When the lightbulb goes on

Oct 25, 2009 | Latest

WHEN THE LIGHTBULB GOES ON

   Who will bell the cat?  Is the story connected with this question still commonly known?  Perhaps not, so here it is in brief.  A group of house mice are being terrorized by a cat.  They have a meeting to determine what to do.  A young mouse suggests that a bell be put on the cat so all mice will know when it is near.  The youngster is hailed for his plan.  Then a wise, old mouse asks, “And who will bell the cat?”  The idea, which at first sounded so good, is now shown to be impractical.  Fair to say, belling the cat was not a good idea. Age’s wisdom triumph’s youth’s rashness.

   However, this story could have a different ending – one that would exalt the daring of youth rather than the wisdom of age.  After the old mouse asks his question, a young mouse could call out, ”I will try to bell the cat.  It would be better to die in an act of heroism than live the life of a coward in fear.  Who is with me?”  Several other young mice join the crusade.  The story ends with us never knowing whether the cat is successfully belled or not.

   Great ideas often require exceptional individuals to make them a reality.  It is not so hard to dream up schemes, but it is often difficult to carry them out.  I’ve had bad and good ideas, but it seems, almost always, the good ones needed someone exceptional to bring the idea to reality.  In the early years of Seton, we often came up with ideas for social events that we would throw together almost spur-of-the-moment.  If we got the Brock, Gregory and Muench families behind them, they were bound to be a success.

  One time we (actually I) came up with the idea of a box social with the boys bringing the meals and the girls bidding on them.  We decided to have it as an evening event.  It sounded fun to me.  Mr. Scheetz and I were the sponsors, so we arrived early to set up tables and chairs in the old carpeted gym.  Then we waited for the students.  Here they came:  two boys with dinners in hand and zero girls.  It was hilarious.  We sat down with the boys and ate their meals.  They were good – it was my first taste of Rice-a-Roni.  We spent the evening laughing about the failed event.  In our conversation we decided that we should try to come up with a worse event that would be an even greater failure and then advertise it with posters around the school.  We decided on the first annual “Winter Hike and Tin Can Collecting Expedition”.  We should have added on that after the hike there would be a box social with every meal featuring liver and onions because there were students who inquired about the hike.  So I guess the box social remains the greatest failure of Seton social events ever.

   I was trying to think of my greatest contribution to Seton’s social life.  I think it might be The Small Ball Game that I invented for the first St. Nick’s Carnival.  The first carnivals were held in the downstairs classrooms of the old building and in the carpeted gym.  The posters for the novel carnival event read “The Small Ball Game – it might be fun.” and included a drawing of the actual size of the small ball.  The object of the game was to bounce a small ball (one of the super bouncing balls) into a tall, narrow wicker basket.  The balls didn’t bounce true, so it was a challenge.  I would still enjoy playing this game to this day.

   The only other game I remember from that first carnival was Mr. P’s contribution.  He had people stuff marshmallows in their mouths and then try to whistle.   Well, that might be fun, but I’ll take the Small Ball Game over the Whistling Marshmallow Mouth Game any day.  The Small Ball Game – it was fun.

Jezu, ufam Tobie.

No Age Discrimination

Oct 14, 2009 | Latest

No Age Discrimination

OK, the Rockies lost, but the Broncos keep winning, the Daniel brothers won the golf tournament and Seton beat FCS in volleyball.  Therefore, it is fine to keep talking sports.  I was thinking you might be interested in my college athletic career.  (Don’t have a lot of time to write right now.)  This idea came to me because I am still trying to dejunk around here and am still going through Mom’s things.  I found a box of very old financial records and was about to throw it out when I noticed three Christendom College newsletters underneath the bank statements.  They are dated December ‘77, February ’78 and December ’80.  Why Mom saved these three particular ones, I do not know, but each of them have something about my athletic accomplishments.

 The ’78 one talks about a football game we had when classes were cancelled due to a big snow.  I remember this game because it was fun to slide around in the snow.  What I didn’t remember is that the teams were called the Eskimos and the Polar Bears.  I must have been on the Eskimos because it says the Bears were heavily favored.  However, the Eskimos won after an interception and a fumble recovery led to scores.  Let’s assume I was involved in creating those turnovers.  What is most funny to me about the little article is that it says the game was dubbed the Canuck Bowl and “will become an annual event”.  At least in the next three years that I was at CC this annual event was never held – probably due to a lack of snow.

Now we fast-forward to senior year – the ’80 edition.  Two sports articles mention me.  The first is about the Festival of Leaves 10K race in Front Royal.  I am prominently listed among the “also rans” – in fact, I am the last in the list.  Laura Spooner who taught a year at Seton was 5^th amongst all girl runners and won a medal.  She was obviously trying to steal the thunder of the also rans.  On the back page of this same edition there is a good picture of #15 taking a jump shot in the RMA Tip-off Tournament.  The headline says that I made the all-tournament team.  This I do remember.  We lost to RMA in the opening round 87-37.  I think we had a bad 2^nd half which followed a bad first half.  There’s nothing about my play in that game though the leading scorer and rebounder are given.  I was probably trying to get everyone involved in our 37 points worth of offense.  In the consolation game we played Massanutten.  We trailed at half-time, but came back in a thriller to win by two.  I almost matched my jersey # with 13 points.  Making the all-tournament team was definitely a great accomplishment considering that I started college two years after high school and was a senior in college at the time playing in a high school tournament and was therefore six to nine years older than anyone else who made the team.  CC was guaranteed a selection, and I was the only one who had played in high school.  Nonetheless, I am still waiting for the announcement that CC has decided to induct me into the Crusader Hall of Fame.  I’ve been rehearsing an acceptance speech for the past 29 years.

Now we go back to ’77.  On the front page of the newsletter is this headline “Westhoff Wins Ping Pong Tournament”.  CC was obviously a bustling place that first semester of its existence.  The actual date of my table tennis feat was November 10^th – might celebrate the 32^nd anniversary here in a few weeks.  Among those entered in the tournament were Dr. Carroll, Mr. O’Herron and Sister John Eudes of whom the book The Trouble with Angels was written.  Sister was CC’s librarian.  I was ready for this tournament because I had followed the sage advice “for every hour spent in class spend two hours playing ping pong”.  There were three finalists:  Loretta Davison, Leo White and I.  To show how I get no respect, here’s what my good friend Pat Hartnett wrote.  “White was heavily favored to win his match with Westhoff, since the latter had never won in practice.  To everyone’s amazement, Westhoff took the first two games of the three game series to win.”    I was richly rewarded with the grand prize of a pen and pencil set. Have to admit I don’t remember the pen and pencil, but I probably wore them out signing my autograph on ping pong balls. 

Better get back to working on that speech.

Jezu, ufam Tobie

HOMECOMING

Oct 4, 2009 | Latest

                                                      HOMECOMING

I have been going through some of Mom’s things and came across a letter I had written home eleven years ago.  I don’t have a good memory for details, so I found much of what I had to say in that letter news again.  The letter covered something important and I think of interest, so I was going to reprint some of it here.  Then yesterday, my brother Jim came by and brought our week’s worth of mail from the mailbox, and there was a package from Joe Angsten (’89)  It contained a great present which none of you could really appreciate unless you are particularly fond of replica gold-plated opened sardine cans.  With this extraordinary gift was a letter that put a stop to the presses that were printing mine.  It is a letter, unlike the sardine can, that I think you will all enjoy.  I do not think I have ever laughed harder at any letter.  It’s about Seton sports.  A sports entry is due here since the Rockies have made the playoffs after a terrible start, and since I received a phone call from Blaise Dufrain (’08) who was in Colorado Springs with the Dallas University soccer team having played a team from Milwaukee and Colorado College.  I really appreciated the call.  So I went from hearing of Blaise’s college exploits, to reading about Joe’s coaching debut.  The two experiences combined lead me to say, “God bless Dan Vander Woude; God bless all Seton coaches; God bless Seton parents and players and spectators and may God give success to the Torres’ efforts to acquire fields for Seton.    Here’s the letter.

   As you know, my eldest son is now a seventh grader at Seton, and we are so happy to be back in the fold.  I am now coaching the Jr. High Soccer Team, and so far we are off to a good start (a little better than the Seton football team of the 1970’s).  I will admit I was a little concerned how our re-introduction to Seton would go, until I received the call from Dan about our first game.

   The setting:  1^st Jr. High soccer game scheduled to be a home game at Nokesville Park.

  The day of the Game I receive a call from Dan.

   Dan:  Joe, there has been a slight change in plans.  It’s up to you if you want to reschedule.

   Joe:  Let’s play the game – whatever it is we can handle it.

   Dan:  We cannot use Nokesville Park.  But the County said we could use fields at Chinn Aquatic Center (in Woodbridge).

   Joe: Ohh, that’s a big change…but that’s fine.  Let’s play!  (I say with enthusiasm.)

   Dan:  Great.  Thanks Joe.  Now you will just need to get the nets and the corner flags from the storage room.

   Joe:  No problem, where’s the storage room?  (My concern slowly disappearing as this is starting to sound more like the Seton I knew.)

   Meanwhile back at the school, unbeknownst to the new coach, the varsity team takes the nets.  Joe dutifully arrives at Seton to pick up nets and flags.  No nets, hhmmmmmmm…..no flags….Seton mother Mrs. Cooper introduces herself to confused new coach. (Confused but getting happier as the search goes on.)  She has Dan on the phone.

   Dan:  Joe, sorry the nets are gone.  Just get the sticks.  They don’t have to have flags, just get what you can and go.  I will try to have someone bring you the nets. 

   Joe:  Don’t worry about the nets.  We’ll make do.  (Enthusiasm growing; concern dissipating.)

   I run out to the car to open the bin of jerseys Dan gave me for the team.  I gather the boys around to distribute the jerseys, and to my utter glee they don’t match!  Some say “Seton” and some say “Addidas”.  But the best part is #31.  You guessed it:  the “1” is DUCT TAPE!  (Concern GONE, enthusiasm overwhelming.)

   As the game gets underway my parents (you may remember them from such roles as Most School Spirited 1989) inform me that my sister Laura called and is waiting for the game to start at Nokesville Park.  I knew I had forgotten to tell someone.

   At halftime, I am informed by a Seton Mom that the three corner poles (yes, there are four corners to a soccer field) are needed for the volleyball team.  As it turns out, those are no ordinary poles the new coach grabbed – they are volleyball antennas.  So we finish the game with no poles, no nets and duct taped jerseys.  The “Volleyball Mom” was so apologetic, but I told her don’t worry about it.  She had no idea of the internal happiness I was feeling that those poles needed to be taken back to Seton.  The new coach couldn’t be happier.  Who cares that we won 3-2, this was a homecoming!

—————————————————————

It is easy to tell from this that Joe is being re-introduced to Seton.  Calling Mrs. Cooper “a Seton Mom” is like calling Mrs. Carroll “a Seton Teacher”.   This letter brings back happy memories – like the day I turned over the AD duties to Mr. Hines.  And the time the girls volleyball team was playing in a tournament at SVCA.  Mrs. Carroll was sitting in the stands near some SVCA parents who were commenting on our team:  “Couldn’t they all at least have white shorts.”  “To play sharp, you have to look sharp.”  We lost our first game – neither playing nor looking sharp, but came back through the losers’ bracket, still not looking that sharp but playing much better, to the championship games against SVCA.  We had to beat the sharp looking team twice since it was double-elimination, and the team in various colored sweat pants and shorts beat the team with the matching uniforms.  It also brings back visions of Mr. Vander Woude that first basketball season back in ’81 using masking tape to transform our illegal numbered jerseys into legal ones.  (There was a lot to learn those first years.)  Then there was some  basketball game, I think it was junior high girls, when I looked out on the court at the five girls playing and realized that not one jersey was a match to any other.

   So, #31 you wear that jersey with pride the whole year ****Addidas wearers – never forget that you are a Conquistador no matter what the jersey says****Laura, we all hope you have gotten to see your nephew play a full game****Joe, volleyball antennas are very expensive – leave them in the gym****Volleyball Mom, Did the antennas make it back from Woodbridge for the start of the game?****Seton sports fans:  You can go to  Virginia Independent Schools Sports and see state rankings and results of volleyball games.  Last poll had Seton Soccer #8 and Volleyball #4**** To anyone who began reading hoping to hear about the locust prediction:  They were right!  I’ll tell you the details later.

   Joe and my mom would have gotten along great.  Whenever there was some problem, foul up, trouble or whatever, Mom would say, “It all just adds to the fun.”  Mom and Joe are probably among the few who would have found all the difficulties of that first game so enjoyable.  Thanks for the letter – hope the rest of the season was as much fun and successful as the beginning.

Jezu, ufam Tobie