Friday nights with Burke Taylor

In the 1960s New Bern High School athletes did not have a better friend than Mr. Burke Taylor. Mr. Taylor was an automobile dealer in New Bern early in that industry's history. He originally sold Oldsmobiles and Cadillacs. The story, as I was told was he received a medical diagnosis that his time was limited. He sold his business to Mr. Don Deichman. He continued to live and decided to sell Dodges which he did for many years. However he did continue to drive Cadillacs. He was a classic southern gentleman. He wore a  Stetson Rancher style felt hat. The type that has a narrower brim. He smoked great cigars. He helped young people when they wanted to start a business when banks wouldn't. You could see folks stopping by his office to seek advice and make payments for personal loans.

Mr. Taylor was a dear friend to my grandfather. As a physician my grandfather always wanted to have dependable transportation. He made house calls. So the family story goes he bought a new car each year. I guess buying dozens of cars will endear you to an auto dealer. My father retired from the military and moved back home when his father was diagnosed with a terminal illness. Papa passed away after we had been home less than eighteen months. Mr. Taylor became a father figure, mentor and best friend for my Dad. When my Dad entered politics, Mr. Taylor always served as his campaign manager.

For years and years Mr. Taylor was the biggest booster for New Bern Athletics. When trophies were passed out to the athletes Mr. Taylor had paid for them. If the school had a need I am sure he got a call. He was so appreciated by the school that during home football games he had a parking space inside the fence just behind the end zone. His influence was so great that the athletic director would arrange the same privilege at away games. He would invite my dad to go to all the New Bern games with him. We would pile into his huge Cadillac. Dad and Mr. Taylor would be in the front. My sister, myself and Mr. Taylor's grandaughter Juliet would be in the back. Usually the away game trips would include a stop at Wilbur's or King's for good old NC style bar-b-que. Good friends, good food and a great ball game, what could be better?

He was a great mentor for my father. Mentors can be such a blessing. Unfortunately time seems to remove them from your life. Often times you don't appreciate what you have until they are gone. I wish I could ride in the backseat of a big 1966 Cadillac and listen to Mr. Taylor and my Dad one more time.

Don't fly a dead bear!

I hang out with a bunch of guys who know how to properly display a flag. We have a Master Gunnery Sergeant, Master Chief Petty Officer, a couple of Sergent Majors, and a Chief Master Sergeant. If you display "Old Glory" improperly you will definitely hear about it. Any one of those guys are likely to pull out a "Flag Manual" out of his back pocket. Some of these guys have flown on Marine One or served as crew chief on Fat Albert with the Blue Angels.  You can't find a more patriotic group.

I am not sure that anyone has taken that zeal and applied to our City flags. I am not sure there is a manual for the red, yellow and black. My wife dislikes the display when the Bear is lying on his back. I think it shows the Bear in distress. I told her that I would blog about it if she would take some photos. I hope others will join our crusade to keep our Bear climbing upward and onward. Please forward this blog to folks that have pride in our City.

Proper Display

Dead Bear Display

Proper Bear on a Banner

Fly the Bear. Keep him travelling upward and onward. Please no dead Bears.

The First Social Network

Breaker...Breaker...One Nine....Hey Cheese ya got your ears on?

Such as that could be heard heard on the CB radios in old cars cruising through Trent Woods on a summer night. We didn't have cell phones, laptops or Facebook but we had a Social Network. We would jump in the car and fire up a CB radio.

I realized while writing this whole generations reading blogs and using Facebook have never used a CB radio. Most wouldn't even know about CBs if they hadn't seen a rerun of the "Dukes of Hazard". We were networking a couple of years before the beginning of filming of "Moonrunners".(1973) The film was the inspiration for the TV show. The stock car in the movie was named Traveler. (R. E. Lee's Horse) In the show the car was the General Lee. I always thought they must have been watching us to get the ideas for the show. We were up to mischief and trying to outwit Trent Wood's Roscoe P Coltrane.

People developed their own vocabulary to communicate their thoughts via the airwaves. So it is not surprising that we have new words and acronyms that are used on Facebook and in Text messages. So I am LMAO remembering my old "handle" the River Rat.

My Favorite Super Bowl Moment

I joined my friends in the lounge at our local Elk's Lodge to watch the game. We had a great assortment of game food. Our lodge is made up of locals and retirees. Quite often a majority of those present are vets. We have an unusual number of guys that have served the US Military and reached the highest enlisted ranks.

I often wonder what is going to be the highlight of the night. A multimillion dollar commercial or an extraordinary athletic feat. My greatest moment came early. During the National Anthem the screen showed a group of our troops standing at attention in a tent in Afghanistan.

As I write this I am having trouble seeing the screen. The thought of our troops standing during a televised National Anthem in a tent in a war zone has had a profound effect on me. When the image above flashed on the big screens at the game the crowd erupted. This was my favorite moment.

Much has been made of our nation's "greatest generation". My father was a member of that group being a decorated veteran of WWII and Korea. That group truly saved the world from a looming darkness.The guys that responded to the threats of WWII had a clear vision of what was at risk and believed that our nations survival was at risk. We had been attacked.  I am very appreciative of the groups that served in the Korean and Viet Nam wars. During the Korean and Viet Nam conflicts many young Americans were drafted. Their service was no less heroic.

Our current group of service men and women are all volunteers. They have chosen to serve when the threat to the homeland is more difficult to discern. In my business of selling real estate I have been privileged to serve many of these young people. I have been stunned by their sacrifices. Many have served multiple combat tours. Considering that we have been sending our young people to the Middle East since Desert Shield in 1990. Afghanistan saw our troops arrive in 2001. We invaded Iraq the second time in 2003. Our young people still pull tours in Japan, Korea and Germany. I have concluded that the current generation is "One Great Generation"

Their standing at attention for a televised National Anthem preceding the Super Bowl is an image that will stay with me. Their deep display of patriotism has become my favorite Superbowl memory of all time.