European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 26, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse Sidelight newcomers could Benefit if you Volunteer advice Cindy Chambers this is Volunteer week. Which reminds me of our first full Day in Europe. My eyes weren to blinking simultaneously yet and t looked like the 1992 Jet lag poster child. Still there to do whether i was ready for it or not. With a hollow sense of adventure and a Basket Ful of suitcase scented clothes i made my Way Down the basement stairs and to a door marked a laundry room in peeling paint. Opening it i was met by the smell of 40 years Worth of tide and the Bright smile of a neighbor a just got Here huh a she asked. Was it the Twa Junior fliers wings still affixed to my wrinkled Blouse that tipped her off or the Blank stare that clearly said a terminal cultural Shock no matter. A Welcome a she said. A a in a Mary and these Are my kids Jason Joshua and for the first time i noticed three Small children in various stages of undress playing in a half filled laundry Basket. A a in a sure you la love it Here a she said cheerfully scooping up the smallest child and plopping it on a Washer. A but i Hope you done to mind if i give you just a teeny word of neighbourly advice. You see living overseas can either make you or break she began cramming Whites and Brights together into a Washer that had seen daily action since world War ii. A i Don t mean to burst your Bubble but i be been Here four years and in be Only seen my husband a she paused to count her children a a exactly three times. The closest in be come to seeing Paris was a postcard of the Eiffel Tower in a used Book store. I pore Over Michelin guidebooks the Way other women read Romance novels wanting to believe its More than just a fantasy. A ooh i know i complain a she continued absently adding bleach to the machine and closing the lid. A my husbands had it much worse than i have. He a been in the Field so much he keeps a shovel and a pile of dirt in the bathroom out of Force of habit. One of the kids thinks he a a repairman and one of them Calls him Uncle Bob. The baby does no to care who he is so Long As he does no to come within five feet of her. Then she goes into hysterics. A not having a husband or family around can really make you stronger. You la find that out soon enough. I can fix a faucet and tune a transmission now. I can even read a european train schedule a and that a bound to come in Handy if i Ever decide to pack my bags and escape to the real world for a she smiled and picked a piece of lint out of her baby a Mouth. A a you re probably wondering when i la get to that a teeny word of Well Here it is i must have looked As confused As i Felt. A a that a the secret to surviving an overseas assignment a she said. A i pass it on to every newcomer i meet. Just the clothes went into the spin Cycle. A you might Start at the Thrift shop. You can pick up some great bargains and some great friends at the same time. You could Volunteer at your kids school. That a a real Eye opener. Or you could try army Community service or the red Cross because things done to look half so bad when you re helping someone who a worse off than you. A believe me volunteering can mean the difference Between utter lunacy and partial lunacy. Not Only that but when you add the satisfaction that comes with surviving an overseas assignment with the skills you la pick up volunteering a Well in a going to leave Europe with a lot More than i came with. I know you will the Wash Cycle was done. Turning my new Friend swung her baby Down from the machine and lifted the lid. A i Hope my advice helps a she said. I told her it would. A ooh and there a one More thing i got out of Europe that i did no to arrive with a she said. A a what a that a i asked. Holding up a dripping to shirt she smiled ruefully. A Pink Cindy Chambers is a military Imily Momber in Schwa Intuit go Manyin the dark about this late night candidate Andy Rooney you never know where the next columns coming from so i accepted the invitation to meet a presidential candidate. Russ Baker a free Lance reporter who writes for the Village voice a Good Avant Garde new York City weekly read by people who protested the War in Vietnam and smoked or smoke marijuana and by their �?T90s equivalents called me to ask if id come to his wife smother a apartment at 10 . The other night to meet Larry Agran. Quot Larry Agran a i said query loudly. A the presidential candidate a he said in a tone that suggested i should know him. A ooh sure a i said As if id known All along. Well a 10 . Meeting in a new York apartment in an area where you a keep looking Back As you walked Down the Street even at High noon Isnit my idea of a Good time but i meet so few presidential candidates even ones in be never heard of that i decided to go. Larry Wasny to there yet when i arrived at 10 ., but i Hadnot expected he would be. The Only other newsman there was Sydney Schan Berg the Good reporter whose Story was told in the movie the killing Fields. I was offered wine Coffee or club soda. I took club soda and five of us sat around the comfortably old fashioned living room talking about Larry Agran. As someone who had never heard of him i did no to make a big contribution. It was heading toward 11 . When during a Lull in an already lulling conversation i stood up to leave. As i started to thank the Host for the club soda there was a stir in the hallway and Larry a ranks Campaign entourage swept in. A a swept May not be the word. It Wasny to much of an entourage just Larry and a Young Man he called his press Secretary. Larry sat Down and started answering questions. To the first he said yes head have a club soda. It Wasny to much of a press conference either a just the three of us asking questions. Larry was obsessed not with issues but by the fact that he Isnit being recognized by the Media As a serious candidate. Agran had been the successful mayor of Irvine Calif. Head graduated from Harvard Law school. Its faint Praise to say so but of All the fringe candidates he a closest to being one of the grown ups like Brown and Clinton. When i asked How he was paying his personal expenses without any income he disarmingly admitted that while he was trying to get to the White House on a shoestring his wife is a paediatrician and she a supporting the family including sending their son to Dartmouth. By 11 30 ., Larry was still explaining his positions and railing against the Media when i excused myself. We Shook hands and As i was leaving he said he hoped i could use my influence to have him included on any major debate that lbs broadcasts. I did no to want to break his heart so i did no to Tell him that my influence Over things like that at lbs is very very close to none at All. Larry Agran seemed knowledgeable competent and decent. I liked him and i was sorry i could t answer his question about Why the Media Hasni to paid More attention to him. He thinks its some kind of conspiracy Between the press and Ron Brown the democratic National committee chairman who wants to freeze out the minor candidates and make the decision on their party Choice Early. But it Isnit a conspiracy. When a newspaper or to news broadcast does t give much time to a candidate it Isnit a conspiracy its a consensus opinion of news experts that Larry Agran is not news. Newspapers or television news organizations Don t have any obligation to make unknown candidates Well known. Part of being a successful candidate is the ability to attract Money and attention and Larry Agran Hasni to been Able to do that. I can to help thinking that Larry a shortcoming May be his poor judgment. I vote for a Man for president who a come to a meeting in the Middle of the night to talk to me. Tribune Media Sor Vicos Andy Rooney is a former stars and stripes repollo april 26, 1992 sunday a Page 9
