Well well well, it's a small world. There I was, sitting in a theater with dad waiting for The Gridiron Gang to start. We were real early so it was quiet.
I told him my brother Mike stopped in Mtn. Home a few nights before, stayed in a hotel, jogged the next morning past East Elementary and a cemetary before taking off south to Lake Havasu City, AZ. Mike commented that the neighborhood across the street from East Elementary (not complimentary) but said the houses were much nicer across from the cemetary. Mike wondered if that was the East Elementary I went to for 1st and 2nd grade. I looked up pictures of it and the school I attended 44 years ago was no more.
So the conversation with dad continued about Mtn. Home and I told him he should stop in there and see if he might find an old friend. I even mentioned hooking him up with Phil Gridley or the Moose. Anyway, we kept talking and one thing led to another, from our new house near North Elementary to fellow teachers.
I mentioned these websites and the various folks who run them. I mentioned Richard Boesiger but I wasn't too sure if I was pronouncing Boesiger correctly.
Then dad mentioned the drag boat he built in a big garage. He perked up. "You know, I built that drag boat in a garage I rented from Max Boesiger." But he was pronouncing it "Bo-sin-jer." I was pronouncing it without an "n"--"bo-si-jer". I was skeptical whether Max was related to Richard. Dad said he rented that garage for two years from Max. He really liked Max, said he cut him a good deal, and had nothing but fond mememories of him and building our drag boat in one of Max's many buildings.
I have photos of dad standing by the drag boat in Max's garage. Heck, even I remember that garage. I'll never forget dad draping hot wet towels over plywood he was bending over the hull's framework, warping it into shape.
I'll send those old photos to Richard and Susan soon. Btw, that drag boat was a beauty and we boated on Anderson Ranch Dam, Lucky Peak and CJ Strike many times with it. Dad managed to install a 425 V8 Buick with dual four-barrel carbs. Man, that baby had some serious giddy-up!
The movie started soon after our reminiscing. A good flick but my mind was elsewhere for most of it.
Bobby, I THINK I remember that garage. We lived across the street from the hospital and we stored our boat in an old garage just south of the hospital where Johnny B. has his dental office now. It does seem like someone else was using it later.
I'll send you jpegs of the boat/garage. Perhaps you'll recognize it. It really surprised me when dad recalled your dad and rented a garage from him. I think he has many latent memories that just need some coaxing. I'll be working on it. He has cateract surgeries later this month that are keeping him from heading south for a few more weeks.
