Good Morning All!
My, oh, my…as the beloved Seattle Mariners’ radio & TV announcer and Baseball Hall of Famer Dave Niehaus was fond of saying…what a terrific and fun night we had at Prairie View Elementary School last night watching our granddaughters Isabel & Quinn perform in the Prairie View Drama Club’s rendition of “The Wizard Of Oz”! A good time was had by all and what a crowd showed up for the production. There was already a huge line forming at 5:45 p.m., some time before they opened the doors to let people in. One couple told us that family members from as far away as Montana had come to see their family members perform…how about that??? It was “Standing Room Only” at the school for this event. I used to think that the parents at our kids’ school (Hutton Elementary) won the “Parent’s Olympics Award” for the most involved parents at any school you could name, but I think the parents at Prairie View win that award hands down. Simply amazing!!! You wish that every kid in every school throughout the world had the same parental level of commitment as does Prairie View. Kudos to Isabel as “Dorothy” and to Quinn as a flower and a flying monkey! It was a fun & most entertaining production. Kudos also go to our friend Ms. Wiser, who was the Director of the production. She & her team did a great job of coordinating everything and their sound system work was fantastic! Here’s to the Prairie View Drama Club! I hope they “break a leg” on another production in the near future! A great entertainment value, for sure!
Speaking of special events, Happy Wedding Anniversary to my daughter, Amy, and her husband, Joel, which they celebrated yesterday (January 30th)! They are quite a team! Who can ever forget their beautiful winter wedding just outside Leavenworth at the Pine River Ranch. It was spectacular, to say the least. One of the highlights was the giant sparklers that went off when they departed the celebration on their way to their honeymoon. Here’s to you two!
And while we’re speaking of Amy & Joel’s special event, Happy Birthday wishes go to friends Merrick, Rob, Megan who celebrated their birthdays yesterday, January 30th; and to friends Sara & Juan who celebrate their birthdays tomorrow, February 1st! Here’s to all of you special people on your special day of celebration! Happy Birthday wishes also go to singer-musician Harry Wayne Casey of “KC and the Sunshine Band” fame, who is 69 today; to actress Minnie Driver who turns 50 today; to singer Justin Timberlake who is 39 today; and to singer/musician/songwriter Marcus Mumford of “Mumford and Sons” fame, who turns 33 today…here’s to all of you too!
There was a great article in our city’s newspaper a few weeks ago about Paul Fish, the owner of the beloved “Mountain Gear” store, which has closed after many years of service to outdoor enthusiasts in the greater Spokane area. Paul started his business out of his home in the late 1970s and then opened his store in 1983. He estimates that he has employed some 800 people over the course of the store’s existence. As Paul related in the article, “We’re value driven…Not necessarily financially driven. Becoming huge, becoming public never fit with my values.” Paul mentioned that he has always felt that owners of businesses/employers need to care for the needs of their employees and their families and have their interests at heart as well as those of their customers. I can personally attest to Paul’s commitment to service in the Spokane community and beyond. He made his store available on a number of occasions to help win support for the Glacier National Park Conservancy, a cause near and dear to my heart. Paul and his team were good examples of being “good citizens” in running a reputable business and giving back to the community in various ways. I know I will miss Mountain Gear and what it stood for in the greater Spokane business community. Here’s to Paul Fish, Phil Bridger and all of the team at Mountain Gear! THANK YOU!
Speaking of special people, there was also a great article in the paper awhile back applauding the lives of notables that died in 2019. One person that wasn’t mentioned in that article, but whose life had a profound influence on a number of different people was my wife Judy’s beloved father, Dwain Herbert McIntosh…a successful farmer, entrepreneur, husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, among many other accomplishments in his almost 89 years of life. Among other favorite people of mine that were named in the newspaper article were actress & humanitarian Doris Day; esteemed journalist & writer Cokie Roberts; lovable comedian extraordinaire Tim Conway of “The Apple Dumpling Gang” movie fame & “McHale’s Navy” TV fame, as well as “The Carol Burnett Show”; and esteemed and admired business leaders Ross Perot and Lee Iacocca (Mr. Iacocca devoted much of his time in raising funds to preserve Ellis Island, an important landmark in our nation’s history); and beloved Green Bay Packer quarterback Bart Starr. We’ll miss all of these great people who helped make our world a better place to live, each in his or her own remarkable way.
Among my collection of 1969 NFL Football Cards is one for Richie Petitbon, star of the Chicago Bears in the 1960s. His card says “A former number two draft pick of the Chicago Bears, Richie is one of the all-time top interceptors on the club. In 1963, 1964,1967 and 1968, he was named to the West team in the Pro Bowl. Smart and quick, Richie can recover a fumble handily.” Richie was born in 1938 in New Orleans and attended Jesuit High School there. He first attended Loyola University in New Orleans on a track and field scholarship and left after his freshman year to attend Tulane. After playing college football as a quarterback at Tulane, he played most of his NFL career for the Chicago Bears as a defensive back. Richie holds the Bears record for the longest interception return, after scoring on a 101-yard return against the Los Angeles Rams in 1962. As of 2019, he also holds the Bears record for the most interceptions in a game (3 against the Green Bay Packers in 1967) and most interception return yards in a season (212 in 1962). How about that?
After his playing career, Richie became one of the top defensive coordinators in professional football, coaching under legendary Redskins’ coach Joe Gibbs & Jack Pardee (the Redskins winning three Super Bowls during that time). When Gibbs retired in 1993, Petitbon was named his successor. However, he did not find the same success as a head coach, lasting only one season. His brother, John Petitbon, also played in the NFL. Both brothers are members of the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and the Louisiana High School Sports Hall of Fame. Richie is one of the members of the exclusive Chicago Bears’ “Ring Of Honor” and is ranked No. 41 on the Chicago Bears 100 best players of all time. If memory serves me correctly, I had the pleasure of watching some of Richie’s interceptions on T.V. as a kid in the 60s. Here’s to Richie Petitbon and all of the Chicago Bear greats!
Here is the travel tip for the day:
Be sure and check out “Azure Mountain”, a fabulous handcrafted soap store in Dayton, Washington. The smells in their shop are heavenly and they have a wide variety of wonderful smelling soaps…my favorite is their lavender soap. Their products will make you smell oh, so good! Owners Brenda & Art Hall are extremely friendly and accommodating. Their shop is located on Main Street in beautiful downtown Dayton. The doors of their shop date back to the Victorian-era…I’ve never seen more beautiful doors to a store! Stop by their store…you’ll be glad you did! You can also check them out on their web site at www.azuremtn.com.
Here is the word definition for the day:
Circumlocution: “Using more words than necessary to express a thought…”An indirect expression.” Perhaps we could all have a bit less “circumlocution” in communicating with others, don’t you think?
Here are some thoughts for the day:
“Seve Ballesteros was the best trouble-shot player who ever lived. It didn’t matter how far in the woods you put that guy, he’d find a way to get out. But Seve inadvertently put a lot of big numbers on the scoreboards of average players, because he inspired them to take dumb chances.”
—Lee Trevino, PGA golfing great
“God cannot give us happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.”
—C.S. Lewis, “Mere Christianity”