Traditions...

Saw Norma Lee Asebedo Garza asking who knew our Alma Mater...I did...posted it on Mission Eagles Facebook page.

It reminded me of other traditions...like making our first communion at our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church...gosh so many of us graduated together from high school and are still in contact.  That in itself is amazing...NOT traditional...at least not anymore.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church

The fountains weren't there...  The 12:30 p.m. mass is so crowded, people sit outside on the benches provided...and the loud speakers allow you to follow the mass...that's different...NOT traditional.

Here's our group:

                                                               (Courtesy of Nilda Salinas Paxman)

Left to right (front row)  (Angel) Judy de la Garza, Elva Rodriguez, Dolores de los Santos, Diana Corpus, Maria Guadalupe Moreno, unknown, Sylvia Garza, unknown, Lucilla Garcia, Laurie Diaz, Mary Lou Garcia, Yolanda Lopez, Martha Ortiz, unknown, Angel - Irma Hinojosa.
Left to right (second row):   Angel-Yolanda Rodriguez, Teresa Rivera, Diana Flores, Gloria Gonzalez, unknown, Nilda Salinas, Velma Arce, unknown, Angel - Imelda Hinojosa.
Left to right (third row):  Jaime Barrera,  Elizabeth Diaz.
Left to right (fourth row):  Angel behind Jaime (looks like Maria Guadalupe Moreno's sister), unknown, unknown, Robert Murillo, unknown, big space, Celia Munoz, Ma. Isabel Cristina Vela, Belinda Lopez, Irma Cavazos.
Fifth Row:  (The boys are harder to recognize), unknown, unknown, unknown, Javier Zamora, Armando Cespedes, Alvino (?),  Ramiro Ocana.
Sixth Row:  unknown, unknown, Arthur Tarbutton, Angel-Alicia Lopez, Father Delaney, Angel - Sylvia Longoria.

Notice my dress is shorter than everyone's...I'm posing...NOT traditional.

The names that are highlighted, still keep in touch...still hang together...we are six of eight "Divatudes" - NOT traditional.

My mom made my veil.  I saved it and my daughter, Adri, wore it when she made her first communion.  Traditional.

My kindergarten photo. My uniform - Traditional
Notice the scarf...NOT traditional.

It made me think...

I've guess I've always been different...it makes some people uncomfortable.  How many of us change to please others...to try and "fit" in...even now?  Change makes people uncomfortable.  How old do we have to be to be happy with oneself?  Growing old is inevitable.  Becoming old is in the eye of the beholder.  Thinking old makes you...well, old.  Some traditions have grown out of style...like respect, integrity, dignity, reading, spelling...  Growing up does not mean growing old...it means knowing better.  Being able to laugh at yourself makes you young.  I like being different.  Jesus was different.   


 I'm comfortable with that.

Oh, the music... Long live the Local Bands!!!

Oh, the nights of tripping the light fantastic...the high school dances at the Mission Community Center...

I wanted to share some 45's that I hung on to.  Some belong to my husband's family....

These are just two 45's that Ralph's grandmother, Estella P. Lane wrote that got recorded and I made reference to on my first blog.  Uncle Jack Lane, wrote also.  He's on the flip side.

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LOCAL BANDS

Here are promotional records from some of the bands that were around during my college years.

The first record is by a band that's still around...a little older but here nonetheless...

The Innkeeper Band...
There's a story on The Innkeepers return in the Progress Times:  This is the record they mention in the article.  I tried to get a direct link to the story but this is the best I could do.

As you read the article...familiar names like Richard Martinez, Ramiro Barrera, (MHS Class of 67), Juan Rivera, gosh even David Trevino...so many more...read!

http://www.progresstimes.net/20090501.htm
The article is 7th on the list: 

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SCAM

The name of the next band was SCAM....don't know if its an acronym for something else...but Albert Theis played trumpet, Eloy Reyna (Class of 70) on trombone - anyone out there recognize this....or have any more information?

This reads backwards...                     "Sot Ab Netiuga Es On"
                                                           written by Albert Theis
                                                          "No Se Aguiten Batos"

Literal translation:   Don't get depressed, guys...

The flip side is:                                            "Today"
                                                               by SCAM

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And the last...

SWEET RAIN

The name of the band was Sweet Rain.
Encarnacion Fuentes on vocals...his brother, Eddie Fuentes, saxophone.  Eddie was band director for P.S.J.A. High School a few years back.  He died of cancer.  He was a funny, talented guy.  I remember John Henry, another band director, Eloy Reyna was also in this band...

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...AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST

The Playboys of Edinburg

Playboys of Edinburg were around during the 60's (61-69).  They recorded "Look at me girl" (Pharaoh Records) 1966 it was their second single.  Bobby Vee recorded their song...

James & Michael Williams - two church choir boys with beautiful voices...

Here's a great story on the Playboys...its worth reading!!!!!
The Playboys of Edinburg  
(Random Note:  (My daughter Sam likes these...)  If you look into the article there's a bill advertising a dance...one of the bands mentioned is the Zachary Zachs from Corpus Christi.  Years later when I moved to Houston, I met a wonderful lady, Sharon Hollingsworth, who resides in Houston now but originally from Gregory Portland.  At the time I met her she was still married to Michael Taylor...the lead singer for the Zachary Zachs...small world...


And a sample of  The Playboys...

Their second single..."Look at me Girl"



Ahhh...the 60's - "Wish you had a Heart"

* * **** * *

Best memories...

*  Dancing to "Color My World" when the band took a break.
*  Watching Rick de la Garza on drums.
*  The endless practices...

*  The hope of making it big someday...
*  I could eat two Whataburger's at a sitting...and didn't gain weight!!!!


Like Bob Hope would sing..."Thanks for the memories"   (humming...)

Love you guys...


Oh,  take a minute to play Eddie Holman's "Hey there Lonely Girl"    (Sophomore year...yes it  was like that)

More on Dorothy Street

My mother lived on Dorothy Street...about three blocks south of the Rio Theatre.  She was living on Dorothy Street when she got married.  She was 25 years old.

The date was April 27, 1948.

She was married at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church close by.  She had a small wedding.  My parents held their reception at my grandparents home.  My grandmother was unable to attend the wedding because there was no one to help prepare the food.  My mother sewed her wedding dress.  It had tiny apple blossoms on it.

Isn't she beautiful?  She had an 18-inch waist-line.  I know this because I heard it quite often.  Sadly, I didn't inherit her genes...I inherited my Daddy's.

I asked my mom about her wedding party.  She couldn't remember their names.  Her maid of honor was an acquaintance from Mission Acres...that's all she remembers.

* * *

Ralph and I celebrated the 24th year of our "second" anniversary, this last Monday, September 6, 2010.  Ralph and I were married civilly in Denver, Colorado on March 27, 1981.  

We had to go through an annulment process (Ralph and I are both Catholic) if we wanted to practice our Catholic faith and marry in the church.  Both Ralph and I have been married before.  I was married outside the church and still had to have my first marriage annulled.  Ralph had been married in the Catholic faith and although he had been married nine years, he, too, had to go through the annulment process, only his was more intense.

We started the annulment proceedings in Denver but had to start all over two years later when we were transferred to Houston, Texas.  Three years later we were granted an annulment and were given permission to marry in the Catholic Church.  Annulments are hard to come by since they get signed by the Vatican...church rules.

Just as we received permission, we were transferred to Longview, Texas.  Father Ryan from St. Leo's Catholic Church gave us our documents and his blessings and off we went to Longview.   We registered at St. Anne's Catholic Church in Longview in August, 1986.  

We took our documents to Father Bennett and asked him when he could perform our marriage ceremony.  Father Bennett was none too happy about marrying us.  We were his first "annulled" couple.  He said he would let us know.

I am assuming he checked out our documents because a couple days later, he called and said he could marry us on Saturday, September 6th.  We had no say in the matter.  Father Bennett was rather embarrassed by our request.  Our two oldest daughters who were 4 and 3 (plus 3-month old Sam) at the time were thrilled and told anyone that would listen that Mommy and Daddy were getting married.  So without any fanfare, and our three girls in tow, we were married in the chapel at St. Anne's on September 6, 1986.

I had dreamed about having a wedding with family and friends...but it wasn't meant to be.

This is me in 1986, wearing my "wedding" dress.  It didn't make it over the years.  It was a gift from my mother-in-law, Aminta Lane Garza,  given to me shortly after Ralph and I were married.  I loved that dress.  Well, lo and behold, I found an exact duplicate a couple of years ago.  I wore it once when we celebrated our "other" anniversary date this last March on our cruise.  I got to wear it a second time to the "Divatudes" (my girlfriends' circle of friends) June Bride's Party.

This was more than fun....it meant so much...

* * *

On Wednesday, last week, I took my mom to the eye doctor.  She couldn't see well with her new glasses.  They had to dilate her eyes.  When she came out to the lobby, she said, "Its a good thing you're so big, otherwise I wouldn't have seen you."

Some things never change.

The Rio Theatre

This is the new renovated Rio Theatre on Dorothy Street in Mission.  I remember performing there when I was five years old.  I was attending Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic School.  It was a fundraiser and our Kindergarten class was going to perform "La Raspa."  I was so disappointed.  Our class, being small, had only so many boys to go around.  So I was picked to be a "boy" and  I was not a happy camper.  My partner was Dolores de los Santos (Carrizales)...well, now Dr. Dolores Carrizales to be exact.  She's a practicing pediatrician in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.  I wore dungarees and a plaid shirt.  My mom decided to do a perm on me for the occasion; I looked like Shirley Temple.  I wish I had a photo now...

On an extra note:  Next door to the theatre was Judy Pena Jaramillo's home (Class of 71)  and next to her family's home, the Arnaldo Ramirez Sr.'s home:   (Arnaldo, Jr., Sandra, Mark (Class of 70), Elizabeth (Class of 71) there were more kids, I believe, I just don't remember them.  Mr. Ramirez was also mayor of Mission (1973-81) and a record and music producer.   Across the street was Dave Silva's (Class of 70) home...


That reminds me...
Mr. Ramirez was co-founder and owner of Falcon Records (with his brother, Rafael).  Years back, (1950's) Estella Palacios Lane, my husband Ralph's grandmother, had a recording studio built near her home at Red Gate.  Her son, Jack Lane, built it from the bottom up with cement blocks.  I'm sure some of you have seen the sign "Jack's Corner" when you're driving down to the Valley just past the Red Gate sign.   It's also south of Linn, Texas, where my husbands grandmother served as Post Mistress.  (Another random note.)

The name of her label was MayTe' Records.  She wrote, sang, produced and recorded records.  One of her well known songs, "Especialmente Para Ti" ("Especially For You") was written especially for a young lady by the name of Irma Garza.  I remember seeing her perform on TV when she was about 11 years old on a Sunday program with Johnny Herrera, sponsored by Paloma Blanca Flour (White Wing).  She would also perform on the Moulton "Ty" Cobb Show...wow, do you remember that!!!


Mr. Ramirez, recorded that song  under his label with Carlos Guzman.  Which makes another Mission High School connection.  Carlos Guzman recorded an album, "Vestida de Blanco"  I believe.  Tommy Thompson and Saralu Thompson were on the cover.  Saralu wore a wedding dress...Tommy a tuxedo... (See album cover)

David Lee Garza (y Los Musciales), a current recording artist/band  (hometown Poteet, Texas),  recorded his third album and titled his album "Especialmente Para Ti."  Ram Herrera was lead  vocal. Unfortunately for Ralph's family, the copyright had run out and was never renewed.  It became public domain back in the 80's.  I can say, hundreds of musicians have recorded her song.

 "Song of the Week" pick...."I am a Clown" by David Cassidy.  I cried many a tear with that song...
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