Newspaper Page Text
Quote of the Week - “A pure democracy is generally a very bad government, It is often the most tyrannical
government on earth; for a multitude is often rash, and will not hear reason.” - Noah Webster
• Opinions
• Community
Views
• Good Old
Common Sense
The Progress
Editorial
April 22,2021
From the Staff
Hey Vem! Try a different vacation
By Angela Reinhardt
Staff Writer
areinhardt@pickensprogress.com
After half an hour driving through (and
getting lost in) one of the largest, most
beautiful cemeteries I’ve seen in my life
we found it. Jim Varney’s grave in Section
C-l, Lot Q. The headstone was glossy
black with the iconic tragedy/comedy
masks carved on top; several items were
left at the base by fans who visited before
we did.
Our family hadn’t planned on being at
Lexington Cemetery on Easter until we
woke up in our horse-and-bourbon-
themed hotel and I consulted my favorite
quirky travel site, Atlas Obscura. With a
husband who is an unapologetic Ernest P.
Worrell fan (Varney is the actor/comedian
who played Ernest in commercials and
movies like Ernest Goes to Camp), I in
sisted.
This unorthodox Easter-morning ex
cursion was part of our unorthodox spring
break vacation - a road trip wrapped en
tirely around an ancient effigy site in Ohio
I’d read about years ago. I took my family
hostage, away from the all-too-familiar
places we usually travel. I booked a room
in Lexington one night to break up the
drive, then on to Peebles to see the Ser
pent Mound, then back to Cincinnati a
couple nights. The only firm plan other
than lodging was to see the mound -
everything else would be impromptu.
As we meandered from city to city and
soaked in the newness of the landscape
and culture - expansive and opulent thor
oughbred horse farms in Lexington;
rolling hills in Ohio that are different from
the rolling hills here; the German influ
ence in Cincinnati; the very first Ken
tucky Fried Chicken in Corbin; I couldn’t
help but wonder why it took me all 39
years of my life to visit places that were a
measly six-hour drive away. Like many
families, we’d fallen victim to habit.
I understand the desire for safety and
predictability when we spend money to
travel (we want to know we’ll have a
good time, right?), but travelling to new
places thrusts us out of the vacuum of the
familiar, expands our worldview, and
forces us to be around people who might
not look like us or believe what we do -
all of which are beneficial and exciting.
Todd B. Kashdan, professor of psychol
ogy and a senior scientist at the Center for
the Advancement of Well-Being at
George Mason University, discusses the
concept in a Harvard Business Review ar
ticle, “The Mental Benefits of Vacation
ing Somewhere New.” He argues that
travel to the unfamiliar is an opportunity
for self-development, and that while he
understands the temptation to “default to
the same vacation each year” he believes
travel should be routinely used “to get out
of your comfort zone, expose yourself to
uncertainty, and eschew rest for explo
ration and learning. The result is personal
growth — greater emotional agility, em
pathy, and creativity.”
His article was inspired by an interna
tional trip to Sri Lanka, but just like our
trip to the Ohio Valley succeeded in doing
for my family he believes people can get
the same benefits by “traveling closer to
home — to new states, cities, and even
households, from urban to rural, north to
south, east to west. As long as you’re
spending time in an unfamiliar environ
ment, with people whose backgrounds
and belief systems don’t entirely match
yours, you’re succeeding at stretching
yourself.”
The tendency to perceive ourselves as
separate from others - and the polariza
tion, intolerance, and violence that can re
sult - comes in part from living like
islands, isolated from and/or weary of
things that are different.
Obviously, Kentucky and Ohio aren’t
“exotic” in the classic sense of the word
- and my teenagers said they were as
equally underwhelmed with the Serpent
Mound (“I thought it’d be bigger”) as they
were with Jim Varney’s grave (“Who?”)
- but it was fun and unique and different,
and they had an amazing time. It will
stand out when they get older; not blur to
gether with the same old beach and moun
tain trips.
So this year, or next if you’ve already
made plans, consider getting out of your
stale vacation routine and try something
new. It might not be familiar, but it’s guar
anteed to be an experience....“Know
what I mean?”
Tell us your thoughts with a letter to the editor. E-mail to news@pickensprogress.com
See letter submission guidelines on the Letters to the Editor page or call us 706-253-2457.
Ponderings of a Simple Man
Py Caleb Smith
Summer
Daze
There are certain sayings
that should always be fol
lowed: Never go to bed
angry, never grocery shop
when you’re hungry, and
never make summer outdoor
plans in the spring.
I’m guilty of violating all
of these, most recently the
last one. It’s an easy mistake
to make. After the wet, cold,
dreary winter, blue bird skies,
moderate temperatures and
low humidity are an intoxi
cating mix.
It’s hard to resist the urge
to travel to the nearest hard
ware store, load up on out
door supplies, and set about
building your very own
dream oasis in the backyard.
But Georgia is a fickle and
tricky mistress. No sooner
will you slide that last block
into place on your home
made firepit, than you’ll no
tice a change. The air will
grow thick, the sun shines a
little warmer. Before you
know it, those 70 degree af
ternoons and 20% humidity
are gone, replaced with triple
digit heat and air so wet fish
could swim in it.
“I can handle a little heat
and humidity,” you might
say. “Especially after I spent
all this time and money
building an outdoor patio.”
And you may be right.
Maybe you’re the rare indi
vidual that doesn’t mind the
natural sauna that is Georgia
11 months out of the year.
But what about the
skeeters?
They come in the most
pleasant part of the day. As
the sun begins to set and the
air cools just enough so it
doesn’t bum to breathe. It
starts small. A little buzzing
in the ear, a tickle on the ex
posed legs. Then you hear it.
The faint chords of Wagner’s
‘Flight of the Valkyries’ be
gins to swell. By the time the
horn section starts, it’s too
late. The animal kingdom’s
answer to the Luftwaffe is
poised between you and the
door.
“But what about the bug
spray?” I hear you ask,
“Won’t that stop them?” To
that innocent question I can
only laugh. Georgia mosqui
tos live on exhaust fumes and
menthol smoke. They wear
OFF! like perfume and bathe
in citronella wax. I once saw
a mosquito so big that, after I
slapped it, it slapped me
back.
At the end of the day
you’ll be left with mins. The
patio will be abandoned for
nature to reclaim like some
lost Mayan temple. Don’t fall
victim to spring’s playful
charms. Be like the Simple
Man. Treat spring the way
most people prepare for a
storm. Buy a spare window
unit air conditioner and some
extra ice cream. If you must
buy something for outside,
make it small. A kiddie pool
for your feet or, better yet, a
birdhouse.
Those poor birds need
somewhere to rest after run
ning away from the mosqui
toes all day.
[Caleb Smith is a long
time, award-winning, colum
nist for the Progress.]
(USPS 431-820)
Published by Pickens County Progress, Inc.
94 North Main Street, Jasper, GA 30143
(706) 253-2457 FAX (706) 253-9738
www.pickensprogressonline.com
DAN POOL
Publisher/Editor
Published each Thursday at Jasper, Pickens County, Georgia. Entered
at the Post Office at Jasper, Georgia. 30143 as Mail Matter of Second
Class. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to THE PICKENS
COUNTY PROGRESS, 94 N. Main St., Jasper, GA 30143.
One Year’s Subscription: $39.59 in Pickens County and in Gilmer,
Cherokee, Dawson and Gordon counties; $50.29 in all other Georgia
counties; $59.92 out of state.
OTHER VOICES
Why French women don’t get fat
By Mary Migliaro
A few years ago, I came
across the book, French
Women Don't Get Fat: The
Secret of Eating for Pleasure
by Mireille Guiliano. A diet
that recommends wine,
chocolate, and cheese — and
no calorie counting? Eureka,
I immediately ordered the
book.
Consider this, only 11 per
cent of French people are
obese compared to 30 per
cent of Americans who are
30 pounds heavier than a
healthy weight.
Guiliano’s recipe for
weight loss success includes
eating high-quality food in
small portions; choosing
quality over quantity; savor
ing each bite you take; walk
ing for exercise combined
with weight training; and eat
ing three meals a day at reg
ular times.
My problem is that I am
on a “seefood” diet. Portion
control is out these days in
the age of COVID. Being
more homebound for me
means that food is about the
only thing I look forward to.
While Guiliano advocates
chocolate and wine, they
must be enjoyed in extreme
moderation (something I can
not seem to do). I do know,
though, that making just a
few small changes here and
there can help in my goal of
beginning to lose weight.
Since giving up wine and
chocolate completely is not
in the cards, I know I can eat
and drink smaller portions
and begin to add in some
walking to jump start my diet
again.
Then I began reflecting on
all the diets I had tried and
examined the commonalities
between them. I discovered
that at their core, they contain
many of the best practices we
can glean and take advantage
of in our quest to lose weight.
Here are just a few.
• Portion control is one
of the best methods to man
age your food intake.
Google “portion sizes” and
you can get comparable ex
amples such as fruit the size
of your fist, cheese the size of
your thumb, or a piece of
chicken the size of the palm
of your hand.
• Mindful eating involves
several things including
eating more slowly, chew
ing thoroughly, and elimi
nating distractions by
turning off the TV and put
ting down your phone. It
takes approximately 20 min
utes from the time you start
eating for your brain to send
out signals of fullness. Eating
more slowly allows ample
time to trigger the signal
from your brain that you are
full.
• Eating more low-calo
rie foods and fewer high
calorie foods. Everything in
moderation. Of course, you
can have a bite or two of
chocolate, just not an entire
bar of it. If you look at the
book Eat This, Not That you
can see many comparisons of
how much more lower calo
rie foods you can eat as op
posed to the smaller portions
of higher calorie foods. It will
amaze you.
• Don’t be too hard on
yourself. Remember that
Rome wasn’t built in a day.
You didn’t gain all your
weight overnight and it will
not disappear overnight ei
ther. Acknowledge that you
may “fall off the wagon” sev
eral times during your jour
ney but it you get right back
to it, you will prevail.
Find the type of diet you
think you will be able to sus
tain for life and don’t think of
it as a “diet” but more of an
eating plan.
Make small changes in in
crements. If the eating plan is
not sustainable, you will not
be successful, but if you stay
the course, you will feel and
look better while extending
your life in the process.
And so, as they say in
France, “bonne chance” or
good luck!
[Mary Migliaro, M.Ed. is
an educator and parent men
tor. She may be contacted at
maiymigliaro@aol.com.]
WEATHER
By
William
Dilbeck
HI
LOW
RAIN
April
13
79
49
.00
April
14
76
52
.16
April
15
64
43
.00
April
16
64
43
.00
April
17
65
44
.00
April
18
66
46
.00
April
19
64
43
.00
METAL ROOFING
DAWSONVILLE
^0\V METAL PRODUCTS
' ^ ' Your Metal Roofing Specialist
BUY DIRECT in Dawsonville
Painted Galvalume Metal Roofing
18 Colors In Stock
Delivery & Contractor Referrals Available
82 Etowah River Road • Dawsonville
706-265-3099 • 800-519-4616
" 202/
mum
THE wornV
starts WITH
YOU