# 126 - September 3rd, 2008

Greetings one and all…Are you sitting comfortably? Then I shall begin…Like many others, I was very sad to hear of the passing of everyone’s favorite “High Tech Red Neck”, Richard Reitz, last Thursday afternoon in Philo. I have seen a lot of Richard and his wife and long-time companion, Amy Bloyd-Liljeberg, over the past few years and we never failed to exchange some amusing comments over a beer or several!…Amy, along with son Eric and daughter Mea (both from her previous marriage to Mickey Bloyd), drowned their sorrows in The Boonville Lodge on Thursday night in the company of the many friends who had shown up to pass on their condolences. She seemed in fine form and surprised many with her ability to look positively to the future. She even claimed that she would outlive the next husband too! I will miss both Richard’s brevity of speech and preciseness of opinion (something that one or two others around these parts would do well to emulate on occasion), and also his tendency, when confronted by someone he could not relate to, to adopt that incredulous, curmudgeonly stare with a hint of mischievousness in his eyes, as if he was saying, “You’re not nearly as clever as you’d like to be – but that’s o.k., neither am I”…Be careful ‘up there’, Richard, and thanks for the memories…
And with this in mind, I offer you this Quote of the Week from one of my favorites, Woody Allen, “The chief problem with death is the fear that there may be no afterlife – a depressing thought, but not so bad for those who haven’t shaved. Also, there is the fear that there is an afterlife but no one will know where it’s being held”…
So let’s keep with this theme for the Valley Quiz and have some questions about those who have recently gone but who are not forgotten…
1. A longtime Valley “celebrity”, firefighter, etc., etc., and fluent speaker of Boontling, was known by many old-timers as “Chipmunk”. What was his real name?...
2. More recently, the Valley suffered a loss that was felt throughout the community, but particularly amongst those who feel a greater presence of law and order is needed around here and who appreciate a good man doing a difficult job very well. Of whose passing am I talking?...
3. A man who was one of the older statesmen in a long established Valley family whose years of hard work in the apple orchards has paid off with some of the best apples anywhere - in my somewhat ‘expert’ opinion. His name is synonymous with Anderson Valley. Who was he?
Talking of things synonymous with the Valley, let’s turn to Turkey Vultures. I’m sure (?) you’d agree that it’s about time I once again shared with you some “interesting and informative” ‘Jive Turkey’…Here we go…Did you know that we have bald heads (naked red heads, to be more precise) because bits of carrion (dead meat) do not adhere to the skin as they would do to feathers? – oh, yes, we thought of everything! Just thought you should know…
Public Service Announcement #312 – The very capable and personable vets from Mendocino Animal Hospital were unable to make their monthly visit to Dig Landscape and Garden Supplies (formerly A.V. Farm Supply) in August so they have announced that they will be here twice this month. Their first visit is on Thursday, September 4th (tomorrow!) and then again in two weeks on September 18th. They usually arrive around 2pm and stay for approximately two hours so if you have any pet needs or issues then I suggest you grab the opportunity to save yourself a trip ‘over the hill’ to Ukiah and at the same time support their efforts in providing this excellent service.
My roving investigative reporter, The Balding Eagle, files this report from the front lines at the Battle of Trivia at The Boonville Lodge last week…”A team calling themselves ‘Wilted Faces” were big favorites to win the Quiz this week. The team featured former “Fresh Faces” - Terry Ryder, Mother Muriel, and The Bobcat, a team that had won on several occasions, including the previous week. On this occasion they were joined by the A.V.A.’s Supremo Bruce Anderson and Major Scaramella – an unbeatable line-up you may think? Wrong! The Jubs of Comptche, along with Maria G, and The Thomas Boys of Ornbaun Road and Beyond edged out the “Wilted Faces” by one point. What went wrong for The Faces? The only difference from the previous week’s winning line-up was the addition of the A.V.A. “Brain-trust” – surely you’re not thinking what I’m thinking?!?!”...
Ooops, I’d better get my coat - I think it’s time to take my leave...Be careful out there, remember to keep your windows cracked if you have pets in your vehicle, try to enjoy life despite the fact that living sometimes gets in the way, think good thoughts, and may your god go with you…Oh, and of course, one final request, “Let us prey”…Humbly yours, Turkey Vulture…
You can contact me with words of support/abuse by e-mail at
turkeyvulture1 @ earthlink.net… And before you get too ‘down and dirty’, try to remember – we Turkey Vultures are Nature’s Garbage Collectors - an honorable profession, even if I do say so myself…
P.S. “Hi, Silver Swan and Duck Lips – have a drink for me!”
Quiz Answers…
1. Bob Glover, a true Valley person through and through…
2. Deputy Scott Nordin’s passing was hard on his friends and family and has still not been addressed by the powers-that-be with regards to the safety and well-being of the community at-large…
3. George Gowan passed a couple of years ago and what I remember most about his memorial was the number of stories shared about him by friends, neighbors, and the many, many Gowans in attendance…