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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

EndNotes

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

Pope Pius XII (AP Archives)

Another pope miracle?

Did Pope Pius XII, sometimes seen as the pope who did very little to save the Jews during World War II, come out of afterlife "retirement" to save one woman from a cancer death sentence? Maria Esposito, whose Stage IV Burkitt's lymphoma disappeared, thinks so.…

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The thought counts in any language

Our EndNotes column today explained what to do if a Japanese relative or friend has died and you want to show support for the family. The culture has some fairly strict etiquette rules. But I'd like to stress that condolences in any language are appreciated…

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MONDAY, JULY 11, 2011

A 1903 advertisement provided by The Advertising Archives via Library of Congress shows a 1903 advertisement for La Parle Obesity Soap, that “never fails to reduce flesh” and was selling at a pricey-for-then $1 a bar.  (Associated Press)

Back away from that french fry

My email in-box was filled today with food and longevity stories. The message in all of them boil down to this. If you want to live a little longer, skip the salt, processed food and load up on fruits, vegetables and low-sodium foods. From the…

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SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

Dee McGonigle and Tom Perko grew up as close friends in the Comstock Park neighborhood.  "We were inseparable" says McGonigle. (Dan Pelle / The Spokesman-Review)

What you learn in the 'hood 

In my interactive editor days, when I gave a lot of speeches, I would ask people to remember a crabby neighbor and a welcoming neighbor and how interaction with both types helped the children of the neighborhood shape their world view.Crabby neighbors have a lot…

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FRIDAY, JULY 8, 2011

FILE - This Aug. 11, 1975 photo released by CBS-TV shows first lady Betty Ford as she appeared on "60 Minutes." Ford, the former first lady whose triumph over drug and alcohol addiction became a beacon of hope for addicts and the inspiration for her Betty Ford Center, has died, a family friend said Friday, July 8, 2011. She was 93. (Cbs-tv)

Leading lady

"He who conceals his disease, cannot expect to be cured," says the Ethiopian proverb. Former first lady Betty Ford died today. She will be remembered as a woman who did not conceal her disease - and consequently helped others to not conceal theirs, seeking to…

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Charley Vingo for Endnotes blog (Spokesman-Review archives)

So long, Charley Vingo

A man I never met but have long appreciated died recently. His name was Charley Vingo and he lived to 104. According to his obituary, "as a young man he worked hard trying different businesses until he finally found his niche as a district circulation…

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WEDNESDAY, JULY 6, 2011

Do it now! 

Seven years ago this week I started treatment for early-stage breast cancer. Rebecca's post "Say it now" is a reminder for all of us - not just at retirement parties, or times of illness, but in the moments, as we experience those feelings - of…

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TUESDAY, JULY 5, 2011

Caricature of Doug Floyd, retired S-R editorial page editor (Milt Priggee Cartoon)

Say it all now

Doug Floyd, who had a 42-year newspaper career, at the Spokane Daily Chronicle and The Spokesman-Review, retired Thursday. His send-off ceremony was standing-room only and people said kind and funny things. There were also some tears. Associate editor Gary Crooks wrote about him in his…

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MONDAY, JULY 4, 2011

This photo was taken at Liberty Lake on June 14, 1923 and found in a collection of family photos kept by Keo King LaVell. The caption under a similar photo taken the same day read: "Shivering at Liberty Lake." The women are identified, from the right, as Mrs. Davidson, Miss Anna Orr and Keo.
Photo from the King collection, Spokesman-Review archives.   (Courtesy of Rebecca Nappi)

The keeper of the boxes

As a very young attorney in Spokane in the late 1940s, my dad, Joe Nappi, was given space in an office by Charles Cowan, an established and respected attorney. Our families soon became close friends and by the time I came along, Charles had died.…

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SUNDAY, JULY 3, 2011

Lessons at death's door 

Just finished What I I Learned When I Almost Died by Chris Licht, former producer of Morning Joe on MSNBC. At 38, he suffered a cerebral hemorrhage but came out of it with no brain damage. He also came out of it as ambitious as…

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FRIDAY, JULY 1, 2011

Midnight in Paris movie still.

Midnight in Paris… Saturday in Florence 

As American college students in Florence, Italy, we walked the city often – exploring, meandering, discovering new places, discovering who we were as 20-year-olds. One lovely autumn day David and I struck up a conversation with an elderly American gentleman who was sitting on a…

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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 29, 2011

Princess Diana in 1995 with her two boys. (AP photo)

Forget the tiara ~ Diana remembered

Princess Diana would have turned 50 this month. Newsweek published a story by Tina Brown speculating on Diana's life in 2011, had she lived. She was a young, unsuspecting bride, when she married Charles in 1981. And for all the royal pageantry, her life was…

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Searching for Maxine

My 90-year-old mother's friend, also 90, recently lost her sister-in-law. Her name was Maxine. I've been watching for Maxine's obituary in our newspaper this past week. I've spotted two or three Maxines in that time, but not the Maxine I was searching for. I soon…

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TUESDAY, JUNE 28, 2011

Just sign it

Our column today is about what to say in condolence cards for co-workers in your workplace. What I didn't say in the column was this: When you have the chance to sign a communal card for a co-worker, be it condolence, birthday or retirement, always…

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Losing your mind: Do you want to know?

Spinal fluid tests can now "see" what are possible telltale signs of impending Alzheimer's disease. In a Reuters story about a report in the journal Neurology, the writer explained: Current spinal fluid tests for Alzheimer's look for an imbalance in two proteins: beta amyloid, which…

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MONDAY, JUNE 27, 2011

Sad lives for foreign commenters 

Our blog was filled this morning with spam posted as comments. Here's what it read: shoes 、 T-shirt 、 Sunglass、 Caps&hats 、 Handbags、Jersey The network shopping from the start Please look: tradetrusting One of the editors here said these ads are likely generated by workers…

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SUNDAY, JUNE 26, 2011

To nurture, to keep safe, to love

I can't seem to forget about Frances Swan, the 106-year-old woman discovered by Stevens County sheriff's deputies last month. She was hungry and neglected by her "caregiver." She asked for food and wanted to be taken to a hospital where people would feed her and…

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FRIDAY, JUNE 24, 2011

Peter Falk: Human and angel

Actor Peter Falk died Thursday at 83. Everyone knew him as Detective Columbo in the crime series, but I loved him best in the foreign film Wings of Desire in which he plays an angel who had opted to fall from angelic status and live…

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Our living historians are dying off

The day after my Sunday story about Spokane's "first" real adult soccer team (from the 1950s), a 93-year-old woman called me to tell me that there had, indeed, been an adult team in the early 1900s in Spokane. Indeed, she was right, and even though…

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THURSDAY, JUNE 23, 2011

A swimmer surfaces after plunginginto the Tsunami Swirl pool at Kenwood Cove, Saturday, May 28, 2011, in Salina, Kan. The bright spot in the water was created by sun light shining through the funnel-like slide. (AP Photo/Salina Journal, Tom Dorsey)
 (AP photo)

Deeper dive...paradigm shift

In the decades that I have worked in healthcare, there has been a hit parade of buzz words and phrases: “paradigm shift,” “at-the-end-of-the-day,” “thrown under the bus,”“low-hanging fruit” and…”are we complete?” That last one was from a consultant who brought his own hanger to meetings…

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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 22, 2011

Ryan Dunn (AP)

Jackass way to go  

The Associated Press reported today that Ryan Dunn of reality show Jackass fame was really drink when he died in a car accident last week. Accoring to AP: Dunn's blood-alcohol level was 0.196 at the time of the crash early Monday morning. The report was…

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TUESDAY, JUNE 21, 2011

Louis S. Zamperini, 86, who competed at the 1936 Berlin Olympics and was a World War II POW, attends the Armory Collegiate Invitational at the Armory Track and Field Center in New York, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2003.  (AP)

Who or what determines the unbroken? 

Just finished Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand, author of the bestselling "Seabiscuit" made into a well-loved movie. Here's a summary of Unbroken, from a New York Times review: In late May 1943, the B-24 carrying the…

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MONDAY, JUNE 20, 2011

Directing the last good-bye: education is here

Lake Washington Technical College offers a unique program for people looking for work outside the box: funeral service education. This program is the first one of its kind in Washington state. Seven people graduated last week with nine more scheduled to finish their program in…

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Photo of Spokane Spokes at soccer championship in Canada in 1962. (Photo courtesy of Anna Hintyesz)

Save old photos

All last week, I worked on a Sunday story about the Spokane Spokes, a Spokane soccer team started in the late 1950s. My brother-in-law, Adam Deutsch, played on the team in 1959. Word got out in Spokane's German-American community that I was working on the…

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FRIDAY, JUNE 17, 2011

Policing ~ with care 

Mental illness plagues many of our homeless neighbors. Their behavior is often interpreted as threatening or at least confusing and bothersome. The Seattle Police Department now has a mental health expert who rides with them, often as the initial contact for a person deemed experiencing…

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Spokesman-Review features writer Rebecca Nappi, along with writer Catherine Johnston of Olympia, Wash., discuss here issues facing aging boomers, seniors and those experiencing serious illness, dying, death and other forms of loss.