Congratulations and best wishes to SCV sheriff's Deputy John Thomas Banks on his retirement.

As a recipient of only one of the 30,000 citations he wrote throughout his career in the Santa Clarita Valley, I admit that he is absolutely "by the book" and created (by my rounding-to-the-nearest-dollar mathematics) more than $3 million in revenue for the city I love.

Even more than keeping our streets safe from speeders, illegal turn-makers, and those despicable reckless drivers, he has also created a whole new circle of friends for me. Any time I'm in a committee meeting, standing in those long lines at the post office (that's another story), or waiting to check out at the market, all I need to do is ask, "Who got a ticket from Deputy Banks?" and the stories spew forth like a confessional before Easter.

We are all connected by our weak excuses, inability to wrangle a warning from Deputy Banks, and the unspoken belief that we really did deserve the ticket (except me of course; I was keeping up with traffic).

So, Deputy Banks, enjoy your well-earned retirement, travel, gamble and play with your grandkids. You can revel in the knowledge that I will drive like you're still sitting there on Whites Canyon Road, waiting for me, cross my heart and hope to speed.