The Palmetto State (South Carolina) Plates created by Rosemary Talbert Hopkins of Washington-Wilkes are featured in the current edition of Southern Lady magazine. Talented Rosemary recently developed and created a set of Wilkes County history plates (some of which are still available), and now has produced the South Carolina plates. With the help of her two siblings, John Talbert Jr. of Waycross, and Nancy Talbert Moore, of Greenwood, S.C., Siblings Three was created to promote the venture. Inspired by their artist-mother, Rose Talbert, the Siblings Three have been successful with the promotion and sale of the plates. Although the borders of Georgia’s plates depict historic battles, Siblings Three chose to portray a composite of state flora, fauna, and symbols, including the Carolina Peach and Swallowtail Butterfly to the Yellow Jasmine and Mace and Sword. The Siblings Three all grew up in McCormick, S.C. . . . For information on the Wilkes County plates and the Palmetto State plates, you can call Rosemary at 706-678-7618 or Siblings Three at 864-229-1095.

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Norris says that here in town we got 1.4 inches of Christmas rain, making a total of 7.8 inches for the month, and 10 inches over the average for the year. . . . At Tyrone,

Sonny says he recorded 1.9 inches on Christmas Day.

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Edith Lindsey has a new neighbor who comes from Tennessee. She is Mandy McKenzie and is a court recorder for Judge Hinesley in Thomson. Edith used to live in Hohenwald, Tenn., and asked Mandy if she knew where that is. Edith was surprised to find that Mandy knew where it is but has family members in Hohenwald. Cindy, Lincoln, John, and Bonnie Bounds were at Best Buy in Athens during Christmas week and were in line behind a very nice man who was having a big problem with picking up a television he had bought. As you would expect, Cindy “struck up a conservation” with him and marvelled at his kindness and patience. . . . She and her family left the store but came back later, just as the man was loading a television into his car. Of course Cindy spoke to him and commended him on his patience. She went over to his car to speak to his family and discovered that they were Mary Kay McPherson who grew up in Washington-Wilkes; her triplets, and her husband. And I’m sorry that I can’t remember Mary Kay’s married name. The holidays have been too hectic. Her parents are John and Mary Lou McPherson.

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For 25 or 30 years, Mercer Harris has made the pictures of Wilkes County babies celebrating their first Christmas for the special pages in The News-Reporter. This year we all waited anxiously, hoping that Mercer’s expected grandchild would be born in time to be included on this year’s pages. But Lilly Claire took her time and missed the tree by a couple of days. You can see her on the online edition of The News- Reporter. Lilly Claire is the daughter of Ashlyn and Ryan Reese, and is the first grandchild of Mercer and India Harris.

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Amid all the happiness of the celebration of Christmas, here in Washington-Wilkes we have had lots of sadness in the loss of an unusual number of family and friends to death this week. We have 12 obituaries in this week's paper. . . . One person whom we will miss here at The News-Reporter is Cathy Lannae. She was our advertising representative for a time and we all learned to admire and love her, as did anybody who knew her. She was a great lady, and the most courageous person I have known. She and our editor used to have an ongoing friendly battle about whether to capitalize titles in certain usages. This week, in her memory, all the titles in our masthead and on all our bylines are capitalized. And Cathy, check the capital F in the “Relay For Life” story this week.

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In reading a weekly newspaper from a town in our surrounding area, a columnist had this to say:

If you wish this world to advance Your merits you’re bound to enhance, You must stir it and stump it And blow your own trumpet, Or, trust me, you haven’t a chance.

But I like Emily Dickinson’s thoughts best. She writes:

I am nobody, who are you? Are you nobody, too? Then there are two of us. Don’t tell. They’d banish us if they knew. How dreadful to be somebody, How vulgar, like a frog, To tell your name the livelong day, To an admiring bog.

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As you can see from the length of this column, I need your help to make it interesting. Please call and tell me interesting things you know. I’m sure everybody did something interesting or unusual during the holidays. The number is still 706- 678-2636. Or you can write me at P.O. Box 340.

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I listened in on a recent conversation by a group of people discussing how their mothers always knew what time they came in at night when they were teenagers. They told how regardless of how careful and quiet they were, she always knew. One lady said, "Daddy always said if Mama were a birddog, she'd be worth a million dollars."

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Hours for the Washington-Wilkes Animal Shelter have changed. The shelter is now open Tuesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.; or by appointment by calling 706-678- 3187.