Hiatus

Until further notice.

Show Me the Place, 18

“Show me the place.”

Duke Senior in As You Like It (2.1)

18: The Hiram School Study Hall, 1956–62

I’d never heard of “study hall”

When I began at Hiram School.

(I didn’t study much at all—

Which, looking back, is kind of cool.)

We had to sit there quietly

And look as if we were at work—

That wasn’t really hard for me,

For, as you know, I was a jerk.

I learned how I could make time fly—

I’d read a book—or draw dumb stuff.

The library* made time go by—

And, soon enough, that was enough.

I sat there and read Moby-Dick

And looked at cartoons in the Post.**

I thought about some things so sick—

But I don’t really want to boast.

And so the years just soared along—

And soon—too soon—they all were gone—

In ways, just like a favorite song:

It’s over—next is Forest Lawn!

*It was up in the front of the study hall room.

**Saturday Evening Post

HHS study hall, 1962

Show Me the Place, 17

“Show me the place.”

Duke Senior in As You Like It (2.1)

18: The Hiram School Gym & Stage & Dance Floor, 1956–62

The Hiram Gym was very small—

Not room for many fans at all.

On just one side were bleacher seats,

Where fans could watch athletic feats.

And I played basketball—a lot—

Though I can’t claim I was too hot.

But, oh, the game days’ many thrills—

The hope, the loss, the leaps, the spills.

And at one end—the school stage—

Where, for a while, I felt the rage

To walk those boards, to be in shows,

To hear applause—feel afterglows.

Up there I sang and acted, too—

Or so I thought. (One point-of-view!)

Mikado—Trial by Jury—and

Some shows not known across the land.

But all were fun—and meant so much

To all of us—we’re still in touch!

I used what I had learned those days—

Directing shows—all sorts of plays.

We also used that floor to dance—

The Twist, the Pony (we could prance!).

We fell in love out on that floor—

Fell out again—then fell once more.

And gym class! Oh, the memories

Of dodgeball, knocked down to my knees.

Oh, what a place! A palace grand!

In ways, a perfect fairyland.

Show Me the Place, 16

“Show me the place.”

Duke Senior in As You Like It (2.1)

17: The Hub; Hiram, Ohio

It was a place we could hang out—

And here’s what it was all about:

You went downstairs into the place—

And looked around … a friendly face?

A haven for the young in town—

Where you could be a sage—or clown.

Some pinball games, some icy Cokes—

And lots of adolescent jokes.

And baseball cards and candy bars—

And kids who dreamed of having cars—

I think a table for some pool?

The Hub was really quite a school

To learn those things outside of class

That meant a lot—and you could pass

By being so attentive you

Could learn to talk—and sound cool, too.

It had some little basic booths

Where we would sit—eat Baby Ruths—

And think about how cool we were …

It never really would occur

To us that we just might be wrong!

This road of ours seemed dreary, long.

Show Me the Place, 15

“Show me the place.”

Duke Senior in As You Like It (2.1)

16: The Old Hiram College Gym; Hiram, Ohio

That gym lay in the bowels of

A building (Hayden Hall), where we

On Sunday nights could go to see

A movie. Much as I do love

A movie, it was basketball

That made me so fond of that gym.

Sometimes—the movie done—we’d all

(My friends and I) sneak down the hall,

And down the stairs, flip on the light,

And play some ball until—we’re caught!—

A janitor would come. We fought

To stay (but always lost). The night

Awaited us outside, so we

Went home—but dreamed of shots that won

The game. (Oh, boyhood was such fun!)

And wake up—kids again—carefree.

couldn't find a gym pic--it's gone, converted to office space--
but it was in this building, lower level

Show Me the Place, 14

“Show me the place.”

Duke Senior in As You Like It (2.1)

15: The Baseball Diamond; Hiram, Ohio

The Hiram School, I’ve said, is gone—

You have to know where it once was

To find the spot—it’s just a lawn.

I miss the Hiram School because,

Of course, it was a place of good.

(Nostalgia: What a memory does.)

I used that ball field all I could—

It was a special place for me:
I made my boyhood livelihood!

The Hot Stove League—great memory!

Those high school teams—the purest glee!

I loved that diamond—fervently!

Hiram's Hot Stove League
F Team (based on age, not a grade for our skill!)
1958?
I'm 3rd from the left in the back.

Show Me the Place, 13

“Show me the place.”

Duke Senior in As You Like It (2.1)

14: Hiram College Tennis Courts; Hiram, Ohio 1956–66

I’d never played the game before—

A game with “love” there in the score?

But soon I played it all the time—

Just hacked away—a pantomime

Of how the game, well, should be played.

But I was not all that dismayed:

I ran around; I hit the ball—

And, now and then, I took a fall.

In college, I was on the team—

It was a kind of splintered dream:

I earned four letters in four years—

But wasn’t good—just ask my peers.

I played some more, much later on.

But soon my tennis days were gone:

I’d gotten older—truth to tell—

And could no longer play too well.

My knees and ankles, shoulder, too,

Said, “That is it—you’re done—you’re through!”

And so my racket went away—

The final curtain for that play.

Hiram College tennis team
1966
(I'm 4th from the left, front row)