From Joe Revelen:

Memories sent to Rich for his 50th birthday

From the beginning

Mom - (sadly) "He had a rough start."

Joe - "Who, Rich! When?"

Mom - "As a newborn. Rich and I were quarantined in the hospital just 2 days after Rich

was born, May 1, 1946."

Nurse Nasty - (sternly) "You and the baby have to be quarantined, because Richard

Henry has Impetigo. He can't be with the other babies."

Mom - (indignant) "Impetigo! How can a baby get Impetigo in the hospital. ?" (In the

olden days, like 50 years ago, adults thought a hospital was the safest place to be.)

Nurse Nasty - "Well, I don't know."

Nurse Nasty - (outside the room, but not out of Mom's superheating). "I’ll be glad when

that Revelen brat gets out of here, this quarantine business is a nuisance."

Mom - (after Nurse reenters the room). "Sooooo. You'll be glad when the Revelen brat

gets out of here, will you. If it wasn't for you bringing him in here right from the delivery

room in that filthy gown he wouldn't be sick. YOU gave him that Impetigo."

Joe - "Boy, you really nailed that nurse"

Mom - (if you can believe this). "It's true, you know I very rarely speak up" (Meanwhile

Mom drifts off into a long monologue on how she put her family physician in his place

today for trying to rush her visit.)

May 1 + 12 days

Mom - (Rich comes home) "I had to give him baths in Tincture of Violet. After the bath

his body was brown and his head was white. And that's no lie. I had him christened in

June, that was the earliest I could do it. I didn't want anyone to see a brown baby."

Mom & Joe - Ha, Ha, Hee, Hee.

Joe - "Who were the Godparents"

Mom - "Marie Larrat and Grandpa Stein". "Marie and Irene lived here for the summer.

Rich got lots of attention"

Joe - "Did Impetigo give Rich the big head"

Mom - (upset) "I won't put anything in there about that"

Joe - "Why not? It's funny now, even though you worried about it then. How did you keep

his head upright? Didn't he fall over a lot?"

Mom - "No!" (end of argument)

Illnesses

Mom - "Either you or Joseph sang 'I'm a little teapot' or 'Are you sleeping' (in French) when you were going under from anesthesia to have your tonsils out"

Joe - "Rich probably sang 'I'm a little teapot', I sure wouldn't".

Mom - "You were 4 years old when I had to take Joseph to the doctor. I took you along as I couldn't leave you alone. You wore your gun belt and guns. When it was Joseph's

turn you stayed sitting. I couldn't convince you to come with us. The doctor said "You're not afraid of me with those big six-shooters". People laughed. You said, "you got the needles". People laughed twice as hard. You got a lollipop.

Mom - "You had chicken pox. I watched you very closely and all but one of the scabs had fallen off without being picked off. I was watching when Tom Scaccia spotted the remaining scab and reached to pull it off. I was too late and you have that one scar".

Those school years

Mom- "Rich and Pat Scaccia, born Oct. 2,1946, got along nicely". " Rich started school, in kindergarten at OLPH, at a very young age, 4 1/2 years. When you started first grade, Dad and I bought you a rather large leather school bag. Chris Stiso called to say "Bertha, I just saw Richard walking by. His school bag was touching the sidewalk, have you no mercy?""'.

Mom - "Do you remember your little argument with a student from Lindenhurst elementary school? Your response - "Well anyway, I'm a Catholic and your only a Public!". After that we had a little talk."

Mom - "You and Rich went to visit Cortland College and you Joseph lost your pillow and

Rich lost his shoes".

Joe - "Never going to let us off the hook, are you Mom? "

Mom - "I always appreciated any letters you would write. I knew you worked hard up there. I'll never forget the time that you said that you wanted to make money for college. You got a job at a ladies golf club to put up wood pane ling and doing a beautiful job of it and you were pretty pleased with yourself, until the women came in and said, 'where are the outlets?'. They were really very good about it. They were able to point out the approximate location of each outlet. And so you found them, cut a hole in the paneling and put molding around it".

Mom - "Aunt Anne and I went up to your graduation in Brockport, which was a delight. Something I waited for, for a long time. And then you were off to Massachusetts College, everything went well there. Agnes and Ev came up for your graduation. The woman who owned the house was telling us how wonderful you were. That the couple in the other room were married recently. They left their door open and Richard his, and Richard would prepare the meals and he always made chocolate pudding for dessert. We brought you home with your belongings. One more great graduation ".

Joe - "Didn't Rich have a car in college that wouldn't go into reverse? He always had to park it in a place that he could drive forward?"

Mom - "That sounds like my Buick. He bought a car for $50.00. A woman in A&S said that her friend had a car that she wanted to get rid of it. The friends husband said it's a

shame because the car has a good engine but it looks terrible. And the floor up front was

rusted out. He put some kind of board down. He used that car and used that car. One

time, he even carried a friend's motorcycle home in the backseat. He really got his $50.

worth. And then sold it to Jimmy. For every year he used it, he was expected to give

Richie $25."

Joe - "Rich used my Sprite after I got the GTO".

Mom - "Richard, I thought I'd let you know that I still have the plastic whistle by the

phone that you gave me to use at the time I was getting those obscene phone calls".

Mom - "That brings to mind the night that I was followed home from Southern State Parkway. After I opened the garage door, I turned around and there he was at the bottom of the driveway. I jumped in my car, locked the door and leaned on the horn. You came out into the garage in your pajamas and bare feet. I sure was happy to see you there ".

Rex

Joe - "Tell me the story of Artie's dog Rex".

Mom - "Rex was the very realistic stuffed dog I bought for Artie at Christmas. He stood

in our living room for some time. One afternoon the bell rang. It was a boy selling PBA

booklets. Artie went to the bedroom to get the $5.00. When he got back to the door, the

boy wanted to know if anything was wrong with the dog. Artie said, "Oh yes, he's deaf.

The boy hollered to his friend "Hey Joe, come and see the deaf dog".

Joe - "I love that story".

Baseball

Mom- "You started playing ball in the lot next to our home. One time in the middle of the game you sat down to remove sand from your shoes in the middle of the game. Amid all the protests from your brothers and friends you proceeded to remove your socks and pick lint from your toes".

Mom - "Remember baseball games at Sawyer Park in West Babylon. Games were Monday nights, Dad was happy about that, it was his only night off. We sat on folding chairs in the outfield for safety sake. Guess who got hit with afoul ball? Me! Dad made an agreement with Tony Notarfrancesca, your coach, that if your team came out on top at the end of the season, he would have a barbecue for all in our backyard. We were just as excited as you kids when the car came down Venetian Blvd., decked in green and white streamers and horns blowing. We all had a great time ".

Ouch

Mom - "Remember the time that you and Michael Glass were playing in the lots in the back of our house? You were both attacked by bees. Mr. Glass bolted over the fence and got both of you. He grabbed the hose and made some mud and smeared it on both of you."

Vacations

Mom - "All of us except for Bob stayed at Joe & Peggy & Jeanette Courant's cottage in Cape Cod. Bob was in the service. Dad would go out fishing very early in the morning. We would wake up to the smell of fish. Joseph had a crush on Jeanette and followed her everywhere".

Joe - "I remember that the ocean was so cold you could not swim in it. We also went to Frontier Village. I remember the tombstones and the jail".

Mom - "Rich, when you were 14 years old, do you remember the trip Dad and I and you went on. Dad and I were so happy to get away and we were so taken in by the view of the White Mountains, I said Richard come look at these mountains, see how they cut the roads right through them. You replied, you've seen one mountain you've seen them all. So finally we settled in a cottage, a very ramshackle cottage. Dad checked us in and told the owner how disappointed you were being on a trip like this. The owner asked if he liked to fish. And Dad says Oh, Yeah and I do too. The owner gave Dad the fishing gear so that they could fish in the stream in the back."

Joe - "Rich and Dad were always fishing buddies".

Joe - "We took that trip to Florida after Dad returned from France. I remember how he brought the scent of the farm with him. We laughed so hard and he got insulted. He said that they had no running water on the farm and he had to wash up outside in the cold. He then told us he met Maurice Chevalier on the plane (his hero) and that made us even more hysterical because we were imagining Chevalier's reaction to Dad's bouquet. Mom likes to tell the story about how we just took over the beach cabanas at Miami beach, just like we belonged. I don't think we knew any better. I remember I did a lot of driving on that trip because Dad was so crippled with arthritis".

Mom - "You and Marlene treated me to a trip to the L.I. Animal Farm out East. We were enjoying the animals until a goat lifted his leg and wet my leg. I was even more upset when Marlene took a lovely silk handkerchief out of your pocket and wiped off my leg".

Mom - "We visited Marlene and Rich in 1983 and had a wonderful time. You took us to Hearst Castle. We had adjoining rooms".

Mom - "During that visit we went to Tijuana. Artie was not happy there because we were advised not to eat or drink the water".

Northeast Harbor Maine

Mom- "After your graduation from OLPH and Joe's graduation from Lindy High. You and Dad went up to Maine together. Joseph and I followed after his graduation."

Joe - "That's when I got rear-ended in my old Ford. The kid that hit me said that he was watching some girl walking on the sidewalk"

Joe - "You and I and others from the staff used to load into my Ford and drive to the quarry where we went swimming".

Joe - "Dad showed us how to pick up the live lobsters that were brought in fresh every day. They had their claws pegged, but I never had the courage to pick them up. Dad got annoyed and would do it himself because I kept darting my hand in and out but always came up empty. Do you remember the awful smell of shrimp boiling? I also remember that you had to serve the customer meals in the cottages or rooms in the back. It seems to me that we had a few laughs at some of the stories and situations you got into".

Joe - "Little Ted (from Maine) was trying to get the hood open on my car while I rev'd the engine. We were trying to find a noise. The bolt holding the generator broke. The generator fell on the fan and the fan flew clean through the hood just missing Teddy. We never found the fan "

Mom - "I squeezed, what I thought was a sponge floating in the dish water, but it turned out to be a dead mouse. I screamed so loud Dad came running".

Mom - "Aunt Anne, Uncle Bill, Jim, Pat & Terry came up and stayed at a cottage. Joseph went home with them and was put in the hospital. Bob came up to visit twice and managed to drive Joseph's car home. When Bob got it home you could actually hear it almost die".

Visit Bob in the Navy

Mom- "You and I visited Bob in Bainbridge, Maryland. Remember our sickening trip

home in the bus?

Joe - "So, what happened?"

Mom (story deviation)- "Here, have more pie".

Joe - "Come on, stick with the story".

Mom - "We had a beautiful bus on the way down but on our return trip the fumes were so

bad. There happened to be a nurse on the bus, who told Rich and I to only have aspirin

and orange juice at our rest stop. So we did that and were able to fall asleep on the bus

for some portion of the remainder of the trip. We had to take the LIRR after arriving in

NYC. We were on a double decker train (#9375 as I recollect) and we were so hungry. So

what did we do, we opened our suitcase and we were chewing on chicken bones on the

train. So that was the end of that trip. But it was good to go and see Bob ".

Weight Lifting

Mom - "Rich used to lift weights with his friends. They used to lift downstairs until Dad

put the flooring in. Then, of course, they had to go out in the garage. That's where they

were most of the time. I even remember a girlfriend of one of the boys opened the garage

door and said "If this is the where you want to be, with the fellows, well be with the

fellows and she throws her engagement ring across the floor""

Joe - "Which one was that? Was it the one that lived at the end of Venetian?"

Mom- "Yes, Oh what was his name? His Mother raised dogs. Well, I was horrified. We

found the ring and I talked to her and gave her the ring back."

Mom - "The weight lifting went on for a long time. Eventually someone dropped the

weights and put a hole in the garage floor. In fact, a second hole was put in the floor.

When Rich was off to college, two of his friends John and Bill came by sometimes (so

they said) to finish the peanut butter and jelly that Rich didn't eat. One time Bill came by

and said he had to do something in the garage. Unbeknownst to me, he cemented over the

holes they had made in the garage. And after he got it all done, what did he do but put

his handprints in it. Those kids!"

Jimmy & Rich

Mom - "Jimmy and Rich bought this clam boat. Jimmy's friend Ken wouldn't tell them where the clam beds were. Well, there first day out, they stayed out for hours and when

they came home it was the end of the clamming for that week. They were both sick, boy were they sick. And of course they were disappointed because they wanted to get out there and make money. And then somebody stole the clamboat and the engine from our backyard. So I called Mike Glass and I wish I had more knowledge of insurance at that time because Mike asked if it were a pleasure boat. And I said no, because those kids were working so hard making money for college. Mike said he was sorry but that was not covered. So I took my insurance business away from him. So that was the end of clamming. They made some money but not what they anticipated".

Joe - "Rich and Jim did roofing together, didn't they?"

Mom - "I know that after Dad passed away that the Dieumegard's took the three of you on and Bob was such a wreck on the roofs that he'd slide down and come home with no bottoms in the dungarees and then he put his leg through the ceiling in the house on the

corner"

Handyman

Joe - "I remember you coming clear across the country with your giant tool box to repair

the house on Clocks Blvd that had the fire. You went through that house in a matter of

weeks to repair it. Remember the giant cast iron radiator that you threw out the window

rather than carry it down.

Mom - "Artie got into the act by replacing glass in windows, painting the woodwork, etc.

Artie's glazing experience sure came in handy. Artie's reward was a big juicy roast beef

sandwich.".

Joe- "This was that period of time where you quickly went from handyman work to

kitchen and bath remodels and commercial renovations to building units at the

apartments. The work that you did on that house that you and Marlene had on Mount

Helix was really something to be proud of.

Mom - "You installed our bathroom cabinet and sink. You did a good job in spite of

having to work in a tight spot".

Mom - "Do you remember the tough time you and I had prying the kitchen cabinets off

the wall and floor".

Miscellaneous Memories

De - "You, Lin and I went for a walk down to the Little Beach. We were just playing around and you kept saying that you could jump from the shore to the dock. We said that you couldn't. Just as you jumped, I got nervous that you wouldn't make it and grabbed you as you went by. Needless to say you wound up in the drink in your Sunday best. Your Mom was really upset with you ".

De - "For years we tried to outdo each other with ice cream sundaes." De - De - "Churos in California and lemonade from your tree in California".

De - "Wretch went on me when we came to visit you."

De - "You climbed the tree next to your Mom's house to retrieve the kite we were flying."

De - "Double dating at the drive-in, Linda and Joseph fell asleep. They caused the windows to steam so that we could not see the movie. The movie was Mary Poppins"

Lauri- "Happy 50th Birthday, Godfather".

Joe - "We used to play marbles and baseball in the side lot and play cowboys and climb trees and hide and seek and ride our bikes. We used to go snapper fishing off the roof of the boats in the water at the curve of the road (by the crooked house) and crabbing off of any of the many docks. What a great place to grow up".

Joe - "Remember those block parties. We used to decorate our bikes and put cards in the spokes. We were given buttons to hand in, in exchange for ice cream. And they usually had a ride like the Whip. And the neighbors decorated and put speakers in the trees".

Joe - "You were an usher at my wedding".

Joe - "I got out of the church steeple job when I got married, but you didn't".

Joe - "You came to Seattle when Nikki was born, Mom made you carry a Xmas wrapped tuner and turntable aboard the plane. De and I got so much use out of that, it was the best present ever".

Joe - "Those great French windows in the Massapequa house ".

Joe - "That time that we went ski boarding, in your boat, when you lived on the water in Massapequa. It was De, myself and the girls".

Joe - "The tenant that tore out all the kitchen cabinets".

Joe - "That great hammock that you and Marlene sent us. It's still going strong".

Joe - "We went swimming in La Jolla and I came as close to drowning as I want to".

Joe - "The trip to Sea World when we came to California".

Joe - "You came home for the family reunion that we had in Lido Beach".

Joe - "Mom, the key is in the mailbox"

Mom Oppel - "Bertha and her three boys visited when we lived in Astoria. They arrived dressed in identical trench coats. Well I had no experience feeding boys. When it came time to eat Bob, Joe and Rich sat down and gobbled up all the luncheon meat before anyone else had a chance to sit down. I gave Diane some money and sent her to the store for more baloney".

Dad Oppel - "Rich and Jim put the roof on our home. They told us it would last for 20 years and it did".