A little bit about a lot of things:

• Happy to see that school drama departments are in full swing at Gustine High School and in the  Newman-Crows Landing Unified School District.

Murder and intrigue are on the menu at Gustine High this week, when the Agatha Christie classic, “The Mousetrap,” opens under the direction of John Burgess. In the Newman-Crows Landing district, auditions for a K-12 production are slated for next week.

Theatre can be a powerful experience for students....one of those activities which can prove truly enriching for a young person.

We have been blessed to have had many theatrical opportunities for area youngsters, made possible by talented community members such as the late Dennis Soares, and continuing through the West Side Theatre Foundation and its devoted cast of volunteers, led by Farris and David Larsen.

There is nothing quite like the opportunity to perform on stage. One of the magical things about the theatre is the transformation that occurs as cast members step into character and shine.

I had the privilege of being part of my junior and senior class plays, and also enjoyed playing roles in two community theatre shows directed by former Newman resident Louisa Hart (hard to believe that’s been some 20 years ago!).

A lot of hard work, commitment and discipline goes into being part of a show – with plenty of room to have a great time along the way.

Those were among the lessons I learned taking part in plays – something that I had to convince myself I could do, but loved once I got over the initial jitters – and are experiences that are long remembered.

• You don’t see this every Super Sunday.....the Super Bowl game was far more entertaining than the commercials, which with a few exceptions didn’t seem very inspiring.

Among my favorites were the Clydesdale earning a spot on the Anheuser-Busch team by training with the assistance of a Dalmation, the FedEx commercial in which a corporate employee unwisely decides that over-sized carrier pigeons were the answer to his firm’s shipping problems and the Doritos mousetrap commercial in which a giant mouse bursts through the wall and flattens the the man who had tried to entice the rodent from its hole with a tiny chip placed on a trip.

Many of the commercials, though, I found imminently forgettable.....but fortunately for football fans the game itself will go down as an instant classic!!!

• Good news indeed.....we’re always happy to share the successes of our school districts, and extend our congratulations to the academic decathlon team at Gustine High for leading the small-schools field and placed third overall in the Merced County....for a second straight year. Job well done!

• One of Gustine’s “can’t miss” events is on tap (literally) this weekend, when the Gustine Rotary Club hosts its annual Hops & Bangers Fest. Between the dozens of beers being served up and the wide variety of Wolfsen’s sausage on the menu, Saturday’s festivities promise to be a memorable evening. Organizers have made good on their promise to limit ticket sales this year to avoid overcrowding and the event sold out two weeks ago - making the Hops & Bangers literally the hottest ticket in town this week.

• The rivalry between Orestimba and Gustine goes back for generations....but doesn’t prevent a spirit of cooperation from sometimes surfacing.

The relationship between the wrestling teams of the two schools, say those close to the programs, is one of cooperation as well as competition – which is exactly how it should be.

With both squads a little short-handed this year, wrestlers from both teams competed as one when North Highlands visited Gustine High last week.

We’re told that Warrior wrestlers sometimes join their Gustine counterparts for some extra practice time, and that at tournaments the wrestlers and coaches from the two schools root for and help one another (when, of course, they’re not wrestling against each other).

That’s a great experience for the kids – not to mention a wonderful life lesson.

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