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the first thing, uh, what do you think you would offer as far as, uh, information about selecting a school? Well, first I think they've got to have a pretty good idea of what they want to, what they want to do. Uh-huh. Uh, once they have that, then they can start looking in all the various publications that give out all the information about schools and write to the schools themselves, and start finding out about the different requirements for the programs and what kind of, uh, of job assistance and all that other kind of stuff they offer. Yeah, uh, do you, do you feel that the first two years that the, um, depending upon the field, I know there are some fields which a person should go to the school, that school, all four years, but I know there are some fields where it's really not necessary. Yeah, a lot fields are, most of your liberal arts degrees and stuff aren't really concerned with your first two years anyway. It's, it's your core education, your general general education requirements. Uh-huh. Um, if, you know, if they want to get a liberal arts degree, I don't, I don't know what advice I'd give them. Go to the school you'd like to go to. Yeah. That's what I did Yeah. I didn't care about the program or anything else.
I went where I wanted to go. Yeah. What was your degree in? Uh, political science. Political science, oh, okay. Well, I I know, I'm going to school right now, and, uh, I have a friend, Where are you at? Uh, U T D. University of Texas, Dallas. Well, yeah, I guess, everybody's in Dallas that I talk to. I'm in, North Carolina. I know. That's where Texas Instruments is. Yeah, right. Um, something that I, I think that I've noticed that I, I have a friend,
I think if you're going into like, uh, law or medicine, a very particular, very specific field, even, even engineering, you can get, you can meet a lot of the requirements at a public, um, institution. Sure. And, uh, it's a lot cheaper. Oh, yeah. My parents, my parents made a mistake in, uh, in sending my sister to a private institution for the first two years. Um. And she found out after that, she said, you know, my parents, they just, they really wasted a lot of money. This is about twenty years ago. Uh-huh. But, uh, well, right now I just, I mean as far as selecting, selecting a school, I, I, I feel that, uh, a lot of it depends upon the major. Yeah, it does. Um, I didn't know what I wanted to do after I got my, my degree. Uh-huh. Um, originally I had planned, uh, undergrad degree in political science and then a master's in public administration. And I went ahead and pursued that. I, I got as far as the thesis, and decided, To hell with it, I didn't want it.
Um, and from that point I went to law school. Uh-huh. And after a year and a half of that I decided I didn't want that either Okay. Haven't figured out what I want to be when I grow up. Yeah. And so, but I, I, I really did enjoy the law. I mean, that's, that's where I wanted to be, but I didn't want to go through the, uh, the hassle that the law schools put you through, because I never did want to be a practicing attorney. I just wanted a law degree. Uh-huh. And I've since discovered that I would be far better off being in the paralegal field. Because that's the nuts and bolts of the law, and that's what I like, Yeah. and you don't have to put up with all the B S that the lawyers have to. Right. So that's, that's what I'm pursuing right now Um. and I'm pretty happy with it so far. Yeah, yeah,
I'm, I'm pursuing what they, what's, what's called an interdisciplinary field. I'm a speech therapy major Uh-huh. and fortunately I have a lot of, I have a good medical background, Yeah. and, that's probably very useful. Yeah, it's, it's actually turning out to be more, more useful than what I thought. Uh-huh. And, um, I also have a good languages background, linguistics. And some psychology. Uh-huh. So, it's all working together. Yeah. The only field I'm not familiar with really is education, which is required, requires about four or five different fields really. Oh, good grief. So it's a, Yeah, I thought at one time I wanted to be a teacher, but I, I quickly dispelled that idea when I became a substitute teacher for a while, just to get my feet wet.
Uh-huh. I said, uh, I couldn't do this everyday. No way. Well. Maybe, maybe being a tenured professor would be one thing, but being a public school teacher is entirely another thing. Oh, so you are a disgruntled graduate student I am a I am, I am just a disgruntled person all around Oh I'm the, uh, I'm the, uh, original, uh, Mister Scrooge, I guess. Yeah, Bah, humbug. Yeah, bah, humbug. Yeah, I just, I, I, I think, yeah, there is, I, I, I think, uh, law would be a fine field, a fine profession, fine field to go into. Um, I know one time I was in a political science class,
and you know, talking about fields, people going into different fields, I made an off, off the cuff remark about lawyers, about their integrity being questionable. And I mean, oh, that was like a can of worms. Probably, you probably got everybody on you, because they were probably all going to law school. No, there was a woman, she said a My, my best friends are lawyers a and you know, all this, and it was just Well, that remark in itself is a slam a My best friends are lawyers a Yeah, I know. You know, like, like, uh, my best friends are blacks Or Jewish, it used to be Jewish, you know. Jewish, now blacks Yeah. and I guess, I, I, guess Iraqi now is the I know, it's,
but, Law, law was a lot of fun until you get to law school Yeah. and it doesn't become fun anymore. Yeah, I have a I have a friend. She's studying, she's going into law, another friend going into law, and, she's, I, I, I'm really, I'm really concerned about, you know, she's just going to be, you know, what's going to happen when she gets there. Yeah, you going, You know, all of her dreams will be dispelled Oh, yeah. Yeah, if, if, if you've ever seen the program PAPER CHASE it's very much like that, except worse. Yeah. Yeah,
it's I, I think it's probably more embarrassing and very painful. It is. I see I see that happening. Yeah, very much so. Yeah, it's, it's a lot of that. Um Yeah. it, it was enjoyable for a while, um, but it's such a grind Yeah. and you begin to wonder, you know, if, if I'm not, I mean, you really have to be dead set on being a lawyer to do it. Uh-huh. If you have any doubts whatsoever, you better not get into it. Uh-huh. I mean, I wasted a year and a half of awfully hard, and I aged ten years. Uh-huh.
But I, I, I wouldn't trade the experience for anything in the world. It never hurts to have some kind of a grounding in law. Yeah, I went to a language school, and, and that was a, it was a, an I guess, uh, United States institution. I was military at the time And I, I think probably the biggest. What branch were you in? Huh? What branch were you in? I was in the Air Force? I was too. Yeah, yeah, for myself, I mean, I think that military experience was fine, it was just, I just wish that there was something else that, that, that I could have done, you know, with, Well, I got, I got tired of the service after a while, I mean it, I had a terrific job, really enjoyed it. Yeah,
what, what was your job? Uh, command post. Uh, I was, I was a linguist I was just wondering, were you in SAC by any chance? Um. Were you in SAC? In Tak? SAC. Uh, no I wasn't. Oh, okay, I, I thought maybe you might have had some experience with the, uh, R C one thirty-fives. No, no, I didn't, I didn't go flight crew. Matter of fact, I didn't make it completely through that, through that field. I, was in intelligence school and about three weeks short. Oh. I didn't make it, I sort of washed out.
Well, Well. Yeah after about eighteen months of talking about the year and a half training, you know, it's, it's something, you know, Uh-huh. I think that's why, you know, children really need to think about the field they're going to, going into, and I mean, spend a lot of serious reading before they, I mean, not just thinking about. Yeah. Yeah. They actually should do some reading That's right, and it, And if it's possible even get some experience at it or at least watch some people do it. and they should study it. Yeah. I, I, I, I think, I think there's a lot to be said for kids working after school. Uh-huh, sure. I mean, they, they find out whether, just how much of a people person they are. That's true, I found that out when I was in high school. I worked at McDonald's.
Oh, and I tell you what, I worked at McDonald's as well, and I, I can tell you one thing, there are just some people that I, you know, you just came to the point where I mean, and oh, I eventually worked in a lab, in a as a lab technician, and I worked front desk. And I mean, somebody could walk in the door, and I knew exactly what they were going to do and say. Yeah, yeah I was the same way too. I'm not a people person. I, I, I hate, um, having to play such a nice guy. You know, especially when it's all phony. Especially when you got some, uh, jerk coming in. Yeah. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. I, it's just not for me. I'm, uh, I deal much better in research and books, and stuff like that which is why I'm going to enjoy the paralegal field a lot.
Uh-huh. Yeah, that's good. I was just wondering, um, getting back to the school thing, so, I, I almost wish that there was something ... What kind of a car do you drive now? I drive a Honda Prelude. Do you? I drive a Honda Accord. Oh, yeah Yeah I bought mine a year ago so I'm not buying a car any time soon. Yeah, me either. I just bought mine, uh, it will be a year in August. Yeah. I love it though. I love Hondas. Yeah.
It, I think I found my car. Well, I, I like where all the controls are they're, they're in good spots Right. Oh, really, Yeah. I have a standard. But, um, I, it's, an it's supposedly real reliable the only thing I've ever heard about Hondas is that the breaks go out first. Oh, really? Yeah. I hadn't heard that. Yeah. What did you have before you bought that. I had a Buick Regal. Did you? Yeah. I had, uh, a Mazda R X Seven before that
and that was the worse car I've ever driven in my life. The Buick was, was great. It was nine years old and it, was still going strong. Really? The only problems I had with it in the nine years that I owned it, I had to replace the compressor when it was about seven years old. Really? And that was the only major problem that I had, I mean, I had like little piddly things like I had to replace the muffler Yeah. and I had replaced the tires and, uh, seems like it had a radiator leak once. But I never had any major anything, other than the compressor. Right. I really never had anything major with my Mazda but it was a standard also and the clutch went out on it toward the end, I had it five years and the last year, last two years it seemed to go out really easily. I think it went out twice in two years
and that's, that's a lot it shouldn't go out that much. Huh-uh. And so I went ahead and bought another standard when I bought the Honda but I don't think I'm going to do that again. I think I'm going back to automatic now. Well, I never, well, I kind of know how to drive standard but I've never owned one so I hadn't, I don't drive one a lot. Right. So, I don't feel comfortable in traffic with it. Right. And for everything I've heard it's a lot easier to sell an automatic. Yeah, it is. And, and resale value is really important to me That's true. Yeah, it is me too
that's why I got the Honda. Yeah. Hondas have great resale value. Yeah. The Mazda definitely did not Not at all. They're worse than American cars I think or just as bad as far as resale goes. I did pretty well with my, uh, Regal because it was in really good shape but, it still looked real nice, Yeah. the, the interior was still really nice, there wasn't cracks all over the dash board and stuff. Right. And it had some, some nice features. So I ended up okay with the Buick, Good. and I anticipate the same thing with the Honda whenever I decide to sell it, of course, I may never sell it Right. I may drive it until it's dead
but, Yeah. That's what I did with the Mazda, drive it until the, until the clutch went out and the wheels fell off, Yeah. so, probably what I'll do again. Yeah. But I really like the Hondas. I like foreign cars a lot. Uh-huh. Well, I looked at the Mitsubishi Galant. I was looking for a four door car having driven the R X Seven so long, Uh-huh. and it was so small and it's really impractical. So, I wanted something with a real trunk, and four doors something easy to get in and out of and I looked at the Galant and those were really nice and I can get them for a great price. Yeah.
But I found it hard to deal with the, the dealership I was going through. Oh. So, that's how I ended up with a Honda. I wasn't even looking for a car when I bought this car. I, uh, I was thinking about buying a Prelude from a friend who was moving to New York or something so and she was going to sell her car because she didn't need it anymore and it was only like a year old and I had never driven, uh, a Prelude. So, I went to a dealership because they had like, uh, the same year and same model, of Prelude on their used car lot Right. and I went and I test drove it and, you know, I just fell in love, with this brand new white Prelude, uh, you know, two liter S I with the sun roof and the moon roof Oh, yeah. They're nice I think. and I, bought it loaded. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. I have to have them loaded, Oh, um, I love all those little things that you don't need
but they're so wonderful. Yeah. I went there looking at a used car and two days later I bought this car. I felt like, I felt like that was the worst impulse, that was, that was largest impulse that I, that I had ever made. The the two, other things that I bought on impulse are a V C R and a washer and dryer. I understand. I go for the big stuff. Yeah. I noticed Mine was definitely not impulse I really needed a new car. Mine was just, it was getting worn out I guess from being a sports car. I drove it kind of hard, Oh. and I got it right after high school. So, by the time I traded it in it was ready. Yeah. I got, I got my Buick as a high school graduation gift. Did you?
Yeah. But I, I guess this wasn't really an impulse, I mean, buying it right then and, you know, right quickly was kind of impulsive but I'd been thinking about buying a new car for about three years and I was just scared to. Right. I was scared to start taking on payments because the Buick was long since paid for. Right. That's the same with me. Would you ever buy a used car for a new car for yourself? Buy a, you, buy a used car? Like, Right. Sure. I, I was going to buy one once but I just, I worry about who's driven them and what they've been through and the warranties and things like that. Yeah. Just, I can't seem to get over that. That just bothers me I don't know why.
Well, um, like on Hondas they, supposedly, the maintenance records was supposed to be registered with Honda or whatever and you can request whatever maintenance records exist on cars and you can have them checked out by mechanics and stuff. Yeah, that's true. I mean they can't stop you from doing it. Hoping that they do go to a Honda dealership to get them serviced. Yeah. Yeah. Well, and even if they didn't, you can still get a good idea from a, if you can get a good mechanic to, check it over real carefully and check the block and everything. Yeah. That's true. So. Well, I guess that's all. Okay. Well, I enjoyed talking to you. I enjoyed talking to you. Bye-bye. Bye-bye.
Anyway, what are your, what are your first comments on that pauses and subject? Uh, my first comments on the budget. I would say there has, What would you start cutting what would be the first thing you'd cut? Defense? Surprisingly, no. I would, I would cut the prison systems and let them self-support. Mean private enterprise? Huh? Have private enterprise do it? You mean the prisons? Uh-huh. They're already talking about it. I mean, they're talking about, uh, having it, uh, as a, you know, business. Uh, to, uh, you know, to, so, the, you know, the government doesn't have to deal with it. I hadn't heard that. But, uh, yeah, because I think it's all funded, either state or federally funded so, or, uh, obviously. Right.
So, but, uh, But see they're, they don't have enough, uh, uh, you know, there's, there's not enough room in these prisons and that, and that, uh, to continue funding it. But to me it, They think they need to, maybe have, uh, you know, private, you know, business, private enterprise come in. So, Well, see the other way I'm thinking about is they should be self-supporting, like, uh, the prisoners make license plates or farm or small industry inside the prisons. Anything to where they can be self-supporting within themselves. In other words, they're in there for a purpose, put them to work rather than sitting there. Uh-huh. It's the same thing like the whole criminal, I shouldn't say criminal, but the whole police department of the United States. I feel the same way. Uh, someone gets picked up for drunk driving, he should put enough in there that goes back into paying for that policeman being out there. Uh-huh. So it's self you know, self-defense on that point. Uh, as far as my defense budget, uh, they're cutting it back now, what, twenty-five percent? I wouldn't want to see it cut any more than that. Yeah. But again I'd like to see something on the other end back into education. But not in the education we have today. So I'm lost on that one. I would like to be a little more into investigating some of the other countries in the world and their educational problems. And to come up with something a little better than what we've got.
Uh-huh. Yeah, its tough to, to say what, uh, you know, what, uh, as far as this, that good or bad or what. But, uh, I was just talking to somebody else, and all those European countries, they pay all the way through college and stuff like that. They, so, uh, Well, not so much pay. I'm not trying to see the government put out any more. No. Yeah, I know what you are saying. But I'm just saying that even the differences, uh, is that, you know, some countries pay for students to go to, through college and etcetera. But here, it, you know, it's just up to high school. Yeah. But see, we don't even push the fact to the high school kids that there's other means of education out there rather than college. To go either as an apprentice, which they, they do in other countries. Just doing it, which I think would bring the education back up. You know, Uh-huh. why not an apprentice out to a, a company and learn from down on the bottom as a wood worker or, you know, just a technician? You can learn on the job. Which, of course, again, which would mean, again,
Uh-huh. our education budget will go down if this is, in a few years, I mean it's not going to be overnight. Yeah. But that would come down. I think the you know, that's one reason, uh, you know, we do have the education is that what it takes for these companies to bring somebody on board. Uh, they're not willing to, you know, to put that, you know, the training for only a certain amount. So, uh, it's, you know, as far as the technical side. But, uh, even like one, one of the biggest things now is like paralegals and stuff. I mean they, they're trying to get more people into that field. But they can't just bring somebody in without even having gone to, you know, school in that area before they can work, you know, for a lawyer as a paralegal. Excuse me. I see it being done I know of a friend that works for my lawyer that has had no training whatsoever and she's training her. Uh-huh. Well, yeah, I, I'm, well I, you know, I'm assuming that it can be done. Uh, my perspective is that, you know, I've been with a couple of big companies now. And it's like they'd, are unwilling to put the time in.
You know, they want somebody, you know, when they then, when they bring them off, bring them in, that they have something, you know, a certain amount to contribute. Obviously, there's, uh, you know, there's a lot to learn, uh, after that. But, but, uh, that's true. I'm, I'm sure there's a lot of, uh, you know, businesses are small, you know, small businesses that could, uh. Let me change my channel, I've got a cordless phone. Let me see if that clears this up. phone Is that better? Yes. Okay. Wow! Yeah, it was a cordless phone, and all of a sudden we had a bad, uh, frequency there or something. So we had some interference, so I changed that. Yeah. It sounded you were calling from around the world somewhere Anyway, so, uh,
Well, but, uh, you know, I think, uh, they, maybe they need to, uh, help promote that more. Give incentives like, uh, if they do bring somebody on, they will pay some of their costs or give tax breaks or whatever it is, you know, for them to train people, you know, stuff like that. Programs like that, you know. Uh-huh. I don't know, you know, what kind of options they've got. Well, that's something about what Germany's supposed to be doing. Something similar to that right now. And, uh, they have jobs out on, you know, bulletin boards so people know what is open for an apprentices in different fields. But see, that again would cut some of our budget down for education but build up our education with the people. At people, per, at high school level, which I would like to see. Rather than so many kids getting out of school. Uh-huh. They're, they go on the unemployment list before we have turn around. Because they don't have any education. Uh-huh. I don't mean college. And I'm for college. But there's a lot of people that don't want their higher education as far as quote, quote college is concerned. They've had it. Yeah. I think, I just heard something the other day, it was like only, it was either sixty percent or forty percent, go to college. And then out of that percentage, only so many can get their degree. Uh-huh. So, I thought that was interesting.
But, uh, you know, most people I knew have gone and got their degree. So, Oh, yeah. But there's a lot of them out there that haven't. Yeah. Well, I you know, I, uh, was basic, in a, you know, middle, upper middle class area, That's, and yeah, so I think, uh, that demographic area there, you know, a lot of them do go on. And they go to college, etcetera. Because you can get just as far as being a journeyman, carpenter or an electrician or plumber or anything else like that. Make as much money and if they enjoy it more, they'll make a happier life for themselves. Yeah. Question. You threw that question on me about the deficit, put it on your shoe now. What would you do? Well, as as far as the, you know, the deficit, that's a whole nother, uh, my perception of the budget, you know, the government. And they have so much to spend and there's not enough money to spread around.
But the deficit basically is that the trade surplus between the other countries, and that we have more money or you know, more money going out and too many goods coming into this country, you know. And, uh, you know, part of that problem, I think, is still, you know, uh, like Japan still does not let us compete fairly in their country. And, and obviously the, the demand for their goods is quite high here, so they can get their goods in here. And, uh, you know, to start even that out we need to continue to, you know, at least threaten that, you know, we're going to give them higher tariffs, etcetera to raise their prices to, you know, ours. But, uh, it's just that, uh, they're, eh, I think you're, you're going to find that just because the United States, you know, there is such a demand here, the market, you know. And, uh, uh, the you know, money being spent and the goods flow in and we don't sell, you know, we don't, uh, sell products abroad as much as we bring in. So, Were you watching, I think, uh, one of the news stations. I couldn't even tell you which one I watched. But they had on there, where the, the output from the United States was basically from smaller businesses rather than the larger ones are exporting. Uh-huh. Okay, what kind of puppy you got? Well, uh, I think she's mostly German Shepherd. Uh, she was, uh, uh, a person lives across the street from me, uh, brought her home from work because a coworker of hers, uh, had this dog appear on its front doorstep,
Uh. somebody, somebody abandoned her and, she's only about, oh, between six and eight, six to eight weeks old Uh-huh. and, uh, uh, I can't understand why anyone would abandon this dog, though. Oh. She's, I mean she's that, this young and she's almost housebroken. Wow. I mean she actually asks to go out. That's great. And, uh, yeah I was amazed. Really good temperament and very playful and affectionate, good personality. I don't know, I can't imagine what, uh, would have been wrong with this dog, so. Yeah, well I, I have a dog that God gave us too, Uh-huh.
Yeah, she just appeared. Oh, really. Yeah, my husband calls her street dog, but we've had her now for about three years, Uh-huh. and I just, you get so attached to them. Oh, yeah. I had a, uh, last year I had I had another German Shepherd, now this one was purebred and, uh, he, when he was about seven months old got a gastrointestinal virus and was just about on death's door but, uh, managed to get him to a veterinarian in time, Uh-huh. and, uh, and on huge doses of antibiotics, and he actually got over it with, seven hundred dollars in vet bills, Um. Wow. um, but he had actually was able to get him over that.
Uh-huh. And then he was gaining weight again, was just getting healthy, and, uh, he put on about fifteen to twenty pounds after the thing and then he got hit by a Cadillac. Oh no. So, I couldn't believe it. That was, that was really hard. Oh, gee. And that was even harder for, I was on a business trip at the time and the dog was being house sit, or dog sit, whatever, by some friends of mine down the street, Uh-huh. so they just felt absolutely awful. Oh, I bet. And I felt, felt probably worse for them than, than for me because, oh gosh they, the, uh, this fellow's wife who was, uh, watching the dog, she, I think she loved that dog more than I did and, uh. She was really attached to it, Oh gosh. but, uh, it's unfortunate, but now, I've got another one,
so. Yeah, yeah. How long has it been since the first one? Uh, see, he, it, it was just over a year. Uh, yeah, Uh, it was in March of last year. So, uh, yeah, it'd been, didn't, didn't have one for a whole year. Yeah. Well I had, I had a German Shepherd before this one and when she died it just, it just absolutely destroyed me. I mean I was just, you know, Yeah. I couldn't even talk about it for months and so I decided well that's it, I'm not going to do this anymore Right. And then God gave me this dog, so
My dad's like that, he, uh, he had a beagle that he loved and, uh, when that beagle passed away, uh, he didn't want, he wasn't going to have another dog, there's no way, Uh-huh. no how, and then, uh, the, he the beagle died in I guess about October and by Christmas time we went down to the pound and got him, uh, I or, I Humane Society and got, uh, got another one, a stray. Yeah. And she, she turned out to be a great dog and we had her for six years until she just passed away recently and again dad went through the whole thing, but, mom went an, Okay, yeah. Well you just do, Yeah. you can't help it's like, it's like a kid. Yeah,
it is. Well hopefully this one here, Cocoa will live a full life Yeah, well when, uh, my, my doggie, uh, that we have now, uh, she's, she's mostly Golden Retriever. Uh-huh. The vet called her, uh, a golden mix Yeah. like who knows, you know. Right. But she's, uh, she's that sort of strawberry blonde reddish color, you know. Oh. And, uh, and her nose is that pink, you know, Uh-huh. she doesn't have a brown nose, and her she's sort of unicolor, you know, eyes are the same color and everything, Yeah. so. I named her Rosebud, and, uh, a friend of mine said, she, that she this friend of mine grew up on a farm and said that she had, uh, a pet cow named Rosebud
and she said there's a lot of longevity in that name, said my cow lived seventeen years That's not too bad. Golly the Golden Retrievers are good dogs too, they're kind of like, get that permanent smile to them, Yeah, right. they're always, always happy. I don't think I've ever seen them not look happy. And she's so easy going and so sociable, Yeah. You know, she loves everybody. And little kids can just, you know, maul all over her, Right. and she just, you know, thinks it's great. This, this friend of mine has, well it's the same guy that was watching, uh, my German Shepherd when he got hit, but, uh, went fishing with him on Friday and took, he's got a full, a pure bred Golden Retriever and then I had, uh, the puppy, a little tiny puppy
and we went and took the two dogs up fishing. And this, they just, they had a ball romping around, Uh-huh. and, you know, you can't get a Golden Retriever near water without it jumping in. Getting in, yeah. And, uh, this Golden Retriever jumped in the, the, really fast moving, uh, river current, and, uh. Oh, no. Well no, actually he had no trouble at all. He first jumped in and I, he's, he's just about a year old himself and never had really, I don't think he'd swum before. Really. But he jumped in, in the, the river. Did puppy go to? Well the puppy jumped in the, into some of the pools but not into the,
I was careful to keep her away from the, the fast moving water, Oh, that's good, yeah. 'cause if she fell in then I'd of been, had to go in after her. And up here the water's probably about forty degrees right now. Ugh, ugh. And I would not have been fun trying to retrieve her, but, uh, this dog, Dennis jumped in and got this look on his face like what do I do now, as he's floating down the river then finally discovered that he could swim and, uh, actually paddled up against the current and, uh, made it back to the shore and climbed up and then, he, he jumped in again, and he was swimming for quite a bit, all afternoon. He loved it. Yeah, Cocoa didn't think too much of it, though. She jumped in and then started screaming and made me pull her back out. I pulled her out and, uh, then had to wrap her up in a sweatshirt because she was shivering so bad, Yeah. and so, but, uh, she got over it, so. Well the German Shepherd that I had before,
we, we had a little pool, Uh-huh. and, uh, she was, she did not want any part of swimming but she liked to, to get in the pool on the first step. She'd just get on the first step and lay down. You know in the summertime when it's really, really hot. Uh-huh. Yeah. And she'd just lay there on that step and just, you know, cool off Yeah, I've, I live right across the street from a, a big lake here, um, it's on Oneida lake and I'm wondering if, uh, if she'll want to go out there and go swimming next year. I mean, I've got, the yard's all fenced in so she doesn't run loose, but, uh, she could go in sometime when, if I'm watching her, Uh-huh. so. Yeah Well the one that we had just didn't want any part of that.
Oh really. Yeah, and she, oh baths. Oh gee, she hated baths worse than anything. It was, it was just really a fight to, you know, get her clean. Yeah. Have you seen, uh, CANINE. The movie, oh, No, no. you've got to see it. Especially since you have a German, it is so cute. Oh really. Yeah, and, uh, an part of the, the movie is where he's trying to clean this dog up and it's, it's just hysterical. Oh, okay, my my dog, last German Shepherd, it was a real chore trying to give him a bath too. And that was the thing I couldn't figure out because he would go in the lake,
it wasn't like he didn't Uh-huh. normally, I mean he didn't seem to have a problem with getting wet, but if you wanted to get him wet, forget it. Yeah, well that's how Cleo, you know, she'd lay on her step, Yeah. but that was, that was the only time she wanted to get wet and she didn't want you getting her wet Right, right, obstinate, obstinate. Yeah, but you really need to see that movie. I, I we bought the movie and I I don't know how many times I've seen it. Uh-huh. And it came on T V the other night
and I was watching it again, and my husband heard me laughing and he said I can't believe that you're still getting such a kick out of that movie I'll have to check it out. I saw the, the, uh, previews for it and all and it did look like it'd be a good movie, but, It is great. uh, really haven't had a whole lot of time to get out to see the movies lately. Yeah. But, I got to do more, more fun things. Well we always wait until we can rent them, you know Yeah, yeah. Well I'm, uh, I'm a second lieutenant in the Air Force and so I travel a lot. Oh really. And yeah, I'm a engineer at, uh at the laboratory, Rolm Laboratory, Griffis Air Force Base, up here, so.
Oh. That's how I got into, uh, into the switchboard project and all that, so. Uh-huh. But it's nice having a dog here, uh, the, Oh, yeah, there's just, uh, what's the, what's the word I'm looking for, uh, lots of affection, no unconditional affection from the, from the dog. Right, that's it. Yeah, yeah. Really, not critical at all. No, no. Yeah, they're really wonderful.
Yeah, well, it's been nice talking to you, we seem to be degenerating here, so Well, uh, I don't have strong feelings about changes to be made in the, uh, jury system, do you? Uh, not at all. In fact, I'm graduating from college in about a week and this past semester I've taken two criminal justice classes and have discussed a lot on trials. Uh, well then you must know a lot more about this than I do Uh, I think, I think, uh, the system right now, you know, should, you know, is fine. I think it should be by a jury. I don't think the judge should have, I mean he's just there kind of like the referee Uh-huh, Uh-huh. Uh, I don't, I don't even think that it should be unanimous either. Uh, Well, what about the idea that one is only guilty, uh, when proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt? I thought that was the point of, uh, a unanimous jury was the idea that if everyone agrees then there shouldn't be any reasonable doubt. Uh-huh. Right.
But, if there are some people who don't agree uh, then there must be, it seems to be there must be at least a reasonable doubt for some people. Exactly. Uh-huh. Uh, I don't know. I, uh, you, you rarely hear, you hear, of course there's cases where someone has been put in, in, in, uh, prison, uh, falsely accused but, uh, more than likely the people that are on the, the jury know what they're doing. Uh, I mean you, Really? Have you served on a jury? Never. I never have either, but my friends, my few friends who have, uh, say just the opposite They say they're, uh, remarkably incompetent. And, uh, don't know what they're doing and say one thing in the courtroom and then as soon as they get in the back room they just start letting all their prejudices hang out and to, to air, and all that. Huh. Well, you would think that they would get that in the, uh, when the prosecution and defense are choosing the jury you would think that those would come out and I, I know they automatically, when you go through, uh, when you're chosen is, you're automatically like a, a, a professor in criminal justice or something like that, that you're automatically, no
they don't want you on the jury. Right, , they don't want anyone with anyone with particular experience or knowledge of the legal system. Exactly. Uh-huh, exactly. Uh, And they tend, and since anyone can get out of it who basically says they don't want to do it, I mean, you know, it's, it's anyone can get out of jury just about, and, uh, so, it, it's, uh, it's not really my peers that, if I were let's say I were arrested falsely or not and put up for a jury I wouldn't feel that, uh, I would be being tried by a jury of my peers. Uh-huh. I'd be, I mean I'd be tried by a jury of you know, people who had nothing else to do and weren't very knowledgeable about certain sorts of things, and, uh, I don't know, Uh-huh. I, I get a little bit nervous about it, and, uh, I've, I've never I've never even been called to jury duty. Yeah,
I, I was called once, but I was out of the country, and apparently I, apparently they thought I served so I didn't, I didn't make any noise about it I came back and they said the record showed I served, but I was out of the country at the time, so I'm pretty sure I didn't. Uh, Yeah. I, uh, I don't know, I think the, I guess there's a lot of problems with the legal system Yeah, well, I I, I don't know, I definitely feel like we need to keep it at least unanimous because, uh, you know, there's the classic sort of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD kind of story where you get, you know, Uh-huh. Uh-huh. And, uh, it seems to me that if you could just have a simple majority or something you could pretty much you know, browbeat the jury, a majority, in the, of the, a majority of the jury, Uh-huh.
that's hard to say. Uh, so, it's, it's, uh, you know, saying, well, look we don't like the way he looks and, let's, uh, let's throw the rascal in jail and stuff. Right. And you also get a lot of, uh, juries are extremely, uh, and from what I hear, I, I have, I have some friends who do expert witness testimony and they say that, uh, juries are extremely vulnerable to, uh, sort of emotional pitches, you know, the prosecutor will want to, oh, I don't know show the, show the mugging victim, you know, show what the nice person he was and what a family life, and basically get the jury to be very sympathetic with the victim, and, uh, or, or, uh, if it's a corporation, that was, uh, you know, harming some individual or something like that, they get very much, well, you know, it's just a big faceless corporation. Let's, let's make them pay as much as possible. Things like that. Uh-huh. So, not, I, I mean, I'm, the problem is I can't guarantee that a judge would be necessarily be much better than a jury, but I'd be real nervous having a jury not at least fully agree on what the settlements would be, things like that. I, uh, I I, I don't think the judge should just make the decision alone. Yeah. Least with the jury you have twelve people, you know that are going to decide, you know,
Uh-huh. Well, how about having a jury and a judge work together on it somehow? I wonder if that's possible? I guess the judge's time is worth too much, though. judge They pay that judge, they pay those jury members very little money compared to that judge Right, exactly He makes more money in an hour than all twelve of them put together. Probably, yeah Yeah. But, uh, no, it's, it's sad, though, that, uh, that the people, though, that you, you, somebody's life is in twelve people's hands and sometimes those twelve people could care less. Uh-huh, uh-huh. And, uh, or they fool the, the defense in thinking that they're, you know, because when they go through those processes they kind of pick out who they want.
Oh, of course. It's, it's political maneuvering. The, the one side is looking for someone whose face they think will, you know, want to hang everyone, and the other one is going to look for someone very sympathetic. They're not looking for someone who's going to be the most reasoned or sensible or rational juror. *whose who's Neither side wants that. They want to find a juror that's going to, uh, be most persuadable by their arguments, you know. Exactly. Uh, I wish it were a little bit harder to not serve on juries actually. I mean, I know, it, it, it's tricky because I know, you know, an awful lot of intelligent people who just, well I'm too busy to serve on a jury, Uh-huh. so I'll tell them that and they won't, or just, you know, just answer one of the questions the wrong way because you can do that, you know, Oh, yeah. Well, they just say do you believe in such and such. Uh, I guess it's just that maybe people are, you know, upset at court, you know.
If it was, if it was a, a family member of theirs, though that was innocent and, then they'd want to be on that jury. Right. Course, they'd be, they would be barred, but But, uh, if everyone would take it, I think if everyone took it seriously Uh-huh. Yeah, well it sounds like we both need to get out there and serve on a jury. Yeah. I hope we're called up before too long. I would love to be called, I'm ready to go They just haven't called me up yet They will, they will eventually. Okay, well it was nice talking with you. It was nice talking to you. Bye-bye. Bye-bye.
All right. Have you ever been drug tested? Um, that's a good question. Um, I had a job I had to go get a blood test for. Uh-huh. Um, and, and they did a full blood screen on me, but they didn't call that a drug test. So I think they checked for drugs. They just don't tell you they did. Yeah. I had, I've had, uh, two or three drug tests that I had to get before I could start working at a job uh, different jobs. Uh-huh. I had one at T I and then one at another engineering company. And, really, I mean, I don't mind them. I don't do drugs anyway. I guess if I did, maybe I would but, um, I don't know. I know a girl that, she's a nurse,
and they get drug tested randomly. I've, never been randomly drug tested. Uh-huh. But that would probably bother me to wake up one day and find out halfway through the day that you're going to be drug tested and you didn't know about it. Yeah Well, I guess it depends on if you got something to worry about Yeah. I guess so. deeply while saying the first I guess I guess so Do you think that it's right? Well, I, I, I come from kind of a biased opinion because I'm a, a therapist and a drug and alcohol counselor. Uh-huh. And I've done employee assistant work and I, I know the kind of cost businesses go through in terms of accidents, on the job that are specifically drug and alcohol related, Right. Right. and it's like in the billions of dollars every year. Um, and the only way that they can prevent that is, is, you know, making sure that the employees are drug and alcohol free. That's true. And, you know, the, the problem in the work place is that, that people are,
like if your boss is your drinking buddy or whatever, I mean, you can come to, come to work drunk and get in an accident and he'll cover up for you and, nobody knows about it, Right. but you know, ends up costing the company lots and lots of money. That's true. So, I believe, it's right, especially for certain jobs. you know , I think anyone in a, in a public job like bus drivers, and cab drivers, and police officers, and things like that, Uh-huh. I think they should be randomly drug tested. Yeah. I believe, full force in that. Yeah. I don't know that I believe every secretary in every company needs to be. True. You know, secretaries aren't, aren't really going to cost the company that much money if they fall face forward in their typewriter or something. So, I don't know. I, I'm kind of biased, too, because I don't do drugs
and, so, I really don't care one way or another if anybody wants to pull me up tomorrow and test me. Because I have nothing to worry about. Uh-huh. Yeah. So, I guess that's kind of biased. Yeah. Well, there, it's, I, I think one of the problems with it is it affects a lot of other folks on the job if somebody else is impaired. Yeah. It does. Because, generally you know it. Uh, you find out one way or another if somebody's got a problem on the job. Yeah. That's true. And if, even if, like you say, even if it's just the secretary, if her work or abilities start affecting her co-workers then it, it's still a problem. Yeah. That's true. So, But, what do you do about, the occasional user that may have gone to a party three days before and, you know, it's, it's been the whole weekend since they've done anything
and they happen to be tested Monday morning and they could be fired for that? You know, that, that's kind of unfair, also. Well, yeah . I guess it comes with the turf. Yeah. I guess so. I guess if you're going to do it you need to suffer the consequences Yeah. Man. And, in terms of drugs, they're illegal. So you're, you're breaking the law anyway. That's true. That's true. Probably the, the biggest problem with those is they don't do a real good job of, of assessing for alcohol. That's true. And that's probably the biggest problem there is Yeah. I think so, more than drugs And I know a lot of companies that will put you in an alcohol rehabilitation before they would put you in a drug rehab.
Yeah. They would pay for an alcohol Uh-huh. but they don't always pay for drug rehabilitation. Well, I guess that's one of the positive things that have come out of it, some of the employee assistance program. If you do test positive for something they will give you an opportunity to go get your life straight rather than to lose your job. *you're your Yeah. That's true. And I, I, think that's fair. Yeah, I think the the company benefits in the long run. Yeah That's true That's about all I have, to say on it What, what kind of testing do they do when you went? Uh, it's a urine test. Urine screen. And, they, uh, Yeah,
it was really very official. You have to go in a room solely by yourself, sign papers that say you were totally alone, sign papers that say this is yours, and, and you have to seal the bottle yourself and label it yourself and, all of that. Uh-huh. So that they're sure that you haven't borrowed anybody's, I guess, or something. Well, that happens. Yeah. I know, I it's hard to believe, It happens a lot. but I guess it does There, there are people that pay other people to to help them out. I know. I'm amazed, at the things people, will do. Yeah. It is amazing. I guess there are people that do that. And they are, those are expensive tests. I'm, glad I never had to pay for one. Yeah.
Yeah. It depends really on how, how strong a test it is. They've got different degrees, as far as, as how far back they can check. Yeah. I guess so. They got some unusual things besides blood and urine tests. They've some companies that are doing, uh, hair tests. Oh, really? Yeah. Well, that, they'll pull out one of your hairs and they can apparently test, um, back a certain period of time. Because some of the, the residue ends up in your hair follicles, you know, How weird. I didn't know that. it's kind of, Oh, that's weird. Hair follicles, I guess, are just dead protein and they, Yeah. And it, it's apparently almost like a, a calendar.
They, they've got it pretty precise now. They can go back and look at, in terms of growth in a, in a hair, when you used and, and that type of thing. That's wild. So It's amazing the things they can find out from different things on your body. Yeah So, I guess if they perfect that is not quite as cumbersome as having to go fill a bottle or give blood or something like that. Yeah. That's true That's true. I'm glad I never had to do it by giving blood. I can't stand the thought of giving blood. Uh-huh. I can't even do it for Wadley, even though it's a good cause Yeah. Well, I enjoyed talking to you. Well, I did, too. Thank you. Uh-huh. Bye-bye.
Bye-bye. Okay. Okay. So tell me about CHINA CRY. Okay, CHINA CRY was basically the, the true story written by this, this lady who had, uh, was a native, a native Chinese, uh, uh, who was raised by Christian parents. Uh-huh. And her, her time frame was prior to the nineteen forty-nine revolution. I see. Although she, herself, had never really accepted Jesus or gone through any of the other, uh, Christian, uh, portions of, of the faith, repentance, baptisms, et cetera, et cetera. She had always felt a very strong, uh, leaning in this direction. And whenever the cultural revolution of nineteen forty-nine occurred and most churches were either banned or their, all the clergy and so forth were killed or, or imprisoned or, and the property confiscated, she was safe because she had, you know, not officially joined the, the Christian movement. Uh-huh. So anyway, she, as she grew up towards maturity, her parents, well, her dad was a doctor and, and he was rather well, you know, rather well to do in the old regime and the, the the the communist Chinese didn't like this at all. You know, the bourgeoisie was, was, was definitely out of, uh, style, then. Right. Everybody was back to a commonality of one. And so they kept picking at him, picking at his, at her mother and, uh, finally, uh, started picking on her. And getting her to, you know,
Uh-huh. they were starting to, uh, accuse her of, of, of, uh, crimes and atrocities before the, the revolution and, and had her write her own story over and over and over. Uh, and the, uh, the major point of the movie was that, that she had, uh, married this, this Chinese fellow and was with child when they started this mass court. Now, I think I'm leaving out a portion. She she went through college and graduated very high up in her class and had, uh, gotten a job as, as an instructor and they had her teaching, or were starting to have her teach history for the soldiers. When the, they decided that, that she needed to start recanting of all of her pre, uh, regime crimes as it were. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Being a child, you know. So, they kept on and on at, at her, and in the meantime, she and her husband, uh, were were expecting a child, their own child. And, uh, the, the people kept harassing her over, you know, over a period of months and finally they, uh, carried her, uh, out into the courtyard to, to, either really to shoot her or to go through the motions of, of shooting her, uh, with by firing, or, you know, executing her by firing squad. Uh-huh. And, uh, the Lord just said no, this is not going to happen even though this lady has not really, you know, she's, she's one of mine, she is not going to die and, uh, the, the soldiers were blinded when they shot. Huh.
And she, her life was spared. And this, this frightened the, the, uh, the commandant and so he called this kind of stuff off and just put her in the labor camp. Huh. Well, uh, and, course, here's this, this woman who is heavy with child dragging rocks around. Huh. Well she, she put in for going, going to, uh, and her husband had escaped to Hong Kong, uh, and then she put in to go see him. And over time she, uh, uh, finally, through her perseverance and writing enough letters to enough different people embarrassed enough of the, the middle, uh, bureaucracy that they finally let her go. Huh. And, of course, she had to walk. You know, they, they stripped her of everything, practically besides the, the clothes on her back. And, uh, so she, so she went across the border to her husband and another, and other child that they'd already had uh, to freedom. Uh-huh. Oh. And they knew that she wasn't going to come back, but yeah, she did, years later when the, uh, liberalization, you know, in real life liberalization of China happened, Uh-huh.
and, uh, she was not persecuted or anything else like that. Huh. Interesting story. Yes, it was. Uh, very moving, too. I, uh, I don't even remember seeing that advertised and it was probably here and gone fairly quickly. Well, it was within, oh, ninety days. Oh. That recent. Yeah. No, I mean it's, it was, it was advertised over a period of about ninety days. Oh, I see what you mean. But it wasn't, uh, they didn't have it in, uh, too awfully many movie houses, but it was, it was, in the, it had large, uh, uh, uh, press release. Uh-huh. Well, uh, I guess what I, what I saw most recently and luckily I saw it only a week ago so I'd remember remember it well was, uh, sort of light by comparison. Okay.
Uh-huh. Uh, my husband and I had this great desire to go see a comedy and, and, uh, we ended up going to see GREEN CARD. GREEN CARD? GREEN CARD. Uh-huh. And, uh, he chose it and, uh, it's got this wonderful French actor who's, it was his, like, his, and he's been a star in France and a wonderful actor who we've enjoyed for years, but he's never made an American film. This was his American film debut Oh, I see, uh-huh. and he speaks very broken English. And basically he played, uh, a Frenchman who married an American girl, uh, in a marriage of convenience so that he could get his green card, which is what an alien needs to work in this country. Uh-huh. Right, uh-huh. And, uh, because she could claim she was married, she could get, uh, an apartment or a condominium in a very exclusive building in New York that had a garden, an, an, an outside garden, which is very unusual there.
Uh-huh. So she was a horticulturist, and that was sort of her dream. Oh, I see, uh-huh. Of course, you know, they got married and they never saw each other again. Except, except fate through them together *through threw and the Immigration and Naturalization Service, uh, started investigating. So they had to get back together and get their stories straight, and, and she was a very svelte, sophisticated urban New Yorker Oh. and he was a, a poor Frenchman who had grown up on the, on the streets and sort of pulled himself up by his bootstraps and claimed to be a composer, but there was no proof whatsoever that he really was. Uh-huh. He'd been working in a restaurant when they met. Uh-huh. And, uh, they had to learn all about each other basically in a, in a weekend. Just then. And, uh, it was,
you knew what was going to happen, of course. That they would fall in love. Uh-huh. Well, they fell into like, at any rate and and when they went to the query or inquisition or whatever, uh, they did perfectly Right, uh-huh. and then he said something, because his English was so poor on, for the most part, he, he was so proud of himself for giving all the correct answers that, that on the last one he said, oh, I never remember that answer and that clued the investigator that he had memorized a series of answers. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. So, uh, Okay. Okay Well, did you go to college? Yes, I did. And where did you go? I went to a small liberal arts college in Virginia. Uh-huh.
Uh, it was Sweeper College of about seven hundred and fifty students. I had gone to a small school growing up, uh, and a lot of my friends went to University of Michigan but my parents were retiring in South Carolina when I graduated and, uh, were looking for a southern school and, uh, also U of M seemed overwhelming in size Uh-huh. and, uh, what about you? I went to the University of Minnesota. Oh, so you're from the Midwest, too. I am, uh-huh. Where do you live now? Uh, I live in Texas now. Where are you? Well, I'm in Texas. I'm in Austin. Oh, uh, my brother's in Austin. Uh, he lives Lakeway. He, uh, had moved, uh, we're in Plano. Uh-huh.
And, I'm familiar with Plano. I visited once or twice. Oh, Austin is so pretty. I really like it Oh, I love it. I love it. I really do. And your daughter is going to be a sophomore. That's correct. I have two daughters, but my oldest will be, will be a sophomore. Is, uh, because you live in Austin, is she thinking about the University of Texas? She has her heart set on U T. And, uh, you know, having gone to the University of Minnesota, I know what a big university is like. And, uh, one thing that I did this summer, which I thought might benefit both my daughters is, my youngest daughter got involved in band, and Baylor has a band camp. Oh. So she went for a week, and it was overnight,
and they lived in the dorms. And I thought this would expose both of them to what it's, you know, like on a a smaller college campus. And, uh, my oldest one just wasn't impressed at all with the idea of a small school. So, uh, I, I, I still think the exposure was good. Yes. The reason I ask if you went to college is I thought, well, you know, what were your selection criteria. Did you base it on what you wanted to major in or what you would feel comfortable with or what you could afford or, you know, there's all of these areas to look at in making the decision. Uh-huh. Those, and those were several, uh, that we did consider. Uh, my parents, uh, certainly didn't push but wanted me to look in the south and because I had been in a small school, they suggested that I probably, I, when I say small, my graduating class had eighteen in it. Oh, wow. And so they suggested that I might want a smaller school because I was used to a lot of one-on-one uh, or small group situations. Oh, definitely. And I did pick it because at the time I was interested in majoring in biology and I also wanted to spend one year studying in Europe. Uh-huh.
Uh, I had had an A F S student from Germany live with us our senior year Oh, how exciting. and we just thought that would be a wonderful thing and I ended up majoring in French. One of the reasons I picked the school was because they had a strong science department. They also had a strong language department and I'd always loved working with children. Uh, and I found that I couldn't fit everything in, but because I had had a fair amount of French going in I was able to do my year's study in France and able to take a lot of the other courses that interested me. Uh-huh. Uh, and so that was some of, Oh, that was, That worked out very well for you. but several of the things you mentioned were the things that, uh, our son has talked a lot about Texas A and M. He, but he thinks he wants to be a writer and I don't think that, Well, then he should come to U T. Yes Uh, and really his, his graduating class will probably be in the neighborhood of eight hundred and fifty to a thousand. Uh-huh.
Uh, and so he's used to a bigger size Large classes. and because my brother is there, uh, he would have family, close by. So there, there are advantages. Uh, but I also, because I had so many friends who did go from our small school to University of Michigan, which was so large and they really felt, uh, like they were numbers. Oh, I went from a large high school to a large university and I definitely felt like I was a number. You still, Yeah. Uh, I mean, it is a different feeling. But that was, that was my only option. I, I mean, I just really couldn't look at anything else. That was the one and only thing I could really afford other than a you know, a junior college, which I didn't want to do. So that's how, you know, my decision was made. But, uh, Well, that's certainly, uh, especially today with the cost of college. I mean that is a, a major, uh, consideration
and I do feel fortunate that Texas has so many good schools. And even though Baylor, uh, Yes. and when you mentioned that, we, we have friends who have children there who just love it. And for a private school it is not as expensive as most are and it is a smaller size and, uh, I do feel like there are a lot of options. It's, it's, but I had been hoping some schools I know give, uh, oh, even this year, Jay had an aptitude test, uh, What, what does, he hopes to be a writer. Yes, he thinks that's what he'd like to do, but he's really strong in math and science, too, and we keep encouraging him to keep an open mind. Huh. Does your daughter know what she'd like to do? Oh, she, she has, uh, you know, interests that are just, you know, going in all directions. Yeah.
Uh, what she talks about a lot is theater which I think is okay Bethany, let's be real Uh, she really is, is pretty unfocussed at this point. And, I don't know, she's taken a lot of French, and she may end up doing something with that. And I am a single mom, so I've been, and I made the mistake of dropping out of college to get married. So I'm trying to have my children not make the same mistake. And I'm, you know, showing them if you're strong in math and science, kiddos, this is one area where women can make some decent money. You know. Yes. I mean, I'm kind of really putting the practical application, you know, and, and saying, yet, do something that you enjoy. Uh-huh. By all means, go get that piece of paper, you know. Do you just have one son? Yes. I see. Well, it sounds like he's got some really, you know, good strong ideas of what he wants to do. Well, he, but he has even,
now that he's in high school, uh, and, of course, there's, there is still time, but he's beginning to feel that, as much as he enjoys writing, he wonders if he can make a living at it. You know, it's, the, it's, Okay, I guess we're supposed to discuss the, uh, school system. That shouldn't be too much trouble for the two of us. Right? No. As many years as we've been involved in one. I really feel fortunate in that there, even though there are problems, they're not a lot of problems where I teach. Right. But from talking to people in other districts there are some major problems, uh, with dropouts. Uh, when I was in Minnesota last summer there was a teacher who said that, uh, on a given day she didn't know how many of her students would show up Uh-huh and sometimes they didn't even show up for class and she taught in high school in inner city, uh, Minneapolis. Uh-huh. And, uh, they just didn't come to school. That's really sad isn't it?
And I cannot imagine being able to do much of anything when they don't even come to school. Right. Well just recently in the paper here, were articles about students, uh, working. High school students that work and the percentage of hours that they work and how that affects their grades. Uh-huh. But then the follow-up the next day was, I was kind of glad to see, because it, it said that, you know, yes but for those students who are determined to do well anyway, that, you know, handling a job was very possible. You know, and that it seemed to have more to do with other factors. I think so too. You know like, what are their plans after high school, you know. And what's their home situation. You know that, The home is the key. Right. Right. I think really is because if the home, does not place a high priority on education and, uh, the main goal is making money now and it may be a survival thing for the family, which you can understand. Right. Sure.
So, uh, But there can still be an attitude of Right. you know, this is a stopgap measure because we need it right now, but, but that the most important thing is still, you know getting your education. Your education. Well when they meant, said the, the topic, you know, of what's wrong with the public schools, my, my first impulse was it isn't really what's wrong with the public, public schools. It's what's wrong with families That's right. It's what's wrong with families and if, if children come to school, yes, insecure and their biggest concern is survival both at home, Right. they don't know what to expect at home. They don't feel secure there, they don't know what's going to happen just out front of their apartment complex. Right. For example that child that was shot. Right. Uh, how can they concentrate on schooling? I agree with you,
Right. I think that's the main problem. Yeah. And schools now are supposed to solve social problems, uh, mental and emotional problems as well as educate the kids and try to provide them with some security. Huh. Yeah. And that's overwhelming. Well we've got, uh, you know at our school we have over a thousand elementary kids and last year was the first year that we ever had more than one counselor. And that's just really not enough. No. It isn't. And I was talking to somebody that teaches in a middle school and they said, oh, but we need more in the middle school because that's when kids are, you know, at a tougher and rougher age and all that. But, you know, part of my feeling is that if you solve, help them to work through their problems while they're littler, then they won't have as many problems up there. True. I think they, there has to be at least a counselor and we just recently had a counselor at elementary. We didn't even have counselors in elementary. Really.
We have always, though, had three at middle schools because we had about a thousand kids and they divided them up between three counselors but for a good while every year they'd have a different counselor and they decided that didn't work. Yeah. So they started, uh, dividing the kids up so that a counselor stays with her group of counselees through you know, through all three years of middle school. Uh-huh. They they do that here. Uh-huh. And I think that would give them more security in going to the counselor. Uh-huh. If they have a rapport with their counselor. Now if they don't, I hope they have the flexibility to be able to change a child that really is in need of counseling help if they absolutely refuse to work with them. yeah. And occasionally that happens. Right. But, it is frightening Because, uh, education is the key to our future Yes, it certainly is. and, uh, if we have children who are not getting their education, for one reason or another, then what are we going to do with them?
Yeah. That's right What's going to happen to them? Are they going to be able to, uh, work at other kind of menial jobs or are they going to be the thieves and the people in prison. Yeah. And our prisons are filling up faster then we can build them. Right. That's no good. I'm on that, um, campus strategic planning committee for my school. Uh-huh. And, uh, one of the, uh, you know, oh, they have all these different names for things, strategies and all these different things. But, anyway, one of the key things was that that we believed that the public education is the best economic value. Then I think they decided to strike economic. Uh-huh. Anyway, you know, the point was, what happens when public education fails? You know will then people go to private schools? Uh-huh. You know, well, what kind of a situation do they get there
and what are, you know, and what kind of state are we in if, if most people are going to private schools. Well I think, uh, one thing that we'll see is that we won't be educating everybody. Right. There will be a lot of people who will not get even a menial education like in other countries of the world where they don't try to educate everyone. Right. Uh-huh. That's one of the things that we do. We try to educate everyone. That's right. That's right. We're the only country in the world that does. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. And let everyone have an opportunity to reach higher education if they're willing, you know, to work and have, uh, some ability. Uh-huh Yeah. They can do that. and one of the Plano school district's, you know, goals is that they will graduate every child that, uh, that is here in the ninth grade, I believe it's something like that,
Uh-huh. it's worded. And, uh, I don't know Well you know if we can keep them in school. Right. Uh-huh That's so important, then that, that helps a lot. I think the gang violence is scaring everyone to death too. Oh gosh. Well that new movie, That new movie out, It's scary to me. I, um, really, really a frightening situation. I, We are. I guess we're both lucky. To be in situations and schools where we don't see that. My folks talk about it a lot in Illinois. My mother was is was teacher for years and years and, uh, they live in Peoria, Illinois, and they're talking a lot about the, you know, the school situation there, too. *their should be they're
So, well, shall we wrap it up? Uh, I would imagine that we've talked the amount of time necessary. I think we have to. Okay. So I'll see you when we see you. Alright. We were in, uh, Austin yesterday. Uh-huh. The reason that I wasn't at church and we went to hear, uh, James wind ensemble concert Oh. they left this morning for, uh, England. Oh, how exciting. Isn't that wonderful? Oh, that is wonderful. Uh-huh. What an experience. And, uh, the university ... Okay. Hi, Nancy.
Well, do you do a lot of dining out? No, um, we don't although we enjoy it. Um, we do it more when we have company come. Uh-huh. Um, what about you? Well, we do some dining out. Um, I, I do a lot of cooking so, um, mostly like when we go out, you know, it's my husband and I, I, we don't go out too often as a family, um, unless it's like a fast-food kind of thing. But, um, but we do enjoy dining out. One of our favorite places here in, in the Dallas area is Atlantic Cafe. I don't know if you, have you ever been there? I've heard of that but I haven't been there. Um, where, about is that? Um, well actually there's the Atlantic Cafe and Cafe Pacific, and, uh, Oh, okay. I, I've been to Cafe Pacific. Have you?
now that's down in, uh, Highland Park. Right. It's Highland Park Village. Did you like it? Yes. Uh Oh, I love it Before we moved to, the area, my brother, uh, lived in Dallas for a number of years and we came up one time when my father was visiting and we all ate there Uh-huh. and, oh, their seafood was wonderful. Oh, it is, it's fabulous. It really is a great place. Now where is the Atlantic Cafe? Atlantic Cafe is down on, I believe it's on McKinney. Oh, okay. Um, and originally the two, the, the guy who owns the Cafe Pacific and the guy who owns the Atlantic Cafe, were partners in the Atlantic Cafe. And then they, they separated and the guy started Cafe Pacific.
And, I loved them both. I really do. I think they're wonderful. That's our favorite. You know what we'd really like, if, if we just have a, a casual evening is Houston's. Have you been there? No, um, but I've heard that's really good, too, and, It's wonderful. The only thing is you have to wait. You have, you have to expect to wait at least an hour. Oh. So you have to go knowing you're going to be sitting there there for an hour waiting to get in. And, as long as you know that it's okay. But they have, I think, one, just about the best prime rib um, anywhere in the area. Oh. Oh, okay. I love it. Uh-huh.
And, my husband really likes their ribs. So it's hysterical. We go in and we sit there for an hour waiting to get in and then we get there and we don't even look at the menu . You know right away what you want I know right away what we, what we want. Yeah. Yeah. Well, we really enjoy prime rib, too, and, uh, actually the, the Steak And Ale out here, uh, we've gone to, uh, my in-laws also enjoy prime rib, when they've had some of their specials on Sunday, Monday, or Tuesday night Uh-huh. Uh-huh. and, uh, the time we went the prime rib was really good. Was it? Really? I've I've, I've been there for like, you know, lunch Uh-huh.
but, I've never been there for dinner. And, it was good, yeah. Yeah, yeah Oh, that's great. That's, great. Another nice place for, for prime rib is Baby Doe's Oh, I've heard about that, too Maxwell's nice, have you been there? but no. We've, uh, I guess we eat out even less than I realize And I didn't think we ate out very often See! Baby Doe's is nice. Oh And, one place I'd never been that I would really like to go to, uh, is Lawry's. I've heard that's real good, Lawry's Prime Rib? Yeah.
Yes, I'd, I had heard that, too. Um, I've, I've never been there but I've heard it's real good. Have you been to the little, uh, not for prime rib but the Cafe De France, um, right here on Central Expressway? *slash error Oh, okay. *slash error should be bk Yes. Yes, actually they have one in Richardson that I've been to. Uh, they have real nice lunches. Have you, have you been there for lunch? Or, Yes, uh Yeah. primarily lunch, well, and breakfast sometimes but, uh, during the week they often have, a, a limited menu choice but, uh, very reasonable complete dinners for six ninety-nine that included the soup or salad entrees and accompaniments and dessert Really? Really? and, uh, the, my husband and I like veal, uh a lot Uh-huh.
and their veal dishes have been good. We've tried different ones when they've had them as one of the The specials. Uh-huh. Have you ever been to Biffin's? I keep hearing about it. I keep hearing the advertisements of it I, yes, no, and, and they keep saying, you know, oh, it's wonderful, it's wonderful. I have not been over there and I was thinking, you know, it's supposed to be a family place over near Plano Super Bowl. Right. And, And, uh, I've, I've not been there. I haven't either, uh, one place, and I've only been there for lunch, but, uh, I went with a friend,
and we met her husband, um, down on Greenville, down near the Highway Twelve area, is Gershwin's, I've been there. Oh, I, we just That was nice It was and we had the, uh, we both enjoy mushroom soup and Linda had told me they had the best mushroom soup and they did. It was wonderful but, uh, and we just had soup and salad so we could make room for the dessert which was a chocolate sack. I don't know if you tried but or Oh I've heard of it. Where, where it's made, it's like, it's like a, it's all chocolate, like made like a paper bag Yes! and whip cream and it's filled with what, whip cream and, and strawberries and something?
Yeah. and it had strawberries, kiwis, and raspberries in a raspberry, uh, puree Oh. and, and we shared one, the three of us Oh. and it was plenty because it was very rich but, uh I wished I'd had a camera. Oh. It was beautiful Oh, I bet it was. I bet it was. Uh The last time we went to Cafe Pacific, it was Father's Day, and we took another friend with us Oh. and, uh, for dessert we thought we had just stuffed ourselves And so we had, they had, uh, like a berry assortment. It was, it was raspberries and blueberries and, and strawberries on a plate with like a custard on the bottom. Oh. And, you know, they did, like the raspberry puree, just kind of like in a, in a decoration on the,
you know, how they do the plates real fancy with the decorations and then piled the berries and shaved chocolate on top of it Yes. Yeah Oh. and it was outstanding. It sounds wonderful. It was really, really relatively simple but, oh, it was good. It was really good. Well, that's, uh, one of the things that I do enjoy when you get a good restaurant. Uh, I love fresh berries. And, their, their fruits are always exceptional. I don't, I'm, know they must have a special source for getting them because even at the Farmer's Market, uh, you can't find them like that You can't find them. Yeah. and, Yeah, yeah, yeah.
You know, I'm originally from Connecticut and, uh, I was home a few years ago and my sister and brother-in-law were going to take us out for dinner and, uh, I was really amazed, you know, the, the restaurants up there were kind of quaint. You know, they were real, real pretty but they lacked, the service and they lacked the the, just the, I don't know. The restaurants down here seem like they have, uh, I guess there's so much competition that they, really have to be good. Uh-huh. And, I thought I would really miss that. I would, too, because, well, because we don't go out very often. When we do go out, um, in a way it's like a little mini vacation I guess, and, uh, it is, it's a whole experience. Of course you want the food to be good but the atmosphere and service I think, are important, uh too. Uh-huh. And, you know, in order to survive in this area I think they have to be good.
Yeah. Because the ones that aren't so good don't, just don't make it. Um, that reminded me of a place for lunch that's a little off the beaten track but it is wonderful. It's called Cafe Max and it's at Plano Road and Campbell. They have the most wonderful salads. They do what they call a salad sampler which easily could feed two or three. Oh, really? Well, my favorite type of music is classical music, and, uh, I, I enjoy orchestral classical music and I enjoy classical guitar and classical piano, you know, and that's, those are, that's my favorite type. Well, Uh, probably the favorite instrument would be, uh, the violin. Oh, well my favorite, well, I, I don't really have a favorite, I, I like everything basically. Um, I guess if I had to pick, it would be like pop, I would think, but I like everything.
So, it's kind of hard to choose sometimes. Yeah, you know. I guess I enjoy, I enjoy jazz, listening to jazz sometime although I don't feel like I have a good, good understanding of it, or a good, a good feel for maybe what's good jazz and what's not, but, but, um, I enjoy it and, uh, sometimes I enjoy listening to, uh, fiddle music. Uh-huh. We were in Colorado recently and heard this, these, uh, well, we heard this fiddler and we bought his, we bought his tape and it's kind of fun to listen to the fiddle pans . Yeah. So, I grew up next door to, uh, the Richardson Symphony Orchestra leader so, Oh, Chris Xeros. Yeah. Oh, you lucky thing. So, we used to go and listen to them all the time and, my parents still do. Yeah.
So, I grew up with a lot of his music, and, and what not. Plus my parents are, well, especially my dad, likes a lot of classical music and he introduced my brother and I both, to a lot of it. So, Oh, gosh, Chris Xeros You grew up with his children, too, then? Yeah. Oh, gosh. Sure did. Gosh, small world, huh? Yeah. We all went to high school together and, uh, and we're still in contact with each other. Oh. We all go back to parents' houses on the weekends, and what not so, Oh gosh.
Well actually, I used to play in the Richardson Symphony, I played violin in the orchestra for several years you know, Oh really? yeah So, It is a small world isn't it? Yeah, small world. So, I, uh, I know Chris Yeah, he's a pretty nice guy. Most of the time Yeah, well I never I had to work for him and I never would want to work for him. So No, no. Well life just took different turns here so, uh, it just didn't work out to do that now.