My friend Danny Clemons has joined his ancestors. He graduated Chester High School with my brother Brian in 1962. I knew Danny in those days, but it was only in the last 15 or so years that we became close.
Fishing
Every spring, Danny and I went fishing down at the boat landing near the toll bridge in Springfield. We’d take our lawn chairs, prop our poles up, and sit back and visit. We always enjoyed seeing the bald eagles, and other fishermen we knew from years past.
Chester Historical Society
When I was at the historical society, we had antiques sales on the front lawn to raise money. Danny had experience selling antiques in Brimfield, so he knew what to do. Whether it was us driving around to pick up donations, or at the sale helping customers, Danny was always there with his cheerful smile. We made a ton of money for the historical society. I was president, Danny vice president.
Cemeterying
Another thing Danny and I enjoyed was what we called “cemeterying.” In the fall of the year, we would visit area cemeteries on either side of the Connecticut River.
We usually split up to take in a cemetery. When one of us found something interesting, we let the other know. I took hundreds of pictures.
Danny found a website, “Find a Grave.” He got very good at researching this site for names we found on graves. It amazed me how much information he could dig up. Much of the history Danny found, I used in my weekly column.
Crowley Cheese Factory
One of our regular stops was Crowley Cheese in Healdville, and as such we became known to the employees. We were often given a discount. Danny liked to tell those present about his down-country grandfather. It was 75 years ago, Danny’s grandfather liked good sharp rat trap cheese. Crowley would save Danny’s grandfather some of their rankest cheese. We both had memories as young boys about Crowley’s.
Postcards
Danny and I both collected Vermont and New Hampshire postcards. Three winters ago, Paul Cook dropped off postcards at my place. Usually there were 2,000 to 3,000 cards at a time for us to choose from.
Danny and I sat opposite each other at a mission desk I have downstairs. We would take a box of 500 to 700 cards, and approach from opposite ends of the box, meet in the middle, and then turn the box around and go through the other half. Sometimes Danny would find a card I would have bought. I always teased him of cheating me out of it.
Danny and I spent countless hours going through the thousands of postcards that winter. The hours passed with two old men jabbering about this or that. We knew what the other collected, so it wasn’t uncommon for one of us to ask the other, “Do you have this card?” We had a lot of fun together.
The postcard show
This past weekend was the postcard show in Quechee. This is the first time I have gone without Danny. Danny was missed by those who knew him. I asked Steve Bruce if he wanted to tag along, yes. It was a new collecting field for Steve, but he seemed to enjoy himself. We both bought a few cards.
Danny and I never had a cross word or disagreeable moment. I credit Danny’s temperament for this. Those who know me know I can have a short fuse. The reason we never had a disagreement is Danny’s credit, not mine. I will miss him.
This week’s old saying is from my deceased buddy Butch Barber. Butch was Marine Corps in Vietnam. He wasn’t right, but what fun he was. I’ve always collected interesting people. “A friend will bail you out of jail, but a real friend sits beside you in jail and says, ‘Damn that was fun!’”