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 To:  Members and Friends of Island MCB 7 at Large

From:  John Blaisdell, Secretary/Treasurer, Island MCB 7 at Large

Subject:  National Conventions and MCB 7Reunions

After a long cold winter, followed by a cold wet spring with too much rain, we are suddenly too warm and too dry.  We have been enjoying (?) some ninety-degree days with lots of humidity.  The only reason I tell you guys this stuff is to let you know you don’t have it so bad.  I guess I never could understand why people complain about the weather when there is nothing anyone can do about it.  So, the national convention in St Cloud, Minnesota, next month should be too warm and too humid.  And of course, the MCB 7 reunion in New Orleans in October should be too warm and too humid.  Just wait until we visit Gulfport.

We come into this world wet, naked, and hungry.  Then things get worse.   I came into this world with nothing.  I still have some of it left. 

A part of this newsletter is to notify the annual dues paying members about their annual payment of $17.00 to help cover the expenses of the organization and of this Island.  If there is an Island application with your newsletter, please send a check to the Island along with the signed application.  This will continue your membership for another year.  Martin Platzner, Sam Phillips, Don Thomas and Ted Schulte are already paid. 

Never test the water with both feet.  And never squat with your spurs on.

The NSVA has allowed us seven delegates to the National Convention based on our 104 membership of last year.  John Dever and I are the only delegates so far.  If you are attending the Convention and would like to be a delegate please let me know by August 15.  Also, I have a room reserved at the hotel but my lovely wife has decided she will not attend so I will be glad to share expenses with someone who would also like to share expenses.  The hotel is very nice and is located on the west bank of the Mississippi River, which runs through the city of St Cloud.  If you are traveling in a motor home or pulling a trailer, there is still space available in the yard of my USMC buddy.

Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day.  Teach him how to fish, and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day.
The quickest way to double your money is to fold it in half and put it back in your pocket.

I have been attending the meetings of the local Island, which is sponsoring the National Convention.  This has been an education for me so far as the problems involved in pulling something like this together.  I was informed by Don, the Convention chairperson, of the lack of support from the National officers, lack of support from the local VFW and Legion posts, and from local businesses.   This I find disappointing.  A convention like this brings in a lot of bucks to the host community but the host doesn’t want to support the convention.  And I guess the National officers have their own agenda and aren’t particularly interested in the reunion aspects of the convention.  Go figure.

If you lend somebody $20, and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.
The similarities of skydiving and golf:  Golf is whack! Damn.  Whereas skydiving is damn! Whack.

My lovely wife and I plan to attend the annual MCB 7 reunion in New Orleans.  I have made my reservations at the hotel and am waiting for the information package from either Nick Mastrocola or from Ernie Asher.  Ernie has been active in making arrangements for us in New Orleans as he did for the reunion in St Louis.  I know a part of this gathering will include a trip to Gulfport, Mississippi, to tour the base and to visit the Seabee Museum.  For those of you who like to collect Seabee items of apparel, there is a really nice shop in the museum.  We are debating the idea of driving to this reunion, as I will retire August 24 after 31 years with the University of Minnesota.  I have made application with the Social Security Administration for benefits to begin September 1, 2001.  By Labor Day, I shall be a retired person.

If you always tell the truth, you will never have to remember what you said.
Some days you are the bug, some days you are the windshield.

Our immediate plans will be to go to the lake for a couple of weeks, over the Labor day weekend, and do some R & R and some reading, a little fishing, and behave like tourists.  We plan to leave on or about September 12 for Denver, then on to Mesquite, NV.  I heard from friends there are like seven golf courses in Mesquite.  I would like to try a few of them.  Then we will return through Salt Lake City, western Nebraska to the Black Hills, and back to St Paul.  We will at that time make arrangements to go to New Orleans for the MCB 7 Reunion.  We were in Florida last February with the family and had a chance to watch a shuttle launch.  Next February we would like to rent a place along the Space Coast for a couple of months to see if we would like being “snow birds”.