‘BIG’ yacht wows surfer down South
Question: “I was surfing the Net the other night, looking at some pics of the best island in the Caribbean, St. Martin,” writes Chris from Mississippi. “I saw a picture of a BIG yacht, Lady Lola. I figured it was some sheik’s from Dubai or Kuwait. So, I googled this thing, and its owner is from – Idaho? I know there is money in Idaho. I’ve seen the great tabernacles, the many BMWs and Range Rovers, but this guy owns an $80 million boat. Is this guy Dr. No or just real smart or lucky like Bill Gates? What’s the real bio on this guy?” Answer: Dr. No? The James Bond villain? Do you suppose Duane Hagadone is plotting to take over the world as well as Coeur d’Alene?
Insurance snag
A Power & Motoryacht forum online could explain why the Lady Lola and Lady Lola Shadow are for sale for $85 million (although Hagadone’s broker says you can pick both of them up for $75 million, according to my spies). Seems Hagadone’s plan to circumnavigate the globe was stopped by war. In the forum, Funshyn (Lady Lola Capt. Stan Antrim?) explained that the boat’s insurer (Chubb) wouldn’t cover the yacht’s transit through the Red Sea or Straits of Malacca. This, despite Hagadone’s willingness to pay higher premiums. So, Lady Lola and her entourage of smaller boats and toys returned to St. Martin to be sold. Eight years of yachting is enough, writes Funshyn, adding that there will be no Lady Lola III. “So,” Funshyn sez, “get out those checkbooks, boys and girls!” Wonder if Hagadone takes Visa or MasterCard? Or sweat equity?
Dirty politics
If you think some of the political letters to the editor published in this newspaper have hit an all-time low for commentary, think again. Politics brings out the worst in folks. Always has. And Phoebe Hruska of Coeur d’Alene provides proof in the form of a diatribe by a “disgusted reader” she read recently. Quoth: “Our once-great nation has gone mad – militaristic power drunk.” And: “There is proof everywhere that the U.S. is a fascist, aggressive, rapacious, cold-hearted, war-minded, ungodly nation.” Etc. The words of a bitter Demo who’s Canadian dreamin’ now that Dubya’s won a second term? Nope. Disgusted Reader was blasting Demo Harry Truman’s administration in the December 1950 issue of Country Gentleman. Phoebe picked up the mag at an antique store. Also of note was the adjective the mag used in an editor’s note to describe anonymous writers: “spineless.” And that’s another thing that hasn’t changed.
Poet’s corner
“Like tiny stars upon the trees/They twinkle in the frosty breeze,/And throw their little rays of light/Like hope into the cold black night” – The Bard of Sherman Avenue (“Christmas Lights, Sherman Avenue”).
Huckleberries
A reason for the season? Bonner County scofflaws enjoyed a five-finger discount, according to the Bonner County sheriff’s log. That, or a giant, inflatable turkey that’d been nesting at 42 Vadelwood, Sandpoint, survived Thanksgiving only to be whacked Nov. 28 … Freedom, according to a tyke in Sheila Peters’ class at Lakeside Elementary, Worley, means you can pick apples from an apple tree if you’re poor. Also: “If you don’t have a gun, make a spear. People won’t boss you around.” A spear a day keeps the teacher away? … Bumpersnicker sighted by John Livingston on Division: “Twins: Twice blamed, twice stressed” … Huckleberries didn’t catch the name of the Rathdrum caller who won a trip to a Texas spa as part of Regis & Kelly’s trivia game the other day. But it was a kick that the show’s celebs kept referring to the former Kootenai County seat as “Rath-a-drum.” It’s been called worse.
Parting Shot
Don’t whine about your Monday until you’ve heard the tale of Cpl. Daniel Stirn and fellow Marines stationed in Iraq who were waiting for their Thanksgiving turkey. Seems bomb-sniffing dogs detected an explosive on the 18-wheeler carrying the holiday dinner. So, the Marines pulled the truck out of line and blew it up. Turkeys and all. Afterward, Cpl. Stirn, a Bayview native, told his parents, Philip and Mary Stirn of Bayview: “I’ll probably have a hamburger.” God bless our troops, everyone.