BlogSep26

In this edition of the Prep '58 Blog...

Now that the school year has begun, we're kicking off another Petroc look-back with the September 12th, 1955 issue. Check it out later in the Blog.

Vince & Stephanie sent in photos from their vacay in France last month...

In a Sept. 15th, 1955 edition of the New York Times, we see stories that are vaguely similar to today's headlines about activities in the Middle East, South America and the political scene in the USA.

A recipe from Desserts With Stephanie for Blueberry Cheesecake Bars, and...

...a 40th Birthday surprise party.

The Petroc - Start of Sophomore Year

We have been highlighting an issue of the Petroc in each edition of the '58 Blog and we welcome your comments.

This issue of the Petroc was published on September 12, 1955 and commemorates the 4th Centenary of St. Ignatius' Death, with the story of his early years thru his death in1556.

And, of course, the start of another school year means the start of another football season. There's a 6-page spread about the prospects for the year in this issue.

And take a look at Page 5... The Honor Roll shows that our freshman class received more silver, bronze and religion medals than the Sophomore and Junior classes combined. Nice work everybody!

Click here to see the issue.

Here's the main stories from the NYT front page from September 15, 1955.

The Dock Workers union came to an agreement with management on a 17-cent hourly wage increase, averting a strike;
Saks 5th Avenue was advertising men's luxury suits for $69.00;
Newark Airport opened a new terminal, on the west side of Manhattan, improving transit time from 40 minutes to 25 minutes, and...
Vicki, the runaway elephant, is still on the loose in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Just in case your memory is as iffy as the Editor's, we found a site that lets you access the top news stories from back in the day. You can select the year, month and day, and then go thru major news events for that day in the New York Times, page by page.

You can see it all right here!

So... what is a "Lexophile?"

A "Lexophile" is a lover of words, language play, puns, and clever double meanings, such as "To write with a broken pencil is pointless." An annual competition is held by the New York Times to see who is the lexophile of the year.

Here's the best of the submissions...

No matter how much you push the envelope, it'll still be stationery.
If you don't pay your exorcist, you can get repossessed
I'm reading a book about anti-gravity. I just can't put it down.
I didn't like my beard at first. Then it grew on me.
Did you hear about the crossed-eyed teacher who lost her job because she couldn't control her pupils?
When you get a bladder infection, urine trouble.
When chemists die, they barium.
I stayed up all night to see where the sun went, and then it dawned on me.
I changed my iPod's name to Titanic. It's syncing now.
England has no kidney bank, but it does have a Liverpool.
Haunted French pancakes give me the crepes.
This girl today said she recognized me from the Vegetarians Club, but I'd swear I've never met herbivore.
I know a guy who's addicted to drinking brake fluid, but he says he can stop any time.
A thief who stole a calendar got twelve months.
When the smog lifts in Los Angeles U.C.L.A.
I got some batteries that were given out free of charge.
A dentist and a manicurist married. They fought tooth and nail.
A will is a dead giveaway.
With her marriage, she got a new name and a dress.
Police were summoned to a daycare center where a three-year-old was resisting a rest.
Did you hear about the fellow whose entire left side was cut off? He's all right now.
A bicycle can't stand alone; it's just two tired.
The guy who fell onto an upholstery machine last week is now fully recovered.
He had a photographic memory, but it was never fully developed.

We started with some mighty good news - Dave told us that the clinical trial he is involved with has produced some remarkable results, and he has been able to get back into the swing of things, even to the point of getting behind the wheel for occasional local driving. The trial involves a 5-day on / 3 weeks off regimen of pills which he started earlier this year. The regimen has increased his red and white blood cell count, and his doctors are very encouraged with his progress. Great to hear, Dave. Keep up the good work!

Walt Braun asked if Jesuit schools still carry on the tradition of JUG, and we found out that they sure do! Vince reported that a search for "Jesuit schools JUG" revealed that the practice is still in use, although current practice involves more than what we went thru with the encyclicals we had to copy back in the day. Google "is there JUG in Jesuit schools?" for examples.

Vince started a conversation about our very first days at Prep, lined up in the school yard, not knowing what was going on. That initiated a few Fr. Murray stories, which guys came from which towns and what were their first experiences at Prep.

Tom Reilly mentioned a problem that he and his neighbors were having with the presence of bears. A few guys chimed in about the issue in their towns. Then came conversations about plane crashes, followed by the new Roman telescope which went into orbit with the names of those who submitted their info online.

Genealogy held our attention for a while, followed by how cool it was that Space X can bring their rockets back to earth safely.

Lots of other conversations, and then it was time to go. Like other Zoom meetings in the past, this call reinforced the rationale for starting the '58 Blog and the Zoom calls in the first place, and and strengthened our determination to continue to stay in touch with each other.

If you were not on the call, you missed a good time. You can see a video of the call here.

If you can't make it to an in-person Cuppa, you can join the gang in a Zoom Cuppa, wherever you are. We have plenty of room, and there's no entrance fee. The next Zoom Cuppa is scheduled for Monday, Oct 12th @ 12:00 pm EDT. Vince will send out the meeting invitation with the pass code. Please keep the email!

Frank Geremia told us that he and his wife Agnes moved to Piscataway just to see if they would like it, and have been there for 30 years now. We're guessing they like it.

Bob Pipchick told us that he and his wife Peg had a great trip to Ireland, but Bob wound up with a case of pneumonia when he got home.

There were several conversations about the cost of things, and how "it ain't like that any more..." An example was the toll for the Holland Tunnel, which is now $18. Back in the day, the toll was 25 cents. Another sign of the financial times is the starting salary of a first-year employee at Goldman Sachs - $120,000 per year with a $15,000 signing bonus. Vince told the gang that the salary for the first real job he had was $50 a week.

We got off on a few sports discussions about Jackie Robinson, Jersey City Roosevelt Stadium, the Yogi Berra Museum, and Greg Schiano.

We took a photo, had lunch, and decided it was it was time to call it a day.

You should join a Reo Cuppa if you can. We have had as many as a dozen attendees in the past, and would like to get a good crowd every month.

We schedule the Reo Cuppa for the 2nd Tuesday of each month to allow as many guys as we can to attend by planning around the date. Our next Reo Cuppa is on Tuesday, Sept. 15th. We hope to see a good crowd there.

42 Bio's, and counting...

We are still on the hunt for After '58 Bio's and we know there are dozens of 58'ers out there who read the Blog, but have yet to submit a Bio. Every one we get has an interesting tale to tell, and we hope you will add yours to our library.

And... remember those cookies! Send yours in and we will get them right out to you! Take a look at the Bio's we have.

'After '58' got started in March, 2017, when we received this suggestion from Bill Kretzer to collect stories from the '58 gang about what they did after graduation.

"I think there would be a bushel of interest in interviews with each & every ‘58 graduate. I for one, since I went away to college and never returned to NJ, didn’t keep in touch as much as I should have and would be curious to hear how everyone’s life turned out."

Bill sent in his Bio, and 8 years later, we are at 42. We hope every one of the '58 gang will pick up on Bill's suggestion and send in their story in an email to Vince.

It takes no more time to put your story together than it would to tell it to your grandkids, so how about it? We will return the favor by sending a baker's dozen of Stephanie Grillo's famous Chocolate Chunk cookies. We've already shipped out over 500 of the best cookies you've ever tasted, and there's more where they came from.

Blueberry Cheesecake Bars

Vince's wife Stephanie publishes a Baking Blog - Desserts With Stephanie - featuring 100's of recipes for cakes, cookies, pies and other delicious desserts. Her recipes produce delicious results, and are easy to follow. We have been featuring them in our '58 Blog.

These Blueberry Cheesecake Bars are a delicious dessert that combines two favorites in one treat - blueberries and cheesecake! They have a buttery crust on the bottom, a creamy cheesecake layer, and a sweet blueberry sauce swirled throughout.

We thought you might like to try it as your next family dessert. It will definitely generate a 'Yummy" or two.

Click here to take a peek at the recipe.

If you like it, give it a Thumbs up. For more delicious recipes, support Stephanie by becoming a Subscriber.

Click here to subscribe to Stephanie's channel.

BTW, in addition to his duties as videographer, the Editor offers his services as an official dessert taster, and looks forward to sampling them every month. These treats are delicious and the recipe makes them easy to make. Try it!

Happy Birthday, Kyle

Vince's G'daughter Kortney threw a surprise 40th Birthday Party for her husband Kyle in mid-August. That's Kyle as he first got out of the car, having promised Kortney that he wouldn't peek...

More than 70 guests greeted Kyle when he pulled up to the house, after his wife had lured him to a local mall for some food shopping.

From toddlers to old guys like the Editor, everyone had a great time celebrating with Kyle, with lots of great food, a drink or two, and the mandatory birthday cake.

Happy Birthday, Kyle!

Prep '58 Blog - September 2026

The Petroc - Start of Sophomore Year

The French Alps

So... what is a "Lexophile?"

Here's the best of the submissions...

42 Bio's, and counting...

Blueberry Cheesecake Bars

Happy Birthday, Kyle

Prep '58 Blog - September 2026

The Petroc - Start of Sophomore Year

The French Alps

So... what is a "Lexophile?"

Here's the best of the submissions...

42 Bio's, and counting...

Blueberry Cheesecake Bars

Happy Birthday, Kyle

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