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SATURDAY
MARCH
14
•
2015
VIEW FROM UPRIVER
YESTERDAY’S NEWS
One mystery solved
W ESLEY V OTH
For the Siuslaw News
I
t continues to be the winter that wasn’t, with
many early spring plants ahead of schedule.
Coral currant blossoms join with the magen-
ta salmonberry and pale green Indian plum
petals along our waterways. Nearer the ground
are the first yellow wood violets, striped
Siberian miner’s lettuce and pale pink oxalis
flowers. Trilliums and fern fronds, stinging net-
tle shoots and the large cow parsley leaves race
to survive the assaults of the non-native
invaders, such as reed canary grass and Scotch
broom and the various Asian knotweeds. Ants
stir forth in number, as do flying pollinators in
such strength as they have left. Vultures are
back, and large flocks of small northward-
bound birds of many kinds pass every day with
the noisy enthusiasm of kids on a field trip.
I have read with interest an article in the cur-
rent National Wildlife magazine in their
section on backyard habitat about why
birds need native trees. Below a photo-
graph of a chickadee with a caterpillar is
the astonishing statement that “96 per-
cent of all terrestrial birds rear their
young on insects.”
So while many birds eat seeds and
berries and nectar — some of which can
be provided by backyard feeders — it is the
proteins from the animal kingdom that ensure
nesting success. Those proteins come primarily
from insects and their larvae, which the birds
find primarily on native trees and plants, some-
thing disappearing from urban areas rapidly
being developed. The article says that about 80
percent of North American urban landscaping is
done with Asian plants, plants that do not host
the insects with which the birds are familiar and
on which they are dependent.
Sometimes it takes me a long time to fathom
what is causing a particular change or pattern.
A small herd of elk has been in and around
Brickerville this past winter, and I have been
curious what draws them here, especially won-
dering what they have been eating as it does not
appear that they have been grazing lawns much
nor damaging shrubbery or trees, at least not
yet. The one thing they’ve eaten from our yard
other than grass is sword fern, something I had
never noticed elk browsing much before.
At the same time I noticed that someone — I
assumed it was a someone — had been trim-
ming the ivy leaves from ground level up their
inadvertent host trees to 6 or 8 feet, about the
reach of hand tools. Gradually this has contin-
ued throughout our area, until every ivy-
adorned tree of the hundreds we have here
bears the same neat manicure.
A week ago it suddenly clicked for me that
these two things were related — elk are brows-
ing the ivy. Much as I hate the invasive ivy, and
that it is so established here that I expect it will
never be eliminated — especially along the rail-
way corridor that the elk, bear and coyotes use
as a favored path or at least bathroom — it is
nice when native species can find some benefit.
Over the weekend the name “Siuslaw Valley”
was removed from our bank and the banner of
the new corporate entity put up. Sad to see the
end of the use of the regional name. I guess I
should focus on being grateful that banking
services in some form are still being provided
here, and by a regional (Pacific Northwest)
rather than national or bigger bank, one that at
least claims to be local community-minded. We
will see.
NEIGHBORS
Hawaiian adventure — Part VIII
B OB J ACKSON
N EIGHBORHOOD C ORRESPONDENT
For the Siuslaw News
T
he daily journals continued
exulting about the wide
variety of entertainment
offered on this luxury ocean liner.
It was noted that we had gone to
something called “casino night.” It
was like being in Reno, except that
the chips were free, courtesy of the
ship, with prizes at the end of the
evening for the players with the
most chips — lots of fun (especial-
ly for a cheapskate like myself).
Because of the big ground
swells, Peggy was feeling bad
again, so she retired early.
Thursday, Nov. 4, it had been
rough all night. We had our coffee
and breakfast buffet on the shel-
tered deck by the pool as usual.
Water was slopping out of the
swimming pool again; so it was
definitely rough!
However, the sun was shining
and the sea was getting a brighter
blue each and every day.
Because of the napkin cartoons I
had done at the bar, Kaui, the beau-
tiful Hawaiian cruise director,
scheduled me in the daily ship’s
paper for a session teaching draw-
ing to the children on board while
Peggy was taking our dirty clothes
to the laundromat. Suddenly I had
become
Captain
Kangaroo!
However, I suddenly discovered I
was out of my class.
Running out of ideas, I had
asked these kids if they would like
to learn about simple perspective
and the vanishing point. One little
girl, perhaps 7 years old, raised her
hand and inquired: “Mr. Jackson,
would that be one, two or three-
point perspective?” This definitely
took the wind out of my sails.
The drawing lessons were a near
disaster, the sea was getting
rougher and the wind blew a lot of
their drawings into the pool. I had a
hard time controlling the little ras-
cals, as they were trying to retrieve
their pictures from the water that
was sloshing violently like an open
washing machine!
A large number of passengers
were not showing up in the dining
room, and drawing lessons had
been canceled due to the rough
seas. One of the bartenders
remarked: “It’s not rough,” and I
was left wondering: Why have they
stretched ropes across the foyers
and along the passageways if it is
not rough? More people were using
the elevators instead of braving the
stairs.
Incidentally, the bartenders on
board were quite taciturn (unusual-
ly so for bartenders). They spoke
when spoken to, and that was about
it. However, they seemed quite
pleased with the unflattering nap-
kin cartoons I did of them, vowing
to frame them when they got back
home.
There were two ladies, perhaps
in their late 50s, quite short and
quite fluffy, who could be seen at
the bar any time of the day or night,
and whose contagious laughter
could be heard at any function.
They took particular delight in
shocking these hapless bartenders.
I overheard one of them say,
“John, how would you like to snug-
gle up with me in a deck chair?”
Upon observing his predictable
shocked countenance, both ladies
indulged in a fit of uncontrollable
laughter.
Although outwardly appearing
sort of raunchy, we found that both
of them were actually nice ladies
who were imbued with a wonder-
ful, unrestrained sense of humor
that contributed much gaiety,
whether they were taking hula les-
sons or in the plush genteel atmos-
phere of the dining room.
One night I made a cartoon of
laconic John: He was wiping the
bar with a disgusted expression,
while his thought balloon was
thinking “Oh God! Not that broad
again.” The lady saw it, and liked it
so much, she kept it — which in
my mind, was being really “broad-
minded!” More to come.
LETTER
End of an era
I’m sure that by now most of the good peo-
ple of Florence and its environs have heard
that 3-2-1 Video is closing at the end of
March. This is not only the end of an era for
the town, but the beginning of an empty space
for me.
I enjoyed going to the store because it was
always a happy place. A plethora of great
movies to choose from, but more importantly,
an opportunity to chat with Don or Anna
Huntingdon or the sweet young ladies that
manned the counter so competently. I’ve said
for years that 3-2-1 Video was the best-run
business in Florence.
USPS# 497-660
In an era that is dominated by corporate
greed and various scams to perpetrate on the
99 percent, 3-2-1 Video was our neighbor,
Don and Anna working hard to please their
patrons. If they didn’t have a movie that you
wanted, they would get it. At least once every
month I would get a phone call telling me that
this was my “lucky day.” A free movie was
mine to pick up.
As a testimony to the integrity of the own-
ers, they refused to let their friends and cus-
tomers replace the defunct popcorn machine.
The machine was an icon, and when it went
down, I talked to the ladies at the counter and
the customers in line, “Hey, if money’s a little
tight for Don, how about we set up a collection
• On March 16, 1751, future President James
Madison is born in Virginia. Madison, one of
the key drafters of the U.S. Constitution and the
Bill of Rights, became America’s fourth presi-
dent in 1809 and is considered the Father of the
Constitution.
• On March 21, 1804, French Emperor
Napoleon Bonaparte enacts a new legal frame-
work for France, known as the “Napoleonic
Code.” The Code strengthened the authority of
men over their families, deprived women of
any individual rights and reduced the rights of
illegitimate children.
• On March 20, 1861, President Abraham
Lincoln’s youngest sons, Willie and Tad, are diag-
nosed with the measles. The boys recovered, but
in 1862, Willie died from typhoid fever. Tad died
at age 18 in 1871. Lincoln’s second son, Eddie,
died before his fourth birthday. Only the first
born, Robert, lived to an advanced age; he passed
away in 1926 at age 82.
• On March 17, 1905, future president
Franklin Delano Roosevelt weds his fifth
cousin once-removed, Eleanor Roosevelt. After
losing her mother when she was 8 and her
father when she was 10, Eleanor was raised by
the extended Roosevelt family. She met her
future husband when she was 2 years old and
he was 4.
• On March 18, 1911, Irving Berlin copy-
rights the biggest pop song of the early 20th
century, “Alexander’s Ragtime Band.” The
song was easier to play than Joplin’s “The
Entertainer,” which encouraged sheet music
sales. Those topped 1.5 million copies in the
first 18 months.
• On March 19, 1953, the movie world’s
most prestigious honors, the Academy Awards,
are telecast for the first time, on NBC.
Previously, audiences at home could only listen
on the radio. The sealed envelope system began
12 years earlier after a newspaper printed the
results prematurely.
• On March 22, 1983, the Pentagon awards a
production contract to develop 55,000 High
Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles
(HMMWV), nicknamed the Humvee. In 1992,
a 10,000-pound civilian version, known as the
Hummer, went on sale.
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to buy the store a new popcorn machine?” The
girl at the counter said others had mentioned
it, but Don had adamantly refused.
That’s when I began to suspect that the store
might be closing.
You see, Don and Anna wouldn’t accept the
gift from their friends knowing that the end of
the business was near. That would not be hon-
orable.
Say a silent moment of goodbye to the good
folks at 3-2-1 Video.
So again, another sad story that is created
by the inexorable march of “progress.” I’m not
sure I like progress so much anymore.
Eric Hauptman
Florence
MOMENTS IN TIME
The History Channel
Pres. Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, D.C. 20500
Comments: 202-456-1111
Switchboard: 202-456-1414
FAX: 202-456-2461
TTY/TDD Comments: 202-456-6213
www.whitehouse.gov
Gov. Kate Brown
160 State Capitol
900 Court St.
Salem, OR 97301-4047
Governor’s Citizens’ Rep.
Message Line 503-378-4582
www.oregon.gov/gov
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden
221 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-5244
541-431-0229
www.wyden.senate.gov
FAX: 503-986-1080
Email:
Sen.ArnieRoblan@state.or.us
U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley
313 Hart Senate Office Bldg
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-3753/FAX: 202-228-3997
541-465-6750
State Rep. Caddy McKeown
(Dist. 9)
900 Court St. NE
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1409
Email:
rep.caddymckeown@state.or.us
U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio (4th Dist.)
2134 Rayburn HOB
Washington, DC 20515
202-225-6416/ 800-944-9603
541-269-2609/ 541-465-6732
www.defazio.house.gov
State Sen. Arnie Roblan (Dist. 5)
900 Court St. NE - S-417
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1705
West Lane County Commissioner
Jay Bozievich
125 E. Eighth St.
Eugene, OR 97401
541-682-4203
FAX: 541-682-4616
Email:
Jay.Bozievich@co.lane.or.us