Bravo to us upon reaching this 40-year Ogden High Reunion milestone!
To what major miracle do you attribute our staying power?
Whoa—not long ago, we were Leaders of Tomorrow at Boys’ or Girls’ State.
What ever became of all those noble dreams and grand promises?
Yep. We are midlife members of the Baby Boomer Generation, all right.
Do you recall that Adlai Stevenson lost the election in ’52 and ’56?
America fretted over Sputnik and sweated out JFK’s Cuban Missile Crisis.
Can you describe where you were on November 22, 1963?
Born during the Korean War, we paid a painful, steep price in Vietnam.
How many of your loved ones are on active duty right now?
Back in the day, a foot long hot dog, a soda, and a bag of chips cost a quarter.
Remember when the very first McDonald’s appeared in Ogden?
Safeway stores sold marbled Flintstone Bread in their bakery departments.
Do you still crave those awesome alligator jaws from Topper’s?
Alas, we grew up watching “Romper Room” instead of “The Simpsons.”
Could you spot Mighty Manfred the Wonder Dog in a lineup?
We begged to be on TV with Engineer Ron or Captain KC and Pixie.
Did you sing along with the Alka Seltzer and Brylcreem jingles?
We loved Elvis, the Beatles, Flipper, Mork and Mindy, Mr. Ed, Laugh-In.
What happened to the good old days before 9/11 or Katrina?
We coped with Cold War, graced The Wall, saw the Berlin Wall rise and fall.
Do you think ROTC prepared young men for life beyond high school?
Too soon, we are senior executives, tenured professors, burned-out retirees.
Have you become what you wanted to be when you grew up?
Our Driver’s Ed teachers mumbled silly stuff like, “Turn left, right here.”
How many times did you purposely turn right, the wrong direction?
We went to Beach Boys concerts at Lagoon, sunbathed at Rainbow Gardens.
Did you sluff classes to see Bobby Kennedy in person at Weber State?
Once we danced the Mashed Potato, drank Coke, cruised Washington Blvd.
Have you been offered a Fake ID for Seniors at Arctic Circle yet?
People our age have suffered through the Heartbreak of Psoriasis, or worse!
Has Male Pattern Baldness become a pressing issue in your life?
We’ve endured MRI’s, mammograms, EKG’s, and colonoscopies galore.
What concerns you most nowadays—high LDL’s or chronic ED?
We have outlived Roy Rogers, Captain Kangaroo, Hoss and Little Joe—
Don’t you agree that Tim Russert was way too young to die?
Oh, my heck—I hear quite a few of us have had grandchildren for eons!
Are you decades older than your parents were when you were 18?
Tsk, tsk: we really do have sons and daughters whose kids are teenagers.
It’s not possible for a 58-year-old to be a great-grandparent, is it?
3 cheers for 40 years: may we all live long and prosper, ala Jack La Lanne!
© 2008 Marney Hilton Zambrano
