27 NOV 07: SHOWERS OF BLESSING
The Monday night run on the downtown Riverwalk posed a couple of challenges for me - one expected, one unexpected. I expected puddles in some places, and didn't mind them at all. But I didn't plan for leaves to cover the course in spots - as those outdoor prison cleanup crews work bankers' hours.
The puddles and slick leaves resulted from Columbus's biggest day of rain in more than a year. The airport measured two-and-a-half inches of.... no, I refuse to borrow the TV cliche and call it "the wet stuff." Milk and beer can be wet as well, you know.
The big storm was quite a change after months of drought. Enough rain fell to fill some drainage channels - channels which only had water when people illegally turned on sprayers in their yards.
(In fact, it rained so much that I noticed something strange while running along the Chattahoochee River. The river actually seemed to be full of water, from side to side.)
While many people welcomed the rainy day, a few people in downtown Columbus did not. The manager of the 12th Street Deli admitted he relies a lot on walk-in business. He could hire homeless people on rainy days to make delivery runs - but too many office security guards might respond by running background checks.
WRBL spotted pumps operating during the rainstorm at the Columbus State University RiverArts campus. The renovated buildings along Front Avenue had leaks during earlier storms - but you'd think the arts students could have molded some clay to plug in those holes.
The rain fell during morning rush hour, and may have played a factor in a four-car crash on the J.R. Allen Parkway at River Road. I'm told it led to a backup of traffic stretching well into Phenix City - and countless drivers' dreams of kicking up water in another person's windshield were left for another day.
While all the rain was needed and welcomed, Columbus still is about ten inches below normal in rainfall for the year. It's not too late to ask relatives in Texas to ship a sealed bucket of rainwater, as a holiday gift. Maybe you could swap them some leftover pecans....
And while Columbus received more than two inches of rain, Atlanta had less than one inch. But at least for one day, Columbus was able to provide the water for all those poor Florida mussels.
But back to my evening run: even a small rainstorm can leave puddles along the Riverwalk downtown from Tenth to 12th Street. I've learned the best way to protect my running shoes is to take some strides behind park benches, in a mix of sand and mud. The footing actually is better - as long as no dog-walkers have been there before me.
And whether it rains or not, leaves on a running course can be a problem at this time of year. I prefer to have a little traction, instead of possible slickness - so I thank everyone in my neighborhood who rakes or blows the leaves off the sidewalk. The liability lawsuit you save could be your own.
E-MAIL UPDATE: We get all sorts of questions, but we don't guarantee answers....
What do you know about the Box Springs Junk Yard shooting ?
X BOC member shoots copper thief !
I passed on this question to someone who's a local news professional - and I was told Talbot County authorities knew nothing about a shooting in Box Springs either Saturday or Sunday. But maybe this shooting happened in mid-October, and the news is spreading only now.
A check on the web site of Talbot County's "Concerned Citizens for Responsible Government" also offered no information about a shooting in Box Springs. In fact, the "Community Forum" message board which used to be there apparently is gone. And when Geneva Day is being promoted six months after the fact, you almost wonder if the citizens' group is gone as well.
I assume "X BOC" refers to a former member of the Talbot County Board of Commissioners. Either that, or Box Springs has a video game club I never knew about before....
Now for some news we could confirm from Monday:
+ Ten months after losing a leg to a hit-and-run driver in Florida, Columbus resident Elonda Floyd said someone stole a motorized wheelchair from her driveway. C'mon folks - if you want to start a racing league against the residents at The Ralston, go buy your own chairs.
(The good news is that between two TV stations, Elonda Floyd now has FOUR offers of donated replacement wheelchairs. Now if someone will kindly donate chains for tying them to a fence....)
+ The national touring company of "Cats" opened two nights of performances at the RiverCenter. Smart local gamblers should have sensed a sign here -- and bet on the Carver High School Tigers, Auburn Tigers, Clemson Tigers and Missouri Tigers to win their football games last weekend.
+ Georgia Tech head football coach Chan Gailey was fired. Only a year ago, Gailey had the Yellowjackets within one game of the Bowl Championship Series. Of course, this year he came one game short again - the Georgia game.
(Georgia Tech probably will go to its sixth bowl game in a row, and it never had a losing record under Coach Chan Gailey. But WRBL noted he never had more than eight wins in a season - so I guess away from a casino, you CAN roll seven too often.)
+ Texas A&M hired Mike Sherman as its new head football coach. So what's the next rumor about Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville? Are we going to try to send him back to Mississippi?
+ Instant Message to Lux Day Spa on Summerville Road in Phenix City: Wow - am I ever surprised! You actually outlasted the liquor store, which used to be next door in the shopping center. But I'm also surprised your pampered customers didn't buy enough food to keep Blimpie in business.
THE BLOG OF AMERICA: Contract talks resumed Monday to end the Writers' Guild strike. The writers have good reason to end this quickly. Not because they're short on money - but because the Presidential campaign talk is becoming too interesting to avoid joking about.
NBC is getting so desperate that Monday night's "Tonight Show" was a rerun from 1992. It was quite a contrast to the 2007 edition - back when Jay Leno was light, and the band music was heavy.
(At least I think that was Jay Leno. He looked so much like WLTZ's Miller Robson that NBC-38 may be trying something new, to follow their late news.)
+ The Barack Obama Presidential campaign announced Oprah Winfrey will begin making campaign appearances next week - prompting countless Democrats to ask, "Why couldn't he be HER running mate?"
(Come to think of it, I don't recall Oprah naming Barack Obama one of her "favorite things" last week....)
+ Democratic opponent John Edwards was shown on the evening news, saying at a campaign stop: "H**l yes, I'm confrontational." That's funny - I thought he wanted U.S. soldiers brought home from Iraq.
+ Another Democratic candidate commented on John Edwards's new tone. Christopher Dodd said he's "surprised at how angry John has become...." Imagine if the Dodd campaign actually had a lot of supporters.
+ This year's Nobel prize winners visited the White House - and Peace Prize recipient Al Gore had a short private meeting with President Bush. Or as White House aides called it privately: "An Inconvenient Photo-Op."
+ Doctors diagnosed Vice President Cheney as having an irregular heartbeat. Perhaps we shouldn't be surprised - because it now matches his irregular appearances in public.
+ Senator Trent Lott of Mississippi announced he'll resign from Congress by the end of the year. Yeah, right. We'll believe that the day Senator Larry Craig helps load his moving van.
+ Former world chess champion Garry Kasparov was jailed in Russia, for publicly opposing Vladimir Putin's government. Other government opponents were arrested as well - so Kasparov is surrounded by plenty of checked mates.
+ An evangelist from the Philippines unveiled the world's largest flag. It's an Israeli national flag, more than 700 yards long and weighing more than five tons. This flag may be too big for even the entire staff of Fox News Channel to wave.
+ Several colleges changed football coaches, including the firing of Duke's Ted Roof. Duke was 1-11 this season - and things were SO BAD that this team couldn't even beat Notre Dame.
(Later in the day, Houston Nutt resigned as head coach at Arkansas. This should be an interesting listing in the classifieds - "Wanted: Replacement for a real Nutt job.")
+ Police confirmed the winner of the Miss Puerto Rico beauty pageant had an evening gown covered with pepper spray. So which contestant listed her talent as "Tasering?"
+ A British tabloid published a picture of Paul McCartney with Rosanna Arquette. If she is McCartney's new love, he faces a big problem - because Toto had a hit song about "Rosanna" more than ten years ago.
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