Mary Lou Hopeless Love
Of Past Valentine Days
by Bob Funk
im«r«ld Columnist
The coming of Valentine's Day
always brings to mind the old
days of courtship anil romance
which we knew back -in grade
school. In that near-forgotten
era, we were hopelessly in love
with a maiden named Mary Lou,
who was a dazzling brunette with
a red plaid hatr-ribbon. Love had
Its obstacles. There was a aort of
set of Canons of Mule Conduct
quietly observed in grade school,
which forbade giving attention
to one’s own true love beyond
more than a frustrated nod now
and then.
So we carried on conversations
with everyone bift Mary 1.011,
anil burned with a low green
light whenever she smiled on any
other fourth-grade swain. We
were In love with Mary Lou
during the third, fourth, and
fifth grades, hut the fire burned
"i i b in m in «
the fourth; unil I
it Ih during |
thut year that |
mc like to re- I
member her. |
The romance 1
ended u h e n ,
•he mbh put In |
a different hit- ,
tlon of I li e I
sixth grade M W if*
Uiun mp were; geographically
separated by the distance from
6-A (Mis* Peggy Palmer) to
6-B (Mr. Herman taint), the
thing between un died.
But wr were talking about Val
entine's Day before all thia sen
timent forced its way in. On
Valentine’s day you could, in a
very alight way, give some show
of affection to your chosen lady.
This you did by giving her a
Valentine The degree of esteem
was measured by the size of your
offering. A very large, very red
Valentine declared that there was
an affair of the heart in some
what aimless progress.
We bought Valentines for sev
eral weeks before the big day.
The more daring of the lads in
the fourth bought “Joke” Valen
tines, most of which went to a
young lady named Geraldine,
who was. for some reason we
have now forgotten, considered
to be a great wit. But for the
most part, our choices were of a
more gentle type.
The Valentines were placed in
the Valentine Box, which was
stationed at some prominent
place In the room. The box In
Itself was a thing of considerable
Importance. One year we were
Chairman of the Commit'tee for
Decorating the Valentine Box
(appointed by Florence Green,
home-room president; and we
I hope that the mention of this
past honor doesn’t fall into a
class with name-dropping). There
was considerably bitter contro
versy among the committee
members us to how the box
should be decorated; and our at
tempts at arbitration only In
curred the lasting enmity of one
lady who thereafter referred to
1 us cuttingly as “straw boss.”
, On Valentine's Day Itself
| hearts were high. On this day,
new romances began; unexpec
ted followers mailed In their
bids; old flames quietly died.
Two of the most august of our
number (we think that they went
through some training similar to
that of the Vestal Virgins, but
our memory may have failed
ugain here* opened the box, and
distributed the billet-doux.
Valentine technique varied.
There were some politically In
clined persons who gave me
dium-sized Valentines (signify
ing plutonlc interest only) to
everyone In the room. Kvery
one gave a Valentine to the
'teacher. A certain blonde nam
ed Jo Ann Flagel always got
unanimous returns from the
male electorate. Geraldine, of
course, received the joke trade;
and, playing it to the hilt, of
uttered Indignant gasps as she
opened . each ..lurid treasure
signed “Guess Who.” Guess
Who was usually convulsed
halfway down row three, and
not really so difficult to Iden
tify as one might imagine.
And Mary Lou, whose hair
ribbon was adrenalin for our then
young heart, would receive our
large contribution (and others:
she wasn't too bad-laoking. realty
by i’ourth-grade standards).
Valentines from girls were
somewhat different. Girls sent
smaller ones. If you got one at
all, you were on first base, maybe
second. If you got a large one,
you were home. During the
fourth grade we got a large one
from Mary Lou, and it was “not
Just signed Mary Lou; it was
signed, "Your Friend, Mary Lou”
which was ever so much better.
We were ecstatic. Later in the
day she thanked us politely for
our Valentine. We thanked her
for hers. We have never quite
forgiven whoever chose to put
her in 6-B instead of 6-A.
This romance had only one
rfthcr outward manifestation.
That spring, during the May
Day Fete (this was not a Com
munist affair; It was the grade
school approach to the fiesta,
and everyone felt abandoned
and reckless In a fourth-grade
way), the entire home room
was out on the lawn, playing
“Go In and out ‘the window,”
with Miss Kathryn Lynch sing
ing. When the part came
around which went “Go Kneel
before your lover,” everyone al
ways went to kneel before
someone who was well known
NOT to be their lover. You
chose your sister, If you were
lucky enough to have one in
the fourth grade.
Upon this one occasion we
crossed the line which divides
discretion from willy-nilly, devil
may-care, and knelt, dnstily, be
fore Mary Lou. Several persons
giggled. There were murmured
comments. It couldn’t have been
more sensational if it had been
Ingrid Bergman hying herself off
with Mr. Rosselini. The game
W'ent on, somehow’; but it had
been the high point of the ro
mance, and after that there was
a slow decline. It was, as the
lyricist puts it, too hot not to
cool dowm.
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SU Currents
Bittner To Speak
On Modern Music
“A Survey of Contemporary
Music" is the subject of a lecture
to be given by F. W. Bittner, in
structor of music theory, Tuesday
at 7 p. m.
The concert lecture will be held
in the Peter Howard listening
room and is sponsored by the re
corded music committee, accord
ing to Martha Spatz, chairman.
Assistants Needed
For Art Workshop
Students interested in assisting
with the program and arrange
ments for the different phases
of the Creative Arts workshop
have been asked to call Valerie
Cowls, chairman.
Sponsored annually by the Stu
dent Union, the spring term event
is designed to present the best of
student creative art work. Last
year’s workshop featured music,
poems, a play, a short story, mod
ern dances, a student art exhibit
and a literature exhibit, all by
students.
Students interested in the par
ticular aspects of the program
should contact Miss Cowls at Kap
pa Gamma. Petitions for commit
tee members will be called for at
a later date.
* » •
"Sergeant York,” starring Gary
Cooper, will be shown in the Stu
dent Union ballroom, Sunday at
2:30 and 5:00 p.m. This 1941 acad
emy award winning movie is the
story of a conscientious objector
who believes it is wrong to kill.
Admission price is 30 cents and
is sponsored by the SU movie
committee, according to Pamela
Rabens, publicity chairman.
• * •
Don Parr, senior in speech, will
be the master of ceremonies for
the Friday at 4 program to be
held at 4 p.m. today in the Student
Union fishbowl.
Entertainment will consist of
the Beta quartet, Vocalist Bill j
Veach, Pianist Clarissa Berning I
and Pantomimist Darlene Empey.!
Summer Jobs Open
Information concerning a limit
ed number of summer jobs is now
available at the student employ
ment office, according to Shirley
Sylvester, manager of the office.
More information should be avail
able soon, she said.
Application blanks for work at
Lassen National Park and infor- j
mation about service station em
ployment in Yellowstone National
Park can be obtained at the office.
Two different Girl Scout organiza
tions in California and Washing
ton are recruiting camp counsel
ors through the office.
c
utnpuA
• m nr yvvi A senior cabinet
worship commission has announc
ed plana to sponsor a worship dis
cuaaion at 8:30 a. m. Sunday in
Gerlinger hall. Scheduled to last
for an hour, the place of worship
on the campus will be discussed,
Chairman Hose Warner has an
nounced.
• Representatives from the
Portland office of the California
Packing Co. will be on campus
Monday to interview students
graduating in accounting. Stu
dents interested in seeing the rep
resentatives should contact the
graduate placement office in Em
erald hall.
# Application blanks must be
filed by Tuesday with the secre
tary of the architecture school for
the Ellen M. Pennel tuition scho
larships for spring term.
• Today at 5 p.m. is the dead
line for petitioning for chairman
ships for the WRA carnival to be
staged February 26, according to
Kay Partch and Sylvia Wingard,
general co-chairmen. Petitions
may be turned in at the SU pe
tition box on the third floor of the
Student Union or at Alpha Phi.
0 All Emerald staff members
(repoi-ters, copy desk, night staff,
ad side and sports staff) are in
vited to the Emerald birthday
party at 4 p.m. today in the Shack,
accoTding to Editor Elsie Schiller.
Refreshments will be served.
0 The photo dob will meet at
1:30 p. m. Saturday in the Tom
Taylor lounge of the Student Un
ion. All of those interested in help
ing to form the group should call
Ruas Walker at the YMCA office
in the Student Union.
0 An exhibition of work done
by former students of the draw
ing and painting departments of
the school of architecture and al
lied arts is now being held through
Feb. 28, in the art achool gallery.
Exhibition hours are 9 a. m. to
10 p. m. daily, and 2 to 10 p. m.
Sundays.
• Architectural movies, “Jer
usalem, the Holy City” and “Is
lam,” will be shown at 9 and 11
a. m. Friday in Architecture 138,
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Thur., Fri. & Sat.
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11:30 to 12:30 a.m.