OFFICERS
BIG SIR
Fred Skill
LITTLE SIR
Eric Measles
SECRETARY
Cris Andrews
ASST. SECRETARY
Jim Roberts
TREASURER
John Aubuchon
ASST. TREASURER
Duane Nelson
DIRECTORS
Joe Beck
Harry Tully
Barrie Lee
Eldon (Mac) Mc Garity
Murry Blake
Len Napoli
Administrative Leaders
Attendance
Larry Koch
Asst. Ron Litterst
Chaplains
Larry Morgan
Joe Beck
Facilities
Fred Skill
Membership
Joe Beck
Profiler
John Schlenz
Newsletter Editor
John Schlenz
Publisher
John Aubuchon
Asst. Publisher
Barrie Lee
Raffle
Jim McClelland
Sunshine
Len Napoli
Asst. Paul Poling
Special Awards
Paul Poling
Sergeant At Arms
Larry Koch
Activity Leaders
Blood Bank
Joe Soltis
Computer Club
John Aubuchon
Fred Skill
Dine Out
John Hunt
Fishing
Jay Liu
Asst. Paul Poling
Golf 18 Hole
Don Fox
Asst. Joe Gannon
Golf 9 Hole
Steve Hagenbaugh
Ticket Sales
Joe Soltis
Teller of Tales
Paul Poling
Bud Argambright
Directory Data Base & Web Master
Fred Skill
VOLUME 32
NO 11
November , 2016
SIR
NEWSLETTER
THREE
SHASTAS
BRANCH 129
REDDING, CA
The Big Sir Sez:
Golf is a four letter word...
Let’s start out by letting you know that I never had a
problem hitting the big ball, the one called earth, it
was that little white one sitting on the earth that was a
problem. A few friends talked me into forming a
foursome and playing weekly at a small course in
Santa Paula, California. I told them that I had never
played before, but they assured me, “ It wasn’t brain
surgery, and you play against yourself anyway; and, this was a short
course and would be the perfect way to learn.”
I thought, “Sure! why not.” But since I didn’t have any clubs, I needed
to borrow some. This lets you know the level of novice I was; asking
to borrow a person’s golf clubs was like asking permission to fondle...
Well, if you are a golfer, you can guess the looks I received. It is one
thing to be playing a round of golf with someone, and having them try
your sand wedge. It’s another thing entirely, to ask to borrow their
clubs for a day. So, I bought a used set from a neighbor (the fact that
he is 6’2” and I am 5’ 6” is something I should have considered. I was
more concerned with the fact that he is right handed and I am left handed, but he had me swing the #3 wood and told me it wouldn’t matter.
By that, I didn’t know if he meant that I looked good with my right
hand swing or it didn’t matter, since I wouldn’t be able to hit my rear
with both hands and a road map.
When I showed up at the course with those clubs, my fellow players asked me
where I got the clubs. Of course, I told them proudly that I had made a purchase. The laughter started as I stepped up to the first tee and addressed the
ball. The shafts were so long on the driver that the club extended out about 5
feet in front of me, and the face stuck up in the air at forty-five degrees. I
learned some terms like: ‘choke up on
Continued on next page
SIR’S MONTHLY MEETING:
3RD Wed—Redding Elk’s Lodge
Mtg.– 11.00 A.M. / Lunch 12:00 P.M
ATTENDANCE IS IMPORTANT.
To be excused, and not be billed for
lunch, call before 5:00 the Monday
prior to the meeting to:
530-224-8722
See Page 4
for info on
our Guest
Speaker for
November.
SIR NEWSLETTER
Page 2
Continued from previous page
the club’. I explained that I couldn’t choke up any farther; I had run out of handle. They told me that
there was one thing about it, when you address the ball it has no fear of you getting too familiar at that
distance. You could call me a dyslexic golfer with a right hand – left hand confusion or if you spelled
golf backwards, you would come close to my game. Golf is a game invented by the same people who
think music comes out of a bagpipe and eighteen holes are the number of drinks that are in a bottle of
scotch.
Since this was Southern California, we could play all year, except for holidays and the few rainy weekends. The first thing you learn is golf etiquette or to quote Mark Twain, “It's good sportsmanship to
not pick up lost golf balls, while they are still rolling.” The foursome consisted of our advertising
manager and three of us younger advertising sales employees. Every Saturday morning it was tee off
time. The four of us were very different people and played even more diverse games of golf.
The best player was one of the salesmen. We will call him Dick, because that was his name. Now
Dick took his golf very seriously. He would check the pin position of the hole and place his tee-off
shot in the best position to take advantage of directional needs and drop a tuft of grass to see which
way the wind was blowing. You know the type; he squats down and lines up his putt with the shaft of
his putter to see which way the break is and walks the putt line picking up little blades of grass.
Dick also had an explosive temper, and would get mad at everything, the course, and the speed of the
greens, the ball, the club and even the dew on the grass. This made him fun to watch; he would hit the
shot and the body English would start and he would talk to the ball. While the ball was moving he
would give it directions... “Kick left, stay out of the tall stuff, come on get the good roll, dig in,
where’s the back spin, get legs, oh yeah! Look at the wind take it.” No matter where it landed, anything short of in the hole, he was robbed. He would look at the clubface, thumb an imaginary speck
off it, and shake his head as he put it back in his bag. The only thing worse was when he made an approach chip shot and the ball went into the hole. Now we would see the flip of the club caught by the
clubface and slid into the other hand like a swordsman putting away his fencing sword into his scabbard. “Just like I played it,” he would say, and then we would have to listen to the reason he hit it a
little to the left to take advantage of the break in the green and so forth.
The second best golfer was the manager; we will call him Ray. Ray didn’t take anything that could be
called a game that seriously and didn’t understand anyone who did. The next in talent or skill level
was anyone who showed up that week to play. I was always the player that would see more of the
course then any of the others, or as I like to put it, I got my moneys worth. Hitting the woods was no
problem! It was usually getting out of them that was a problem!
Continued on next page
Remember to check out Branch 129 web site go to http://sir129.org/
Some great information about the State Organization is at http://sirinc.org/
SIR STATE OFFICERS
STATE PRESIDENT
Don Dill
DIRECTOR, REG. 1
Robert Roberts
AREA GOVERNOR
Fred Skill
SIR’s DECLARATION
All activities arranged for or by, or sponsored by Sons in Retirement,
Incorporated, and its Branches, are for the convenience and pleasure
of the members and their guests who desire to participate. Son In
Retirement, Incorporated , and it’s Branches do not assume any responsibility for the well being or safety of the participants or their
property, in any matters pertaining to said activities.
Page 3
SIR NEWSLETTER
Continued from previous page
Dick and Ray would always have a bet going, the longest drive, the closest to the pin, the fewest putts,
and fewest strokes on front and/or back nine with some kind of handicap. The greatest handicap was
when Dick had a bet on; there was a good chance he would choke. Dick lost the bet if Ray could get
close enough to put pressure on him. That’s when the psychology would start, “This is the money
putt” or, “These can be difficult to make can’t they”, “Look at the lip on that cup”, “Boy! does the
green ever slope away on the back side”, “Don’t over shoot this one.”
The funniest bet was the day that Ray bet Dick lowest score on the front nine and the only handicap was two
gotchas. Dick wanted to know what a gotcha was, so Ray told him to tee off on the first tee and he would
show him by using the first one. As Dick was in his back swing Ray took out a duck call and blew it loudly
right behind him. Dick pulled inside the ball and sliced it costing himself an extra stroke on that hole. Dick
figured he could beat Ray by four strokes on the front nine, so one more gotcha would only cost him another
stroke, and he would still win. So the bet was on. What Dick didn’t figure on was the psychological effect
of having Ray stand behind him with that duck call in his mouth every time he addressed the ball. The
effect of waiting for that duck call cost him his concentration and a great many strokes. Ray won the
bet, and never blew that duck call a second time.
Ray would play with Dick’s mind, like when Ray’s ball was four feet from the pin he would say,
“That’s a ‘gimme’ isn’t it?” But when Dick’s ball was a foot from the pin and Dick asked if it were a
‘gimme’, Ray would tell him, “No way!” He would say things like, “Dick, I’ve seen you blow those
shots”, and “Look, you came in on the high side of the cup”, “No back of a cup to stop your ball”.
Now we would watch to see if Dick would come up short. When on the tee, Ray would ask, “Who
has honors?” When he knew darn well it was his. We would all stand there until Dick had to tell Ray
that Ray had honors. This was usually good for an extra stroke on the hole, as Dick would try too
hard and blow the drive.
The exploding ball joke is usually done off the tee, so Ray figured out how to do it on the fairway.
There was a short par four across a stream with a dogleg right around an oak tree. Dick hit a great
shot past the oak tree and perfect for a short pitch onto the green. Ray hit just short of Dick and the
person he was sharing the cart with hit right next to him. As I stepped up they got in their cart and
headed up stream to the bridge. After my shot they crossed the bridge and approached their balls. I
was farthest away so I went to my ball and chipped up to the edge of the green. Then Ray and his cart
partner chipped onto the green. Then Dick approached his ball and stroked it with a pitching wedge
and a puff of white smoke went up. Dick watched the green to see where his ball was landing and Ray
dropped to his knees with laughter. It took Dick a minute to figure it out. Damn! was he mad. On his
approach shot he overshot the green; no one said anything except Dick. He wanted to have Ray take a
penalty for touching his ball and Ray agreed to it, but he penalized Dick a stroke for hitting the wrong
ball and still beat him on the hole. I love the quote by Jack Lemmon, “If you think it's hard to meet
new people, try picking up the wrong golf ball.” In the course of the year that we played, a dropped
club or the exaggerated sneeze on the back swing and the wobble ball on the putting green were other
course levelers that we were treated to.
I was transferred to another newspaper and discontinued golf for a year and a half. I was talked into playing
in a tournament put on by a major customer. I met the other three members of my foursome on the first tee.
These were executives of the large retailer that was one of our major customers. They were all a lot older
than I was. In fact, one was a retiree of that company, and was there by special invitation. We decided to tee
off in reverse age order, so I went first. I hit a good two wood, it was one of those slow swings that hit just
right and all you hear is a click and the tee jumps back about six inches. There it was about two hundred
yards with the roll, and right down the middle. The next guy set up and hit a slight
Continued on next page
SIR NEWSLETTER
Page 4
Continued from previous page
hook (but that was a good thing as that brought him back onto the fairway), so it appeared he played to
compensate for the hook. The third guy drove. Then the fourth guy stepped up adjusted his apparel
and started taking deep breaths. I asked the guy next to me if the old guy was all right. That is when
he told me that the guy wore a pacemaker, and he had turned it up so he could get some power into the
drive. Oh boy! Were we going to have fun now? It was early in the morning, and we were on the
second tee, and the guys were taking advantage of the bar cart. They wanted to know if there would
be a cart on every hole! When they were told, “No”, they took back up beers to tie them over until the
next bar cart. Now I had seen a beer cart, but this cart had hard booze and mix, so a double straight
shot and a beer back seemed to be the perfect thing for the other three guys. As I get sick before I get
woozy, I just told them, “It was too early for me”, and we teed off on the second hole.
This is where we discovered that we were playing with a person who took his golf way too seriously.
If a shot did not go as planned, there was cussing and fuming and throwing the club. It took a little
extra time on the third hole to get this guy’s five-wood out of an Oak tree. So by the fifth hole we
were visited by the course marshal, or some such thing, and warned that any repeat of the club throwing and landing into an on coming foursome on another fairway would get us thrown off the course.
By this time the other three were in various stages of mellow. So there were some salutes and a, “yes
osifer” and a reply that nobody was driving; we were all in the back seat singing. The winning badge
number for November is 190. By the end of the front nine one of our foursome decided to double his
score of the first nine and spend the rest of the time in the bar, and meet us after the game. It was one
of the longest afternoons of my life, and because of it, I didn’t play for the next four years.
Fred Skill, Big SIR
Guest Speaker for November
Author Steven T. Callan: The Game Warden’s Son
Steven T. Callan is the award-winning author of
Badges, Bears, and Eagles—The True-Life Adventures of a
California Fish and Game Warden, a 2013 “Book of the
Year” award finalist. He is the recipient of the 2014, 2015,
and 2016 “Best Outdoor Magazine Column” awards from
the Outdoor Writers Association of California. Steve’s
sequel, The Game Warden’s Son, was released
March 1, 2016, by Coffeetown Press of Seattle, and is the
focus of his 2016 book tour. Steve and his wife, Kathy, live
in the Redding area. He can be found online at steventcallan.com.
Eric Measles, Little SIR
Page 5
SIR NEWSLETTER
18-Hole Golf
We played two tournaments in October—on the 3rd at Riverview and on the 18th at Gold Hills. At Riverview we had 48
players and paid 5 places in each flight. The winners were:
Flight 1(indexes 9.4 to 20.4): 1st Mike Deay (66);
2nd Bob McAllister (68); 3rd Dave Hellman (68);
4th Skip Sale (68)(RB); 5th Larry Slape (69).
Flight 2(indexes 20.4 to 25.8): 1st Chuck Cotton (70);
2nd Dave Whetstone (70)(RB); 3rd Justin Clandening (72);
4th Ed Grinton (72); 5th Larry Koch (72).
Flight 3(indexes 26.4 to 36.4); 1st Bill Jones (64);
2nd Jerry Lindley (60); 3rd Leroy Bussard (71);
4th Lyle Wittmayer (74); 5th Tom Merrow (76).
At Gold Hills on the 18th, we had 44 players and paid 5
places in each flight. The winners were:
Flight 1(indexes 12.3 to 19.4): 1st Mike Smith (65);
2nd Kevin Dempsey (66); 3rd Tom Breedlove (66);
4th Joe Gannon (70); 5th Carl Harris (71).
Flight 2(indexes 19.5 to 25.9): 1st Chuck Cotton (70);
2nd Mac McGarity (74); 3rd Larry Koch (74);
4th Al Fabbrini (75); 5th Jim Morrow (78).
st
Flight 3(indexes 26.5 to 36.4): 1 Leroy Bussard (68); 2nd Bill Jones (68); 3rd Jerry Lindley (68);
4th James Williamson (69); 5th Murray Blake (70).
Our last two tournaments will be at Tierra Oaks on November, 1 and at River Tasalmi on December 5. Next
year’s tournament schedule will be available by our meeting in December.
One more thing—it is time to renew your NCGA membership—anytime up to February. It will again be $36
if paid by February.
Don Fox – 18-Hole Golf Chairman
When I die, bury me on the golf course so my husband will visit.
~Author Unknown
I don't say my golf game is bad, but if I grew tomatoes they'd come up sliced.
~Author Unknown
Service Opportunity!
Our current profiler has been doing monthly profiles for three years. He would like to find someone who could
take over this role. If you would be willing to help out by assuming this position for 2017, we would be most
pleased. Duties include: (1) asking members (by phone or direct contact) if they would be willing to participate, (2) organizing the results of a questionnaire and submitting that write-up to the newsletter editor.
Please consider being a part of what makes our group interesting and enjoyable. Contact Fred Skill (Big SIR)
or John Schlenz.
SIR NEWSLETTER
Page 6
9 Hole Golf
Intrepid 9ers Brave The Elements
We have started a second group of golfer's to be known as the 7
magnificent water duck's, yes, out of the 22 golfer' s who
signed-up for our final tournament of 2016, only 7 showed up to
play; and play we did! We got a little wet, but had a great time,
and I thank these men for the outstanding support they have
shown me all year.
These golfer's were Denny Alfaro, Lauris Dobbins, Lou Moore,
Phil Raner, Glen Larson and David Hittenberger (plus myself).
Oh yes, we also had our cheerleaders, who came to see us off on
hole #1. They would be John Meer and Jack Habert, who were
hoping the rain would stop; but, of course, it didn't.
Thanks to everyone on the 9er's; it was a great year; and, I’m
looking forward to 2017! If any of you have suggestion's that
would help to make our tournaments even more fun, please let
me know.
Check out our web site for photos from our recent outings.
Steve Hagenbaugh – 9er Leader
ABOUT SIR
Each month “ABOUT SIR” provides information about our SIR organization and/or descriptions of the
various jobs held in our branch.
This month we present the job of “Big Sir” within our organization. Each SIR branch is led by an officer
whose title is “Big Sir”. It is his responsibility to oversee the total operations of our branch. Specifically,
he is responsible for the following:
Preparing the agendas for the Branch Executive Committee and the general SIR meeting for each
month;
Leading the BEC and General meetings;
Making sure that each committee (Computer, golf, etc.) has adequate leadership and that the committees
are meeting the needs and desires of the group;
Writing a “Big Sir Sez” report each month for the newsletter;
Encouraging the Branch to meet the SIR 10% growth goals;
Suggesting new programs or groups that would enhance the Branch;
Arranging opportunities for other officers to receive SIR training, mentoring the Little Sir; and
Providing inspirational leadership to the Branch.
Page 7
SIR NEWSLETTER
Our Featured SIR For November is Bill Harris
Bill says:
I was Born in Colorado on the 19th of September in 1939. My dad was
principal of a school in Debeque Co. In approximately 1943 we journeyed
west to Petaluma, California to live on a chicken ranch. Our first house was
half of one of the chicken houses; that was different! I got better acquainted
with these common fowl. Also on the ranch was a processing plant. We
raised the fryers and processed them. In addition to the birds that were processed in our own plant, we sold some of the fryers to other processors. I
remember taking truck loads of fryers on the ferry to Oakland, with the
chickens cackling all the way across the bay.
I attended Petaluma High school. While there, I was part of the FFA (Future
Farmers of America) group. I joined the others in raising and showing beef,
fat lambs, and hogs. I was very proud when, in 1957 I was chosen as American Farmer of the year. It was
good wholesome fun to be part of that group.
I had another interest in high school that took up much of my time; I played trumpet in the band.
We played and marched at all of the football games and put on a couple of concerts each year. We marched
at the East West game at Kezar stadium each year; that was a great experience.
After graduation from high school in 1957, I continued my education at Santa Rosa JC for two years. However, at the time, I decided that books were not for me. I wanted to get on with life, so I procured a job at the
Reif and Brody poultry processing plant in Petaluma. I would work in the plant all day, then at night I would
pick up chickens from different ranches. It was really hard work but this long daily work routine made anything I did later a 'piece of cake'. In 1961, I married my wife Kay. (We have enjoyed 55 years together.) We
found that a chicken plant is not a good career choice. Early in April of 1962 I began a new career as an apprentice meat cutter at a Safeway store in Arcata, Calif. In 1967 I was elevated to meat department manager
at that Arcata store. In 1969 a larger, new Safeway store opened in Eureka. I was selected to be the manager
of the meat department at the new store. Shortly thereafter, I was approached with the idea of leaving that
position to become a store manager. After a tough training period , I was made store manager in Pacifica,
California. Kay and I and our three kids moved southward to the Pacifica area. From there, I eventually
was made manager of the Beach store in San Francisco. A decision was made for us to leave the pleasant
weather of the San Francisco Bay area to serve in Carson City, Nevada as manager of a Safeway store there.
As time progressed we made several more stops. Kay and I bought our own grocery store in Occidental,Ca,
Now we could work seven days a week. After nine years we retired to the Hoopa Indian reservation. We
had two acres and a couple of guest houses on the Trinity River. I can assure you that one gets all the guests
one would want when you live on the Trinity. In 2001 we moved to Redding, California; We were looking
forward to the fishing ,golf, and shopping. My first love is trolling for trout, and I try never to miss the
monthly SIR fishing meeting hosted by Jay Lui. I will be on the board of directors of the SIRs in 2017.
We have three children: Anita in Cloverdale, Kelly in Idaho, and David in Santa Rosa. Adding to the fun are
6 grandkids!
I joined SIR three years ago. Bob Reid was my sponsor (A big Thank you, Bob). Being part of SIR has
allowed me to meet some really great people. Thanks, Bill for sharing. I have an idea that you are really
good at filleting your own fish. John Schlenz - Profiler
SIR NEWSLETTER
Page 8
SIR October 2016 Fishing Report
By Jay Liu
The Tip of the Month
At Lake Shasta, fish early and late, the lake water is in the 80’s and
dropping
The October Fishing Meeting
(2nd Wednesday of the Month @ the Country Waffle Restaurant)
Howard Hughes and I talked about Crank Baits and current conditions on Shasta
Sacramento River
Salmon: The Salmon fishing has pick up, and they are starting to catch them at the barge hole, I hear
that they are starting to come up in numbers.
Trout:
The trout bite is wide open, and the trout are 2 to 4 pounds. They are using small spoons and
egg imitations.
Shasta Lake
Bass:
The Lake is 75 feet down and dropping around 1/2 foot a day. The lake temperature is 78 to 80
degrees and dropping due to colder nights. To locate fish, look for the bait (Shad) and then
look to see if fish are chasing, Top water is working early and late. When the sun is up high,
use bottom baits. Plastic is working well and the choice of baits are Senkos, Drop Shot, Tubes,
Jackall Shake Flick Worms (fished wacky style).
Trout:
The trout bite is wide open, you have to fish deep for them (50 to 60 feet down) but they are
quality trout. The lures of choice are Cripplures and Kastmasters.
Kokanee and Big Kings: I did not get any repor t on the Kokanee or Kings.
Trinity Lake
Bass:
The Lake depth is 116 feet down and dropping about 1/4 ft. a day. The water temp is 67 to 70
and the bite is a little tough. The lures of choice are small swim baits, drop shot, and Senkos.
Trout and Kokanee: No report on trout.
WhiskyTown
Bass:
I hear that it is real tough and maybe you’ll get 2 to 3 fish per trip.
Trout
Kokanee bite is wide open for Salmon up to 16 inches. Trolling Spinners, Pink Wedding Rings
and hoochies with Bait Dodgers.
Page 9
SIR NEWSLETTER
Dine-Out will Resume
After January 1, 2017
Birthdays for November
GEORGE
JOHN
CLOYD
HAROLD
RICHARD
LAURIS
DAVID
GOEHNER
AUBUCHON
BUCK
COOPER
FYTEN
DOBBINS
HELLMAN
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
2
4
4
6
13
16
21
KEVIN
ROBERT
DEMPSEY
FLETCHER
11
11
27
28
Guest Speaker for November
Details will be sent out in a separate email.
Calendar for November
(See inside the newsletter for details).
Only scheduled events are 18 Hole
Golf on November 1 at Tierra Oaks
and December 5 at River Tasalmi.
General Meeting is November 16.
Sunshine Report
Our thoughts, well wishes and prayers for quick healing go to Harry Tully who just had issues with his pace
maker. He has been hospitalized and in rehab recovering from a stroke. He's home now healing and sounding very positive about getting back soon.
Bob Reid, following 2 surgeries, is now being treated in Redding regarding his bout with skin cancer. He,
also, is attacking this with a positive attitude.
Joe Beck reported that he will have to limit some activities due to a recent congestive heart failure diagnosis.
It's good to see Bob Moon dropping by the Elks Club, as he too is healing from cancer.
All in all, I'm sure there are others out there with ailments that need the patience and strength to heal, which
leads us to this quote:
"Part of the healing process is sharing with other people who care." (Jerry Cantrell)
Len Napoli – Sunshine Chairman
Avoid Infections
The first thing to remember is that all infections need an interaction; they cannot just come onto your computer.
The interaction could be a simple click or a call to the number on the website page that pops up and makes you
think you have to call to remove the infection. Here are some tips to help you avoid getting infections:
Do not close the popups! Instead, click the refresh/reload icon on the address bar.
If it is a full page infection, warning you that you have an infection, or call an 800# do not try to close the
webpage, instead immediately click on you PC’s start button and restart or shut down your computer, clearing
out the bad page before it can infect you.
Join Fred and John after the general meeting to discuss your problems. We have a Manhattan Hi-Speed USB
Ultra Hub (add 7 USB devices to your computer) to raffle off to some lucky SIR at the computer meeting.
John Aubuchon and Fred Skill - Computer co-chairs
Branch 129
6240 Gold Hills Court
Redding CA 96003