No 'www' when checking grades

Some residents in East Washington and outlying areas were awakened at 6 a.m. Sunday by a siren that resembled the siren used for a tornado warning. I got a call at 6:05 a.m. from Logan Woods asking if I had heard it and if I knew what it was. I had not heard it even though I was in the kitchen with the windows and door open. We wondered if it had something to do with the power outage set for 6:30 a.m. in the east side of town. . . . Monday morning I made some calls and after calling Sheriff Mark Moore we decided that it was the siren at the Law Enforcement Center (sheriff's office and jail) which is usually activated by 911, but was probably a fault in the equipment or just a mistake somebody made. Apparently many people heard it and wondered.

.

Joann and Gene Pollock's granddaughter, Burney Pollock, is about to embark on a one-year trip to Italy where she will be an au pair (nanny) for an Italian family. Burney is a recent graduate of the University of Georgia and will be with a family in Reggio Amelia, Italy. The family has a 13-year-old daughter. While the daughter is in school, Burney plans to learn the Italian language, and do some cooking. She loves to cook. She is the daughter of Chuck and Clare Pollock of Macon.

.

I hope you took note of the Tiger football supplement in last week's News-Reporter. Mercer Harris did all the pictures for the supplement, and also does many other things for us. We appreciate everything he does.

.

We got lots of good rain Sunday, but there was also a tragedy. The barn at the country home of Jackie and Bill Gillespie burned while they were attending church services at First Baptist. The fire apparently was started by lightning and nothing was saved. The Gillispies had many personal and household items stored in the barn as well as some farm equipment and valuable old wood that belonged to their son.

.

Norris says he recorded 1.1 inches of rain Sunday, with a total of 4.55 inches for the month. He says he has recorded 31.1 inches for the year and that that is just an inch short of normal for the year. . . . Sonny Johnson reports 1.6 inches for Sunday. Other areas got more; some got none. People who had been in Athens for various reasons say that there was much more rain there than here.

.

Mary Craven brought me a picture of the policeman advertising Coca-Cola that I mentioned here last week. It is apparently a sign that was used at school crossings and was brought inside the building when not in use. Joe Berry had seen one at the World of Coke in Atlanta and remembered the one at Washington- Wilkes High School.

.

His Last Days, the outdoor drama that depicts the life of Christ, will be presented this Saturday and Sunday at the Tallulah Falls Amphitheater in Tallulah Falls, Ga. This is the 26th year that it has been presented. It was founded by Carole Johnson Murphy of Washington and she is the director of the drama. Her sister, Emilie Johnson Waters, of Washington is the choir director; and another sister, Lynda Johnson Gresham, is one of the soloists. Carole credits her growing up in the First Baptist Church here and her excellent music teachers through the years with the realization of her dream to present this drama. "In many ways this is a legacy to those who were my spiritual guides and mentors," Carole says. She names the late Gene Barksdale Thomas, Janet Harvill Standard, Belle Glaze Eubanks, Troupe Harris, and Mary Callaway Burton as being her inspiration. . . . The Johnson ladies are daughters of Mabel Johnson and the late James Johnson.

.

Washington-Wilkes Comprehensive High School Principal Steve Echols says, "I messed up." The article regarding the website where parents can go to access their students' grades, attendance, etc., has the wrong URL. The website should not have www as part of it. The correct address is: http://powerschool. wilkes.k12.ga.us/public/

.

The popular Farmers Market behind the Courthouse on Saturdays is expanding its services. They now have heirloom vegetables, lots of fall vegetables such as sweet potatoes, winter squash, field peas, boiled peanuts, okra, eggplant, and peppers, and also jellies and jams, fresh pita bread, and Tink's grass-fed beef. The Market will have a grilling demonstration with vegetables. Free samples will be available. . . . Tink's burgers will be for sale.

.

Although the Braves lost two games to the Phillies last weekend, they are looking somewhat better than at mid-season. The Braves beat the Florida Marlins Monday night. Starting pitcher Tim Hudson was scheduled to be back on the mound Monday after being on the disabled list for a few weeks. . . . Another Hudson: our Major League umpire, Marvin Hudson, was one of the umpires for the Phillies series -- and he called Chipper Jones out at first base!!!

.

Myra Blackmon, Steve and Eleanor Blackmon's daughter, writes a column for the editorial page of the Athens Banner-Herald. In a recent column she wrote about buying from locally-owned businesses versus the big giants. She cites the three-generation Blackmon familyowned department store on The Square in downtown Washington. Myra says, "The store featured moderately priced, good-quality clothing, including overalls and heavy-duty work clothes along with 'mother-of-the bride' dresses and everything in between. She also remembered the service given by the three generations. She says that one Sunday morning, the second generation of Blackmons (three sons and a daughter) was in chaos getting everybody ready to go to church when a telephone call came in. On the other end, a voice said, "Steve, I just put a run in my last stocking. Can you meet me at the store real quick so I can get dressed for church." And Steve obliged.

.

I remember that another churchgoing lady called the late Cynthia Hocutt one Sunday morning and told her that her husband had turned the water off from the shower instead of the tub and that when she was cleaning the tub to get her bath, she turned the water on and the shower drenched her Sunday hairdo. She asked Cynthia if she could meet her at the shop and "do her hair" before church time. . . . Cynthia also obliged. . . . That's what it's like living in a small town.

.

Don't forget that because of the Labor Day holiday, we have early deadlines for the September 3 issue of The News-Reporter. Check our advertisement elsewhere in this paper to find the deadlines. . . . Community correspondents are asked to slide their news under the door Monday (Labor Day) morning. Yes. Some of us will be working.

.

The Georgia Trust for Historical Preservation Ramble will be held in Washington-Wilkes September 18-19, bringing lots of folks to town from all over Georgia. I hear that the hotel, motel and most bed and breakfast accommodations are already full.