Saying Farewell to 2018…50 Year Anniversary of 1968!…What a year!…Revisited… “1968/Two Books”! Phil
And Two Books
by
Philip Fontana
Dedicated to the 50th Reunion
The Class of 1968, Rutgers College, New Brunswick, New Jersey
Rutgers University mascot, “The Scarlet Knights”
Excuse us for living, but while so many of you remember or have heard of that tumultuous year 1968, we the Class of 1968 put our claim on it. It was our year and, with it, all the misery and anguish that went with living through it, well, we put first claim on it all! Now having fluffed our feathers, we realize that so many of our generation shared in the same agonies from the military draft hanging over our heads to serving and dying or being wounded in Vietnam. – – And what about living through the upheaval of those uncertain times politically, socially, culturally, in an atmosphere of increasing anti-war protests!
The first…
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Excuse Us for Living 
Vietnam was certainly a mess in ’68!!
By: GP Cox on December 27, 2018
at 2:27 pm
GP Cox, GP!!! It sure was! Our military lives lost jumped by, I think it was, 16,000 to a total of 28,000 by the time Nixon was sworn in, January 20, 1969. And in these books is the history of the days just before the November 1968 election at the end of October, 1968. LBJ called for a complete bombing halt & the South Vietnam government was ready to go to the Paris Peace Talks. Nixon, through an intermediary, committed TREASON signaling the South Vietnam government that they would get a better deal from him once elected. As a result South Vietnam pulls out of their commitment to go to Paris & LBJ’s peace in hand falls apart. Nixon is elected, the South Vietnam government gets no better treatment from Nixon, & 20,000 more military lives are lost between then & the end in 1973, totaling 58,000+ dead. –A mess you are right!!!!!!!!!!! I was there in 1970 as an MP & came home in one piece. That was my goal…the only sense I could make of the whole mess for my personal self & family. Thanks, GP!!! Phil
By: philipfontana on December 27, 2018
at 3:53 pm
Have you stopped blogging or moved to a different blog location that I’m not aware of?
By: Russel Ray Photos on January 15, 2020
at 3:56 am
Russel Ray, Russel!!! So nice to hear from you!!! My “Excuse Us…” website ceased when we moved to our new townhouse, April 2019. (No new blog!) Both wife Geri & I were totally exhausted. I was really to the point of breaking down ….whatever that is….you keep going despite the struggle to sleep & even eat. Then, just a month later by mid-May, Geri came down with here worst bout of diverticulosis in 25 years. Despite Geri telling the doctors what was wrong, they put her through three months of agonizing pain & infection/fever with 6 lab tests & 9 doctor visits. Finally, Geri had surgery August 12 to remove 8 inches of intestine. Geri was left with a colostomy & “bag.” Eight weeks of recovery followed. As a result, it took us until almost Christmas to finally unpack & set up the new place. Now Geri will have a few tests &, hopefully, have surgery to “reconnect” in March. Unfortunately, the new place has a list of things to fix/repair that you don’t know about until you move in, despite the house inspection. And so, after 3+ years of hard work getting the old 1885 Dutch Colonial fixed up for sale, I have a year or so of things to bring up to our standards. You may recall advising us about the old electric wiring & knob & tube in the old house. It turned out that while there was 70% old wiring, there was much less knob & tube. We sold it “as is” by giving the buyer $9,000 off the selling price for the knob & tube. On my “Excuse Us…” I am amazed how my modest 3,500 views per year with only 6 posts was still half that in 2019 with zero posts!!!!!!!!!!! I still get “hits” from my content from 2012-2018 when I started my blog, just like yours in 2012. So thanks for asking. In the words of a good friend in the last months of 2019, “You’re having a bad year.” We never thought of it that way! Geri & I have just been trying to get through it all. But it’s been the most difficult patch of our lives. Thanks, Russel!!!!!!!!!!!!! Phil
By: philipfontana on January 15, 2020
at 1:45 pm
How have you been, Phil? Hope all is alright at your end of cyberspace!
By: GP Cox on February 6, 2020
at 6:27 am
GP Cox, GP!!! Many thanks for checking up on us!!! Sorry as always for not getting over to Pacific Paratrooper! It’s been 6 months since wife Geri’s surgery last August 12. Hard to believe how time flies. Just before Christmas we finally got the new townhouse set up, slowed by Geri’s illness, having moved in April. Now addressing things that need to be fixed/repaired. You never know a place until you live there! We are preparing for Geri’s second surgery in March-April to reconnect her intestine, now with a colostomy & “bag.” She had her first test in January & now another coming up mid-February. Once the surgeon sees the test results, he will decide if Geri can have this surgery to reconnect the intestines. Hope this finds you & your family doing well! Maybe I’ll remember to get over to visit your website now. Forgive me. And thanks for thinking of me. Phil
By: philipfontana on February 6, 2020
at 10:41 am
Hope y’all are doing well.
By: Russel Ray Photos on March 23, 2020
at 1:21 am
Russel Ray, Thanks for checking in on us! OK here. May you be well also. The worst is wife Geri’s elective surgery being postponed. As I wrote to you in the above reply in January, the surgery is to reconnect her colostomy “bag” from her surgery last August 12 for diverticulosis removing 6 inches of intestine. I should checkout you website & see what places & things you are posting while you “shelter alone” for safety! I am sure you have plenty backlog of photos to post & to discuss. Stay well now! Thanks again for thinking of us! Phil & Geri too
By: philipfontana on March 23, 2020
at 8:35 am