As a member of the Pan-American Club from 1964 through 1981, I have good memories of dances there. I also have good memories of many members.
In 1969 all of us members went to a San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams game at Kezar Stadium. After the game the bus driver took us to Fisherman’s Wharf, where most of the members went to see the go-go girls at different bars. I went to Lefty O’Doul’s Restaurant. This friend of mine, Mr. Henry Preciado, who used to own the Rex Theater and the El-Rio Drive-In theater, had told me, “When you go to San Francisco please go and meet Mr. Lefty O’Doul at his restaurant, because him and I played baseball in the Pacific Coast League.”
O’Doul told me that Mr. Preciado was a great ball player and a good friend of his; Mr. O’Doul also told me, “If you would have been here in the restaurant 15 minutes earlier you would have seen Joe DiMaggio, who just walked out the back door.”
At our New Year’s dance, we would blow up the balloons and hang them in the middle of the ceiling, so they would come down at midnight. One year, a very active member, Mr. Alex Alvarez, came up with the idea of blowing up the balloons with a vacuum cleaner.
In 1976, I was elected publicity chairman. I also remember while I was a member of the Pan-Am Club, we made a pledge of $30,000 to Madera Community Hospital for some equipment it needed.
Also in 1976, our daughter Janie received a scholarship from the club. Also I remember that in 1971, we had a Halloween dance at the Odd Fellows Lodge.
The last memory was in June 12, 1981, my last year in the Pan-Am Club, when we placed a monument at the Pan-Am Park at the corner of Ashlan and Lake Street. I remember all these members that were there while I was, and have passed away; and they were great members and good friends:
Danny Martinez, Al Venegas, Pete Mayorga, Frank Molina, Alex Cervantez, Gonzalo “Gigi” Palacio, Louie Gonzales, Oli Jimenez, John Juarez, Sr., John Juarez, Jr., Juan Severa, Victor Medellin and Edward Moffett.
The other day I was reminded by something I read that the accumulated “knowledge” in the world doubles every five years. I hope that is not true. I’m having trouble enough getting myself around the information there is out there now.
For example, there’s the problem of Amy Adams. I didn’t know Amy Adams existed until I saw her picture on the cover of a magazine this week.
She apparently is very famous. You probably know who she is, and you probably are thinking, “What an old fuddy-duddy that editor is.”
Well, I agree. She was in the film “Catch Me if You Can,” with Tom Hanks and Leonardo DiCaprio, but I don’t remember her. She was in “Charlie Wilson’s War,” which I didn’t see, but heard a lot about, and so I don’t remember her for that either. And she played the food blogger in “Julie and Julia,” which I saw, but I barely remember her performance. In fact, I had forgotten there was such a person in that movie.
The life and times of Amy Adams is some of the accumulated knowledge of the past 10 years, and if that is the case, I’m in trouble. Probably everybody else in the country knows about her. She is on at least one magazine cover. And, she gets around. She had a baby this year (I didn’t know that). Her fiance is Darren Le Gallo (who in the heck is he?). Her work in the film “Junebug” (of which I never heard) was named the sixth-best performance in Paste Magazine’s 25 Performances of the Decade. (Have you ever heard of Paste Magazine? I haven’t.)
Well, you see my problem. A person who can’t keep track of one movie star certainly can’t keep track of a doubling of all knowledge over the next five years.
However, it turns out Amy Adams and I have something in common. We both like “The Wizard of Oz.”
There has been much criticism of high speed rail. As I have learned in life, there are always two sides to every story. I would like to present another view.
California needs a modern, clean, efficient way to move people throughout the state. We cannot build enough highways and roadways to accommodate the state’s projected population growth. In addition, roads increase air pollution which is a major concern in the valley with our chronic bronchitis, asthma and other respiratory diseases. HRS is a clean, efficient transportation alternative that is working in Europe, Japan, China and Korea. It is under construction in Brazil. It is not new, untested technology.
The voters of California recognized the positive merits of HRS and put their money up when they passed Proposition 1A in 2008. The route through the Central Valley was chosen to accommodate as many people as possible in this state and not just serve Los Angeles and San Francisco. When the rail line is completed, a passenger may board a train in Fresno and be in San Francisco in one hour or in Los Angeles in 1-1/2 hours.
I have heard the complaints that the system is too expensive, that we cannot afford it. State transportation officials have done the studies and determined that the cost of the HRS system is half the cost of building new highways and airports with the same capacity.
Why not just “fix” the current Amtrak system? The problem is that Amtrak shares tracks with freight trains and the freight trains have top priority. Every time a freight train goes down the track, the Amtrak passenger train pulls over to let it go by. HRS trains, in contrast, have a dedicated, nonpolluting electrical track that can whisk people from one end of the state to the other quickly and efficiently.
Madera County’s position in the center of the state is pivotal. The completed HRS system will split in the county and head west to the coast and north to the capital.
The county can be done to, or can get on board and work with the authority to find the best solutions.
The heavy maintenance facility is the plum that other communities are vying for … and it should be ours. Technical studies support placing the facility as near the wye split as possible. The maintenance facility represents thousands of permanent, high-paying jobs. The county has submitted a site that meets all HRS technical criterion. It is worth fighting for because it could bring thousands of new jobs to Madera (a goal shared by the editor).
I sincerely hope that the people of our county will educate themselves of the virtues of high-speed rail and make their voices heard to the authority. This project can be a big win for our community and our state, as it means jobs today and a clean, efficient transportation mode for the future. I am proud that the high-speed rail in the USA will have its origin in Madera County.
Gail Hanhart McIntyre,
Madera County supervisor, 1982-2000
Animation: “Sister Winter” (song by Sufjan Stevens)
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All comments are edited for length and content. Because of content and space limitations some comments may not be published. More than one comment from the same person in the same week will normally not be published. Please keep your calls to two minutes or less.
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A man “received a call and they wanted our Social Security number and bank account number. Be aware, there are so many trying to get information on you.”
Another man who “had worked for 40 years, lost his job, his house and his car and applied for Section 8 housing. I’ll be on a list for five years. It’s not fair that I can’t get help and the illegals get free food, housing without waiting. This has to stop. We have American citizens suffering and the illegals are holding the line up for taxpaying citizens.”
A “disabled person went to the Madera fair flea market. There were cars parked all over the disabled parking that were not supposed to be there. I had to park way out in the middle of nowhere. I can’t walk and I was way out. Is there anyone I can call and do something about that?”
Another gentleman had this to say on the same subject. “Why doesn’t someone enforce the handicapped parking areas at the swap meet at the fairgrounds. Every spot was taken by a car with no handicap sticker or placard and I saw handicap people having to struggle for a long ways to get there.”
Several callers replied to last week’s caller who had his car damaged by an unlicensed and uninsured driver. “I did too,” said one man, “and it was a classic.” Another said, “why do the cops just let these people go? They give false addresses and are never seen again.” Another caller said, “We need to start enforcing the law. Get these people out from behind the steering wheel.” That caller said, “they (unlicensed and uninsured drivers) hit his car. They will start hitting people pretty soon and you will have hit-and-run cases then. Unsolved, of course.”
“I thought the Madera Christmas parade was awesome,” began a lady. “And the highlight was the cars being towed for illegal parking. People should learn how to read.”
A man “wanted to know why Madera Tribune doesn’t list the wrestling scores and all the other things the wrestling teams do, both Madera High and Madera South.” (Editor’s note: Latest matches were covered in Saturday and Monday issues.)
A woman said, “the winding overpass at Tozer needs a (traffic) light because at night you can’t see who’s coming.”
A man responded “to the lady who complained about the referees in the Madera Youth Football league. I put my kids into the Madera Youth Stallions football program. It is run a lot better. They have real officials. It is just a whole better type of football there.”
“For those of you who have been against the casino being built with private funds on the north side of town,” began a man, “how does that compare with the high-speed rail mess that is using taxpayer money on the south side of town? It pales in comparison.”
A man called about “lighting at schools. My girlfriend is a teacher at Millview School, but this goes out to all the schools and all the teachers. I would like the (school) district and the city to get together and do something about the lighting. Not only for the safety of teachers, but for the safety of others. They have after-school programs for the kids and when they get out it is pretty dark out there. It could mean so much for the children.”
A woman read where “the county needs to hire someone for $183,000 to help them save money. I cannot believe there is not someone in all of Madera County that could not look and see where they can save the county money. Why do we have to pay someone $183,000? We don’t even have money to fix our county roads. Isn’t that pathetic?”
An online contributor offered this, from an anonymous essay/poem, as a reflection on the state of public education:
“I am a teacher, and I am tired.
“Tired of politics, administration’s scare tactics, frustrated colleagues, semiconscious students, media hype and especially, I am tired of parents that expect me to resolve their children’s problems and buy their child’s school supplies.
“I simply do not have the answers. I have tried everything. I have hugged your child, listened to your child, bought supplies for your child and reminded your child of the importance of getting an education, as well as the importance of caring about life with heart and genuineness.
“I have read theories on how to teach at-risk students (this in- cludes the entire student population, because “at-risk” is really defined as children growing up without parental supervision).
“I have read theories on how to teach pregnant students, students on drugs, abused students, high-energy students, gifted students, underachieving students, shy students, culturally different students, gay students, special needs students, female and male students.
“I have attended conferences for ideas on how to teach hands- on activities (that keep getting shot down by scripted test only teaching), higher level thinking skills, cooperative learning groups and numerous other strategies.
“I have lain awake at night rolling over and over in my head solutions, and lamentations.
“I have cried tears, trying to find the answers for motivating your child to have success in my classroom …
“I am, emphatically and unequivocally, not your child’s parent. I am a teacher.
“The students who have success in my classroom are the ones whose parents I have met at every open house and on every parent-teacher conference day.
“The solution, the power and the state of your child’s welfare lie in your hands. Not mine, but the hands of you, the parent.”
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Thank you for your calls. Remember the Red Line is open for your messages 24 hours a day by calling 674-4478, or by accessing www.maderatribuneredline.com on the Internet.
The other day I happened to see a television program on infomercials. It seems as though the people who make the most money on infomercials often turn out to be the ones who write, direct and produce the infomercials.
If you have built a better mouse trap, but the world isn’t beating a path to your door yet, the infomercial may be a way to tell the public about your new gizmo.
But it is far from easy. It is about as hard to write, produce and direct an infomercial as it is to write, produce and direct a soap opera.
The people who make infomercials aren’t in it for the fun. They want your product to sell. So, they follow some rules.
You see a lot of exercise-machine infomercials on late-night television, and one thing they all seem to require is that the spokesperson, or actor, is muscular, fit and without an ounce of fat. In other words, they are people who don’t need an exercise machine.
Supposedly, the fit people shown in the infomercial got that way by using the machine being sold, but don’t bet on it. If I bought one of those machines and started using it, months would pass before I started looking any different than I look now, unless all I did was exercise.
People who don’t do anything but exercise, though, don’t need the machines.
People who demonstrate fancy cookware don’t need it, either. They already know how to cook, using regular pans.
The second thing is that the price must be ridiculously low (shipping and handling extra). That should make you wonder whether the thing being shown is as sturdy as it seems to be.
Finally, the viewer is urged to act now, because there are only a few of these things left.
The infomercial may or may not sell products, but the producer pockets his or her check regardless.
I had the honor of working with JJ Coronado MacCrone for 14 years at the Madera Employment Development Department office. JJ worked in the Job Service section and I worked as a claims specialist in unemployment insurance.
This time of year we often had long lines of people, sometimes out the door, needing our assistance. We all gave our all, but JJ went beyond that. If she saw someone in my line that she had referred out before or knew that person, she took them out of the line to her desk. There she often found them jobs or assisted them in other ways.
JJ, who died recently, gave her heart and all to the people of Madera County and the State of California. She will be missed.
The other day I was having a sandwich in a Madera restaurant, and I noticed it was served with three pickle slices on the side. One could put the pickle slices on the sandwich or not, depending on one’s preference. My preference is to put two pickle slices on each half of the sandwich. Three pickle slices are too many for one half, but one pickle slice is not enough.
I asked the server why I had only three pickle slices, and she gave me a funny look.
“That’s how many they put on in the kitchen,” she said.
“Is it a rule that you can only have three per sandwich?” I asked.
“Yes,” she said, “I think it must be.”
I eat in this restaurant a lot, and I have always received three pickle slices with a sandwich there, and I have made do with just three. Suddenly, I was sorry I had made the inquiry. This is a good restaurant, and sometimes there’s no sense in rocking the boat.
“Do you want me to bring you another pickle slice?” she asked.
“No,” I said. “I wouldn’t want to trouble you for just one pickle slice. I was just sitting here wondering about the state of the universe, and it occurred to me there might be a three-pickle-slice rule I hadn’t heard about.”
I eat at another restaurant where they bring four pickle slices (a different rule), and at another where an entire third of a pickle, unsliced, graces the plate (another pickle rule).
At home, I have to do the pickle rule-making. Mrs. Doud doesn’t care for pickles, so any pickle purchasing and eating is done by yours truly.
I’m just about finished with a jar of nice pickle relish, and I’m almost ready to buy another jar of excellent dill slices. How do you beat a pickle slice and a potato chip?
I’m glad no restaurant where I eat has a no-pickle rule. I’d have to smuggle some in a baggie.
You would think I would have learned by now, but somehow I still want to believe in trust, human decency, respect for the property of others and the rule of law. I believe those traits are what has made this nation great.
But something is askew.
On the Friday after Thanksgiving, I was returning from the coast, along with my 80-year-old mother and my wife’s 93-year-old grandmother. The car was pretty full. I had both of them sit in the back seat to converse, while I placed their travel suitcases in the front passenger seat.
Upon arriving in Madera, Granny wanted to take us to an early dinner at the Black Bear, one of her favorites. My mother was visiting from Washington and had never been to a Black Bear. I parked the car in full view of the restaurant and we went in to enjoy our meal.
At about 4:30 p.m., we left the building and discovered my front passenger window had been smashed in and the two suitcases were gone.
Now, these kind women felt awful for me, and they kind of laughed off the fact the thieves now have suitcases filled with dirty clothes, but the reality is they are both victims of a crime for the first time in their lives. It took a 2010 visit to Madera to make that possible. How sad a commentary on this otherwise wonderful community.
Neither the restaurant nor the hotel next door had outside security cameras, and even though I could see the car from the table, it obviously only took seconds for the person to succeed.
This is my third experience with this type of crime in the past three years. “Leave it to Beaver” has left the building and I don’t think he’s ever coming back.
We are told that one more feast of pork is making its way through Congress, tucked into the $1.2 trillion omnibus bill being put forward to fund the rest of the government.
The funding for earmarks, or pet projects of powerful members of Congress, amount to $8 billion — less than 1 percent of the measure — according to an Associated Press report.
But it is not their amounts that make some in Congress and many voters get red in their faces and shake their fists. These days, $8 billion isn’t all that much, as we are learning. What irks the critics of earmarks is the idea that members of Congress attach these earmarks because they can. And they seem selfish. Getting an earmark in his or her district can get a member of Congress re-elected, be it a new federal courthouse or new post office.
But it also can add value to a community, which much federal spending does not do — at least not so directly.
For example, one could describe the federal billions being granted California for the High-Speed Rail Authority project to be a form of earmarks. When they are being built — if they ever are built — they will provide jobs for the builders. When they are operating they will provide more jobs and an interesting, if not cheap, transportation experience. Their benefits, whatever they are, will be local. We will feel them here in Madera County.
The benefits of other earmarks might be less visible. Money for agricultural research at an agricultural college, for example, might take years to bear fruit (so to speak), but the benefits will emerge.
Spending on the State Department, however, is another matter. The omnibus contains the budget for State and other Cabinet-level offices, and only the most discerning would recognize the local value.
We’re likely to miss earmarks while they are gone. They surely will come back, though.
Nov. 15 kicked off the official Medicare annual enrollment period, when the 28 million seniors eligible for Medicare Part D benefits should review their current and anticipated drug coverage needs.
Each year, Medicare plans make changes that could affect the drugs that are covered and how much they cost. And this year, some insurance companies may be discontinuing plans and/or moving patients to new plans as a result of new federal requirements.
So shop around and choose carefully.
The best advertised prices don’t apply to many common drugs.
That’s why it’s important for patients to look at the total annual cost of any Medicare prescription plan they choose, which is a combination of monthly premiums and co-pays for medications and any restrictions on choosing your pharmacy.
The staff at Madera Medical Pharmacy is happy to answer questions you may have about your current prescription drug plan. As medication experts, our staff can help you determine which plans cover the medications you take, and can help you calculate your total annual drug costs.
