# 178 - October 14th, 2009

Greetings one and all - if you are sitting comfortably then I shall begin... After a week off for my annual ‘beak and claw’ check-up, one or two of you will no doubt be pleased to hear that I am ready to rant and rave, not for the first time, about the ridiculously loud fans that are used by many wineries for frost protection; those which sound like several helicopters hovering overhead to anyone within a mile or so of their operation as they drone on for several hours of the night at certain times of the year – including a couple of nights last week! They are really, really loud. Obviously I do not expect the wineries to lose their crops, besides, as regular readers will be well aware, I like wine, A.V. wines in particular, however I have always thought that there were alternative ways to fight the frost that are not as invasive on the local population, after all I cannot imagine the winery ‘powers-that-be’ putting up with such noise if they were being kept awake at night in their ivory towers... Anyway, I have it on good authority that there actually are alternative fans that cause far less noise pollution. Even if they cost a little more (and I don’t know if they do) it would be very community-minded and selfless of the wineries, who are surely conscious of this situation, to look into this before the main frosts that will be here next spring and for them to ‘do the right thing’ – in fact it would be rude of them not to, don’t you think?
With the topic of business practices/ethics on my mind, here’s our Quote of the Week which, if applied to this case, perhaps offers hope that the wineries will work on this.’ It’s an old English proverb that states, “A guilty conscience needs no accuser,” (but I am being one anyway)...
Moving quickly on... For this week’s edition of the Anderson Valley Who’s Who here are a group who certainly deserve a mention – The High School and Junior High Coaches: Volleyball – Mike ‘Flick’ McDonald; Junior High Volleyball – Sid Frazer; Soccer – Tom Smith and Steve Sparks; Football – John Toohey and Logo Tevasu; Baseball – Ben Anderson; Girls’ Softball – Bill Noble: Boys’ Basketball – Jim Boudoures; Girls’ Basketball – Bryan Wyant; Junior High Basketball – Ben Anderson; and Tennis – Dick Browning. Many thanks to all and ‘Go Panthers!”
How about a couple of quick Public Service Announcements?... #197 – It’s time once again for The Grange Groove Dance, taking place this Friday (16th) at The Grange on Hwy 128 between Boonville and Philo. I am assured by the lovely Jennifer P. that D.J. Jeff will be getting his groove on (and helping you to get yours on too) from 7.30pm until 10pm-ish All are welcome, donations gratefully accepted, tailgate outside if you wish... #198 – The Mendocino Animal Hospital vets will be at The A.V. Farm Supply next Thursday (22nd) from 2pm until 3.30pm for many of your pet’s needs. I suggest you take advantage of this wonderful service and save all the time and money of ‘going over the hill’...
As I sat in The Three-Dot Lounge, my favorite gathering place in the Valley, Hummingbird shared a tale with the regulars about her shopping experience in Ft. Bragg a couple of weeks ago... It was a very hot day and she stopped by at the ‘Understuff’ lingerie store where the excellent air conditioning provided a welcome relief as she picked out a couple of items. As she was paying the sales assistant they suddenly both became aware of heavy panting and muffled grunts from the changing room at the back of the store. ‘Surely not!?!’, they each thought as they stared towards the back of the shop and then at each other with shocked expressions on their faces. But what else could it be? Suspecting the obvious, the sales assistant walked swiftly back to the changing room and pulled the curtain aside - there stood an embarrassed women trying on some ‘understuff’ with her two, very hot and bothered bulldogs lying on the floor beside her, both panting heavily with the odd grunt thrown in too. It was not a big deal after the woman explained that the dogs were suffering in the car, and all was forgiven, although, as Hummingbird pointed out, in a lingerie shop grunting and panting bulldogs are obviously not compatible with the usual ambience required...
I’m outta here – I have a ‘liaison’ with Hummingbird!... Be careful out there, stay out of the ditches, and think good thoughts... May your god go with you… Oh, and of course, one final request, “Let us prey”… Humbly yours, Turkey Vulture…
p.s. You can contact me with words of support/abuse by e-mail at turkeyvulture1 @ earthlink.net