Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, July 13, 2019

MVNews this week:  Page 4

4

JUST FOR YOU!

Mountain Views-News Saturday, July 13, 2019 


WALKING SIERRA MADRE - The Social Side by Deanne Davis

“Being there for a child is the most noble thing a toy can do.” 
Woody

“Be who you are right now.” Bo Peep

“As the years go by, our friendship will never die. You’re gonna 
see it’s our destiny. You’ve got a friend in me.” Randy Newman

“Seek out people who are willing to level with you, and when 
you find them, hold them close.”

Creativity Inc., Ed Catmull

“The important thing is that we stick together.” Buzz Lightyear

We went to see Toy Story 4. OK, I admit it, I wanted to see Toy 
Story 4 so I asked everybody else if they wanted to go. They did. 
What a great movie, filled with wonderful things like loyalty 
and love and caring and how hard change is to deal with...
something I certainly agree with as there’s been so much change 
in my life the last year and a half and none of it was easy. Oh! 
and never giving up. Woody goes to great amazing lengths to 
make sure all works out well for his little owner girl, Bonnie. I’m 
being careful here not to say too much as I don’t want to spoil 
the movie for you, but if you haven’t been, go!

Movies seem to be playing a major role currently in what’s going 
on around me. My church is doing a summer series entitled, 
“At The Movies,” based on Ecclesiastes – those profound words 
from Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived - and clips 
from various movies. When I first heard this plan I thought, 
“Seriously? Movies for church? Is this summer off for the staff?” 
But then the first Sunday came and the movie was “The Lion 
King.” You’re all familiar with this plot: Little cub, Simba, the 
heir to the lion throne, is tricked by his evil uncle, Scar, into 
playing a part in his father, Mustafa’s, death. He runs away and 
finds new friends in a different land where he spends his time 
hangin’ out and growing up. Eventually confronted with who 
he is and what he should be doing, he has a visitation from his 
father, reminding him of exactly that. The message, of course, 
had me in tears, being reminded of Whose we are and how we 
are to live, which is not just hangin’ out.

Last Sunday, the movie was “Titanic” featuring the gorgeous Kate Winslet and the equally gorgeous Leonardo DiCaprio. Spoiler 
alert: Everybody dies! Well, not everybody, just 1500 people. 700 were saved. The point we were being shown was that we need to be 
sure we help everybody into the lifeboat and not turn away because we’re too busy or scared or whatever. A story was told about one 
of the lifeboats full of people; they came alongside a young man in the water; he cried to them to help him into the boat and was told, 
“Sorry, man, if we bring you in we’ll probably go under ourselves. Just can’t take anymore people on.” A woman in the boat cried out, 
“Stop, that’s my son! You have to save him!” They turned and pulled him in. At that point he was unconscious, the water temperature 
being about 28 degrees F, below freezing. Life expectancy at that temperature was about 20 minutes before hypothermia took charge 
of the body. Some hours later, he awoke to find himself on the Carpathia in a warm bed, covered with blankets. He had no idea at all 
what had happened to him. Moments later the woman who had saved his life came through the door to tell him how he had been 
rescued. Suffice to say, she was NOT his mother and they had never before met, but in the days, months and years to come, they 
became as close as a mother and son could be. He was her “one.” We were encouraged to think who our “one” might be, whose life 
we could impact. 

Jessie and Emily, who are 11 and 8, saw “Frozen” and so far we’ve been unable to get anything out of them at all about what life 
message they got. I figure it’s pretty much the same as Toy Story 4: loyalty, selfless love, caring and how difficult change is. 

Meanwhile, I’m waiting for HBO to show Titanic because now I’m dying to see it again! Did you know Kate Winslet took a lot of heat 
from stupid people who said she was too fat! I’d love to be that “too fat!” Speaking of HBO, they are showing “Bohemian Rhapsody” 
next Saturday night and, as I totally missed it in the theaters, I’m recording.

Other movie messages: “Rocketman” - don’t do drugs or try to live like Elton John in his early days. “Secret Life of Pets 2” – love, 
loyalty, courage in the face of danger and how difficult change is to deal with. Hmmmmmmmm.... sensing a trend here.

As you can see below here, my new book is available and there’s a copy at Amazon.com just waiting for you to order it for yourself 
or for that special someone who deserves a special gift.

“Sunrises & Sunflowers Speak Hope” is here! 

Look for it on my book page: Amazon.com: Deanne Davis 

Star of Wonder the CD is now on TuneCore! Take a look!

Blog: www.authordeanne.com

Follow me on Twitter, too! https://twitter.com/@playwrightdd 


KATIE Tse....This and That

TALL, [X], AND [Y]

 So I’m taking a creative writing class this summer, and it’s gotten me thinking more about word choice 
and language overall. I feel I’m becoming a bit more cognizant, more aware, you could say. That’s my hope, 
anyway!

 And in doing so, I’ve noticed that when describing attractive men in fiction, adjectives usually follow this 
formula: “tall, [fill in the blank], and [fill in the blank].” Classic examples include “tall, dark, and handsome,” 
“tall, built, and handsome,” or my personal favorite, “tall, built, and delicious.” (See my character Humphrey 
for a good example of the latter. Details at the end of this article. On one hand, I feel a little guilty sticking in 
this shameless plug. But on the other hand, if I don’t promote my book, who will?)

 But back to the topic. You may not realize how firmly ingrained this “tall, [X], and [Y]” pattern is, but I think by the time 
you finish reading this you’ll agree with my observation. Consider, for instance, how differently the following phrase would be 
interpreted: “dark, handsome, and tall.”

 Putting “tall” at the end begs the question, “What?! Is he FREAKISHLY tall? Does this guy have some pituitary condition the 
reader should know about?” 

 Now let’s consider the implications of leaving “tall” out entirely. “Dark, built, and handsome.” “Handsome, built, and delicious.” 
Or even, “Deliciously handsome and darkly built,” if that even makes sense... Mess around with the modifiers any way you please, 
but if you leave out “tall” altogether, I can guarantee the reader’s got a nagging suspicion you’re describing a midget.

 It’s fair to assume that in real life, most normal-sized guys hook up with normal-sized girls and don’t have to worry about height 
discrepancies. These things tend to shake themselves out. Of course there are always exceptions, such as Tom Cruise and Nichole 
Kidman, back in the day. But it seems such departures from the norm are fairly rare.

 Thus, we should be able to conceivably assume that even without “tall” being included in the narrative, the guy who’s being 
described is probably looking straight at, or down at, the girl in question. Course that isn’t always the case, but I’m speaking 
generally here.

 In discussing this topic with my parents, my dad brought up the question of how attractive females are most typically described 
in novels. As in, is there a comparable formula to their “tall, dark, and handsome” male counterpart? I’m embarrassed to say I was 
a bit stumped trying to come up with an similar equation to answer his question.

 “Uh, pretty, curved, and sassy?” “Beautiful, voluptuous, and engaging?” “Cute in a girl-next-door, baseball-and-apple-pie sort 
of way?” Shoot, I don’t know! 

 But I can tell you what my protagonist attractive female is like. She’s got a knockout figure, long dark hair, mahogany eyes, and 
cheeks that dimple when she laughs. But she doesn’t laugh like that for just anyone.

 Sorry I didn’t come up with a picture for this week’s article. I considered drawing the rabbit as a male model, but I chickened 
out. That, and I’m a little bit lazy where drawing’s concerned sometimes. I promised to come up with a new story each week this 
year, but I never said anything about a new picture. But hey, you all have imaginations!

* Check out my novel, “A Year at Apex” in paperback and ebook on Amazon and Barnes & Noble! A classic love story between a 
school teacher and one-handed plumber, Apex has it all --humor, romance, the human condition, and public education. Perfect 
for you and the educator in your life! 


SIERRA MADRE POLICE BLOTTER

June 30 to July 1 2019 - During this period the Sierra Madre Police Department responded to 271 calls for service. 

Theft from a vehicle 
On 7/01/2019 at 5:29PM officers responded to an auto burglary that occurred in the 400 block of Mount Wilson Trail Ave. The 
suspect(s) smashed the right front window of the vehicle and took the personal property from the glove box and trunk. Case to 
Detectives 

Suspicious person 
Officers responded to a suspicious vehicle call in the area of W. Orange Grove and Sunnyside Ave. on 7/2/2019 at 7:00PM. 
Upon arrival officers found the vehicle parked in a private driveway occupied by a male subject. After making contact with 
the subject, it was discovered he had been identified as a person who had been trespassing at multiple residences in the area. 
The subject’s probation officer was contacted to notify him of his activity in the area, then taken to a local hospital for medical 
clearance. 

Injury accident 
At 7:33PM on 7/4/19 a child ran into the street in the 00 block of N. Lima Street and was struck by a vehicle. The child was 
treated by SMFD Paramedics then taken to a local hospital for further evaluation. 

Fireworks violation 
On 7/4/19 at 9:21PM officers responded to a call of fireworks being used in the 00 block of Park Avenue. The resident was 
cited for the violation. 

Drug violations 
Officers conducted a traffic stop in the 500 block of W. Orange Grove Ave, at about 7:21PM on 7/6/19. It was determined the 
driver was driving on a suspended license and was in possession of illicit narcotics and drug paraphernalia. The driver was arrested 
and later released with a citation. 


Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com