WELCOME TO THE BUB’S NEWEST ADDITION:
Ramblings from Ray
by Ray Brown
Contributing Writer
Hello Rotarians! It’s been quite some time since I’ve had a chance to address the Downey club through the HubBub. Long time Rotarians may recall that I handled the publishing and content of our club newsletter back when paper and ink were the tools used to communicate. Intelligent Rotarians (both of them) were probably hoping there would be no further excuse to hear from me.
Sadly, your luck has run out.
Chief writer Lorine Parks cleverly used the imminent departure of part-time HubBub writer Wayne Wilcox as the catalyst for asking me to be a contributing writer. To coax me, Lorine employed some twisted logic that included quadratic equations, fancy language, and the threat of revealing the color of my underclothes.
Here’s the irony: a couple of years back, when it looked like Patricia Megallon was preparing to serve as our President, I foolishly offered to serve as the HubBub Editor. It was a classic case of letting a friendship get in the way of an intelligent decision. Frankly, I had neither the time, energy, or, as Rich Strayer likes to point out, the talent to put the thing together. Well, we all know how that whole episode turned out – Patricia backed out due to some dubious claim of alien abduction (come on, the guy was only from Nicaragua), I realized that my HubBub offer was cancelled, and I had dodged a serious bullet.
But, truth be told, I was pleased to be asked to contribute. Lorine has told me that she’s given me lots of latitude, and as soon as I find out what “latitude” means, I’ll let you know if that’s a good thing.
My primary goal in this column is to educate, inform, and prompt Rotary introspection and civil discourse. And, of course, expect a bathroom joke here and there.
See ‘ya.
***
LAST WORD FROM LORINE:
FYI, Ray:
lat·i·tude
ˈladəˌt(y)o͞od
noun: latitude;
1.
the angular distance of a place north or south of the earth's equator, or of a celestial object north or south of the celestial equator, usually expressed in degrees and minutes.
"at a latitude of 51° N"
synonyms: | parallel "Toronto and Nice are on the same latitude" |
2.
scope for freedom of action or thought.
"journalists have considerable latitude in criticizing public figures"
synonyms: | freedom, scope, leeway, space, breathing space, flexibility, liberty, independence, free rein, license, room to maneuver, elbow room, wiggle room, freedom of action "he gave them a lot of latitude" | ||
antonyms: | restriction | ||