New arrival challenges Ripley's place in pecking order

This is Cole Robert Kreienkamp, recent arrival in the home of Matthew and Caitlin Wild Kreienkamp. Cole was born on 11-22-11 (a palindrome) at St. Luke's Hospital in St. Louis County, Missouri, where his mother had also been born some 28 years earlier. He is the first grandchild, and I've been challenged to come up with a name for him to call me. I suggested Hizzoner, but my wife suggested I be serious. Maybe I'll be Daddy John, as I remember calling my maternal grandfather Daddy Clem. My paternal grandfather never made it past my father's late teens, passing from a heart attack in the 1930's.

Cole came into the world at !2:49 AM, which gave him that "same backward as well as forward" birth date. I think that's really kind of neat. He also had a full head of hair, so unlike so many babies who are born looking like Eisenhower, he looked more like Moe Howard. His poor father has less hair on his head than his son, although there is talk that hair color and density may change in the next few weeks. I'm also told that women who give birth to children with full heads of hair experience heartburn during their pregnancy - I'll have to ask Caitlin if that was true for her.

Anyway, Cole is now here, one week early and Caitlin was ready to move to the next phase. Knowing my daughter, she'll snap back into shape quickly. Her oldest dog, Jo Jo, has shown a maternal instinct toward the child, while young Toby appears frightened by this new arrival. I plan to meet the child when driving weather improves, but my wife will fly north to visit in a week. That'll be about right when Caitlin is willing to say "here - take this child" and head out with friends knowing he'll be in good hands. My wife says "the best side of grand-parenting is the ability to enjoy the child, then hand him back".

Until Cole learns how to jump into my lap, and give me wet sloppy Beagle kisses, Ripley's place is safe in my life and heart. C'mon boy, grab your leash and we'll go for a walk.

We were young and gay

Well, one of us was, anyway. Funny how that movie phrase from a much earlier era completely took on a different connotation for our generation, and a term of open acceptance for our children's. I chose these black and white photos of my youth, and of the youth I served with in Germany with the Air Force. Black and white because the word "gay" in the era of old black and white movies always meant "marked by exuberance or happy excitement" or "merry". Webster set out a second definition of "bright, especially in color", and third was "full of or given to social pleasures". Down around definition number five was "homosexual". I'm happy to say that today, number five doesn't exclude the first four. We've come a long way, baby, And forty years later, Communism may have wavered and ultimately waned, but terrorism is far more of a threat to our way of life, and it's time for all of us to set aside any perceived differences and pull together for the collective good.

Three of those of us pictured, circa 1970 in Germany, were batting .750, but one of us was four for four. And yet we all focused on those first three meanings, having the exuberance of youth in a strange land, far from the world of war that was Vietnam. And while nobody could say our attire was bright, we all shared the color blue - as in Air Force blue. And from the picture of Pete and Phyllis, clearly some of us were given to social pleasures.

The best news, is that we all stayed in touch, and we all share that same affection we had for each other today. Perhaps it was because we all shared a common adversary, the military mind which not only stifled creativity but seemed threatened by it. And as broadcast journalists, we were anything but military. I am so proud of my Air Force brothers, and thought of these guys yesterday on Veterans Day, November 11, 2011. All those elevens could also be read as ones - and five Aces will always be a winning hand. And yes, there are six in 11/11/2011, but we'll call that last one "one for good measure".

I salute you Don, Pete, Phyllis, and my other broadcast brothers known and unknown. As we of the Vietnam generation say "welcome home, brother (and sister)", we of all generations of our nation's warriors thank those who went before, and those who have followed. God Bless you all.

Coat of many colors

I was told by a good friend that "you are the most courageous man I know, to post that picture." What? I wore this coat for the recent Time Life Malt Shop Memories Cruise that departed Tampa last Thursday for three days, visiting the Bahamas for one day, but focusing on featuring singing acts from the 50's and 60's.

I wore similar fabrics during my four years in high school, when the "cool" people actually wore madras coats, shirts, pants, etc.
Funny story is that during my high school Junior Year (1964) we had an Indian exchange student named Vinay Deshpande, who told us that "in my country, only the beggars wear madras cloth". Gee, and we thought it was so "prep" back in Indianapolis. Maybe that says more about Indianapolis, than anything else.

Anyway, I took it along for the "sock hop" event, which was rained out on the main deck - had to settle for seeing the Beach Boys twice. I snuck in for the second seating, preferring to listen to them a second time than to hear a bunch of old guys who never left Philly and were singing "do-whop" in the Centrum. So, while wearing it I decided to "sit" for the photos you see taken on shipboard and sold for outrageous prices ($29.95). I ended up with about 24 to choose from using various backdrops, but got it down to two - one of which was paid for by "shipboard credit" from the cruise. The second one I purchased was with one of my tropical shirts. I was tempted to buy several others, but decided two were enough. Later I was told by a buddy that he'd buy one or two, then take digital pictures of the others he didn't buy. Damn, should have thought of that myself.

Actually, I love this jacket and have worn it several times to church, where somebody called me Joseph (Old Testament reference for my unchurched friends). And it's probably better than my Kiwanis bright orange blazer. Funny coincidence - both the Madras jacket and the orange blazer cost the same. Hey, for $99 bucks, who could pass up such a bargain. It's all about the Benjamin's they say, and if you can be a fashion plate [or perhaps at least a soup bowl] for under $100, you go for it.