Newspaper Page Text
Recognize the strengths
of teenagers and not
dwell just on negatives
When you say TEEN-AGER,
what comes to mind? We often
speak of teens in negative ways.
We call them rebellious in an age
of storm and stress. We read books
on surviving your offsprings’ teen
years. When we say “teen-age dri
ver,” we aren’t usually giving a
compliment.
At times we concentrate on the
differences between the adult and
the teen world. We look closely at
and publicize the problems of
teens and car crashes, drug use,
alcohol abuse and sexual activity.
These are and should be real con
cerns. However, don’t forget the
strengths of the teen years.
Help young people see them
selves in a positive perspective
rather than the popular negative
view.
We know that the problem of low
self-esteem is associated with
many teens participating in risky
behavior, whether it’s reckless dri
ving, alcohol and drug abuse, sui
cide or sexual activity.
What might happen if we decided
to pay more attention to the good
rather than the bad?
Would this change the concept
teens have of themselves? Would
they sail through the teen years
with a higher self-esteem and per
haps be less involved in these risky
behaviors?
Two researchers asked 100 high
school students to list what
they saw as their strengths.
The students listed an aver
age of only seven. Yet the
researchers found 16 person
ality strengths of teens dif
ferent from those of adults.
Think about these strengths
and emphasize them with
your teen.
These strengths include:
1. Lots of energy, vitality
and drive.
2. Idealism, showing real
concern for the future of this
country and the world.
3. More apt to question
contemporary values,
philosophies, theologies and
institutions.
4. Heightened sensory
awareness and perception.
5. Courageous, willing to
take risk£.
6. Strong sense of fairness
and dislike of intolerance.
Peach, blueberry growers
need more cold weather
By Jennifer Cannon
Georgia Extension Service
The bone-chilling cold of early
January was exactly what
Georgia peach and blueberry
growers need, say University of
Georgia experts. But they need a
lot more.
“At the moment, we’re praying
for cold weather,” said Gerard
Krewer, an Extension Service
fruit horticulturist with the UGA
College of Agricultural and
Ei iron me nt al Sciences.
An unseasonably mild fall
brought middle - and south
Georgia into the new year with
the fewest chill hours to this
point in 40 years. Chill hours are
the time below 45 degrees
between Oct. 1 and Feb. 15.
“The chill hours are running
about half of the normal accu
mulation across most of south
Georgia,” Krewer said.
Without the needed chill hours,
the trees will bloom and set
some frui . Krewer said. But
they’ll lost the fruit when the
leaves don develop quickly
after fruit < . Without leaves
that photosynthesize to create
sugars, tht tree can’t support the
fruit.
If we’re just 100 or so chill
hours short, we may get some of
a crop, he said. But it probably
won’t be a good one. At 200
hours short, the crop would be
very poor.
However, it’s still early in the
• winter - too early to make a
solid prediction of crop yields.
Chill hours can accumulate at a
rate of 168 every week.
But with six weeks remaining
before the cutoff date, Krewer
calculates that growers we need
a solid month of below-45 tem
• T 7
Debbie
! 7. Feeling of independence.
I 8. Usually can be relied on,
t often responsible.
f 9. Flexible and can readily adapt
, to change.
10. Usually open, frank and hon
■ est.
: 11. Above average sense of loy-
alty to causes, organizations.
12. Willing to express sense of
: humor.
: 13. Optimistic and positive out-
look on life.
' 14. Think more seriously than
i many adults realize.
’ 15. Sincerely trying to establish
identity.
16. More sensitive to other per
son’s feelings.
I If we can help more young peo-
I pie recognize their real strengths
and build on them as they are
t entering adulthood, we may have
I fewer negative experiences.
; If you have questions in the area
of Family and Consumer Sciences,
' please call Monday through
Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at (770)
i 887-2418.
® jhJ-W
peratures to get enough chill to
make a good crop.
“And we rarely receive contin
uous chilling in south Georgia,”
he said.
Chill requirements vary by the
peach and blueberry type. But so
far, no varieties grown in middle
and south Georgia have enough
chill hours to properly set and
develop fruit.
Peach trees can still benefit
from chill hours after Feb. 15,
Krewer said, but they aren’t as
effective as those before.
At this point, Krewer and
Georgia peach farmers are hop
ing for cold weather and a state
registration for a chemical called
“Dormex.”
This material, already widely
used around the world, can sub
stitute for 100 to 150 chill
hours. Farmers may be able to
supplement natural chill hours
with Dormex and get a good
crop.
Krewer and Kathryn Taylor, a
UGA stone fruit horticulturist,
will lead a meeting on Dormex
applications at the Jan. 24 busi
ness meeting of the National
Peach Convention in Myrtle
Beach, S.C. Call Bob McCurry
of the South Carolina Peach
Council at (803) 734-2215 for
more information about that
meeting.
Farmers in upper north Georgia
have been more fortunate.
They’re on track to get enough
chilling hours for rabbiteye
blueberries and most peach
types grown in their area.
Jennifer Cannon is a news edi
tor with the University of
Georgia College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences.
Abby
Mom’s ready to short-sheet son’s unsupervised sleepover
By Abigail Van Buren
Universal Press Syndicate
DEAR ABBY: I need help with a family prob
lem. My 14-year-old son and his friends enjoy
sleeping over at one another’s homes. Recently he
spent the night at a new friend's apartment. I just
discovered that the other boy’s mother works all
night. She left about 10 p.m., and the two boys
were left on their own.
I was horrified when I found out and informed
my son that he may have his friend over at our
home, or he can sleep at his friend’s home on the
condition that I speak first to a parent to be certain
that an adult will be present.
My son says I’m being unreasonable, and my
husband sees nothing wrong with two 14-year-old
boys being left alone for the night. I seem to be
alone in my opinion that this is potentially dan
gerous. What do you think? Should I back down?
WORRIED MOM IN MINNEAPOLIS
DEAR WORRIED: Do not back down. It’s
difficult to be Mom the Enforcer when your hus
band doesn’t support you; however, I agree there
should always be an adult on the premises to
make responsible decisions should an emergency
occur. Dad seems to have forgotten how imma
ture 14-year-old boys can be. Remind him.
DEAR ABBY: With reference to “Dad, the
Morning Rooster,” who has to haul his 18-year
old son out of bed to go to work: There’s another
side to the question of slow-to-rise adults. Some
body clocks cannot be adjusted.
My husband has this problem. When he was
single, he paid the janitor of his building to see
that he was up and sitting on the side of the bed
each morning before leaving him.
After we were married and both working and
sharing transportation, his problem caused me a
lot of stress. After I quit working, I thought he
could and should change, get a loud alarm clock,
suffer the consequences of oversleeping, etc.
Nothing worked. I continued to get angry, and he
continued to apologize and tell me how much he
appreciated my getting him up.
Horoscope
ARIES (March 21 to April
19) A business matter may be
more complicated than you
realize. You're in a reflective
mood this week, but should
guard against worry and too
much introspection.
TAURUS (April 20 May 20)
Try not to be heavy-handed
with family now. In business,
others are likely to play their
cards close to the chest. A travel
plan needs further thought.
GEMINI (May 21 to June
20) A cash-flow problem may
dampen your enthusiasm for
socializing this week. It may be
a game of one-upmanshi,. with
someone you recently met.
Accent practicality in business.
CANCER (June 21 to July
22) Someone who acts in poor
taste may upset your sensibili
ties this week. Try not to sell
yourself short in your job inter
ests. Delays experienced over
the weekend are only tempo
rary.
LEO (July 23 to Aug. 22)
Don't shut yourself off from a
close tie. Resolve issues
between friends or family mem
bers amicably. Some face extra
responsibilities in connection
with the home this weekend.
VIRGO (Aug. 23 to Sept. 22)
Extra expenses may arise in
connection with children this
week. You may be at a stale
mate regarding a financial issue.
Socializing may be low on your
priority list during the weekend.
LIBRA (Sep. 23 to Oct. 22)
You may find yourself involved
in a conversation with an opin
ionated person early in the
week. Work delays may dampen
your spirits somewhat, so try to
remain patient and upbeat.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23 to Nov.
21) Try not .to let career con
cerns become an issue between
you and a loved one. Others
make demands on your time, so
your own priorities may be on
hold for the time being.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22 to
Dec. 21) You may have to say
no to someone's request for
financial assistance. Friends
seem wrapped up in their own
problems and may not be good
company over the weekend.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22 to
Jan. 19) You could overreact
now to someone's criticisms, but
it's not the end of the world if
I finally accepted the fact that he is a night per
son and a very sound sleeper. (He could respond
to an emergency in the middle of the night and
have no recollection of it the next morning.) I, on
the other hand, am a morning person, waking up
early and hungry.
My husband worked long, hard hours at a job
where he was not in danger of being fired, but
certainly didn’t get the day off to a good start
when he overslept. I finally solved the problem by
sending the children, as soon as they were old
enough, to wake Daddy. They loved it, and not
even he could continue to sleep with a couple of
preschoolers climbing all over him.
If possible, night people would do well to follow
a career that calls for working afternoons and
evenings (such as operating a movie theater). A
true night person and a true morning person living
together will have to understand and compromise.
To people like us, I offer this consolation: It gets
better as you grow older. Sound sleepers sleep
less soundly, and early risers don’t leap quite as
eagerly out of bed in the morning. Eventually you
meet on middle ground.
RETIRED MORNING PERSON
DEAR RETIRED: It’s true that people have
different biological rhythms. However, it’s not
always possible for an 18-year-old to work nights
and sleep in particularly if he or she must bal
ance a work schedule with school.
DEAR READERS: Yesterday I printed a letter
from Gen. Barry McCaffrey (Ret.), director of
national drug control policy in Washington, D.C.,
in which he asked parents to act upon 10 New
Year’s Resolutions to Raise Drug-Free Kids.
Space limitations prevented me from printing the
warning signs he said parents should look for.
Although there is no single factor for drug use,
warning signs of a potential problem include:
(1) Drop in academic performance
(2) Lack of interest in personal appearance
(3) Withdrawal, isolation, depression, fatigue
(4) Aggressive, rebellious behavior
(5) Hostility and lack of cooperativeness
(6) Deteriorating relationships with family
everyone doesn't agree with
you. Try to remain positive in
outlook now.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20 to Feb.
18) Things may not happen as
' LAST CHANCE NOON FRIDAY, JANUARY 22ND.
Cole Ethan Wacaster
October 28,1998
Sabrina & Eric Wacaster
Kennestone Hospital P' Vy v 7 W N \
Share The Joy Os Yorr New Ar rival!
On Friday, Jan. 29th, the Forsyth Cour tj lews Advertising Department
will publish a special page featuring th babies born in 1998. Along
with a picture of the baby, we’ll include he names of the baby and par*
ents, birthdate, and birthplace, creating a special keepsake. Fin in the
information on the form below with a picture of your baby along with
the SIO.OO fee and bring or mail it to the Forsyth County News, P.O. Box
210, Cumming, GA. 30128. Any mother featuring twins, triplets, etc.
pays SIO.OO for the first baby and gets the other one(s) FREE!
DEADLINE IS NOON WEDNESDAY, JAN. 22nd.
Welcome Babies of 1998
Forsyth County News
P.O. Box 210 Payment Enclosed|
Cumming, Ga. 30128 |
■ Baby’s Name|
! Sex Date of Birth Place of Birth.
■ Parents.
■ Address ■
|city/State/Zip
Actual Size: 1 U” x 1 U"
Forsyth County News Stl
J far "ffouMftnm Ayer" Since /9(tt J '
770*887-3120
“Welcome Babies of 1998”
FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS W«dn—day, J»nu»ry 13,1W9
fast as you'd like where busi
ness interests are concerned
this week. Try not to feel unap
preciated. Be cooperative with
close ties for weekend socializ
ing.
(7) Change in friends 1 ’
(8) Loss of interest in hobbies and/or sports «<
(9) Change in eating/sleeping habits » »
(10) Evidence of drugs or drug paraphernalia
(e.g., needles, pipes, papers, lighters) •
(11) Physical changes (e.g., runny nose not from
cold, red eyes, coughing, wheezing, braises, nee
dle marks) '•«'
Help is available: Call this number for infortna
tion: (800) 666-3332 and ask for the new
Growing Up Drag Free Parents Guide. Call the
hot lines for help: (800) 662-HELP or (800) 821-
HELP. Or surf for information on the'Wtb
at www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov- or
www.health.org or www.dragfreeamerica.org. * ‘
DEAR ABBY: Do you enjoy large, festive’par
ties where the band is so loud you cannot hear the
guest next to you speak?
We went to a very expensive black-tie weddihg
last week. Most of the guests left the room at vari
ous intervals throughout the evening in order tb
be able to converse with other guests without
shouting.
The guests complained to each other about the
loudness of the music, but no one felt they could
speak to the host and hostess about it because
they thought the loud music was their choice. • '■ ’
I spoke with the hostess about it today. She-said
she also thought the music was too loud, but she
thought the guests were enjoying it.
Abby, is there anything guests can do about it? I
am not complaining about music in general:’lt’s
only the very loud music I resent, which cauites
me to go home with a sore throat from shouting. 1 2
Do other readers agree? :*• -
ROBERTA BERENS, ENCINO, CAME
DEAR ROBERTA: I’m sure many readers ‘will
agree with you, depending upon their age. ItX a
generational thing. Young people tend to favor
loud music, which explains why so many have
hearing problems in their later years. Had you
asked the host, the hostess or even the band leader
to tone down the volume your request may
have fallen on deaf ears. ‘ *'?'
PISCES (Feb. 19 to March
20) Be wary of those who would'
take advantage in financial mat-;
ters. A friend may burden yow
with his or her problems'/.
Socializing is iffy this week.
PAGE 7A