It's easy for the Top Hatters to do,

No money for community groups,

And no fun in July, too …

Don't know why that came to mind while contemplating the 6-5 decision, by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco issued Wednesday that stamped the right of our own Garlic Festival to forbid the wearing of colors or, in this particular case, to ban insignia-wearing members of the Top Hat Motorcycle Club from entering the festival in 2000. Yep, eight long years ago … what a waste of taxpayer money, not to mention the $100K plus the festival had to spend to defend itself. Way to go Top Hatters. It's funny how motorcycle club members assert their fierce "independence" - they all have to dress the same. But it's ludicrous to think that grown men don't understand that the Garlic Festival just wants to have a peaceful event and that vests displaying a skull, wings and top hat - no matter how mellow the guys wearing them are acting - could set off an incident. And it only takes one or two incidents to ruin something that this community has spent more than 30 years nurturing and supporting. To claim this is a free speech issue only diminishes other worthy causes. And by the way, if you can't get a free speech argument past the Ninth Circuit Court in SF, you really ought to pack up your skulls and wings and go home.

Home is a comfortable place and homey indeed describes the Morgan Hill Tobacco Company. It's very much a Cheers-like atmosphere, recalling the friendly aura of the famous TV tavern show. Owner Wyatt Miller sets the tone, and Wednesday evening he set up a history and business lesson. A few folks representing Davidoff cigars came and presented a fascinating slide show on the company's late founder, Zino Davidoff, whose family fled Russia and the rising tide of anti-Semitism before setting up a shop in Geneva, Switzerland. Besides being treated to a marvelous cigar, a Davidoff Classic No. 8, the audience heard from a most eloquent and gracious man, Raymond Scheurer, who spoke about his friend Zino Davidoff and imparted some of his simple tenets of life and business. I would recommend anyone who enjoys good company and a good cigar to visit the Cheers on Morgan Hill's main street. And before you decry my cigar smoking remember what Abraham Lincoln said, "It has been my experience that folks who have no vices, have very few virtues."

No virtue in this story, but some humor perhaps ... commenting on the fact that Brownell Middle School students weren't given textbooks for a week after school started, J.B. Confucius says, "If you're a basketball coach the first thing you ask is, 'Where are the basketballs?' Textbooks are kind of a basic thing for school … right?" Oh well, what's a whole week wasted …

Food for thought: Upon hearing the news from Gavilan College that the newly remodeled cafeteria wouldn't open on time for the school year, Mr. J.B. Confucius uttered this profoundity: " 'Tis better to have a sack lunch and backpack of textbooks than to have a full belly packed with food and no source for knowledge."

Word is Steve Emick and Dave Ramos are running the Gavilan cafeteria show and that has my mouth watering and me wondering whether I'll be able to hop on up to the Gav College campus and score some of that sausage bread Steve used to make when he had his restaurant on First Street, Vitale's Scandal where the second most famous Gilroy bread was made … first place still belongs to the old Pirozzoli Bakery ... and, yes, we're still waiting for Economic Development Director Al Pinheiro, er, I mean Larry Cope, to land a bakery for downtown Gilroy. That way we can mix the smell of roasting coffee from Sue's with the aroma of freshly baked bread …

While we're on the subject of Sue's, you have to love the chalkboard sign in the window: "Have you told your troubles to your barista today?" Patiently I waited in z latte line, and told the lovely and always engaging Karen Fortino that I had not. A hearty laugh greeted me. "That's not me - I don't care - it's the guy on the next shift you want …"

BTW, you can double up on Fortino fun, by grabbing a cup of Joe at Sue's in the morning and heading to John Karas' consistently spot-on diner, the Sunrise Cafe on south Monterey by the Hilton Garden Inn for lunch where you'll find the always engaging sister of Karen, Sandy. Yep, she's a dandy, too …

And, it's not necessarily dandy, but it's fitting to grab the microphone and announce a statewide award for The Dispatch in the category of Ag Resource/ Environmental Reporting for our stories related to the spill of garlic-tainted wastewater from Christopher Ranch into Uvas Creek. It's only fitting, tongue-in-cheek, because Bill Christopher gave yours truly such a hard time at the Ranch's annual garlic industry/Garlic Festival celebration dinner. The creek is fine now, but those steelhead sure taste like garlic (Cheers Herman, just kidding) …

Mark Derry Mark Derry is the executive editor of the Gilroy Dispatch. Reach him at (408)847-7010 or editor@garlic.com.