16 • Thursday, January 28, 2016
Rehab Reality by Jeff
social
OVER THE MOUNTAIN Journal
Returning to Retro Gaieties Dance Club Hosts ‘50s-Themed Christmas Party
I heard that a meeting one morning years ago and it has stuck with me ever since for a couple of reaons. First, I remember it because it is just sarcastic enough for me to find it funny. Second, I can’t forget it because it hit so close to home.
Photos special to the Journal
“I had been selling myself the same lies for so long that I started having them giftwrapped.”
Judy and John Feagin and Carolyn Featheringill.
Delmar and Carolyn Hill, Marjorie Forney and Henry Lynn.
For years, I was convinced that I had everyone fooled. Sure, I partied, but no more than anyone else. My legal troubles were because of my rotten luck, not my lifestyle. Even as my life started falling apart around me, I pretended to be Nero and played my fiddle as Rome burned.
When I first decided to get help, I was still convinced that I was just taking a hiatus; that I really didn’t have a problem. Suffice it say, I was wrong. The only person I had been fooling all those years was myself. Even when I thought I was like everyone else, the truth is I was a trainwreck that they couldn’t stop watching. If you have a problem with drugs or alcohol, or both like me, get help. A sober life does not suck. I’ve tried it both ways. Call us. My mom will answer and, turst me, she’s heard it all...mostly from me.
850-687-6831
www.bayshoreretreat.com Destin, FL Healing water front setting Licensed & court approved
Clockwise from above, Tootie and Ken Fash. Valerie Pankey, Jim and Joyce Lott and Janie Henderson. Marlea Foster, Millie Curtis, Helen Pardue, Kimberly Freeman, Barbara Stone, Becky Sevier and Ann Hull.
Members and guests of Gaieties Dance Club were invited to “Return to Dale’s Cellar, Joe’s Ranch House and the Canebreak” for “A Retro Christmas” held at Mountain Brook Club Dec. 4. Color wheels and giant Christmas lights recreated the festive Birmingham nightclub scene of the ‘50s and ‘60s, transporting guests back to the days of Bob Cain and the Canebreakers. The event was chaired by Carolyn Featheringill. Dinner and dancing followed at “Top of TwentyOne.” While Elvis never hit these famous watering holes in his heyday, Jason Sikes of Atlanta entertained party-goers with the songs and the moves made famous by the King. Enjoying the evening were Gaieties President Judy Feagin, with her husband, John; and board members Margaret Ritchie with Tommy, Janie Henderson with Jimbo, Virginia Tucker with Tommy, Becky Bates with David, Tootie Fash with Ken, Nan Carter with Buddy, Dana McCarn with Pete, Doris White with Joe McCracken, Jackie MacClary with Bruce, Brownie Evans with Barry and Suzanne Wald with Mike. New members in attendance were Millie Curtis with John, Ann Hull with Leland, Marlea Foster with John, Kimberly Freeman with John Simpson, Helen Pardue with Richard, Becky Sevier with Kirby and Barbara Stone with Cris. Among those sharing stories from the era were Sallie and Carlos White, Delmar and Carolyn Hill, Marjorie Forney and Henry Lynn, Cindy and Andy Strickland, Ann and John Baker, Lucy and Dan Allison, Betty and Al Tully, Barbara and Win Baird, Betty and Charlie Northen, Louise and Sharp Gillespy, Ken and Marcia Little, Gail and Charlie Sharp, Marguerite and Steve Ray, Margie and Sid Davis, Janie and Walter Wilson, Kim and Corbin Day, Catherine and Lee Styslinger, Beverly and Stan Erdreich, Cathy and Jack Echols, Valerie and Tom Pankey, Betty and Bill Phillips, Joyce and Jim Lott, Vickie and George Daniels, Frances and Claude Bennett, Marjorie and Jay Johnston, Betsy and Bill Gresham, Leslie and Rob Black, Julie and Doug Carmichael, Dorothy and Bryan Ratliff, Coquette and Bill Barnes, Kathleen and George Petznick, Helen and Walter Gay Pittman, Marie and Mike Cole, Jane Morris, Katy and Charles Terry, Elna Shugerman, Natasha and Richard Randolph, Anne and Barrett Hicks, Martha and Tom Roberts, Mary and Bobby Cobb, Barbara and Bobby Klyce, Mary and Terrell Spencer, Doris and Jim Wilson, Linda Sue and Sam Johnson, Betsy and Harry Miller, Dena and Bill Leitner, Mary Steiner, June and John Eagan, Gerry and Jim Gillespy, Sandra and Terry Oden, Shelley and Jerry Clark and Fay Hall with David Parker. ❖