Topic starter
21/08/2008 2:25 am
Greetings From New Orleans ,
Today , the 20th. of August , Capt Vern Streckfus ( NOBRA 19 ) and I had lunch with " The Man , The Myth , and The Legend " , Capt. " Doc " Hawley at the New Orleans , Royal Orleans Hotel in the famous Rib Room . It was truly a memorable occasion where three old friends were able to sit down in a very typical New Orleans , French Quarter setting , enjoy a delicious meal and entertain one another with both old and new , steamboat and ship , war stories and conjure up the ghost of the past that made our careers on the river so very interesting . Doc spoke and entertained us of his life and times on the Idlewild ( now the Belle Of Louisville ) and his stories of his experiences with Capt. Wagner when he served under him as mate . Capt. Vern told us of his adventures on both the old Streckfus steamers and the Str. Natchez that he both served and worked on . For my part I reministed about my adventures on the Str.'s Delta Queen and the Mississippi Queen and the ships that I have now served on for over twenty-nine years . To neither my or Capt. Vern's surprise , Doc now seventy-three years young both looked and sounded as young and sharp as he ever did where on the other hand both Capt. Vern and I are certainly starting to show the toll of too many all night jobs on loaded tankers out on the Mississippi River . In one of the Indiana Jones movies , Indy once said , " Its not the years , its the miles " . Well , no truer words were spoken as the miles are now adding up for both Capt. Vern and I . The " lunch " went on for over five precious hours and seldom was any of us at a loss for words when almost forgotton steamboats and the men that served on them and with us came up and each of us certainly had our own stories to tell about each . It didn't dawn on me till all three of us had left the table , gone our separate ways that this was the same " story telling times " that I witnessed in the Pilot House of the Delta Queen so many many years ago between those crusty old steamboat and towboat pilots that graced the DQ pilot house roster and told very much similar stories of their own life and times that made their lifes so memorable from working out on the RIVER . Has Capt. Vern , Doc and myself somehow unbeknownist to us become those shame old crusty Pilots & Captains ? I guess only the history books and the young mates and deckhands that are now paying thier dues will ever know for sure .
Smoothe Sailing !
Ted Davisson
21/08/2008 11:19 am
Ted, is that you in the pictures with Doc? If so it is good to put a face with a name.
21/08/2008 12:56 pm
Alan, Ted had changed a bit last time I saw him, but not quite that much! Though I haven't seen him in about 15 years, I believe that is Capt. Verne Streckfus.
21/08/2008 1:02 pm
Yeah, Ted, it has dawned on me in the last year or two that I am now one of the "old timers". Question I have is, "When did I get old?", because in my mind I'm still the 25-year-old struggling to make a good name for myself. I hope the name is made, and my body reminds me it is not 25 anymore, but I can't figure out when it happened!
Wish I could have been there for that lunch.
21/08/2008 3:33 pm
Wonder where the years have gone? You should try starting over. The mind set of a 25 year old with a 50 + body and mind fade. I would have liked to have been a mouse, lisening to the talk at that table. Non-river people would have sworn it was a get together of fiction writers. We know better.
21/08/2008 3:58 pm
That is Verne in the pix, which I assume Ted took. You should have had a waiter take one of all three of you. I'm surprised Verne didn't treat you all to his home away from home: Carmello's! The Rib Room is certainly classier than Ruby Red's, which is where Doc and I always go - since the demise of the original one on Esplanade, the only time he gets to the West Bank version is when someone with a car is available.(While Doc has been on the river since June of 1951, he doesn't quite go back to the IDLEWILD - it was already the AVALON when he started on her.)
21/08/2008 4:15 pm
Whatta reckon they had good to eat?
Topic starter
21/08/2008 8:01 pm
Alan...............
Alan ,
Thanks for your posting and to answer your question , I am not in either of the pictures due to the fact that someone had to take the pictures . Now that stately gentleman beside Capt. Hawley , is none other than Capt. Vern Streckfus , sometimes know as " The Wizzard Of The Waterways " !! Just joking but I will post a fairly current picture of me and just to make certain , I am the fellow on the left and the gentleman on the right is the Chinese ship captain and whose ship I was on during a job assignment . Hope all is well with you and yours !
Smoothe Sailing !
Ted Davisson
Alan Bates;12324 wrote: Ted, is that you in the pictures with Doc? If so it is good to put a face with a name.
Topic starter
21/08/2008 8:40 pm
Shipyard Sam...............
Shipyard Sam ,
Thanks for your posting and trust me it was ALL good and unfortunately is SHOWS !
Smoothe Sailing !
Ted
Shipyard Sam;12337 wrote: Whatta reckon they good to eat?
Topic starter
22/08/2008 1:52 pm
Fred , " Your One Of The Few " !
Fred ,
Thanks for the posting and it certainly goes without saying your postings have always been both informative and interesting . If you had not been on the DQ at the time You certainly would have not only been welcome to come to the " Lunch With A Legend " , but more importantly you should have been there more than anyone else due to fact you have payed your dues on the steamboats and towboats and your experiences in general with actually making the personal sacrifices and actually working on the RIVER ! Your definately , " One Of The Few " !!
Smoothe Sailing !
Ted Davisson
Fred Carmichael;12331 wrote: Wonder where the years have gone? You should try starting over. The mind set of a 25 year old with a 50 + body and mind fade. I would have liked to have been a mouse, lisening to the talk at that table. Non-river people would have sworn it was a get together of fiction writers. We know better.
22/08/2008 2:25 pm
At 85, I can tell you a little about when you become old. You become old when you lose interest, especially interest in people.
I read an article one time in which the author interviewed really ancient people. His cut-off date for interviewees was 95 or older. He talked to a Minnesota Indian who still portaged canoes at 105 years. He ignored the advice of the people. (Such things as "Eat fat meat!" "I ain't drawed a sober breath since I was nine years old." And sanctimonious adages.) Instead he noticed what they shared in common:
1. They were not picky eaters - white beans or lobster made no difference.
2. They were happy and laughed a lot.
3. Every one of them had an abiding interest in something - whether it was steamboats, a rose garden, or puttering around in a shop - just anything.
Of course, it pays to NOT get run over by a bus!
22/08/2008 4:17 pm
Annie Blum here. I must confess that when I looked at this thread before we left for Leclaire, I was in too much of a hurry and I rather skimmed it. Today when I looked at it again, I was puzzled because I was looking for Captain Verne in the pictures and wondering who that man was that I didn't recognize. All of a sudden the years caved in and I realized I was looking at "Little Vern!"
Topic starter
23/08/2008 4:03 am
Bob ...............
Bob ,
To answer your question of " When did I get old " , well you did like the rest of us when we were actually out there on the river paying our dues . Also , the reason we don't feel old is simply because while out there paying our dues , we were also and more importantly LOVING our work although it involved work that took us from our loved ones , had to deal with substandard working conditions and pay that should have been twice of what we were paid . Food for thought !
Smoothe Sailing !
Ted Davisson
Bob Reynolds;12327 wrote: Yeah, Ted, it has dawned on me in the last year or two that I am now one of the "old timers". Question I have is, "When did I get old?", because in my mind I'm still the 25-year-old struggling to make a good name for myself. I hope the name is made, and my body reminds me it is not 25 anymore, but I can't figure out when it happened!
Wish I could have been there for that lunch.
28/08/2008 4:28 pm
Just for the benefit of those who didn't know you in the 70's, you should post a picture of yourself from that time, which is how a lot of us remember you. That would explain why some of us don't know who is who in recent photos. Otherwise, they might think we are senile. I wasn't sure either, as Verne was barely grown the last time I saw him. If it was you in the picture, I would still have been at a loss, after seeing the wing bridge picture. If anybody out there thinks they look the same as they did 30 years ago, they are going to have to prove it. And if they do, I would like the name of their plastic surgeon.
28/08/2008 10:36 pm
Those Seventies Shots
Here's a link to pics of Captains Ted, Lexie, and Bob and Sharon Reynolds taken in 1977 by Watchman Andy Burkman:
Willie and Buster's Whirlwind Tour of the World