It's 43 years, give or take a few.

Bill has said "see ya later" four times this morning before finally pulling out of the driveway on his way to Farragut.

He'll spend the day as emcee and general supporter of the Idaho State Forestry Contest.

He's been with the always competitive program since Day One when the contest had its inaugural gathering at the Ray Delay Farm in Careywood.

When the Delays passed on, the contest eventually moved to its present venue at Farragut State Park.

I would bet that the one constant with the contest is Bill Love. He devotes a lot of time to the event, and I'm sure he's proud of how it has evolved over the years.

It will be a long day, but he will enjoy every minute as he has done for more than 40 years.

The earth is clean this morning and the fields have received some much-needed moisture to boost the growth of grazing grass or hay.

My hose dragging gets to take somewhat of a break this morning, although the deck flowers will need their morning moisture.

It's still a beautiful time as the lilacs are in bloom, along with several other shrubs around the place.

I finally made some progress on the lawn mowing marathon. Just one plot needs mowing now, and maybe the cooler weather will give me a break.

Yesterday I mowed but then the rain started, so I spent part of the afternoon watching a wonderful movie on Netflix.

Sally Field stars in Remarkably Bright Creatures, as does Marcellus, an octopus.

It takes place in Northwest Washington, although it's filmed in the Vancouver area.

Hard to put into words its many layers, all good, some a little sad but more than palatable.

Great acting and scenery to go along with truly a feel-good story.

https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/remarkably-bright-creatures-cast-release-date-photos-news

Thursday Throwbacks: images of past memories from the photo library. Hope you enjoy the collection as much as I enjoy putting it together. It's always fun to remember these times and places and peeps.

Pat, we're going to miss you.

Pat Gooby, on the right, left us last week.

That's his older brother Bob on the left.

It's been a lifetime friendship with Pat and the rest of the Gooby family who lived in our old neighborhood.

I'm sure a lot of folks around the area are just as sad as I am to no longer have Pat, his dandYlions, his brief Daily Bee submissions, his dry sense of humor and his quiet but generous support for and pride in all things good about our community.

I remember hearing from one of Pat's daughters last week, telling me that she and her sister were going to write their dad's obituary.

"I hope we don't miss anything," she wrote.

Bill and I both agreed that the obituary should be about two sentences long---just like Pat's occasional letters to the paper.

Well, I see this morning that it's a little longer than those but not much.

Nonetheless, Pat's life in Goobyville was full---enough to fill a book, but I'm sure, in his customary manner, he's happy that they kept it short.

One consolation: there are enough dandelions in this world each year to remind us of Pat many times over.

Thanks for all the memories, old friend.

You will be missed.

I dedicate this song to you.

Patrick Stanley Gooby

| May 14, 2026 1:00 AM

Patrick Stanley Gooby, AKA The Dandelion King, passed away May 5, 2026, at the family farm.

Pat was born Dec. 19, 1940, to Dorothy and Basil Gooby, at the old Bonner General Hospital.

He often boasted of his adventurous childhood and how blessed he was to have grown up in Sandpoint on the farm, doing chores, hunting, fishing, helping out at the County Poor Farm, etc.

He grew into an industrious adult and worked at the family business for 30 years, drove school bus, raised Christmas trees, became a Realtor, and had a storage company. He made many friends along the way.

Pat is survived by three daughters, Ann Dutson-Sater (John), Kali Horvath and Patty Lowrey (Ron); a son, Paul Pavone (Juli); two brothers, Bob Gooby and Richard Gooby (Maryann); and nine grandchildren, and 18 great-grandchildren.