Wildfire reactions, play-by-play announcers, more

It's just over a week until Halloween, which means it's time for me to empty my theoretical notebook of column tidbits.

It's a theoretical notebook. I live in a digital world, next door to Max Headroom. So it's not a real notebook, but on to the topics du jour . . .

• The recent nightmarish wildfires reminded us of at least two important things:

• We're more vulnerable to nature's whims than we think.
• Our community still responds well when others are in danger.
• In an era when we often dismiss others for their political views and spend more time creating conflict than resolving it, it was refreshing to see the empathy and help given by all kinds of Northern Californians.

Now we can get back to bickering.

You know, back to normal.

• High five: The greatest play-by-play sportscasters in national TV history.

This requires people who do play-by-play on the national level. For my purposes, the broadcaster must do at least two sports – proving versatility.

5. Joe Buck. Giants fans hate the voice of Fox coverage of Major League Baseball and the NFL, but it's undeserved. Buck isn't perfect, but he tells stories, anticipates drama and captures the moment. Giants fans want a cheerleader and he isn't one. Because he shouldn't be.

4. Keith Jackson. Before he became a little bit of a caricature – "rumblin', bumblin', stumblin!"– Jackson established himself as the voice of college football. He also was the initial play-by-play man on "Monday Night Football," a longtime ABC baseball announcer and was staple on "Wide World of Sports," where he covered cliff diving, demolition derbies and anything else.

3. Curt Gowdy. He was NBC's voice for every major sport in the 1960s and 1970s. A Wyoming native who was a radio play-by-play man for the Boston Red Sox (Wyoming to Boston!), his nasal delivery personified the AFL, Major League Baseball and Saturday afternoon bowling.

2. Bob Costas. A network announcer before he turned 30, Costas was NBC's Olympics host from 1992 until he stepped down from that role this year. Put him behind the microphone for any major sport and he's a fantastic storyteller with a great pace.

1. Al Michaels. The voice of "Monday Night Football" is also America's greatest baseball announcer and has been the play-by-play man for the national NBA games. After 40 years on the air (he was a Giants radio announcer in the mid-1970s before joining ABC), he's still the best. Ever.

• I hate it when actors on TV shows or movies pretend to drive, but look at their passengers when they talk without checking the road. In fact, I yell at my TV: "You're going to crash!" They don't listen, but I'll keep doing it, just in case.

• Similarly, Mrs. Brad has the unusual ability of spotting when people "drink coffee" on TV while using empty paper cups. How hard is it to add water or something, so they don't lift air-filled cups, making it obvious they are empty?

• Yes, we criticize TV shows while we watch them. Just like you.

• In a world where we criticize road planning all the time ("who decided to do that construction now?"), we should acknowledge the job transportation experts did to make the Interstate 680 drive from Concord to Fairfield work better. From the expanded Benicia Bridge to the 680-80 interchange, it's dramatically improved from a decade ago.

• Three foods still remain among my favorites, as they have been in every decade: Pizza, peanut butter and milk.

Reach Brad Stanhope at bradstanhope@hotmail.com.