# 433 - November 19th, 2014

          Greetings one and all – if you are sitting comfortably then I shall begin… It’s been a busy week of watching high school sports and celebrating victories and apart from that my forays in and around the Valley have been limited… So let’s get straight in to the Public Service Announcements (P.S.A.’s)…

       Calendars and pens at the ready… #413 - Unfortunately there are no planned visits to the Valley by the Vets from the Mendocino Animal Hospital for November but they have now confirmed with me that they are able to make a visit on Thursday, December 11… #414 - The Boonville Winter Market has started its winter schedule that sees it moving across the street from the summer location in the hotel parking lot to in front of the Boonville General Store in downtown Boonville, every Saturday from 10am -12:30pm. You are invited to ‘come on down with your locally grown or made food or crafts, to sell or trade.’ Or just go as a customer and buy something from the wonderful range of goodies. For more info, call Cindy at 895-2949… #415 - This Saturday, November 22 sees the return of The Real Sarahs to Lauren’s Restaurant in Boonville. They will be joined by Spec MaQuayde and Friends with banjos, storytelling, and apparently some ‘mischief’…#416 - Heads-ups for future heads-ups! Yes, here’s an early reminder, with Christmas gifts in mind perhaps, of the Valley’s two annual Crab Feeds that will take place early in the new year. First it’s the ‘Feed’ that benefits the Senior Center, held on Saturday, January 17, and then three weeks later, on Saturday, February 7, it will be Gloria Ross and her Crew presenting their event on behalf of the Catholic Church. More details on prices and where to buy tickets to follow soon but both events will sell out so don’t miss out!...

       As a bonus P.S.A. here is the menu for the Community lunches and dinners over the next week at the Senior Center in the Veterans’ Building in Boonville… The Center asks for a $6 donation from seniors for both lunches and dinners and charges $7 for Non-seniors for lunches and $8 for the dinners… Tomorrow, Thursday, November 20, the lunch, always served by Marti Titus and her crew at 12.15pm, will be Beef Stew, Rolls, Broccoli Salad, Quinoa Salad, and Bread Pudding for dessert … Then, next Tuesday, November 25, at 6pm, the dinner menu will feature Turkey, Roasted Vegetables, Potatoes, Gravy, Cranberry Gelatin, Rolls, Barley Salad, with Pumpkin Bars for dessert... The Center will be closed on Thursday, November 27 for Thanksgiving… Remember, all ages are welcome!... Hope to see you there…

       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…

… A number of 3-Dot regulars are keen supporters of our local high school sport’s teams and recently celebrated the football team’s successful 10-0 season that culminated in Coach Kuny’s guys’ deserved victory in the Redwood Bowl against Mendocino… Then this past weekend the boys’ soccer team won their postseason Championship for the third season in a row and the fourth time in five years… Meanwhile, last Saturday evening, following the soccer final, the girls’ volleyball team beat Pt Arena to advance to the semi-final that will be played at the local gym this evening (Wednesday). If successful, the girls will host the final on Saturday, November 22 and if they can win in that title game it will be the first time in school history that the three fall sports - football, boys soccer, and volleyball, have won their championships in the same year - what a remarkable achievement by the student athletes at our small high school… Go Panthers!...

… Inevitably we have a huge screen television here at The Three-Dot Lounge, not just for the sports but for all sorts of other quality programming that is available to the discerning viewer. Perhaps some of those people in the Valley who never miss a chance to inform anyone listening that they don’t have a television, will also one day realize this. Yes, folks, as I have pointed out before, if one looks beyond regular network television there is much that is informative, mentally stimulating, and entertaining to the intelligent adult. As Carl Sagan, creator and presenter of the wonderful series ‘Cosmos’ once said - “Used properly, television can educate and inspire awe as well as any book, painting, or film.” I think he might have been thinking of superbly written and acted dramas such as ‘The Sopranos’, Six Feet Under’, ‘The Wire’, ‘Mad Men’, and ‘Breaking Bad’, and cutting edge comedy shows such as ‘The Daily Show’, ‘The Colbert Report’, ‘Veep’ and ‘Inside Amy Shuler’… I advise you to tune in sometime…

… From our 3-Dot regular, The Old Buzzard, comes another in his insightful series – ‘Signs that the Apocalypse is Approaching’… Buzzard reports, “I recently read in this newspaper about the plague of flies in the Valley at this time of year, and its connection to the significant decline in the number of frogs – the flies’ natural enemy – quite likely as a result of the spraying done by the wineries. A winery advocate said, ‘you can’t grow grapes without sulfur, so what if a few frogs go, too?’ Charming, eh? (I should say that this was not a person connected to the Valley’s Golden Buttocks Winery that has incurred my wrath in the past)… I would respond to such nonsense by mentioning that a couple of months ago I was reliably informed that at one of the winery’s ponds there had been sightings of six-legged frogs! Six-legged frogs! This once again prompts the question, ‘What the hell is been sprayed around here?’... Anyway, after a few more moans and groans about this topic, and agreeing that the Apocalypse is a little closer thanks to such practices, Turkey Vulture and I opened a bottle of Pinot and moved on with our fascinating discussions”...

       Oh, dear, has The Buzzard upset somebody? I’ll get him his coat and ask him to leave shall I?... That’s ok, I do believe he has to see a man about a sheep anyway… 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 - and thinking you should now that we Turkey Vultures are monogamous and mate for life and sometimes, to prove our loyalty, we like to indulge in an ‘erotic’ display dance on our nesting grounds…

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. On the sheep, Grace… Hi, George – hope you and Sheila are well… Hi, Silver Swan – behaving yourself? Hopefully not!