Alpha Omega M.D. – Final Episode

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Posted on October 23, 2016

Alpha Omega M.D. – Final Episode

…Alpha O. Campbell, M.D. deserved a better fate. Gwendolyn Hoff has given it to him. Thank you for the privilege of writing this story.

A.O., God rest your soul. It has been one wild ride!…

In chapters 8 and 9 we are introduced to suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst, who is an admitted sidetrack. The company town Blountstown is the Calhoun County seat, but it is mere fodder for the overall story. Company towns can really be like Blountstown.

All the above is a lead-up to our late involvement in WWI, where we meet Sir James Matthew Barrie, the prolific playwright and cousin to John Ferrell. John Ferrell’s supply ship, the Panama City, never sailed, was not sunk by U-Boat submarines, though the elder Ferrell did indeed die in 1916; such a blue-blooded way to die, helping your Scottish ancestors through a tough time.

Chapters 10 and 11 encompass that bloody 1^st world war, along with the deadly influenza that started in Europe and traveled back to the US. 30 million people died worldwide and that is about the time that Alpha Omega Campbell began practicing medicine.

After the doctor and Maggie wed in 1918, they both had affairs that produced children. Maggie’s dalliance produced middle daughter, Laura. That little child was so fair-skinned, right banker Lewis? Alpha, for his part, did father a child; it’s just that whether it was with Camille Diaz is buried amongst the Careless Whispers. Camille is fictional.

Alice Paul did argue for the cause of the right for women to vote, which was a hard fought and contentious lead-up to the Roaring Twenties, but is window dressing for my purposes.

Those Roaring years of flappers and debauchery are bypassed here, as is the Great Depression. It Image result for r.i.p seems the author does not deal well with hard times, which resurface in the closing chapters, a.k.a. the happy, or rather, calm ending. So From the Ashes emerges the mid-1930’s. We lose great characters Harv Pearson, Herb Love and Phoebe. We’ve already left the Endlichoffer’s behind and the elder Ferrells.

James Ferrell becomes the Dr.’s lawyer and we are (re)introduced to Carolyn Hanes (Constance Caraway – Private Eye) and her lover Sara Fenwick (Fanny Renwick). Like the incest episode between James and Agnes, this Lesbian relationship is a glimpse into life in the South, as well as real life. This statement is not meant to offend, it’s just that things happen down there that are “different”, perhaps more frequently or just a figment of a fertile fancy.

Chapters, Hospitable, Inhospitable fly us to Area 51 and an alien contact. Good ol’ Newt Swakhammer, what a guy? The government calls him a crank. But the year 1947 harbors UFO’s, as well as the brick & mortar of Laura Bell Memorial Hospital… born of Alpha O. Campbell’s spirit, the building itself is one large lightning rod; meant for good, yet attracting an onslaught of controversy and hardship.

We look back at Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, along with the world of Cinderella. And then we are bounced ahead to Michael Rennie and Walt Disney; what an odyssey of entertainment.

As for the remainder of The Life and Times, not so many pages back, your imagination is the king. My imagination has splattered the backdrop of history from way-back 1896, all the way up to the dawn of John Fitzgerald Kennedy… Just the dawn, mind you, then you are reeled back to 1955.

Isn’t that rude? But look at the payoff. Instead of an old man in jail, we happen upon a Laura Bell Memorial Hospital with a future. What a shame that this was not the ending to the saga of one of the first Black doctors in Florida. In my rosy reality, we all have access to Alice’s Wonderful Looking Glass.

Alpha O. Campbell, M.D. deserved a better fate. Gwendolyn Hoff has given it to him. Thank you for the privilege of writing this story.

A.O., God rest your soul. It has been one wild ride!

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Alpha Omega M.D.

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– Final Episode

Alpha Omega M.D. – Episode #333

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Posted on October 21, 2016

Alpha Omega M.D. – Episode #333

… pure fictional genius…

Nearly all of the main Tallahassee characters were real people. I used their actual names and because of the volatile nature of the events, especially in the 1950’s, I may have the legal department pulling out their hair. If I had fictionalized their names, I could never have kept them all straight. Who they were and what was their relation to A.O. Campbell needed to be as is. Perhaps it is due to my simple mind, but George Lewis, Charles Wilson, Franklin McLoud, the Dr.’s nurses, the Dr.’s attorneys, the Prosecutors, Starke Prison and Audrie Franich, all appearing in chapter 1 & subsequently, are real.

Now, some of the machinations surrounding his trial and subsequent imprisonment, well that is a combination of speculation and fictionalization on my part. None of this tinkering affects the end result.

Carolyn Hanes and Capt. Robert Ford do have a big role in the book. Bob Ford did indeed pilot the Pacific Clipper at the outbreak of WWII and had to fly it back to New York counterclockwise. Carolyn Hanes is pure fiction. You may think she is my alter ego. That is left for you to imagine.

In chapter 2, the Ferrell family is foundational to the story line. Most all of them are true, in the fact that they did exist. I may have exaggerated their role, but they do and did contribute to Leon County past.

Laura Bell/Olla is a key to the complicated bloodlines of the Campbell family. She is the mother of Maggie Lou, though Maggie’s erotic conception may be subject to my imagination. Maggie Lou does go on to marry the doctor in 1916.

The Campbell family, headed by Willy and Amanda, is the all-in-all. Alfrey (A.O.) Campbell had four brothers and sisters. Hosea is the most infamous, but was he such a rascal, I do not know?

More than likely, the Campbell’s were slaves at some point, but the evil Jefferson Smythwick did not exist and his Fort Sumter South plantation occupies made-up ground. You must admit though that the escape by Alfrey et al was an exciting treat. Take that mean old slave owners!

Chapters 3 and 4 contain the fictional Southeast Anti-slavery Society, headed by the great Herbert Love. I call him great because he is the person, who I posit, providing for the Dr.’s education. In fact, I have since learned that A.O.’s extended family may have sacrificed holdings to finance his education.

Love never made Secretary of Agriculture in a McKinley administration, but he would have had the qualifications. He was engaged in farming of some sort, though he takes on a lion’s share philanthropy for my purposes.

Siegfried and Frieda Endlichoffer, the German couple across the lake from John Ferrell, are based on a personal acquaintance. They are a sweet augmentation to the Tallahassee landscape and what better neighbors could anyone have?

Of course the Spanish American War was real. It represents the USA’s first foray into imperial policy, which has led to our global role as policeman to the world.

The Horizons of chapters 5 and 6 are the recounting of what was going on the last time we entered a new century. 1900 had as many amazing changes as we have in the year 2000. President McKinley was indeed assassinated in 1901 and that was preceded by the Galveston hurricane, the Great Plague and followed by the San Francisco earthquake of 1906.

Harv Pearson is a huge player in LATOBSD. He marries Judith Eastman in chapter 7, who is fictional and they start the Pearson-Eastman Journal, a make believe publication that gives this book the legs to reach out to the entire flat world… pure fictional genius.

… one Episode to go…

Alpha Omega M.D.

Episode #333

Alpha Omega M.D. – Episode #331

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Posted on October 19, 2016

Alpha Omega M.D. – Episode #331

…A double barrel dose of help: Kenty Johnson has money saved up and Kenty Jr. has the fresh blood of knowledge…

A.O. is taking his new lease on life in, in the spirit in which it is presented. Even as he watches familiar landmarks pass by as they ease up to his Virginia Street address. He is thinking about the future.

Maggie is waiting on the front steps of their house. What a welcome sight. There too are daughters Alpha, Laura and Zillah and their families. Maggie is seated in a wheelchair, one and all waving a hearty ‘welcome home’.

“Thank you, gracious Lord,” he proclaims tearfully.

But that isn’t all. There are other familiar faces.

“What’s Kenty Johnson doin’ here?” Dr. J. Kenty Johnson is with his son, himself a newly minted doctor.

“I needed a reliable source of information about your situation and Kenty came to mind. He filled in the particulars of your life, practice and such. AND he mentioned that his son was looking to make a difference in the Tallahassee community. And did we say that he fresh from medical school? A double barrel dose of help: Kenty has money saved up and Kenty Jr. has the fresh blood of knowledge.”

One month ago, Alpha Campbell would have been bloated full of irrational pride, having suffered in silence for the better part of a decade. He was determined to find a way out of their money struggles and did not need outside help.

We all know what path that led him down.

“Well boys, don’t you think it is time we roll up our sleeves?”

Upon hearing Dr. Alpha O. Campbell utter that inclusive statement, his nurses who were hiding in LBMH for fear of their lives, come sprinting out the front door.

Somehow, Laura Bell Memorial Hospital looked whiter than normal that day… From down the street, a car streaks to the emergency side entrance, a man screams out, “My wife’s water just broke! Please help!”

“Scrub up, you Johnsons; we have a baby to deliver… Edwina will get you gowns and get her to the second floor…”

… The LBMH wing for whites.

(The End of the Beginning)

Alpha Omega M.D.

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Episode #331

page 312 (end Ch. 19)

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Purchase One of My Books – Gwenny from WIF

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Posted on September 25, 2016

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Buy Gwenny’s Books

You will be redirected to the “Gwenny’s Ebook Downloads” page. Click on the corresponding PayPal icon to start the process. You should receive a PDF file of my book within 24 hours.

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You may have read one of my books here on WIF, which I craft & so lovingly blog (500 words @ a time) with graphics, pictures, Youtube music videos. Or maybe you are following along with Alpha Omega M.D. as we speak. I will be finishing up THE LIFE AND TIMES OF A BLACK SOUTHERN DOCTOR quite soon and you may ask… “Where can I download this great book, so I don’t have to click thru the Episode Catalog? I just want to read it from ‘cover-to-cover’.

Well wonder (or wait) no longer. Click on Buy Gwenny’s Books and you will have your choice of:

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Alpha Omega M.D. – Episode #307

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Posted on September 19, 2016

Alpha Omega M.D. – Episode #307

…“If she turns you down Mr. Ford, you could pick me?” volunteers Dr. Jane. It appears that Friez is thawing…

As far as anyone outside this hospital is concerned, Sara Fenwick is just another patient, is that understood?”

All heads nod.

“… Which means, we don’t want to read about “Constance and Ace” helping their friend become a prima ballerina or anything to do with the fountain of youth.”

“Are speaking about little old me?” Lyn asks with a coquettish tilt of her head.

“You got away with exposing secrets once before, acting all innocent and ignorant, so don’t think we aren’t watching you.”

“I’m flattered by the attention, Ben, but Bob and I are about to start another project as soon as we feel Sara is safe.”

“From this time forward, we control who knows what and when. The general public wouldn’t know what to do with information about Sara.”

“You have my word, Ben, my wife will behave herself.”

Carolyn Hanes has to think over what she just heard. “Wife? That means we’d have to be married and the last time I checked–.”

“We can take care of that here in Washington. They have a chaplain and a chapel here at the hospital. What do you say?”

“Wouldn’t we be spoiling a perfectly good friendship?”

“If she turns you down Mr. Ford, you could pick me?” volunteers Dr. Jane. It appears that Friez is thawing.

“He slurps his soup, Dr. Jane.”

“So do I.”

“He has a trick knee.”

“I can fix that.”

Hmmmm, I got it, she thinks. “All his underwear and socks have holes in them.”

“Lyn?” Bob steps in.

“Darn… socks I mean!” one last try for the doctor.

Lyn always has to feel like she is in control, even when she is not, hence her bantering with Dr. Friez. Even though this marriage thing is not her idea, secretly having considered it in rare quiet moments, she is cornered. “Since I seem to have competition Bob, I think it’s time we got hitched, fly-boy!”

The conference room erupts in raucous applause. The once stern and professional staff are quickly becoming like family. The coming years, the ongoing contact, with Sara at the center, will only reinforce that kindred ness.

Image result for capitol ballet At the gymnasium in another wing of the huge hospital, Sara is being coached by the choreographer for the Capitol Ballet. She will be happy for Lyn and Bob, because her memories of love and life are but a faint flickering ember. One night in Ceylon took care of that.

Alpha Omega M.D.

Episode #307

page 291

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Alpha Omega M.D. – Episode #296

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Posted on September 6, 2016

Alpha Omega M.D. – Episode #296

…The Negro community in Florida will look back at what A.O. Campbell has done with great pride, and the promise that success is there for all who are willing to work hard…

New Jersey was memorable for A.O. Campbell, after making the longest house call in his career. He delivered a healthy baby girl for his daughter Angela and it was nice seeing Camille Diaz again. She was so happy to be a grandmother, a tailor-made fit for a loving woman. It makes him wonder what it would have been like if she had been a part of his life. One thing for sure, she would make do with a lot less than Maggie Lou.

He returns to Florida with a dark cloud overhead. His hospital has turned into a money pit and he has lost perhaps his greatest asset, his lawyer and friend, James Ferrell. His wife, Abbey and sister Agnes were with James to the end, trying to get him to pull through, but the antibiotics were no match for lungs filled with mucous. He used some of his last conscious moments to write a note to A.O. Campbell. Image result for watching you

Scribbled on a scrap of hospital paper, the one line read:

Be careful, Alpha. I think they are watching you. Call R. Worth Moore, he knows.

Shortly after that, the Ferrell legacy fell into the lap of the Ferrell women. Neither James nor Cyril Odz were able to produce a child and the Ferrell grocery chain, the pride of father John, was bought out by Food Fair a more national company. Why is it that a good longtime family like the Ferrells dies on the vine and the stinkers like the Lewis and Wilson clans reproduce like vermin?

The Campbells are hanging in there, but again without a male heir. With A.O. into his sixties, his empire an extension of John Ferrell – via Maggie Lou, there is a perceivable end to a historic dynasty. The Negro community in Florida will look back at what A.O. Campbell has done with great pride, and the promise that success is there for all who are willing to work hard.

Success does come with a price tag. That and .75 cents gets you a ride on the bus to Panama City. That and $252.50 gets you a mortgage on a hospital. Unless he lives to be 88 years old, he probably will not see that debt retired. The plan was to pay it off in ten years, but that was contingent on other doctors, black or otherwise, working out of it.

And that did not happen. So on January 23^rd of 1951, at the age of 62, when some lucky Americans retire with a pension, Mr. J.L. Lewis recommends Doctor A.O. Campbell for active staff appointment at A&M Hospital. His family simply needed the money. Vacant lots and run down houses do not pay the bills. Even the lots on Campbell Lake go unsold. Real estate taxes are gobbling up rental revenue.

Communist witch-hunts, yet another foreign war, blatant racism and back-stabbing friends, can be summed up with one word: inhospitable.

Alpha Omega M.D.

THE LIFE AND TIMES OF A BLACK SOUTHERN DOCTOR

Episode #296

page 280 (end ch. 16)

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Laborious Puns #22

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Posted on September 5, 2016

“No man needs sympathy because he has to work, because he has a burden to carry. Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.”

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― Theodore Roosevelt

1.	Labor Day is a good time to stop and reflect on the august events the the preceding month.
2.	Bringing a baby into the world is labor of love.
3.	He labored so hard that he worked his fingers to the bonus.
4.	In some places there is a lot of Manuel labor for every Juan.
5.	In the NFL there is some Manuel labor.
6.	They used to experiment on dogs called laboratory retrievers.
7.	A woman union leader who was pregnant had labor pains and then a striking baby.
8.	At a company where they dig for gold a labor dispute is a miner problem where no one wants to get the shaft.