More Really Good People...Are the Luckiest People.

Familiar Faces?

Self Filling Cookie Jar Recipe

For those who need extra income (without having to get another job) to save for the reunion or any other goal, have a look at my free educational website.

I set the site up for my clients and their children to learn more about making money in the short term. It is also set up for family and friends to help them control the relationships they may have with their own financial advisors.

It is not a sales device for me. There is no cost and no expected obligation.
It is made up of ideas that may be of some help for some people and not all.

I have written one of the concepts many of my clients enjoy. I call it - the "Self Filling Cookie Jar Recipe".

See the site lmcconnell.multiply.com or don't. It's just a suggestion.

Budget Mind for our Reunion

We have been in communication for this event since April 2006.

In the blog as well as in broadcast via e-mail I have posted a "vision" that consists of a hotel with a "sit down dinner" plus entertainment. I have hinted at the possibility of even some of our High School Rockers doing something too.

Now let's get our wallet in sync with the vision if we have not already done so.

If you have someone you can stay with in Montreal or Chateauguay - great! You're going to save money.

If you, like many others have already been saving a little bit per month since May 2006 -Well Done!

Now, the costs are not all in yet so we do not know what the final cost and or discounts will talley. But let's not let that get in our way for saving the money we need for the event o.k.?

Usually on the Victoria Day weekend costs are higher at Hotels - check in Toronto or Vancouver the cost for that week end and you will see for a Downtown Hotel a cost per night at around $285 -$300 per night. So on the high end $300 x 2= $600.

If the cost to eat at a Hotel is $75 for a decent meal plus $25 for wine = $100.00

If the cost of entertainment were $25 a head - then add on another $25.00.

So just ball parking here, we have $600 + $100+ $25= $725

So, if you can save on the accomdation -great! Do it. You do not have to stay at the hotel.
Then your ball park estimate cost goes to $125.00 without hotel.

If you started saving (as I know a number of you have) - from May onward, then May to May is 13 months divided into $725 = $55 per month saved does it.

If you have alternate accomodations with friends and family -then $125 divided by 13 =$9.61 per month needed if you started saving in May 2006.

If you are only starting to think about saving now, I would say it is late in the day.
It is high time to save the $725 divided by 9 months= $80 per month if you like hotel rooms all in.

But if you have a friend or family to put you up, then $125 divided by 9 months =$13.00 a month for the next 9 months.

Now the figures above are just estimate high ball park figures and are nowhere near final with discounts. But please do not let that stop you from getting your budget together now.

As one person said in an e-mail today."I would hate to think that someone cannot make it because they can't afford it."

Well I would hate to think you cannot make it because you woke up one week before the event, looked at the bank book and thought "Geee, maybe I should have had a plan."

If you fail to plan, then plan to fail.
Be prepared and save more than you need to so you won't have a problem.

Survivors of a Dawson Moment











Sue Davis's daughter Jill



Jane and Les McConnell's son
Jacob








That Which Lingers

The nightmare
passed over
and
no one
has come through the dark
into the light
heart unscathed
by the shadow
cold steel
touch.


We who are
still here
wonder
why
another angel
had to fly
afar.

We all learn
one
at a time of
the fragile
fabric
- our woven
intricate existence,
sewn with the yarn
of
arbitrary nature.

Can we
go on
to find
comfort
in our invisible
community-
cradled in the memory touch
of valued old friends?
O my soul-
may we
all
be
well.

Les McConnell Sept 19 2006

"Come in" she said, "I'll Give ya shelter from the storm..."

Sue Davis on Dawson

Hi Les, I just read the blog for Wednesday. I'm so glad you found your son safe and sound. I too, have a kid at Dawson. My daughter Jill had left her morning class just 15 minutes before the gunman entered the building or she would definitely have been in that cafeteria. I got her cell phone call at about 1:30 to let me know she was at Marionopolis visiting friends. What a horrible, horrible thing to have to deal with as young teens. I don't know how I would have handled anything happening to her from this distance. I thank God that police were nearby and could contain things before any more were hurt or killed. Next week will be tough for these young kids. As I told my daughter, she will be a support to her friends and her community as they will be for her. Don't let terror win you over. Remember your mom's British tenacity. We're NOT afraid!! It's a comfort to her and I know she will need it. She is exhausted by the reports of all a kid her age shouldn't see or never know. She feels a certain guilt about not being there for her friends. She knew the young girl who died. The post traumatic stress will be huge. My love to the families coping with tragedy and grief. We are all with you Dawson!

Feel free to publish this too, Les.

Tell Jacob that we are thinking of him... Jill and me.

Times of Innocence



Thank you Kathie Harnest for the picture of a time of simpler moments.
When I have more time I will put the names below.
Meanwhile see if you all can spot Lynda Young, Kathie Parsons, Rod McManus, Richard Keeler, Elizabeth Dowler, Carl Noble, Dave McLean. Who else can you recognize?

The I Trajectory

What you chose to focus upon,
What you choose to remember,
How you choose to act:

These clothe who you are.
And these things
shall you radiate
from the centre of your sphere-

casting your effect,
to some degree,
upon all,
whose orbits
intersect.

LM Sept 14 2006

My Son at Dawson College


Normally Jacob would have stayed a few minutes to discuss things with his teacher, but today he had to hurry to meet his grilfriend one floor below.

The building has an atrium, all floors look out over a central internal court yard. Opening his locker he was startled to hear BANG -BANG- BANG continual firecracker sounds coming from above. He looked out into the court yard. Everyone was running, on the various floors and in the court below. Running could be heard above.

Word went around like a wildfire of a gunman.
About forty of the kids hid behind the lockers along with Jacob, as shots continued to be fired -BANG -BANG- BANG, from the floor above.
"Is he across the atrium aiming over here or upstairs?" Someone shouted.
Glass shattered and spayed nearby.

After about 45 minutes a policeman leading "point" in front of four others providing cover, herded the frightened students from this floor and out of the building.

The students could not help but notice a pool of blood at the entrance where the gunman had initially started the rampage as he penetrated further and further into the school, allegedly, calmly shooting as he went.

I was one mile down the street in the centre of the city at a business lunch with a client when my sister called my cell, tears in her voice, as she asked if Jacob was at Dawson today.

I left the lunch in shock and panic. I sped west along Rene Levesque to Fort Street but the police deviated traffic out to the high way away from the college.

I made my way back to Westmount from the West.

My cell phone was jammed much of the time as millions of people were trying to get in touch with their loved ones.

Having found a parking spot 4 blocks west of campus I began to run to find my boy.
The cell phone rang.
I briefly heard my boy's voice, but the signal jammed with overuse.
It wrang again.

"Dad I'm safe and out of the building."
"Jacob!" I shreiked, "Are you ok?"
"I am fine -safe, I'm coming home."

If you have family directly affected and need information, the family of the wounded young people who are at the hospital, may call the follwoing hot lines for information:
514-280-2880
514-280-2806

I hope you do not have to use these nunbers.
Les

Dreamscape Chateauguay Sept.10.2006

(L: Gail McAleese)

( R:Judy Vokey)

In Dawson College 1973 Richilieu Campus near Selby Campus, David Gray taught the gentle art of writing from “perceived” experience drawing upon the beat generation authors Jack Kerouack and Paul Bowles.

“The mind is a perception device and one should write from experience in order to get past the “blank page” syndrome.” He might say.

“Who is to say that what you dream has not been experienced?

You students who have recently left high school, have yet to swim out into the great stream of life. Few of you have yet to initiate life altering adventures to write from, so, as aspiring writers, you must begin with experiences you have had including those perceived in dream. Go ahead and create your ‘mirage –montage’.”

Today, I will toss in to the blog a dream journal entry.

For those of you who get bored easily with reading, go on back out to the golf course or back to the TV – or do the lawn or wash the car –whatever- it’s Sunday.

It’s o.k.

And to Tom Lauder who observes that this blog is ‘bizarre’. “Yes- I suppose it is, but so too, is life sometimes.”

Dreamscape – Chateauguay (REMEMBER –THIS IS DREAM ONLY!)

The sun shines. I plod my way up the street from the dam towards the O’Connor house, passing by St.Eugene on Salaberry, the river on one side, houses on the other.

It seems years since my last visit. Much has changed. Perhaps I’ll stop briefly to look upon the O’Connor’s residence, if just to rest for a moment and think back on past memories of some of the O’Connor’s social events.

This walk is dragging on. The house is nowhere to be seen. Instead there are farmers tilling the soil where the house, pool and Terry’s Gymnastic rings once stood. I look back towards St.Eugene – now transformed, a concrete throughway entrance going under Salaberry and the river itself, – a tunnel. A sign reads “This way to Lachine and Montreal”.

“Well it’s about time. I think we’ve all had enough of the damned bridge!”

But I still can’t seem to find my way back to the shopping centre. If St.Eugene is now a one way route, down through a tunnel, then that is not the way I need to be going; at least not yet.

Contemplating the farmers turning the soil, I hear voices coming from behind me. And there behind me, gesticulating and talking to another, is Judy Vokey! Wow! She looks great!

“Judy! –Hey! How are you?” I exclaim, “It only been 35 years!”

She stops and focuses for a moment.

“Les – Oh my god! Look at you! The hair is cut, jeans are gone, gray in the hair – but I still see you in there!”

I explain to her and her friend that I seem to have lost my way in all this change and ask for their help back to the shopping centre.

“Come with us,” she says, “Were parked in the lot just up the street and we’ll get you back to D’Anjou Blvd. We have to go back to the store now anyway.”

The store is located between IGA and Canadian Tire, just across from Jean Coutou at Maple street. I enter and they show me around all kinds of machinery and appliances.

A garden furniture display juts out of the wall above eye level across the store. What I thought was a mannequin – is now waving to me. I put my glasses on. There waving, smiling and looking directly at me is Gail McAleese – just as I remember her, trimmed bangs just above the eyes –still thin and lovely. I can feel tears begin to well up. I cannot stop them.

“How can this be?” I think to myself – elated yet profoundly saddened. Gail was killed in a car accident in Scotland not a year after her graduation in 1973. I cannot believe what I see, but I so do want to.

I turn to Judy.

“Judy, do me a favour and look over there to the wall display. Tell me what you see; my glasses are smudged.” – I lie blatantly. I don’t want her to think I’ve gone nuts.

I’ve accidentally interrupted her while she deals with a client, but she diplomatically ignores my faux-pas and looks up. (That’s Judy alright.)

“Oh yes,” she says, “The display - I told them to take it down. Kids always climb up and play on the darn thing. We’ll get in trouble with that one day. Hold on.” She seems to have noticed something else.

She strides over to the display.

“Young man,” she commands, “Come down from there this instant!”

What young man? I look back at the display. There a kid of nine or ten, short red hair fools around with a mannequin of a young lady in front of his friends down on the floor.

Gail is no longer there. I am saddened.

I remember days with her as a good friend. Gail and Debbie Vawer, sometimes Joanne Beda, hanging out front of the school. Sometimes Gail and I would go over to Beconsfield and see Susan, her lovely cousin. Gail put me up to running for school royalty one year – a good experience – Hopeton won out as he rightly deserved. And I had gained a true friend in Gail.

Before leaving the store, I approached Judy one last time.

“Judy, you’ve heard about the Reunion next year”. Will you be there?”

Her face always expressive – said, “For now, I don’t think so, but we’ll see.”

I could see in her eyes mixed feelings about attending such an event –things she would prefer to leave behind and yet people she would love to see –if not for one last time.

(End Dreamscape)

So, it was good to see my old friend even if in a dream, smiling and waving to me. I do miss Gail when I think upon her every now and again.

And Judy, – if you happen to read this ‘message in a bottle’, I do hope you are well and that you and others referred to herein, may see fit to attend the Reunion next May.

Greetings from LA


Brother and Sister

Hey Les

- just boiling here in L.A. all summer -- and it's still cooking. Thought I'd drop a couple more photos and some poems. My sister, Deb (Class of '74, married to Jack Beaulne , class of '72) was here visiting early July, so I've included a recent photo of myself with her. I've also included another two, one from the '70s in Africa , the other another time, another place. I sent a few poems, so I'll let you choose (if you so choose). Hope your summer was all that you hoped for. Take care.
All good things always,
Rick

Antithesis

Naiad emerges from river,

a gift of water in her wake;

wet clings to her bosom

while mayflies spirit the dawn,

their delicate transparent wings pursued

by two, perhaps three, long filaments

that shimmer morning.

From her lips, to sex the air with song,

a sweet purl flows and the forest listens,

I listen. Fluent in river talk, her rhetoric

as mellifluous as the waterfall she sings to.

Her presence is a lack of time,

never near,

never far. I hear

her cry for help and succumb, let her

mislead me through woods, past lakes

and fairy rings. I am obediently

lured by tears.

From my matrix of illusion

and forgetfulness, I tumble dream

shapes, trouble the truth

where I sleep with eyes open

in the house of Somnus, and the river

I hear is the gentle flow of Lethe nearby

where poppies bloom with other

drowsy herbs. Here, no cock crows

and twilight wraps all things in shadow—

river, me, a kiss from Naiad that almost

breaks into light.

Rick Kilpatrick

Life Graduation through Reunion











(A 'visitor' in my life, -Pat Decaen Then and Now -a great man!)


I find this process of Reunion "creation /coordination" to be really quite interesting.

At first I was somewhat concerned about the time it would take and the details I would have to involve myself in -a possible sticky goo of inconvenience. But as the process evolves in small steps, there is convergence, joy and acceptance of imperfection.

I stand in the centre of a circle, deploying actions, which once invoked, fly at their own speed with their own life, on their own accord, around me, building in their own momentum energy and resulting effects.

Some of these are as follows:

Word of Mouth :
I speak to people who once went to HS Billings, or parents that are still in Chateauguay, I tell them of the reunion, the websites and some of the people I have been in contact with. They then tell other people. A ripple effect is set in motion.

E-mail:
Of course I began months ago with the broadcast e-mail list and since then I have been corresponding more one on one with various people who then have begun corresponding with others. Also I have sent many messages to Classmates.com. Some people have actually begun looking at this site as a result and have started contacting their old friends. I get at least one request every two weeks or so from someone to pass their e-mail address on to an old acquaintence.

Web Log:
The log tends be a cohesive 'passive element' or ever changing 'store front window' where anyone can simply look in at pictures or select entries to read.

Yet inherent within the entries and pictures are activated seeds of recall, which evoke within the viewer/ readers' consciousness a "call to one's own past". So the log is more active than some might think. Once looking in or reading, do not be suprised to find yourself occasionally dreaming of the past or of individuals from the hallways of your years in school.

Telephone
As I work on the logistical elements -hotel and possible back-up, should this approach fall through, I discuss details with Richard Rankin (Ottawa) and sometimes John Saunders (NYC). These co-originators of the movement are in contact with others occasionally reconnecting and talking of the past and the future reunion.

On contact communications and new name generation, common intersecting points have arisen, points in Canada out West, Ann-Christin Gurholt (Calgary), Gervase Bush occasionally ( BC), Lynda Young-Chapleau ( Toronto).

Entertainment
This is the latest action element to be harnessed in the movement before final price adoption, - Roddy McManus (Montreal) and lately David Glass (Calgary) and Mark Stafford (Montreal)
have now been brought into the communication exercise.

In all of these spins of the wheel, a cause and effect 'whril' is moving and gaining force.
People are becoming aware, pulling out the year book, dreaming of the past and looking towards a future point...traction.

I understand that for some Internal dialogue is being experienced:
- What does he/she look like now?
- Will I go?
- Does she/he still like me?
- I'll have to lose some weight.
- What a pain - why can't they just leave the past where it belongs?
- I am no longer the same person since I've been sick.
- The medication I'm on will not allow me to lose weight so I don't want to be seen.
- I am curious. I'll just watch the evolution of the 'blog' but I won't go to the event -not in this condition.
-They can come and get me and pull me in- I'm too shy to just get involved on my own.
- I don't care what they look like or what I look like -it'll be good just to see the sprits of the playground, the glass hallway, the auditorium, the lockers, the dances, the football games, the hockey games, the jam sessions, the radio station.
-To see once again and perhaps for a last time those left from the yearbook staff, teachers, ex smokers from behind the church, the jokers, the intellectuals, the gossips, the cute girls, the hunks, those who deemed themselves less than good looking but were gifted with rich personalities -WOW!...maybe...
- Would I be missed if I did not go?
- I don't want to see him/her. He/she always thought they were so damned smart and they will just rub their success in my face -I'll just stay home thank you very much.
- No I always do 'such and such' on this one weekend of the year and I'm not going to give it up even this once.
- Am I really being a coward hiding behind expedience for not wanting to go?
- Tough !-I'll never see them again anyway. I can always say I was sick.
- It's too much bother, I don't want to see anyone anyway. I wouldn't enjoy it.
- I really haven't made out too well in life and I don't want to have to expose myself to other people's judgement. I'm going to stay home where I am safe and comfortable."..I am a rock and an Island never cries.."
-I can't wait to see everyone - how exciting! I'll take a drive around Chateauguay -maybe show my son or daughter the points and places of the old stories!

Yes, this has been a learning exercise. So many people have unique ways of perceiving what a Reunion will mean to themselves.

It will definitely be a test to one's sense of self for some.

But ultimately, I seek to reconnect with the "inner person" from back then -my own and others. You and I were children in highschool before taking on the more complicated role of who we are today.

Like rings of bark around the outer tree, year in and year out, we have become crustier and taken on more weight of the outer world, more insecurities. The challenge is to leave that personality crust and judgementalism and baggage at the door for a weekend. Go easy on yourself.

I know that the essential you - the kid- is still in there.

I know, we take ourselves a lot more seriously these days;
these days of having had kids, adopting kids, not being able to have kids, paying down mortgages, divorces re-marriages, running businesses, perhaps going bankrupt or worse, or working nine to five forever, perhaps attaining riches or perhaps loosing all, or gaining the real self in pride and 'coming out', experiencing the loss of parents, friends, children, limbs, hair or looks. Who knows? Maybe sought and attained Nirvanna? Or you've gained or lost lots of weight? It' ok. I will not judge. I have my own "stuff" to leave at the door. It'll be a relief just to get in and recognize other grown children and laugh at our imperfection, while closing another circle before it's "time to go".

In short, we have grown up. And in some cases our inner selves are fused with our occuapations, or short-comings or notions of what and who we should be, -having left the'kid' behind -jetisonned many years ago and not wanted back.

So I say to myself...
deep inside, there is the inner YOU, that came into existence with your body, that never changes - the one we all saw as children, the one that drives the outer shell, that has always remained separate from the 'fusion shell' of the ego and projected personality that you cling to. The one behind the puppet shell is the YOU we all want to see again. Leave your pride or insecurities of the shell, degrees, dollar signs and pompousness behind. Be free to be just 'you' if just for once and come on down! The worst judge is your insecure ego self. Leave her or him behind.
Conversely - if you really think your so hot and better than everyone else...leave that attitude behind. We want to see "you"- the kid -not your ego's polished sense of perfection.

Yes it has begun.
The whrilwind circle has picked up speed around me.

People have been coming to Chateauguay and visiting us. We go out to dinner or out back to my 'make-shift' Gazebo for tea/coffee/beer or wine. We play guitars and sing sometimes. We laugh. We remember.

One of my visitors has brought encouragement.
He is a MAN by the name of Pat Decaen. He once was on the High School football team. He was in drama. His 'before-self' and his 'now-self' look different but his smile and spirit are even greater. He has taught me a lesson in the nature of inner self assurance. I look forward to many more lessons that give me encouragement in accepting who I am now. I look forward to my graduation in life through REUNION.
L