Two Gents' Worth
December 26, 2024
Civil Society
Editor’s note: Over the years on this blogsite, I’ve written numerous pieces about my memories of growing up in Fresno at Christmastime. This is one of my favorites. It appeared last Christmas — and with just a bit of editing to update it, I offer it to you as a holiday gift. Merry Christmas, everyone!…
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Civil Society
Greetings and Salutations, New Orleans. It was a pleasure getting to know you last week. It seems ridiculous that Sharon and I — with all our moves around the nation and with all the cities we’ve visited and lived in over the past half-century — never had the chance to drop in on you. It…
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Civil Society
This past Saturday, I headed back up to the Sierra — to North Fork, my favorite Madera County mountain community. I had been there only a few weeks before, when I had joined the North Fork History Group for a trip to Central Camp. This time — on a simply gorgeous late-autumn day — I…
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Civil Society
I’ve lived in the San Joaquin Valley practically my whole life. The Sierra Nevada range is within easy driving distance, and, indeed, I’ve been to the mountains countless times. But I regret to say, there are still many places up there that I’ve never been to. You see, I’m a typical “flatlander.” Mountain folks love…
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Civil Society
Sharon and I attended a community party in Madera this past Saturday, and we had a blast. For starters, we dressed up as early 20th century folks. We did that with the great help of Karen Elmore, curator of the Madera County Historical Society. She’s an expert on how men and women dressed back then,…
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Business
This past Saturday on Labor Day weekend, I escaped the Valley’s summer heat — and learned a whole lot about history — by joining a small group on a trek into the Sierra. A couple of months ago, I had taken a similar trip with some of these same folks. That time, we traveled to…
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Points I’m pondering… We’ve had more 100-degree days around these parts recently, and our Valley’s favorite TV weatherman, Kevin Musso of Channel 30, promises more will be on the way. As of this past Thursday, we had racked up 49 days of 100-or-higher temperatures. Last summer, we had 36. Of course, we can’t possibly compare…
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Civil Society
The other day, I decided to wind up my dad’s old wristwatch. I had taken possession of it after my brother Ken passed away a few months ago. I remember seeing Dad wear it on special occasions. That old Royal watch (15 jewels, it says on the front) sat on our bedroom bureau ever since…
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As you may recall, I wrote a piece in this space a few weeks ago about some of the experiences I had at TV stations where I worked during my 40-year career in broadcasting. A long-time friend read it and reminded me that I had left out a few funny and even crazy stories that…
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