North Scott High School - Silver Shield Yearbook (Eldridge, IA)

Page 23 text:

lleftli Scott Student Home lee SPONSORED BY SQQTT QQMIMUNITY SQHQQLS MU, THE GREATQR DAVEWFQRT BQALRQ QF REALTURS gy 55 . Maw-ww. f All THE FLOOD OF '06 There aren't many left that can remember the big flood of '06, and among those few that can remember it and will talk about it is Uvv Jjones. As a matter of fact, Uvv fpronounced of j loves to talk about it, you can't stop him once you get him started on the subject. One time I stopped to chat with ol' Uvv and happened to mention something about the big flood and Uvv was off and running. I had heard the story about three hundred times before, but this time I was in luckg I was returning home from the supermarket at the time and had a sack full of rutabagas with me. About the only thing Uvv loved more than telling his story about the big flood was a rutaba- ga. I waited until ol' Uvv was about half way through the story and then whipped out a ruta- baga. A veil of silence fell over Uvv, a strange smile appeared on his face and like a nesting hen pounching on a June Bug, he grabbed the ruta- baga and started to consume it, which gave me enough time to make my get-away. The first time that I heard the story was quite an experience. l was walking down 3rd Street when I heard a voice call out. Hey, Sonny! I didn't pay any attention and just kept walking, again, Hey, Sonny! , I just kept walking, Hey stupid!! You Deef??'? I turned around just as ol' Uvv grabbed me by the arm and said, l'm going to tell yaastory, so just shut up and listen. lwas going to ingore the old man, but the shotgun in his hand convinced me I should sit down and listen to his story. Uvv sat down under a big elm tree and motioned me to sit, which I did immedi- ately! The old man spat the wad of chewing tobacco out of his mouth, scratched his gray whiskers and began the story. It was a warm day in late April back in 1906 when the whole thing started. Seems there were four big tow boats and each one of them was pushing at least fifteen barges. They were all carrying kerosene and all four of them was trying to make it to the lock and dam first, so it was about 900 people and the total sum of the popu- lation was lined up on the river bank to see that race. Just think of it!! 6,000,000 gallons of kero- sene reaching for that lock. As I recollect, it was the John Flamm that reached the lock first, full boor, boy what a sight! Things would have worked out all right if it hadn't been for the Gale Swift ramming into the John Flamml That started it, all right! I had closed one eye while the old man was telling the story and he promptly hit me on the foot with his shotgun: that got my attention. Before ya knew what was happening the oth- er two tow boats were all tangled up in the mess, all four of them piled up right at the gate to the lock. Then all heck broke loose, the lock gate broke and all sixty of these barges began to turn and twist and roll. They all broke loose at the same time and all the kerosene came spilling out all over the Mississippi. It was a kerosene flood! Millions of gallons of kerosene came gushing down the river. Before we knew it we were all up to our hip pockets in kerosene, boy what a mess! Then it happened, the kerosene must have dri- ven the carp crazy, they just went mad, they started attacking the people that were watching the race, and ya know, a carp don't have any teeth, so what they did is latch onto your legs with their lips. You should have seen it, killer carp running rampid, putting hickies on everyone's legs! Poor Sally Spivett, she got it the worst, Sally was the Button I-lole Grinders daughter ya know, pretty little gal she was, anyway, one of those carp, must have weighed sixty pounds or more got a hold of her kneecap .,.. poor girl never was the same after that happened. Then the worst possible thing that could happen did. Crazy ol' Andy Stotter walked down to the river to see what all the excitement was about, took out a cigar and pulled out his matches . .. I looked over at ol' Uvv and he was fast asleep with a big smile on his face, I tried to wake him so I could hear the end of the story, but to no use. Uvv was fast asleep somewhere back in '06. Funny thing, Uvv has started that story about three hundred times and when he gets to the part about the matches he just falls asleep with a big smile on his face. Someday I'm going to make him finish that story, or I'll just quit giving him rutabagas. DEAN RICKERTSEN WE BUILT A HOUSE While some might not consider building a house very original, it is a monumental task, and a real ac- complishment when completed. lt is an example to the community of the many things made by North Scott Lancers. Front Flow: Joe Loussaert, Andy Harry, Brian Seghers, Mike Browne, and Browne, and Tim Carter. Standing: Brent Pumphrey, Tom Nagle, Bill Monaghan, Chris Ewoldt, Matt Fleming, Dave Mad- den, Ed Drummond, Brian Hill and in- structor Dennis Olson. INTERLUDE A photographic study of Robb Medd and his trumpet by AI Gol- dis. ORIGINAL WORKS

Page 22 text:

I V I Smit 1, n .ij it if if l ff A iff art ll f?,l li iff, iii ri PAIGE POWER l SPRING As l peer through a window in the first months of spring, our yard is like a butterfly coming out of its cocoon. The last of the white, merciless snow creeps back into hiding and leaves the brown, crisp ground to once again be overcome by fresh, new, green grass. The once bare and lifeless trees budd and green. The first robin flutters from tree to tree carrying its crisp melody, sweetly ridding the air of its cold si- lence. The lavender lllacs decorate the bushes with their delicate petals and smooth leaves. As I once again see the refreshed beauty of spring and inhale the fresh clean air, I get a feeling of clear purity and newness of life. l get a feeling of spring. MARI DRENTER NX 55 ,A Qt ,, Xml K ft 4 iw. l l X W. .V , W, ' v' 1 Fw' X, ' ,A f W 1.1 T ri, 4 tcm, 5. f .,. Pmciu.A MARTIN If g lftjnf I K qi fix, I ,A X' 1' f ' XM' illtlitfll rf' . THERE WAS A KNOCK AT THE DOOR The subdued sun rose reluctantly into the blackened sky. lt seemed to the man that it was mourning the de- struction of humanity. As the sun rose even higher, the man could see the tortured earth upon which he stood. He fell to his knees and wept bitterly. Everything he had ever cared for was gone. It was like a living Hell. He had no family. He had never cared for mankind, the only species of all the creatures of the world to kill others of his own blood, and cursed the csy he was born. He had gone to live in a cave as soon as he was old enough to leave home. He wanted to be far away from this barbaric race. He fell in love with the cave as soon as he set eyes on it. lt was a curious cave, and had totally defied his imagination. Now that was gone, too. World War Ill was a nightmare. Even though it was three years done, it still haunted him. The United States was not ready for the attack. While the U.S. was still building up their defenses, a New Roman Empire was founded. Rus- sia was their leader. They felt the time was ripe, and immediately declared war upon the United States. lt only lasted a few days. By then everyone was dead or dying. All buildings were leveled. Somehow, he had miraculous- ly survived, but the radioactivity had marred his skin. lt had impaired his vision as well as his speech, and he could only move very slowly. lt was too quiet. The silence preyed upon his tortured mind. He vividly re- called screaming, and the searing heat: heat hot enough to peel the flesh right off the bone. The man shook his head to dispel the memories, and slowly walked to his shelter. It consisted of pieces of charred wood stacked tightly against each other, with a piece of mutilated metal for the roof. lt was only large to allow him to lie down, and its chief purpose was to shield him from the elements. He had found a doorknob buried in the sand, and had fashioned a kind of door. lt was crude, but very well done, considering what he had to work with. The man fell into a trance of sorts, and listened to the wind howl for a good half an hour. Soon a vision pre- sented itself before him. He stared at it, aghast. His eyes widened with horror. lt was a mutant form the war, stripped of its flesh. The last man on earth sat alone in a room. There was a knock at the door. It was subtle, but it was enough to disturb the silence. The man slowly rose from his seat, and limped to the door. He had a last hope. Could it be another human? He wondered. He threw open the door, only to find no one there. But there was something out there. He could hear singing. It seemed to be coming out of the very sea itself. He closed his eyes slowly and al- lowed the music to lead him. He dreamed of a world where there was no sickness, no hate. Only love and health. The song led him on. He felt the cool water lap at his ankles, and now his knees. He found what he was look- ing for. His perfect, blissful world was a reality. KRIS MEREDITH 11 f' J-V onasrrmt wonks 1

Page 24 text:

TERROR IN THE PARKING LOT Never, never in all of Tony's states of paranoia had she ever imagined such a terrible thing could happen to her. lt was 8:45 p.m. and Tony was still shopping, shopping for the perfect present for brother's birthday tomorrow. She had been looking since 6:00 pm. The store was closing in fifteen min- utes. She had to hurry! Suddenly, Tony saw it, the perfect present for her brother. lt was a knife - a long silver blade, cold and fierce, attached to a hard wooden handle. Her brother had been wanting a hunting knife like that for years. She really didn't know why. lt was barbaric. Hunt- ing was the cruel killing of unsuspecting crea- tures. How could he tolerate watching the life and color slowly drain from them? Tony bought the knife and put it in her purse. It was 9:00 p.m. now and the store was closing its doors behind her as she left. Tony stood on the sidewalk and peered into the darkness for her car. lt seemed funny to her that earlier she had searched for a parking place in the crowded parking lot. She had had to drive for about ten minutes just looking for one. But now, her car stood alone, deserted, peacefully waiting for her return. Tony buttoned her coat a little higher. Her toes were cold in their open- toed sandals. She walked swiftly toward the oth- er end of the parking lot. Tony reached her car and began fumbling in her purse for her keys. lt was dark out and she couIdn't see very well. She continued to fumble around, looking for her keys. Where had she put them? Tony, a little worried, fearing she had lost them, searched frantically. Suddenly a thick gloved hand was clasped over her mouth. Terror rushed through Tony's body. Still having both arms free, she thrust her el- bows into the body. The body doubled over in pain, the hand dropping from her mouth. Hyste- ria rapidly overcame Tony as she ran, crazed, unsteadily, occasionaly tripping over her high heeled sandals. What was she going to do? Fear and terror had their grips on her as she heard heavy footsteps chasing her. Closer and closer they came. Tony ran for the street. She saw the headlights of a car. Stop! she screamed, but the car drove past, not even slowing. If only she had something to protect herself. Mace, a gun, something, anything! Then she re- membered, suddenly as if she had been struck by lightning. The knife! Her brother's knife! But, was there time? She ran on, but she was tiring. The heavy footsteps were getting closer. She pulled the knife from her purse as she ran stead- ily onward. Ready, she thought, l am ready. So Tony stopped, she pretended to stumble, and once again the heavy heavy-gloved hand clasped itself over her mouth. But this time in- stead of her elbow, it was the knife that Tony thrust into the body. She ran a few yards further and turned around. She watched the body fold up in pain and then become stiff. Tony felt relief sweet over her as the flashing red lights of a policeman on patrol pulled up beside her. What in God's name happened here? he asked. The sudden realization of the events overcame Tony, She tainted and fell to the ground in shock. AMY NORTON He knew his life hung in the balance as he struggled to light the match with gelid and red fingers. Finally the match lit, and Douglas set fire to the small pile of kindling on the floor of the cave. The warmth of the fire was feeble, but he coveted it as it began to breath new life into his frigid toes and fingers. After he had the fire going well enough and he had eaten, he began to reflect on the events of the day and the reason why he was hiding in a small cave in northern China. Jim Douglas was a major in the U.S. Air Force, and he was assigned to fly the border patrol between Russia and China. lt had been a bright, clear and perfect day for flying, and he wasn't prepared for any problems, but some were to arrive sooner than he expected. As he rolled his F-104 over for his return leg, he was three trucks on a road below him. He assumed that they were trucks from a local vil- lage, but he had a strange feeling so he went down to take a closer look. As he dived to look at them, the trucks began to speed up and had for the woods. Douglas came in low, and it was only then that he saw that the trucks were Rus- sian armored personnel carriers and that they were loaded with troops. Douglas turned around and came back in low- er and at a far slower speed to get a better look. He was further shocked when, through a clearing in the trees, he saw row upon row of Russian T- 72 tanks, artillery, and troops. The Russians were at the border preparing for an invasion of DETENTE lt was then that a strange thing happened, Douglas felt the plane lurch, and then felt the engines start to give out. He had either hit the top of a tree or the Russians were taking shots at him. Whatever it was, he knew he wasn't going to make it back to base. He fought the plane to a high enough altitude where he could eject safely. He made the prep- arations, pulled the ring, watched the canopy pop off, and then felt the blast of incredibly cold air take his breath away. As he floated down on the silky white canopy above him, he watch his plane explode into a fireball about two kilometers away. He knew he would have to get back to base as fast as possi- ble to report this. He also knew that the Russians had seen him come down and would send a group of experts to silence him. That was how he had arrived here, in a small cave, five kilometers from base, and on the run from the Russians. He wondered how much longer he could keep up this cat-and-mouse game before succumbing to exhaustion or the cold. It was then that he heard the voices outside - the sharp, clipped, guttural sounds of Russian voices. He then realized that the light of the fire was giving away his position, He quickly extin- guished the fire, went to the entrance of the cave, and peered out. He made out the figure of a Russian soldier about 500 meeters away. He knew that if he stayed here he would be caught. He took one more look, then he quickly and silently made his way from the cave. It was the last quarter of the moon, and he knew it would be easy to follow his tracks. The Russians almost didn't need to because at that moment he heard a loud and authoritative voice order him to stop. He quickly ran on. All ofa sudden the calm of the night was broken by the harsh barking sound of a Russian semi-automatic. As he ran he could see the bark of the trees flying off as the bullets impacted into the trees. Douglas jumped into a shallow ravine and ran China! along the bottom of it until he couldn't hear the voices anymore. He was no more than three kilometers from baseg he knew he had to press on, He knew that he had to warn the world of the Russian invasion, but he had to rest for a few minutes. When he stopped he could see the elongnated shadows of the tall, statuesque pine trees cast on the sparkling winter landscape. The moon was a soft, brilliant half-disk high in the sky. The tall, majestic mountains were nothing but silhou- ettes in the background. All these sights took his breath away, but he remembered he was run- ning, so he took one last look and continued on. About an hour later Douglas was walking along a high ridge, no more than one-half kilo- meter from base. When, at that moment, a shot rang out through the stillness of the night, he could feel a burning sensation in his left shoulder. The impact from the bullet spun him around and he fell from the ridge. and started tumbling down the slope. When he finally came to a stop, the snow around his left shoulder was stained a brilliant red color. He could hear his pursuers again, so he stood up and started to run through the trees. His left shoulder started to throb worse and worse with each beat of his heart. The voices were getting louder, and he began to feel fraint from the loss of blood. He knew he had to cross one more clearing before he reached the base. As he started across the clearing, he could hear the sound of the Russians in hot pursuit. His only thought was that he had to get back to warn the world of the pending invasion. About half- way across the clearing, he felt the hot sting of a bullet rip into his back and pass through his body, The blood came rushing out uncontrolla- bly, and everything began to spin faster and faster. His last sight before losing consciousness was that of his blood staining the bright new snow a deep crimson red: his last thought was that he had failed. JOHN FEYEN LORI SIMKINS ORIGINAL WORKS