John Derby 52 posts 0 comments

Currently retired and living on the shores of Mexico, John Derby is the founder of the Merced County Times and Mid-Valley Publications. He is currently enjoying his time away from the newsroom he developed in 1964 by sailing through the waters south of the border while continuing to write his weekly From Ship to Shore column and other articles of interest to the readers of Mid Valley Publications' newspapers.

Outdoors

First Race Of The Season Held At Lake Yosemite

John Derby Jun 4, 2021

The ranks were thin as the sailors at Lake Yosemite turned out for the first race of the season. These people were members of the Lake Yosemite Sailng Association (LYSA). Plans were in place to have permanent race buoys by the first race but those plans were dashed as the buoys ended up in Fresno, but made it no further. The…

Insights and Opinions

Time To Get Rid Of Lawn Grass Here In The Valley

John Derby May 14, 2021

Our valley is looking at 41 percent of the normal rain fall this year, and yet we continue to water our beautiful grass lawns. Remember, this land we…

Insights and Opinions

Paradise, California On The Comeback

John Derby May 8, 2021

Paradise, California is like a moonscape. It has been more than two and half years since the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California’s…

Insights and Opinions

Fire Season In California, Same As In The Past, Only Worse

John Derby May 6, 2021

With 41 percent of the normal rainfall in most areas of California, what are we looking at this fire season? The same as the past, only worse. There are no new plans for handling the fires in California. More men and women, more machinery, more money, but no real change in the approach to forest management. Why should Cal Fire change ……

Insights and Opinions

Experiencing The Very Place Where Lincoln Walked The Earth

John Derby Apr 12, 2021

EDITOR’S NOTE: Publisher John Derby drove more than 4,000 miles in less than a week to be with his sister for her 88 birthday and present in Illinois for…

Insights and Opinions

The Great Road Race: Mexico To Morton, IL.

John Derby Apr 6, 2021

They said it was a crazy idea, and they were probably correct. How could anyone drive from Bahia Conception, three quarters the way down the Baja…

Insights and Opinions

Things Never Get Better At U.S.-Mexico Border Crossing

John Derby Mar 30, 2021

After waiting almost three hours at the border crossing in Tijuana, I decided to try a different approach. I parked my vehicle, and walked across the border into Mexico. Many people do this on a daily basis; however, since COVID-19 hit, this border walk has been closed most days. This day it was open, in fact it was a special day as I…

Insights and Opinions

We Are All Immigrants

John Derby Mar 23, 2021

I wonder what my grandfather would have thought as he came from Ireland in 1875. He did not land at Ellis Island because he was sponsored. He in turn…

Insights and Opinions

How To Make 30 People Smile With Gov’t Money

John Derby Mar 15, 2021

When the $600 prepaid debit card arrived, I did not know what to do with it. I did not ask for it. I did not need it. And I felt like it was some kind of…

Insights and Opinions

Why is it so important to teach Merced’s children to read?

John Derby Mar 5, 2021

Years ago, when I was a child of 7, my parents sent me away to a military school in  Tennessee, and I was never taught how to read. I dreaded getting up in class and being told to read out loud. The other children would laugh and make fun of me. I literally hated to read, and everything about books. Both my parents were well-educated…

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