the slippery slope into socialism and eventually into a dictatorship. I'm 95 years old and maybe won't see this happen. We have no children or grandchildren to be concerned about. You will. You have. Do something. *Gombies. Evil spirits that enter the brain and make a person do evil things; like violating the Constitution of the United States. (copyright 2014-Andy Dolan)

Nomad News-Vol.4-No.78

THE OBAMA MANIFESTO: Following is a quote by Karl Marx in The Communist Manifesto: "The Communists despise making a secret of their opinions and intentions. They openly declare that their aims can be reached only by violent overthrow of the whole existing social structure." Didn't Obama say "We are five days away from fundamentally transforming the United States of America?" To me, it sounds like Barack Obama and Karl Marx sing in the same choir. Here's another quote, this time by Johann Wolfgang Goethe: "None are more hopelessly enslaved, as those who falsely believe they are free." I believe this pretty much sums up the position of a large portion of the electorate in America today. A tyrant tells us what he is going to do to enslave us, and fools ignore the warning. Hand-in-hand with this Slave Master are some of the people we send to Washington, those who continue to pass law after law that deprive us of our freedom, are traitors to their oath of office and to the Constitution of the United States. They are the enemy from within and it's time we clean house, starting November 4, Republicans and Democrats alike. (copyright 2014-Andy Dolan)

Nomad News-Vol.4-No.77

iNFRAGARD, ANOTHER TROJAN HORSE? This new Federal agency has just been called to my attention by a patriot. Ostensibly, its a public-private partnership between American businesses and the FBI. (Every time I hear of a partnership with government and the private sector, I smell a rat) Infragard is supposed to be an information-sharing and analysis effort. Individual chapters are being formed to facilitate intelligence between businesses, academic institutions, and law inforcement agencies dedicated to prevent hostile acts against America. Sounds reasonable. Has good intentions. Doesn't every government program start out with good intentions. Here's the "kicker", chapters! Already there are over 60. What do chapters have? Members. People. What do people do? Squeal on friends and neighbors! It has happened in every country that has been taken over by an opresive government. Don't think that it couldn't happen here. It can and it will unless America wakes up. Didn't Obama say he wanted a civilian police force as large as the military force? Oh, how easy it would be to eventually give them brown shirts and a gun. Go ahead call me paranoid. What is it they say about water off a duck's back? I won't be here and we don't have any children or grandchildren to be concerned about. You will. You have. Do something! (copyright-2014-Andy Dolan)

Nomad News-Vol.4-No.76

AND PEOPLE VOTE THESE GOMBIES IN:I published the following in another series of small messages called "The Long Trip Back" that are completely political in nature. I received several queries asking what a Gomby was so I thought I would explain: In 1956 I visited friends in St. Thomas, one of the American Virgin Islands in the Caribbean. We experienced a short shower every afternoon, at which time the natives always covered their heads with anything available. They believed the rain contained "Gombies", evil spirits that entered the brain and made them do crazy things. I believe this to be an apt description of a lot of our elected representatives so have used it as such. Here's the message: "Led by Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA), 26 Democrats have formed the Senate Climate Control Caucus, disregarding the fact Congress has defeated 692 bills that have touted the same theory. The country is going to Hell in a hand basket and these gombies want to put an additional tax on American businesses that are already hard-pressed in a worldwide economy. There was a time when scam artists like these went to the Big House. Today, unfortunately, they are rewarded with reelection." I am going to add another line here that was not in the original script: Maybe it's the voters who have been aflicted with Gombies. (Copyright-Andy Dolan)

Nomad News-Vol.4-No.75

THE SELF-INDULGENT MICHELLE; The following Letter-to-the-Editor appeared in the March 18, 2014 edition of the "Crossville Chronicle": "Has Michelle Become Bored? It seems the self-indulgent Michelle has become a bit bored hanging around Washington since the last vacation in January. What to do? Sure, why not. I'll just borrow a couple of million from China and then jog over there and spend it. Might as well take the kids, too. After all, they need a spring break. Yeah, I'll take Mom, too. What's an extra million. After all, that's what money is for, isn't it? Barrack will be in Europe. Fox News and some of the proletariat will complain, but so what. We'll send Joe over with a cake. (signed: Andy Dolan **** I'm not sure that all folks "got" the inference of the last sentense, so I'll explain. If you'll recall, leading up to the French Revolution, when Marie Antoinette was told the people were getting restless and had no bread, supposedly this was her answer: "Let them eat cake". When last seen, Marie's head was bouncing over the cobblestones of the Champs Elysees. (Copyright-Andy Dolan)

Nomad News-Vol.3-No.74

WHERE DO I STAND? Some of you know me personally. Some of you may have heard of me. Some of you may have read something I have written. Some of you may have wondered who I am. Some of you may not like me. That's OK. I probably wouldn't like you either. Then again, maybe I would. Anyway, I'm 95 years old and in my Nomad News blog, I attempt to express my feelings on the way America is going and trust I can make just a little difference somewhere. If we all did just a little bit to restore our country to a Constitutional Republic, we would all gain by it. Anyway, recently I took one of those internet tests on where the person stands politically. Here is my report: My overall breakdown is: Radicalism 14.25, Socialism 12.5, Tenderness, 71.875. (Get that tenderness). The report continues: These scores indicate you are a tender-minded conservative; this is the profile one might associate with a sincere clergyman. It appears that you are trusting of religion, and have a compassionately humanistic attitude toward humanity in general. Your attitudes toward economics appear laissez-faire capitalist, and combined with your social attitudes this creates the picture of someone who would generally be described as right-wing. To round out the picture you appear to be, political preference aside, an idealist with strong opinions. END of report. I would say this is pretty much right-on, although I'm not so sure about that clergyman business. (copyright-Andy Dolan)

Nomad News-Vol.3-No.73

WE WILL RESTORE THE REPUBLIC On November 4 we will elect a new president. On November 5, when we awaken, will we hear the Liberty Bell ring out this message that is inscribed on the Bell: “Proclaim Liberty thro’ all the Land to all the Inhabitants Thereof” Leviticus XXV.10.” As I was thinking about this, my mind travelled back in time to July 1944. It was the time when the ground forces finally broke through at St. Lo in Normandy. My squadron had already been moved to an airport at Dreaux and I had stayed behind to wait for one of my section members, Mike Spero, who was in a field hospital suffering from dysentery. Mike was now lying in the bed of the small weapons carrier and I was winding my way through piles of bricks and shattered walls that had once been St. Lo. The only standing structure I observed, though badly damaged, was the cathedral with an artillery shell embedded in the stone wall. This scenario would be repeated later, city after city, all the way to Braunsweig, Germany and beyond. In 2000, after several trips to France when I had always purposefully bypassed Normandy (I have 10,000 comrades still there) I returned to St. Lo and to an unbelievingly beautiful monument to human endeavor. The city folks had known about the ancient ramparts surrounding the city that had been covered over in years past. These were all uncovered and reconstructed as of old. The only remaining remnant of war was the artillery shell still embedded in the cathedral’s stone wall. This scenario, too, had been repeated , city after city all the way to Braunsweig, Germany and beyond. Someone had to pick up the first brick until all the rubble was cleared. Then someone had to pick up the first brick to rebuild, put it back in place, put a little mortar on it, then place another brick on top until the city was restored. This is what we must do now. Some of the rubble has already been removed. We will continue, brick by brick, until our shattered Constitutional Republic is restored. Copyright-Andy Dolan

nomad News-Vol.3-No.72

(I sent the following letter to the editor of the Crossville Chronicle, in response to a recipe they published for Irish Soda Bread) I feel obliged to take exception to the recipe for “Easy Irish Soda Bread” in your March 12 edition. There is no such thing as “easy”. Life isn’t easy but you do your best to improve it, not emasculate it. Easy is a word that should be stricken from the dictionary. To get back to the recipe, no self-respecting Irish person would put caraway seeds, eggs, cinnamon, and vanilla in Irish Soda Bread. To “pour” a bread batter into a cake pan goes beyond sacrilege. In fact, it is no longer bread. It’s cake. This is no secret, but for the first time I am going to divulge my mother’s 100-year old recipe for Irish Soda Bread: 3 cups flour 3 tblsp sugar 1 tsp salt 1 tsp baking soda ¾ cup of raisins Mix dry ingredients, then add 1 ¾ - 2 cups buttermilk Mix with wooden spoon (be sure its wood) until consistency is such that a large ball of dough can be amassed. Spread flour on a board and roll the dough until all sides are covered. Shape dough. Place (notice, not poured) in a greased pan. Bake at 350 degrees For 45-60 minutes. One more thing you need is a broom. Not one of those plastic “knock-off” things they peddle today, but a real broom, made with real straw. You keep it in the corner for general sweeping. After 45 minutes, you go over and break a piece of straw from the broom and stick it in the middle of the loaf. If it comes out clean, the bread is done. Unless you are an accomplished baker, your effort might end up like mine did when I attempted to make a Festive Italian Bread for our next-door Italian neighbors when we lived in South Philadelphia. By comparison, a brick would have been more palatable than the bread. Andy Dolan

Nomad News -Vol.3-No.71

SOLITUDE: Not to be confused with loneliness or reclusion but a time to be alone because you want to be. When you can completely rest your mind and enjoy the beauty of being alive and having fun. I have enjoyed a fun life. Being serious when necessity demanded it, and having fun the rest of the time. You can even have fun while being serious. If you're not enjoying and having fun in your present job, look for another job. Don't spend your life in misery. As a solitarian, I have enjoyed the peace of solitude in the forests of northern Quebec, alone and listening to the chatter from thousands of little night creatures, over-powered at times by the cry of a Loon and then waiting for the answer from his or her mate. Looking up I saw millions of tiny sparkling lights, alive with shooting stars, where your imagination knows no bounds. It's as peaceful and restful as it can be. In the daylight hours the forests are full of different sounds but just as wondorous. I have enjoyed the love of solitude in the woods of New Jersey where I spent my younger years. The sounds and sights were different but the solitude was as intense. I have found solitude alone in the skies at four thousand feet where my mind had to be occupied sixty seconds of every minute as I frolicked, mostly upside down or somewhere inbetween. Only when I returned to terra firma did it occur that all earthly concerns had been left in the dark during that period. This same solitude was experienced when alone at the helm of a sailboat where, once again, attention to the boat's attitude was a sixty-second minute task all the time. Finally, where I found solitude was alone on a lake, with a bottle of Labatt's 50 by my side, watching a Canadian sunset. As you can see, solitude can be found just about anywhere. But, the purest form can be found only in the woods, where God and His creatures meet alone. Andy Dolan

Nomad News-Vol.3-No.70

GIVE ME ONE WITHOUT THE WORM: When my brother, sister, and I were kids, our father's work took us to Owls Head, Maine each summer. A rare experience for children at that time. One of the local residents was Levi Ledbetter and his wife, whose name I do not recall. The Ledbetters put new meaning to the word frugal. Levi was a lobsterman, but he lobstered with a sailboat because wind was free and gasoline cost money. I'm not making this up. Levi disliked children, for some reason, but he took a liking to me. I looked like a choir boy but actually, was quite mischievous. Maybe a little more than quite. Mr. Ledbetter took me lobstering with him in the sailboat, an honor not bestowed on my brother or any of the local children. One time when I was eight or nine, he had to sail to Vinalhaven a large island in the middle of Penobscot Bay, to pick up a new sail. He told my mother he would take me along if it was OK with her. It was. You could see Vinalhaven on a clear day, about fifteen miles from Owls Head. We had a brisk breeze going over and I spent my time roaming around until late afternoon when it was time to return. We departed in a light breeze and the sun was dropping near the horizon. We were less than halfway home when the breeze died. Mr. Ledbettter went below to start the auxiliary engine, a one-lunger that was started by swinging the flywheel. After a few swings, it failed to start. It was then that he started cursing. The harder he worked to spin that flywheel, the harder he cursed. After awhile, he gave up and came on deck to pull in the dory. A dory is a large rowboat that the fishermen hauled behind their boats to get from the dock to the mooring. He turned the tiller over to me and told me to keep the boat aimed at Owls Head Lighthouse, a pinpoint of light on the far off horizon. All the while he continued to swear. He swore at every pull of the oars. It was well past dark when we arrived home. Mrs Ledbetter was different. She would invite all the kids, local and summer, in for an Astrachan Apple; a deliciously swseet early season apple that promised delectable applesauce and pies. But, she always gave us "windfalls", apples that had fallen off the tree because they had a worm in them. I now jump ahead many years when I returned to Maine and purchased a cottage on Spruce Head Island, not far from Owls Head. On one of my trips, I took my mother along. One day she wished to look up Mary Foster, now married to the sheriff, and one of the kids who ate apples with us at Mrs. Ledbetters. Mary's parents had been friends of my parents. Mary reminisced about the time I had the impudence to ask Mrs. Ledbetter, when she offered the apples, to give me one without the worm. I didn't recall this, but she said they, meaning the local kids, would have never had the nerve to ask her that. Now, we come to the present. I have never missed a presidential election since I voted first for Franklin D. Roosevelt. Since that time, I have voted for many presidential candidates, and with few exceptions, all have been like Mrs. Ledbetter's "windfalls". All have had a worm in them. Like the Astrachan Apple, they talked and promised delicious and delectable things, but they were all elected with a worm and they fell from the tree of promises. In a few years, we will vote in another presidential election. The fate of our country will depend on the outcome. I pray we will elect a president without the worm.

Nomad News-Vol.3-No.69

TIME TO REMINISCE – BELGIUM, OCTOBER 1944: About this time we received a very official-looking Memorandum from Squadron Headquarters addressed to all personnel titled: Post-War Etiquette and Courtesy: Conduct of Soldier on Return to Native Land. The following are excerpts from Circular 1235, par. #7-99, Ninth Air Force, dated 31 September 1944,and are to be read to all personnel, by order of Commanding General, this Army, and rescinds any and all previous publications concerning this serious matter. 1. It has been brought to the attention of this office that many of the soldiers returned from the battle zone are having serious difficulties conducting themselves as gentlemen. You can still be a gentleman even if you were in Normandy. The following has been compiled by leading authorities on etiquette and, it is hoped, will prove of invaluable aid to you when (and if) you return home a. Upon arriving in America you will be amazed at the great number of beautiful girls that you will see. Remember, boys, New York is not like Paris. Many of these girls have other occupations—stenographers, sales girls, beauty operators; therefore, do not approach them with “combien?” A proper approach is, “Isn’t it a beautiful day?” or, “Were you ever in Scranton?” Then you can say “How much?” Remember also that a chocolate bar or a Chelsea cigarette will be appreciated for the sentiment behind it, but that’s as far as it will go. The trend in the States is for mink coats and diamond necklaces, the closest equivalent in results to the chocolate bar over here. For a chocolate bar there, expect nothing more than a purely platonic friendship. Further, you will find that a goodly number of the girls speak English well, so all sign language and French, especially THAT phrase, will be rather useless. b. If you are visiting a friend’s home overnight and are awakened by a gentle rap on the door, informing you that the household is arising, the proper answer is, ”I’ll be there in a moment”. Do not say “Blow it out your Royal---“. c. Your first meal in the morning will be breakfast, a strange assortment of food such as cantaloupe, fresh eggs, milk, etc. Do not be afraid of them; they are highly palatable. If you wish some butter, turn to the nearest person and say, “Please pass the butter”. Do NOT yell, “Throw the goddamn grease.” d. If you have the biological urge coming over you while you are in a group and immediate relief is desired, do NOT grab an entrenching tool in one hand and “Stars and Stripes” in the other and rush for the garden. You will find that 90 percent of the houses in the States have a room right in the house called a bathroom. In most cases it contains a bathtub, washbasin, medicine cabinet, and toilet. It is the toilet you are primarily concerned with in this case. e. If you are invited to a friend’s house and find that all of the chairs in the living room are taken, do NOT squat down in the corner and say you’re perfectly comfortable there. Have patience. Your host or hostess will soon provide a proper resting place for you. f. Belching or passing wind in company is strictly frowned upon. If you should forget yourself, however, just day “Excuse me.” Do NOT say: “It must be that lousy chow we’re getting.” g. You will be amazed at dinner to find that each item is, in most cases, served in a separate dish. Although you learned in the Army to eat such delicious combinations as pattied cornbeef and pudding, and lima beans, pork and gravy and peaches, just bear with the strange civilian custom and in no time you will adjust to the separate dish system and enjoy your meal even so. P.S.: I just dug that specious memo from my archives. It was probably published in "Stars & Stripes" in 1944. Andy Dolan

Nomad News-Vol.3-No.68

UNFINISHED BUSINESS: There are two things that I want to do: Take a flight in a Hang Glider and jump out of any airplane. A few years back, Yvette and I were in the French Alps, at Tignes, and staying at a resort at the 5000-foot level. The month was August. There was snow at the peak or 10,000-foot level. We took the ski-lift to the peak, and it was kind of cool stepping off into the snow in August. The air was chilly but the sun shown bright and warm. There was a small fenced-off area where some young ladies were sun bathing. No, they weren't and you should not have even thought of it. They wore itsy,bitsy, polka-dot bikins. There were two two-man Hang Gliders sitting in the snow. One took off with a passenger. The other pilot was readying for departure and didn't seem to have a passenger. I asked Yvette to talk to the pilot and ask if he would take me along. He said "Yes" but then he looked at my feet and I was wearing a pair of low shoes. He was wearing snow boots and was afraid, if something happened when still at the snow level, there would be a problem for me. Just after we moved to Tennessee, there was a Hang Glider Club near Chattanooga but I never got around to going there. Is it too late now. Probably. As for jumping out of an airplane, my Medical Advisor says I would be signing my own death warrant if I did this. Is he right? Maybe, but I've accumulated enough close calls and should "let it go". Maybe I will. Remember, I said "maybe". Andy

Nomad News-Vol.3-No.67

LAUGHTER IS THE BEST MEDICINE: It seems this woman visited her doctor and complained about her husband's abusive attitude. She said he flies off the handle at the least provocation and she was becoming afraid. The doctor told her the next time her husband lost his temper, she should get a glass of water and take a full mouthful. He said: "Don't swallow the water. Just keep swishing it around in your mouth until your husband either calms down or leaves the room." She thought this odd but agreed she would give it a try. The next time she visited the doctor, she exclaimed that the advise worked perfectly. She asked him what swishing the water in her mouth did to calm him down. The doctor replied: "It wasn't swishing the water around in your mouth that calmed him down. It was keeping your mouth shut that did the trick." That's all, folks.++++++++ That's for laughter, but in a more serious vein: Two years ago, after my stroke, one of the young ladies who aided me in the shower, asked: "What is the secret of a successful marriage.?" My answer was the same as the doctor's. Andy Dolan

Nomad News-Vol.3-No.66

LEADING FROM BEHIND: Following is an excerpt from Nomad News No.63 where I outlined some suggestions on how folks, particularly young folks, could enjoy a more relaxing life. Here is the excerpt: "No matter how good or how solid you think your job is, it isn't. The only security you have is what you make for yourself. Always have a Plan A, and if possible a Plan B to move into if the hammer comes down." This advise could be well served when it comes to our national security, too. The Obama administration is woefully lacking when it comes to protecting our well being. He never has a plan for anything. He makes things up as they surface. When an emergency arises is not the time to come with a plan of action. The plan should be in place, ready to counterattack immediately. Case in point: Ukrania. Putin has a plan and is exploiting America's weaknesses, of which there are plenty. Obama has no plan. He makes it up as it goes along. He issues threats as easy as he lies, and then doesn't back them up. He lied when he took the oath of office to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. He has no plan, no desire, and no intent on following through on any part of this oath.