In this edition:
- Help Shannon finish her "trademark" marathon! 🏁
- A suprise discovery—fabulous courts in Longview, WA 🏓
- A favorite summer poem and memories of Grandma 📚
- Need a net to play outside? Try renting one. 📝
- Pet Pals: Meet Lori & Bill's "Dezi" 🐾
🏁 Help Me Cross the Trademark Finish Line!
I’m in the final lap of securing the official trademark for Joy Crazy™—it's been a two-year saga—and I need your help to cross the finish line! 🏅
Legally, Joy Crazy™ is the "little brand that could" right now. One of the last legal steps is proving that I’ve sold branded products "in commerce."
That’s where you come in!
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will be evaluating my case over the next month, checking that my "mark" is actively being used—meaning real customers are purchasing Joy Crazy™ items. Every t-shirt or pair of shorts you purchase via the Joy Crazy print-on-demand store helps show that Joy Crazy™ isn’t just an idea—it’s a bonified business.
Once the trademark is approved, I will update everything from the temporary ™ trademark symbol to the official ® registered symbol. These will become one-of-a-kind pieces (see photo below) from the early days of Joy Crazy™!
Thanks for being part of this joyful journey—and for helping me finish my "trademark marathon" strong! To purchase items, click the button below. 💛
On the left, I am wearing the Unisex Staple T-shirt in Pink Heather, size large (L). After washing, the t-shirt shrunk just a bit, to a more "fitted" shape, but it still fits my bulky arms just fine and it's a cozy, lightweight material. The Unisex Athletic Shorts in Sport Grey are similar to a "running" short. I wear a women's pant size 12-14 and the unisex size large (L) fits just right.
On the right, I'm wearing the 100% Cotton Unisex Classic Tee in Black, size large (L). It's more of a boxy fit, and a heavier material (haven't washed it yet, but I expect it to shrink a bit, even though they are made using "preshrunk" material). The Unisex Athletic Drawstring Long Shorts, in black have amazingly deep pockets that really hold pickleballs and cell phones well.
▶️ Click to Buy Joy Crazy™ T-Shirts & Shorts
🏓 Unexpected Fun at Clary Pickleball Courts in Longview, WA
Last weekend, we had an impromptu pickleball adventure!
We were staying at McMenamins Kalama Harbor Lodge along the Columbia River when we noticed that the Kalama Harbor waterfront park featured a tennis court with pickleball lines. We invited our friends from Longview to join us for dinner at the lodge and a bit of pickleball. However, with the court already in use, our friends suggested we follow them home instead—to a brand-new pickleball facility nearby.
Shortly before 9 p.m., we pulled up to the well-lit Clary Courts at John Null Park (2650 Pacific Way) in Longview, WA. It’s a recently built nine-court pickleball complex with permanent nets, lined courts, lighting, and even restrooms—free and open to the public.
About three courts were in use when we arrived, so we jumped on the "center court" for a few fast-paced games with the two teen boys we had with us—just ahead of the 10 p.m. lights-out.
The courts are home to the Longview Pickleball Club. We were struck by how well-designed the facility was: plenty of parking, seating for those waiting to play, and an easy detour off the highway for anyone commuting between Portland and Seattle.
I don't often play outside, but at Clary Courts, it was lovely to hear the satisfying pop of outdoor pickleballs echoing as the sun set. The only hiccup that night? It was quite windy (see the nearly horizontal "windsock" in the photo below), which I'll attribute to my team's loss—ha!
Dave (in purple shirt and hat, lower right photo) and I are McMenamins "Tripsters." We visit the different McMenamins locations—each one celebrates local culture, history, and art—to collect McMenamins Passport stamps. I have a feeling we'll be visiting the Kalama Harbor Lodge more often now that we know the Clary Pickleball Courts in Longview, WA are a short 20-minute drive from the hotel.
📚 A Poem, a Grandmother, and a Summer Memory
My grandmother, Florence Diffenderffer, was an avid reader and book collector with a deep appreciation for children’s literature and poetry. A native New Yorker, she was especially proud of having served as assistant to the editor of the Pulitzer Prize–winning New York Herald Tribune.
During visits to her apartment on Roosevelt Island, more often than not, when I opened one of her books, a corresponding New York Times article would slip out from inside the book jacket—lovingly clipped and curated.
One of the many poems she had memorized and often shared at bedtime was “Bed in Summer” by Robert Louis Stevenson. This time of year always brings the poem to mind—and the way my grandma (and my father) would recite it, adding a soft, sing-song rhythm to their voices.
Written over 140 years ago, this poem first appeared in Stevenson’s 1885 collection A Child’s Garden of Verses. A Scottish author, Stevenson is best known for adventure tales like Treasure Island and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
Stevenson has a tender way of capturing the thoughts and feelings of childhood. “Bed in Summer” expresses the "injustice" of being sent to bed while the sky is still light. I too eventually memorized “Bed in Summer” and recited it to my sons when they were young.
Below is the poem—I highly recommend reading it aloud.
Bed in Summer
by Robert Louis Stevenson (1885)
In winter I get up at night
And dress by yellow candlelight.
In summer quite the other way,
I have to go to bed by day.
I have to go to bed and see
The birds still hopping on the tree,
Or hear the grown-up people's feet
Still going past me in the street.
And does it not seem hard to you,
When all the sky is clear and blue,
And I should like so much to play,
To have to go to bed by day?
🛌
📝 Rent a Portable Pickleball Net to Play Outside
If you need a pickleball net to use at an outdoor court, you can rent my net for just $30/week--it includes four paddles!
Click the button below to complete the net rental request form, or find all my forms on JoyCrazy.com.
▶️ Rent a Pickleball Net from Joy Crazy™ today!
🐾 Pet Pals: Meet Dezi - A Big Personality (and a Lion Cut!)
"We never had kids, but have had numerous cats and other critters over the years," share Lori and Bill (see photo inset below), "and Dezi is currently our only pet."
A classic black cat with big yellow eyes, he defies the usual cat stereotypes. “Contrary to the reputation of cats being independent and aloof or unaffectionate, he loves being around us and gets nervous and anxious when we’re not… or [he] hasn’t eaten in the last five minutes.”
Now eight years old, Dezi is “part kitten (still), part border collie.” Dezi loves to retrieve, chase treats, sit on laps, and—especially with Lori—share gentle head butts and nose touches. He’s also a seasoned traveler, having recently joined his humans on car and ferry trips to Vancouver Island, Canada.
Following a couple of surgeries (after “ingesting some things he shouldn’t have”), Dezi now sports a regal “lion’s cut,” which only adds to his charm.
According to Bill, Dezi has "too many nicknames to list and some we can’t repeat."
He adds, "After losing Luci, an older female 'ginger' cat, last year, we are considering adopting another in the near future."
We would love to learn about your Pet Pals!
Click the button below to easily complete the submission form.
▶️ Click to Submit Your Pet's Photo & Story
📣 In the Next Edition:
- A fun night at the Portland Timbers ⚽️
- Got foot pain? Explore new ways to lace up. 👟
- Got jazz? Look who I ran into in my neighborhood! 🎶
- It is my honor to share your pickleball stories!🎤
- Pet Pals: Meet Sailor 🐾
Did you enjoy this Joy Crazy Newsletter?
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The Joy Crazy™ Newsletter is written by Shannon Diffenderffer, M.Ed.,
founder of Joy Crazy™, LLC—a joyful learning community built around pickleball, kindness, and connection.
Through Joy Crazy™ Pickleball classes taught in Portland, Oregon and her online community, Joy Crazy™ Connect, Shannon helps adults—especially those entering a new chapter of life
or living with chronic conditions—become their own "Joy Advocates."
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