Memories of Past Times

Life Goes On… (continued) NOTE : It’s been a long time since I attended Appleby (1959), my memory might be a little hazy. If you see something lacking, or something incorrect, feel free to let me know where I went wrong.   Cricket Now, here was a sport I did enjoy, sort of. I was normally the “ bowler ”. That’s the person, for those not familiar with the sport, who throws the ball ( bowls ) at player who is standing at the opposite end of the “ pitch ”. His job is to hit the ball as far as he can, while the bowler’s ( me ) job is to hit the “ wicket ” and get the player out. If you are confused ( I am, just thinking about it! ), then you can read all about the game and its rules “ on-line ”! By the way, we didn’t have “ on-line ” back in the “ good old days ” ( sigh ). Although I liked being the bowler, I wasn’t too fond of being a “ wicket keeper ” or a “ fielder ” ( there are lots of funny names for them! ). You might remember from a few segments ago that I was hit in the for...

Life Goes On… (continued) NOTE : It’s been a long time since I attended Appleby (1959), my memory might be a little hazy. If you see something lacking, or something incorrect, feel free to let me know where I went wrong.   Soccer At this point in my life, I was quite clumsy. It turned out that soccer was not my game! Again, like hockey, I was relegated to being the “ goalie ”. Likely not a “ great ” choice for the team! It was, at best, healthy exercise, and I did enjoy the fresh air. So much for my soccer experience! Football Football can be a dangerous sport. At least, it was for me! I wasn’t the “ quarterback ”, or the “ running back ”. I was, as you might expect, the “ centre ”! The problem was, I was a “ chicken ”. I hated being “ crushed ” by the opposite team. I tended to get nervous just before the “ snap ”. This was especially true if one of the opposite players was the “ TRUCK DRIVER ”, Don Wilson ! To say that he was big and strong, would be an understatement. I...

Life Goes On… (continued) NOTE : It’s been a long time since I attended Appleby (1959), my memory might be a little hazy. If you see something lacking, or something incorrect, feel free to let me know where I went wrong. Ice Hockey – I was a goalie . I am sure that was because I wasn’t a very good skater. My parents bought me all of the equipment I needed, but that didn’t really help me with my playing non-abilities! In those days, goalies didn’t wear face masks . Jacques Plante , of the Montreal Canadiens , was experimenting with them, but they weren’t part of normal goalie equipment. I think that it was a few years after I had become a “ goalie ” that the school decided that their goalies should wear masks. The masks were made of plexiglass and protected goalie’s faces. The problem was, they would “ fog-up ” and make if difficult to see the opposition player and more importantly, the puck ! The first game that I wore the mask, my mask really “ fogged up ”! I got tired of not being a...

Life Goes On… (continued) NOTE : It’s been a long time since I attended Appleby (1959), my memory might be a little hazy. If you see something lacking, or something incorrect, feel free to let me know where I went wrong.   The Choir… During my first year at Appleby , the choir master, Mr. Bott , discovered that I could sing ( I didn’t know that I could! ) and convinced me that I should be in the school’s choir. I did, and eventually became a soloist, that is until my voiced changed! I did enjoy the experience. If I had started Appleby a year earlier, I might have been part of the choir that traveled to England to perform at Queen Elizabeth’s coronation. That would have been amazing! School Sports Frankly, I wasn’t very good at sports! At least, the type that had at Appleby at that time ( I believe that that has now changed ). All students were required to be on a school sports team. The following are some examples of my sporting activities .

Life Goes On… (continued) NOTE : It’s been a long time since I attended Appleby (1959), my memory might be a little hazy. If you see something lacking, or something incorrect, feel free to let me know where I went wrong.     There were two “Cadet” highlights for me. Each year, on a designated Sunday , after we were well practice in the “ art ” of group marching , we would gather, in our “ spit and polished ” uniforms on the school grounds, then form up in our respective platoons. Soon, we were given the order to start the parade. Officers yelling out commands, the school military band playing loudly, and with feet pounding on the pavement, we moved off the school property and onto the streets of Oakville . People, mainly beaming parents, would line the sidewalks and cheer us on. We march proudly, normally in step, heads held high, to the downtown core of Oakville . Ceremonies were held, and then we would separately meet our waiting families. As you can imagine, it was quite ...

Life Goes On… (Continued) NOTE : It’s been a long time since I attended Appleby (1959), my memory might be a little hazy. If you see something lacking, or something incorrect, feel free to let me know where I went wrong.   Discipline It wasn’t all routine. When I first started, I became a Boy Scout . Appleby had its own Boy Scout chapter. I believe that it was in my second year, that I became a soldier ( cadet ). When I started in Appleby , the Second World War had only been over for 9 years and the Korean War was just over. Appleby was one of the private schools that trained its students to become soldiers. Frankly, at my age, I didn’t really understand the implications of our training to be soldiers. I just thought it was part of my schooling and it was a lot of fun. Yes, there was a lot of discipline, marching, cleaning ( and I mean really cleaning ) brass buttons and belts, “ spit ” polishing boots and learning how to take apart a rifle and put it back together agai...

Life Goes On.. .   NOTE : It’s been a long time since I attended Appleby (1959), my memory might be a little hazy. If you see something lacking, or something incorrect, feel free to let me know where I went wrong. As I adjusted to life at Appleby , I learned the Appleby routine , breakfast in the dining room, prayers in the chapel, learning in the classroom, exercise in the gym, friendships developed, evening prayers and, of course, homework in our rooms. Eventually, it all came together. Classroom learning : full days, Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays Classroom learning : half days, Wednesdays, and Saturdays On half days , we would play organized sports, football in the fall; hockey in the winter, and we played other sports, cricket, and soccer, depending on our age Sundays were normally for family visits, either at the school or at home. Sometimes our families weren’t available to come, so Sunday was a free day (To be continued)

Getting Started! (Continued) For learning, it was much like what I was used to, similar type classrooms. We moved from subject to subject, and teacher to teacher. The difference for me, was the tutoring in the evening. I eventually learned to read. So much so, that when I was a little older and had moved to Powell’s House ( not in a dormitory, but a two-person room ), started to read after lights out. I accomplished this by sliding under my covers and turning on my “ prized ” flashlight. My choice of books back then were adventure stories! My favourite books were by C.S. Forrester and his “ Hornblower ” series. I still like to re-read all his books. My love of books, from that time forward has never left me! And, hopefully, as you can see by my “ memoirs ”, I love to write too. ( More later )

Getting Started! (Continued) In the basement of Colley House was where we ate our meals. The room was set up with long tables. Chairs were set up on either side of the tables. Food was placed in the middle of the tables. As far as I can remember, the food was great. Once prayers were said, we could help ourselves to as much as we wanted. During this time, I learned table manners. The dining room was for the whole school. Think of Harry Potter at Hogwart s. (To be continued)

Getting Started! When I first started boarding at Appleby College , there were three “ Houses ”, Powell’s House , Colley House and Walker House . In my first year, I was assigned to Colley House . The upper floor of this house contained a large dormitory. I can’t remember exactly how many boys were housed in the dorm, but I think about 20. Beds were lined up on either side of a long room. This was now, my “ home away from home ”.   (To be continued)

In the Beginning My first days at Appleby College were not happy ones! After the first week I wrote my parents, asking that they “ come and get me! ” I wanted to go home. The next weekend my parents came to visit me, thinking that sending me there was a big mistake, and were going to have to take me home. When they arrived at the school, they couldn’t find me. I was out playing with my new friends! When they eventually found me, I asked why they were there. Frustrated, they just said that they were there to “ visit ” me. So much for Not wanting to be at Appleby !  It wasn’t until 5 years later that I wanted to stay home. It wasn’t that I didn’t like Appleby , but I had just discovered GIRLS , and I wanted to explore my opportunities at a public school! Enter Richview Collegiate Institute ( RCI ) and a girl named “ Shirley ”! That, however, is another memory to be “ penned ” later.   

Childhood Sicknesses My life changed when I was 9! It was a time when childhood diseases were running ramped, German Measles , Mumps , Chicken Pox , etc. and I got them all. As a result, I missed a lot of school. This was when a would have been taught “ reading, writing and arithmetic ”. As you can imagine, I fell far behind my classmates. Also, that was a era when they didn’t “ fail ” students. My parents, of course, were very concerned. So much so that they decided to find an institution that offered tutoring in reading and writing. My father had had experience with private schools, he had attended St. Andrews College in Aurora , when he was a boy. Also, my brother, Chuck went there for a year or two. My parents’ choice for me was not St. Andrews but Appleby College in Oakville . I am not sure why they choose Appleby , but I think was because they had a tutoring program that would help me with my reading and writing. As we lived in Etobicoke ( a far distance from Oakville ), be...

Other “Early Time” Memories – Toronto My father loved Toronto , especially the downtown area. As a young boy, he would take me to hocket games ( Toronto Maple Leafs ), baseball games ( Toronto Maple Leafs ) and stock car races ( at the Exhibition stadium ). He would also take me to other interesting downtown locations. One of my favourite places was the Bathurst Street bridge that crossed over the main line railroad tracks. We would stand on the bridge and wait for a train to pass. Back then the train engines were steam, so as the train went under us the steam would rise and cloud us with smoke! Likely it was not good for our health, but it was always very exciting!