Del Norte Triplicate file / Bryant Anderson Produce is sold at an Ocean Air Farms stand at a previous Crescent City Farmer’s Market.

The frosty mornings aren’t too convincing, but the buds and blossoms everywhere are a sure sign. We’re excited about it here on the farm.

The fall fields have been tilled (rather, disced) and turned under to now look like spring fields waiting to be sown. Though we are just as anxious as you, we are cautious to direct sow for a couple of reasons: 1) the Saturday markets don’t start until the first of June, so we try to plan and plant accordingly, and 2) the temperatures are still a little unpredictable.

Both the air and the soil temperatures need to be taken into consideration. Too cold, or too wet, seeds will likely rot. But don’t let us stop you from trying; we have peas up measuring about an inch and a half, so it is possible. Let’s all remember that sometimes when gardening we have to try and try again and that goes for anytime of the year, not just early spring. 

House Calls runs every other Saturday. Today’s column is written by Lori A. Johns, a family nurse practitioner at Sutter Coast Health Center in Brookings-Harbor.

Ask a smoker about quitting, and you may hear a lot of possible responses:

• I do not want to quit. I like smoking, why should I quit smoking? I hate everyone nagging me about smoking.

• I have tried to quit before, many times, and failed. But I am thinking about it.

 “You can’t see the forest for the trees.” This cliché, used many times in regards to the coast redwood forest, is for the most part true, until you actually take in the bigger top-to-bottom picture of an old-growth redwood forest.

When you look lower, to the base of the trees, you will begin to notice the remarkable understory of unique plants that have continued to accompany these giants for hundreds of years. Not unlike the community in the popular television series, “Downton Abbey,” there is an upstairs household and a downstairs household that together create one smoothly intertwining community. 

My personal favorite of the downstairs group of plants is the redwood sorrel, Oxalis oregana, a beautiful member of the Oxalis family that can create thick mats of green carpet right up to the enormous trunk bases of the towering trees.

Although many guides have moved on to the next fishery, some guides are still pulling fresh steelhead from the Smith River.

A series of minus tides that will last today through Wednesday will provide opportunities for shellfish gathering and possibly suck some more spring salmon into the Rogue River.

Smith River steelhead

Many anglers have hung up their steelhead gear for the season, but some anglers like guide Mick Thomas of Lunker Fish Trips are still finding plenty of fresh fish.

“There’s still quite a few fresh fish in the system, and they seem to keep coming,” said Thomas, whose drift boat landed five steelhead Monday, including four fresh fish. “I’m surprised that the numbers are still this great.”

Del Norte County, let’s not follow in the footsteps of special interest groups that create a false fear resulting in nothing being accomplished for the good of all!

After reading several articles and letters to the editor of the Triplicate, I sat down in front of my home computer and viewed the Board meeting of Feb. 26.  Next I viewed on CSPAN the current hearings on gun legislation to educate myself further on the national discussion and then I made a personal visit to a local gun store to become informed on what an assault weapon really is. The owner was very forthright and very willing to educate me on the language of gun owners and the variety of guns that are available on the open market.

In response to “What is wrong with affirming gun rights?” (letter of March 19), I ask the question what is wrong with limiting high-capacity magazines, expanding background checks, and having tougher gun-trafficking laws in place? It’s not a creative liberal movement, it’s common-sense legislation designed to enhance safety issues for citizens, not diminish anyone’s constitutional right. 

Honoring public safety workers important event

One of the truly significant events in Del Norte County is the annual celebration held at Crescent City’s Cultural Center and hosted by the Law Enforcement Administrators of Del Norte County to highlight the outstanding services of those who protect the general public (meaning you and me) from evildoers (“Honors for our officers,” March 21).

The organizations involved are the county Sheriff’s Department, the city Police Department, the District Attorney’s Office, local Search and Rescue, Pelican Bay State Prison, the California Highway Patrol and the county Probation Department.

Hundreds of people attended this important presentation March 19, among them the families of our law enforcement community that support and regularly sacrifices to make life safer for the rest of us. The city of Crescent City was well represented by four of the five City Council members — Kelly Shellong was noticeably absent — and also present were Gene Palazzo (city manager) and our superb chief of police, Doug Plack.

From the pages of the Crescent City American, March 1931.

Wednesday morning saw the laying of the cornerstone of the new building being erected by J.L. Musick at the corner of Third and H streets. The new building will house Mr. Musick’s grocery and hardware stock. 

Mr. Musick is quite original and chose a unique method in which to honor the laying of the stone. Mr. Musick secured a fruit jar in which he placed a copy of each of the local papers containing articles about the building, receipts for dues paid to each of his fraternal and civic organizations and his membership badge to Kiwanis.

He has also written a prophecy as to the future of the city and to various events that will have taken place throughout the nation by the time the prophecy is taken out and again read. 

Historical perspective on parties

A March 16 letter from Heidi Bauman, “Tired of Dem-bashing; like dog park proposal,” shows that she may be too young for historical perspective.

For over 50 years I learned that both parties are about the same and so I became an Independent.

At 84, I remember they passed Social Security in 1936 and all Republicans were against it. The same happened in 1955 for Medicare; they opposed it also and then they use both benefits after 65.

Congress hates our good economy, when everything was made in the United States and of good quality. In 1980 it began sending factories to China and other countries.

The board of the Del Norte Solid Waste Management Authority has work to do, starting at its meeting this afternoon.

Let’s hope the two county supervisors recently appointed to the board take that work seriously. For the last four years the county has seemed to play games with the agency tasked with overseeing the collection and hauling of waste and recyclables throughout Del Norte while also answering to the state over the environmental monitoring of the closed Crescent City Landfill.

The new members, Mike Sullivan and Roger Gitlin, are among the majority of county supervisors who have long questioned whether the authority should exist. They’ve implied there must be a more efficient way to oversee Del Norte’s waste, but four years of assessment have yet to produce a viable alternative.

Back in 2009, Sullivan was appointed to chair an ad hoc committee tasked with determining whether the authority should be disbanded.

Said Sullivan at the time: “We’re really going to have to go through the numbers, and if there’s a potential savings without a lapse in service then we’ll have to consider (dissolution).”

Alas, the committee completed its work without recommending dissolution. Then in late 2011 Sullivan and Supervisor Gerry Hemmingsen called for creation of a new ad hoc committee to study, you guessed it, dissolution.

The Crescent City Council, a partner with the county in the joint powers agreement that created the authority, understandably made some noise about the county proposing to take the lead for the second time in forming a panel to study the authority’s viability. So instead of another ad hoc committee, all five City Council members and all five supervisors created a super-board of 10 members in October 2011 to oversee the authority.

Crescent City Rotary Club members participating in Saturday’s Bowl-A-Rama were, from left, Scott Feller, Eli Naffah, Bob Cochran, Donna Sund, Rich Taylor, Michele Postal, Nick Gonnella, Katherine Taylor, John Pritchett and Teri McCune-Oostra. Del Norte Triplicate / Rick Postal

There was quite a buzz in the office about the fall league that would be resuming soon. My boss and her boyfriend were on it, as were several of my co-workers in classified advertising and staffers from other departments.

In an effort to help the cause, impress my boss and fast-track my immersion into the company’s culture, I signed up. After all, how hard could it be?

Now would be a good time to mention (although I did not mention it to anyone back then) that I had never bowled before in my life. I was a pretty darn good miniature golfer, could rally on the tennis court and knew a lot of card games, but somehow I’d managed to make it to the ripe age of 24 without bowling.

I may be naïve but I’m not stupid. It didn’t take long for me to realize I was setting myself up for failure and humiliation. I was surprised to learn that bowlers had their own custom-drilled balls with their initials engraved in them. In fact, some had two bowling balls — for the same reason that some golfers carry two putters in their bag.

These folks had all the accessories to boot: bowling bags, shoes, towels and fancy team shirts with their names embroidered on them. I listened to them talk and discovered how much I didn’t know about bowling.

I overheard the seasoned bowlers mention a woman in Kalihi who was considered the best ball driller on the islands. I went to see her after work and, on her recommendation, purchased a 12-pound. black Cougar that she crafted to fit my grip perfectly and finished off with my initials. I bought a pale blue bowling bag and grey suede bowling shoes with blue trim.