26 DEC 04: JUST ENOUGH FOR THE CITY

Before we get to our topic -- BREAKING NEWS: The Columbus area is in a "winter weather advisory" for Sunday morning. We mention it here because hardly any TV station had a newscast Saturday night, to get you scared out of your wits about it.

Some meteorologists like to call the freezing rain, sleet and light snow a "wintry mix." Some of us can remember when that referred to a snack made with Chex cereal.

If you want snow in Columbus, hurry to Springer Street while you can. A family drove home from Louisville, with 700 pounds of snow in the back of their pickup truck! [True/WRBL] Be thankful you didn't have to drive behind that truck -- especially in the windswept mountains of middle Tennessee.

But to our topic -- nothing makes any city look more like a ghost town than December 25. The streets of Columbus barely had any cars Saturday. Almost every parking lot was empty. Even the church group I attend only had half the usual turnout. Does that always happen when a Pastor is out of town?

To be honest, several members of our congregation were at a special church "Winter Weekend." It was held in Louisville, Kentucky - so I hope they're happy with the big pile of snow they're driving through.

A couple in our congregation announced last week we'd have a potluck dinner after church this weekend - then took it back a couple of minutes later, then told people privately they could bring food if they wanted. I've never had a stealth supper quite like this....

Trouble is, the couple which arranged this meal never showed up Saturday. I brought dessert for the occasion, but was pressed into other duties at church and never even pulled it out of the bag. So I wound up with a box full of brownies, and only me to eat them. Being single DOES have advantages.

So with no after-church meal, what was I to do for dinner? In most cities, the only restaurants open on Xmas are the Waffle Houses -- and I know from experience that's when the attendants are most at their wits' ends. They'd like to be scattered, but the crush of customers keeps them covered and smothered.

But thankfully, I stumbled upon a dining alternative this year. It's the new "Buffet City" restaurant at Airport Thruway and Whitesville Road. It shares a shopping center with Caffe Amici and Stevie B's Pizza - so it's the choice for diners who don't have a lot of money, and don't want children running them over.

I told a couple of people at church about Buffet City, noted this Chinese buffet was open on Xmas - and one man responded: "Those Asians will do anything to make a buck...." Didn't this guy pay attention to the sermon on transforming your tongue?

It turns out I went solo to Buffet City - and arriving around 5:15 p.m., I may have beaten the crowd. It offered a holiday buffet for $8.95. "Steaks! Turkey! Ham!" promised the sign at the door. But as it turned out, any resemblance to Ryan's or Golden Corral was purely coincidental....

Buffet City didn't have any noticeable "holiday" displays up, which was fine with me. The only sign of Xmas was faint music on the restaurant's public address system. The couple which planned the church dinner said they didn't want to be bothered with holiday music eating out - so maybe they feared hearing it in the car, as well.

There's a picture of a big city skyline on one of the walls at Buffet City. I think it's Hong Kong - and amazingly, the Chinese Red Army still hasn't taken the "NEC" sign off the top of one of the skyscrapers.

One big selling point for Buffet City is its "Teriyaki Grill." Trouble is, the neon sign on the wall spells it "TERINYAKI." I refuse to blame this on immigrant managers - since Columbus DOES have a big literacy problem.

Yes, Buffet City served three main meats - a ham, a side of beef and a roasted turkey. But you had to carve the meat yourself! So much for Dad trying to avoid embarrassing himself with a carving knife at the dinner table....

Chinese restaurants in Columbus often seem to have some quirks to them - and I found a few at Buffet City:

+ Sushi Pizza. No, I didn't dare try this - but the sushi sure looked a lot like pepperoni.

+ A "Dragon and Phenix Roll." I thought the old mill downtown went by a different name....

+ If there was a "salad bar," I guess it was the area with well-trimmed cucumbers sitting by themselves. Lettuce and tomatoes must cost more than I realized.

I'd certainly go back to Buffet City - but I'd suggest the managers put more Chinese beef entrees in the tables. There were plenty of chicken and shrimp items, along with "Mongolian Pork." This is what happens when Taylor County gets tough against hog farms....

At least the Christmas pressure now is off us for another year. The next time I hear the phrase "big guy," I expect Mark Taylor will announce he's running for Georgia Governor.

2004 IN REVIEW, CONTINUED: June found the heat rising across Columbus. And imagine if there had NOT been a race for Superior Court Judge....

Judge candidates Roxann Daniel and Bobby Peters had a much-discussed debate in June. But it happened on NBC-38's "Rise-n-Shine," so I'm not sure anyone younger than age 55 paid much attention to it.

(I understand WLTZ actually replayed the Rise-n-Shine debate before the July election. Perhaps the second time, they added some gospel singers to keep everyone thinking in a nice way.)

The race for Muscogee County Sheriff became interesting in June, when Ralph Johnson's son was arrested on marijuana charges. Considering what's happened to Adam Johnson since then, I wonder if he's hired Richard Hagler as HIS attorney, too.

June was primary election month in Alabama - and I think Senator Richard Shelby spent about $500 to win renomination. Whatever the filing fee was....

U.S. Senate candidates came to Columbus in late June for a debate. But Johnny Isakson was a no-show, because (he said) he had a church commitment. I keep waiting for some reporter to sit in on one of the Sunday School classes Isakson's taught all these years.

Some Columbus police officers went to Sea Island in June, to provide security for the "Group of Eight" summit. People there must miss them a lot - because later in the year, Sea Island residents closed all their public roads. [True!]

But Columbus police were on alert later in June, when young Tellious Brown vanished for 24 hours. The boy is now safely back home - and we're a bit surprised civil rights leaders haven't blamed the Sheriff's Department or the District Attorney for not making an arrest in the case.

Auburn University's police department was merged with the city police force in June. It sounds like Columbus civil rights leaders want the same sort of thing to happen now, with the Sheriff's Department coming under Public Safety. So which group will sponsor the Ralph Johnson - Rick Boren winner-take-all wrestling match?

The entire country mourned the death of President Ronald Reagan in June. When his body lay in state, several politicians apparently were allowed to cut in line. What would Mr. Reagan have thought of this? Wasn't his point that politicians should NOT think they're above everybody else?

In early June, your Blog visited the new "Mac Daniel's Burger Park" near 8^th and Veterans Parkway. We wondered back then if McDonald's would try to shut it down over the name. It turns out the restaurant closed even before Fort Benning banned it.

A petition drive was underway in June to shut down another Columbus business. Yet as far as I know, not even a Benning "hit list" has closed the Boom Boom Room.. Maybe if Cottonmouths Coach Jerome "Boom Boom" Bechard spoke out against it....

But a big business opening occurred in Columbus in June - the city's first Krispy Kreme doughnut shop. So how's the competition doing these days? Are other doughnut shops, well, in the hole?

A big bank merger was announced in June, as Wachovia of Charlotte bought out SouthTrust of Birmingham. So I really felt ahead of the curve last week, when Jesse Jackson announced that boycott....

COMING THIS WEEK: Staggered and stunned.... in that order....

To offer a story tip, make a donation or comment on this blog, write me - but be warned, I may post a reply.

If you quote from this in public somewhere, please be polite enough to let me know.

© 2003-04 Richard Burkard, All Rights Reserved.