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Viewpoints Our Views Annual reminder Each year at this time, we issue a suggestion to our readers to try Perry first for their Christmas shop ping. Peny has a diversified shopping community, made stronger this year with the opening of the Perry Cross roads shopping center. There are plenty of choices here, from soup to nuts, from shoes to scarves. Why shop here? There are many reasons, but a couple come to mind. V Local merchants support local activities. Ever noticed who adver tises in the ball game programs or provides the gifts for a fund-raising auction? Yes, it’s the local merchant who is involved with his or her com munity and wants it to be a better place to live. V Local businesses hire local resi dents. Local residents working in Perry businesses help make our economy stronger. With more people working, the safety net in the com munity can reach those people who have real needs at the holiday sea son. The stronger the local econo my, the more the goodness of pro grams such as Project Agape Love and others reaches to the corners of the community. Help your community be better. Tiy Perry first. Chances are, what you seek is already here. Making, breaking excuses I’m cleaning out closets and drawers at my house. It is something I try to do on a regular basis, but sometimes I let it slide a bit. With Christmas fast approaching, I know I must get it done. After all, my daddy always said, “You can’t put 10 pounds of potatoes in a five-pound bag." I've got much more than the limit stuck in my drawers and closets. There are socks without mates (two go in the wash er; one comes out go figure), shirts without buttons, clothes too big (thanks to sticking to the diabetic diet, and my family and friends ensuring I do), and shoes 1 won’t wear (and to tell the truth, cannot imag ine why I bought them in the first Torey Jolley Home Journal staff place). = ■= I will throw out junk. You know the stuff. It sits in a drawer or closet, covered with dust because you haven’t taken it out in a year or more. It is that little knick-knack or the hall-burned candle sticks, or some other useless item. The toys and clothes my grandson has outgrown will be sorted. Some will be passed down to my nephew s son and the rest will be boxed up and donated to a charity. Most are like new and will make some child happy. Guess I better stop talking about it and get to work on clearing out those closets and drawers. 1 pity my garbage collectors. I just hope they have room in the truck! • •• Update on my plumbing problem: I am happy to announce the plumbers came and conquered the problem. No more backed-up plumbing and no more clean ing up the mess. • •• I’m looking forward to the Diabetes Management class on Dec. 7 at Perry Hospital. I missed the last one too much work and not enough time to attend. I know no excuses. Those classes have been a Godsend to me. The lab work keeps my doctor informed. The information 1 receive from the class has helped me keep on my diet. I’ve learned to adjust and cope to the changes my lifestyle requires. Houston Home Journal P.O Drawer M • 807 Car Toll St. Perry, Ga. 31069 email homejrn@hom.net (912) 987-1823 (voice) (912) 988 1181 (fax) Bob Tribble President Jj Johnson ...Editor and General Manager Ellen T. Green Advertising Director Phil Clark Sports Joan Dorset! Lifestyles Torey Jolley News Alline Kent Sports ■■•■■■-" .3P'i'W ' - 1 Pauline Lewis Lifestyles Rob Mead News and Circulation Charlotte Perkins.. News and Composition Andy Stuckey Classified Susan R. Thomas Bookkeeping Our Policies Unsigned editorials appearing In larger type on this page under tne label Our Views reflect the position of the Houston Home Journal. Signed columns and letters on this page (and elsewhere in this newspaper) reflect the opinions of the writers and not necessarily tnose of this newspaper. Signed letters to the editor are wel Lighted yards part of Perry Christmas tradition Perry has always been an attractive town but even more so between Thanksgiving and New Year when Perryans share their holiday excitement with beautifully decorated homes and yards. This year appears to be fol lowing that tradition. Down town, the white light decora tions which were designed four years ago (can it be that long?) are already turned on at most businesses and providing a bright sight to passers-by. In other parts of town, resi dents cure busily hanging vari ous decorations to beautiful and illuminate their homes for the winter holidays. Several years ago, one of the service clubs in our community ~Tne Pewt/r Gau£rv ———— i—fc , ini*'i O M go \ '1 g* \ // t d f > 4. , x, 'V // > / / V> ' ©Aim l 99 rnyloons@hoin.net "So, you didn't get a chance to be a millionaire. Get over it!" Taekwondo, Boggin and “Mama, I’m Sorry.” All sorts of things are hap pening as the holiday season gets started. You probably already know about the Christmas at the Crossroads events, but here are some other, totally differ ent, things coming up that some readers might want to fit into the busy time ahead and that will remind us what a wonderfully diverse and interesting community this is. • •• There’s the big Taekwondo tournament at Reaves Arena this Saturday which should be fun to stop by and watch. David Feldman has put a lot of work into this, and has got ten some great support from local merchants and individu als. • •• And there’s the Third Annu al Elko Boggin. also on Satur day. In case you aren’t famil iar with boggin-talk - this has to do with trucks with great big tires driving through mud. and great big tractors having to pull some of them out. The Elko Boggin is a big event with plenty of good food and fun and the admission is a toy or $6. All proceeds go to make Christ mas merrier for kids in need. Regarding the mud. Hazel Kersey says that it’s a pond bed that just stays muddy. They have it lit in a strip, so it’s a great show. Page 4A Wed., Dec. 1. 1999 JJ Johnson Home Journal Editor sponsored a Christmas deco rating contest as part of the Christmas at the Crossroads festival. I remember standing in the cool of the early winter evening just after dusk to take photos of the various winners. I always found those homes to be taste fully decorated and a delight to Charlotte Perkins Home Journal Staff The gates open at 2 p.m. for those who want the best view. You can buy your food there or bring a picnic. The boggin starts at 6:30. To get there, turn toward Hawkinsville when you get off 1-75 onto Ga. 26. Go about five miles. Follow the trucks with the giant wheels! Sounds like fun to me, but everything I’ve ever been to in Elko has been fun. • •• Then there’s a chance to see a hit gospel play. Milton Wynn 111, and his friends and family, are planning a big weekend on Dec. 10-11 at the Greater Word of Deliverance Church. On Saturday night,they will have a performance of "Mama, I’m Sorry", which is a gospel music drama that has been a big hit across the country. The admission? A toy for a boy or girl. The show begins at 7 p.m. There’s still more on the fol lowing evening with music and comedy, all in a Christian "omed. Please limit letters to 300 words and include addresses and a telephone number for verification purposes. Letters are not published without verification Let ters should be sent to P.O. Drawer M. Perry. Ga., 31069 or brought to the news paper office at 807 Carroll St.. Perry. Our liability for an error will not exceed the cost of space occupied by the error. We cannot be responsible for the return of pictures or submitted materials unless a stamped, return address envelope is included. Our Goal The Houston Home Journal is pub ?* *H < vein. Milton “Three" had me mixed up on the phone at first, because I thought he was his father, also Milton Wynn, who is the pastor of the Greater Word church, and also the founder of Genesis House. Turns out though, that the son is following in his dad’s footsteps in community spirit. • • • Christmas lights The Home Journal is having <* con test tor all those people who love decorating their homes at Christmas. Check out the storv in this issue or call us at 987 1823. There’s a SSO first prize, which should help somebody pay their Georgia Power or Flint Energies bill in January. Even if you don’t win, your home will be listed in the Dec. 22 issue, and that will be a help to the folks like me who enjoy ridin’ around and lookin' at lights. • •• Bobbe Nelson will be sign ing and selling her Houston County history. “A Land So Dedicated", at the Galleria on Saturday, from 10 a.m. to noon, and at the Perry Book store on Sunday from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Don’t forget this option for Christmas giving. Bobbe will even wrap and ship the books for you. lished proudly lor the citizens of Houston and adjoining counties by Houston Publi cations Inc.. Perry. Ga. Our goal Is to pro duce quality, profitable, community-orient ed newspapers thaf you. our readers, are proud of. We will reach this goal through hard work, teamwork, loyalty and a strong dedication toward printing the truth. Member of Georgia Press Association and National Newspaper Association. "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof: or abridging the freedom of speech, or ol the press, or of the right ol the people peaceably to assemble. Houston Home Journal visit. The contest fell by the way side a couple of years ago. With the sponsorship of the contest open. I suggested to Chris Kin nas of the Perry Area Chamber of Commerce the Home Journal would like to sponsor the event this year. Fortunately, he was open to this idea, and so the Home Journal Christmas at the Crossroads Residential Deco rating Contest was born. It’s simple, just complete the application form on page 8A of this paper and get it to our office by Dec. 16 at noon. We'll consider any house south of Mossy Creek. Applications can be brought to our office at 807 Carroll St. in white-lighted downtown Perry. They can be mailed to use at P.O. Drawer M, Perry, or faxed to us at 988-1181. If you want to email your information, send it to homejrn@hom.net. I look forward to looking at the various entry forms and making up my itinerary for early evening drives throughout southern Houston County. The excitement of viewing decorations shining brightly in the night is something most Americans find quite enjoyable. I look forward to seeing what our neighbors have done to their yards this year and seeing which yard is the most unusu al, most colorful and the best decorated in the southern half of our county. Bob Tribble Home Journal President Were too fat and it’s killing us So now they are telling us according to evidence being overweight can cut your life span. Most of us have probably known that for years, but it was one of those things we did n’t want to think about. Kind of like my wife. If she has a problem with something 1 have said or done, she simply says, "1 don’t want to talk about it." To make the news double barreled bad, these experts are telling us we are not only get ting fatter, but those of us who live the South, where meals are often finger lickin' good, are leading the way. To go even a step further, we are told that some employers even discriminate against over weight people, especially women, when it comes to hir ing, firing, demotions and pay increases. They even said weight dis crimination is more common than discrimination based on race, gender or other factors. This weight thing reminds me of what my friend Joe said one day. He said when he mar ried. his wife weighed 120 pounds. Now she weighs 180 and he figures he is not mar ried to 60 pounds of her. If a person is more than 30 percent over their ideal body weight, then they are obese, experts say. So. if you are a male and your ideal’ weight according to the charts is 175 pounds, and your weight is 225 or more, then you are obese. A woman who should weigh 125 pounds, but instead weighs 165 words or more, is obese. Reminds me of another joke. This lady from the country went to the city to a clothing store. She asked the clerk if she had anything for her body. The sales lady said. “Yes, my deepest sympathy.” We all know traditional Southern cooking features fried chicken, potatoes, barbe cue and so on, all high in fat content. Experts say though that Southern diets are not much different from those in the rest of the country. They go on to say the more likely reason for the increase in portliness is a lack of exercise. Southerners are less likely to hike, ride a bike, walk or join a health club. They say summers See TRIBBLE, Page 5A and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." Your right to read this newspaper is protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitu tion. The Houston Home Journal (USPS 000471) Is published weekly for $21.40 per year (including sales tax) by Houston Publications Inc., 807 Carroll St.. Perry, Ga., 31069. Periodicals Class Postage paid at Perry, Ga. POSTMASTER : Send address changes to the Houston Home Journal. P.O. Drawer M, Perry, Ga. 31069. ISSN: 1075 1874. L J