# 429 - October 22nd, 2014
Greetings one and all – if you are sitting comfortably
then I shall begin… The disturbing saga at the A.V. Health Center continues. In
fact the whole situation has even stirred the Old Buzzard from his late summer
slumbers and caused him to weigh in with some comments that could certainly be
added to his long list of ‘Signs that the Apocalypse is Approaching’…
Buzzard
reports, “So, just over a week after the new doctor’s ‘Meet and Greet the
Community’ event, developments at the Health Center would seem to have taken on
farcical proportions. Like many others, I have been inundated with a veritable
surge of emails on this topic that all came from within the same group of about
80 Valley folks who make up a sincere, well-intentioned, and cohesive email assemblage
whose efforts are commendable. The vast majority of this contingent appears to
be in agreement with one another and claims to be acting in the best interests
of the community. I am sure they genuinely believe this. I support much of what
they have proposed when it comes to ‘saving the Health Center’ but I am also
aware of some people, in many cases those who do not easily share their
thoughts in public, who are not convinced that the group is representing the
community as a whole, certainly with regards to some of their more specific
aims concerning the future of the current Board and other staffing issues…
Knowing
and respecting a number of the Board members personally, I have to assume that
there are a number of arguments that represent a different point of view. For
reasons that remain unclear, we have not been presented with these.
Nevertheless, there remains a significant number of Valley folks who do not
agree with some of Gang of Eighty’s ideas. The Eighty will reasonably point out
that these individuals can share their thoughts at a community meeting, but it
doesn’t work like that, and in most cases these people will continue to keep
their thoughts to themselves. I guess they will have to live with the
consequences of their inaction - which is unfortunate. Our community is often
divided on many other Valley issues, in fact we live in a place where you can
find similar numbers on both sides of most serious discussions if you delve
deep enough - the wineries, the school, tourism and commerce, bike trails, and
marijuana, to mention a few. Not that this is a bad thing, in fact it most
cases it is quite healthy and this is not the harmonious, all-for-one community
that some would have you believe; it is far more normal than that…
But
I digress… Being a former patient at the Health Center, who for numerous
reasons has decided for the past few years to travel the 90 minutes to Santa
Rosa for health care rather than the 15 minutes to Boonville, and who welcomed
some of the changes made at the clinic in recent times (but certainly not the
firing of dental clinic administrator, Kathy Corral, who always seemed to me to
be the most efficient and courteous person in the building), I believe there is
another side to many of the arguments. However, while the ‘Gang of Eighty’ has
repeatedly presented articulate and well-reasoned arguments and requests, there
have been very few comments from that ‘other side.’ In fact their reticence to
address so many of the issues raised thus far has been very disappointing indeed.
Perhaps, given this weekend’s torrent of related activity, they are feverishly
putting together their side of the debate as I write. Let’s hope so - but why
haven’t they done so before now? I think we should be told… I must go - this
health center fiasco is making me feel ill… Oh, the irony!…
Public
Service Announcements (P.S.A.’s)… Calendars and pens at the ready… #240 - The
Vets from the Mendocino Animal Hospital will be visiting the Valley just once
more this month - tomorrow, Thursday, October 23 from 2-4pm at the A.V. Farm
Supply. Unfortunately, due to staffing issues, they will not be making a
visit to the Valley in November… #241 - This Saturday, October 25, sees the end
of season local potluck at 12:30pm, following the final outdoor Farmers’ Market
at the Boonville Hotel Parking Lot (it’s not a courtyard)… #242 - And in a
related event, on Sunday, October 26 it’s the Farm-to-Fork Dinner at the
Boonville Hotel - a fundraiser for the A.V. Foodshed in celebration of Local
Farmers and Local Food! This dining experience will feature food and drink sourced
entirely from Anderson Valley. Appetizers at 4:30, Dinner at 5:30. $55- $125
sliding scale - includes 4 course meal, wine, beverage, tax and gratuity.
Please Call 895-2210, space is limited … #243 - Stone and Embers, at The
Madrones, just south of Philo, will also be highlighting local ingredients
on Saturday, October 25. They will be open from 12-8 that day and recommend
reservations at dinnertime… #244 - This year’s
final Guest Chef Dinner - the series of community dinners to benefit the
Senior Center, takes place on Saturday, October 25 and will be in the form of
an Oktoberfest celebration to be held in the unique and appropriately decorated
Barn at the AV Farm Supply, just north of Philo. Prepared by Fal Allen and
Friends, there will be a Happy Hour at 5pm and Dinner will be served at 6pm.
Tickets are $30.00, which includes the dinner, one complementary drink, and a
donation to the Senior Center of $10. Only a limited number of tickets will be
available, and anyone who attended last year’s sold out event will surely want
to be back, so get yours early… #245 - The AV ElderHome is having an Open House
at their newly renovated unit on Sunday, October 26 from 1 to 5pm - it’s
#14440-A, next to the Fairground. Then on Thursday, October 30, the ElderHome
is also hosting a Community Meeting at the Senior Center at 6pm to explain
future plans and to get community feedback…
Moving
quickly on to a few of the topics and Valley events under discussion this week
at The Three-Dot Lounge – yes it’s “Moans, Groans, Good Thoughts, and Rampant
(and surprisingly reliable) Rumors” from my favorite gathering place in the
Valley, a location that sees people get together and share their thoughts about
life in A.V. and where we subscribe to the Winston Churchill philosophy that “A
lie will get halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to put on
its pants”… So I’ll put my pants on and continue…
… So
the Giants return to the World Series and now face Kansas City in the
best-of-seven series that started yesterday (Tuesday 21)… By the way they find
ways to win, it appears the team is one of destiny, and once more, as in their
victorious postseasons in 2010 and 2012, our local community is following
avidly… It’s Fall, Halloween is around the corner, and the Gigantes are in the
Series - how many more reasons do you need to get your Orange and Black on…
…
Elementary school Principal, Donna Pierson-Pugh stopped by the Three-Dot and
shared with some regulars that “The school’s wonderful Fresh Fruits and
Vegetables grant was not funded this year and our kiddos are really missing the
morning "produce" snack. We would love to request a donation of
any surplus fruits and veggies that can be eaten raw for the elementary school
children. Please contact Donna or the AVES office staff at 895-3010. Thanks for
keeping our children eating those fruits and vegetables!”…
I’m
outta here… So, until we talk again – ‘Keep the Faith’; be careful out there;
stay out of the ditches; think good thoughts; be wary of strangers with more
dogs than teeth; please remember to keep your windows cracked if you have pets
in your vehicle; and may your god go with you… Oh, and of course, one final
request, “Let us prey”… Sometimes poking, often stroking, but always humbly
yours, Turkey Vulture - pleased in the knowledge that the old hare has returned
safely to his burrow…
p.s. You can contact me with words of support/abuse
either through the Letters Page or by e-mail at <turkeyvulture1@earthlink.net>
p.p.s. Skylark – read any good books lately?... Keep on
humming, Hummingbird… Everything cool with you, O.J.? Of course it is…
posted by Turkey Vulture @ 10:15 AM
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