Slight Detour: Friday Night Lights and Delights

A delightful addendum to our attendance at last night's Gonzaga-Eastern Washington University women's game started at the end of the third quarter.

Gonzaga women were adding to a substantial lead over the Eastern Washington Eagles.

Meanwhile, Sandpoint's Grace Kirscher, an Eagles starter, kept hitting 3's. With almost every basket, I would text Willie and Debbie to let them know how Grace was doing.

After all, she's a former Bulldog, who was playing when Willie started coaching girls basketball at SHS.

---EWU Photo

The SHS Bulldog coaching staff is proud that two of their alums are playing college ball in the Big Sky Conference, and that they are key players on their team.

For the record, by game's end, Grace scored 15 points to lead the Eagles' effort against a strong ZAGS team (84-44).

She also led all scoring between the two teams.

Twas a lot to be proud of for all Sandpoint fans who have watched Grace's progression as a talented player and, for Bill and me, it was a special treat for us to see her in action.

Well, as suggested earlier, in the midst of all this basketball action, a blizzard of verbal exchanges suddenly began in the stands in the third quarter.

Bill had introduced Dick and Ginger to me as we took our seats just minutes before the game.

In that third quarter, I noticed that he and Ginger were conversing about her roots.

When I heard "Sandpoint," my ears perked up.

"Where did you live?"

"The old highway," she began.

Then, the band began to play. I heard only bits and pieces as I tried listening over two men in between us.

"Before the Byway . . . "

"Was it the Bonners Ferry highway," I asked, interrupting Ginger.

In between the music, I did hear "the hippy place with the tie dye."

"Oh, I know that place . . . one of our extended family members grew up there," I yelled, trying to outdo the band and the crowd noise.

Suddenly, the game seemed like a distraction to this burst of neighborhood familiarity.

I will have to admit that Grace probably lobbed another basket while Ginger and I shot family factoids back and forth as Bill and Dick happily listened and chimed in when appropriate.

Turns out Ginger and I had a LOT in common, including Barney Deubal and Harold Tibbs, old hunting friends and our mothers Jean Deubal Mace and Virginia Tibbs, both artists.

Heck, even the old, old donkey at Jean Mace's art gallery near Naples got included in the large cast of characters we both know.

When I mentioned seeing the donkey in the field last week while driving by and noticing that it was getting pretty old, Ginger used sign language to indicate just how old.

Back and forth action erupting so fast by then that Bill and I couldn't agree on just how many fingers she put up, but we know the old guy is over 30.

When we finally came up for air after blurting out mutually known names like Angie Deubal and Linda Deubal and Laura Deubal Crain, Nancy Renk, Tracy Iverson, Linda Alt, etc., it was well into the fourth quarter.

The ZAGS were doing A-okay without our help, and, yes, Grace had scored another basket. We each took photos with our cell phones to document this momentous meeting of longtime family friends and connections.

And, so, it was a good night, filled with delights and the bright lights of the big city where the ZAGS have done yet one more good thing----united Ginger and I and our local historical connections.

Ginger graduated from Bonners Ferry High School in 1966, which means we have several more friends in common, and it's possible our paths crossed briefly way back when she lived in Houston Hall and I lived in Carter Hall at the University of Idaho's Wallace Complex.

My new BFF Ginger eventually met Dick, a Memphis native, when he was in Spokane with the Air Force. She also worked at Gonzaga and earned her degree there. Like her mother, she is an extremely talented artist.

I think both Bill and Dick enjoyed the sudden burst of familiarity, but I'm betting that if both couples attend another women's ZAGS game, there could be some seating rearrangements so women can talk and men can watch the game!

Lotta meaningful history got covered last night as the band and the teams played on.

And, when we both looked at Facebook after the game, a lot of what we shared was validated by one of Ginger's family members:

Linda Rose Deubel Hoffman Mary Ann, it's you. FYI, Ginger, her brother Mike and I started school at Lincoln in the 1st grade. I am also friends with Mary, his wife. I have all the books Mary Ann wrote. Love them all. Dad was friends with their Dad Harold Tibbs. Lots of connections.

It was a stunningly beautiful drive to Spokane yesterday, even with the fog which had enveloped the city by early evening and held tight.

And, little did we know that the best was yet to come, thanks to the ZAGS, to Grace and to Ginger and Dick Collins.

Great night, indeed.