We didn't want your letter to end

This (Best of the North Bay, March 18) was by far your best of the BEST. It read like a novel with little vignettes, wonderful descriptions and photographs! Thank you for reintroducing our colorful little county in such a delightful way. I didn't want it to end!

Karyn Lobley
Santa Rosa

Roar of the Moose

I have been a member of the Women of the Moose for 27 years ("The New Fraternals," March 11). We have a great membership of loyal Moose members. In the last few years, we have had an administrator and his wife, Roger and Sally Burk, working very hard to upgrade the old building to what it is today, absolutely beautiful. This has brought in many new members, who volunteer their time to work.

Contrary to the remarks of John Crowley, we are not a bunch of "old men" doing nothing. As a woman member of the Moose, I resent his remark.

Cherie Gervais
Petaluma  

Gabe Meline responds: Thanks for writing, Cherie. The remarks you refer to are mine. What John said was that the Moose Lodge "used to be known as an old man's drinking club," which is true if you consider general public perception. I'm the one who said "the Moose Lodge in Petaluma was just a bunch of old men when John Crowley stumbled across it in 2005," which is wrong. I blew it and regret the error.

Has-Been nation?

John Sakowicz ("The Next Big Bubble," March 4) is spot on. Government employees get three times the pension benefits of nongovernment employees. We have created a class society among baby boomers—those who can afford to retire and the rest of us.

It pisses me off that the public officials who approved these excessive retirement benefits never got permission from taxpayers.

Oh, well. In the whole scheme of things, with trillion-dollar national budget deficits, I guess this bubble is just one of many. The U.S. is a has-been nation.

I'm packing my bags for Costa Rica for the expatriate life. Anyone interested in joining me?

Kitty Lewis
San Jose

An open missive

Dear West Sonoma County High School District Board Members:

My opinion is we have too many unnecessary positions in the district. We have a superintendent, and, I recently learned, an assistant superintendent, to oversee two mainstream high schools and two alternative high schools with a combined student population of less than 3,000.

Of the two mainstream high schools, Analy has a principal and two full-time assistant principals. The principal has a personal secretary. El Molino has two co-principals and an assistant principal.

Meanwhile, students have to pay money to play on sports teams and participate in music programs.

What is the dollar amount we would save if we eliminated the superintendent and assistant superintendent positions, the three assistant principal positions and the principal's and superintendent's secretary positions?

Ted Gross
Via email

Dept. of arrrgggh

Given the magnitude of last week's crispy fry-out Best Of issue, that we are here to grovel over only two items is a splendid record of sorts, but that's still not much to brag about.

Our first gross and insulting error was to the talented singer-songwriter Ms. Ash Reiter, whose surname is thus spelled and contains no ugly l or g consonants.

Our second lick of the forgiveness floor is extended to the fine folks at Bloom Creative Hair Salon in Napa, who—while they do welcome tots into the shop—are not specifically a children's hair salon and do not wish to be known as such (we screwed up the Best Of Readers Poll on that one). Sophisticated hair for grownups is what best occupies their time. We regret both mistakes hugely and widely, for reals.

The Ed.
Uttering 'mea' and 'culpa' like she speaks latin

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