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Mcrustmt dßmltj djourtutl May I take your order? My husband has some strange aversion to the telephone. Or sure, he knows how to use it well enough. It’s not the technology that both ers him, or the actual act of dialing. It’s what follows the ring tone that he doesn’t particu alrly enjoy - you know, the talking. That is why I am often required to act as his sec retary. He needs a haircut? I make the call to make the appoint ment. He has a toothache? I make the call to make an appointment. He’s sick? I make the well, you get the picture. Every so often on his way to work he likes to stop at a j ‘ 'i& JB Sherri Martin The Front Porch taurant and pick It has become routine for me to call in his order: one large, sliced beef sandwich with sauce, regular fries and a large sweet tea. It’s gotten so routine that when the people on the other end of the line pick up and hear me say, “I’d like to place an order,” they say, “Let me see, will that be one large, sliced beef sandwich with sauce, regular fries and a large sweet tea? We’ll get it ready for him, Mrs. Martin.” Now that’s service! You would think that, since he would hardly have to say a thing, this is one call my husband could make on his own. Think again. One day I was on my way to town when my cell phone rang. “Did you make the call?” I heard him say. “No, but I will,” I said, trying to sup press my sigh. I guess I should be glad that he doesn’t mind talk ing to me. With our varied schedules, we often have to rely on the phone to keep the lines of communication open. That’s why another day, after he got to work, I wasn’t too surprised when the phone rang. I figured he had forgotten to tell me something before he left. Wrong. “Did you forget some thing?” he asked calmly. “Oh, no!” I said with dis may. I had fallen down on my job. He had gone up to the counter for his lunch and they said, “She didn’t call it in, Mr. Martin.” What failure! In my defense, I told him I had forgotten because I was dealing with a wailing tod dler whose heart was bro ken because he could not go to work with his daddy. All thoughts of making a phone call flew out of my mind as I was busy comforting hurt feelings. “I’ll have to talk to my sec retary about this,” he told the people at the restau rant. Um, hmm. He’s such a funny man. I really don’t mind making the calls when needed. My husband would be the first to tell you I have no aversion to talking on the phone. Plus, I enjoy taking care of all three of my men. And just so long as my husband remembers to chase his secretary around the desk every once in a while, I’ll keep on dialing. With a smile. SATURDAY, AUGUST 12, 2006 I —-Bn 'Wp JlUl 8; ; a nuEij r -X- Wa T lr' BM| J* Journal/ Charlotte Perkin* Chas Mann is shown here with Ronda Garbisch, Children’s Ministry director at First Baptist Perry, where he has excelled in the AW AN A program and in learning about the Bible. Caring is By CHARLOTTE PERKINS Journal Lifestyle Editor At 5:30 every weekday morning, Becky Mann is about to head out the door to her job as an operat ing room nurse at Houston Medical Center. Her husband, Dr. Charles Mann, gets a little more sleep, but not much, because he gets up to run every morning before going to work. A general surgeon, he has offices in Perry, Fort Valley, Warner Robins and Byron. Their son, Chas, who is 13, has to get up and get going, too. He’s a student at the Westfield Schools, with an active church life and plen ty of hobbies and interests to keep him busy. What makes things work for this family is an old fashioned extended family. Chas has live-in grandpar ents. Becky’s parents, Keath and Mary Morgan, are devoted to their grandson. Mary, who let’s you know in a moment that she’s a proud grandmother says, “He’s a gift from God.” And apparently, she’s one herself, because in addi tion to riding herd on her grandson and his friends, she’s the main cook in the house. “Mama’s an excellent cook,” Becky says. “She makes the best meatballs and spaghetti.” “And cheeseburgers,” Chas adds, “and lemon ade.” The whole family enjoys a second home at Lake JLin |Mte seiFi -JP |j jPPJMBfc ■« j ;■ Jmr® ■ jjgfPft I*" TL-I 1 IV H? 1 'lit/ jg ‘ M ***’ JMut i&rM. dt. Lifestyle Family Values a way of life for Mann family iV " r ‘ " 1 ! ,■[ H mm Journal Charlotte Perkins Having live-in grandparents makes it possible for Becky and Charles Mann to keep up their busy schedules. She is an operating room nurse, and he is a general surgeon. Blackshear, where Keath Morgan, a World War II veteran, makes the most of his retirement, and Chas has his own fire truck. No, we’re not talking about a toy. This young man, who has been fas ‘A Night of Swing at the Canteen* cinated with firefighting since he was a toddler, has his own library of books on the great fires of history, an impressive collection of fire memorabilia, and his own fire truck - a 1960 pumper. What does he want to be when he grows up? A firefighter, naturally. But Chas has other inter ests as well, and one of those is growing in his faith. First Baptist Church of Perry has been an anchor for him since moving here from Perry, and he has excelled at AWANA activi ties as well as learning to put others first, accord ing to Ronda Garbisch, the church’s Children’s Ministry Director. Becky, who met her hus band in Tifton in 1984 when they were both working at Tift Regional Hospital, took several years off from her work as an RN after their son was bom, but she stayed so busy as a volun teer that the City of Tifton still counts on her to come back each year on the first Saturday of December for the big downtown festival. Her activities there start ed with decorating their home for Christmas and inviting neighbors in for an open house, and the spirit caught on and got things rolling toward the holiday festival, which now attracts as many as 35,000 people each year, with a parade, entertainment, carnival rides, historic homes tours and more. Chase also got some of his early lessons in serving others as he went with his mother each year to deliver decorated Christmas trees too families in need. In Houston County, she’s a Faircracker and also a member of the Pilot Club of Perry and the Houston Arts Alliance, while her See FAMILY, page 4C In honor of the Armed Forces, the Houston Arts Alliance will host “Georgia Big Band Music and Dancing’ - “A Night of Swing at the Canteen at the Museum of Aviation Century of Flight Building on Sept. 9, from 7-10 p.m. There will be prizes given for the best-decorated table and best costume, from WWII to the Korean War. A table for eight costs $160; and the cost for single seat at a table is S2O. There are special discounts for military personnel (active duty). Guests may bring their own food and drink - picnic style or gourmet style. Tables must be reserved. To purchase tickets call the Houston Arts Alliance office, 218-5229, Monday - Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mastercard and Visa are accepted. Tickets may also be purchased at Robins Air Force Base and at the Warner Robins Visitor Center. Special to the Journal SECTION c To look or sound great? Karen and I were meet ing up on a super secret beauty mission (don’t mention Botox). En route to the appointment, I talked to two other friends on my cell phone. Karen, one of my best friends, is a Grammy-nom inated gospel music artist who has had several num ber one records. When both friends learned that I was on my way to rendezvous with her, they mentioned that they had seen Karen performing on television a couple of days earlier. “Tell her that she looked great!” Debbie said. “Tell her that she sounded great!” Pinky instructed. Dutifully, I reported both comments as we waited for our appointment. “How sweet,” Karen demurred softly, smiling. I furrowed a un-Botoxed brow and asked, “Which would you prefer? To sound great or look great?” It was a deep question and one that was not quickly answered. In fact, Karen was completely baffled. Ronda Rich Columnist Her eyes widened, almost in horror. “I don’t know. Oh my gosh. I don’t know. ” She mum bled back and forth about it then said, “This is terrible. I know I should say ‘sound great’ because I’ve made my living singing for over 20 years! But I don’t know.” She bit her lower lip. After a debate of several minutes - by the way, I was NO help on this - I com mented thoughtfully, “Well, maybe you could sound so great that no one would even notice how you looked.” “That’s it,” she agreed, nodding. “That would work.” I know we’re vain. It’s not anything we’re proud of, especially Karen who sings for the Lord. After all, vanity is one of the seven deathly sins. I, though, have a bit more leeway in such matters. We do seek, however, to keep it at bay as much as possible. Sloppiness is a sin, too. At least it is on my list because it leads to sloth, definitely one of the seven deadly sins. So, it’s all a matter of finding the right measure and tip-toeing down that fine line. As fate would have it, the following morning, it was reported on the news that women spend an average of See RICH, page 4C