Titled Stolen Moments, it deals with people who skirt their usual routine to take new chances, new risks, if only briefly. Three of the stories involve the same three characters.

That provocative threesome: a widowed optometrist, an expelled missionary and an alcoholic physician. Sounds unsettling enough for a number of trilogies. The setting for those pieces is Cambridge, England. Smart has been called an explorer of the human heart in crafting these stories.

She calls them psychological truths. Her first book, also a short story collection, was titled The Green Lantern and Other Stories and dealt mostly with young girls coming of age. Smart, a longtime Saratogan, teaches composition at De Anza College. Stolen Moments is available through the publisher at 1.800.662.8351 or at bookstores.

HOLE-IN-ONE: Tom Seefurth has been playing golf for 45 years with nary a hole-in-one. But that's no longer true. Seefurth sailed 180 yards using a 5 iron at the #8 hole at Whistler Golf Club in Canada—right into the cup. The Canadians were just as jubilant about it as he. Whistler is about a two-hour drive from Vancouver.

So efficient was the Whistler staff that a golf cap, detailing all the statistics, was awaiting Tom when he finished. Back at the clubhouse he bought spirits for all his new-found friends. Witnessing the feat were John Gingerich, John Taughinbaugh and Skip Shaw.

Following close behind were the foursome of wives—Betty Seefurth, Judi Gingerich, Anne Taughinbaugh and Linda Shaw. The couples had teamed up for a golf outing in Canada. "I've never been to such a wonderfully scenic place," enthused the well-traveled Judi.

The Gingeriches, now retired, juggle their time between Los Gatos, Indian Wells and Tahoe. The Taughinbaughs are from Monte Sereno; the Shaws, Saratoga. The men are much more avid golfers than the women, playing several days a week. The wives, however, describe their own ability level as "in transition."

CHARITY BALL BOARD: Silicon Valley Charity Ball Foundation elected Pauline Yore to its board of directors recently. Yore is senior VP of Wells Fargo's private client services. Prior
to that, Yore was with First Financial Planner Services. She joined Wells Fargo in 1994.

She has two sons and is the chairman of The Legacy Awards for 2003. Foundation contacts: 408.260.0594 or website http://www.svcb.org.

REFLECTIONS ON ECONOMY: The Echo Shop on Big Basin Way sells used clothing and household goods and is an entirely volunteer operation started by the Episcopal Church Women of St. Andrews. The money raised goes to 15 different charities, mostly involving women and children.

Donations are down this year, says manager Carol Luetz. But sales are up—by some 10-12 percent. The Echo Shop toted up $53,000 for this fiscal year, compared to $49,000 last year. Does this mean people are hanging onto what they have, instead of looking for something new?

Well, new to them, that is. No one knows, of course, all the reasons that donations are lagging. Usually there are boxes of used clothing in the back room waiting for a place to open up in order to get hanged. This year all the summer goods are out on the floor, with nothing in the back.

On Aug. 23 the shop will have a sidewalk sale, with everything half off. The last week in September the place will close for a week for fall and winter inventory to be set up. And on Oct. 7 an open house will be held, featuring the change in merchandise.

There are 126 volunteers staffing the shop, and about one-third of them are non-church members. They serve four-hour shifts. Echo has been around for 40 years, making it one of the oldest continual businesses in Saratoga. Not open Monday or Sunday. Hours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m., except Saturday, when it closes at 3.

Some of the shop's beneficiaries are Habitat for Humanity, Family Shelter, Star House (for troubled teens), Friends Outside and Santa Maria Urban Ministry.

QUESTIONING THE CHAMBER: Saratoga Chamber of Commerce fields all manner of questions on a daily basis— "What's the weather like down there? (asked by someone freezing in San Francisco who was coming to one of Montalvo's Wednesday lunches and wondered whether to wear wool or linen).

Answer: Linen, preferably with a jacket. Another question that gets asked amazingly often: "Where should I go to propose to my fiancée?" For this one, Carole Atkin, she of the front desk, tries to find out more about the questioner—his budget, what kind of food he heads for, ambiance expected.

Got a tip for Saratoga Sampler? Send email to maryanncook@earthlink.net.