Peter Lebeck Chapter #1866

Welcome back Cloggites, time to Ketchup! Now that we’ve mostly figured out how to deal with Covid, we’ve had a flurry of activity of late, so catch-up has been the name of the game. Aside from our fall Doin’s, we just concluded two plaquings, including a joint event with Platrix. We are also looking forward to a full calendar next year, beginning with our Widders’ Ball on February 4, 2023, in Bakersfield.

More on all that later, but first a reminder that our annual business meeting will convene this Saturday, Nov 5th, at La Sierra Mexican Restaurant in Frazier Park, a PXL Watering Hole. I’ve attached the agenda and proposed functionaries list here, so take a minute to look it over.

The meeting starts at 10 am, but the restaurant will open for breakfast at 8:30 as a courtesy to our chapter, so please take advantage. 3500 Mt Pinos Way, Frazier Park, CA, United States, California (661) 245-3628. As a bonus, Veronica knows that some of us are always asking for menudo, so if you are interested, text Dale “Top” Turner at (661)714-7166, to get on the secret menudo list. Veronica has offered to make it special, just for us. See you there!

As his final sacrifice, outgoing Humbug Ptimbo Gillespie, is offering up our friend Al “The Quack” Price, as next year’s Humbug. May the Graybeards be pleased! Or at least mollified. And since the Quackster will now be an upper level retread, may the 'Beards not find him too odiferous nor too ripe for their mysterious purposes.

But assuming Al has his way - - following our Widders’s Ball in February - - we’ll be marching in Kernville’s Whiskey Flat parade on February 18th, then going back up to Camp Hamilton for our spring Clampout April 14th-17th. Al also has his eye on Camp Whitsett for our fall outing in September, where he has been guaranteed that no one will be pulling the plug on Lake Ida before we have a chance to personally observe what fish are rumored to do in it. Seriously, the lake actually has a plug.

Al also wants to plaque the Famoso Raceway in the spring, and replace the shattered Road’s End monument later in the year. I could say more about more stuff, but I’m afraid I’ll just run over my word budget. So it would be best if you came on up to the November meeting to see for yourself.

Our outgoing Humbug was no slouch, either. So I’ll recap the last part of our season and you’ll just have to put up with me for a bit longer.

We had a very chill fall Doin’s up at Bald Eagle Ranch, with about 50 guys showing up to veg with their Brethren. Attendance could have been higher, but I think some of the guys were spooked about making it up the mountain roads with their rigs. Nevertheless, there was plenty of space, the weather was choice and the camaraderie was near perfect. But you can check things out for yourself. I expect to have all the photos up by the end of the weekend.

On Saturday, October 29, 2022, we gathered up at Bear Valley Springs to plaque the original 1872 school house. I’ve posted the plaque to the ”Clampdown page if you’d like to see it up close. The project took about a year to complete, and we were even delayed by the foundry which missed our original September deadline. There were about 50 people in attendance to witness remarks by our Humbug, Ptimbo Gillespie and Clampcrier Dale “Top” Turner, XNGH. Photos will be posted to the usual location.

The Saturday before that, we had a joint plaquing with Platrix chapter in celebration of the Saugus Café. This joint claims to be the oldest existing eating establishment in L.A. County. I always assumed that would be the county jail, but for the Saugus Café you don't have to prequalify.

I missed the ceremony, but I understand that the event was MC'ed by Platrix XNGH Denny Thompson, with current Platrix Humbug Patrick Turner speaking on behalf of Platrix and our own XNGH Al Price speaking on behalf of Peter Lebeck. About a hundred people were in attendance.

I mention that I didn't go because it means that I didn't take any photos and neither did Max Felser, who was out of town. Mark "Scoop" Mutz's widder did get a few pictures but the Mutzes didn't get any of the plaque because they assumed that part of the ceremony would involve mounting the plaque to the café wall which didn't happen until this week. They did get a pic of the plaque resting on an easel - - covered with a red blanket.

Fortunately fellow history buff, Craig Baker, who was also at the ceremony, did go back and take a few pictures once the plaque was mounted. He was kind enough to share some of his photos with us. Click on the plaque to read the larger version. I'll post everything I've collected to the usual location so we'll have a permanent record.

Last thing before I let you go, our Widders’ Ball won’t be in January for the first time that I can remember, because it’s always the weekend before Super Bowl, and we have no control over the NFL which keeps extending its season. We’d protest, but what’s the point? The league isn’t listening to some very burly dudes who could easily push a Mack Truck across the Red Zone. You think the league would listen to a bunch of flabby guys in red shirts?

Luckily for Peter Lebeck, our XNGH Jim “Bullseye” Bailey has invited us back to the Homewood Suites for our annual soiree now set for Saturday, February 4, 2023. Check back here for details in a couple of weeks. I won’t do a full webpage dedicated to the Ball, but I will plug it on the main CLOG Page, and link the flier with complete instructions, including directions and how to pay. PXL has gone over to “prepay” for its events. We’re generous about refunds or credit if you let us know ahead of time that you can’t make it, but prepay cuts down on waste and the need to handle cash. It’s all for the good of the order.

See you Saturday!

Sorry, Gents. Registration is closed, so if you didn't sign-up you're going to miss a chill weekend because we aren't accepting walk-ins this trip. But for those of you who thought ahead and seek splendor and repose in the mountains, we welcome your company.

Gates open on Thursday at noon for early arrivals; but if you do come early just make sure to bring something to eat, drink and plenty of shade. We feed you through the weekend but our first chapter provided meal is on Friday afternoon, to be followed by our Yucca-Off contest. That's our Humbug Timbo getting a head start on his shaking technique.

Our XNGH Al "The Quack" Price is a ham. No, really. He has a radio and one of those big sticky-up thingees that points to the sky and would make lesser men blush. Plus no one has ever accused our Quackster of being smoked or basted, so I think we can take his word for the kind of weather we'll experience during our Havilah weekend.

So expect daytime highs in the upper 80's, with nighttime lows in the mid 50's. Bring your propane heater if you wish, but no burn barrels due to dry conditions. We do want the Bald Eagle Ranch to still be there if we are ever invited back, and this part of Kern is no stranger to fires.

Also keep in mind that there is no cell service Havilah, so say goodbye to the Widder before you leave the flats. We are guest of XNGH Wes Kutzner and his lovely Widder, Janet. Their land line is available for EMERGENCY CALLS ONLY! (760) 379-2636.

Proof that no one should accuse us of ever being completely untethered! Just make sure your Widder has it before you head for Havilah. See you at the Doin's.

LET'S GET READY TO YUC IT UUUUUPPPPP!!! Owl-rye-tee, a basic fact or two here:

A) We are Clampers.

B) Many Clampers seem to enjoy adult beverages from time to time, always, of course, in moderation and as an adjunct to helping little old ladies cross the street and to rescue kitties from trees.

C) Most Clampers won't get off their fannies for a drink unless there is a PBC near by to hand them one.

But things are going to change when you join us for Peter Lebeck's Fall Doin's at Bald Eagle Ranch, September 29 through October 2, 2022. You're gonna be getting off of your lazy corn-fed posterior, and shaking them buns for bragging rights because -- that's right folks -- you saw it here first! On Friday night PXL is bringing back the YUCCA!

If you are unfamiliar with this most satisfactory and satisfying nectar, do a little diggin', or get inventive; and get you a gallon jug, a bunch of ice, a sturdy towel, and some sort of liquor/citrus combination that will meld into something wonderful after it has been passed around the circle and shaken into an icy frothiness.

Oh, did I neglect to mention that part? Yeah, see, when you Yucca, what you do is combine your ingredients, wrap that puppy up in a towel, and pass it around the circle, stopping for a vigorous shake at each redshirt along the way. After lots of rough handling and plenty of time to contemplate the consequences, you pop the lid and pass 'er around. Just make sure the Holy Yucca Judges get a good long hit before everyone has the chance to backwash.

There will undoubtedly be prizes of some-sort-or-other for the best concoction, but seriously, by the time we get done tasting them all, we may not remember who won.

So there's that, but isn't that part of the fun?

So grab a jug, get a team, slice that fruit, put in the appropriate liquid, and Sheik Yerbouti, Friday night, at PxL's Fall '22 Clampout. I personally will provide the ICE! Go to our registration page to sign-up electronically or download the flyer, just do it by September 23rd, because this event is prepay only. No walk-ins and no retreads.

See you there!

Your Noble Grand Humbug

 

The details about our joint plaquing with Platrix, of the Saugus Café, are now set. So join us for a combination dedication and 2 p.m. late lunch on Sunday, October 16, 2022. The 2 o'clock start will give the church ladies a chance to clear out of the parking lot, although if the lot is full, you'll do best to park on the street. As tempting as it may be to park in front of the liquor store, don't do it unless you're prepared to bum a ride home -- and pay the towing fees.

You can download details about our October plaquing, along with our Fall Doin's flyer and Peter's Proc's, by clicking on the flyer icon on the right. If you came here looking for information about our Fall Doin's, keep reading into the CLOG, and then visit our Fall Doin's Pages for the skinny and everything you'll need to sign-up. - - MGM

The Fall Doin's pages are now up, including our electronic registration form. If you don't see a revised page when you click on the link, refresh your browser. That also goes for any other page as well. I've also posted a copy of the artwork for our most spiffy event shirt to the main Doin's page. Click on the artwork to see a mock-up of the shirt.-- MGM

Hello Cloggites! Mikee here with a few choice words before the Humbug realizes I have a day pass from the asylum. PXL is proud to announce our 60th Anniversary Fall Doin's, at Bald Eagle Ranch in Havilah, set for Thursday, September 29th through Sunday October 2nd, and if you are wearing a redshirt under your Superman pajamas, you're invited to join us for a most satisfactory time. In fact you'll want to bring a PBC because this is going to be a very special weekend.

Havilah was Kern County's original county seat until it was robbed in 1872 in a disputed election by some place that starts with a "B" and ends with a "D," which to this day has all the fast food joints while Havilah has none. No McDonalds, no Jack in the Box, not even a Taco Bell. What Havilah did have was proximity to the gold fields, but when the prospecting played out, this mountain town between Bodfish and Caliente could no longer compete with the settlement on the valley floor where agriculture and oil began to drive the economy. Finally, during the 1920's, most of the town was destroyed by fire.

But Havilah still has history, and your PBC will be getting a double dose of it. Friday afternoon, he'll get an historical introduction to E Clampus Vitus and the Peter Lebeck Chapter, itself. On Saturday, he'll get an introduction to local history by XNGH Al "The Quack" Price, including a tour of Havilah, our plaques and the Havilah museum.

Now while that all sounds very serious, there's also a reason for that picture at the top of the CLOG, for our Humbug, Ptimbo Gillespie has declared that Friday Night's post-dinner festivities shall begin with one of our notoriously satisfactory semi-occasional "1st Annual" Yucca contests. What is "Yucca," you ask? Well, it's what you want it to be. But mostly it requires a large jar, citrus, sugar, ice, something potent that starts with a "T," "V," or some other letter of the alphabet that ends with stupid. Then put a lid on it, wrap it in a towel, and let the shaking begin! Which is why you need a team of hearty souls to create the magic.

If you are interested, sign-up. Then get a team together and prepare to rock the Doin's. Just remember, the proof is in the tasting.

The electronic sign-up will be up soon, along with the usual schedule, descriptions, directions and whatever other stuff I can come up with to get you to show-up to Bald Eagle Ranch. But in the meantime I can offer you the flyer by clicking on this link. If you have a potential PBC. Don't hesitate to sign him up. We have an excellent Hangman in Rick "Hard Luck" Veiga, who's taken to the task with great enthusiasm. He's proven to be a great role model for our PBCs, and more than capable of showing them what being a member of Peter Lebeck is all about.

Our regular T-shirt guy, Paul "Rag Man" Gleim, has been ill, and we wish him a speedy recovery. He reluctantly won't be able to do an event shirt for us this trip, but the Humbug does have a solution and we will be offering event shirts for $20 each, so long as you order by September 7th. The shirts are being produced by "Ink 186," a vocational training program in Springfield, Illinois for students with disabilities. You won't be disappointed. Check out their website. The design will be posted to the Doin's registration page.

After a number of years of unexplained overhead, we are whittling our store down to the basics, so be forewarned that whatever shirts become available on site for your PBC will be extremely limited, primarily "close-outs." Event shirts will be preorder only, though you can still order current stylings from Paul's website. Just make sure you do so at least two weeks ahead of time if you want to pick items up at the Doin's.

An event shirt purchase option isn't listed in the flyer, but you can include a note with your snail mail remittance to GDR "Top" Turner with an extra $20 for each shirt, along with the needed sizes. You can also Zelle your order and dust to paypeter@ecv1866.org, just make sure you memo who it's from and list the requisite sizes. You can also text or email your name and shirt size to "Top" at dalefmda@earthlink.net or (661) 714-7203, but do it by September 7th. Orders will not be accepted after that date.

Due to a SNAFU at the factory our plans to plaque the 1872 school house at Bear Valley Springs has been postponed. The plaque has been reordered, with a tentative dedication date for some time in October. Meanwhile, our joint watering hole dedication with Platrix of the Saugus Café is now set for 2 p.m. on October 16th. This is a family event and all are welcome.

At our recent Grand Council, the Board of Proctors made a point of reminding all ECV Chapters that there is nothing private about "private" social media, including Facebook. If it's posted to the internet, it's in public view. E Clampus Vitus is, above everything else, an historical fraternity. We are not a political organization. Displays of drunkenness, lewd or scatological images, misogyny, political screeds or other posting that discredit us or our mission to celebrate history are frowned upon. Rule of thumb I've used here since we began the CLOG in 2007 is if it would embarrass you to have your Widder see it or P___ O__ your Brethren, then it shouldn't be posted. There is plenty of room to have fun on line. Frivolity and absurdity are not the same as being crude or in your face.

Truth be known, earning respect in the community while maintaining the fun loving aspects of Clamperdom is of great benefit to all -- to our members, to the places where we live and to the vitality of our Order. By all accounts, ECV is a dinosaur. It is the only remaining all male fraternity not found on a college campus. But that hasn't stopped us. We continue to erect "diverse monuments" to local history and many chapters engage in charitable works. As of 2022, ECV's has now grown to fifty full-fledged chapters covering eleven western states. So stand up, stand proud and keep it up!

By the way . . . when you come to our Fall Doin's at Bald Eagle Ranch, if you bring a Clamper from each of the 50 Chapters, the Humbug will buy you a pony.

Peter Lebeck's Annual Corporate Business Meeting is scheduled for Saturday, November 5, 2022, at 10:00 a.m., at La Sierra Mexican Restaurant, 3500 Mt Pinos Way, Frazier Park, CA 93225. The agenda will be posted closer to the time of the meeting, but as usual expect wrap-ups on the current year's activities, financial reports and the line-up of proposed functionaries and officers for the coming year.

Lastly, don't forget the unofficial monthly gathering at the Elks' Lodge in Santa Clarita. The "Red Shirt Getaway," is open to all ECV members in good standing and runs from noon to 3 p.m., the first Saturday of the month. 17766 Sierra Highway, Canyon Country, CA 91351.