Newspaper Page Text
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2008
THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS
PAGE 5A
We all have our ‘duh’ moments Letter to the Editor
W e’ve all have our
moments of stupidity.
No doubt, something
stupid has come out of your mouth
— only for you to realize seconds
later that you shouldn’t have said
that.
And surely you’ve had that
feeling that you’re too dumb to
get a smart joke. Or that you’re
an “idiot” when comes to fixing
things, like computers, cars and
dishwashers.
We’ve all had our “duh”
moments. But you have to wonder
if some people you meet really are
dumb.
Some of the smartest people I’ve
met are the ones most lacking in
common sense. And the people who
never had an impressive grade in
school, are the ones you’d consider
a wise advisor on the things that
books can’t tell you.
But then again, you still meet the
idiots.
Case in point: Several years ago,
my dad was in a Texas hospital
awaiting a heart bypass surgery
(he’s not the idiot in this story).
Dad had a minor heart attack. It
was caught early, but he still needed
bypass surgery. He spent a few
extra days in
the hospital,
as more tests
were con
ducted. He
was slated to
have surgery
the follow
ing day,
when a new
roommate
was wheeled
next to his
bed.
The new patient, Tim, was a
police officer in Houston. He also
had a heart attack, and the doctors
were conducting additional tests
to determine his treatment. Bypass
surgery wasn’t in the forecast for
him, but it wasn’t ruled out, either
at that point.
It was dinner time when the nurse
brought in the cuisine for the eve
ning, which included mashed pota
toes and Jell-O. I was glad that had
I the option to leave dad’s hospital
room and grab something more
tasty in the cafeteria.
And that’s what Tim’s wife
thought, too. Except, she brought a
massive hamburger from one of the
fast food restaurants in the cafeteria
back to her husband’s bedside.
Although he was a sick man, Tim
was still in good spirits.
He thanked his wife for bringing
the hamburger to his hospital room
and quickly began stuffing it into
his mouth.
My dad and I were shocked. Tim
just had a heart attack. He could be
undergoing bypass surgery any day.
And he was eating a Whopper in
his hospital bed.
When my dad asked him what he
was doing eating the hamburger,
Tim said a line I’ll probably never
forget: “Well, at least I didn’t ask
for cheese.”
Was that guy for real? Did he
really think that skipping the cheese
on a calorie-laden hamburger was
an acceptable food choice? Or was
he just ignoring something he knew
all along?
Stupidity and ignorance are not
the same, although you can choose
to follow one or both.
Kerri Testement is the news edi
tor for The Braselton News, a sister
publication of The Banks County
News. E-mail comments about this
column to kerri@mainstreetnews.
com.
kerri
testement
Being a little distressed
A few weeks ago, my hus
band and I went shopping
with a particular piece of
furniture in mind. After browsing
through several stores, I quickly
realized that what I had in mind
was obviously not the same picture
he was viewing in his.
The piece of furniture that we
were searching for was a bathroom
vanity which had to fit perfectly in
the designated area. If it were too
long, it would bump into a com
mode. If too short, it would reveal
an area in which the tiles on the
wall had cracked.
After renovating two other bath
rooms over the years, I found that I
wanted a vanity which looked more
like a nice piece of furniture rather
than a large plain square box.
When rounding the corner in one
particular store, I immediately saw
exactly what I was looking for.
I quickly ran over to the vanity,
pulled out my measuring tape to
find that it was just the right size! I
then turned to proudly announce to
my husband that the hunt was over
— the treasure had been found!
Much to my surprise, he wasn’t
anywhere to
be found. Ten
minutes later I
found him sit
ting in a nice
leather recliner
watching a big
screen televi
sion with two
other men.
When I final
ly convinced
him to come
and see my
good fortune, he couldn’t believe
his eyes. He was very puzzled
as to why I wanted to pay good
money for a piece of furniture that
appeared beat up and old.
The vanity had a shabby chic
vintage look to it. It had been “dis
tressed,” which is a technique used
to make new furniture look old and
weathered.
In order to get the effect, the
wood is sometimes actually “beat
up” with a sock filled with nuts,
bolts and nails, or by the use of a
utensil such as a fork.
Some people have old furniture
and want it to look new. However,
sometimes people like myself have
new furniture, yet want it to look
old. Much to my husband’s disbe
lief, distressed furniture happens to
be very popular.
After arguing over the vanity for
quite some time, we agreed to have
someone build him his very own
outhouse so that he could decorate
his bathroom just the way he want
ed. I, on the other hand, would be
the one in charge of decorating this
one.
After finally convincing the good
man that he would never hear the
end of this for years to come, he
finally gave in. When the salesper
son handed me my ticket, I was a
little miffed.
Obviously the larger vanities with
granite counter tops were not on
sale. Needless to say, in the end,
after forking out $1,700, the piece
of furniture wasn’t the only thing
that was a little distressed!
Sherri Stephens is a contributing
columnist for The Banks county
News.. E-mail comments about this
column to charmbug5@hotmail.
com.
Letter to the Editor
Shredding to be offered Saturday
Dear Editor:
On this Saturday, April 5, Keep
Our Mountains Beautiful is work
ing with Document Destruction
Service to provide free document
destruction as part of “The Great
American Cleanup.”
Document Destruction Service
will have a mobile shredder parked
in front of the Banks County
Courthouse from 9 a.m. until
noon. Citizens can bring any and
all documents to the courthouse
parking lot and watch their docu
ments be destroyed.
Document Destruction Service is
the only AAA Certified plant based
in Northeast Georgia. They are cer
tified by the National Association
of Information Destruction.
After the material is shredded on
the truck, it will then be taken to
their plant in Banks County. There,
the shredded paper will then be
re-shredded in their large shredder
with the resulting material about
the size of confetti.
Anyone requesting it will be
provided with a notarized certifi
cate of destruction which will be
mailed to them.
Please take advantage of this
opportunity to clean out those old
files. For more information, please
call or email Keep Our Mountains
Beautiful at 706-677-2344 or
komb@alltel.net.
A special thanks to Document
Destruction Services for helping
sponsor this event.
Sincerely,
Leslie George
Executive Director
NGRMA/KOMB
Demorest
Keep Banks
County
beautiful!
In loving memory of
Tim Hudgins
Oct. 6 1968 ~ April 2, 1989
Although it has been a lot of
years since you were taken,
you are forever in my heart
and always on my mind.
Love,
Pat
Banks County Farm Bureau
REQUEST FOR BIDS
Sealed itemized bids will be received by Banks County Farm
Bureau, 151 Hwy. 98, Homer, GA 30547 (mailing address: P. O.
Box 307, Homer) until 5:00 p.m. April 30, 2008 for the
following:
CONSTRUCTION OF BUILDING
The sealed itemized bids will be submitted by general
contractors according to the plans and specifications provided
at the Banks County Farm Bureau office. All bids must be
itemized list format specifying materials and labor. Materials
must be equal to or better than specified in the plans.
All bids must include the cost of any necessary permits and/or
fees to perform the job. All bidders must be bonded for the
amount of their bid.
Any bid received after 5:00 p.m. on April 30, 2008 will be
rejected.
The Banks County Farm Bureau Board of Directors reserves
the right to accept or reject any and all bids and waive
irregularities, informalities and technicalities in the bid
process. Call (706) 677-2215 or come by the office to obtain
copies of the plans.
Comments on firemen resigning
Dear Editor:
I would like to address the for
mer and present volunteers of Banks
County. When the former volunteers
became members of Banks County
Fire and EMS, what was the reason?
Was it to help the people of Banks
County? And what terrible things
did Chief Pollard do that caused you
to desert your position and launch a
personal attack against him? Did he
strip you personally of all that being
a volunteer is about? Did he cause
you financial harm? Has he put yours
or someone else’s life at risk? What
exactly happened that caused you
to give up something that meant so
much to you and so many people?
What a terrible thing it is that you
have all decided you could not con
tinue to work together to protect the
citizens of this county. And in the end
isn’t that what it is all about?
We have past and present volunteers
with years of experience that cannot
be ignored and must be utilized to
provide the best care and response to
the emergencies in this county.
They have many hours of training
and give their time freely to do what
we consider a very dangerous job.
But we also have a paid staff and
chief with many hours of training and
years of experience as well. And they
risk their lives for us everyday. But it
cannot be overlooked that we have a
paid fire department. The volunteers
are there to support and complement
the department.
If there are inexperienced officers
in that department, who are they
and why are they there? How have
they made decisions that created an
unsafe scene?
If Chief Pollard is not fit for his
position, why is he there? He must
have the requirements and ability to
fulfill the position. There are a lot of
innuendos, but nothing I have read
or heard has given us examples or
stated facts.
So is Chief Pollard trying to do his
job to create and maintain an effi
cient, safe and cost-effective depart
ment? Is he trying to establish a clear
chain of command, so that there is
no confusion on scene? Was he given
the support and time required to do
so?
Or was the demotion of certain
volunteer officers what caused this
whole situation? Has their inabil
ity to accept change and work with
Chief Pollard become the real reason
for your resignation?
Recent articles have clarified the
fact that no money is being taken
from the volunteers. Mr. Bartlett’s
letter has outlined the recent changes
and on scene command directives. So
what is the real reason for your deci
sion to leave your position and put
the citizens of the county at risk?
Maybe the former volunteers should
have been more selective in their
choice of leadership in this matter.
Your decision to allow these people
to speak for you makes you account
able for their comments and actions.
You should have chosen people who
were capable of working with the
chief and commissioners to establish
a department that utilized the experi
ence and knowledge of everyone, not
just a few.
Someone who would not encour
age dedicated and committed vol
unteers that their only recourse is
to quit, someone who realizes that
they must compromise and work
to together to accomplish that most
effective department.
I realize the importance of the vol
unteers. And I personally, as a citizen
of Banks County, would like to thank
those of you who have chosen to
continue in your service, and support
of the chief.
You are dedicated, committed and
positive people that epitomize the real
meaning of “volunteer.” It is apparent
that you understand the importance
of working together, and operating
the department as a business that is
accountable to the citizens of this
county as well as the regulation of
the State of Georgia. Your willing
ness to support the chief and give
him the time to create a functional
department shows you are concerned
with the final outcome, that this is
not just about the demotion of a few,
but the welfare of everyone.
Those of you who have chosen to
abandon your position, did you do so
of your own accord? Or did someone
else’s dissatisfaction with the chief
or department convince you to make
such a drastic decision.
Did you take into account that your
very actions would be viewed as an
attempt to “hold the county hostage,”
if your demands were not met. And
were you surprised that it did not
work. I, as well others in this county,
am relieved that your actions have
had little if any effect.
How reassuring to see those who
remain in service to our county as
well as other counties step up and
offer support. Again thanks to all
those who have and will be there
for us.
We need also thank the women
of the Lee Arrendale Correctional
Institute. They are hard working ded
icated people that give their time and
put their lives at risk for us.
We need to be aware of their contri
butions to our county as well. I have
heard from volunteers as well as paid
staff that they are a fine addition to
the emergency response in our coun
ty. I think Chief Pollard’s decision to
hire one of these women is a good
one. After all aren’t they trained by
our very own fire department?
Sometimes just knowing that
you make a difference should be
enough. The knowledge that you are
respected, admired and depended on
is a good reason to work together to
make the department the best it can
be. Changes are hard but the rewards
of service usually are worth it.
I remember a football team that
did work together, paid and vol
unteer (and I apologize to our fine
sheriff’s department for this), to kick
some serious butt in football games
that brought the whole community
together. Where did those guys go?
Sincerely,
Linda Cline
Commerce
u
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706-652-0070
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