Visits: 268
MARCH 2024 FENCEPOST
APTOS, CAPITOLA & RIO DEL MAR SIR BRANCH 104
“Just for the 
fun of it”
LUNCH DATE: 3rd TUESDAY, MARCH19th AT 11:30 AM
SEASCAPE GOLF COURSE MONARCH ROOM
BIG SIR MESSAGE: BIG SIR RICK POWERS – “THE ROSTER’S CACA-DOODLE-DOO”
I am looking forward to hearing our March speaker, Professor Anne Clunan from Stanford University and The Naval Post Graduate School in Monterey, CA. She will share her expertise and insight on Russia and the coming world order after the current war in Ukraine. Invite new friends or old friends to the Professor’s talk. There will be plenty of questions and time for discussion. It will be refreshing to hear the answers from a learned expert.
The presentation by Chandra Morvay at the February meeting was informative and engaging. Ms. Morvay gave a detailed and thought-provoking presentation that will help all of us as we meander through our lives. She presented current medical ideas and how to prevent future cardio issues. And she also gave us many ideas to use in our senior healthy life. I think it would be gratifying for her to know that I was approached by some of the members about starting a SIR’s new activity group to further improve our health- health care combined with exercises. Would you be interested? I’ll keep you informed of the possibilities.
It was heartwarming for me to see 62 of our members attend this meeting; we added 3 new members-Chris Karzag, Frank Nigro III and Tad Sterling. We can now enjoy eating in the large Monarch Room! Please pass this new information to members you know and are not attending. I know some have said they felt cramped or uncomfortable being shoe-horned into the small room, I have felt the same. If we keep our attendance numbers on the upswing, 51+ is the magic number, we can continue using the large, bright and airy Monarch Room. I congratulate our members who have introduced new people to SIRs. Please continue your efforts by inviting potential candidates. Remember: “they get a free first-time lunch!”
“What sayest thou?”
LUNCHEON PROGRAM: “Through a glass darkly: Contours of the Coming International Order in Light of the Russian War on Ukraine.”
Anne Clunan is Associate Professor of National Security Affairs at the Naval Postgraduate School and a Faculty Affiliate at the Center for International Security and Cooperation at Stanford University. She was the founding director of the Program on Advanced Systems and Concepts for Countering WMD, and past director of the Center on Contemporary Conflict. Her primary country of expertise is Russia. She teaches on Global Political Economy, Science and Technology in Geostrategic Conflict, Eur-Asia in the Global Economic Order and Russian Foreign Policy. She has published on Russia’s security and economic interests and national identity; technology and international change; international status competition and major powers; economic globalization and sovereignty; ungoverned spaces and non-state actors; biological weapons and biotechnology; nanotechnology; and terrorism financing. She is author of The Social Construction of Russia’s Resurgence: Aspirations, Identity, and Security Interests . She has worked in the U.S. Senate, the U.S. Department of State, and the British Houses of Parliament. She is a member of the International Working Group on Russian Sanctions, chaired by Ukrainian President Zelensky’s Chief of Staff, Andrii Yermak, and former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Mike McFaul. Her awards include the Velvet Revolution Award from the Czech and Slovak governments, and the U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency Director’s Award for Outstanding Service. She earned her Ph.D. in political science at the University of California, Berkeley and her B.S.F.S. at Georgetown University.
LUNCH ARRANGEMENTS – Meal Selections. Cost $27
We have the following three menu choices for our lunch. Please be sure to let your monthly caller know your choice for lunch to ensure you and your guest receives your request. The cost will be $27 per person.
Meal Selections for March:
Option 1: Beef Tri-Tip: topped in mushroom sauce. Served with garlic mashed potatoes, fresh sauteed seasonal vegetables.
Option 2: Grilled Salmon Salad: mixed greens, tomatoes, red onions, and cucumbers with grilled salmon and topped with raspberry vinaigrette
.Option 3: Southwest Veggie Salad: Mixed Greens, Corn, Black Beans, Tomatoes, Red Onions. Topped with Avocado, Tortilla Strips and Ranch Dressing.
MARCH BIRTHDAY BOYS: SIR John Dunfield, SIR Dick Larimer, SIR George Marinelli SIR Paul Neuman
Remember, you must be present at the drawing to win the free lunch.
NEW BRANCH #104 MEMBERS: SIR Rick Hornbeck.
We now have 104 members. Please welcome our newest members Frank Nigro III, Kris Karzag and Tad Sterling. Welcome Frank, Kris and Tad!
BRANCH 104 ACTIVITY ANNOUNCEMENTS
SIRS OUTING WITH SANTA CRUZ WARRIORS
Twenty-four people so far have signed up to attend the Santa Cruz Warriors game on March 12th. If you are interested in going, please contact Bob Basel at rbasel@sbcglobal.net or 707-373-2484 to get tickets reserved for you. The game is at Kaiser Permanente Arena with tip-off at 7:00 pm. Cost per ticket is $22
BOCCE—SIR Brent Paine Email: brentp1955@gmail.com PH: (408) 355-4623
We will be playing pick-up games. So, just come, have a good time and everyone will play!
Bocce play is scheduled from 10:00 AM to 12:00 Noon on the 1st Tuesday of the month at the Felt Street County Park. Following Bocce, optional Dutch Treat lunch with the guys at a local restaurant.
GOLF – SIR Doug Deaver Email: ddeaver@yahoo.com PH: (831) 234-1210
There is an afternoon 9-hole golf group on Mondays and Thursdays at Aptos Seascape that is organized by Doug Deaver.
GOLF – SIR Jim Stott Email : JimPams@sbcglobal.net PH: (831) 212-3393
The eighteen-hole (multi-branch) SIR golf group plays on Monday mornings at various courses and is coordinated by SIR Jim Stott.
BOOK CLUB — SIR Rick Hornbeck Email: rhornbeck@sbcglobal.net PH (831) 226-4350)
The Book Club will be meeting on Thursday, March 28th. The time and location will be announced soon.
For our next meeting, we continue to do a “reader’s choice”… since there are so many good books out there, we thought we could all read a book of our own choosing and, if so moved, report out on it at our next Book Club meeting.
If interested in learning more about the Book Club, please contact SIR Rick Hornbeck. He will be glad to add you to the Book Club email distribution list to get more up-to-date information.
INVESTMENT CLUB
We continue to do a Zoom call on the first Tuesday of each month. Our next meeting will be March 12th at 10 a.m. On the call we share ideas and usually drill down on a couple of stocks. We share our mistakes and occasional wins. We can’t promise big gains, but we usually have some laughs.
Until we find a new lead for this group, please contact Doug Deaver at ddeaver@yahoo.com or (831) 234-1210 for further information.
CARDS AND BOARD GAMES!! – Wednesday March 19th, 2024
Come to the Aptos Grange to join other SIRs in card, poker, cribbage, and any other games of your choice. This is a new activity that we are pulling together that will meet from 1:00 – 4:00 on the second Wednesday of every month at the Aptos Grange on 2555 Mar Vista Dr.
Please come by to join us with the poker club and other SIRs to have some fun competitive games and good conversation. So, bring your deck of cards, dominoes, cribbage boards or whatever game you would like to start a group to play every second Wednesday. Also please feel free to bring drinks (non-alcoholic) and food for yourself. Please contact Rich Hamlin at hamlin.rich.w@gmail.com PH (276-732-134) for further information.
WE CARE – If you know of any member who is experiencing any difficulty with health or personal issues and you feel it can be shared with the all the members, please let your caller know when they call about the next meeting or let the BIG SIR Rick Powers know while attending the monthly meeting.
OTHER UPCOMING EVENTS TO MARK IN YOUR CALENDARS
SIRS Branch #104 Monthly Luncheon on April 16, 2024
The guest speaker for next month’s meeting will be Gitta Ryle. Gitta is 91 years old and was born to a Jewish family in 1932, a year before the Nazis seized power in Germany. Gitta and her sister, Renee, were placed on a train bound for France in 1939 after being separated from her parents in Austria. They were moved to many different households throughout the six years that followed the occupation of France. They reunited with their mother In 1946. They later learned that her father and grandparents were murdered in the camps. Gitta married and relocated to Southern California where she and her husband raised their three children. She moved to Santa Cruz in 1984.
She did not share her experiences for many years, but then decided to turn her experiences into teaching moments. She feels that it is very important to teach younger generations that this was all real and not fabricated, as some have claimed. The Holocaust was a real global atrocity and must never happen again.
Her story is powerful, with many pictures on screen. You will be moved by it.
SIRS Branch #36 Monthly Luncheon on March 6th, 2024
Santa Cruz branch #36 is having Ken Margerum, former NFL player, as their guest speaker. For those of you who may have missed his presentation at our September meeting here is a chance to see him. Call Chuck Presto if you would like to attend 831-435-6029.
State SIRS Golf Outing:
The State SIRS golf group has organized a two-day golf event that all SIR members can join. The event is scheduled for April 24th & April 25th. Detailed information about the event can be found in the links below.
2024-Spring-Fling-Napa.pdf (sirinc2.org)
2024-Spring-Fling-Entry-Form.pdf (sirinc2.org)
GARY OING’S SHARING GOOD THOUGHTS WEBSITE (SGT):
Giving Peace & Shared Good Thoughts (SGT)
“F” Words & Shared Good Thoughts (SGT)
Since this is the only month of the year that starts with the letter “F”, I decided to focus on F words that give good thoughts.
For me, the most important F word for good thoughts is friendship. If you would like to see “brainy quotes” on this topic by famous people, click on this link — https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/friendship-quotes
If you see the name of a person that you are particularly fond of, click on the name, and see many more quotes by that individual on a variety of topics.
Some of us are fortunate to have family/friends nearby and have fun with them. The upcoming Super Bowl football game will certainly be something to enjoy for those of us who cheer for the SF Forty Niners.
How many of you want more fame and fortune in your life? I suggest that you share this great old song on these topics with someone you love. It was recorded in 1960, just after this famous singer left the Army — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmRaxyodtpI
This article shows the history of this singer’s most popular recordings from the 1950s to 1970s and brought back many memories for me — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elvis_Presley_singles_discography
My guess is that all his songs can be found on YouTube. Check it out and listen to YOUR favorite one!
Of course, the Internet is full of many funny things. Here are two of my favorite links to them –
** Funniest Clean Videos, Jokes, & Content — https://1funny.com/
** Quick/Funny Jokes — https://www.buzzfeed.com/christopherhudspeth/quick-funny-clever-jokes
That’s enough fun for the month that has the fewest number of days…and this year you get an extra day!
As a reminder, you can find the above links and much more at Gary’s SGT website. I encourage you to save the link to the SGT website and visit it throughout the month to help remember my suggested topic of “F words”.
The link to Gary’s “Sharing Good Thoughts” (SGT) website is — https://www.gk.eoing.com/good_thoughts
Let me know if you have found Internet content that you use for your “mental health”. If so, share those links with me and I can add them to my website.
Stay well and mentally happy by thinking good thoughts.
Branch 104 Website https://sirinc2.org/branch104/ Webmaster: SIR John Ryan (650) 743-3040 or John.E.Ryan@comcast.net. Our Website has been recently been re-organized and updated in order to provide easy access to all the SIR activities within our Branch and SIRs State news and activities.
Branch 104 Fencepost Newsletter Editor: SIR Bob Basel (707)-373-2484 or rbasel@sbcglobal.net