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Random Encounters


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I ended up with a new Team Leader this spring at work. I have worked for the same company now for almost 30 years and my new team leader was a recent college grad.

He tried hard to make 'small talk' each time he'd come to my desk to check on my current projects.....then he saw my pictures, posters, my jacket and my screensaver.

Drum corps?

Yes, I told him, do you know about drum corps - did you march?

He was VERY familiar with drum corps and tried out for several of the current top 10 corps but couldn't 'march and play' at the same time.

So for the entire summer, every time he'd stop he would ask what show(s) I had been to and how our local corps, Phantom Regiment, was doing.

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I'm in a professional aviation fraternity at Auburn, we were having our semesterly bonfire for the pledges out in the woods. So we were out there, doing the normal things that college kids do, which in this case was playing edward forty-hands. For those of you who don't know what that is, its a game where you duct tape yourself to your partner by one wrist, tape 40oz beverages to both of your hands, and you can't un-tape yourself until you've drank all 80 oz. Quickest team to finish wins!

Anyways, my little, whom I had just met that night, is super, duper redneck. The guy has probably the deepest drawl I've ever heard, and I'm in Alabama, so that's saying something. He drives around in a giant truck, hunts regularly... heck, he was even wearing camo pants! But at one point he happened to mention that he was a drummer in high school, I asked him if he ever saw any corps stuff, and not only has he heard of it, but he's been to the Atlanta regional for each of the last five years! So, we spent the next hour or so, taped together at the wrist, talking about DCI between gulps of nasty beer. It's really funny... there are more DCI fans out there than you might think!

It was a funny image... this stereotypical redneck in the camo pants and boots with a big ol' dip in his mouth, telling me in that drawl about how much of a Phan he is, and how XXXXX corps is overrated, and about how he almost cried at XXXXX's show that one year, etc... Hilarious!

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"Small World, After All":

Standing in line at a Base Exchange outlet elderly couple behind me commeneted on my BD T-Shirt. Stated tehir duughter had marched with Santa Clara Vanguard, and HER daughters had marched BD and Santa Clara.

Attended an crafts seminar and discovered the instructor was a New York Skyliners baritone from the early 1960s.

A "Canvasser" for a religious activity going door-to-door in our neighborhood saw our licensce plate and said he marched Norwood Park Imperials in 1958 & 1959.

Having breakfast at a MacDonalds, a couple sitting accross from us revealed that "He" had marched SCV and Westshoreman.

Elphaba

WWW

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A number of years ago, my wife Barbara and I were on the checkout line at a local supermarket here in Baltimore. Barbara was wearing a Crossmen tour t-shirt... the young man working the cash register saw the shirt, and told us he was currently marching with the Bluecoats!

This was when our longtime friend Larry Hershman was back on the 'Coats staff... early 2000s. The young man referred to Larry as "Mr. Hershman." Barbara and I both laughed out loud at that one. We had never heard Larry called "Mr. Hershman" before. :tongue:

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This one isn't mine - not entirely, anyway:

2011 rookie baritone player who lives in San Antonio was driving around. He saw a minivan with a Troopers sticker on it. The bari player got the driver's attention and was pointing to his own shirt - a Trooper shirt. The driver finally realized what was going on and smiled and waved, etc. but they never spoke. Then on the Troopers alumni facebook page the bari player posted the story. I pinged an alum friend who lives in SA and lo and behold, he said he was the minivan driver. He and the bari player are now FB friends.

This one is totally not mine, but it sure is worth posting:

2000's era Trooper alumnus has been training for a long time for a specific military mission. He was recently deployed to Afghanistan to carry out the mission. Upon arrival he ran into another Trooper alum, also in the military, whom he marched with in 2002. Now that's a random encounter, IMO!

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I've always caught onto this... I go to Mizzou, and when I wear my MBI jacket around, everyone who knows what drum corps is, marches for the colts. In fact I have yet to meet anyone out here who has marched anywhere else, and it's almost to he point I can tell them what their conversation is going to be like. Oh, and for some reason when I go skydiving there's usually someone who knows drum corps, but I never find out, till I get one of my drum corps friends to go skydiving, and they find out.

Interesting. Never knew there were so many Colts people at Mizzou. Well, if you ever run into me, I can be the first person you meet who didn't march Colts.

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This was when our longtime friend Larry Hershman was back on the 'Coats staff... early 2000s. The young man referred to Larry as "Mr. Hershman." Barbara and I both laughed out loud at that one. We had never heard Larry called "Mr. Hershman" before. :tongue:

You mean Uncle Larry?? Man that bit is so old I can't remember how it even started.

Few years back when Cadets went by the name "Holy Name Cadets" I'm in the local supermarket and see a young man wearing a sweatshirt in "that" shade of maroon. Had his arm in front of the shirt and all I see is "..me Cadets". He sees me looking and I say I'm trying to read his shirt. Moves his arm and sure nuff "Holy Name Cadets". Think he was a drummer that year and we talked for a few seconds and I wished him luck. Funnier part is someone else shops there with Hawthorne Caballero stuff on their van (haven't met them yet). So we have DCI, DCA and Alumni-type all shopping at the same place (Karns - Lemoyne, PA). And this is a small supermarket... in a small strip mall... in a small town...

Edited by JimF-LowBari
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2000's era Trooper alumnus has been training for a long time for a specific military mission. He was recently deployed to Afghanistan to carry out the mission. Upon arrival he ran into another Trooper alum, also in the military, whom he marched with in 2002. Now that's a random encounter, IMO!

Not good news for the Taliban. They better not break ranks. Seriously, prayers that all of our troops make it home safely.

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