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WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2009
THE JACKSON HERALD
PAGE 5A
Christmas - two days early
THE FRUSTRATED preach
er doesn't want to become an old
grouch or grinch and ruin anybody's
Christmas. (It is presumptuous of him
to think that he could.) He just needs
to get a few things off his chest.
Nobody got too upset over
his advice on how to celebrate
Thanksgiving; maybe he can get
away with a few tips on observing
Christmas. Anyway, if he can do
a column on “Thanksgiving Day -
one week later" and a column on
“Thanksgiving Day - two weeks later," I
guess he can do one on “Christmas - two days
early.”
I am late, of course. I should have done this
piece the week of July 4 th and headlined it,
“Christmas - 173 days early.”
That is a slight exaggeration - for now. In the
future it may not be too farfetched. Remember
when we used to ridicule and laugh at people
who left their Christmas lights up the year
‘round? Now we need to apologize - and con
gratulate them for being ahead of the times.
I don’t know how this mad rush to celebrate
Christmas 365 days a year began. On second
thought, it was not a mad rush; it evolved
slowly over many years - and for different
reasons.
I blame or credit (take your pick) Toys R Us,
Wal-Mart, Target, Cracker Barrel and ever-
loving parents and grandparents who can’t do
enough for their kids. Doing without is a les
son we seem to have forgotten.
I’m not talking about poor families who do
without through no fault of their own. I’m talk
ing about middle and upper income folks who
can afford all that stuff and are determined
that no child - especially their own - is left
behind.
You don’t hear much about the Joneses
these days, but keeping up with them is still
motivation. And let’s give TV advertising some
credit, or blame; it eggs us on.
And the fact that Christmas stuff - from
cards to wrapping paper to pretty ornaments to
expensive high tech toys and gadgets - is on
display and readily available 24/7 is a tempta
tion hard to resist.
I hope you don’t think I am belittling
Christmas, making light of it, or being critical
of folks who want the best for their families.
Christmas is Christmas - always has been
since the birth of Jesus and, far as I know,
will continue to be Christmas until something
better comes along. I can't imagine that ever
happening.
The Reason for the Season - that’s a cliche
if there ever was one - hasn't changed, but
most people’s perception sure has. This will be
my 87 th Christmas. Christmas hasn’t changed.
I have.
Oh yes, I remember when Santa Claus and I
were the closest of friends. At Christmastime I
loved him more than my parents, not knowing
that they were one and the same. (You
don't let the kids read this stuff, do
you? It would break my heart to out
old Saint Nick.)
Then I became Santa Claus and
enjoyed the excitement and thrill of
watching my own children wake up
in the middle of the night, wondering
if he had come. Sometimes he had
and sometimes he hadn’t, but some
time between then and daylight, he
showed up.
What I got, what they got, what
kids get today - what a difference!
I was thrilled to get a stocking (a real stock
ing, not one specially made for the occasion)
filled with fruit, nuts, candy and a tiny box of
raisins. My kids got more. Their kids get more.
If the trend continues, their kids' kids - my
great-grandkids - will get even more.
That's OK. Maybe that's the way it's sup
posed to be. I am happy for them.
I’m not zeroing in on just the Adams family
here. I’m talking about the typical well-to-do
American family that gives and gets constant
ly. Every day is Christmas day - that hurried,
harried, pressure-packed kind of day when we
rush around like chickens with their heads cut
off to meet all our needs and satisfy all our
wants. And we try to do it on our own, without
help from the Reason. Reason gets lost in the
turmoil and confusion.
No wonder so many of us are tired, irritable
and depressed.
I said earlier that maybe I can get away with
a few tips on observing Christmas. For what
they’re worth:
We have too long and take too long to
prepare for this special day. We need to cel
ebrate the New Year, observe Easter, remem
ber Independence Day, enjoy Halloween, be
thankful on Thanksgiving Day, forget all about
Black Friday - and then begin to think about
Christmas.
But that advice is too late for this year. Right
now you are exhausted, stressed out, suffering
from anxiety and don't see how you can pos
sibly get everything done by Friday. You just
realized you haven't bought a gift for Aunt
Jenny. There are presents to wrap, stockings
to fill, food to prepare, the house to clean, the
driveway to sweep. And where are the scissors
and Scotch tape?
Woe is all of us.
Tomorrow night, Christmas Eve night, after
you've done all you can possibly do, take a
break. Relax. Sit in your favorite chair in your
favorite room. Be quiet. Remember. Meditate.
Pray. Be thankful.
Alone and silent, you might want to read
something. If you can’t think of anything, the
frustrated preacher recommends Luke. Begin
with Chapter 2. Read until you fall asleep.
Sweet dreams ... and Merry Christmas!
Virgil Adams is a former owner/editor of The
Jackson Herald.
DOT reports holiday traffic will bring delays
WITH CHRISTMAS
Day falling on a Friday,
the Georgia Department of
Transportation anticipates
more travelers than usual
during the holiday week.
Motorists should expect con
gestion near malls and retail
centers throughout the week.
“We anticipate heavy traffic
throughout the metro Atlanta
area beginning Wednesday
around noon,” said Georgia
DOT Commissioner Vance
C. Smith Jr. “Mall and retail
center traffic will be particu
larly congested. Additionally,
many travelers will be return
ing home over the week
end.”
In metro Atlanta, the DOT
is also anticipating high con
gestion areas in some of the
most driven roads, including
1-85 in Gwinnett County and
the Downtown Connector
(1-75/85).
The Georgia DOT will
suspend construction-related
lane closures on all inter
states and major state routes
from 5 a.m. Wednesday, Dec.
23 until Monday, Dec. 28, at
5 a.m.
Closures may also be in
place on 1-85 in Meriwether
and Coweta counties, 1-75
in South Georgia and 1-95
on the coast. Also, incident
management or emergency
maintenance-related lane
closures could become nec
essary on any route.
Check the maps on www.
georgia-navigator.com for
current road conditions, or
call 511 on any phone for free,
real-time traffic information.
Traveler information is also
available at www.511ga.org
and a toll-free number for
callers from outside the state,
1-877-MYGA511 (1-877-
694-2511).
Call 706-367-5233 to subscribe to
The Jackson Herald today!
BY KERRI TESTEMENT
ONE OF the signature
landmarks in downtown
Braselton is now in the hands
of the town.
Developer Wayne Mason
— through one of his invest
ment companies, Braselton
Ventures, LLC — has donated
a 2.64-acre site that includes
the historic Braselton
Brothers Store.
The property is located
in the heart of downtown
Braselton, at the intersection
of Ga. Hwy. 124 and Ga.
Hwy. 53.
Mason never directly told
Braselton officials why he
opted to donate the proper
ty to the town, according to
town manager Jennifer Dees.
“But, for a number of
years, he has said in meetings
that he planned to someday
donate that to the town,” she
said on Monday.
The land includes the cen
tury-old brick building that
is now the Braselton Antique
Mall. Carmichael Tile and
Braselton Dentistry are also
located in the retail complex.
Town officials don't have
an appraisal of the property,
but Braselton has insured the
building for $1 million, Dees
said.
The Jackson County Board
of Tax Assessors values at the
property at $339,650, accord
ing to its website.
The September deal also
includes a parking lot and
land surrounding the build
ing - where Braselton plans
to build its “town green” as
part of its efforts to revitalize
downtown. An amphitheater
is also in the long-term plans
for the area.
In January, the town will
begin taking bids on a project
to realign Ga. Hwy. 124 from
the front of the store to the
rear of the store and create
a safer intersection at Ga.
Hwy. 53.
The road project is expect
ed to take 12-18 months
to complete. Meanwhile,
Braselton will begin work
on its streetscape project to
install new sidewalks, street
lights and landscaping along
Ga. Hwy. 53 in downtown.
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slated to start in six months,
after plans are finalized for
the streetscape project, Dees
said. Once the Ga. Hwy.
124 realignment project is
complete, Braselton can start
working on its town green.
But with the state highway
shifting from the front of the
former Braselton Brothers
Store building to the rear,
Mason had plans to suit the
changes.
“He hired an architect, who
came out and did a rendering
of turning the back into a
front — because it will front
the new road,” Dees said.
Town officials plan to con
vert the building so it has two
fronts, she said. Still, there
aren't other plans on what to
do with the building.
“I’m looking to see to what
kind of grants and things are
out there,” Dees said.
The town’s property on the
land also includes a pile of
decades-old bricks that were
once part of a warehouse,
which was demolished in
2005.
Mason’s gift isn’t the first
major land donation to the
town.
In 2003, he gave 71 acres on
Ga. Hwy. 124 at the Mulberry
River to the town. Braselton
has long-term plans to make
the property a multi-use area
that include soccer fields —
as part of an agreement with
Barrow County — and waste-
water sprayfields.
The Barrow County Tax
Assessor’s Office currently
values that property at $1.05
million, according to its web
site.
Mason’s land donation in
the fall also included several
other properties in Braselton
— which the developer said
can’t be developed, Dees
said. He owns a number of
key properties in downtown
Braselton.
While Mason donated all
of the rights-of-way needed
for the realignment of Ga.
Hwy. 124, the road changes
will create several “remnants”
that can’t be developed. Dees
said.
“We bought the remnants
from him at 75 percent of
their appraised value,” she
said.
The town now owns nine
potential rental properties.
They are: An old service
station at intersection of Ga.
Hwy. 124 and Ga. Hwy. 53,
an old second post office, a
former barber shop on Ga.
Hwy. 124, an old barn behind
the service station, Building
Griz Graphics, the Braselton
Brothers Store and a residen
tial property in The Vineyard
subdivision.
That last property, locat
ed at 520 Reisling Drive,
was purchased by the town
in September to improve a
nearby wastewater treatment
plant.
The former owner didn’t
want to sell the property to
the town. Dees said. The
expanded pump station will
be located in the backyard of
the property.
Braselton will rent the
house — which is valued at
$102,790 by Jackson County
tax assessors — until the
wastewater pump station
project begins. After the proj
ect is completed, it will divide
the property and sell it.
Dees said people have
shown interest in renting the
house, but the town couldn’t
lease the property until it
established rental property
procedures.
Those procedures were
adopted by the town council
on Monday. They outline the
town manager’s duties in col
lecting rent, ensuring that the
properties are insured, and
hiring or dismissing contrac
tors on the properties.
New tenants will be
charged the present prevail
ing rate based on square foot
age of the property. The town
council will have to approve
any rental rate beyond the
prevailing rate.
Get The Credit
You Deserve
Shannon Sell
Mortgage applications are being reviewed far more
thoroughly now than in the past, and your credit score
should be 680 or higher to qualify for the best interest rates.
So how do you determine your score, and know you're
getting the credit you deserve?
Everyone is allowed one free credit report per year from
the three reporting agencies (Experian, Equifax and
TransUnion). Get copies of each one and review them for
accuracy - then act quickly to correct any errors or omissions.
Approximately 35% of your credit score is based on the
timeliness of your payments.
Make sure that no late payments older than seven years
are still on your report. If you have paid off loans or credit
cards, a zero balance should appear on those accounts.
Sometimes, agencies don't properly update those balances
after settlement.
15% of your credit score is based on the length of your
credit history, so make sure that the opening dates of all your
accounts are accurate. Also make sure that the limits on your
credit cards are correct, and keep the balances under 50% of
those limits. Total debt accounts for 30% of your credit score.
Finally, think twice about closing credit card accounts
with zero balances, because this negatively reduces your
ratio of "available credit" to your debt. First, get the facts.
Then, make corrections. Finally, apply for home financing
with confidence!
The Sell Group wishes you a Merry Christmas!
Shannon Sell is the broker & owner of The Sell Group,
LLC, a full-service real estate firm located in
downtown Hoschton. He can be reached at
706-654-5691.
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AV
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DEVELOPER DONATES STORE
The Braselton Brothers Store — now home of the Braselton Antique Mall — was
built in 1904 and is located in the heart of downtown, at the intersection of Ga. Hwy.
53 and Ga. Hwy. 124. Developer Wayne Mason recently donated the property that
includes the historic store to the town.
Historic store donated to Braselton