Party at the Mosier's: $6. Al fresco dining and cocktails at the GlazaGate: $10. AFA-Army Football game ticket: $30. Dinner at the Radisson: $26. Spending quality time with your classmates: Priceless! (There are just some things that money can't buy--for everything else, there is MasterCard) *.

We had another record attendance at the AFA-Army Football Game Weekend Nov 7-9, 2003. The un-humdrum weekend started with a magnificent party at Bruce and Caryl Mosier's home in Monument at noon on Friday, then to the Radisson for a Pep Rally headlined by some razzmatazz with a rousing speech from Coach Fisher DeBerry (delivered "for our ears only"), who knows how to spin a yarn, perhaps several. (Some then repaired to the Golden Bee at the Broadmoor for late night songs and revelry.) Saturday's GlazaGate started at 9 a.m. with Bloody Marys and the best food anywhere near Falcon Stadium. Then it was the Falcons beating the very Black Knights 31-3. Satur­day night's dinner was emceed by Andi Biancur with invocation by Gary Sheets and closed with Dave Sweigart leading the group in "God Bless America." Sunday's brunch was the "get away event."

Attending during the weekend: Ken Alnwick; Andi Biancur and Carole Kramer; Tony and Carol Bilello; Steve Bishop; Dean Bristow; Howie and Judy Bronson; Barbara Crew, sons Jeff, Brian, and their wives; Jack Brush and Elaine Wells; Jim Bujalski and Judy Sims Rodriguez, Rosie and Karen Cler; CTIII and Brenda Douglass, sons Dax and CTIV, grandsons USAFA C4C Matthew and CIC Joseph; Gordy Flygare; Jim and Jenny Glaza, friend John Olson; Goose Gulbransen; Denis and Liz Haney; Les Hobgood; Deke and Sally Johnson (one sight you were unlikely to miss was that of erst­while swain Deke signing-up classmates for VFW memberships with abandon--mind you, with the speed of a Rebel Sergeant running from a Yankee Pot Roast--Deke turns this activity into an Extreme Sport); Brian and Carol Kaley with Sue Stone Woodward.

Also, Wayne and Barbara Kendall; Ed and Suzanne Leonard; George and Carolyn Luck; Phil Meinhardt and Jackie Keller; Bruce and Caryl Mosier, daughter Debbe, daughter Valeri with husband Rick Reeder, friend Jennifer Burke and Carl Schuman; Fred and Mary Lou Porter with Merrill and Jean Eastcott; George and Diana Pupich with friends Mort and Nancy Lipton; Gordy Savage; Dick and Sharon Schehr; Jock and Hope Schwank; Tom and Carole Seebode; Dick and Sally Sexton; Gary and Sylvia Sheets; Ted Stumm; Dave and Camille Sweigart; Dale and Ina Thompson; Aaron Thrush; Paul and Kay Vallerie; Mary Waddle; Denis and Liz Walsh; Connie Yates; Vic Yoakum. (For photos, visit the class website.) This year's event will be around the AFA-Navy game October 2nd, so mark your calendars to be in the Springs Oct 1-3, 2004. (*Going back to the opening epigram, don't bother bringing MasterCard--Jock and I take only cash or checks!)

Bill Hales married Barbara Schreier at the Asbury United Methodist Church in Rochester, NY on Nov 1, 2003. It was a traditional ceremony, attended by a wedding party of the immediate family, and followed by a dinner party in a restored mansion (no word on honeymoon plans, al­though the love nests at Niagara Falls were close by). Barb's sons Gregg (36) and Todd (34) and grandson Logan (1+) all live in Houston; Bill's sons Jeff (38) lives in Rochester, and David (34) and grandson Matthew (10 months) live in Cleveland, OH - Jeff and wife, Lisa, were expecting twins (boy, girl) in February 2004. Bill told me that "Barb works for a con­sulting firm specializing in startup companies while I play `house spouse' and work the investment management activities. We plan to continue living in my house (now her home) for the near future."

Friendly Fire: The urbane "Goose" lives in Santa Barbara, CA, that lovely seaside community renowned for Big Sur, occasional kitsch, MJ's Never Land and high-profile celebs from nearby Hollywood. Mystery author Sue Grafton's 2002 best-selling Q is For Quarry once again demonstrates the zeitgeist of Goose Gulbransen--see page 346 of the paperback's Author's Note: "The catalyst for the book was a conversation I had with Dr. Robert Failing during a dinner party at the home of our friends Susan and Gary Gulbransen in early September of 2000," wrote Ms. Grafton (R: As Casey said, "You can look it up!") ... Everyone knows that our erudite Aaron Thrush can provide learned discourse on many things. For his weekly summaries and prognostications on the Falcon football garner, however, write: Amthrush@aol.com. You've noticed ads for Joint Acad­emy Travel tours in this magazine. J.T. Smith and wife, Diane, went to China in September and October 2003 on a JAT tour. To get their opin­ions on these tours, contact JT at JTSMCRIDER@aol.com. JT and Diane also traveled to New Zealand and Australia in 2002, and this year will take a motorcycle tour of the Canadian Rockies

Posit this: Jim Waddle spending mid-November 2003 in Nigeria dis­tributing bibles for the Gideons. Now fast-forward a score and more years: Defender-of-the-Faith Duck at the Pearly Gates. St. Peter asks, "What'd you do with your life?" Duck: "I gave out 662,719 (Bibles and testa­ments at schools and military bases in Africa, and also. ..." Pete stopped him right there. "Woowweeee! that's a ton of Holy Books--enough good ­deed-doing for two lifetimes! Come right on in, go ALL the way to the front, and sit next to the Big Guy!"

In all the gin joints and to all the places we travel, I find those trips by railroad buffs Fred and Mary Lou Porter to be amongst the most inter­esting: "The highlight of our year (2003) was a train trip from Raton, NM to St. Louis, MO. We took Logan (grandson) with us and had a great ad­venture together. We had a large sleeper overnight into Kansas City, spent the day there--they have restored the magnificent train station in Kan­sas City and part of it is 'Science City.' It was a perfect place to be with a six-year-old. Then, we took the 'Missouri Mule' from KC to St. Louis."

In the other interservice football matchup at FedEx Field in Landover, MD on the 4th of Oct, Navy bested us 28-25, which ultimately gave them the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy. The Lalime Mobile was airborne early that morning, and the D.C. ladies prepared fabulous food, with no short­age of Bloody Marys. Andi Biancur and Carole Kramer, Jim Glaza and Tom Seebode, all flew in, and the local group included Bill Goodyear, Tom and Mary Ellen Burke, Bob and Liliane Badger, Ralph and Darlene Lalime, Tony and Karen Burshnick, Mike (A) and Nancy Clarke, Les Querry, Ken and Judy Alnwick, and Jerry and Betty de la Cruz.

As for me, l just want to visit the new Steven E Udvar-Hazy National Air and Space Museum in Chantilly, VA.

Next issue: "The Boys From Iowa."

Final Roll Call. Hardy Franklin Lebel died Nov 16, 2003 in a crash of the Cessna 182 he was flying.