Captain Midnight Says, "More Ovaltine Please!"

What is this stuff anyway? Only a boomer would know. It seems to me, it's better eating the crunchy little morsels off the spoon, than trying to dissolve the stuff in milk.

Ovaltine
Ovaltine Malt Beverage Mix 400g - Pack of 2 Jars
Ovaltine presents the Captain Midnight action book for sports, fitness, & nutrition

Still Headin' Down The Highway

April 15, 1969

Dear Daddy,
It was great talking to you last night. I am sorry that the hitchhiking ticket I got was 150.00. I will pay you back. Anyway, I had to panhandle some change to call you from the phone booth yesterday. Don't freak out, everybody panhandles spare change. It's ok. Money isn't that important and there's always somewhere to crash and I can always find some food. We have met some cool people along the way. I can't wait to get to California. There are people in the Haight called diggers and they let you hang out at their places and feed you. It's all about love. Well, got to go, there seems to be a storm coming and we want to hit the road before it gets here. I've had enough of Kansas, California here I come!
Love and Peace,
Joyce.

Peace, Man

Did you ever wonder where the peace sign came from? I did some research and found out the design was the creation of a British textile designer named Gerald Holton.
The whole sign is to represent the words, "nuclear disarmament." It was brought out to the public at a ban the bomb march in London's Trafalgar Square on April 4, 1958.
Life magazine published a photo of that march and was the first time the symbol was seen in the United States. The anti war movement took the symbol beyond nuclear protest and has been in American pop culture ever since. During the civil rights movement, a friend of Martin Luther King began using it in the marches.
Now days, stores have been looking for ways to twist the peace sign into dollar signs.
It's put on everything from handbags to cupcakes.

The symbol was deliberately never copyrighted and is still recognized in Great Britain as the logo for nuclear disarmament. It is known worldwide for peace and non-violence. No one has to pay or seek permission before they use it, as it is a symbol of freedom. It is free for all to use.

Santa Head Of Homeland Security

You better watch out, you better not cry, Santa Claus is coming to town.
(quell the masses)
I feel Santa is the perfect choice for head of homeland security.
(he sees you when you're sleeping, he knows when you're awake.)
He know what you are doing at all times.
(he knows when you've been bad or good)
So, we'd better be good, for goodness sake.
Think about it. That guy can enter a house without anyone knowing at all and not leave a trace except bearing gifts, if he chooses to, or eating your cookies.
He can get from one place to another in no time and circle the globe in 24 hours.
Kids and people worship him like a God and he is know universally.
No one, I say no one, is going to cross that man for fear of the consequences, especially on Christmas morning.
So, the president elect should seriously give Mr. Claus consideration when making his choice for head of homeland security.

Name That Tune

Here are a couple of flashbacks from the past. Does anyone remember what these are?
If you were born in the sixties, you probably don't have a clue.

So, put your thinking caps on and take a walk down memory lane!

Little Miss Muffet Sat On A Tuffet, Eating Her Curds And Whey

When I was a kid, we ate cottage cheese all the time. I think it was cheap then. Once, in 4th grade, we took a field trip to the local dairy and saw first hand how it was made. Actually, it looked pretty gross.
According to Wikipedia, cottage cheese is defined as: "Cottage cheese is a cheese curd product with a mild flavor. It is drained, but not pressed so some whey remains. The curd is usually washed to remove acidity giving sweet curd cheese. It is not aged or colored. Different styles of cottage cheese are made from milks with different fat levels and in small curd or large curd preparations. Cottage cheese which is pressed becomes hoop cheese, farmer cheese, pot cheese or queso blanco.

Cottage cheese may be eaten straight. It is also eaten with fruit, with fruit puree, on toast, in green salads, - or as an ingredient in recipes like jello salad and various desserts. It can be used to replace grated cheese or ricotta cheese in most recipes (such as lasagna).

The term "cottage cheese" is believed to have originated because the simple cheese was usually made in cottages from any milk leftover after making butter.[1] The term was first used in 1848.[2] An older term for cottage cheese is curds and whey.
Sometimes my mother would serve the ultimate depression lunch called bread dip. It's just cottage cheese thinned with milk, topped with black pepper and was good for dipping bread. The fancy salad was lettuce, a scoop of cottage cheese with fruit cocktail all around and the cherry on top. Now, that was livin'!
I like it on a baked potato, with saltine crackers and in a scooped out cantaloupe.
High in protein, low in fat, cottage cheese is a great substitute for the higher- fat cheeses. Truly a food of the Gods!

Something's Happening Here, What It Is Ain't Exactly Clear

During the turbulent years of the 1960's, there were many issues that were addressed by protests. These issues included, a senseless war, (does war ever make sense?) civil rights and big government to name just a few.
Protests were held all over the country by so called radicals, college students, and hippies. This country was changed by these outspoken and non-violent protests. And non-violet protests they were. When the police and military stepped in, that is when things got ugly.
It seems to me, 40 years later, there is a similarity of issues going on in this county and things are getting out of hand. We as the main stream populace seem to be falling through the cracks and big government is taking over. The results of 911 has entitled our government to keep a "watchful" eye on everyone in this country. This disguise is to be for our benefit.
It's interesting to watch the progression of events, especially in the current Bush administration. We as tax payers are now bailing out big corporations for fear of astounding job loss and a nose dive into a depression. In my opinion, it's not for the job loss, it's to keep the fat cats who head these companies continue with their lavish lifestyle. They could care less about the common laborer. It's legal crime.
An effective protest in this matter would be for everyone in this country NOT to pay taxes next year. What's going to happen? Is the government going to throw everyone in jail? No. They will just have to hire all kinds of people to take care of the paperwork and that would create alot of needed jobs. If hands across America was pulled off, this can happen too.
Where is everybody? Where are the protesters of the 1960's who spoke out against such evil? Is everyone sitting back thinking that our sweet American government is going to take care of us? Think twice about that. There is something deeper going on here and the plan is in place and is starting to work. We are lemmings walking right off the cliff.
Instill fear in the masses and they are easily controlled. Tell them what they want to hear. Control the media, food supply, water supply, and most of all the population, a huge reduced population. One currency, one religion (if we are lucky) and no boundaries of countries, that's the plan and if we aren't careful, it will happen.
Do you realize that big companies put chips in consumer goods to track their buyers? It's a "marketing" technique. Beware of the chips to be inserted in newborn babies for the sake of tracking the child in case of an abduction. We do it to our pets, why not people? There is a must read book on this subject called Spychips: How Major Corporations and Government Plan to Track Your Every Purchase and Watch Your Every Move I encourage you to read this book.
I stumbled across a web site pertaining to the new world order and spent hours reading the vast information this site has. To be honest with you, I was freaked out. I believed much of what I read and now I want you to be freaked out to. Here is the site: Educate Yourself
Knowledge Is Power!

Mmmm Good

As I am sitting here eating lunch of my gourmet Campbell soup combo, chicken noodle and vegetable, it suddenly dawned on me that I don't know a thing about the history of the company. Mmmm good. I think I'll spell my name on the spoon. Better yet, I'll float a buttered saltine on top and break it up until it sinks to the bottom.
The wonderness of the soup distracts me as I google a search. Well, Joseph Campbell and ice box manufacturer Abraham Anderson started the Anderson & Campbell Soup Preserve company in 1897. They made ketchup, mustard, salad dressing and sauces. Their best seller was Beefsteak tomato soup.
After Campbell retired in 1894, Arthur Dorrance became president of the company. He reluctantly hired his nephew, a chemist, to work for the company. Soups were expensive to ship, but cheap to make. So, the nephew removed the heavy water and created a formula for condensed soups. How brilliant!
In 1904, Grace Wiedersein Drayton, an illustrator, added some sketches to her husbands ad campaigns for the soup. The Campbell kids were born and they have been selling the soup ever since.
The kids were so popular, that doll makers wanted a piece of the pie. Or, shall I say, a slice of the tomato. The E.T. Horseman Co. got the license to market the doll and put the Campbell logo on their sleeves.
Think about it. What a genius marketing plan. Advertise to the housewives and get to the kids. It's a win win business. I've been eating the soup for 50 years. There certainly is better out there and I always make my own, but, there's something to say about being Mmmm good.
I think I'll run to the store and grab some Velveeta cheese. A nice fat greasy grilled cheese sandwich and a hot bowl of Campbell's tomato soup sounds good for my supper.

The Pill Box Hat

I love Jackie Kennedy. She brought to the White House such beauty, grace and charm.
Jackie Bouvier Kennedy was born in Southampton, NY. She was educated in the best private schools and learned to ride at a very young age. She attended Vassar and graduated from George Washington University.
After graduation, Jackie became a photographer for a Washington DC newspaper and met Senator John F. Kennedy. They were married in 1953. The inauguration of President Kennedy brought to the White House a beautiful first lady and the first young children in half a century.
Her favorite designer was Oleg Cassini who created elegant outfits for her. She liked only the best. She was loved all over the world. Pakistani President Muhammad Ayub Kahn brought his horse, Sardar, with him to a visit to the States and admired Jackie's horsemanship so much that he later gave Sardar to her.
Even more popular back home, women wore her hairdo, pillbox hat, and had a preference to pink. There were Jackie look-alike contests and women copied her clothes.
Aside from her elegant lifestyle, Jackie was also known to be a penny pincher. When the expensive bottles of wine were empty at dinner, she had cheaper wine poured in the bottles and nobody knew the difference. She also kept two sets of books. One for her records and one for her husband. JFK of course, didn't want the world to know how extravagant his wife was.
Jackie stood by her husband through thick and thin. We all know that it took quite some effort on her part, but her grace and charm always prevailed. In the end on that day of JFK's death, Jackie, wearing a pink wool suit, now bloodstained, refused to change her clothes as she wanted the world to know she would always be there for her husband.
There have been many books written about Jackie, but I have found one in particular, that you might be interested in reading. It is called What Jackie Taught Us: Lessons from the Remarkable Life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and is about her childhood growing up and her life as the first lady. It's great reading and I highly reccomend this book if you would like to know more about this truely amazing woman.

Kosmic Trooths

The alternative press in the 1960's was a declaration of journalists who valued freedom of speech and critical thought in a democracy. The events of the sixties resulted in a rebellion against commercialized culture, war, corporate power and prejudice.
The antiwar and counterculture activists, being denied access to conventional media, took advantage of creating their own underground newspapers such as the Berkley Barb, Los Angeles Free Press and the Realist. These alternative papers soon found large audiences and by 1969 there were at least 400 different publications in every major city and college campus.
The readers were united by opposition to the Vietnam war, rejection of traditional American values, use of drugs and the rock and roll scene. Some of these underground papers covered feminism, gay liberation, and the environment. Also, communal living, mysticism, and Native American movements.
The most enduring publication was Rolling Stone magazine. Founder, 20 year old Jann Wenner, borrowed $7,500 in 1967 to start the publication. Within two years, the magazine had over 64,000 subscribers and was a major magazine of the rock generation.
The Whole Earth Catalog gave practical instruction for everything from do-it-yourself burials to building geodesic domes. Hippies could buy a huge array of products not found in your local store.
Acid-head cartoonist, R. Crumb published an underground comic book with graphically sexual and nothing was sacred images called Zap Comix. Crumb envisioned a world run by hippies. He wrote, "It's frightening!" To think about prison camps full of people not hip enough and prison guards with big peace symbols on their arm bands."

Teacher, Mother, Or Nurse

As a girl growing up in the fifties, when someone asked you, "What do you want to be when you grow up?", there were really only three choices. You could be a teacher, mother, or nurse. I of course had no desire to be any of those. My three choices were, artist, race car driver or movie star. I really believed my parents were somewhat worried about me.
I suppose they had reason to. One Christmas, I got the big gift. So excited as I ripped off the wrapping, I was devastated to find what was inside. It was of all things, a cardboard closet with little brooms and mops. My God, I thought to myself!
What are they trying to do to me! What an insult! All I wanted was a go-cart, or a bunch of toy cars and trucks. I wasn't asking for much, really. Bottom line, I was so shocked, I started crying. I think they thought I was so happy to get that gift.
My poor mother just wanted me to be like her. Well, that wasn't going to happen. I ran upstairs and hid under my bed, for fear they would come after me and make me sweep the floor. I will never forget that moment as long as I live.
Women of that time suffered with the dissatisfaction of making beds, cooking meals, and doing all the things homemakers do. Is that all there is in life? I am sure women were even afraid to ask themselves that question. Television didn't help matters much. Shows like "Leave It To Beaver" or "Father Knows Best" really stereotyped the image of the housewife.
It's interesting to think about our society. It forces boys to grow up, but not girls. Blue and pink. Black and white. Growing up in the fifties left no choices for women. Betty Friedan, who wrote "The Feminine Mystique" in 1963, called suburbia "a bedroom and a kitchen sexual ghetto." Wow! Those were strong words back then. She declared that while women were seeking fulfillment exclusively through their homes and families, they had in turn lost their own identities. She was quoted as saying, " If we continue to produce millions of young mothers who stop their growth and education short of identity, without a strong core of human values to pass on to their children, we are we are committing, quite simply, genocide." Friedan later helped found the National Organization Of Woman (NOW)
I must say, that I am truly amazed at the contributions and accomplishments women have made in modern society. My grandmother would just flip at the fact that a woman could actually run for president or go into orbit.
Myself? To this day, my main objective is not to clean house, thanks mom. I have accomplished much in my life without the push of my parents and there is much more to do.

Still On The Road

April 10,1969
Dear Daddy, I just wanted to write and let you know that I am ok. We are on the road and it's too cool. We found an abandoned farm in Kansas and I am sending you the picture of us running down the hill. Doesn't it look like a cool album cover? I've always wanted to be a rock star, so here I am. I just wanted to let you know one thing. We thought we had a ride and ran to the car to get in. When we got there, it was a bummer. It was a cop in an unmarked car. Don't freak out! We didn't go to jail, he just wrote us tickets for hitchhiking. You will be getting it in the mail, because of course, I don't have an address. Just planet earth. I'll pay you when I get back, if I ever do. Well, be cool and I love you. By the way, thank heaven for those space blankets, we are so warm at night sleeping under the stars. Right on!
Peace,
Joyce

Space Blanket - Available in Several Colors

Hell,No, We Won't Go!

By 1969 more than 14,000 Americans had been killed in Vietnam and over 323,000 had been wounded. In Washington D.C. of that year, over 250,000 people protested the war.
The draft board was the main reason for the protests. My friends back then did all they could to get out of being drafted. Some went to Canada and others tried to act crazy or said they were drug addicts or gay when they had to show up at the draft board. Some even just evaded the draft and were on the run. Public protests included burning draft cards. Bottom line, I had friends that were killed in that war and friends that made it home with serious mental problems.
All males between the age of 18 and 35 were required to register with the Selective Service Administration. They then could be drafted at any time. The draft board gave deferments to college and graduate school students and that left the soldiers to be working class whites and minorities who could not afford college. Thousands of men were drafted every year to make up for the three million troops in all.
As the war continued to drag on, millions of Americans joined the anti-war movement.
There was turmoil on college campuses and a new group, Students For A Democratic Society (SDS) emerged.
This war was televised almost every evening so we could watch uncensored scenes of burning villages, dead soldiers and other horrible images. I must say, this tactic sure didn't win any votes for the war.
Drugs were an issue among the soldiers. They were running rampant here and also there. I had friends that were so stoned out of their minds, that they basically didn't know why they were there.
Lyndon Johnson made Vietnam his war. He personally selected bombing targets and got out of bed at 3 o'clock every morning to hear the latest reports form Saigon. One anti-war chant was, "Hey, hey, LBJ, how many kids did you kill today?"
He agonized over the growing casualty list and tried to ignore the protesters chanting outside his window. On March 31, 1968, Johnson realized he had lost the trust of a divided nation and announced he would not run again for office.
This is just one example that made the 60's some of the most turbulent years in American history.