2000 May 1 / A&W DRIVE-IN Here's someone from Div.6 reporting in (sorry I don't have a class photo). The old A&W lasted until 1991 when Payless Gas did a land lease with plans to redevelop the whole block. They only redeveloped the A&W half with an office block and left the old Gulf gas station. Payless was bought by Shell who are in the process of remediating the gas site and are planning to build a Tim Horton's. I wonder if it will be a drive in. Now all the kids at Oak Bay High can say," Hey, let's grab the wheels and go to Tim Horton's!" Richard, Gary, Dave, Peter and the committee - you are doing a great job. Look forward to seeing you and everyone else in June. - Regards, Bryan Bryan Bradbury optical@islandnet.com May 2 / Art Show in Tsawwassen May 5 - 14 Visit the art show of 167 artists behind the Safeway in Tsawwassen. I have 6 pictures for viewing. There is a used car lot there on Sunday so husbands or wives can go and kick tires if they hate art. Our artists are extremely good (hard to compete) ... so come and have a look. Tsawwassen has a wonderful dike with access from the bottom of 12th Avenue. Takes 45 min. to walk to Centennial Park where there is a concession -- or park right beside the park. It has a wonderful sandy beach and is the other half of White Rock's beach without the crowds. Herons, eagles, coyotes -- we have it all. Make a date to visit Tsawwassen and the art show. Laurel Page Johnson laurelj@aebc.com May 3 / CARS OF YESTERYEAR I just received Ron Roberts' incredible biography which will soon appear at a website near you. I was reminded of his classic Cadillac with the wheel wells filled with flowers. I often parked behind him on Christie Way. My funky little '47 Austin, still ranks as one my most memorable vehicles. - Dave davfoste@islandnet.com May 3 / EXCELLENT MEMORIES! I am amazed at the recall some of you have! I didn't even remember the name of the Golden Galleon although I remember the rootbeer floats! The biographies are wonderful. I am enjoying this so much. - Diane diane (wilson) dyer ddwithlove@excite.com May 3 / ROCK N ROLL STATIONS While we are on this nostalgia roll, I have to mention our two favourite disc jockies - Norm Pringle who hosted the evening House Party from CKDA plus the TV version from CHEK, and Red Robinson from CJOR. Perhaps that was part of doing our homework, flipping the dial between both stations. While waiting for the ferry last year I switched on the car radio and there was Red Robinson playing old Buddy Holly and sounding just the same. For a moment it was like sitting in my old Ford Coupe again. - Richard rgoodall@shuswap.net May 6 / RECALL Once that button is pushed the memories come flooding in. Couldn't be that we had such a great High School that we get great pleasure from recalling those "Happy Days." - Ian Ian Else ielse@home.com May 8 / HUGS IN THE SNUG You will know you are in the right place when you approach a table full of unfamiliar faces and hear someone say "who's that guy?" The reminiscences of 40 years pass quickly. Perhaps the big change has best been described by Dave Foster .."now we all go home after one beer." This is great fun. Cheers! - Phil Phil Johnston ibbyjohnjohn@hotmail.com May 12 / JUST SAYING HELLO I'm loving how easy it is to stay in touch on the website. Enjoyed talking to Diane Wilson and Lynne MacLennan by phone, and so glad you're both attending the reunion. See you all soon! - Charmaine Charmaine Armstrong charmbee@hotmail.com May 13 / "HOUSE PARTY" Right On, Dick! Yes, those were the good ol' days. The "House Party" on Chek TV with Norm Pringle featured some pantomimers lip syncing the hits of the day. I recall dropping by CKDA and placing an entry to go on "House Party" as a panelist. Then my first night on TV we adjudicated "That'll Be The Day" by Buddy Holly and The Crickets. I believe that the idea for this show came from L.A.'s Peter Potter's "Is It A Hit Or A Miss?" See y'all in June, Cheers! - Mike Mike Gibbs mgibbs@webtv.net May 14 / VICTORIA'S ELVIS Yes Mike, we were all watching "Houseparty" that night you were on. Remember the young fellow who looked exactly like Elvis and was a regular guest? Well he married one of the girls in our grad class and with any luck will be attending the dinner/dance. Who knows, we might just generate another "Elvis sighting." - Richard rgoodall@shuswap.net May 14 / Grade One at Willows Nostalgia For Mike Gibbs, Terry (Bradshaw) Williams, Lynn (Maclennan) Schulnik, Sandra (McKeachie) Forbes and anyone else who can actually remember as far back as the 1940's and started school at Willows, Glen Hammond has also more or less returned home. He and his wife Catherine Scott have a farm on the water between Saltair and Chemainus and have been there for about ten years now. I am sure Glen would like to hear from you at: hamscott@island.net A very big thankyou to all the very talented and hard working people doing the work on this reunion. Looking forward to seeing everyone in June. - Bob Bob Gibson bobpat@saltspring.com May 15 / WILLOWS ELEM. Hey, Mike Gibbs, I was there too! I sure do remember Miss Applegate..and Miss Creeden. And Miss Lanning, I think she was from Florida, my dad had a crush on her. My recall is getting better! My best friends then were Rita Neal and Sandy Halkett..don't know where they went to. - Diane diane (wilson) dyer ddwithlove@excite.com May 15 / CONGRATS!!! Congrats on a great site. It is so much fun to catch up who is doing what. I have good memories of OBHS, loved the school and the teachers we had. Always wanted my kids to have the same experience, and they did! Keep up the good work, and I'll try to get there next month, but it's a long way from Texas! - Lynn Lynn Peachey Feir lynnfeir@yahoo.com May 16 / WILLOWS' SURPRISE I had a scary experience back in the late '60s when I was driving a taxi in Victoria. I answered a call for the lower Windsor Park area and picked up this elderly lady from the street below her apartment. Surprise! Miss Creeden! (how did she spell it) I immediately fell into reciting the times tables up to 12 but couldn't get my back rigid enough to create a perfect simulation of grade 5. She was "spry" in her old age and unusually warm when I explained I'd been in her class. - Dave davfoste@islandnet.com May 16 / ENHANCING YOUR BIO The bios will appear in print and be distributed in "book" form at the reunion. Are you feeling yours isn't as flattering as it could be? I mean you're a better person than that, right? You may not have adjusted the Hubble telescope but hell, you make damn fine bread and you remember all the poems Oliver made us memorize in 1960! Change it! Just send me the new version... and don't hold back. - Dave davfoste@islandnet.com May 20 / PAINT THOSE GOAL POSTS I know for a fact that a certain Tony Else was involved in the adornment of those goal posts and I also remember the next day being called down to the office and told that I wasn't being accused of the wonderous deed but to get my ass over and correct the problem. This proved to be somewhat embarrassing as the Vic High students came out and gave us some fine encouragement. - Ian ielse@home.com May 20 / LITTLE WHEEL Does anyone recall "The Little Wheel" hamburger joint on Oak Bay Ave near Mitchell Street? Big Ben Laughren(sp?) wrestler, Juan De Fuca Strait swimmer was the host and cook there. It was a great hang out for the in-crowd! Blaine Tringham(OBHS1959 grad) got me interested in Miles Davis and the jazz scene. I remember Big Ben showing me how a punch was faked by having me place my schnozz in the crook of his forearm. Wow! I don't recall breathing for the rest of the day. Can anyone elaborate on this memoir and fill in for my spotty memory? - Mike mgibbs@webtv.net May 20 / LITTLE WHEEL The Little Wheel sure brings back memories for me, Mike. I recall one summer evening a band dropped by after a gig and Ben got them to play a couple of sets in the loft in exchange for dinner. What a great evening that was! The wall alongside the booths was plastered with original art by aspiring artists. I remember adding something to the collection. And then there was the cartoonist up from the States who was drawing on everybody's t-shirts. And then there was the jukebox. I'm not sure how it happened, but I ended up with a box full of 45s from that jukebox! Big Ben Laughren [I've also seen it spelled Loughran] had a gruff exterior but a heart of gold. - Gary gwilcox@direct.ca May 22 / MORE MEMORIES It looks as though I missed out on some great after-school times. Living out of district, I bussed home every day. However, I do remember the Y-Teen pajama parties at Judy Fraser's house when Ann Bonnell and Sandra Ross were the prezes. Also, do any of you remember Miss Fredette's first year at OBH? It was fun to watch the expressions on the boys' faces in Biology class when she taught sexual and asexual reproduction! Just found a class photo from grade one or two at Monterey School. I'm sure I recognize Gerry Skinner, Bill Baker, and Pat Walker. (Janet's brother.) Was anyone else there? - Charmaine Charmaine Bradley (A rmstrong) charmbee@hotmail.com May 27 / MONTEREY SCHOOL Yes indeed I was there from 1 through 6 and only got the strap once from Mr. Brynjolfson for throwing a firecracker over the backstop. - Ian ielse@home.com May 27 / MONTEREY I have your Grade One picture from Monterey, Div 9, 1949, Ian. You were in the back row and looking very cute. Besides you, it looks like Hugh Rothe holding the sign in the front row. In the second row is Valerie Watkin, Maureen Dowling, Pamela Dixon and Brenda Buller. Above them is Jillian Boorman. There may be others I don't recognize because I was only there in Grade one and I wasn't even in the class picture. - Judy Judy Anderson jalowe@altavista.com May 27 / WILLOWS Yes Bob, I love the Willows class picture.Who else recognizes themselves at such a tender age? I e-mailed Glen Hammond. Thanks. Gary, the website is so interesting, you're doing a wonderful job! - Lynne Lynne (Maclennan) Schulnik lynnelj@hotmail.com May 28 / GOLF SATURDAY AFTERNOON Rob McAdams and myself have booked two tee times (12:54 and 12:52) at the Victoria Golf Club. We are looking for three more players. If you would like to join Bryan Bradbury, Rob McAdams, George Guernsey, Brian Usher and Dave Eves please email, phone or fax Bryan Bradbury at optical@islandnet.com / ph 250-383-3132 / fax 250-385-7500. First come first served. - Regards, Bryan Bryan Bradbury optical@islandnet.com May 30 / THETIS LAKE and THE BRIGHT SPOT My mom owned a Nash Metropolitan and I took a load of kids to Thetis -- all singing the line "Hey Buddy, how do we get this thing out of second gear..." and I looked behind and there was this rotating flashing red light as I was going 80 on Government street and we were all looking forward to flapper pie at the Bright spot ... anyone remember that? - Laurel Laurel Page Johnson laurelj@aebc.com May 30 / PAINT THOSE GOAL POSTS Yes Ian, I remember that day. Mr Wallace called you and me and 2 others to the office, gave us $20 (I think) with a smile to buy paint and brushes, and off we went to Vic high. Their Principal was not amused with the Green stripes on the Rugby Pitch goal posts. We however thought they looked just fine and had a great time returning them to white. I don't recall who the other 2 were, do you? - Ron ronmckeever@pacificcoast.net May 31 / GOAL POSTS No Ron, I can't remember. You have better recall than I. The $20 slipped by. One of you liked by mother's brownies very much and had the combination to my locker - several times I went for my lunch to find the brownie missing. However I thought I'd give the thief a treat by putting hot mustard in the middle of it for a hot surprise. Anyone recall a hot mustard and brownie sandwich? - Ian ielse@home.com May 31 / GREEN & WHITE GOAL POSTS Those posts got painted the night before a Howard Russell Cup game (which we won). I don't remember paint on my shoes, but I do remember not letting any teachers see my hands the next day. If I recall correctly, that was Mr. Oliver's 12th Cup in 16 tries, a spectacular record. I sure hope we will see him at the reunion. - Bob Bob Gibson bobpat@saltspring.com May 31 / REUNION Just over a couple of weeks to go. Interestingly, it's great to make several contacts, again. I've often wondered how Lois Elwood's son turned out after helping to change his diapers at 32,000 ft. - George George OBriain Brwdpatch@Aol.com