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Wednesday, November 17,2021
dawsonnews.com I DAWSON COUNTY NEWS I 3B
FROM 1B
Football
cannot be forgotten about
after causing three Sandy
Creek turnovers in the
game. Senior Matt
Bennett scooped up a
Patriot fumble and ran it
in for the Tigers first
touchdown of the game
and junior Kenny Nelson
intercepted the ball twice
in the win.
On top of his 48 yards
receiving, LeBlanc also
connected on all three of
his field goal attempts,
converting two 40-yard
attempts and a 24-yard
attempt.
Maxwell said he and
his coaching staff did not
spend any time through
out the week watching
film on who their next
opponent might be. After
beating Windsor Forest
56-19, the Pierce County
Bears will host the Tigers
on Friday, Nov. 19. Pierce
County High School is
around 60 miles west of
St. Simons Island.
Next Friday’s game
will start at 7:30 p.m.
Jacob Smith Dawson County News
Sophomore Dominic LeBlanc kicks a 24-yard field
goal, his third field goal of the game.
What it takes.. .seriously
RONDARICH
Columnist
One day I walked into
Tink’s home office where
he usually sits in an over-
stuffed chair decorated in
bold flowers of orange,
yellow and green. His
feet were slung out on the
matching ottoman.
His computer was
opened on his lap but he
had stopped writing. His
arms folded with his chin
resting in one hand, he
was looking out the large,
arched window through
the pasture where the
creek ambles slowly on
its long journey to the
Gulf Coast.
In the Appalachians, we
would say that he was
“studyin’ hard on some
thin’.”
He turned to me. “I
think people think what
we do is easy,” he said
thoughtfully. For two
weeks, he had been writ
ing, rewriting and rewrit
ing the rewrite of a
43-minute television epi
sode.
“A writer friend of
mine said he believes that
people think that the time
it takes them to read a
script is how long it takes
for us to write it. What’s
your opinion?”
I sat down on the red
love seat that is across the
room but still close to his
chair. I, too, looked out at
the pasture and the lazy
creek and pondered it. I
had not once given it any
“never mind”. It’s this
simple to me: I tell sto
ries. They come to me,
wiggle in my brain then I
spew them out, either by
pen or word.
But Tink’s writing is
different. It’s structured.
It’s episodic. It requires
an intelligence that my
writing doesn’t demand.
Lately, I’ve come to
realize this: Storytelling
is a God-given talent. In
the Bible, Paul talks
about the gifts of the spir
it. He doesn’t mention
storytelling but it is a gift
that is similar to playing
the piano, carpentry,
dressmaking or building a
fiddle like my Uncle
Oscar did.
People sometimes sidle
up to me at an event or
the grocery store or in the
churchyard and say, “I
have a book I want to
write. I have a great idea.”
Often there will be a
pause then the thought
continues. “But I don’t
know how to start.”
My advice is always
this: “Sit down and just
do it. Look in the mirror,
tell yourself the story
then write it down just
like you tell it.”
I could see Tink’s
point. I know how hard
he works and how many
incarnations a script will
go through. The actors
will object or insert. The
studio will send 35 pages
of notes on a 60-page
script that will include
such notations as “does
her scarf really have to be
blue? Red would work
better” or “change his
name. We have a
Malcolm on another
show.”
That sunny afternoon,
we began a conversation
on it because Tink pushed
me to think deeper about
what I do and how I do it.
He was troubled about a
young man we know in
Los Angeles.
“Do you think he has
what it takes to write
scripts?” Tink asked.
I thought long and seri
ously. I sighed deeply. I
like the kid so much.
Slowly, I shook my head.
“No,” I replied. “He
doesn’t have the hunger.
Nor the imagination. Nor
the observation. He
doesn’t ‘see’ the stories.”
Tink nodded. “You’re
absolutely right. What a
great way to put it, Ronda
Rich.”
After I left his office
and Tink went back to
reworking the sixth draft
of a show, I “studied on it
real hard.” Writing or tell
ing stories isn’t as easy as
it looks.
My sister. My brother-
in-law. My niece. My
nephew. They tell great
stories from life’s flicker
ing scenes. In the course
of a 12-hour day, any one
of them can reduce it to a
five-minute entertaining
story by finding the most
interesting 120 seconds of
a day and elaborating on
it.
It’s not just about how
the story begins or ends.
It’s mostly about what’s
in the middle.
Ronda Rich is the best-sell
ing author of Let Me Tell You
Something. Visit www.rond-
arich.com to sign up for her
free weekly newsletter.
Wrestling team ready to return
to normalcy after COVID season
Jacob Smith Dawson County News
Wrestling head coach Arron Haynes, alongside Holden Martin (L),
Will Whalen and Isaiah Lail at the 2021 DCN Winter Media Day
Jacob Smith
jsmith@dawsonnews.com
At the 2021 Dawson County News
winter sports media day, the Dawson
County High School wrestling team
made one thing clear; they were
ready to get back on the mat.
Tigers head coach Arron Haynes
said the most difficult part of the
2020 season, where the Tigers sent
eight individual wrestlers to the state
tournament, was having to navigate
through the COVID-19 protocols.
“This year, they can actually be a
team,” Haynes said at media day.
“They can be around each other and
they can have fun together. Last
year, they weren’t even allowed to
shake hands. The camaraderie has
definitely been different from last
year.”
With him, Haynes brought seniors
Holden Martin and Will Whalen and
junior captain Isaiah Lail to media
day. Whalen said that he never
expected to have to rely on support
from his family as much as he had
to last season.
“Last year, we just had to stay in
our littie section,” Whalen said. “We
couldn’t go off too much, so seeing
your parents and them telling you
that you did a good job actually had
a bigger impact than you would
think.”
This season, Haynes said the team
will be young once again, but “a
good, solid core of upperclassmen”
have been able to show the younger
guys the ropes of being a part of the
team.
“With wrestling, each day is
tough because you’ve got to fight
each other every single day,”
Haynes said. “It’s one of those
things that underclassmen don’t
understand, so we have to teach
them that so they don’t run off.”
Every season, Haynes said he
preaches to his players to be more
physical on the mat. This year is no
different.
“We want to get back to being
physical,” Haynes said “We’re a
short offense kinda team, so we got
to open up a little bit so we can get
some more use on the mat.”
As the Tigers get ready for their
season, Lail said there’s always one
match circled on the schedule for
the team: Lumpkin County.
“It’s just Lumpkin,” Lail said
when asked why.
The Tigers will have to wait deep
er into the season for a chance to
face off against the Indians. Instead,
the wrestling program will kick off
their season Tuesday, Nov. 16 at
Gainesville High School.
SWIM PREVIEW
Team boasts ‘biggest roster yet’
Jacob Smith Dawson County News
DCHS swim head coach Linda Sperin with
Jocelyn Thompson (L), Jasmine Thompson and
Megan Dixon at the 2021 DCN Winter Media Day.
By Jacob Smith
jsmith@dawsonnews.com
Though they do not
record wins or losses, the
Dawson County Tigers
swim team may be the
fastest growing sport at
the high school.
As the 2021-2022 swim
season approaches, head
coach Linda Sperin said
she is still looking for
more people to join the
team and get the word out
that there really is a swim
team at Dawson County.
“An answer we get a lot
of the time is ‘I don’t
know how to swim and I
don’t know what to do,”’
Sperin said. “Come try it.
We’ll help you. It’ll be
hard the first couple of
weeks but you’ll be sur
prised what you can do in
the third week compared
to the first week.”
Seniors Megan Dixon,
Jasmine Thompson and
Jocelyn Thompson repre
sented the swim team at
the 2021 Dawson County
News Winter Media Day.
All three agreed joining
the swim team their soph
omore year has helped
inform the student body of
the team’s existence.
“It’s definitely some
thing we have had to get
the word out about,”
Thompson said. “I don’t
think a lot of people knew
we even had a swim team
until we actually came to
the high school. I think
joining the team and then
telling our friends about it
has definitely gotten the
word out. It’s still pretty
small though.”
The 2021-2022 team
has 21 students on the ros
ter and Sperin said the
roster features the most
underclassmen that she
has maybe ever had. She
added it does not hurt hav
ing a core group of seniors
walking the halls at the
high school recruiting
their classmates.
Dixon and the
Thompson sisters all par
ticipate in different sports
in the spring at the high
school (Dixon plays soc
cer and the Thompsons
are on the track and field
team). Dixon said an
added benefit from being
on the swim team is added
preparation for her other
sports.
“It’s the best sport I’ve
found to keep in shape,”
Dixon said. “It works all
of your muscles. Also,
other than the first couple
of weeks, you don’t really
feel sore afterwards. If I’m
sore from soccer or some
thing, it stretches those
muscles out and makes
my body feel good.”
On top of everything, the
swim team is about build
ing a family and making
swimming fun, something
Sperin said she takes pride
in with the team. Most
meets are far away, which
all three athletes said
makes for fun times travel
ing to and from meets on
the bus. They will play
music and go out to eat
after the meets.
Since there are no wins
and losses or region tour
naments, the whole league
is built around having fun.
The league even does a
yearly meet to honor the
seniors, where they let
each team’s seniors dress
up in costume and per
form a special relay.
“Just join and try out,”
Dixon said. “It’s so much
fun. You never know if
you might be good at it or
like it. It takes practice
because it’s not easy, but
practice really helps.”
Brine that turkey
2 oranges, the
peels and the juice
ADLEN ROBINSON
Columnist
For the past two
decades, I always write
about the importance of
brining your
Thanksgiving Day turkey
ahead of time. I know it
seems like one more
thing you have to do, but
it is totally worth the
effort. Brining ensures
your bird will be sea
soned all the way through
and in addition, your tur
key will be moist and
succulent.
I usually change my
brining recipe a little bit
every year, but the ingre
dients that stay the same
are salt and sugar.
Turkey Brine
• 3 cups apple cider
(or apple juice)
• 2 gallons water
• 4 sprigs rosemary
• 5 cloves garlic,
minced
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups kosher
salt
• 2 cups brown sugar
• Handful pepper
corns
• 6 bay leaves
Combine all ingredi
ents in a large stockpot
and bring to a boil.
Remove from heat and
cool completely. Remove
giblet bag from turkey
and save to use for gravy
and/or stock. Place whole
turkey in a large stockpot.
You can line the pot with
a brining bag for easy
cleanup. Cover with
cooled brine and then
cover. Refrigerate turkey
for 16 to 24 hours. When
ready to cook turkey,
drain and discard brine.
Rinse turkey with cold
water to remove excess
salt. Pat dry with paper
towels and proceed with
your recipe.
When you are plan
ning your Thanksgiving
Day menu, sometimes it
is hard to know how
much of each type of
food you will actually
need. Of course we all
love turkey day leftovers,
but nobody wants to have
too many. Here is a chart
of sorts to give you some
estimates of what to plan
for.
Herb Butter
Roasted Turkey
• 1 turkey (12-14
pounds), preferably
brined
• 1 cup dry white
wine
• 1 cup chicken
broth
• 1/2 cup parsley
leaves, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh
sage, minced, plus
sprigs for garnish
• 1 tablespoon fresh
rosemary leaves,
minced, plus sprigs
for garnish
• 1 teaspoon fresh
thyme leaves, plus
sprigs for garnish
• 1 stick butter, soft
ened
• 1 1/2 tablespoons
salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons
pepper
• 1 onion, cut into
chunks
• 1 head garlic, cut
in half lengthwise
• 1 lemon, halved
Preheat oven to
325-degrees. Pat turkey
dry with paper towels.
Place turkey, breast side
up, on a rack in a large
roasting pan. Pour white
wine and chicken stock
into the roasting pan.
Make the herb butter.
In a food processor, pulse
the parsley, sage, rose
mary, and thyme until
very finely chopped. Add
butter and pulse until well
blended.
Gently run your fin
gers underneath the tur
key skin to loosen it from
the turkey. Use a spatula
to smear herb butter
under the turkey’s skin.
Evenly distribute the herb
butter all over, under the
skin. Sprinkle the turkey
with salt and pepper.
Place the onion, garlic
and lemon inside the cav
ity of the turkey. With
kitchen twine, tie the
wings against the turkey
body and the drumsticks
together.
Roast the turkey for 1
hour and 30 minutes. If
turkey breast is getting
too brown, cover loosely
with aluminum foil.
Roast another hour until a
meat thermometer insert
ed into the thickest part of
a thigh registers
170-degrees.
Remove the turkey and
tent loosely with alumi
num foil. Let rest for
15-20 minutes before
carving.
Pour turkey drippings
into a glass measuring
cup, spooning off and dis
carding as much fat as
possible. To make gravy,
melt 3 tablespoons butter
in a pot and then stir in 3
tablespoons flour. Whisk
for a few minutes, and
then pour in ¥i cup dry
white wine, turkey drip
pings, plus 2-3 cups tur
key or chicken stock.
Bring to a boil, whisking
constantly and then add
some salt, pepper, and a
pinch of dried thyme.
Taste for seasoning.
Sometimes I add 14 cup
of heavy cream to make it
extra creamy.