Bird’s Eye View

Greetings one and all. If you are sitting comfortably then I shall begin. Given Tom Smith’s previous powers of recovery from the several near-death experiences in his past, many Valley folks are still shocked at the pass­ing of the long-time high school soccer coach and vet­eran of the Variety show. On this occasions however, his injuries from the head-on car collision were so many and severe that, when septicemia (bacteria in the blood) set in, Tom just could not pull through. His wife Val writes “There will be a memorial at the Philo Grange on Satur­day June 19th from 12-4pm for all who knew and loved him. Please bring stories and memories and a dish to share. He is and will be sorely missed. This will be a non-alcohol event.”

Public Service Announcements. #315: The Vets from the Mendocino Animal Hospital will be making their monthly visit to the Valley next Thursday, June 17th when they will be at The Farm Supply north of Philo from 2-3:30pm. #316: Many of the Soccer World Cup matches will be shown at The Redwood Drive-In over the next month. Schedules are available at there and the big game on the opening weekend is USA v England 11:30am Saturday, June 12th. #318: I would like to pass on the names of just some of the live music acts that will be appearing through the summer at The Navarro Store in the Deep End. The performers will include The Han­sen-Raitt Band (up next on June 19th), The Dave Nelson Band featuring members of The Grateful Dead and Jef­ferson Starship; The Boris Garcia Band; Walter Trout; Guitar Shorty; The House of Floyd; The Sub-Dudes (two shows over one weekend); The Roger Wood Band fea­turing Pilar Duran and Christy Wells; David Hayes, Gene Parsons; Asleep at the Wheel from Austin, Texas; Roy Rogers and It’s a Beautiful Day. And Pablo Cruz.

Needless to say, it would appear that the computer will become our priority mode of communication with the world in less than ten years and we will need high speed Internet access to reach most websites. To help the cause, those Valley and coastal dwellers with Dial-Up, DSL, or Satellite (none of which are considered Broadband by the FCC) can register their physical address with the FCC as a “Broadband Dead Zone.” At least 50% of us are NOT served and yet apparently the data they currently have shows our areas as 81-95% served with Broadband. If they think that is true we will not be on the list to get the funding we need. No funding. No Broadband. I am told it’s as simple as that. You can help the effort to get access in these ways: 1. Register yourself on the www.broadband.gov website. Look in the middle column for ‘Consumer Broadband Test,’ then look at the bottom of that section for “Report a Broadband Dead Zone.” 2. If you cannot do this on dial up (which some have said they cannot), e-mail your physical address (not PO Box) with zipcode to either carol@oakgrove.com or sfreriks@mcn.org and give them your permission to enter your data.

Topics from The Three-Dot Lounge—

…Mosswood Market has changed ownership and the new person in charge is former employee Pilar Echeverria. Best wishes to her and the business, and of course to Sharon, who did such a wonderful job at The MM, for her future plans. The Zub Zub ice cream parlor was thought to be heading for a corporate takeover by Clover-Stornetta of Petaluma with a local ice cream ‘aficionado,’ who was also interested, missing out. Now it appears that neither will get the store and that landlord Johnny ‘Two Scoops’ Schmitt, of Boonville Hotel fame, will take over himself and install a reliable staff that keeps regular business hours. Sounds good to me. ‘Two scoops of vanilla chocolate chip in the sugar cone, please, Johnny.’ The renovations at The Buckhorn Building continue and hopes of finding a new tenant remain high, with some interest currently being shown. The location formerly known as The Boonville Lodge is to re-open, licenses etc. permitting, in late July under the new name of The Buckhorn Saloon, with former bartender/owner Shelley in charge along with business partner and friend Marcia. The attached restaurant section is also creating some interest and I shall keep you posted on develop­ments there as soon as I have any news.

…One of the Valley’s most distinguished senior citi­zens, Ross Murray, is recovering at home from knee replacement surgery. Ross is 91 years old but knowing him to be a very determined young man, and with wife Joyce at his side, it would not surprise me to see him up and about in a relatively short time; although his dancing days in the chorus lines behind the likes of Fred Astaire, Betty Hutton, Shirley Temple, Eleanor Powell, Olympic ice skater Sonja Henie, not to mention the Andrews Sis­ters, are probably over.

…A.V. High School Ag Class teacher Beth Swehla stopped in at The Three-Dot to report that the two Cana­dian Geese who have been ‘hanging out’ at the pond in Bill Hill’s Big Hole alongside Hwy 128 opposite Breggo Cellars have become the proud parents of several gos­lings. When this news broke, it was drinks all round!

Speaking of Beth Swehla, I feel it’s time to remind you that the fresh organic eggs available through her Ag Class are some of the best you are likely to find anytime, anywhere. During the summer months, with the school closed, these delicious eggs will be available at Gowan’s Oak Tree on Highway 128 to which Beth and some of her students will deliver them on a regular basis. Whether scrambled, poached, or fried, they are as tasty as it gets and the vivid color of the yolk is just as an egg is supposed to be, as I remember back in ‘the good old days.’ Of course, if served soft-boiled and in an egg cup with buttered toast ‘fingers’ to dip into that delicious yolk, then the whole experience reaches orgasmic levels of culinary delight.

Time to take my leave. Be careful out there; stay out of the ditches; think good thoughts; and may your god go with you… One final request, “Let us prey.” Poking and stroking egos wherever necessary and, as always, hum­bly yours, Turkey Vulture. PS. Keep the Faith. PPS. Contact me with words of support/abuse either through the Letters Page or by e-mail at turkeyvulture1@earthlink.net. PPPS. Hi, Silver Swan. Behaving yourself? Hopefully not!