7 DEC 07: FURR-OCIOUS
It's only a half-day at school, for students at Carver High -- and the football team already left town Thursday. Somewhere in Columbus, State Senator Seth Harp must be shaking his head in frustration....
The schedule changes are due to Carver High School playing in the Georgia AAA football semifinals at the Georgia Dome. The Tigers made it to Atlanta for the second year in a row - which is more than some people are giving Falcons coach Bobby Petrino right now.
Carver's football team is unbeaten, and that meant beating some quality teams. The Tigers won a showdown with LaGrange, and got even for last year's playoff loss to Shaw. About its only setback was NOT permanently ruining the morale of Spencer's team.
Carver is led into the semifinals by two senior stars on offense. One is quarterback DeRon Furr. It's only fitting that someone named Furr plays for the Tigers. If he played for Jordan, a "Furr Jacket" might inspire animal rights protests.
Another senior star for Carver is wide receiver Jarmon Fortson. Both Furr and Fortson are committed to play college football at Auburn - so hopefully no one will mind if fans rename U.S. 280 Fortson Road.
Carver has dominated the competition this season, with only two teams coming as close as nine points. Several wins have been by 35 points or more. I keep waiting for someone to accuse Coach Dell McGee of acting like Bill Belicheck, and running up the score....
Carver is coming off its closest test, a 14-7 quarterfinal win last Friday night over Carrollton. The Tigers hurt themselves by picking up 13 penalties for 107 yards. If they keep bringing that many yellow flags, Carver might pick up YellaWood as a home game sponsor.
There's a sign outside the Carver High School locker room which tells the team: "Be a hammer, not a nail." If I played football, this sign would confuse me. Aren't defensive players praised for "nailing" their opponents with a tackle?
Carver's competition today comes from Chamblee High School. As a former metro Atlanta resident, I can tell you Chamblee is a nondescript suburb north of Interstate 285 - where the people are probably thankful former Rep. Cynthia McKinney lived next door in Dunwoody.
The Georgia High School Association had some mercy on Carver and its fans this year. The kickoff time at the Georgia Dome is 3:00 p.m. ET, as opposed to last year's 9:00 a.m. game against Shaw. So students at other high schools will only have to skip the last hour of classes, and not the entire day....
E-MAIL UPDATE: I planned to make some calls on this one before posting it, but a TV station has forced my hand....
Sir Richard:
Congrats on your coverage in the Ledger/Enquirer! First it was Texas - and now our leading newspaper. Where will it ever stop?
Just thought I would bring you up to speed on a couple of things. First; McVay has dodged the bullet until January - no surprise.
Next, I'm told by a reliable source (you better check it out) that the State of Alabama has put enough pressure on the "boys" at the Russell County Health Department - that they have given "Hurt'sboro" seven days to correct the garbage mess or face the music in court.
I also have received solid information that ADEM has lost their patience with both the city and the "Hurt'sboro" Water Board! They want something done about possible hazardous materials by 12/10/07 or there will be fines and court proceedings.
I don't think its going to be too festive during the holidays here in "Hurt'sboro" this year. The water board and "mare" are squabbling over the Xmas lights and no one has made any plans for the annual Christmas parade. It's just as well - we do not have a reliable police car or uniformed officer to flash lights and blow a siren to let everyone know that our very own "grinch" has ruined Christmas!!
The mess in "Hurt'sboro" has failed to dampen my enthusiasm - I and other Phenix City Exchange Club members will be handing out small flags at the Bi-City Parade on Saturday!
Constable R.J. Schweiger
MORE TO COME!!!
WRBL reported Thursday night the Constable is correct, when it comes to Hurtsboro trash. The city removed a reported three-week backlog from the streets, after a warning from county Health officials. At least it's December - when not even mosquitos are likely to hold big conventions.
The Hurtsboro City Clerk explained the garbage was not collected because the city trash truck had mechanical problems again. This also happened last spring [21 May] - and let's face it, pushing a big truck like that to Phenix City for repairs can take awhile.
During our Thanksgiving week trip to Hurtsboro, we noticed an auto parts store on Main Street. Perhaps that's where the city gets the parts to fix the garbage truck. And if the problem is rust, Perry Hardware seemed to have plenty of paint to cover that up.
As for the "news items" from the Constable, Hurtsboro City Council member Mae Dell McVay indeed had her trial on two criminal counts delayed. It was scheduled for this week, but now is set for 8 January. So McVay has time to ask other people in Hurtsboro to sell her family a cheap used car....
A check of the Alabama Department of Environmental Management Thursday night found a new list of more than 3,000 companies across Alabama on an "incident list." A few Hurtsboro locations were listed, such as the Georgia Pacific wood yard and A.B. Carroll Lumber. But the Water Board didn't show up there - so did it use a fire extinguisher to put out a wood fire or something?
If you've been wondering who Constable Schweiger is, it looks like Saturday's Bi-City parade will be a place to find out. I'd suggest looking for someone wearing a Western hat - or if that doesn't work, mention Mayor Sandra Tarver-Yoe's name and see who angrily responds.
Now let's wave the yellow caution flag, and slow down to check some Thursday news headlines:
+ Two church buildings in the Beallwood neighborhood of Columbus reported they've been robbed multiple times in the last week. Have these congregations listened to religious radio? Maybe they need to get a "hedge of protection" - one reinforced with razor-wire.
+ The owner of Victory Pawn Shop told the evening news "thugs" have robbed his fire-damaged business three times in recent weeks as well. So relying on that "wooden Indian" outside as a scarecrow isn't working, either.
+ WLTZ reported Alabama state officials consider Stadium Drive in Phenix City a "problematic area," for speeding and drunk driving. I never would have guessed Phenix City Central football fans would have wild tailgate parties....
+ A local survivor of the Pearl Harbor attack 66 years ago today spoke with WLTZ. Dixie Harris said he didn't realize what was happening on that day in 1941, until he saw "red meatballs on the wings...." Old soldiers never die - and some old animosities might not, either.
+ The Atlanta Falcons announced Chris Redman will start at quarterback Monday night, against New Orleans. One year ago, Redman was out of pro football and selling insurance. Hopefully he bought some for himself - because the Saints are likely to blitz him often.
+ The departure of Andruw Jones from Atlanta baseball became official, as he signed a two-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Jones hit .222 this past season, yet he received a 36-million dollar contract - AND he'll move to Los Angeles?! We may have found a reality show version of "The Beverly Hillbillies."
THE BLOG OF AMERICA: Contract talks to end the Writers' Guild strike (and end this fill-in monologue) reportedly are showing "some movement." Of course, that could mean the two sides stood up and yelled in each others' noses....
+ Presidential candidate Mitt Romney gave what he called a "major address" on religion and politics. If elected, he promises NOT to take orders from any religious leader. That's too bad, because plenty of self-proclaimed prophets have the perfect plan to save our country from destruction.
(Some conservatives say Mitt Romney attends a cult, by being Mormon. I don't agree with everything that denomination teaches -- but wait a minute. If the Latter-Day Saints really are all the same, how could a Republican like Mitt Romney and Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid both be members? Wouldn't one of them have been disfellowshipped by now?)
+ CBS News anchor Katie Couric continued a series of "primary questions" for all the presidential candidates. Thursday's question was: "Other than your family, what do you fear losing most?" Didn't President Roosevelt settle this "freedom from fear" stuff about 70 years ago?
+ The U.S. House approved an energy bill, which requires automakers to improve their overall fuel efficiency by 2020. It's either that, or develop an engine which runs on melted water from polar ice caps.
+ Toyota unveiled a new human-ish robot in Tokyo, which can play classical music on the violin. Forget about that - have the robot drive a Toyota for me, and buy my groceries.
+ Bloomberg Business News reports Staples is interested in taking over Office Depot. There's only one problem at this point - the "easy button" doesn't seem to work for mergers.
+ The Grammy Award nominations were announced, with eight for hip-hop star Kanye West. West will compete for Album of the Year against jazz legend Herbie Hancock and country music veteran Vince Gill - so this may come down to which person's music can make the most toes tap.
+ "Posh Spice" Victoria Beckham revealed to "Elle" magazine that she sleeps naked with her husband. So that appearance at the Victoria's Secret fashion show was a classic sell-out....
+ Actor Kiefer Sutherland reported to jail, to serve a 48-day sentence. But please don't be concerned. Under sentencing rules for Hollywood stars, he probably has cameras watching him do a reality-show version of "24" - and he should be out by midday today.
+ The NBC series 'ER" presented its 300th episode. That's enough shows to call the cable TV version "Extended Reruns."
+ New Jersey Nets basketball star Jason Kidd declared he took a "paid sick day" Wednesday, due to a migraine headache. This does mean LeBron James and Kobe Bryant will get extra money, for playing on December 25?
+ Jim Grobe announced he'll remain head football coach at Wake Forest, becoming the latest candidate to spurn the University of Arkansas. The continuous rumors about who will coach the Hogs are starting to smell like so much.... well, you can probably guess....
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