Tom Jarms learned the hardware business from his father, Ron. “I’m probably famous among Ace dealers for ‘Ronisms’ – quoting my dad. Things like, ‘You’re going to make mistakes. Just hope they don’t cost you too much.’ ”

Almost three decades ago, an article previewing the annual Spokane Home Show focused on the event’s relatively young participants – in particular, 32-year-old Ken Marsh. Having launched his own company when he was 22, Marsh had survived the economically perilous early ’80s, when mortgage rates peaked at 18 percent, and he looked forward to retiring comfortably by age 47.

Otto Klein has been in the Spokane Indians’ lineup for 22 years.

FRIDAY HARBOR, Wash. – This time last year, Roxy Kasman was Gonzaga University’s controller, and her husband, Doug Kasman, was an architect with ALSC. Now they’re washing laundry and scrubbing toilets for strangers.

As a pharmacist, Debbie Hansen’s job was straightforward: Provide the right pill in the right dose to the right patient at the right time. Winemaking is different.

‘Boutique,” “artisanal” and “hand-crafted” are adjectives sometimes attached to small-scale wineries. Doug and Shelly Smith prefer a more modest label, jokingly referring to their Liberty Lake Wine Cellars as “garagesque.”

Someone named Robert Karl occasionally stops by Robert Karl Cellars in downtown Spokane. He is not the owner.