19 DEC 06: WAIT TILL THE MIDNIGHT HOUR
Have you made plans yet for the start of 2007? Before you accuse me of trying to rush past Christmas, keep something in mind. Bill Heard started an "after-Christmas sale" more than a week ago.
Some Columbus bar owners aren't sure what to think about the start of this coming year. That's because December 31 is on a Sunday - a day when bars must be closed. In some places, this is called a "blue law." And that's how tavern owners feel about it....
Since bars in Columbus cannot be open on Sunday nights, some downtown clubs are changing their strategy this year. They plan to open at 12:01 a.m. Monday -- one minute after midnight. This is one time when it pays for them to be close to Alabama. They'll probably count down to the new year in Central Time.
But restaurants which serve food and alcohol have an advantage this year. They can open in the afternoon, and stay open well after midnight -- so you can have two or three last fattening burgers, before starting on that resolution to lose weight.
(Of course, if you REALLY have a resolution to lose weight, you won't be drinking at midnight. You'll order a pitcher of fruit juice or diet cola, right?!)
Terri Hogg of the Uptown Tap said Monday she hoped Columbus city officials would make an exception, and let bars be open that Sunday night. Of course, smokers are liable to show up around 9:00 p.m. -- and puff away on the sidewalk as usual.
Columbus city officials are showing a bit of mercy on bars and clubs, with New Year's Eve falling on a Sunday night. They'll be allowed to stay open extra-late, until 4:00 a.m. Let's hope Waffle Houses serve the SafetyCab drivers free coffee all night....
In a way, I can see an advantage to bars not opening for business until after midnight. The staff will be able to check for fireworks at the door - and no one will have a reason to bring any inside to light them.
But the places which are most likely to hit the jackpot December 31 are Phenix City stores which sell alcohol. They can do that legally on Sunday, while Columbus stores can't. So when will the police checkpoint on the 13th Street Bridge start - 3:00 p.m. or 6:00 p.m.?
Some people might be tempted to go "whole-hog Alabama" on that Sunday - picking up not only alcohol for New Year's, but fireworks as well. My latest American Town Marketing envelope actually had a coupon for a free pack of fireworks, at a store just outside Phenix City. That should outdo my neighbors' Christmas lights once and for all....
Big Mama's Fireworks SuperCenter promises in its mailing to be open until midnight from December 28-31. They're open extra-late four days - as if people are going to wrap bottle rockets, and give them as Kwanza presents.
The coupon mailing also informs you that Big Mama's Fireworks is the "closest fireworks store to the GA. state line." We all know you can't set off fireworks in Georgia except for small sparklers - so what's the point of mentioning that? Do Auburn football fans plan to get even for that loss a few weeks ago?
E-MAIL UPDATE: A reader wants us to head back to the Luverne Apartments on Old Cusseta Road:
Dick,
Why no mention [15 Dec] that it was WTVM that reported the rumor the CPD caused the fire? Conflict of interest maybe??? Maybe the "News Leader" (and i used the term loosely) should have better oversight in the newsroom. I thought journalism was based on fact, not opinion. Did Iler not learn that in J-school? What am I saying? She thinks the GBI is in Greenville, SC. Good to talk to you again. Cheers!
AR
Well, hold on here. Was it really a "rumor?" The woman I saw on WTVM's evening news last week actually was making an accusation - and claiming police did it directly to her. That's like Jim Wetherington spreading a "rumor" outside the Government Center that he's running for mayor.
I agree that journalism should be "based on fact, not opinion." But there are many times when people have different opinions about what the facts are. Or have we forgotten the "facts" about Iraq having hidden weapons of mass destruction?
Sometimes it takes time to sort out facts from opinion - and that well could happen with this fire on Old Cusseta Road. If you never hear about it again, I suppose that means there really was a grease fire on a stove. But if Al Sharpton shows up at the complex with Kenneth Walker's mother complaining about police recklessness, maybe not....
Our Monday reference to a Ledger-Enquirer columnist and something she wrote over the weekend also brought a response:
After her Soundoff column I wrote the L-E suggesting they create a new position for her as "CENSOR" or 'THOUGHT POLICE" over the SOUNDOFF or LETTERS TO THE EDITOR, sections of the paper. That way she could eliminate all the letters that she does not agree with and end all this controversy.
Do you think they will print my SOUNDOFF?
A few years ago the L-E ran some television ads featuring, Kaffie, Sandra Okamoto, Billy Winn and one other reporter whos name escapes me.
After watching those commercials it was evident why they are print rather than TV journalists.
Whether newspapers want to admit it or not, they all engage in censorship to some extent. For instance, they only publish one person's view of the horoscope every day.
This writer may not be aware that the Ledger-Enquirer has been running TV commercials over the last few weeks. Several staff members talk on+ camera. Others look like they're cardboard cutouts - and I hope those aren't being used to inflate the paper's circulation.
But here's what struck me about Kaffie Sledge's column. She complained about the Sound Off feature, which appears in her own newspaper. The amazing thing to me is -- as far as I know, she still has a job with the Ledger-Enquirer today.
Really now -- if you complained about a decision at your workplace to tens of thousands of customers, as Kaffie Sledge did last Saturday, would YOU still be on your boss's payroll? Well, unless you're a professional athlete who's not touching the ball enough....
We left our sound ON during the day Monday, and here's what we learned:
+ The high temperature in Columbus was a near-record 76 degrees F. Some shoppers complained to WRBL it doesn't feel like Christmas. So? They still celebrate it in Australia, and it's the start of summer there.
+ Post offices across Columbus had long lines, on the busiest mailing day of the year. The lines were SO LONG that customers had time to compare everyone around them with the F.B.I. "wanted posters."
+ Stewart County Manager Mac Moye told WRBL there's a new threat to close the Lumpkin Public Library. A drug deal reportedly took place there in recent weeks. So isn't there an easy solution to this? Arrest the suspects when the drugs are up for renewal.
+ Jack Fisher pitched a tent inside a cage outside the Auburn Kroger store. It's an annual stunt to raise money for the Lee County Humane Society. We hope no pro wrestlers show up, and challenge him to a Texas Death Match.
+ ESPN Radio host Colin Cowherd declared Jim Mora "done" as Atlanta Falcons head coach. The last straw may have come Friday, when Mora told a Seattle radio station he'd like to coach at the University of Washington someday. Hey coach! Alabama's open right now, with a smaller moving bill.
+ Meanwhile, the National Football League fined Dallas's Terrell Owens $35,000 for spitting on an Atlanta player Saturday night. Compared to the $10,000 "finger fine" Michael Vick received in November, there's an obvious lesson here for all ages. It's what comes from inside you that really counts.
+ Atlanta radio station WLTM-FM switched from "light rock" music to country, and started calling itself "The Bull." The station at FM-95 used to be WPCH, doing wonderful features about "this Peach of a city." Now Atlanta has become.... well, you know....
2006 IN REVIEW CONTINUED: February began with a big party at Auburn University, making the campus's 150th anniversary. To be honest, I don't think trustee Bobby Lowder looks a day over 60....
But the Auburn city council made a change in February, deciding to release City Manager David Watkins. Watkins was making $70,000 more in salary than Isaiah Hugley in Columbus - so at least THEIR traffic fines were collected.
The Russell County Jail had a shakeup in February, after several inmates escaped for days. Two jailers were fired. Three jailers resigned. And who knows how many of them called county commissioners, to lobby against that big pay raise?!
Meanwhile, the Russell County Constable warned in February Hurtsboro was becoming a "disaster area" due to crime. Since then, the only grocery store in town has closed in the wake of a robbery. And if anyone tries to reopen "Big Town Foods," he or she might have to remove the "big" part.
Members of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals staged a protest in Columbus in February. They stood outside a KFC restaurant, and handed out fliers while wearing yellow bikinis. I'm not sure if they were more concerned about the handling of chickens, or global warming.
February was a big month in Phenix City, as a section of 13th Street and Crawford Road was renamed "Freddie Hart Parkway." Only a day later, Brad Paisley and Sara Evans performed at the Columbus Civic Center - and I suspect most of the country music fans there had no idea who Freddie Hart is.
(Local country music fans can tell their grandchildren someday: Sara Evans was in Columbus, long before ballroom dancing ruined her marriage.)
A longtime religious store announced plans to close in February - but then something happened to the Mustard Seed. It gained new owners, moved to the other side of Airport Thruway and reopened as "The Sanctuary." The people who ran Que Pasa Burrito Company must have been real sinners....
On the other hand, the Georgia Lottery ended the "Lotto South" game in February. It's been replaced by one called "Win for Life" - and considering WRBL never shows the twice-weekly drawings, it may be on life-support.
State legislatures were in session during February, doing all sorts of important things. For instance, Georgia lawmakers discussed creating an official "state dirt." Republican efforts to pin this title on Mark Taylor were defeated.
African-American History Month took a sad turn in February, with the death of Coretta Scott King. Her memorial service in metro Atlanta lasted nearly six hours - and imagine how long it would have lasted if Bill Clinton hadn't trimmed his speech.
The Columbus radio team "Duke and the Doctor" did a week of programs from Israel during February. At last, they justified having their daily program on a "Southern gospel" music station.
A new pro sports team premiered in Columbus during February, as the Chattahoochee Valley Vipers played indoor football. Too bad the accounting staff was too busy playing paper football, and not paying their bills....
Power Frisbee was announced in February -- but the web site is scheduled to expire Wednesday. Click here for a last look.
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