Charlotte & Myles Winkler

Myles and Charlotte Winkler moved to Southport from Long Island in January. They loved Long Island but felt it was a good time to move closer to their daughters, both of whom live in Massachusetts, and Southport met most of their requirements. They also have a son in Connecticut and another in Washington State. They miss their friends and family back in New York, of course, but have quickly learned to love Southport for its activities and its friendly people.

Jumping in with both feet, Myles and especially Charlotte have joined in all sorts of groups and classes. They both play bocce and Charlotte plays a little golf. Myles plays gin rummy and enjoys the Men's Coffee Hour. Charlotte has joined the Monday Book Club, which is no surprise since she is a retired school media specialist and children's librarian. She also does aerobics and yoga, has joined the Garden Club and attends the Ladies' Coffee Hour; both attend the Brown Bag Luncheons. Their daughters tease them about their busy schedules and have been known to ask, "Well, Mom, how's camp?" They laugh along with the good-natured ribbing--and continue to investigate new activities.

Myles and Charlotte were childhood sweethearts who met while they were teenage camp counselors in the Bronx. They married young and have celebrated their 60th anniversary. Myles was in the Air Force and then had a career in sales while Charlotte became a teacher. She pursued a Masters degree in library science and, at one point, was in charge of 11 school libraries and spent nine years on the local public library board. She is most impressed with the Southport Library and understands the amount of organization and work required to run such an efficient system.

The Winklers love to travel and have been all over the world, with the exception of Australia. They have traveled by every means possible but have a particular fondness for riverboat cruises, most of which carry no more than 150 passengers. Myles likes to meet and get to know people and usually manages to meet almost every guest during the cruise. When asked what their favorite destinations have been, Charlotte chose Egypt and the Orient. Myles said that wherever they had visited last was always his favorite.

Included in their many interests is a fascinating hobby, or perhaps it's more accurate to call it an avocation. Their daughter Ann, who lives in Wellfleet, is a CPA and also is a used and rare book dealer. Myles and Charlotte traveled all over Long Island attending estate sales, yard sales, book fairs, and thrift shops, buying books for Ann to resell. They concentrated mainly on children's books but were always on the lookout for any unusual books. They had a rule never to spend more than $1.00 for a book and often would discover 25 or 30 in a weekend. They got to know all the local dealers, who would call them if they had something of interest. Ann would turn down a few of their finds but often was able to turn a profit from their contributions. Their very best purchase was an original copy of Bambi, written in German and signed by the author. Written before Disney got involved and made Bambi popular, they bought the book for fifty cents and it turned out to be a real treasure. A find of that value is rare, but they have turned up many interesting books. They plan to renew their hunting expeditions and become familiar with dealers on the Cape and surrounding areas.

POETRY   

Nineteen Southporters joined 12 other travelers from the Boston area at the San Francisco Airport on June 1, all of us eager to explore the beauty of Northern California. We were met by our guide, David, and following a quick lunch, took an extensive bus tour of San Francisco. That evening we enjoyed a great dinner at a restaurant on Pier 39 at Fisherman's Wharf.

The next morning dawned typical San Francisco foggy but midway across the Golden Gate Bridge the fog lifted and we were on our way to Muir Woods to walk among the towering redwoods. After a leisurely lunch in Sausalito, we took the ferry back across San Francisco Bay. The rest of our day was free to do as we pleased.  

Eileen Krowl, Starr Trudeau, Ali Post, Karlyn Curran & Maureen Rounds riding the hills of San Francisco in pedicabs.

Ali Post...

Brenda, Sheila, Eileen, Starr, Maureen, Karlyn and I took off by pedicab and rode up and down the hills of San Francisco to Club Fugazi to see the cabaret, "Beach Blanket Babylon." You'd have to experience it to believe it! Current satire with outlandish costumes and hats as big as Greyhound buses! It's a San Francisco institution that has been running for almost 40 years. After the show we went next door to Capp's, a family style Italian restaurant with red checkered tablecloths and great food. Then we caught a cable car back to the hotel. A fun time and lots of laughs were had by all! 

Maureen Clarke...

Traveling north on Sunday, our group marveled at the beautiful tapestry of vineyards as we entered "wine country". We arrived in Sonoma in late morning and visited the Gloria Ferrer Winery, a Spanish-owned winery that produces sparkling wines. After a private guided tour by an extremely knowledgeable winemaker, we enjoyed our final sample of wine while relaxing in the sun on a terrace overlooking the seemingly endless vineyards. We learned that birds are the winemakers' biggest enemies, that grapes are not stomped on ala Lucy and Ethel but rather squeezed inside a bladder punctured with many holes, which in turn is contained in a large tank, and that Chardonnay and Chablis are the same wine but the French will not allow the US to use the name Chardonnay unless the wine is actually made from grapes grown in the Chardonnay area of France.     

Enjoying a glass of wine in Sonoma (l. to r.): Dick & Maureen Clarke, Margaret & Lou Dhionis, Arlene & Wally Rucki, Carolyn & Peter LeBlanc

On Tuesday we headed to Virginia City, Nevada, an abandoned mining town that looks about the same as it did in the 1870's. Wooden storefronts with swinging wooden doors, plank sidewalks and saloons line the streets--along with modern day tourist shops. What fun!   

Ali Post, Maureen Rounds, Brenda McGovern, Karlyn Curran and Sheila Noonan with Reverend James Mathieu, the Pistol Packing Preacher at the Silver Queen Saloon.

Maureen Rounds...

While walking around in Virginia City, a former gold and silver boom town, Karlyn and I came upon the rear upper door to the Silver Queen Saloon. Entering, we stepped back in time to an 1800's hotel. Peering through an open door, we looked into a small plain room with a double bed, a claw foot tub and a door marked WATER CLOSET in large letters. It quickly became obvious that a guest had recently occupied this room. Further along the narrow corridor we met a woman who was vacuuming the patterned carpet. We engaged her in conversation and learned that her husband wears three hats at the Silver Queen: janitor, morning bartender and minister. He officiates at weddings in the wedding chapel downstairs behind the bar ($250 for the complete package). Before descending to the saloon level, we learned about the most recent encounters between hotel guests and the spirits who inhabit some of the guest rooms. Believe it or not, a spirit appeared in a wedding photo just a few weeks prior to our visit. If you ever want to book a stay at the Silver Queen, rooms start at $55 per night; no extra charge for a visit from a spirit. 

By the time we arrived back at our hotel, the sky had filled with dark clouds and a cold rain was falling. I went back to my room to await our evening dinner cruise on Lake Tahoe and turned on the weather channel. Snow was forecast and a high wind warning advised boats to stay off the lake because of the danger of capsizing! I looked out the window and saw large flakes of wet snow falling-on June 5! While boarding our bus to leave the hotel we saw cars drive in with about an inch of snow on their roofs. David informed us that the captain had called him to say that our boat trip had been cancelled. Smart decision! Instead, we ate dinner on the 18th floor of Harrah's Casino, which had a great view of the lake. Cruel Mother Nature decided to play a trick on us; ten minutes after we arrived, the sun came out and the lake turned into glass. We could have gone after all!   

The next morning we headed to Yosemite National Park. Five minutes out of town we saw snow on the ground and on the branches of the fir trees. This winter wonderland lasted for about 50 miles. Mother Nature wasn't finished with us yet! We had to cross Tioga Pass to descend into Yosemite. For miles the flashing signs assured us that the pass was open, but when we were half an hour from it the message changed to "closed". This was the only way to enter the park; if the pass were really closed we would have had to turn the bus around and return to Lake Tahoe. We continued on and found the pass open! The park ranger at the entrance told David that the road through the pass, closed at 4:30 p.m. the day before because of snow and high winds, had been reopened just an hour before we got there.   

Spencer & Sandy George and Annmarie & Joe Gattuso in Yosemite National Park

Spencer George...

It's difficult for first time visitors to believe what they are seeing in Yosemite. Majestic walls of granite tower above you and waterfalls are endless. Nature surrounds you at every turn and is unceasing in its beauty. The enormous rugged cliffs are at times dwarfed by the tranquility with which you are consumed. Such a dichotomy is difficult to imagine. It can only be experienced in person. To visit leaves you in a tranquil state that seems to last even as you leave. 

Eileen Krowl & Starr Trudeau...

Our next destinations included Monterrey, Carmel and the 17 Mile Drive, with a stop at the Pebble Beach Golf Course. Pounding surf, lush rolling fairways, elegant facilities. Definitely a ten plus!    

Tour guide David Olivier put our Northern California adventure over the top!

Margaret Dhionis...

We traveled almost 1200 miles and our trip was fabulous from start to finish. But it was David Olivier, our tour guide, who really put it over the top!  David Olivier is a freelance travel consultant who turned out to be the main reason why we all enjoyed our wonderful adventure so much. David is charming, witty and articulate and went out of his way to show us the beauty of California. He always had an interesting story to tell, whether it related to people, buildings, transportation, the environment or historical or current events. Our sometimes long bus rides were fun because he told jokes (many Irish ones) and quizzed us on our knowledge of California and Massachusetts trivia. We were in awe of his knowledge on so many subjects, which he shared willingly and proudly. At dinner on our last night he surprised us with his generosity by treating us all to wine. What a great guide! 

PHOTOS Wally Rucki (David Olivier); all others by Karlyn Curran 

 NEW IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD 

Lorraine & Jack Clark

Lorraine and John (Jack) Clark moved to Sea Spray Avenue last November. Both are Massachusetts natives: Lorraine was born in Winchester and Jack in Burlington. After marrying, 52 years ago, they lived in Woburn, then in Wilmington for 30 years, and finally in East Falmouth for the last 14 before arriving at Southport. They have three children, a son and daughter (twins), and a second daughter. Their grandchildren include a grandson who plays in the Toronto Blue Jays minor league system, a granddaughter who has just graduated from Nashua High School, and two younger children in Nashua.       

Lorraine worked as secretary to the principal of the Wilmington High School, retiring after 25 years there. And although they had never met, she discovered after moving here that Derek Little, who now supervises Southport's Guard House operations, once served as superintendent of schools in Wilmington. Jack had a career in technical sales in the high tech industry, working at Analog Devices, Inc. and as a manufacturer's representative. He is still working part time in the printed circuit board aspect of the industry. Jack was active in Wilmington's civic affairs, serving on the historical commission as well as the finance committee. He is knowledgeable about the Middlesex Canal and was one of the principal speakers on the occasion of the canal's bicentennial celebration.

In earlier times, the Clarks enjoyed boating, fishing, camping, golf and skiing. But the boat has been sold and Jack jokes that he uses a better boat now: someone else's. Camping has also been deleted from their recreational agenda since Lorraine is allergic to bee stings and they've had at least one camping trip interrupted by a number of hospital visits for this problem. They spend some of the winter months in Florida where they golf and play cards-activities that they continue to enjoy at Southport. Jack enjoys pool, as well.  

You may have noticed an unusual object that recently appeared in front of the new TV over the bar in the Village Center Sports Lounge. That object is a sound bar, which is just a repackaging of two or more freestanding speakers that previously were connected to a stereo system. 

Sound bars have become popular for the simple reason that as technology has enabled the production of very thin, big-picture TV sets the related sound technology still has physical limits. High definition flat-screen TVs are just that-flat-and as a result, speakers for the sound are relegated to the back of the TV set. If you want to experience the quality of sound found in older TVs with front-facing speakers, a single sound bar costing less than $100 should be sufficient. 

Single sound bars can be used in two ways. Many of the new TVs provide input receptacles for plugging in two or more external speakers and/or a single receptacle for plugging in earphones. Connecting your sound bar to the external speaker inputs allows you to adjust the TV set volume and the sound bar volume independently (perhaps with one remote control, but more likely with one for each-the set and the sound bar). Using the earphones input disables the TV set's audio, and the sound bar becomes the only source of sound. Volume can be adjusted with the TV remote control with the sound bar remote control useful in setting the level of maximum sound output. 

Where is the world's tallest mountain, calculated from the sea floor? Where is the longest continuously erupting volcano on the planet? In which state were native customs, language and culture suppressed by New England missionaries for most of a century? Which state was once a royal kingdom? In which state did the US Army use an entire island for bombing practice? Which state has an island reserved for native residents only? That's right: Hawaii! Accompany us on a fascinating visual journey of the Hawaii you won't find in tourist brochures and learn what makes the Islands' geography, geology, history and culture unique.

Drew Kapp, a UConn graduate, earned his MS in Geography at the University of Hawaii on Oahu. He lives "off the grid" in a rainforest adjacent to Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island of Hawaii and teaches courses in world, regional and Hawaiian environmental and cultural geography at the University of Hawaii's Hilo campus and at the Hawaii Community College in Hilo. Drew served as a cartographic editor and contributing author for the definitive Atlas of Hawaii. As a member of his halau (traditional hula school), he is participating in the annual 10-day Smithsonian Folklife Festival on the National Mall in June/July, demonstrating and explaining aspects of native Hawaiian life and culture.

Friday, July 13
Lunch: 11:30 a.m., $7.50
Program: Noon - 1:00 p.m.