Columns Archive

The Banjo Bug

– May 7, 2012Posted in: Bill Waller, Columns

I have to blame all of this on my blacksmith friend Lyn Belcher. Mr. Belcher had a blacksmith shop in downtown Sasser, Georgia, and I often enjoyed going there. The ambiance was nice. He had created a rustic look in his showroom to display his metalwork, and he had Bluegrass music piped in via satellite. I talked to him one day about the music and he said that he considered Bluegrass to be about the only true American art form for music. Conversation turned to the old show Hee Haw, and he told me that reruns are still being played on RFDTV. I could not wait to go home and check out Bluegrass Junction and RFDTV.

Unbeknown to me, the blacksmith had planted a seed that would eventually grow into a wild hair. Now I am not talking about the kind of wild hair that you might find growing out of a mole on the back of your aunt Bertha. I am talking about the kind of wild hair that constantly nags at you to go somewhere or do something. This wild hair was not on me. This untamed lock was growing on my son.

Since we have started listening to Bluegrass, he has had a desire for a banjo. It must grate on him night and day because about eighty percent of our conversations together somehow turn into, “…if I only had a banjo.” These wild hairs are not uncommon, and I suspect that they run deep on my side of the family. Someday I am going to turn my old popup camper into a teardrop camper, get my old MG-Bs running again, restore an old sailboat that I have stored in the in laws’ yard, etc. So I know a thing or two about wild hairs.

In trying to do some research on banjos, it appears that there are several different styles. Some have four, most have five, and a few have six strings. Some are open backed and are used for clawhammer style. Some have a closed back and are used more for a Bluegrass/Earl Scruggs style of picking. Some are inexpensive and some will cost about the same as a new car. There are even one stringed instruments called Canjos and three stringed banjo ukuleles. Neither of these last two will satisfy the bug.

My son has gone off on other tangents in the past. One time he wanted to play the bagpipe so we got him the practice chanter and a year of lessons on CD and booklet. There are not many people in our area that teach the bagpipes. A few months ago, he wanted to make his own arrowheads. Following advice from the blacksmith, I am starting to see a trend here, we collected a bucket of flint by the river. That bucket has been in the garage for several months.

It is important for kids to try new things. What would have happened if Earl Scruggs never got a banjo? It could become a skill that he carries with him for the rest of his life or it could become a decoration for the corner of his room waiting on “someday.” We are still pondering what to do with this new obsession and wondering if extra hold gel might tame this wild hair. It sure would be a lot cheaper than a banjo!

billwaller Written by Bill Waller. Mr. Waller is a author and contributor local blog, Southwest Georgia Politics. He enjoys writing, traveling, and researching history. He currently resides in Albany, Georgia.

Tags: Bill Waller, Southwest Georgia Politics

Cool doesn’t care about temperature

– May 7, 2012Posted in: Brett Buckner, Columns

My grandmother – or maybe it was Captain Kangaroo – used to say, “Cool doesn’t care about temperature.”

While such wink-and-a-nod sarcasm was mainly aimed at yours truly, they pertain to teenagers of any generation, when looking good and fitting in defy all other forms of logic. It’s why so many young ‘uns end up sweatin’ like they’ve stepped out of a Richard Simmons exercise video because they think a jacket in August is a fashion statement rather just plain silly.

There was a time when I’d have to count myself in this sad category. I used to wear my bulky letter jacket when it was 98 degrees outside making my sweaty face break out like I’d been smothering it with Miracle Whip rather than Clearasil. And come winter, high school administrators would have to send home notes like, “Please instruct your son to STOP wearing shorts. His purple legs – possibly a sign of frostbite – are starting to freak out the faculty.”

My most fatal faux pas involved a suede leather jacket I got for Christmas my senior year. Dude, I looked dope in that jacket … Kool Moe Dee didn’t have nothin’ on me. Trouble was, winters in Albany were terribly mild … mid 40s was considered freezing. So my window for appropriate wear was very narrow.

Not that it bothered me. I wore that sucker deep into May only to have it ruined following a break-up/make-up fight with my girlfriend. Turns out that suede and running mascara don’t mix. I held onto it for years. The memory of the fight faded, unlike the stain from her tears.

The Diva appears to be the latest victim of such high school histrionics, only her misstep involves flip-flops, which she’s insisted on wearing through Christmas and into these unseasonably cool spring mornings.

Keep in mind that this is a child who keeps her electric blanket on “10” year round because she’s always “freezing” and would wear hoodies in the desert were it not the opportunity to get some sun. And it’s no act or cry for attention. Doubt her true chilliness and The Diva will touch you. Her hands are so cold they could be the source of superpowers like Ice Man.

So My Lovely Wife and I couldn’t help but roll our eyes when she refuses to wear her tennis shoes like a normal person. We nagged her at first, then just decided to sit back and let peer pressure (or hopefully common sense) to take its course.

That was two weeks ago and Little Miss Blue Toes appears unwilling to budge.

Now, full disclosure, this isn’t just about being cool or fitting in. She’s got a perfectly good – and brand new, I might add – pair of black and pink Nikes that have barely left her closet. Why she refuses to wear them is something of a mystery. Our suspicion is that they aren’t as cool looking as they were in the store and she’s afraid they might get unwanted attention, or that because she’s afraid they’ll make her look too tall.

I imagine it’s the latter. Granted, it’s running shoes she’s wearing, not KISS boots. Unfortunately, her boyfriend’s a wee fellow. And while The Diva’s no Jessie Spano from Saved by the Bell, she tends to tower over him in a way that makes her, not necessarily him, self-conscious.

Being a teenager’s tough. Being a cool teenager is a study in personal, painful sacrifice. I guess Grandma knew what she was talking about. Come to think of … she was pretty dope herself.

Contact Brett Buckner at brettbuckner@ymail.com

Brett Buckner is an award-winning freelance newspaper/magazine writer who was raised in Albany.

Tags: Brett Buckner, Parenting

The power of Coenzyme Q 10

– May 6, 2012Posted in: Columns, Nature's Cure

Coenzyme Q 10 or CO Q 10 is something you have probably heard of or may be taking. CO Q 10 is a powerful antioxidant that makes energy for your body by sparking the production of the energy molecule ATP (adenosine triphosphate), which is required by every cell in your body in order to function. ATP also provides the energy that helps facilitate blood sugar regulation, muscle contraction and disease prevention, brain health and proper heart function. Co Q 10 is most famous for its role in the heart.

Enzymes are substances that help make chemical reactions take place. A coenzyme is a substance that helps an enzyme do its job. Without adequate amounts of CO Q 10 we would literally die within minutes. CO Q 10 is often shortened to CO Q 10 or Q. It is ubiquitous, meaning it is found everywhere, all plant and animal cells. This explains why it is sometimes referred to as ubiquinone.

As we age our amount of CO Q 10 the body produces start to slow down. Supplementing with CO Q 10 can be very helpful. Studies show that CO Q 10 improves high blood pressure, shortness of breath, heart palpitations and energy levels. This is a great supplement to take if you are fatigued or have heart disease or fibromyalgia. If you have had a stroke it can help speed recovery and reduce damage from the stroke.

The depletion of CO Q 10 is becoming epidemic primarily because of the popular cholesterol – lowering drugs called statins. When statins block an enzyme called HMG –COA reductase, cholesterol production slows down dramatically. Unfortunately this is the exact same pathway where CO Q 10 is produced.

What a lot of people don’t’ realize is the effect is “dose dependent”, meaning that the higher the drug dosage the more depletion of CO Q 10. The damaging effect of this drug-nutrient depletion is most often seen in people with heart failure or in the elderly. Statin induced CO Q 10 depletion is completely preventable.

For the skeptics out there you can look up Dr. Peter Langsjoen, MD a cardiologist in Tyler Texas who has 30 years of experience treating heart disease. His studies show that patients with heart failure from any cause have low

CO Q 10 blood levels and the CO Q 10 level in both plasma and heart muscle is the lowest in the patients with the most severe heart failure. He says by supplementing CO Q 10 repletes this deficiency and brings about dramatic improvement in heart function and quality of life. His studies also suggest that we make congestive heart failure worse with statin cholesterol drugs.

So a take-home point is that CO Q 10 can dramatically reduced the side effects you may get from statin cholesterol drugs and protect your brain, liver and heart as well. You’ll find CO Q 10 in organ meats like kidney, heart and liver.

Here is a list of some drugs that interfere with CO Q 10:

Acid Blockers: Tagamet, Nexium, Pepcid, Pepcid Complete, Prevacid 24 HR, Axid, Prilosec OTC, Protonix, Aciphex, Zantac

Antacids: Maalox, Mylanta, Basaljel, Amphojel, Rolaids, Tums, Phillips milk of magnesia, Alka-Seltzer, baking soda

My suggestion is to ask your doctor about supplementing CO Q 10. It is extremely safe and may make a significant difference. You want to be careful and make sure you get a quality supplement. I can discuss this with you…feel free to stop by Natures Cure on Old Dawson road.

Tags: ATP (adenosine triphosphate), CO Q 10, Coenzyme Q 10, Enzymes, Health, Nature's Cure

Calling In Sick With Spring Fever

– May 6, 2012Posted in: Charlie Harper, Columns

I’m calling in sick today. Well, not actually calling. But saying I’m typing in sick really doesn’t make any sense. And, of course, I’m not really sick. It’s just spring, and the symptoms of spring fever are setting in strong. It’s also not like there isn’t work product here, so you’re not seeing much of a difference anyway. Just understand that my mind is outside on a sunny day when I’m typing this. And I will make no attempt to tie this column to Georgia politics, as is my occasional Friday custom.

When my father was a boy, his Dad got him up one Spring weekday and took him fishing. It was unannounced, and as I understand it, unplanned. The following day my grandfather had to write an excuse note to Dad’s teacher. Being an honest man, he refused to claim that Dad had been sick and he saw no need to trivialize the fact that his son had better things to do on a bright and sunny day than spend it in a school room. The note went something like the following:

“During this time of year, a young man’s thoughts turn to important endeavors that are often not confined to the classroom. One of these matters of importance is fishing. Please excuse Charlie from his absence yesterday, as it was a sunny day and he was too well to attend.”

Being from a small farming community where everyone knows everyone has its advantages. The teacher, being quite familiar with my grandfather, just smiled at Dad as he presented his excuse note and continued on, as it was clearly valid to her.

A few decades later, I wasn’t feeling well on a similar beautiful Spring morning and found myself in the school clinic. The volunteer mom serving nurse duty decided I needed to go home, and called my father at his office to come get me. He left downtown Atlanta and drove to Fayetteville to pick me up, and quickly surmised that he was experiencing less than an emergency situation. I know this because his first question was “Do you think you can handle eating lunch before we go home”.

I struggled to eat two plates of barbecue and Brunswick stew at Melear’s before we left, and seemed to forget that my head hurt. Or was it my stomach? I couldn’t really remember at that point.

I had passed Dad’s test, and we then proceeded to stop at the house only long enough to pick up a couple of fishing poles and the tackle box and head over to Uncle Frank’s lake for the afternoon. I’m fairly certain we caught a few bream and maybe a bass, but that wasn’t really significant. I do remember we had a great day being together and it was much better and more memorable than any particular day I had in school that year.

I won’t be going fishing today, as it’s been a quarter century since I’ve owned any fishing gear. My type-A personality no longer has the patience to enjoy what was once the perfect afternoon activity.

I will, however, be taking a large chunk of my afternoon to visit Harold’s Barbecue in Atlanta. Melear’s in Fayetteville closed a year or so ago, and Harold’s has announced it will go the way of so many other institutions like it after next week. It’s hard enough to operate a small business these days. Harder still in an era of fast food to estimate the amount of food you’ll need the next day as you prepare the main dish that requires being smoked over hickory coals overnight.

Harold’s and Melear’s were venerable institutions in their day. For many of us, they’re now pieces of memories that connect us to people and events from much earlier times. They, like those they connect us to, can’t be replaced or replicated in the modern world.

As an upside, Sprayberry’s Barbecue in Newnan is still around, and still has some of the best Brunswick stew available. It was the chosen barbecue home of Lewis Grizzard, so at least there are a few pieces of him left to visit.

But today I’ll say goodbye to Harold’s with some chopped pork, stew, and a piece of cracklin cornbread. Mentally, I’ll be outside fishing. After all, it’s a sunny day. I’m too well to be doing anything different.

Charlie Harper is the Atlanta based Editor of PeachPundit.com, a conservative-leaning political website. He is also a columnist for Dublin Georgia based Courier Herald Publishing.

Tags: Charlie Harper, PeachPundit.com

WHAT IS COMMUNISM LIKE?

– May 5, 2012Posted in: Columns, Ted Anderson

If you don’t know what Communism is all about, learn fast because we have goof-ball media hypocrites trying to convince the ill informed that Communism is the way to go and to become Karl Marx fans. How many of you are regular listeners to the Today Show each morning on NBC? I do every morning. Ann Curry used to be one of my favorite newscasters…that is, until a few mornings ago when she started spewing Communist propaganda. I kid you not! I could hardly believe what I was hearing, and I have new hearing aids!

Our liberal media has a great influence in our country and what they say can easily sway our kids into thinking the way they do. What better way to spread Socialism and/or Communism. Many people have been warning that this liberal press of ours is turning people against Capitalism by some of their stupid remarks.

If you didn’t hear Ms Curry, you should have. It would have floored you by what she said. She was talking about the airplane traveling that she must do connected with her job. She said to my astonishment that there is an inherent unfairness in airline travel today…that when she disembarks from planes today, she feels like putting a paper bag over her head because it just isn’t fair that she is allowed to sit in First Class, which is much more comfortable than Coach and to have the privileges that the Coach passengers do not and that they are able to get through security much faster than the non-First Class people.

Yes, she thought that there was an inherent unfairness in that. Can you believe remarks like that? She thinks everyone should be treated the same even though some people have more money than others. Yes, that is way Communists think!

If she really feels that way, she should take her huge salary and move to a different country, like Cuba, where the government forces people to think that way. She should give her big salary to people who would like to go through security faster but can’t afford it and move to the projects where she would feel a lot more comfortable. I’ll bet she also has a Limo take her to and from the airport. How unfair! It is not fair that she spent all that money and worked so hard to get an education and to get ahead.

Those who didn’t do that should have all the rights and privileges that she has. Isn’t that what made America great? Isn’t that why most people are doing everything they can to get to America and have the chance of getting ahead and to be able to get what others cannot who aren’t willing to work as hard as they are willing to do? I think that Ms. Curry is a little mixed up and has forgotten all this and doesn’t appreciate all the freedom she has here. She needs to slow down and stay at a Motel 6 instead of the Ritz and shop at Goodwill instead of Saks Fifth Avenue and realize what she has here in this country. Most people want the chance to have privileges that others do not. She needs to think what she is saying and not talk like a Communist…or else find another place to live.

I personally worked my way through college. Well most of the way. It is a little too expensive to do that today with prices the way they now are. I went to college until I ran out of money. Then, I had the privilege to go to work at the highest paying CPA firm in Chicago and make more money than most other people. I never complained a bit that I was getting privileges others were not.

I slept in my car the first night out of college because I had no money. I had to borrow $200.00 to get married and then worked as hard as I could for many years to get what I have today. I don’t think that others should have what I have…not those who didn’t work as hard as I did or those not willing to give up all that I did along the way in this trip I took.

Yes, Ms. Curry, you are a little mixed up and you make me very mad talking like you did on TV the other morning! We don’t need people like you spreading this hypocritical nonsense over the airways and making our kids today think that what you are saying makes any sense. It doesn’t! Apologize immediately for what you said and explain to the public that you were having a bad hair day! We need people of influence spreading just the opposite unless you want our country to crumble like many others…like Cuba, for example. We need to do those things that made our country great. We need to get things moving in the right direction…not the LEFT!

Written by Ted Anderson. Insurance agent Ted W. Anderson worked in sales for half a century, has lived in Albany since 1993. He is president of Dover Lane Neighborhood Watch. Send email to him at aj@thealbanyjournal.com.

Tags: Communism, Ted W. Anderson

New License Plates

– May 4, 2012Posted in: Columns, Kevin Sproul

As the Sheriff of Dougherty County, and as a 30-year veteran of law enforcement, I feel a certain anxiety every time I see a law enforcement officer conducting a traffic stop. I know that citizens often ask why we in law enforcement spend so much time catching speeders rather than chasing the “real” criminals. But if there is one thing I have learned in my three decades on the job it is this: criminals get where they’re going the same way the rest of us do – they drive. We know that a criminal’s inherent lack of respect for the law may be reflected in their driving. Conducting traffic stops is an excellent way to get criminals off the street.

Because of our presence on the roadways, many criminals attempt to avoid attracting too much attention. For those who do not have a license plate for their vehicle, that means one of three things: drive without a license plate, steal someone else’s license plate, or use a counterfeit plate. More and more, criminals have been choosing the latter option. Driving without a plate usually gets the instant attention of law enforcement and is practically asking to be stopped. Stealing someone else’s license plate leaves the victim without a plate, and that usually gets reported promptly. Law enforcement then has the stolen plate number to be on the lookout for. Using a counterfeit plate, however, may go undetected for a long time.

In order to combat this trend, Georgia has introduced new license plates designed to minimize counterfeiting. The new plates include a directional image that appears only when viewing the license plate from a particular angle and disappears from view at other angles. The image is designed to be seen by a person walking up to the vehicle from behind, as a law enforcement officer would do during a traffic stop. The new plates also contain a three-dimensional security image that runs vertically through the center of the license plate and can be seen from more than fifty feet away in traffic.

Another difference in the new plates is that they are flat plates rather than embossed. Flat plates are thinner and digitally printed rather than having the embossed lettering that gives a 3-D appearance. Over the past decade, at least seventeen states and the District of Colombia have gone to the flat plates, mostly in an effort to save on production cost. Some feel that the flat plates don’t look “real” but the inclusion of the security images should counter this problem in Georgia.

Georgia will begin issuing two different designs of the newly enhanced license plates in May of this year. We are currently in the process of educating our deputies on the enhancements made to the new license plates and expect that enforcement efforts statewide will be improved by this change.

If you have any questions, comments or concerns about the new license plates, or traffic enforcement, please feel free to contact my office at 229-431-3259.

Kevin Sproul has been with the Dougherty County Sheriff’s Office since 1982 and has served as sheriff since 2008.

Tags: enhanced license plates, Kevin Sproul, New License Plates, Sheriff of Dougherty County

National Day of Prayer set for May 3

– May 2, 2012Posted in: Columns, Walter L. Johnson II

Written by Walter L. Johnson III

Albany area residents will be among the many Americans who will pray for the nation’s future in the 2012 National Day of Prayer observance Thursday.

It will be held at the Government Center, located on 222 Pine Avenue in Downtown Albany. It’s the 19^th year the National Day of Prayer observance has been held in Albany, and the 25^th year nationwide.

The first National Day of Prayer was held former President Ronald Reagan designated the first Thursday in May for such as observance.

This year’s theme is One Nation under God, which is based on Psalm 33:12.

Wanda Mitchell, a longtime member of Porterfield United Methodist Church who has served as a co-chair for the NDP for almost two decades, will be one of the speakers at this year’s event. She says the need for prayer has never been more critical than now.

“We certainly see the need for prayer in the nation,” Mitchell said, “with its economic problem, its’ ongoing difficulties with other nations, unemployment.

Mitchell added: “I see there’s a lot a need for prayer.”

As another co-chair for the Albany NDP, Ginny Hayman says the idea for the local observance partially came via the Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast.

“Actually, we came to do this through the Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast,” Hayman explained. “The Albany Christian Businessmen’s Committee sponsored the Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast, every year, in January.

“(When some of the) members became elderly, they could no longer do the work,” added Hayman. “So they called me and asked us to form a committee to take that over.

“So in taking over the Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast, we also began to have a program, the National Day of Prayer.”

When asked why she got involved with the National Day of Prayer, Mitchell said, “I think it was (Dr.) James Dobson’s (radio) show, Focus on the Family, because his wife (Shirley) is the national chair for the National Day of Prayer, has been ever since I got involved in it.

“Just realizing the value of prayer, and realizing that God has mandated us to pray,” Mitchell continued, “and he says (that) he will bless the nations that acknowledge him, and I certainly want to help keep this nation, One Nation under God.

With an expected crowd of around 300 people attending this year’s ceremony, Mitchell invites anyone who thinks the U.S. is in need of prayer to attend.

“I certainly hope that everybody will come out,” said Mitchell. “Anybody that thinks that this nation needs prayer, they certainly need to come out, and show their support, and we do have a time when everybody will get together and pray, and (there) will be people praying for families, for the media, for the military, for the government, and I hope everybody will come out, and take this opportunity to come together with others in agreement, to pray for this nation, on the local level, the state, and the national level.”

Hayman agrees.

“I just think prayer is the answer to our need (s),” Hayman said. “Most every city you talk to (have) a concern about their crime element, about the other things going on in their city (that) they have to deal with.

“We know the opposite of that is that when Christians do what is right, affect others to do right, and we have a society that is safe, and that comes through prayer.”

On The Web: http://www.nationaldayofprayer.org

Tags: 222 Pine Avenue, May 3, National Day of Prayer, Walter L. Johnson II

Trophies for everyone?

– May 1, 2012Posted in: Bill Waller, Columns

Among all of the great staples of Spring is Field Day! In the last two weeks, I have seen many Field Day pictures posted from area schools. My own son counted down the days until last Friday when the students at his school left the books in the classroom and hit the fields. His class had some of the traditional Field Day activities like hurdles and tug-of-war along with new things that involved water, lots and lots of water to be more specific. There was a wet sponge volleyball game, over and under with a wet sponge, leaky pipe, and a host of other great games and activities.

I attended Field Day with my son. I have been going now for many years. Things are a little different than when I was growing up. When I was a boy, no parents came out to watch their son and/or daughter play. There were no water sports, and ribbons were presented to the winners throughout the day.

I remember wanting to win a ribbon very badly. The truth is that I smell about the same now as I did back then when it comes to sports—I stink! Once after the Field Day activities, I found a blue ribbon on the ground. I picked it up, and I thought about how cool it would be for me to tell everyone that I won the ribbon. There was no name or activity on the back. My conscious took over as I was concocting my story. I knew that somebody at my school worked hard to earn that ribbon and for me to keep it was not only selfish but it was just plain wrong. I gave the ribbon to my teacher.

There is a trend today to award trophies to all of the children that participate on a team. This must have been born out of a fear that we cannot crush the fragile egos of our children. In trying to protect them, we are sending a bad message to the future of our country. We are telling them that everyone is entitled to an award and that hard work and dedication are about the same as just showing up. One of my favorite movie lines is from the Incredibles. The villain from the movie was going to give out super powers to everybody. Then he said, “When everybody is special, then nobody is.”

Whether we think we are protecting the egos of our children or just shielding ourselves from having to explain why everyone did not get a trophy, we are devaluing achievement. When everybody gets a trophy, then a trophy does not mean anything. In some sporting events, I hear that they do not even keep score now. I tried to do that with a small soccer game that we did with the Cub Scouts over the weekend. The goal was to play for thirty minutes. The score did not matter, yet one of the first grade Scouts knew how many goals each team scored at the end of the game. What is the point of playing if you don’t keep score?

This year’s Field Day was more about fun (and apparently getting wet) than the ribbons. However, there are teachable moments that are lost when we do not reward hard work and achievement. If we do not pass those lessons along to our children, then the ones that may suffer in the future could be ourselves.

Tags: Bill Waller, Southwest Georgia Politics

Let’s give Jellybean something to talk about

– April 30, 2012Posted in: Brett Buckner, Columns

It’s important for a father to bond with his daughter. It takes time and effort, finding not only mutual interests but also forging new levels of compatibility.

It’s not necessarily natural, but the benefits will be played out for years and years to come. These building blocks, like the foundational stones of a church, are laid early, creating a sense of strength and stability.

This is a grotesquely wordy way of saying that fathers and daughters (not to mention fathers and sons) need to having something to talk about.

Jellybean and I have Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

See, there are only so many episodes of Clifford the Big Red Dog and Curious George a man can take. I’ve memorized the dialogue to Lion King and sing Little Mermaid songs in my sleep. Therefore, I had to introduce Jellybean to something I thought we’d both enjoy.

I tried Kiss Meet the Phantom of the Park and even the 4 year old thought it was cheesy. My Lovely Wife said Halloween and its myriad of progressively awful sequels was too scary, so we settled on Buffy the Vampire Slayer simply because she was blonde, perky, funny and beat the holy mess out of demons, monsters and all other sort of ghoul. What’s not for a toddler to love?

‘Course the benefits of having this conversational commodity reaches far beyond a cheeky TV show that’s been off the air since 2003. Buffy plunges a wooden stake straight through the heart of every imaginary monster lurking under Jellybean’s bed, in her closet or in the drain of the bathtub.

Granted, she didn’t see as many monsters before the slayer entered her life, but that’s not the point. I’ve got something in common with a toddler (not sure what that says about me) so that whenever there’s a lull in the conversation I can always turn to Buffy, or Star Wars, or Harry Potter. All of which are favorites for both Jellybean and I.

Nowhere is this more useful than while sitting on the potty – her, not me.

Jellybean’s still in the training phase. We’ve graduated to pull-up diapers and Dora panties, but the actual … uh … going takes time and patience. So we’ve gotta find something to talk about while hanging out in the bathroom. Eventually all conversations lead to Buffy or vampires..

It keeps us engaged and that’s what matters most. Even My Lovely Wife likes Buffy. ‘Course you may roll your eyes or judge me harshly for exposing a toddler to such dark topics as what it’s like living above a Hellmouth, but what My Lovely Wife does is potentially more devastating to Jellybean’s emotional and psychological well being.

They watch Days of Our Lives.

Nothing strikes fear in the heart of men worse than plopping down in front of the big screen TV to hear their precious child ask, “What is Bo doing?” or “Why is Sammy crying?”

Poor thing is gonna grow up not only believing vampires are real but that the average woman sleeps with her husband’s brother who just woke up from a coma, but the reason she had the affair was because a car accident left her with amnesia so she forgot not only that she was married but that her baby had been kidnapped by her evil twin.

No matter, at least that’ll give us all something to talk about … might be on a psychiatrist’s couch, but we’ll be talking just the same.

Contact Brett Buckner at brettbuckner@ymail.com

Brett Buckner is an award-winning freelance newspaper/magazine writer who was raised in Albany.

Tags: Brett Buckner, Parenting

WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A CHAMPION!

– April 27, 2012Posted in: Ted Anderson

I know a person who is the example of excellence, if you have any children who would like to know what takes to be like that. I know this person very well and can tell you what she has done to be exceptional at everything she does.

Her saga started when she was almost a baby…about 4 years old in Wausau, Wisconsin where she first took swimming lessons. She seemed to really love the water.

She moved to Milan, Michigan and was put in a swim club run by one of the best swim coaches in the area. This young coach really knew what he was doing and was winning swim meet after swim meet and against swim club much bigger than his. This experience really taught her a lot and prepared her for what was to come. In elementary school, she started to win all kinds of awards and her room at home became loaded with all kinds of trophies and ribbons.

She got to high school (about 800 and Class B in Michigan). Now is who she took off, especially in the Breast Stroke. What did it take to become this Champion that she was becoming? Well, let’s see. She had beautiful facilities where she practiced and swam in the Home meets. She was at the pool practicing 6 days a week (every day except Sunday). Each day, she swam over 7 miles so that was 42 miles a week or more! Yes, you read that correctly. Man, what a great looking girl she became with very blonde hair with all the boys after her. Her dad had quite a job keeping the boys away as she continued her quest to become a champion swimmer. It wasn’t long before she became First Team All-State in Michigan in the Breast Stroke.

Then, something happened that caused her to hurt her development. She got Crohn’s Disease and was put in the hospital for six weeks on IVs without any food or water for six weeks. This rested her digestive system and caused the severe pains to go away. This Crohn’s Disease is incurable and can flare up are any time some unknown reasons. She was worn out by the time she went to college (Michigan State) and did not continue her career in swimming.

She had a Crohn’s attack just before starting college which delayed entrance and has had a couple other attacks and surgeries since. These surgeries involved removing part of her small intestine and part of her large intestine and reattaching the two together again.

She has done very well since the third operation, a year ago. She is doing so well that she joined the Woman’s Iron Man work outs and started competing in these extremely tough regimen which most of you may be aware. This is after all the Crohn’s problems and now 50 years old She has three children, one graduated and being married in Seattle where she immediately got a position at Microsoft after she finished college at Central Michigan and then getting her Master’s at Michigan State. Her sister has graduated also from Central Michigan and is going to be an elementary school teacher. The third child is attending Lansing Junior College. This period of time while she and her husband has been raising her three children, she got involved with Silpada Silver Jewelry and naturally has been a top sales producer for that company.

It is remarkable what she has accomplished so far in her life and shows what a person can do if they are willing to work hard, very hard. By now, I am sure that you have figured out that this person is my daughter. I love her very much and am extremely proud of her, as you can tell.

Tags: Ted Anderson