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Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, January 29, 2003
As this is read, the “Noose” Big Boss (boss spelled back-
wards is double s/o-b) and Jan are somewhere on Hwy. 101 driv-
ing the scenic route southward with the city of Carlsbad in San
Diego County as their goal. We hope to come out at least some-
where near our planned destination. We’ve driven the Interstate 5
route several times, and are looking for some better scenery this
time.
Yes, we’re taking off a few days to visit my mother, and our
newest granddaughter, Natalie, who is slightly more than 5-
months-old; and her parents, who are considerably older than 5
months. We have some other plans in mind too, but I don’t want
to bore you into a state of spontaneous combustion.
With all that in mind, it means that we will not be present in
person come Thursday, Jan. 30, 2003, as a friend and co-worker,
Virginia Gilliam, retires from working at the valley newspaper.
She has worked for Jan and me since February 1986, and she’s
put in a total of 43 non-consecutive years overall. That’s a long
time to work in one place. Heck, some of us (not including me)
haven’t even lived that long. Yep, Virginia is a veteran of the
newspaper wars.
She’s been through equipment some might say ranges from
the ridiculous to the sublime. When she began working at “The
News,” while she was attending the former Kerby Union High
School, a flat-bed press capable of printing two pages at a time
was in use. She’s actually operated Linotype equipment, which
some say was invented by a man who went insane after finishing
the design. Linotypes used melted lead in preparing type for print-
ing.
Later she graduated into Compugraphic equipment, which
used light-sensitive film to come up with the copy for stories and
ads. When Jan and I took over, we brought in Apple computers,
and Virginia learned to use them. Subsequently we have switched
to PCs and a linked in-house system, and Virginia has gotten
along with that too. However, like all of us in the biz, we find
ourselves talking to ourselves and the word processors. It’s a
technique to avoid going insane (see inventor of the Linotype
above).
We will miss Virginia, but we are hoping and praying that she
will find retirement to her liking. She said that she’s going to put
tape over her alarm clock button, as she’s in such a habit of set-
ting it that she’s liable to continue the custom. She also has said,
tongue-in-cheek, that she and her husband, Bob, plan to drive
each other nuts. But none of us really believe that will happen.
“The Noose” will lumber on through the ages without Vir-
ginia, and without as much of me (El Jefe) in the process. Vir-
ginia and I have said all through our working relationship, purely
out of experience, that it doesn’t matter who leaves a newspaper:
The darn thing will continue to be published, no matter what. It’s
the nature of the beast.
We are going to give Virginia a lifetime subscription to the
valley newspaper (Whoopee!), as well as some other stuff that
we’re not going to tell you about. The staff got together last Sat-
urday night for a dinner in her honor, and we all had a good time.
It’s never easy to say good-bye to anyone, and so we’re not going
to do that.
We’re going to say something like, “Hey, see you around.”
Or, “So long for now.” Something like that. And especially,
“Thanks.” We have extended her an “invite” to stop by anytime
just to check up on us. We are all grateful to her for her dedica-
tion through the years.
And though we will not be here on the day she retires, we
definitely will be with her in spirit. And we look forward to see-
ing her enjoy a well-deserved retirement.
God bless you, Virginia -- we’ll think of you often.
Illinois Valley News
An Independent Weekly Newspaper Co-owned and
published by Robert R. (Bob) and Jan Rodriguez
Bob Rodriguez, Editor El Jefe
Entered as second class matter June 11, 1937 at Post
Office as Official Newspaper for Josephine County and
Josephine County Three Rivers School District, published
at 321 S. Redwood Hwy., Cave Junction, OR 97523
Periodicals postage paid at Cave Junction, OR 97523
Post Office Box 1370 USPS 258-820
Telephone (541) 592-2541, FAX (541) 592-4330
Volume 65, No. 45
Staff: Virginia Gilliam, Cindy Newton, Britt Fairchild,
Chris Robertson, Sharon Silva & Becky Loudon
Member: Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association
DEADLINES:
News, Display Ads, Announcements & Letters
3 P.M. FRIDAY
(Ads will be accepted until Noon, Monday with an additional charge.)
POLICY ON LETTERS: ‘Illinois Valley News’ welcomes
letters to the editor provided they are of general interest, in
good taste, legible and not libelous. All letters must be
signed, using complete name, and contain the writer’s
address and telephone number. The latter need not be
published, but will be used to verify authenticity. The
‘News’ reserves the right to edit letters. One letter per
person per month. Letters are used at the discretion of the
publisher. Unpublished letters are neither acknowledged
nor returned. A prepaid charge may be levied if a letter is
inordinately long in the editor's opinion.
SUBSCRIPTION RATES
One year in Josephine County - $20.80
One year in Jackson and Douglas Counties - $24.40
One year in all other Oregon counties and out-of-state -$28
POSTMASTER:
Please send address changes to
P.O. Box 1370, Cave Junction, OR. 97523
(Editor’s Note: Views and
commentary expressed in
letters to the editor are
strictly those of the letter-
writers.
* * *
Typed,
double-spaced
letters are acceptable for
consideration.
Hand-
written letters that are
double-spaced and highly
legible also can be con-
sidered for publication.
Cards of thanks are not
accepted as letters.)
* * *
‘I remember’
From Dorothy Wiltfong
Kerby
The reference in “Bob’s
Corner” last week regarding
too many rules reminded me
of a funny story of my naivete
when I arrived in this country
in 1947.
Posted on several tele-
phone or power poles in the
Southern California town of
San Pedro were notices to the
effect that “Bill stickers will
be prosecuted.” I went around
and asked several people, who
was “Bill Stickers” and why
were they prosecuting him? I
had no idea that the notices
were referring to advertise-
ments that we now call flyers.
Referring to the “world’s
easiest,” King George VI’s
first name was not George. It
was Albert; and his wife, the
late Queen Elizabeth or
“Queen Mom,” as the Brits
refer to her, always called him
“Bertie.”
It was the edict of Queen
Victoria that no future king
could be called King Albert
because the parliament of her
reign would not recognize her
husband, Albert, as a king. He
was her consort.
Also, in referring to
“Chinese gooseberries be-
cause of the Aussies’ close
ties to New Zealand, where
the natives are known as
“Kiwis,” botanically named
Actinidia Deliciosa.
Ore. ‘Green
Light’ wins
AASHT kudo
Oregon’s Green Light
weigh station pre-clearance
system has won top honors in
the American Association of
State Highway and Transpor-
tation officials (AASHT)
Team Excellence Program.
“The Green Light Pro-
gram electronically screens
truck traffic using high speed
weigh-in-motion scales in the
roadway and small pager-like
devices called transponders in
truck cabs,” said Green Light
Program Manager Randal
Thomas.
“The system can identify
and weigh trucks as they go
by Oregon’s busiest weigh
stations at highway speeds,”
said Thomas. “This makes
highways safer by reducing
the number of trucks getting
on and off the highway.
“The program also serves
the trucking industry by sav-
ing drivers precious operating
time. And it helps our weigh
stations manage a growing
stream of truck traffic by in-
creasing the station’s capacity
and efficiency,” said Thomas.
“From January 2000
through December ‘01, Green
Light screened and cleared
trucks more than 1.5 million
times,” Thomas said.
“Operating a heavy truck
costs an average of $1.92 per
mile or $1.24 per minute. If a
truck saves five minutes by-
passing a weigh station, Green
Light saved trucking compa-
nies $9.5 million in operating
costs and more than 127,000
hours of travel time during
that period,” said Thomas.
DISTRICT BOOK BATTLE – Three Rivers School District held its annual ‘Battle of the Books’
competition on Saturday, Jan. 25 at Rogue Community College. Evergreen Elementary School
had two teams that took top honors at the district competition. First-place honors went to the
team headed by spokesperson (top from left) Desiree Miatke, fourth grade, Brendan Davis,
Callie Harland, and Rachel Paul, all fifth grade. Evergreen Elementary students beat out teams
of fourth and fifth graders from other district elementary schools to take home individual tro-
phies. The team received an award for good sportsmanship from the judges. At the level one
competition for third and fourth graders, Evergreen Elementary sent the following team:
Spokesperson (bottom from left) Celilo Nordal, fourth grade, Tori Fox, Thea Barker and Greg
Crombie, all third grade. This team competed well and received individual ribbons. Competing
students were required to read a list of 10 books and answer questions about each book. The
program is sponsored by the district Talented and Gifted Program to promote interest in good
literature.
(Photo by Sam Newton)
Trivia Time
by Walter Branch
1. What fellow Beach Boy
gave a hamburger to Brain
Wilson for every song he
wrote?
2. What company's sun-
glasses got a boost when
Tom Cruise wore them in
"Top Gun"?
3. What cigarette brand
hoped to boost sales with a
"Who's that guy in the pajama
bottoms at brunch?" contest?
4. What affliction led Ted
Kennedy, Jr., to form the Fac-
ing the Challenge program?
5. What 1980 movie about a
sunken luxury liner became
Britain's biggest box office
bomb?
6. What closed three months
after the Indian Point 2 nu-
clear plant had been shut
down in 1981?
7. What was used for the let-
ter "O" on the cover of "The
Real Coke, The Real Story"?
8. What car did Steve Jobs
sell to raise the capital to
make him "the Henry Ford of
the computer age"?
9. Who played Morris Butter-
maker in the sitcom, "The
Bad News Bears"?
10. What country had its first
Nobel Prize winner for litera-
ture when Naquib Mahfouz
won?
Trivia Time Answers
1. Dennis Wilson; 2. Ray-
Ban's; 3. Benson & Hedges;
4. Cancer; 5. "Raise the Ti-
tanic"; 6. The Indian Point 3
nuclear plant; 7. Bottle caps;
8. A Volkswagen; 9. Jack
Warden; 10. Egypt
(c) 2003 DBR Media, Inc.
SPECIAL - Taylor’s Smoked Jerky
Hot, Regular & Black Pepper…
$12.50 lb.
Friday, Jan. 31 - 6 to 9 p.m.
Mike Selfridge
Slide guitarist, Ukulele master, singer, songwriter
from Northern California
Dinner Special
Fish & Chips… $6.95
February Events
Friday, Feb. 7 - Dale & Siskiyou Mountain Boys
Friday, Feb. 14 - (Valentine’s Day) Deni O’Donnell
Friday, Feb. 21 - Libby Goines