Commentary: Reaching No. 70 was an adventure, for sure

Commentary by Doug Spoon, Editor

There was a time about a year ago that I wasn’t sure I would live to see this day.

On June 6, 2024, I underwent quadruple bypass heart surgery at Temecula Valley Hospital. It was a shock, to be sure. I hadn’t had a heart attack, but it was getting close. I went to ER with pressure in my chest and tests revealed the blockages. Hours later, I was in the operating room.

In the weeks that followed, I thought of my father, who died of heart disease at age 69. How old was I at the time? 69. I looked back on my life, at the fun times as a young man, when I covered the Dodgers for the San Gabriel Valley Tribune. I thought of all my buddies in the press box back then – many of them now deceased.

Somehow I recovered, despite slipping up on my special diet too often. I started to feel better, but soon my cheat days – usually consisting of a Wendy’s double cheeseburger, chili, coke and a chocolate frosty – became more frequent. My comfort food seemed to take my mind off my troubles.

As time went on, I began to look forward to the milestone I celebrate today – my 70th birthday. Now 70 doesn’t seem “that old” to a lot of people, but I figured it would be quite an accomplishment for me. At least I didn’t die at age 56, like my great great grandfather Henry Spoon. And I didn’t die the way he did.

Through my genealogical research, I learned that Henry was the town drunk in a small town in Indiana in the mid-1800s. He was abusive to his wife and quite a con man around town. Finally, they committed him to the insane asylum (no alcohol rehab back then). One night he tied bedsheets together, threw them out his fourth-floor window like a rope, and tried to escape. He fell to his death instead.

I have lots of crazy ancestors, but that’s a story for another time. Right now, I’m just wondering if I dare start dreaming about birthday No. 75 down the line. A man has to have goals.

Meanwhile, I continue my career as a journalist, now going on my 13th year running the Menifee 24/7 hyperlocal news website and social media. I don’t get around as well as I used to, but I remain determined to provide the kind of local news coverage Menifee residents don’t get anywhere else. I feel a certain obligation – and I’m still having fun doing it.

So while I might seem to move kind of slow these days, my fingers still type pretty fast and I only forget things every once in a while. I would appreciate it if you bear with me and support our little business venture here. It keeps me busy.

And believe me, I’ve never tied bedsheets into a rope in my life. And my bedroom is on the first floor.