USS Georgia Flag Visits Fayette County

Governor Sonny Perdue and the USS GEORGIA Return to Service (RTS) Committee announced the USS Georgia Flag Project recently. The Project is an effort to take the Georgia state flag across the entire state and into all 159 Georgia Counties. The flag is travelling across the state, so that everyone may participate in welcoming the USS Georgia home. March 28, the flag will reunite with the Submarine in Kings Bay.

The flag traveled to Fayette County on January 22nd.

“This is an exciting project because it allows all Georgians to take pride in our armed forces,” said Governor Sonny Perdue. “It is noteworthy that this tour allows all 159 Georgia counties to participate in welcoming the USS Georgia home.”

The submarine’s future was jeopardized in 1994 when the Nuclear Posture Review determined that the U.S. military had a surplus of Trident Submarines– 10 on the East Coast at Kings Bay and eight on the West Coast at Bangor, WA. The Nuclear Posture Review committee made a decision that four of the 18 submarines would be eliminated.

This sparked the U.S. Navy to keep in service the four submarines and convert them from strategic deterrence submarines to a precision strike and special operation force capable submarine.

“We have worked diligently with the 16 Georgia Regional Development Centers in planning this unprecedented project to take the Georgia State Flag on a trip across the entire state and into all 159 Georgia Counties,” said Don Giles (Captain, U.S. Navy Ret.), Navy League member and RTS Committee Flag Project Coordinator. “The response at scheduled meetings with County Commissioners in every county has been enthusiastic. To date, attendees at the first 40 counties ceremonial events reveal that true patriotism is alive in Georgia and that Georgians are truly supportive of the men and women who serve in our great Navy and in all our uniformed services.”

Giles has worked with the Georgia Regional Development Centers in planning the USS Georgia Flag Project. This flag is to be presented by Governor Perdue to the Commanding Officer of the USS GEORGIA at the Return to Service Ceremony in Kings Bay on March 28th, 2008.

Chairman of the committee and of the events surrounding the Return to Service (RTS), Sheila M. McNeill, is a past National President of the Navy League of the United States. Ms. McNeill said, “It is very rare to have a namesake ship home-ported in its home state. We are very pleased to have Governor Perdue as our Honorary Chairman. Our committee is working on a series of special events to show our appreciation for the dedicated service to our country by the men and women of the most powerful warship in the world, USS Georgia.”

The USS GEORGIA is 560 feet in length, displaces over 18,000 tons submerged and can carry a crew of 15 officers, 139 enlisted crew members and up to 66 Special Operations Forces for a sustained, long endurance deployment.

Photo: Chick Krautler, Director of the ARC, Jack Smith, Fayette County Commission Chair, Petty Officer Thomas Butler, Steve Adams of the Navy League and Robert Horgan, Commissioner.

A Unique Approach to Self-Improvement

Personal growth is a New Year’s resolution that everyone should have on their list of goals to accomplish this year. To help people achieve their personal best, Fayette Senior Services is pleased to host a variety of enlightening personal growth classes with retired licensed counseling psychologist, Dr. James Hughey. The classes will be held every Tuesday at Fayette Senior Services new life enrichment center. “Personal growth happens when an individual takes responsibility for their choices and behaviors as they live a positive and healthy life.” says Dr. Hughey. “One of the ways we learn about life possibilities is to actively and passively interact with others in our world.” Dr. Hughey explains.

Dr. Hughey’s “Communication Styles” addresses one of life's continuing challenges; how to communicate effectively with other people, both in the way we offer information to others and how we are able to understand what others are telling us. Participants use a communication style workbook and learn their personal style of communicating with others and how to effectively interact with those who have a different style. The class will be offered on February 12 from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.

The popular “Conversation Corner” will be held on Tuesday, February 19 from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Conversation Corner is an opportunity to talk and listen with other older adults about emotional topics of mutual interest at this stage of your life journey. Dr. Hughey encourages dialogue with diversity of viewpoints and the objective is to share and discuss, to talk and listen, but not argue and convince. Content of conversations will vary based on who is in attendance and who chooses to participate. This is a stand-alone class and offered on a continuing basis.

“Much of the power for self-learning is being lost when our society focuses only on verbal speech.” Hughey emphasizes. In his three-session class, “Personal Journaling,” Dr. Hughey encourages the unique aspects of personal growth that come with writing a journal. There will be discussion and experimentation with types of journals, styles of writing, choosing focus, frequency, length, honesty, confidentiality and sharing. The class will be held on February 26, March 4 and 11 from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.

Class registration is available at Fayette Senior Services located at 4 Center Drive in Fayetteville (across from the new Fayette County courthouse) from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday thru Friday. The cost for each class is $5 for Center members and $7 for non-members. There is an additional $5 fee for the “Communication Styles” workbook.

Before retiring as a licensed counseling psychologist, Dr. Hughey devoted more than 30 years to his profession and sharing his knowledge with others in a wide variety of ways including work as a teacher, professor and director of college counseling centers. Believing that diversity brings personal knowledge, Dr. Hughey’s professional experience also includes private clinical practice, a radio talk show host/producer, cruise ship enrichment lecturer and mental health/organizational training consultant.

Fayette Senior Services (FSS) is a non-profit organization that provides a broad scope of life-enhancing services to Fayette County residents age 50 and better. The organization offers mature adults the opportunity to be involved in a variety of social, leisure, educational, wellness and life-enriching activities. For more information call 770-461-0813 or visit www.fayss.org.

Unique Gerber Baby Food Collection now at the Holliday-Dorsey-Fife House Museum in Fayetteville

By Joe McKaughan

Simply Southern Tourism Association, Inc. and MainStreet Fayetteville are proud to feature one of the largest private collections of memorabilia from Gerber Baby Foods on display at the Holliday-Dorsey-Fife House Museum in Fayetteville, Georgia, February 1st through March 31, 2008.

Admission to the vast collection, with over 700 hundred pieces of rare-seen memorabilia, reflecting the history of the legendary maker of baby products, is free with the purchase of a ticket to the Fayetteville museum at 140 Lanier Avenue West.

The 1855 home is open Thursdays through Saturdays from 10AM until 5PM. Adult tickets are $5; Senior and Student are $4.

The World's Best Known Baby Exhibit:

"This is the one of the largest displays of collectables in the seventy year history of the illustrious company," says Griffin resident, Matthew Stafford, curator of the collection. "I developed the idea of starting the collection when my son, River, was born in November, 1996. I know how we relied on Gerber, as did so many other couples raising their first child. Their products were indispensable in getting us through those formative years for new parents."

The collection is divided into three sections: the Gerber food case, the Gerber toy case, and Gerber corporate promotional items. The collection dates from the founding of the company in 1928 and continues with new and innovative items found in grocery stores around the world today.

Highlights of the collection are a container of Gerber Baby food still sealed in its original metal can; a glass baby-bath thermometer; a birthday card given to a Gerber executive by founder Dan Gerber; and the last item produced by the Gerber family before Gerber merged with Sandoz Ltd. of Switzerland, part of Novartis.

Background of Gerber:

The Gerber story began in 1927 in Fremont, Michigan in Daniel Gerber's kitchen while he was watching his wife, Dorothy, straining solid food for their seven-month-old daughter, Sally. Trying the job himself, but covering himself with strained peas, Dorothy suggested that the family company might do the job better in their canning plant.

The idea worked, and by the next year, not only strained peas, but also prunes, carrots, spinach and vegetable soup, were ready for the national market.

Thanks to the famous advertising campaign that featured the Gerber Baby, grocers were enthusiastically placing orders and Gerber products were soon on grocery shelves across America. In 1943, Gerber proclaimed: “Babies are our business…our only business.”

Today, nearly 190 products are labeled in 16 languages and distributed to 80 countries.

Origin of the Gerber Baby:

The face behind the Gerber Baby is Ann Turner Cook, a retired school teacher now living in Florida. Cook was the subject of a simple charcoal sketch by Dorothy Hope Smith, an artist who specialized in drawing children.

In 1928, Gerber was seeking a baby face for its nationwide introductory ad campaign. Smith submitted a drawing of Cook with the understanding that she would complete the sketch into a finished oil painting if the initial sketch was approved by the company. The Gerber executives were so taken with Smith's original work in sketch form they accepted it “as is.”

Gerber adopted this now legendary sketch as its official trademark in 1931. Since then, the Gerber Baby has appeared on all Gerber packaging and in every Gerber advertisement, making her the world's best-recognized baby.

In December 1996, Ann Turner Cook herself was present at the unveiling of Gerber's first new label in more than 40 years.

One of Fayetteville's finest historical attractions, the Greek revival antebellum house was built by the Holliday family. The house derives its full name from the three main owners that dwelled there. The Holliday-Dorsey-Fife House Museum is a cooperative project of the Fayetteville Downtown Development Authority and Fayetteville Main Street Program.

The Baby Collection is a joint effort of Main Street Fayetteville and Simply Southern Tourism Association.

For more information, please visit manager@hdfhouse.com or call 770-716-5332.

Peachtree City student interns in Washington office

Peachtree City resident Brian Jack this month began a four-month internship in the Washington office of U.S. Rep. Lynn Westmoreland.

“I like to give college students a front-row seat on American democracy through these internships and it’s always best to have someone from the district such as Brian who understands Georgia and feels a personal connection to my constituents,” Westmoreland said. “Brian’s going to be with us for a good stretch and he’s already shown an unusually high interest in federal policy-making and the legislative process. He has a strong grasp of how things work here and he’ll use those skills to help our office serve the people of Georgia’s 3rd Congressional District.”

Jack, 19, is a sophomore at Pepperdine University in Malibu, Calif., where he is majoring in political science. The Woodward Academy graduate recently returned from a semester abroad studying the Mandarin language and Chinese politics in Hong Kong. He is the son of Mitch and Sophia Williams of Peachtree City.

Starr's Mill

Just found a beautiful shot of Starr's Mill on Flickr, thought you might want to take a look. http://www.flickr.com/photos/dougandbecky/2155055246/

I had to take a look at other photos posted on Flickr by "Quantum Physics". Really great photos! If you go to the page above, click on the name toward the top right, or come back here and click on this link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dougandbecky/

It's interesting how much you can discover about someone you don't know just by looking at their photo page. You'll see what I mean as you look at where they've been and the captions under the photos.

Seem like really nice Fayette County folk.

Cool Pic and Savings

Not too long ago I stopped to get some gas at the local Exxon / Flash Foods in Fayetteville. For those who might not know, you can get a little Flash card (free) and save 2 cents per gallon at any Flash Food gas station in the county (and beyond). There are three that I know about, one in Fayetteville at the Hwy 314 / 85 split, one at Gingercake Rd. / Hwy 54 and one in Peachtree City at Crosstown Rd. / Hwy 74.

There, that's my money savings tip of the day. Or the month. Possibly the year.

Back to the photo. While I was pumping gas I started noticing birds flitting about, heading toward the store. There's not much to do while pumping gas other than watch the pump if you want to stop at a certain dollar amount, or stare at the passing cars, people and whatever else catches your fancy.

I enjoyed watching the birds zipping around much more than the cars.

I think you'll get a kick out of where the birds were nesting. They had plenty to eat on the ground I'd imagine (although they do keep a very neat and clean gas station... even the bathroom was extra decent!).

What are the chances?

Stopped into the Fayetteville Post Office earlier today to do a few things. Met the nicest people! First, the people in line. I've lived in a lot of places in the world and have always managed to find good people. However, it just seems that the nicest, friendliest live in Fayette County.

It's easy to strike up a conversation with a complete stranger almost anywhere in this town. People still hold doors open for others, most will let someone into their lane while driving and we just seem to generally be a courteous bunch.

I got into a conversation with two of the ladies working at the Post Office. I was opening a new P.O. box so had to be there for a bit. They were so helpful and nice.

While talking to Sandra she noticed the birth date on my drivers license. Turns out she's a fellow Gemini, born six days earlier than me. We chatted a bit about the fun of having multiple personalities. Gemini is the twin and we're "allowed" two personalities. We concurred that Gemini's had more than just two.

Then, of course (well, it's an 'of course' if you're familiar with the whole astrology thing, compatible signs and all that gobble-de-goop), she mentioned her husband was a Libra. Well, turns out my husband is a Libra also. And, to top it all off, our husbands birthdays are six days apart. Her husband, while younger than mine, was born six days earlier than mine.

What are the chances?

Christmas shopping

Thank goodness I'm finished. This year because my husband had surgery I didn't get any early shopping in and had to do a rush job this weekend.

Everyone has stuff on sale. Except Target and Bed, Bath and Beyond. They are also the only ones with any decent Christmas stuff left. However, given that they both said it's all going on sale the day after Christmas, who'll shop now?

I heard on the radio as I headed to the stores that stores across the nation are doing their after-Christmas sales before Christmas this year. I guess Target and Bed, Bath and Beyond didn't get the memo.

Lines are long and there's not much left to pick through. Seems that a lot of folks waited to the last minute to shop. Luckily I did some shopping on-line and the rest consisted of things that were in plentiful supply.

I did run into a problem trying to find ornaments. I buy everyone in the family an ornament each year that has some meaning for them. Basketball Santa for my nephew, gardening ornament for my mom and so on and so forth. All the little ones get a tiny tree complete with decorations. Each year I add some more miniature somethings to the tree. Slim pickings this year on the ornaments. Ah well, they just won't quite be as good as usual this year. However, I did make some pottery ornaments, pulled 'em out of the kiln this morning. One for all.

I can just imagine what tomorrow's last minute rush is going to be like! Even if I find I overlooked something, I'm not leaving the house tomorrow!!!

Merry Christmas to all and a big thanks to all for your kind comments and thoughts regarding Greg's surgery. He's doing well and will be out and about and better than ever soon!

Curb Peal...

Once again I skirted the strange curb that some sadist stuck in the middle of the road as you leave the Wal-Mart in Peachtree City... Anyone who has shopped at Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Office Depot or other stores in that shopping area who's turned left when leaving onto Hwy. 54 has noted that high curb.

It's a natural inclination when making a left to cut across at a slight angle. Based on the number of black tire marks on the curb, I'd say that quite a few have run up on the curb.

During the day it blends into the pavement. During the night it's impossible to see until you're right on it.

All they have to do to make sure that another fender isn't dented, another tire or worse, side of a car, isn't swiped, is to put some reflectors around the bottom. It has to be a foot high, so it should be easy to find something to stick on there. Maybe a sign on the end? Some concrete plant holders?

I think it's another conspiracy. The people who put that in are in cahoots with the auto repair shops on Huddleston Road. Or they've teamed up with the guys who used to video tape us as we slid into our ditch to get the newspaper (see previous blog).

I know someone had to be snickering as they put that bunker into the middle of the road.

Free newspapers, ditches and conspiracies

A vast majority of families in Fayette County have a free newspaper tossed in their yard each week. Some receive two, some three. There are two freebies that go out on Thursday, one on Wednesday.

All lay claim to a circulation of around 26,000 papers I think. I "assume" (but don't know) that the number claimed includes the stacks left at the Chamber of Commerce, libraries, local gyms and other places. I "assume" (but don't know) that the number includes the ones placed in boxes for sale around the county.


The point of today's missive isn't about the actual circulation.

It's about ditches.

We only get one paper on our street each week. I'm not sure how the paper's break down the area they distribute their free papers. I've lived in four locations in the county and have only received one of the three papers no matter where I live. Same one. I know others who receive different papers, so I'm not doubting for a minute that some are getting out, I just don't know the areas they've chosen to toss their papers.

We have a wide, very wide, driveway.

On either side of the driveway, we have ditches.

Each week, without fail, the free newspaper ends up in the ditch.

It's a ditch conspiracy.

The people across the street have ditches. The people to the left and right have ditches.

I've been watching. Their paper ends up on their driveways the vast majority of the time. When it isn't on the driveway, it isn't in the ditch either, it's on the grassy part of the yard behind the ditch. No climbing down in ditches to get it for our neighbors, oh no.

It's a ditch conspiracy. It's a game. They singled us out because we have the widest driveway on the street. Ours should be the easiest to hit.

If I didn't mind a trashy yard, I'd let the newspapers pile up in the ditch.

I know the person who tosses out the papers must live somewhere nearby. They zip down the road early, early, toss our paper into the ditch. Then they go home and sleep for a few hours. They know our routine by now. After all, they've been tossing it that same ditch for the past four years...

They sit somewhere safe, with their binoculars, or better yet, their camera, and wait for us to slide down into the ditch to get the paper. Somewhere there is a YouTube video with nothing on it but people like us slipping and sliding down into a ditch to get a soggy plastic wrapped paper.

All across the county, paper delivery people are watching their chosen victims as they tumble and contort to try and reach that plastic wrapped paper. Maybe they sit around at special occasions showing their favorite videos. Maybe they have paper delivery contests for the most trouble, the funniest or the most dangerous attempt to get the paper.

We may be slow, but we finally figured out a way to thwart their Candid Camera moment. We have a rake that we now use to grab the paper out of the ditch.

So there wicked paper tossing video making delivery person. That's the last time you'll win a video contest with us in it.

Life without Internet… and cable… AKA: Cable Gremlins

I’ll freely admit that I have no idea what I’d do with myself if someone took my computers away. I get up every morning and, after fixing my first cup of hot tea, I check my emails. I write my blogs. I check my news feeds. Then I get to work.

My main business (the Fayette Front Page and the Georgia Front Page) revolve around computers. Internet access is a must.

So, imagine my displeasure when the weather got cold and I lost my Internet. And cable. When we had our first cold snap this year everything went down. I didn’t associate it with the cold at first. When I called first thing in the morning they said there was an area outage. It went off around 2 a.m., was back around 10 or so.

You expect that to happen on occasion. Things break down, accidents happen.

A few days later it happened again. Out around 2, still down when I got up. I called. They said it was another area outage. I was getting just a little, tiny, tad bit miffed but again, things happen, you expect to lose services at times.

The next day. It happened again. Temps dropped down to the 30s and our cable and Internet went out. Time for a service call because now they can’t find that there had ever been an area outage. Geez.

Our cable was just going out and then coming back on when it felt like it. I noted that it went back after the sun rose over the tree tops and hit the cable pole.

Hmmm, sound like the cold to you?

Well, let’s skip forward a full month. As I type this our cable and Internet are out for the tenth or eleventh time. Except now it’s getting more interesting. It went out last night at 10 p.m. and it’s still out.

We have cell phone numbers for the area cable maintenance guy and the area supervisor. We call them when it goes out. They zip over here to try and track down the problem.

So far they’ve rewired everything from the pole to the house. Twice. They’ve moved things, upgraded this or that, replaced things. It’s still happening.

We have the guys dropping everything and getting over here in 15 minutes now. They are all stumped.

The supervisor was over here last time. He climbed the pole, started checking things and voila it came back on by itself again. He was a little frustrated because it needs to be out for them to track down the problem.

I think we have a cable gremlin.

Night in Newnan Part 2: The CHAIR....

Oh man. I know everyone reading this has spent at least part of a night in one of those contraptions they have at hospitals for the family to "sleep" on. I've tested my fair share over the years.

Last Friday I met the monster of all monsters. This chair must have been borrowed from an Inquisition era torture chamber.

It was narrow. With arms.

The back let down... about six inches. Most hospital chairs allow you to stretch out flat so you can have the illusion of being in a bed. Not so with this contraption. Forget trying to balance a pillow on the plastic back... you have to hold it up with your head or your hands.

Typical chairs have some semblance of cushioning. They may be vinyl, but there's usually a nice thick pad of cushion under it. Not so with this chair. It was maybe 3 inches thick. One step up from rock hard. I have the sore hips to prove it.

The bottom did open up to keep my legs propped up. However... you knew there was going to be a however, didn't you? However... it stopped right at my ankles. Which meant that all night long my feet hung in limbo off the edge. The nice square edge of the "cushion" cut right into my ankles periodically cutting off circulation. I remedied that by getting an extra pillow to put under my feet. My feet were slightly up in the air, but given my overall state of high discomfort, that was minor.

OK, could have been worse, right? Welllll.... I haven't told you about the piece that connected the foot rest to the chair. You'd think it would have been a solid piece so your upper legs would have something to rest on. Nope. Not in this device. The foot rest was connected to the chair by a piece of vinyl or plastic that didn't stretch tight, it hung down in a nice curve. Which meant that from the top of my hips to knees were suspended in the air. Yep. Hard to believe they expected someone to rest in the chair...

I overcame that obstacle with another pillow. It fit nicely in the void, although it was exactly the kind of pillow that had any give to it, so my lower body was resting on a rolling hill.

Did I mention the crinkly plastic covered hard pillows?

I know in my last post I wrote something about the temperature. Sweltering. At least until somewhere in the 2 or 3 o'clock time frame. All of a sudden the temperature dropped into the frozen zone. It felt SO good. For an hour or so. Then I must have drifted off for a bit because when I next became aware of my surroundings, it was back up to 75. I would have believed I'd dreamed the cooler temps, but I know I slept no longer than 15 minutes at a pop.

Between the nurse stopping in, the alerts from all the medical equipment in surrounding rooms, Greg needing things and THE CHAIR, I was a zombie with out any hope of rest.

No matter how bad I was feeling, it was hard to grumble given Greg's suffering.

He's doing better now, so I am taking time to vent...

We both made it through the night.

After a night of torture, I looked forward to breakfast. Surely they'd have something simple like some scrambled eggs, grits and maybe a selection of toasts (I don't do white bread).

No such luck.

My choices were pre-made biscuits with either egg and ham, egg and sausage and I think maybe egg and bacon. No egg biscuits. They has a little menu that said they offered a breakfast burrito with egg and cheese. However, when I asked, I was told tough luck, not serving it.

I went back to the vending machines to see if possibly, possibly someone had added something other than chicken sandwiches and other similar fare. They had grits in a container, but you had to add water and nuke it. It just seemed like too much trouble to go try and find some water somewhere, especially since I'd tried them before and didn't like 'em.

We were leaving that day, figured I'd probably be home in time for lunch so I'd hold out.

Except... we didn't get out by lunch.

The doctor was supposed to make his rounds in the morning, or so they said, but as it turned out, he was in surgery. We didn't see him until late afternoon. He was just a bit miffed as supposedly the nurse was supposed to have unhooked Greg from all the contraptions that morning and the physical therapist was supposed to have come by and helped him walk. The doctor was just stopping by to double check and say goodbye.

We had to wait while they tracked down a therapist. Still hot. Still a tiny room. No one ever said anything else about getting us into one of the bigger rooms after that first initial burst of nice thoughts. I don't know how they managed to get the bed in the room in the first place. Every time I wanted to do something, like help Greg eat, I had to move something into the hall it seemed...

Which reminds me. I almost forgot GREG's ordeal with the food. He's a type 2 diabetic and has a heart condition. We went through the whole spiel when we first got there, talked about diet, etc., etc.

His first meal? Roast beef with gravy, a white roll, white rice, cooked carrots. He's not supposed to eat red meat. He's not supposed to eat white bread or white rice. Cooked carrots are OK, but given he'd just had surgery that involved his throat he had extreme difficulty swallowing so the carrot's didn't work. Dessert was sugar-free sorbet. He managed with that.

Breakfast? Eggs, which are OK. White bread, a no-no. And, bacon. He's not supposed to eat bacon either. Promise butter, which was good. Sugar free jam, which was good. Orange juice. Another no-no for type 2 diabetics.

By lunch time I'd mentioned to someone that we weren't very happy about the food (very nicely) so they had someone stop in to allow us to choose. You didn't choose individual items, you had a choice of this grouping or that grouping. Every single grouping had stuff on it that was on his dietary list of can't do's (this is per his doctor, and per all the books I've read on heart and /or diabetes...). Anyway, the lady was nice enough to let us select one item and ditch the rest. She brought us extra fruit trying to be nice. Appreciated the thought, but they were all in a sugar syrup. Oh well...

All's well that ends well right? Greg is doing great. The surgeon was great. The people (except the last nurse) were great. I know that Piedmont just bought the Newnan hospital and they're working on improving things. I know there's a new hospital in the works and that at some point in the future Newnan will be blessed with a good hospital.

I also know that when my time comes to get some procedure or operation done, I'll suffer for however long it takes to make sure I can have it done here, in Fayette County, at OUR Piedmont Hospital. I'm spoiled and I'll freely and happily admit it. Greg concurs. He was in debilitating pain, but after his experience in Newnan, he said he'd have been willing to gut it out a little longer.

A Night in Newnan...

Greg (my husband) had to have some surgery last Friday. The doctor operates in Fayette and in Newnan, however as it turned out we'd have had to wait at least an extra month or so to get into Fayette for the operation. He was in tremendous pain so we chose to go to Piedmont Newnan Hospital to get it over with...

I'll say up front the surgeon and all of the people except one were absolutely wonderful. Great attitudes, very helpful, couldn't have been better.

Everything else stunk.

Really stunk.

Started nice... they called and did the pre-registration over the phone to save us time. Then, when we got there, they did it all over again. Exactly the same questions. Re-typed. No biggie, just silly redundancy, no time saver.

Then they said the operation was moved from 7:30 a.m. to noon. I thought that was great. Still the surgeon's first op of the day, but we wouldn't be getting up at some pre-dawn hour to get there. Nice.

Except... we got there at 11 like we were told. At 12:30 we were still waiting. Somewhere near one they called Greg back to get started. We said our goodbyes and then Greg's kids, my Dad and I went down to wait in the "good" waiting room. The one with the snack machines with not one healthy option. Hey, it's a hospital, nutrition isn't high on anyone's list...

A few minutes before 2 they called to let me know they were getting ready to start the operation.

My Dad and I decided to grab a bite to eat. Turned out the cafeteria was closed for renovation.

However, they had a "Magic Room" which served as the temporary cafeteria. OK, I could deal with that, just wanted something to eat...

Walked in, saw two tables with a white tablecloth cover. On it sat a couple of chafing dishes. One held beenie-weenies or something similar, one held greasy green beans, another had white rice, then there were some interesting looking rolls and tons of desserts in plastic containers.

I don't eat meat. I don't do white rice. I'd have been happy to find a salad, but no such luck. We left. Thankfully Greg's kids had opted to go out to eat and they were able to bring something back for us. But I had at least two meals to go before we left the hospital. Surely the nighttime offering would be better!

At 3 they called to say it'd be another half an hour to an hour before they finished up, all looked good.

At 4:10 they called to say all finished. The doc stopped by, said all went well, etc., etc.

At 5 I happened to see Greg wheeling by heading to his room and zipped out to follow. They couldn't get the bed into the room. Banged up against the door. Luckily my brother-in-law was there to help.

They had one room left on the floor as we were one of the last ones there. They said they had a call in to try and get him into a larger room. I was so fixed on Greg that it didn't exactly register. However, when I did have a minute to look around I realized we were in a room that was just a tad bigger than a coffin. There was room on each side for the usual contraptions and, if you were skinny, a person. There was a non-working furnace type thing hanging on the wall below the window that restricted one side.

On the other, if you opened the bathroom door you hit the bed. Or had a good chance of knocking the machines over.

I could deal with it. Wasn't even sure I wanted to try to move him since they had such difficulty getting him in the door. I mean, we were only going to be there overnight...

While the kids were still there, I zipped down to the not-so-magic room to see what I could get for dinner. Oh boy, oh boy. Fried chicken fingers. French fries. White bread. Desserts.

I passed again and called some friends.

It was winter. However, it was equator hot in the room. 75 degrees. Yep, 75. The thermostat was set on 65. I scooted it down to 60. Temperature didn't waver. We sweltered. I asked for a fan.

Five hours later, after checking on it a few times I saw someone walking down the hall with a fan. I followed it and literally snatched it from her hands. Greg was dripping, uncomfortable and miserable.

Overheard the nurses talking about staffing. They were short handed. No tech for the night. Which simply meant the nurse would have to do the stats, empty cath bags, take blood pressures, etc. A little later I heard that they were also short another person (an assistant of some sort).

Luckily, we had a fabulous night nurse who was so good it didn't matter. Her toe was broken which made it a bit difficult for her to walk around. Not once did she complain. She answered every question and was just super. She kept us supplied with ice (much needed given the sweltering heat in the room).

Ahh... but this tale is not over... in my next installment, I'll tell you about the torture chair, breakfast and the day of agony...

A Landscape Designer's Drought Survival Guide: Tips for helping your landscape survive future drought conditions

Article Courtesy of Hollingsworth Design Group, Fayetteville, GA.

The drought of 2007 will certainly be remembered by Georgians and the residents of our neighboring southern states for many years to come. It seems like daily I hear someone say something like "I've never seen Horton Reservoir so low." or" Have you seen Lake Kedron?" To say we need rain is a gross understatement. This drought of historic proportions has put our state's rainfall total at 15" below normal for the year. State and local officials are working hard to protect our precious water resources and we residents are trying to conserve wherever we can.

With statewide bans on outdoor watering our landscapes are suffering. At times like these we are reminded that taking a few steps to conserve water in our landscapes before a drought hits really pays off. Mulching planting beds, core aerating the lawn, water reclamation and sprinkler system optimization are just a few ways we can do just that.

Mulching and Aeration

During the winter months most plantings including lawns need very little water. For the most part winter rainfall is sufficient. Supplemental watering with sprinkler systems is rarely needed for established plant material. Plants need moisture in the winter to in large part, act as an insulator. That's right, when the air temperature drops below freezing, a hydrated plant will remain above 25 degrees fare height. If a plant is not hydrated and the air temperature plunges to 10 or 20 degrees below freezing, the plant will also get that cold. This is when we start loosing plant material. Keeping plants hydrated prior to freezing temperatures is a good idea.

But what can we do during a watering ban to help our plants survive frigid temps?
One suggestion is to apply a sufficient layer of mulch around your plantings to help them retain moisture. The mulch acts like a barrier that protects the subterranean moisture from evaporating via sun and wind exposure. Increase your lawn's ability to absorb water by core-aerating. Aeration sends spikes into the soil throughout your lawn and creates pathways for water to travel below the surface compared to just soaking in from the top.

Water Reclamation

Water reclamations methods from the past are making a come-back. Many Fayette residents are now installing rain barrels and cisterns. Rain captures can be stored and used later to water plants, wash the car, etc.

Rain barrels are above-ground containers that are connected to the home's gutter system via the downspout. You might be amazed how much water travels through your gutters during a short rain shower.

An advanced water reclamation is the cistern. Used for thousands of years by many different cultures, this "old school" approach offers plenty of modern benefits. A cistern is a large, underground tank that stores water collected from the gutter down spouts. A series of buried pipes carry rain water from the downspouts to the underground reservoir. A 110volt pump provides pressurize water flow water spigots above ground when water is needed. Cisterns come in a variety of shapes and sizes. They range in capacity from about 500 - 3,000 gallons or more. Prices start around $2,500 for a standard system installed.

Sprinkler System Optimization

Sprinkler systems are wonderful tools that when utilized properly allow us to grow beautiful landscapes that would not otherwise be possible. Manufactures of sprinkler components have provided an array of products designed to optimize efficiency and conserve water.

Unfortunately, many systems are not installed to take advantage of these advances in technology and many homeowners are not educated on the proper use of their system. Consequently, a lot of water is wasted.

During the growing season, the average home in Fayette County will use thousands of gallons of water each week if it runs just three times. If you have a sprinkler system, consider implementing the following suggestions to maximize your conservation effort.

*Install a rain sensor to avoid running the sprinkler during or to shortly after a rain shower.
*If your are having significant runoff of sprinkler water during operation, it indicates that your run times are too long or the soil is compacted and not absorbing the water and should be aerated.
*Using a rain gauge, calculate the amount of water being delivered to a zone based on the run time. Lawns require 1" of water per week and shrubs approximately 1/3" per week.
*The average sprinkler head operates best at 55 psi. The pressure coming through your county water meter can be double that number. Install a pressure regulator and adjust to the proper psi.
*Hire a certified sprinkler company to inspect your system and make sure is operating properly.

It will rain again

Hopefully the drought will end soon. The National Weather Service has released predictions for rain fall levels for late Winter and Spring 2008. They anticipate normal rainfall amounts to return for our area. Hopefully, with the water restrictions still in place, our reservoirs will begin to fill up.

Let's work together to continue practicing water conservation measures even when rainfall is abundant. This will help protect our water supply for the future and it is just the right thing to do.

Thankful for...

On this day of Thanksgiving my mind has traveled off and on to the things I'm thankful for... Most of the time I think we think of today as a time to spend with family, eat turkey, get stuffed, watch football and similar. Some of us feed the hungry or try to give to others. I don't know how often we do more than give lip service to the real meaning of Thanksgiving.

Of course, on most holidays any more we're just thankful to have a day off from work and an excuse to have a picnic, get gifts or enjoy a three day weekend.

I don't spend a whole lot of time thinking about Pilgrims and Indians and the discovery of our country. However, I do usually, as said in the first paragraph, spend time thinking about all that makes life special to me.

My wonderful husband, son, daughter-in-law, granddaughters, my brothers and sisters, parents, Greg's children who I have grown to love and enjoy, the beautiful home we live in, the great county, my friends, my pottery studio, the Fayette Front Page, those who help and volunteer to make it happen, I could go on and on until I bored everyone reading this if I haven't already.

I'm thankful for the freedoms we take for granted. I'm ever so thankful for all of those fighting to keep us safe, especially those who are unable to spend today with their families.

Thanks to all of your who read my blogs when I happen to write, and thanks to all who read the Fayette Front Page!

Signs of Growth

I'm sure this isn't news to anyone in the county, but changes are happening. There's all kinds of growth... new stores, ground being cleared, strip malls, and maybe a few houses here and there.

There seems to also be a proliferation of signs sprouting up.

Don't know about you, but I think the "GOT JUNK" signs are the worst offenders. They're junky. They stick 'em everywhere. And they're illegal in many, if not most, instances.

A few times I've traveled down Hwy. 92 going toward Christian City. Tons of signs advertising a new subdivision litter the edges of the road.

I've started paying attention to the signs. To my way of thinking, if a company can't follow the local rules then I'm not interested in doing business with them.

My understanding is that pretty much nothing will be done about signs that violate the ordinances unless someone calls and complains. I think about it sometimes, but generally by the time I get home I'm not thinking about the signs I saw 15 minutes or 2 hours ago.

I think about writing the company sometimes, too. It's a standing joke in my family that we'll all threaten to write a nasty-gram but we never do. However, we do follow thought when we decide not to shop somewhere. I can't tell you how many years our family boycotted Rich's simply because they were the only company that refused to work with my grandmother when my grandfather was dying and it became difficult for her to make all her payments in full. Every other company graciously worked with her. Rich's not only refused, they harassed her to the point of tears. Nope, if Rich's were still around we'd still be sharing the bad news with friends and chipping away at their customer base one-by-one...

I digressed, changed the subject, got side-tracked (which I often do!).

Back to the growing number of signs...

Nah, enough on signs.

Hummingbird Update

In my last post I said the hummingbirds were gone. I was wrong. We either have a new one or our summer bird changed her habits. During the summer one female sat on the feeder stand "branches" and guarded her stash. Now, we have a lone female who's out early in the morning, while it's still a bit nippy.

I'm wondering if she's just a bit too old to make the long trip and has decided to end her days with us.

I don't know enough about hummingbirds to know if possibly she has some babies she's watching over. I read somewhere that hummingbirds will forgo the long trip south if they're ill, too old, or they have young ones to guard over who won't be able to make the trip.

I'm not sure what our hummingbird is doing during the day. Could be that the weather is just nippy enough that she's filling up early in the morning then snuggling the rest of the day, maybe she slips out later in the day and I'm just missing her.

I understand they can hunker down, slow metabolism almost to hibernation ratio when it gets cold.

Maybe someone will read this who knows more than I and will give me some ideas.

Of course, it just could be that she's not ready to leave yet and one day soon she'll really be gone. I would think if she's planning on leaving that she'd be at the feeders all day, storing up fuel for the trip.

Hummingbirds and Fall

I love this time of year in many ways. The crisp cold of the mornings… not too cold, just enough for a sweater. Usually there are beautiful colors as the leaves change and fall. We’ve already had leaves falling off some of our trees for the past few weeks. Unfortunately, due to the drought, they’re saying we won’t have the gorgeous colors we’ve grown to expect. Maybe there will be a shortened version, according to the experts, sometime in October. If that’s the worst problem we encounter over the next months, I’ll be OK with a shortened foliage season!

What I dislike about this time of years is that my hummingbirds all pack their bags and head south. My last little bird finally gave in and left. She’d defended her ground against all the intruders who wanted a snack on their way through. She was with me all summer. At least I believe it was the same hummingbird. If it wasn’t there’s a copycat out there somewhere!

One, sometimes two, hummingbirds hang out with me all season long each year. Others come for periods of time but don’t stick around. I thing we’ve become a fuel stop as they travel to my parents place on Lake Oconee. We always have at least two at the house, more down around my studio. The ones at the studio stay in the woods and just buzz in to the feeders, eat, and then buzz back home.

The one or two that feed up near the house stick. I have a stand I picked up at Wild Birds Unlimited. It looks like a wrought iron tree and is meant to stand alone with bird feeders hanging on it or potted plants. I bought a huge flowerpot made of a material you could cut through and have the stand coming up through it. I put plants in the pot that are supposed to attract hummingbirds. I always forget to water the plants and lose the less hardy, but they work for a while!

The hummingbirds sit on the “branches” and guard their territory. I get up in the morning and always take a quick peek to see if they’re there. Yesterday, no hummingbirds. Today, no hummingbirds. I checked the feeders around the studio yesterday, it doesn’t look as though they’re in use either. As I was working in the studio yesterday I looked out the window off and on hoping that I had one that would choose to winter with us. No luck.

My mom has so many it’s impossible to count. She said she’s down to six and she thinks they are Rufus. She’s corresponding with a specialist to find out.

Last year they came up and banded some of her hummingbirds. So cool. I’ll see if I can dig up the pictures and try to include them in this. She actually held one in the palm of her hand.

What is it with these little things that attracts so many avid fans? I don’t know and don’t really care. I just like ‘em and I miss ‘em when they take off.

Fayette Volunteers

Keeping up with the Fayette Front Page puts me in constant contact with so much that is good in Fayette County. I'm continually amazed at how many are giving so much throughout the county.

Lately I've been attending some of the Board of Education meetings and have been at all of the elementary school redistricting meetings. I see the press releases sent out by the very able Melinda Berry-Dreisbach from the BOE. So many involved parents. So many teachers giving much more than their obligatory hours. Even the kids are out there volunteering!

When I get discouraged by the news I read and hear, I simply have to open my inbox. It's always chocked full of good news! Today's inbox brought news of the upcoming Memory Walk (Alzheimer's), the Fayette Samaritans, two new businesses who are partnering with local schools, the Daughters of the American Revolution's ongoing educational efforts... the list goes on and on.

I'm humbled by all the good. It makes me want to find ways to stretch myself just a little bit more so I can do just a little more. If you volunteer, if you're involved in your children's lives, if you teach a Sunday School class, if you're going to walk to support a cause, you need to pat yourself on the back!

Pathetic

Pathetic. That describes my writing habits perfectly. I haven't been keeping up with this blog. I have a good excuse (sort of) in that in writing for the Fayette Front Page, the Georgia Front Page, and doing all the videos for both, I'm completely immersed in Fayette Life and am sharing it via those mediums.

However, that's not quite good enough... I also do a fairly good job of keeping up with my Politics: Fayette County, Georgia and Beyond blog (www.jmacpolitics.blogspot.com). I've always kept up with politics, in particular local politics, and so writing for that blog comes easy.

However, that's still not good enough...

I'm going to make it my end-of-year resolution to do more writing in THIS blog. There are so many great things to write about in Fayette County, and in Georgia. Maybe this will balance the negatives I get from watching our local political leaders at work... Yin Yang, black, white...