GCCCD Grapevine

Volume 9, Number 2                                                                                                June, 1999

Twenty-One to Join Ranks of Retirees

A larger number of GCCCD employees than usual are retiring this year. Almost all of the retirees are certificated, a number of whom may be retiring now because a "golden handshake" offering two additional years of service credit for those who retire by September 30 has made the decision a little easier. This golden handshake was granted by the district as a result of negotiations with the faculty and provides two extra years of service credit toward the STRS retirement benefit for those who retire between June 2 and September 30, 1999. As with most such golden handshakes, it is a win-win situation because the cost to the district (paying into STRS for the two extra years) is offset by the lower salaries paid to future replacement faculty.

An afternoon reception was held for the new retirees on Friday, May 28, at the Griffin Gate, providing an opportunity for their colleagues to wish them a happy retirement. Nancy Blazovick did a splendid job of organizing and coordinating the reception. A variety of cold and hot hors d’oeuvres were available, accompanied by Steve Baker’s impromptu piano, and there was plenty of time for socializing and card signing before and after the gift presentations and tributes, masterfully emcee’d by Mike Matherly. Most of the retirees attended, as well as many of their colleagues and a handful of veteran retirees. It was an impressive gathering, a time of joy but also a time for reflecting on the loss to the college and the students.

Those retiring are shown below alphabetically. Their department and the year they began working full-time for the district is noted in parentheses. All are from the Grossmont Campus unless noted as Cu (Cuyamaca). Dorothy Kostas and Virginia Steinbach retired in December 1998.

                                    
   Ruth Anderson                Judith Barkley                Bruce Barnett               Ed Carrigan
   (English, 1969)               (English, 1965)           (Economics, 1970)       (Counseling, 1991)

                                       
  Susan Carrigan                Gordon Dudley              Charles Hyde               Paul Jacques
(Counseling, 1975)            (Biology, 1965)        (Engr.Tech., Cu 1968)       (Spanish, 1972)

                                       
       Mimi Lee                      Jack McCauley               Dick Mellien             Michele Nelson 
 (Spec Services, 1974)       (Speech, 1962)   (Dean Math/Sci/PE '64)(Dean Hum & Soc Sci '74)

                                       
Josephine Messina                Charles Park                 Donald Rohrke               Joanne Silva
(Business, 1967)              (Chemistry, 1966)             (Phys Ed, 1970)          (Admin Sec, 1978)

Pictures added later:

                               
    Peter Bradley                      Dorothy Kostas            Virginia Steinbach
  (English, 1970)                (IMC, MMtech, 1970)     (Dean of Counseling, 1971)

No pictures were available for Jerry Dickinson (History, 1968) and Scott Pearce (English, 1975).

Editor’s Comments
       
          by Tom Scanlan

Now that our newsletter has been selected for inclusion in a national database of some significance (see article this issue, "Grapevine Picked for ERIC Database") I’d like to say a few words about on-line publishing and the on-line version of this newsletter. First, our Grapevine website archives is now complete, all the way back to the first issue, published April 27, 1990. Many thanks to our word processing expert, Sirkka Huovila for all of her help in typing and formatting. She made my task of putting the issues on-line much easier.

Second, some of you have mentioned that with the on-line version it was no longer necessary to use snail mail to send them a ‘hardcopy’ version. That got me to wondering how many of you out there are now on-line and could receive the newsletter electronically? A newsletter like ours is relatively easy to read on-line or to download and read or print later, probably at a substantial savings to the district for printing and mailing costs. If you would be willing to read this newsletter on-line and do not wish to also receive the paper version, let us know by sending an e-letter to Lori at Lori.Carver@gcccd.net. She maintains our mailing list and she can inform Sirkka about how many fewer copies to print. Years ago, someone predicted that computers would save paper and money--in the long run. Well, it’s been a long run and that has not generally happened, but this seems like a good place to start.

Third, when you do visit our website (we’ve now had over 750 visits, or ‘hits’), please take a moment to sign the Guestbook and leave your comments. The comments and letters we receive help us to produce the kind of newsletter you are interested in, and provide us sometimes with material for an article. We like to publish letters from our readers and wish that we received more of them. And don’t forget to send us your poetry. Reading poetry is like stopping to smell the flowers--it takes our head out of the mainstream and gives us a chance to marvel at the universality of human thoughts and feelings. It’s that deep breath you need to take sometimes when life seems too hurried.

A final word on producing this newsletter--I’m missing Pat Higgins’ professional touch already but it looks as if I’ll be getting some help with editing and in the near future. Gene Murray wrote me a letter recently saying that he has produced a monthly newsletter for the National Association of Accountants and he’d like to volunteer to help (Gene retired in 1996 as Director of District Accounting). What a relief, thank you, Gene! That could put an end to anyone referring to the Grapevine as a ‘no account’ newsletter. And gene therapy might be just what we need!

Puns aside, I worked with Gene years ago on the ‘parking committee’ and I was impressed with his sincerity and conscientious efforts to accomplish what we were supposed to be accomplishing (not an easy task on ANY committee).  Gene has also volunteered to serve on the new ad-hoc retiree committee (see article, this issue) which will provide a valuable link between retiree concerns and this newsletter. I look forward very much to working with him on future editions of this newsletter.

The editors and staff of the Grapevine are proud to inform their readers that our newsletter has gained national recognition. Gwyer Schuyler, the Director of Acquisitions for ERIC Clearinghouse for Community Colleges, saw the GCCCD Grapevine on the Internet and sent me an e-letter on May 3 saying that they’d like to include our newsletter in the ERIC database. He said, "Your newsletter is unique and other readers would benefit from reading it!" and that he was ‘looking forward to highlighting it in the ERIC database’. He requested back issues through 1996, which will be bundled by a given year and entered into the data base as one document.

ERIC is a national information system designed to provide users with ready access to an extensive body of education-related literature. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) and the National Library of Education, the ERIC database is the world's largest source of education information, and contains over 800,000 articles of documents and journal articles on education research and practice. The ERIC database can be accessed on-line, on CD-ROM, via the Internet, or through the print and microfiche indexes, Resources in Education and Current Index to Journals in Education. The ERIC collection may be viewed on microfiche at over 800 libraries and information centers worldwide. You can search all of the ERIC websites at http://search.ed.gov/csi/eric.html. or go directly to CC Clearinghouse at http://www.gseis.ucla.edu/ERIC/eric.html .

Ad-Hoc Retiree Committee is Formed

                                                  
                    Emily Duggan-Zouhar          Gene Murray            Joanne Prescott

A new retiree committee has been formed to meet and discuss issues of concern to retirees of GCCCD. The committee consists of: Charles Seymour, Risk Manager/Benefits; Lori Carver, Risk Management Assistant; Gene Murray, retired Manager, District Accounting; Joanne Prescott, Professor Emerita, Counseling; and Emilie Duggan-Zouhar, Professor Emerita, Family and Consumer Studies. Our thanks to this group for volunteering their time to address those issues which concern our readers.

Chairman pro tem Charles Seymour plans to call the first meeting of this committee during the first month of the Fall, 1999 semester. Now is the time to think about those retiree matters which you believe this committee should address. Send your comments or suggestions to Lori Carver. She can be reached by phone at 619-644-7710, by e-mail at Lori.Carver@gcccd.net, or by regular mail at Office of Risk Management/Benefits, Grossmont College, 8800 Grossmont College Drive, El Cajon, CA 92020.

Biblio-files
by Tom Scanlan

In this issue’s book reviews, I’m including a book of poetry written and published by a recently deceased GCCCD retiree, Jack Lynch (see Grapevine, Nov., 1998). Many of you may have read Jack’s poetry in the Daily Californian newspaper but he also had a number of his poems published in national magazines and journals. I was so impressed with Jack’s poetry book that I contacted his widow, Hazel Lynch, to see if there were any copies still available and would she be willing to sell them to interested retirees. She told me that she does have a limited number of copies and would be willing to sell them at $9.95/copy, postage included, or for $8.95 if the copy is picked up by the buyer (Hazel Lynch, 1372 Pepper Villa Drive, El Cajon, CA 92021. Tel. 619-448-8492).

  A Dream of Condors, Jack Lynch (Rattlesnake Mountain Press, 1992)****

This 100 page collection of approximately 90 poems should appeal to almost anyone who enjoys poetry. The poems range from Haiku to sonnets and include a wide variety of meters and rhyming, although some are what I’d call structured free-verse (a repeating rhythm but with little or no rhyme). They are easy to read (most are only one page long) and take on that special quality inherent in good poetry when read aloud.

The subject of his poetry is quite broad but focuses on nature and is often regional and sometimes historical. There are numerous poems about the birds Jack has observed, some in his own back yard, others as far away as Alaska. There are poems about the seasons, about storms, about the seaside. He writes also about places he has hiked, some in the San Diego area, others in the Sierras, Alaska, Utah and Arizona. He writes about teaching, including several poems about his decision to retire. He writes about the stars. He writes about aging. He writes about war and veterans. He writes about the soul and beauty and Truth. In other words, his poems are about life and humanity, though it is life enriched by closeness to nature and a humanity forged of experience and compassion.

I cannot imagine any reader who would not enjoy at least some of the poems in this small book, but for those of you who knew Jack or partake in bird-watching or enjoy the outdoors or appreciate the way words can be used to paint pictures and make music, this is your kind of book.

  The Miracle of Language, Richard Lederer (Pocket Books, 1991)*****

I recently re-read this book and realized, without reservation, that this is one of my favorite non-fiction books. I recommend it most highly to anyone who enjoys words, but especially the English language. It is, for a moderate-sized book (250 pages), the most informative and entertaining book I have read on the use of words. There is history, humor and basic knowledge on the origin and uses of language, particularly English, with excellent sections on literature and poetry, even on letter writing (something we all could benefit from in this age of e-mail and sound bites).

You cannot help but learn, and learn a good deal, from this book--and in as pleasurable a way as I’ve ever seen on the topics covered. Lederer can be extremely funny but he also touches that part of us that wants to know the whys and wherefores. He talks about the kinds of language (the formal, the precise and the colloquial), and shows the utility of each type. He shows the roots of words and how words change (there’s a marvelous chapter on ‘Brave New Words of the 1980’s’), teaching us some fascinating history along the way. He shows the impact of Shakespeare and Mark Twain on the way we still use language today. He even provides a short course in writing your own poetry.

He also shows the way in which language is mis-used. There’s a hilarious chapter titled, ‘The Department of Redundancy Department’ which alone is worth the price of the book (how many times have you heard phrases like ‘the honest truth’ or ‘past history’, or seen ads like those about products which ‘kill bugs dead’?). He compares English to American word usage. He shows the sinister nature of ‘Newspeak’ where words do not mean what they say (‘cool’ is ‘hot’), and euphemisms which hide the true nature of what is meant (does ‘collateral damage’ sound familiar?) and mixed metaphors which show that many of us have forgotten altogether the meaning of some words.

This is an amazing book. Read it!!

  Charming Billy, Alice McDermott (Farrar, Strauss & Giroux,1998) ***

This novel won the National Book Award in 1998, surprising some critics when it beat out Tom Wolfe’s highly publicized (and long awaited) novel, A Man in Full. The story takes place in Long Island, NY and tells the story of a lovable Irish-American who drank too much after losing the woman he truly loved, and how good intentions can go so terribly awry. It is told in a series of (sometimes confusing) flashbacks, dating from World War II up to the 1990’s. Much of the story is told from the point-of-view of the daughter of Billy’s cousin and closest friend.

Billy and his cousin Dennis meet two young Irish nannies while restoring a beach house on Long Island just after the war. Billy falls in love with one of them, Eva, but she must return to Ireland. Billy takes two jobs and sends her money so that she can return and they can marry but after the passage of some time and numerous unanswered letters, Billy is told that she has died from pneumonia. He never recovers from the loss but eventually he marries a woman he does not love. He begins to drink more heavily and eventually the drinking leads to his death.

It’s hard to develop much sympathy for Billy after his initial loss, and in fact he is not a major player in this story--possibly because the story begins with his death. But as his story is revealed, there are several interesting surprises, the most important of which is revealed long before the ending. However, it is the description of the people and the places that make this book such a good read.

  Four Letters of Love, Niall Williams ( Warner Books, 1998)***

Deemed ‘A Notable Book of the Year’ by New York Times, this is one of the most unusual novels I’ve read in some time. It is a story that hints of miracles and almost proves predestination. Seemingly unrelated events conspire to draw two young people together against all odds that they should ever have met, much less fallen in love. And the closer you are to the end of the story, the more powerfully it grips you and compels you to read on.

The story begins when an Irish civil servant quits his clerking job, which he despised, and abandons his family to go off and paint the wild Irish country and seaside because God told him that is what he should do. His wife, confused and in despair, goes insane and commits suicide. His son, Nicholas, eventually joins his father and they lead a brief but happy almost vagabond existence while his father paints. Nicholas, ironically, takes a clerk’s job in the civil service. His father later becomes despondent and burns down his house, his paintings and himself, an event which inspires Nicholas to quit his job and begin a quest to recover his father’s only surviving painting, which had been awarded to a poet-teacher on an island off the coast of western Ireland.

The poet has a daughter, of course, and her life has been told in a parallel story within this novel. Her younger brother had a genius for music but is silenced by a seizure which she blames herself for. That tragedy powerfully influences her own life and leads her to marry a man she does not really love. Nicholas arrives the day after her marriage and falls madly in love with her. He writes her a series of passionate love letters but each of the letters are intercepted and destroyed by the girl’s mother. The situation seems hopeless. But read on...

Calling All Poets...

Beginning with this issue, I plan to publish at least one poem written by a GCCCD retiree. I’m including one of Jack Lynch’s in this issue because he wrote some exceptionally good poems during his lifetime and it complements the review of his book in Biblio-files. I’m also asking at this time that any of you gentle readers out there who write poetry from time to time to send some to the Grapevine so that we can all enjoy your thoughts and feelings and word craft. Try to limit the poems you submit to about forty lines. Submit more than one if you like, but I’ll normally only include one poem per poet in each issue.

So polish up those metaphors, pick a favorite metre (or keep it free, as that may be), rhyme or no rhyme (or some of the time), apply abundant alliteration and demonstrate to the rest of us what Louis Untermeyer meant when he said, "poetry is the art of defining the undefinable in terms of the unforgettable".

SOMETHING OTHER THAN A TREE
by Jack Lynch                  

I'm thankful I was born to be
something other than a tree:
A tree that cannot sing a note
nor take a step nor cast a vote-
A tree that's born to stand alone
without a name, a friend, a home-
A tree that cannot pet a dog
or ride a horse or catch a frog-
A tree totally unaware
of the cinema or the county fair-
A tree that stands before the storm
while other creatures lie snug and warm.

I'm thankful I was born to be
something other than a tree.
And yet how interesting it might be
if one were born to be a tree:
A tree that year by year grows tall
while celebrating spring and fall-
A tree that stands in sun and rain
and beckons birds back home again-
A tree whose path beneath the stars
is true as Jupiter's or Mars -
A tree that spreads its shade below
where all are free to come and go-
A tree devoid of fear or gain
and never causes another pain.
I’d not mind to be one with trees
if I could know such joys as these.

Oaxaca’s the Best!                         
                                                                                      By Lee Roper

If you are planning a trip to Mexico, I highly recommend that you put Oaxaca last on your itinerary because once you have seen Oaxaca, well the rest of the country is second best. I have always thought of Oaxaca as a kind of living museum where they took the best of everything worth seeing in Mexico and put it there.

About twelve years ago Barb and I spent a year there on Sabbatical and have returned almost every year since then, including January 1999. Over the years we have seen a lot of changes which almost without exception are complimentary. They have done things like clean the beautiful old buildings near the zocalo, closed some of the streets to traffic, opened great restaurants and new shops selling work of the finest crafts people in the area. The improvements have attracted more tourists but not enough to corrupt the charm.

Oaxaca City is a magnet for anthropologists both amateur and professional and many have become permanent residents. There are seven ongoing excavations, including Monte Alban, which spreads the hills above the city.

What I find even more fascinating are the living cultures which are at their best on the market days in the nearby villages. Each village tends to specialize in crafts like colorful clothing, wool rugs, pottery, exotic animal carvings, and woven textiles to mention a few. There is easy access to all the villages by bus, cab or collectivo. Part of the fun of being there is sitting next to a woman on a second class bus who has a couple of chickens on her lap as she breast feeds her baby.

Within the city (500,000+ inhabitants) you will find a Rufino Tamayo Museum, the State Museum…, huge Saturday market, parks, and the Santa Domingo church, which many consider the most beautiful small church in the world. Being a people watcher, my favorite place is the zocalo (town square) which may be the best in all of Mexico. There are large old trees where lots of squirrels and birds make their homes. On the bandstand are concerts many evenings and the State Band players on Sunday afternoons. Restaurants and cafes allow you to view the always changing show of roving vendors, young senoritas with baskets of bouquets of roses and gardenias on their heads, and shoe shine stands.

Oaxaca has a wonderful climate the year round except their nights are not as cold as ours in the winter. In late summer during the rainy season the country turns a lush green and the campesinos are in their corn fields with oxen hitched to wooden plows. In Oaxaca, even the rain is considerate, it arrives in the late afternoon and stays just long enough to nourish the corn, launder the village and cool the air for a good night’s rest. When you awaken in the morning, it is to the music of church bells accompanied by roosters.

Oaxaca, Mexico, is a great travel bargain and so conveniently available. For travel details you can consult any tour book on Mexico, but I am always ready to discuss my favorite subject. You will almost always find me at 9 a.m. the first Tuesday of every month at the retiree breakfast at Coco’s near the college.

With Flying Colors written and performed by David Grant Wright.
Sept. 9, 10, 11 at 8pm. All tickets $5.

A Cry of Players by William Gibson, Director Roberta Jordan.
Oct. 7, 8, 9, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 at 8pm and Oct. 9, 16 at 2pm.

Quartermaine’s Terms by Simon Gray, Director Henry Jordan.
Nov. 11, 12, 13, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 at 8pm and Nov. 13, 20 at 2pm.

Twelth Night by William Shakespeare, Director Henry Jordan.
Mar. 9, 10, 11, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 at 8pm and Mar. 11, 18 at 2pm.

San Diego Pantomine Theatre headed by Jerry Hager, Grossmont College
Theatre Arts instructor will delight and dazzle you with the art of mime in
Neverland. April 6, 7, 8 at 7pm, April 8 at 2pm ( Note: children under 12
will be permitted only for this production. Tickets for children 12 and under $5.)

The Fantastiks, book/lyrics by Tom Jones, Music by Harvey Schmidt, Director
Carolyn Keith. May 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, at 8pm and May 6, 13 at 2pm..

All productions are at the Grossmont Stagehouse Theatre. Ticket prices are $10
for general admission, $9 for faculty/staff and seniors. Call Box Office 644-7234.