Some Memories from '54'59 HS Years-Herb Meyer

(Obtain a more extensive list of these 'bullets' at the Reunion in October)
I entered GMC as an 8th grader in 1954. Graduated in 1959; served in Band Company under Major Godfrey Osterman; went to Emory University (BA-English); Middlebury College (MA-English); then taught and coached soccer and golf for 39 in public and private schools: Atlanta, Dallas, and Athens. Retired in 1959. Married and have two boys.

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THINGS WE ACCOMPLISHED AT GMC. See what you remember. See what you wanna forget. (no particular order to these)

Last class of 8th grade at "big GMC." Holding a rock to tell right from left. Rifle not gun.

First group to bivouac at the GMC Lake property, and the first group to bivouac on the Carrington property across the river. Survived.

Witnessed and participated in the National Jr. College Football Championship; Coach Cordell's final game vs. Gordon Military. Creamed 'em at there place.

First class to initiate high school football, "Bull Pups". Lost once in 1958 season and entered GHSA in Class C in 1959. Coach Abbott; Coach Parnell Ruark; Coach Bill Barnes.

Memorized Maj. Schultz litany: "In regards to your black boots. . . !"

Endured chapel: "on'-on'-on'-one d-d-d-day at a time." (quote from a chapel talk joke)

Best Crack Squad in the state.

Four Sunday parades in five years, wearing wool Eisenhower jackets. Excused from Sunday parades - cause: fainting; punishment for vaseline in boots or cardboard in boots.

SOME THINGS WE KNEW ABOUT.

White book tests in chemistry and physics; why K. Moody's nickname was "Salt."

The answer for That Stafford gave to Col. Muldrow's request to name two types of gas: Propane & poontang!

Keys to the flagpole; permit to wear White Underwear; Pivot shoes.

Latin derivatives.

Terror of the square needle.

FM 22-5

5th General Order: "Sound the alarm in case of fire or disorder." All other nine General Orders.

"X square times Y square is Z square, Y square, and 'that's all there are tew it.'"

PLACES WE WENT AND PLACE WE SHOULD NOT HAVE.

The Campus Theatre; Kidd's Druistore for cokes and fries; Grant's; Ray's Steakhouse; The Ham House; The Dairy Bar under the pecan trees in the dark in the backseat; Tilly Kidd's house; Diane McDade's home; Keith Massey's home; GSCW dormitories

The Log Cabin; The Ding Dong Club; Pool Rooms; Macintosh Street; water skiing on bivouac; speeding Hancock street; speeding on campus; dragging on the Oconee River bridge; dragging out near Stevens Mill on Sunday afternoon.

Briget Bardot movies; woods of Lake Sinclair; the Dam

Skiing all the time: naked, clothed,triple, backwards; two skis, one ski, slalom, tubing in the Oconee.

Toting bedrolls, folding bedrolls, squaring corners, polishing brass - all things brass, personal and not so personal. Polishing latrine rails and door knobs. Government Inspection. Saturday morning Field Displays.

SPECIAL EVENTS - SANCTIONED AND UNSCANTIONED.

Out of uniform without a "work permit"

Bull ring - in the summer time after school was over! "Hours to walk."

Discipline Committe Meetings - "shipped"

Demerit List - out after taps; out of uniform; late to class; dirty brass; tardy; disrepect; insuborination; dirty rifle; missed formation.

Merit List - out after 9PM weeknights; which teacher was the soft tough for merits. How merits could deflect hours.

Govertment inspection cleanup days.

Friday night football games at home. Bus rides with cheerleaders if we won.

GMC's Centenial Celebration; hearing the Capt. who first sailed a nucleur sub under the ice cap.

Company parties - company picnics - Booze, no booze. Winstons, Camels, Luck Strike -no worries.

Dancing in the gym; chasing cheerleaders; chasing girls in general.

Sunday movies at the Campus; double seats in the theatre; "Public displays of affection" Where's my hat, damn it!"

Marching to church on Sunday. Baptists vs. Espiscopalians to the mess hall.

Initiations: Beta Club (rolling down the hill infront of the Capitol Bld); Officer's Club (soap in mouth, swallowing raw oysters); Winning Sabre; promotions at the final parade.

Sputnik; Russian invasions; Meyer and Golden's rocket project - blew up twice.

Reville & Taps. Snow days.

Battalion Balls; Sponsors Balls.

Graduation Day: speech by Dr. Scotty Hoag, North Georgia College.

THINGS WE SAID; SOUNDS WE MADE; SOUNDS WE WISH WE HAD NOT MADE

"Have you read Peyton Place?" "Where's my Playboy?"

"No sir!" "Yes ma'm!"

"The Phantom strikes again." On the water tower.

Crockett's drums; Townsend's trumpet; Donaldson's jokes; Kemp's speeches; Schultz's announcements.

"Mister"

"What? Me worry!"

"Fury D": "Wow! Twin pipes." "Spinners and mudflaps!" "White walls are out, man."
Black Fords grumbling. Green Olds; blue convertibles; red Chevy convertibles; black Chevys; late night Nashville radio, Wolfman, WMVG with Slats Jackson, Teen Time, and American Bandstand.

"I ain't your Moma, son!"

"You won't last no longer than a snowball in hell, son."

"Now, my son, Dick . . . ." (Mrs. Cotton)

"Cool cats" "Crazy"

Whizzing chalk. "Isth your bruther?" Pop quiz? Mrs. Farr?

"Mister, is your arm broken?"

No fenders man" "No side burns, mister." "White sidewalls, please, sir!"

"Col., your barn door is open."

GREAT NICKNAMES OF FRIENDS THEN AND NOW.

Bamboozler, Bull, Greaser, JR, Dilly, Vodka Mac, Wawa, Widdle Beu, Sibbo, Stogeyman, JR; TD or Headache or Salt; Robie Dobie; Dino; Lover; Jody; Ol' Herb; Nat; The Fat Rabitt; Pinky; Footsey; Buster; Moonpie.

The High Five.

There are about fifty more that will be available. Hope they bring back some great times and some times that taught us some things we treasure or else wish to forget. See you at the 50th. As Stafford said, "I'm so good now, I wanna sell tickets."
Herb Meyer