In the spring of 1995, my husband and I decided that we would go to Disney World for our vacation. We had been to Disney World several years ago when Epcot was just in the developing stages. After reading all the information we had available and viewing promotional videos, we decided that Epcot would be an interesting place to visit.

We mapped out our trip and made reservations. We decided to spend a day at Universal Studios before we went to Disney World. Finding our hotel near Universal Studios was the first minor challenge we encountered. This was a popular hotel chain. We inquired two different times for directions. The directions given were so different that we decided to call the hotel for directions. Finally, we checked in and were able to get a good night's sleep.

Universal Studios was probably the most enjoyable day of our vacation. This park features over 35 set locations, major film and TV productions. Some of the features introduced that summer were Ghostbusters, E.T., Jaws, Earthquake, Back to the Future, Kongfrontation, Hanna-Barbera, and Barney. Needless to say, we bypassed Barney. We particularly enjoyed the stunt show and the Animal Actors Stage. Most importantly, we did not spend a big part of our day standing in lines!

It was time to find the hotel we reserved which was approximately five miles from Disney World. We arrived at this hotel around midnight. The following morning we learned all the particulars about passes for Disney World and the shuttle bus schedule. Our shuttle bus was called "Laidlaw." It was about a 10 minute ride on the shuttle bus to Disney World. We decided to purchase what was called a 4 Day World-Hopper Pass.

We were headed for Disney World at 11:00 a.m. on the third day of our vacation. We spent the biggest part of the day at Epcot. We enjoyed taking a step into the future world and the Innoventions which featured breakthrough technology. However, as the day went on and the crowd grew larger, we were starting to get discouraged with the long lines we had to stand in to see an attraction. We were aware that summer was not the best time to go to Disney World. But we never dreamed that we would have to stand in line, at times, anywhere from one to two hours. Another thing that we found interesting was the large number of foreigners. We heard Spanish and Middle Eastern dialects. I often wondered what they were saying. Sometimes, someone of a foreign descent would jump the line as if they had special privileges. One tourist was very disturbed by this. He would not let anyone pass him and his family. I thought we were going to see a fight. As we were sitting in the park, an employee came by sweeping up liter. We began talking to him about this problem. He said that it occurs often and that if things get out of hand, security would have to ask the tourists to leave the park. We tried not to let the long lines discourage us. The laser light show was a great way to end our day at Epcot, even though we had to stand a great distance away and look over a huge crowd.

The second day at Disney World was spent at Magic Kingdom and MGM Studios. We saw a lot of neat attractions. My husband's favorite ride was the Tower of Terror, but again we were discouraged by the long wait for this ride. The Pocahontas Show was a big hit that summer. Due to the extremely long line to view this show, we bypassed it all together. After making our way through the crowd and viewing several of the attractions, we ended this day watching the Electric Light Parade. It was great. However, I think I enjoyed watching the young children's reactions more than anything.

The third day at Disney World was spent trying to get into some of the attractions that we passed on the previous days. With a lot of patience, we were able to make our way to most of the sights we were interested in seeing. We decided to end our day a little earlier than usual. All this running around was catching up with us and we grew weary from standing in the lines. We also noticed that it was getting windy and it felt like rain was on its way.

On our trip back to our hotel, we noticed that the traffic was unusually heavy. The shuttle bus driver had the radio on. We were trying to listen to it over all the noise on the bus. Something just didn't seem right. You could feel it in the air. Then we heard the radio announcer give a weather report. I heard him say something about a hurricane that was near the Miami area. I became very concerned. When we arrived at our hotel lounge, we spoke to a couple who had evacuated the Miami area. They commented about how unpredictable hurricanes can be. The desk clerk said that if the weather gets progressively worse, go to the bathroom and close the door. Now I was petrified. All I could think about was spending the night in the bathroom.

As the night progressed, I could hear the wind getting stronger and stronger. I was worried about my car and made sure it was not parked near a tree. The wind was unbelievable. It made a loud whirling sound throughout the night. I stayed up until early in the morning listening to the weather report. I also might add that I did a lot of praying. Updates on the hurricane was the only thing on the local channels. I learned that the hurricane had a name which was Erin. My husband was not too concerned for he was soon sound asleep. On top of all the noise from the wind, I had to listen to his snoring, I never did go to the bathroom and close the door, but I thought about it a few times. I was relieved to see daylight. But soon the heavy rain began. Then I discovered that the bathroom ceiling was leaking. I began wondering what kind of damage this hurricane caused. In my state of exhaustion, I somehow managed to fall asleep.

When I woke up a few hours later, the TV was blaring out the weather report. It seemed a little loud since the wind had died down. There was some major damage done to a small trailer court in an area not too far from us. The major concern near our hotel was uprooted trees. The only damage our hotel experienced was some shingles blown off the roof. Then it was reported that Disney World may not open today. It has never been closed before, but I wasn't too upset about this. I was hoping we would just get a refund. I was ready to head home. I called my mother to tell her about the hurricane. She had already heard about it. It was on the national news. As you can imagine, she was glad to hear that we were okay. I told her that I have had enough of Disney World and fighting the crowds, let alone worrying about a hurricane.

As luck would have it, Disney World did open at noon on the fourth day of our "wonderful" Four Day World-Hopper Pass. We went to the drug store and purchased two plastic ponchos. We figured we would make the best of the situation. However, this day ended out being the best day we had at Disney World. There weren't nearly as many people there because of the weather. My husband could ride the Tower of Terror several times! As the weather improved, the crowd began to grow at around 5:00. When the lines started getting longer and longer, we knew it was time to leave. We had seen everything we planned to see. We were ready to go to our hotel and pack for our trip home. Thus ended our tour of Disney World at about 7:00. One thing we learned is that, if at all possible, do not go to Disney World in the summer.

On our trip home, we decided not to stay over night. We were anxious to get home. Our Siberian huskies were also anxious to see us. When we pulled in the driveway, they almost jumped over the fence. Taped on the garage door was a picture of Mickey Mouse reading a book titled Ghost Stories. My mother had written "Welcome Home!" on the picture and the word "ERIN" on Mickey's book!

We decided for our vacation, with a little hesitation,
That a neat place to go would be the city of Orlando.
With a stop along the way at Universal Studios,
We'd go onto Epcot, even though the weather is hot.

We made our reservations,
But had difficulty finding our hotel's location.
We saw over thirty-five set locations,
Such as E.T., Ghostbusters, and Kongfrontation.
Barney the purple dinosaur was a big hit,
But needless to say, we chose to bypass it.
Most importantly, we didn't stand in long lines,
And for us this made our day so fine.
Disney World was the next part of our trip,
As we were finished viewing the movie clips.

With our 4-Day World Hopper Pass in hand,
We thought everything was going to be grand.
Standing in lines for over an hour,
Made our experience at Disney a little sour.
What made it even worse, and caused people to curse,
Were the tourist just couldn't wait their turn.
Some etiquette they surely needed to learn.

After our third day at Disney World, we heard someone say,
Hurricane Erin is on its way!
Expected to hit somewhere near Miami,
But no one could truly foresee.
People who were full of fear,
Decided this area they would soon clear.
We were then told ,
By those who seemed so bold,
To simply hide in the bathroom,
If you felt that you were doomed.
The wind whirled throughout the night,
And I was afraid we would see a terrible sight.
Needless to say I stayed awake,
Wishing the hurricane was just a fake.
Fortunately, the only damage I could see,
Were some uprooted trees
And the bathroom ceiling had a leak.

With the threat that Disney World may not open,
We weren't upset and just kept hopin',
Maybe a refund and we could be done,
For we wanted to pack and not come back.
But Magic Kingdom reopened at noon,
And for us this was a little too soon.
We wore ponchos to protect us from the rain,
Then headed back to that park, I thought we were insane!
This ended out being our best day yet,
For we weren't standing in lines with fret.
Eventually the crowd started to grow,
And soon we knew it was time to go.

We left the next day and needless to say,
We were ready to be on our way.
We paid our bill, and headed for those wonderful West Virginia hills.
Greeting us at our house, was a picture of Mickey Mouse.
Ghost stories he was reading, but again I had to look.
For someone wrote "Erin" in the title of his book!

When I was growing up, the only pet I ever had for any length of time was a cat. I was about five or six when this cat was a part of our family. The only thing I remember about it was the time it came in our house and I thought my dad was going to kill it. I guess I acquired my attitude about pets from my parents. They always felt that they were a big responsibility and would never have a pet in the house. They would ask, "Who would watch it when no one is home? Who will feed it everyday? Why have a pet if you have to keep it in a pen?"

When we moved to the outskirts of the small town of Monongah, WV, my father decided that we could have a dog since we had a place where it could roam and not have to be kept in a pen. He decided that a German shepherd would be good to have since it could also guard the house when we weren't home. The first puppy we had got hit by a car in our driveway. This broke my heart. It was the first time I cried because an animal died. The second German shepherd was so protective that it bit our neighbor's granddaughter. When it bit a second visitor, who had to get stitches, that was the end of pets for my family!

I never had anymore pets until I met my husband in October 1990. When I met him I was also introduced to three Siberian huskies. I just couldn't understand why he had three dogs. He decided to purchase a male and a female dog so he could breed them. He went to a place in Pennsylvania called Squirrel Hill to purchase the female dog. Then he was to meet a lady at Three Rivers Stadium to purchase the male dog. The lady had a male and a female dog that she wanted to sell. My husband was only interested in the male dog. The lady said he could have the female dog because she was moving and could not keep her. So my husband came home with three dogs. He named them Hauns, Heidi, and Holly. Since Hauns and Heidi were from the same liter, he chose not to breed them. However, when I met my husband, he was no longer breeding Hauns and Holly.

I thought, how can you enjoy these dogs when they are in a pen all the time? It just seemed like a chore to have to feed them every evening. At first I did not have much interest in the dogs, but soon I started walking out to the pen when my husband would feed them. I couldn't believe how friendly and excited they were to see me. I thought they were going to jump out of the pen. I gave them a dog biscuit even though I was a little afraid of them. Soon it became routine for me to give them a bone every evening.

We got married about a year after I met my husband and his dogs. I found myself taking more interest in these dogs and getting very attached to them. When I would hang out the laundry, Hauns would start "talking" to me. He would bark and howl. Then he would show off by strutting up and down the fence. I would actually start talking to him. Then Holly would jump and run around the pen. Heidi is very "laid back." She would never have much of a reaction at first. But one day when I went out in the yard, I couldn't believe she was howling and barking at me. This also surprised my husband.

All these dogs have their own personality. Hauns, being the only male, thinks he is the king. He is very competitive and always has to be the first one to get a treat. Holly is very hyper. She gets very jealous if you are petting another dog and not giving her any attention. But I think I am the fondest of Heidi because she is so subdued and "laid back." She doesn't cause any problems.

It wasn't long before I was going in the pen to pet them. Then I started hauling water to the pen. I was even cooking for them! They like chicken fat boiled in water. I also cook old meat, particular deer meat, for them. One day I was in the pen brushing Heidi because she was shedding. My mother stopped to visit and she couldn't believe that I was in the pen brushing Heidi. Something I thought I could never do.

My nieces and nephews really enjoy these dogs. The first place they want to go is to see the dogs when they visit my house. They want to stay all night so they can take the dogs for a walk. This would create a problem because you could only take one dog at a time. So that meant that we would have to go for three walks because the dogs would get so jealous if they all didn't go for a walk.

I met these dogs almost seven years ago. They are almost fifteen years old now. They are showing the signs of aging. Heidi is getting fat. Holly is still pretty hyper, but is also showing her age by the changes in the color of her fur. Hauns is getting arthritis in his hind legs and has a hard time walking.

One warm evening, we decided to leave the bedroom window open. The next morning I woke up to the sound of Hauns whining. I woke up my husband . He looked out the window while I lay in bed with tears in my eyes. It broke my heart to hear him whining. My husband said that he was having a hard time getting up. He was in a lot of pain. I told my husband, "You have to do something. I can't stand to see him like this." My husband called the vet and got some medicine for his arthritis. It has done wonders for Hauns. You can see that smile on his face again when I walk outside. Recently when I hung out clothes, he was actually strutting up and down the fence showing off for me. He still has a little limp, but he held his head up high. I just stood there and smiled.

After meeting Heidi, Holly, and Hauns, I have learned that dogs can be a great companion. You do get very attached to them. I know it will be a sad day when my dogs are gone. I told my husband that it would be nice if our next dog could stay on our porch so it could greet us when we come home. Gee, I never thought I would ever feel this way about a dog!

June 14th is coming up, and for most people the main significance of that date might be Flag Day. For me however, the day always carries a special meaning. On June 14, 1968, my father died. I think most of us would probably remember the day without it being attached to a holiday, but even a "minor" holiday like Flag Day insures that I won't forget.

My father and mother were "older" when I came along. Mom was 46 when she gave birth to me, and fourteen years later when my dad died, he was 62. It's a tough thing for a 14 year old boy to lose his father. Perhaps the toughest thing is that I didn't really realize what I had lost until years later.

Leo (my dad) died of emphysema. He had worked in the coal mines for years before becoming a carpenter. Mr. Working Class- really smooth with his hands and tools. The kind of guy that spent all his vacation time fixing things around the house that he hadn't gotten to during the rest of the year. I don't think he and mom ever had what most Americans today would call a "real vacation" in their entire lives. Too bad- they would have enjoyed one.

During most of my childhood that I recall, my dad was in and out of the hospital with regularity. I wasn't quite sure what "emphysema" meant then, but basically his lungs were wearing out. On hot, humid summer days he struggled to catch his breath, even when he was just sitting in a chair, not doing a thing. One time when I was probably about ten years old, I wanted him to toss the baseball around with me. Mom said he didn't feel well, but I kept pestering until he came outside and did the best he could. Like I said, as a kid, I just didn't quite "get it" then, but I do now. That half-hour of catch with my dad is something I'll never forget. (I still can't watch the movie Field of Dreams without tearing up at the end.)

In the classic comic Batman, Bruce Wayne's parents are killed when he is a young boy. He dedicates the rest of his life to fighting crime in order to avenge their deaths. Like I said, it's a hard thing to lose a parent at an early age- even for a fictional character. I didn't turn to fighting crime and facing supervillans like Bruce Wayne (although teaching public school is much along those lines), but like my fictional friend, I often wish my father could have lived long enough to see that I am doing good things with my life. I always wanted him to be proud of me, and have to take it on faith that he would be if he were alive. Sometimes that just doesn't seem like enough.

I used to worry that I'd forget my father. As we grow older, I'm told we do begin forgetting things. I can't remember where I heard that. Yes, I have a few photos (my family wasn't much for pictures), but I want to remember everything- how he laughed, how he drank a cup of coffee, and what about his voice? What if I could no longer mentally conjure up my father's voice?

Well, some years ago though, I finally figured it out. My voice is his voice. My laugh, my smile, everything about me is in at least some small measure from Leo Field. As long as I am here, he is here. And as long as I am proud of myself, he will be too.

Many proposals have been put forth over the years on reforming American education. School reform is not a new thing- even the ancient Greeks had those people who by today's standards would be called reformers. As technology has expanded however, making it easier for more people to have a say, and as we approach the artificially contrived thing we called the "end of the millennium", cries for revision in the American educational system grow louder and more numerous.

This "reform mania" has produced a deluge of ideas and programs on how we might better educate our children. "Back to the Basics". "Schools that Work". "Schools to Work". "Magnet Schools". "Tax Vouchers". Everyone seems to have just the right remedy for what ails our faltering educational institutions. (That's assuming you buy into the idea that schools are actually doing that bad of a job, which most people do because it's easier to blame the school system for your child's deficiencies that to blame anyone else- like your child or yourself). Even the President of the United States has arrived at the conclusion that students will learn a lot more if they simply wear different clothing. Bring on the uniforms!

Calling for educational reform has become a very chic. It seems that every American has his or her own way to fix public education. (They're experts after all- they all went to school. Then again, I've been on an airplane. Do you think that qualifies me to repair one?) Allow me to add my modest proposal to the mix. It's not much, and on the surface it may not seem to have anything to do with educational reform, but I guarantee it will work. Best of all- it won't cost the taxpayers one dime!

The way every state could instantly improve education is to raise the age necessary to obtain a driver's license to 18. For too many teenagers, once they get their driver's license, "school is out". The new found independence of the car has an absolutely disastrous effect on any attempt to "school" many of these adolescents. First of all, parental supervision declines significantly. For many parents, the automobile is to their teenager what television was to their younger child- a way to satisfy their son or daughter without having to expend too much effort. Education always begins with the family. If they abandon their responsibilities by throwing Johnny a set of car keys, what chance does any school have?

For many teens, the keys also come with a catch: "You can have a car as long as you pay for the gas and insurance." At this point, holding a job to finance the automobile becomes supremely important. School is something you do between shifts at McDonald's. Homework? "Didn't have time. I didn't get off work until eleven-thirty." It all becomes a kind of Catch-22. Teenagers need to hold a job to pay for their car. Why do they need a car? To go to work. Many young people work by night and sleep walk through school by day.

Does my proposal have a chance of succeeding? Would any state legislature actually be bold enough to try this "educational reform" and raise the driver's age? Of course not. There's far too much money involved here to let common sense get in the way. The auto makers would lose profits. The gasoline companies would lose profits. The insurance companies would fight this one to the death as well. (No teenage drivers- no exorbitant rates. By the way, insurance companies can statistically prove that teenagers are the worst drivers, therefore their rates have to be high. Well, we wouldn't want to remove any bad drivers from the road, would we?) And if those special interests weren't enough to kill my idea of reform in any legislature across the land, what about all those enraged parental voters?

I guess my ideas are just too radical. Perhaps we should form a committee to study this for awhile. In the meantime, where can we order those school uniforms?

Americans are sports fanatics. We love the competition, we love the spectacle, and we love the unpredictability of athletic competition. During the early part of this century, the automobile allowed the common man the mobility to attend his favorite sporting events. Radio, then television brought these contests into our homes all across the nation. We were hooked and the "sports culture" was born.

Even if you are not a sports fan, it is hard to escape the impact which sports has made on American society. It is in our vocabulary ("Tom really hit a home run with that presentation"). It is part of our observance of holidays (we couldn't have a New Year without those college bowl games). In fact, sporting events have on occasion become holidays. Super Bowl Sunday is as holy in the eyes of many Americans as Easter Sunday.

Through economic depression and war, good times and bad, sports has always been there for us to fall back on. Hitler may have conquered Europe, but he couldn't stop baseball. Vietnam was a time of terrible national strife, but there was always Don Drysdale and Sandy Koufax. Baseball, football, the Indianapolis 500, the Kentucky Derby, the Final Four- each year without doubt. There is something reassuring about that. Like the passing of the seasons, as one World Series or Stanley Cup playoff is ending, we can all look forward to next season, because we know it will be there.

Even the heroes of our sports used to be reassuring. Babe Ruth was a legendary, larger than life man. His over eating and over drinking was something the common man could identify with. It just made him more "Babe Ruthish". Willie Mays would finish a game at the Polo Grounds and go back to his old neighborhood to play stick ball with the kids. Bill Mazeroski hit the game winning home run in the 1960 World Series. "Maz" wasn't a superstar, he was a "blue collar" player, an "everyman" who become the hero and saved the day. Isn't that what America was about?

Somewhere along the line however, it all changed. Television and the money it generates have changed sports in America. It's not the Orange Bowl anymore, it's the Federal Express Orange Bowl, and the Frito-Lay Fiesta Bowl, and the Poulan Weedeater Independence Bowl because these companies want to advertise and the bowl games want their money. Baseball has broken a hundred year tradition by having "interleague play", selling its history for a fast buck and TV ratings which will disappear as soon as the novelty wears off. Even the Olympic Games have become so commercialized that one would hardly recognize them from just thirty years again. And Olympic athletes? The Gold is now in commercial endorsement as much as it is in medals.

Little boys and girls no longer grow up wanting to be in the Hall of Fame; now they want to excel at athletics so they can land a big shoe contract or do Pepsi commercials. Many of the sports stars of today no longer represent middle class America- they are now spoiled babies with more money than they know what to do with. They have little in common with the man and woman in the stands or at home watching on TV. Any American of the 1960s would have been proud to have his son grow up to be like Henry Aaron. Today, would you really want you son to grow up to be just like Dennis Rodman?