Ned Luce

As noted in last week’s column, the annual meeting of the Ludlow Maintenance Commission, the LMC, was held last Saturday. 

There were about 60 folks who showed up, a crowd that would have grown by 100 percent with the inclusion of a glass of wine and without the issue of the COVID pandemic. It was a good meeting as outgoing president Alan Kiesler, General Manager Brian Belmont, and Treasurer Bob Show provided a 90-minute informative review of the LMC’s operations and finances. If you were not there and you would like to view the information presented, I think you can get to it at the LMC website. 

Veteran LMC board member Vaughn Bradshaw rejoined the board after several years of well-earned retirement. Then he was elected president of the board! Joan Johnston was elected vice president, Austin Kerr was elected secretary, and Bob Show was re-elected treasurer. It was noted correctly several times during the meeting that the past couple of years have been difficult as the membership, the staff and the board navigated around and through the COVID roadblocks. The patience of the membership and competence of the staff through this period was extraordinary. Let’s hope we are on the way out.

In an effort to gain perspective on a subject lighter than the pandemic, I can report that the programs at the last two weekly meetings of the Rotary Club have been about earthquakes and the resultant tsunamis. 

Nice try, Ned. 

Dr. Harold Tobin, the Washington state seismologist and the director of the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network, gave an extensive and fascinating overview of the geologic background of the earthquake and tsunami threats facing our region. 

He provided an array of historical data and information on the activities being undertaken to minimize the impacts of these threats in the future. 

The next week, Jim Buck, the head of the Joyce Emergency Planning and Preparation Committee gave a presentation outlining the potential danger to school buildings and the children inside them when an earthquake occurs. He has provided information to all the school districts in the state of Washington. 

I was sitting next to Chimacum School District Superintendent Scott Mauk who confirmed he was familiar with Jim and the work he has done.

OK, in another effort to lighten up my perspective, BJ and I welcomed our daughter from Seattle for a visit last week. 

She claims to enjoy coming to visit because we provide a better grade of red wine. 

She and her attitude are always a joy to welcome. We particularly appreciate her being here now with the challenges we face every day from my bum hip. 

She helped out on several little projects and one I was really worried about. 

First of all, here are some facts. 

A. My biggest problem is with my left hip. 

B. My Porsche is a manual transmission with a clutch pedal used by my left leg. 

C. The Porsche has not been driven in a month. 

D. I needed to go to Tri Area Pharmacy to get my second booster shot. 

Clearly the solution is for our daughter, the second-best driver in our family, to drive the car with me as a passenger to Port Hadlock to get the shot and get the engine warmed up so the fluids were flowing again. Our daughter and BJ have been urging me to get the booster and I wanted to get the car a modicum of exercise so we all got happy. 

Heck, the line at the pharmacy only had three folks in it when I arrived!

Love a curmudgeon and have a great week. 

(Ah, the truth finally emerges. Ned Luce’s biggest issue with his bum hip is his inability to drive his Porsche up to Port Townsend, perched impatiently on the bumper of the beleaguered Leader editor’s slow-moving Ford sedan. Contact Ned at ned@ptleader.com.)