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EDITORIALEDITOR-IN-CHIEF

J.B. ST. JOHNstjohnjb@realstorypublishing.com

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THE REAL STORYP. O. Box 403

Columbus, MS 39703

Editorial 662.497.2914Advertising 662.574.3893

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by Joseph B. St. JohnEditor-in-ChiefEditor’sNote

Pssst...Do YouWanna Know a Secret?

In what was one of the most bizarretwists in local politics, this week, theColumbus Police Department saw fit toshoot an individual and not notify thecommunity or the media. at's right,campers - someone just got shot by the po-lice, but “move along folks; nothing to seehere. Just a little shooting! Just keep mov-ing and it will all go away. And, hey, don'tworry about the other guy, who fled thescene, surely he will show up, sometime.”

Regardless of whether the shooting wasjustified - and e Real Story hopes that itwas - why keep it a secret? It is not accept-able to say, "Hey media dudes, call us andwe will tell you if something happened."is was not the usual penny-ante minutiathat normally passes as news in our com-munity. is was not the regular paradeof petty crime that is presented and docu-mented as major events. is was a police-involved shooting!

And, does anyone take the time to notifythe community? No! But wait, just whenyou think the insanity cannot get anyworse - you guessed it, boys and girls - itdoes!

e next morning, your humble reportertook it upon his weary self to drag his car-cass to the Columbus Police Department(CPD), to get the official word. isseemed more appropriate than making atelephone call to the CPD’s Public Infor-mation Officer, Glenda Buckhalter, andasking, "Hey, I work for a local newspaperand can you advise me if any of your per-sonnel shot anyone in the a@@, lastnight?"

Knowing that would be inappropriate, Ijust asked her what happened. And, whathappened next is not and was not Ms.Burkholder's fault. She read a brief state-ment from a hand-written note. Yes, for a

moment, I was transported back to thefabulous fiies, when Eisenhower wasPresident and the police didn't tell thecommunity anything about what was hap-pening, because it was not the people'sbusiness.

It would have been funny, if not for thesefacts: 1. a person had been shot and, ac-cording to WCBI, the family is saying hemay suffer paralysis; 2. a police officer issitting at home, awaiting the outcome ofan investigation; and 3. no one is sayinganything to offer any comfort except tosay, “he shot someone for not obeying anorder from a police officer”. ose are note Real Story's words. ey came fromthe police department.

Quicker that you can say Gardner vs.Tennessee, the red flags should be poppingup for everyone in the community. Yousee, Gardner vs. Tennessee, says somethingabout not shooting fleeing felons. How-ever, we really know very few details andhave been told very little; no one had thedecency to say, right aer the shootingtook place, "A police shooting occurredand we must complete an investigation."Nope. e media had to ferret out the in-formation, themselves and, from what canbe gleaned from published accounts, eachmedia outlet seems to have received aslightly different story.

e government is always "whining" thatthe media is unfair - that they only reportbad news. But, here is a suggestion, "gov-ernment man", stop doing goofy stuff andthe media will stop calling you goofy. It isas simple as A-B-C.

When talking to Chief McQueen, he wascontrite in his apology about the delay inproviding information, and did say that hehad been very sick and had to go home,that day. at is understandable - some-

thing happened beyond your control;however, whoever he le in command didnot do him or the community any favorsby not alerting the media. Period.

And, unfortunately for McQueen, eventhough he may have delegated his author-ity, he cannot delegate his responsibility.He shirked his responsibility to the mediawhen he le someone with no trainingand no police experience in control of thepress release. She failed, not because sheis a bad person, but because she was nottrained and equipped for the job. To thebest of our knowledge, she is a great em-ployee, but was set up to fail by not beingtrained or prepared. at failure lies at thefeet of McQueen, even though it was nothis choice to be sick.

In the end, the police owe it to the com-munity, to be transparent. And, like it ornot, part of that is dealing with the media.If you cannot figure this out or deal withthe problem, then get out of the business.at is cold, but it is true.

e media, especially those who have nopolice training, are at the mercy of the po-lice department. e authorities can tellpeople they seized 88 “bazillion” dollars indrugs and, unless you have police trainingor you have sold "dope" before, you haveno clue as to whether they are telling youthe truth.

However, all of that pales in comparisonto not notifying all of the media and,therefore, the community to the fact thatthere had been a police shooting. To beblunt, it is plain wrong. In the meantime,I guess we have to call the police depart-ment every day and ask, "Hey, did youguys shoot anyone last night?"

Joseph B. St. JohnMr. MoJo Rising

We can all rest safely now -Steve Wallace has been chargedone more time in the “GreatCaledonia Aer-Prom Caper of2012”. Finally, the Alcohol Bev-erage Control (ABC) agents havesolved the greatest crime sincethe Lindbergh Baby Kidnappingand the JFK Assassination. Addto this the arrests of Colt Wallace,James Underhill and JoshuaHauerwas, and you can sleep at

night knowing that the “Missis-sippi 4” have been brought to jus-tice.

What a tragedy that these in-nocent young people, many ofwhom were barely old enough tovote for President and volunteerto die for their country, were“kidnapped” and forced, againsttheir will, to go to an aer-promparty. Yes, sleep well and in

peace. Justice is served.Meanwhile, since the “OJ Case

of Caledonia” has been solved,let's move forward and look atanother case the ABC can tackle:

e 500,000 other places inLowndes County where peoplesell or serve beer illegally, in theirhome. If you think this is an iso-lated occurrence, you are nuts.

at's right campers – this hap-

pens every weekend and, yes,young people are involved.

e problem with being so ag-gressive with the Wallace case isthat the community can onlyhope the ABC agents are ready totackle this issue all over the re-gion. If they do not show thesame vigor every time they get acitizen complaint, this case be-gins to look a "little" political. Ifanother situation occurs and itdoesn't receive the "Full Monte"of enforcement that Wallace'scase has, it will have to make youwonder why not.

As summer approaches, andabout 6,000-7,000 alcohol viola-tions occur, you have to ask your-self, "Why Steve?" If you arescratching your head and think-ing this is the only aer-promparty that happened in LowndesCounty, you’re fooling yourself.It happens all the time.

By the way, if Wallace is guilty,he deserves whatever punish-ment he gets. However, you haveto wonder where this additionalcount magically appeared from;maybe it was akin to the board

The Great Caledonia After-Prom Caper

See “CALEDONIA” Pg. 3

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WasWhere That?!

Original tile of Bell Cafe in front entrance of Coffee House on 5th, 111 5th St. N., Columbus

game, Clue, with Wallace in the den with a candlestick.Whatever the case may be, it seems odd, that, all of asudden, one additional violation surfaced.

In America, you should not be “guilty until proven in-nocent”. Consequently, there are no mug shots accom-panying this article, nor will you ever see mug shots in

e Real Story, unless the person in question is a media-type who makes their living off mug shots. (Just kidding- I think.) We have printed a few in the past, but thatpractice is over. It is unethical, unless you also print thepictures of everyone who have been found not guilty!

MoJo

Note: In a prime example of irony, you can’t have abeer until you are twenty-one, but you can have yourmug shot plastered all over the paper.

“CALEDONIA” cont. from pg. 2

Columbus Police Officer on Leave,After Shooting Suspect;

Columbus Police Department Tight-LippedEditor’s Note: Since this article wasfirst published on our website, onApril 10, it has been reported that theoffice who shot Harris has been iden-tified as James Hanson.

A Columbus Police officer, who hasnot yet been identified, has been placedon administrative leave with pay, aer anincident, early Monday morning, inwhich a suspect was shot.

e incident, which took place in the1700 block of Wheat Street, was the cul-mination of a search for a green HondaAccord, which may have been connectedto an earlier burglary.

As officers approached the Accord,both occupants exited the vehicle. Whenordered to get back in the vehicle, thepassenger fled on foot. e driver, 22-year-old Jequanta Harris was shot forfailure to comply with the officers’ in-structions. During a subsequent searchof the Accord, a gun was found inside ofthe vehicle.

Harris was taken to Baptist MemorialHospital-Golden Triangle, and then later

transferred to University Hospital, inJackson.

As shocking as the incident itself, is thefact that CPD did not release this infor-mation to all media outlets until theywere contacted by representatives ofthese publications.

Yes, that’s correct – an officer with theColumbus Police Department shot aman within the Columbus city limits,and another suspect is still at-large, butthe CPD apparently concluded thatthere was no need to alert the commu-nity to this serious public safety issue.

Why is the Columbus Police Depart-ment withholding information from thecommunity – information that citizenscould use to help protect themselves?Perhaps we should ask Chief Selvain Mc-Queen. e telephone number for theColumbus Police Department is 662-244-3500.

We will update this story, when addi-tional details become available.

Reader Comments:

Jeff ConwillSubmitted on 2012/04/10 at 3:32 pmStarting to sound like folks better watchout for the police, too!! Shot becauseyour buddy ran and you don’t do whatthe officer told you to do; sounds likethis one won’t be good for the CPD. Ihope they tell the whole story soon, asthe rumors are flying, already, and don’tsound good...

Charles DivelSubmitted on 2012/04/10 at 4:34 pmTake their time on comment, so theyhave time to fabricate a good story.Coverup.

RaiderSubmitted on 2012/04/10 at 9:56 pmFrom the phrasing you used, soundslike the CPD released the informationto the press but they did not call you? Isthat correct? Which press organizationswere contacted and which were not?As far as what happened, from theminute I read the story, I wondered,what did the driver do to deserve to beshot? Sounds like a trigger-happy offi-cer, to me. I hope there is more to the

story to justify shooting the guy, otherthan his partner ran.

Randy PutnamSubmitted on 2012/04/11 at 7:28 amI think this police action is long over-due. In Columbus, there is little respectfor law & order. Police are trained, andpaid, to be POLICE. If you’re a law-abiding citizen, there’s no reason to runfrom law enforcement.

Jeff ConwillSubmitted on 2012/04/11 at 8:29 am | In reply to Randy PutnamRandy, I am a law-abiding citizen, withno criminal record and was harassed byan officer of the Sheriff ’s Departmentfor 3 years, that ended aer I took themto Federal Court, all because he claims iwas seen in a high drug area, all thetime. It’s hard not to, when that’s whereyour home is, that’s been paid for for 15years. e sad part is that I had to movefrom there to another home, just to havepeace in my life. I have never lived thereagain and wont…

e Real Story Staff Report

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The April 11, 2012 Specially-CalledMeeting CCVB Board Meeting

In what had to be a Columbus Con-vention & Visitors Bureau (CCVB)record, the Board met for 13 minutes toapprove additional funding for the up-coming festival season. Over $26,000

was added to the grant program, whichbenefits special events that are held in thecity. e additional windfall was movedfrom the stalled "Bridge to Nowhere"Project. With that project having beendelayed, the CCVB saw fit to add themoney earmarked for the bridge restora-tion to cover line-items that will be spenton special events.

Unfortunately for everyone in thecommunity, Bernard Buckhalter saw thisas a great time to show he has no ideawhat time of day it is at the CCVB.Bernard, who is a giant proponent offunding every festival that comes beforethe board, somehow got confused andargued against adding the money, be-cause he wanted to look over the entirebudget. Here is a clue Bernard. e

CCVB just won the $26,000 "failedbridge" lottery, so take the money andrun. Festival until you can't festival anymore.

In what was a cross between a filibusterand the confused rambling of someonewho accidentally walked in on a meetinghe knew nothing about, Buckhalterstalled the meeting with endless chatter.It mercifully came to an end, aer 13minutes, with him still talking to himself.

Yes, the festivals and special events willget their money - even, the ones that looklike political rallies. And, even asBernard Buckhalter was trying to com-plete his filibuster, in his car, on his wayback home.

MoJo

“I May Make You Feel,but I Can’t

Make You Think”Jethro Tull

When 13 Minutes is Too Long

e past week was recognized as Telecommunicator Week. e E911 Board celebrated with a special dinner for its dispatchers, at the Jackie O House. On Friday, e Real Story visited the center and saw the ladies in action!

Let's give a round of applause to the men and women who keep us safe everyday by answering the phones at 911!MoJo

911 Telecommunicators - Melody Profiet; Terrica Rondle; LaTonya Malone-Wilburn; and 911 Supervisor Shalonda Singleton

E911 Board Observes Telecommunicator Week

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What was supposed to be a pleasantfundraiser for burn victims, somehowturned political, last month. RebeccaPalmer, co-owner of Station 7, reportedthat the charity event, which was held onMarch 31st, was sideswiped by the Cityof Columbus and the Mississippi BurnCamp Foundation.

e Mississippi Burn Camp Founda-tion, an independent group of citizenand fire service volunteers, provide a freesummer camp for young burn survivors,ages 7 through 15. e camp begun in1996, is funded entirely by donations andis staffed by volunteers, including teach-ers, healthcare workers, nurses, firefight-ers and others. e camp is offered at nocharge to the participants and includesfood, lodging, activity supplies, a campT-shirt and a week of fun and entertain-ment. (from http://www.mffa.com)

During an interview, Ms. Palmer ex-pressed her concerns, "We were workingclosely with the Mississippi Burn Campand, suddenly, I received an email fromthe organization basically saying thatthey could not support the charityevent." is development, along with theCity's unwillingness to help, almost de-railed the entire endeavor.

e email in question - which wasapologetic in nature - still was damagingto the success of the program. In it, Ms.Tammy Moore wrote:

The Executive Committee of the Mis-sissippi Burn Camp Foundation hasmet, due to the situation involving theColumbus Fire Department Chief andyour establishment and has arrived ata decision, and want to make youaware of it. Because Caroll Summeralland other Columbus firefighters sup-port us and are a part of our campstaff and that this benefit is going tohave a negative impact on them, the

Executive Committee has decidedagainst becoming officially involvedwith this event. If you decide to holdthe benefit on the 31st and send us aportion of the proceeds, we wouldmore than gladly accept it for ourcampers; however, we are un-able to attend the event, asan organization.Ms. Palmer continued,

"I talked to Mayor Smithand he seemed like hewas positive about theevent. He said he wasgoing to talk to ChiefMoore about it. How-ever, the Mayor nevercalled me back andwould not return myother phone calls."

e event went on asplanned, but only raised$441.00. is numberwas far below what Ms.Palmer had expected."Without the support ofthe Burn Camp and theCity it was difficult to besuccessful. Chief Moorewould not evenallow departmentpersonnel whowere working tostop by and say hello.It was like the City was against us."

Ms Moore's e-mail continued and ad-dressed this issue:

We are very upset with the circum-stances that have developed, con-cerning this event, and with thesituation in Columbus, right now. OurExecutive Board is so very appreciativeof your willingness to help us in thisway and, if you decide, based on thisdecision, not to support the campwith any funds from the event on the

31st, we will un-derstand. This

was a very difficultdecision by our

Board - with no goodoutcome on any side. We

all felt that we had to choosewhat would be best for thecamp and, especially, ourcamp staff members, manyof whom are connected

with the Columbus FireDepartment and are a keyto our camp session.Those of us who deal di-rectly with the kids at

camp are truly heart-sick over this situation,especially for thecampers who will be

directly impacted by thelack of funding for camp. I apologizefor the inconvenience this causes you- after all the time, effort and hardwork you have personally put into thisbenefit.When asked why the Columbus Fire

Department did not participate in thefundraiser by sending over one of theirfire trucks, Columbus Fire Department

Chief Ken Moore replied, "I did not sendthe truck because I felt that it was a con-flict of interest, since Station 7 is a privatebusiness and sells alcohol." In regards tothe e-mail sent by Tammy Moore of theBurn Foundation, Chief Moore wouldonly say "I don't feel comfortable dis-cussing the e-mail, because I was not partof their decision."

In the end, it was the Columbus AirForce Base and the County District 3Volunteer Fire Department that savedthe day. Ms. Palmer said, "Without theirsupport, there would have been no firetruck or Sparky the Fire Dog." Withouttheir participation, she assured me thatthe event would have been canceled.

"My grandmother was a burn victim,so it was close and dear to my heart. Iknow the suffering she felt," said Palmer

Unfortunately, not everyone feels suf-fering the same.

Joseph B. St. JohnMr. MoJo Rising

It Was Only for Burn Victims, So Who Cares?

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F THE YEAR

Molly Murphreemolly@realstorypublishing.com

Molly is a resident of Columbus, who enjoys reading, cooking,cake decorating, and spending time with her family.

She is a member of Lighthouse Baptist Church.

Trooper Beckum and Acting Master Sergeant Marcus Hobbs. Trooper and Mrs. Beckum.

Derrick Beckum Named Trooper of the YearAer some wonderful hospitality on the part of e

Columbus Country Club, including a true southern buffetof fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and chocolate pie, Cap-tain Randy C. Ginn of the Mississippi Highway Patrol in-troduced the recipient of the 2012 Troop G Trooper of theYear award, on behalf of the Exchange Club of Columbus.A standing ovation, on the part of the audience, rang in theears of Trooper FC Derrick Beckum, as he rose to receivehis honor. Beckum was selected by a group of his Troop G

peers to receive the award. He will now be competing for the State Trooper of the Year award, to be held

in Jackson, Mississippi, later this month.Troop G, headquartered in Starkville,

is responsible for patrolling inCalhoun, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Clay, Lowndes, Monroe, Oktib-

beha, Noxubee, Webster, and Winston Counties.

Upon graduating from trooper school, in 2003, Beckumwas automatically stationed in Lowndes County. "I couldn'tthink of a better area to serve," said Beckum. Acting MasterSergeant Marcus Hobbs stated "Derrick is an all-aroundgood guy. I've seen him grow as an officer, father, husband,and in his church. He's a God-fearing man and a goodfriend."

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If you're like me, then you are probablypretty sick of hearing about the TrayvonMartin and George Zimmerman situa-tion. From day one, that fiasco seemed tobe destined for a national debate, endingin a frothy bubbling of lynch mob-styledistraction and preoccupation by the airwaves. Now, I'm not here to debate therights and wrongs of either side of thisstory. I'm not here to defend one point orside in any sort of way, form, or fashion.But a couple of things aren't terribly diffi-cult or unreasonable to expect. One,Zimmerman is going to get some prisontime; and two, Florida's “Stand YourGround” law will probably come underreview, with the likely result being its nul-lification, in some respect. I'm alwaysskeptical when media frenzies arise. Ican't help it; it's my nature. But, let's con-sider, for a moment, that this sort of thingmay have been hatched before anyoneever heard of Trayvon Martin or GeorgeZimmerman. In doing this, let us rumi-nate, if only for a moment, on the reper-cussions of such a national storm.

Fact: little gets the American people be-hind the idea of change like a raciallycharged instance of injustice, whether ornot it is actually justified. Acknowledge,if you will, the following examples: theanti-Muslim backlash, aer the TwinTowers fell; the detention of JapaneseAmericans, aer the attacks on PearlHarbor; and the 1992 Los Angeles riots.Kick over the top of the anthill, and everyant in the mound is more than willing topour out against both the tangible and in-tangible enemies. All it takes, aer the ini-tial act, is for one entity or a small groupof people to identify the enemy or ene-mies, and the crowd will do the rest of thework. is is both the strength and theweakness of the one voice. is is becausethe unified voice contains the proclivitythat it should bear the burden of an adpopulum argument, while suffering theburdens of conservatives and liberalsequally. In other words, the belief in anidea by a multitude of people does notnecessarily make that idea true, but, if we

want it bad enough, wecan make it happen.

Now, recall this pastNew Year's Eve. On De-cember 31, 2011, whilewe were all toasting theend of the year andwatching the ball dropin New York, our "won-derful" leaders signedinto law the NationalDefense AuthorizationAct (NDAA). is lawprovides the tools for certain individualsand entities to indefinitely detain Amer-ican citizens, without a civilian lawyer ortraditional judicial review. is meansthat the government can make you dis-appear, without warning, and at any timethey choose, under the alleged pretenseof terrorism. Headlining the support forthis bill was the infamous quote by SouthCarolina Senator Lindsey Graham,"...and when they say 'I want my lawyer',you tell them 'Shut up. You don't get alawyer' "

At this point, we return to Florida's“Stand Your Ground” law. A misconcep-tion is that Florida is the only state to havethis sort of law. In fact, seventeen stateshave similar laws, collectively referred toas “Stand Your Ground laws”. is set oflaws is derived from an older principlethat dates back to Medieval England,which was introduced as law by Sir Ed-ward Coke in 1628, and known as e In-stitutes of the Laws of England.Twenty-seven states have some form oflaw relating to this idea that has beencalled the “Castle Doctrine”. (is is thetype of law found in Mississippi. Alabamahas a “Stand Your Ground” law.) In a nut-shell, the original meaning is derivedfrom the idea that you have a right to pro-tect yourself, the lives of your family, andyour welfare (i.e. your castle) from a per-son or persons who wish to kill you or doyou harm. It was in 1895 that the USSupreme Court ruled, in Beard v. U.S.,that a person has the right to stand

against an assailant, in this manner, andwas echoed again in State [of Minnesota]v. Gardner (1905) and Brown v. UnitedStates (1921). e states have since em-ployed their own interpretations of this,in either creating or abstaining fromthese types of edicts.

Ok, let's bring this roller coaster to somesort of resolution. First, the entire pointof all this is in the idea of vigilance. ismindset is not about activism. is ideais about being wary and ready to pounce,when the time is right. Vigilance is notuprising. Vigilance is about arming usagainst the storm, looking at the facts andputting the pieces together, and educatingus to identify anddistinguish betweenillusion and reality.It was omas Jef-ferson who said, "Alltyranny needs togain a foothold is forthe people of goodconscience to re-main silent", butperhaps the partthat is forgotten isthe idea of timing.

Secondly, this is why I fully expect notjust Florida's “Stand Your Ground’ law tocome under attack, but all such laws tocome under attack. e last thing a con-trolling entity or entities want the peopleto be able to do is defend themselves,whether by force, legislation, or judiciaryproceeding. e Trayvon Martin incidentis a perfect medium for under-the-tableagendas to ride the coattails of civil unresttowards the removal of oppositions suchas “Castle Doctrine” and “Stand YourGround” laws. In the continual face oftyranny, we mustn’t let our voices get thebest of us. Stand proud, stand loud, butmake sure that the ones at whom weshout include the guilty who gave thatyoung man the justification, as well as thedesire, to kick over that anthill.

Actions Have Consequences

Invino Veritasiveritas@realstorypublishing.com

Attempting to make sense of his universe, Invino Veritas bubbles outward from the chaos,sometimes submitting to its infinite whirl, and

other times raging against its disregard for its ownelements. His writings incorporate multiple stylesand energies which can be found on his own blog

of random things at http://musingsfortheinsane.blogspot.com/

States with “Castle” Laws

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RECIP

E • LETTER TO THE EDIT

OR Get Out and Get

Your Culture On!Butternut Squash withBrowned Butter and ThymeServes 4Ingredients:1 1/2 pounds butternut squash,

peeled, seeds removed, flesh diced into 1/2-inch pieces (about 4 cups)

3 Tbsp butter1 Tbsp chopped fresh thyme

(or 1 teaspoon of dried)Salt and freshly ground

black pepper

Preparation: Heat a large skillet on medium heat.

Add the butter, whisking frequently.Continue to cook the butter. Oncemelted it will foam up a bit, then subside.Honey-colored browned milk solids willbegin to form. e butter should have awonderful nutty aroma. Remove fromheat. Add the thyme, whisking continu-ously. If using fresh thyme, the mixturewill foam up a bit.

Add the cubed butternut squashpieces to the pan and return the pan tothe burner, heating to medium high. Usea wooden or metal spoon to stir thesquash pieces so they are all well coatedwith the butter thyme mixture. Sprinklegenerously with salt and pepper. Spreadthe squash pieces out in an even layerand let cook, without stirring, so thatthey brown a bit on one side (several

minutes). Stir and spread the pieces outagain and let cook without stirring somore sides get browned.

Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan,and let cook until the squash is tender,10 to 20 minutes, depending on how bigyou cut the pieces.

Add more salt and pepper to taste,sprinkle with a bit more chopped freshthyme before serving.

3rd Street &4th Avenue South

While I was doing some yard work, aman I had never met before pulled intomy driveway. He exited the car and in-troduced himself as Pastor RobertBrown of the Miracle Temple Churchon Hwy 45 North.

While visiting Kroger, earlier that af-ternoon, Pastor Brown noticed an enve-lope on the parking lot that had beenrolled over by several vehicles, turning itthe color of the rubber tires and asphalt.Curious to find out if it was important,he opened the envelope and discovereda check for payment of a utility bill.Knowing that Columbus Light & Wateris not forgiving of a late payment, andmay not believe that a payment was“lost”, he followed the address on theface of the check to my home.

As it happens, this check belonged tothe individual from whom I lease myhome and still listed my address. (I havenot purchased new checks since Imoved, either). Pastor Brown’s interestin setting things straight, no matter howsmall, enabled me to contact my land-lord to inform her of the situation, al-lowing her to arrange for timelypayment of her bill.

At a time when it seems that everyoneis taking care of themselves, oen to theexclusion of others, Pastor Brown tooka few minutes of his time to go out of hisway to meet someone he did not know,and “right a wrong” that had no impacton himself. As he drove away aer-wards, he le me with a smile on myheart. If we happen to meet again, andhave the opportunity for further conver-sation, I believe that we could begin toconsider each other as friends, overtime.

Oh - by the way - did I mention thatPastor Brown is a black man, and that Iam not? In this age where contentiousrace relations seem to dominate thenews, this gentleman ignored whatsome may perceive as a risk, to do theright thing.

ank you, Pastor Brown, for your ex-ample to all of us.

“e Moving Finger writes, and, having writ, moves on”

CRB

LettertotheEditor

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WWW.SUDOKU-PUZZLES.NET • SEE SUDOKU ANSWERS ON PG 22

e 1st Congressional District ArtCompetition was held on the MUWcampus, last month. Columbus HighSchool Senior, Sarah Harmon, waspresented the 2nd Place award byCongressman Alan Nunnelee, whonow has her artwork hanging in hisWashington DC Office.

e Artistic Discovery Contest of-fers an opportunity to recognize andencourage the artistic talent through-out the nation, as well as in the FirstCongressional District of Mississippi.

Sarah’s artwork, titled "Kolam Blue"is a mixed-media piece, which incor-porates layered plexiglass and Indian-inspired custom Kolam designs cutfrom paper and displayed in a hand-craed wooden box.

Sarah's Art Instructor at Columbus

High is Sarah Oswalt.Please join me in congratulating

both Sarah Harmon and Ms. Oswalt. e public will have an opportunity

to see more of Sarah's amazing art-work during her IB Art Exhibit. Herone-day-only show will be ursday,April 19th, from 6:00 - 8:00 PM at theColumbus Convention & VisitorsBureau office (behind the TennesseeWilliams Horne). Sarah will be show-ing her body of work from the two-year TB art program. is is the workshe will be judged on by an interna-tional moderator

Congratulations, Sarah!

Columbus High School SeniorWins Arts Competition

Courtesy Photoe Real Story Staff Report

Pet Parade at First UnitedMethodist Church

Sam Chessnutt, Becky Cunningham, and Brenda Comer.

Beverly Montgomery poses with herGerman Shepherd, Beast.

First United Methodist Churchheld a Pet Parade this past

Sunday, April 15th, to raise funds for the Columbus-Lowndes

Humane Society.

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CONSUM

ER C

ORNER

by Mo & No-Mo

Since moving to this wonderfulsleepy town, several years ago, therehas been one place that I continue tohear of over and over again. "Oh, youare looking for what? I know just theplace to find it." is seems to be thetheme song for this magical place ofwonderment and longing.

Driving up in front of MilitaryHardware, I notice the cars lined upacross the front, so I move to the sideparking lot, which is almost full. isis definitely piquing my interest. issmall, unpretentious little corner storeseems to be very popular, with cus-tomers buzzing around like bees.

Walking up to the front of the store,I am enchanted by the small planterbetween the two inviting open doors,with some sort of plants lined up inneat little rows. My heart wants to be-lieve these will grow to be some sortof vegetable, but my mind tells methey will become beautiful flowers, toentice and invite.

As I walk in the store, I am greetedwith a warm and friendly, "Come onin; is there something I can help youwith?” e center counter serves as abase for this gentleman, as he overseesthe comings and goings of the cus-tomers, keeps track of where they arein the store, and is available to help atany given time; all the while, he isworking on some kind of object thatseems to be giving him some resist-ance.

Looking around, I am overwhelmed

w i t hall themerchandise .Where on earth did they find all ofthose nuts, bolts, screws, nails and as-sorted washers? en there are thehundreds and hundreds of tools. Justhow many hammers does a personneed, anyway? Looking up, I see RadioFlyer wagons and a tricycle. I have tostop and close my mouth, which isopen in amazement. ey have ropes,

wheels, axes, plungers, mailboxes, and hummingbirdfeeders - the list goes on and

on. I have no idea what mostof the items in the store are, or

what their function is. Somelarge, some small - but all have a

purpose, I have been assured.Oh my, a section filled with culinary

delights. No, not food - grills, fryers,and utensils of every size and imagi-nation. is has to be the largest col-lection of cast iron cookware I haveever seen, featuring sizes and shapesonly wished for. I suddenly noticedthe biggest cooking pots that I haveever seen, and cooking utensils bigenough to hide small children in.

Aer spending a good bit of timebrowsing around, with several offersof help, I decided it was time for me toleave this little mecca of imaginationand desire. A person could get intotrouble in there, because the mindstarts conjuring up things that one canmake, and what is needed to build,construct or concoct. So, if there isone item that you need to replace orrepair, and you can't find the part, runon down to Military Hardware, at1002 13th Street North (at Military),and tell the gentleman behind thecounter that we sent you. Let yourimagination run wild, and oohhhhhand aahhhhhh till your heart's con-tent.

If you have a local business or establishment you would like us to consider for review, please e-mail us at: consumercorner@realstorypublishing.com.

You will get our honest opinion of the business, their personal customer service, and the services offered. We strive for fair, unbiased reporting, so we hope to hear from you.

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ANSWERS FROM THE APRIL 11, 2012 CROSSWORD PUZZLE

Addie Adkins Talley finds beauty inpeople, places and circumstances thatothers do not. Addie shared with methat, during her teen years, she realizedshe was never going to be like everyoneelse. She had to learn to appreciate whoshe was. Around the age of 18, shestarted to embrace her uniqueness.From this epiphany, her creativity and“out of the box” thinking were born.Addie decided it was all right to be differ-ent from everyone else, because she was(and is). Addie is 4’8”, but every inch ofher is energetic, spirited and full of life.She is just like the caterpillar that meta-morphosed into a beautiful butterfly.Welcome to Talley Images.

Addie has always been creative. Shetried drawing and painting, but eventu-ally moved on to photography. She didnot like to wait on the art she was creat-ing. Addie wanted quick results. e dig-ital camera gave her the perfect outlet forher creative quirkiness. She could finallyhave the instant gratification she waslonging for in her art; not the exact fin-ished product, but affirmation that shewas pleased with what was on her cam-era.

Addie is “one of those people” that takesome getting used to, because they are al-ways taking pictures. You cannot hidefrom them, because they are always

there, especially if you hate having yourpicture taken. ey have a knack forcatching you at one of those awkwardmoments, like when you are eating orhave your eyes closed. She admits tobeing “one of those people”. She laughs,and says her family just goes with it now;she is going to take their pictures anyway,so they might as well get used to it.

Luckily for Addie, she is very good atwhat she does. From the beginning, peo-ple liked her photographs and startedasking her to take pictures for specialevents in their lives. Starting in 2006,Addie photographed two weddings. In2007, she was averaging 1-2 family ses-sions a month and a wedding or two permonth. Each year, her business hasgrown steadily. With the exception ofJanuary and February, she is bookedcontinually, throughout the year. Addiehopes that one day that photography willbe her full-time job.

Addie has put together a series of pho-tographs themed around fairy tales (thisseries is not yet complete), and one ofcircus performers. She depicts an ex-traordinary view of them. ey are verycreative and edgy. ese are not “pretty”pictures, but they are beautiful. Addie ismoving toward non-traditional expres-sions in her art. She has begun work on

a series de-picting the7 DeadlySins. Shesays theywill be“gritty, ex-treme andfairly raw(but nonudity)”.Her goal,with herartwork, isto surpriseand shockpeople.

Some ofA d d i e ’ sphotographs are currently on display inthe “Emergence” art exhibit at the ReneeReedy Studio, along with the work of 17other local artists, in Columbus. eApril edition of Unique Modeling Maga-zine has an interview with Addie, alongwith some of her photographs. Peopleare starting to notice Addie Talley as agied photographer. You can become afan on Facebook at Addie Talley, Photog-rapher and check out her blog atwww.talleyimages. blogspot.com

Addie hopes that she can be a rolemodel to young women by showingthem, through her lens, that they arebeautiful. Using this approach, she hopesto help them learn to feel amazing just asthey are. She wants them to celebratewhat is different about themselves and,as a result, feel beautiful. is is especiallyimportant in today’s society, because TV,movies and magazines dictate the idea ofbeauty. Addie wants to help women findfreedom and joy in being true to them-selves.

If you want formal, traditional poisedportraits, then Addie Talley is not thephotographer for you. Addie’s goal is tocatch people as they really are. She wantsto capture her clients’ personalities, in-stead of a pose. To her, this is the truevalue of photographs - when you capturethe essence of who someone is, you have

created a memory that will be cherished.It is tangible piece of life preserved in apicture, which can never be recreated.ose people, that emotion, that exactmoment in time – they will never existagain. is is Addie’s art.

Candi Vezina

Candi is involved with several communitygroups. She enjoys doing things for others and

spending time with her family.

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RELIG

ION Religion for Atheists

Alain de Botton has written an inter-esting new book, entitled Religion forAtheists, which discusses how the priorrole of religion – imparting wisdom,moral and ethical principles, and provid-ing guidelines for a civil life – has beenlost in our increasingly secular society.David Brooks, of the New York Times, re-viewed the book:

De Botton sees a secular society, de-nuded of high spiritual aspirationand practical moral guidance. Cen-turies ago, religions advised on howto live with others, how to tolerateother people’s faults, how to assuageanger, and endure pain. ese days,teachers, artists and philosophers nolonger even try to offer such practi-cal wisdom. is cohesive force has not been lost

because we have become less religious;America is one of the most religiouscountries in the world.

It is a loss in understanding abouthow to transmit wisdom. Older re-ligious authorities had a low but re-alistic view of human nature - we arefragile, sinful and vulnerable, andunable to create moral universes onour own, and in need of self-confi-dent institutions that will un-abashedly transmit God’s guidanceand love. Today’s secular institutions have ahigh and unrealistic view of humannature. We are asked to develop ourown philosophy and moral laws,and to put these ideas into practice. Where did this arrogance come from?

“We are too accepting of the Modernistdoctrine that great art should have nomoral content or desire to change its au-dience”, states de Botton, referring to therevolutionary changes of the Sixties,when all certainties of the world werechallenged. In the conservative Fiies,

the Church was always right, art was art,and e Ten Commandments were ab-solutely true. In the Sixties, it was exhil-arating to live in a world without thisconfining absolutism. Religion wasavailable if we wanted it.

However, in this anarchic freedom,moral and ethical compasses were lost:

While universities have achievedunparalleled expertise in impartingfactual information about culture,they remain wholly uninterested intraining students to use it as a reper-toire of wisdom.We have lost a sense of purpose in

knowledge. “Wisdom” is consideredpassé because it implies a codified set ofbeliefs and principles, anathema in aworld of cultural relativism and diversity.

I have never pursued knowledge forknowledge’s sake and have always readhistory, literature, economics and politi-cal science to help explain my world. Iread Shakespeare’s Histories not to get afictionalized view of England, Rome,Venice, and Greece; but to try to deci-pher why history repeats itself. Accord-ing to Shakespeare, human nature,however gross, is behind the continuousseries of imperial expansion and palacecoups. He understood that man is an ag-gressive, acquisitive animal always in-creasing his chances for survival, andhowever much we create laws, institu-tions, and traditions to rein in these an-tisocial impulses, they reign and willreign forever. De Botton says that on thecontrary “today’s secular institutionshave an absurdly high and unrealisticview of human nature”. We have cometo believe that human nature is not im-mutable, and that life, as Hobbes fa-mously said, is not “solitary, poor, nasty,brutish and short". It is external forceswhich shape us, and by changing them,we can change our behavior, our society,and even our nature.

De Botton states that, in our attempt toreform human nature and to make theworld a better place, we are convincedthat having thrown off our intellectualchains, we can translate facts into wis-dom on our own. In his view, we cannot.Facts alone are nothing but bits of infor-mation which need to be collected witha purpose to have meaning. Reconstruc-tion, for example, is fascinating not onlybecause of the period itself, but becauseof the lessons to be learned from it.America’s international politics, today,are as presumptive about the universalrightness of American-style democracyas the Radical Republican’s views ofSouthern reformation. Had Lincoln,with his canny understanding of politicsand human nature, lived, the Southwould not have suffered through Recon-struction and we would not still behostage to that history’s legacy. Had theNeo-Cons listened to Lincoln, we mightnot have had the Iraq war.

Museums were once temples for thecontemplation of the profound.Today, de Botton says, they offerpallid cultural smorgasbords:“While exposing us to objects ofgenuine importance, they neverthe-less seem incapable of adequatelylinking these to the needs of oursouls.” Visitors “appear to want to betransformed by art,” de Botton ob-serves, “but the lightning bolts theyare waiting for seem never to strike.ey resemble the disappointedparticipants in a failed séance.”

Museums, today, are proscribed frommaking value judgments, or even sug-gesting interpretations. Although the ex-hibition on the art of Papua New Guineaat the de Young Museum in San Fran-cisco is a spectacular display of powerfultotems, lighted to convey their spiritualpresence, there was nothing writtenabout this – no spiritual guideposts sug-

gesting that this was far more than an artexhibit.

De Botton has proposed that muse-ums be organized by theme insteadof by historical epoch. He suggeststhere could be a Gallery of Compas-sion, a Gallery of Fear and so on.And colleges should definitely teachcourses on such practical issues [onmarriage], bringing together the re-sources of literature, psychology andneuroscience on such questions. Brooks, James Q. Wilson, Charles

Murray, and others have written oen oncharacter, values, and the importance ofrestoring moral and ethical compasses insociety, and the issue is now more openlydiscussed. We are increasingly acknowl-edging the perils of relativism and post-Modernist reductionism, and are nowless afraid to assert that there are, in fact,some absolute truths – truths that notonly come from religion but from his-tory, secular truths no different from re-ligious ones. at is, all civilizations havebeen characterized by the same perse-vering values of honesty, respect, civility,and honor. Of course, these same civi-lizations have been known for their pil-laging, plundering, and massacres; but,Greece, Rome, India, Persia, China, andEurope all had that civil glue which coa-lesced divergent views, made themstrong and imperial. We should learnfrom that history.

Ron Parlatorparlato@realstorypublishing.com

Ron Parlato is a writerliving in Washington, DC.

He has close ties withColumbus which he visits

frequently. His writings onliterature, politics and

culture, travel, and cookingcan be found on his own

blog, uncleguidosfacts.com.

Check out our website @realstorypublishing.com

or facebook.com/rspublishingfor additional articles and information!

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Everywhere you turn, rightnow, local organizations are is-suing a call for artists, for vari-ous art exhibits, public artprojects, and contests.

First up is a call for artists for‘Postcards to Columbus”, an ex-hibit of postcard-sized worksthat will open with a receptionon ursday, May 3, 2012.Entry packets may be obtainedat Renee Reedy Studio (101 5thStreet South; below Café onMain); gallery hours vary, so itis recommended that you callto verify when the gallery willbe open. A gallery representa-tive can be reached by calling662.368.8181; other arrange-ments are possible. e deadline forsubmissions is ursday, April 26th.ere is no entry fee. Additional de-tails, including submission guidelinescan be found by visiting www.rando-mactsofculture.biz.

“Postcards to Columbus” is just oneof the upcoming exhibits in the Art inColumbus series of monthly art showsat Renee Reedy Studio. Other upcom-ing events include “Light & Glass”(June), “7 Deadly Sins” (July), and“Lost & Found” (August); visit theirwebsite, for a complete list.

Main Street Columbus is sponsoringa “Painted Privies” Contest, in whichlocal artists can paint portable toiletunits, which will be prominently dis-played at the corner of 5th & Main,during this year’s Market Street Festi-val, as well as at other events. Interestedartists must submit their information,including a rendering of their painting,by April 23rd. Painting may be donebetween April 28th and May 4th (mustbe completely dry by noon on the 4th).For more information, contact MainStreet Columbus at 662.328.6305 or theColumbus Arts Council at662.328.2787.

e Columbus Arts Council is con-ducting a Holiday Card DecoratingContest, with entries due by June 29th.ere are three different categories: 10years & younger, 11-17 years, and 18years and older). Winners of first placein each category will have their card re-produced, and will receive 70% of allsales of their design. For more informa-tion, call 662.328.2787 or e-mailcolumbus.ms.arts@gmail.com.

Organizations can also have theirevents listed on e Real Story’s websitecalendar, by visiting realstorypublish-ing.com and, under “Do662”, click‘Submit an Event”.

As always………..

“Get out and get your culture on!”

Calling All Artists

e Real Story Staff Report

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FIT

NESS

Haven’t you always taken for grantedthat there is just one way to do your car-dio exercise? Or, maybe you just keepdoing the same thing that you have al-ways done, due to routine? is routineusually involves doing something likewalking or running on the treadmill oroutside, and using a stationary bike or anelliptical for a sustained period of time,at the same speed. is can promoteboredom and stymie progress. Maybe itis time that you get “outside the box”!

Let’s take a look at interval training.is is a method of exercise that uses al-ternating periods of work and rest. It isalso referred to as HIIT (High IntensityInterval Training). Low intensity inter-val training can be utilized as well. In-terval training has been around fordecades, but has only recently gained inpopularity. It has been used, most com-monly, in the fat loss and conditioningarena. A recent study, done at McMasterUniversity in Canada, compared 20 min-utes of high intensity interval training -consisting of a 30-second sprint, fol-lowed by a four minute rest - to 90 to 120

minutes of sustained cardio in the targetheart rate zone. Subjects got the sameimprovement in oxygen utilization fromboth programs. e amazing fact is thatthe 20-minute program only requiresabout two minutes and 30 seconds of ac-tual work.

One of the most famous studies ofHIIT is known as the Tabata study. Inthis study, subjects performed rowing in-tervals: 20 seconds of ultra-fast rowing,alternated with 10 seconds of relaxed re-covery rowing, for a total of 8 intervals,or 4 minutes. e results of this studyshowed that participants had an increaseof 28% in cardio respiratory enduranceand a 14% increase in aerobic fitness -again, showing the benefits of intervalover sustained cardio training regimens.You get the fitness benefits and a routinethat breaks up the monotony and keepsyour interest level high.

Here are the basic modes of trainingthat you can utilize for interval training:

• Running on a treadmill, track or outside

• Walking on a treadmill• Elliptical• Stationary Bike• Weighted circuitse main thing to remember about

this type of training is to alternate shortbursts of high intensity with periods ofrecovery or low intensity. For example,the high intensity intervals can last any-where from 10 to 60 seconds and thelow intensity recovery periods canlast anywhere from 10 seconds toa minute or more. e total du-ration of intervals can last up to15 minutes. If you are a begin-ner to HIIT, start with shorterhigh intensity periods andlonger low intensity periods.Remember that “high intensity”means “high intensity for YOU”. Soif you are a beginner, a fast walk for10 seconds is a better start than trying tohandle a sprint workout.

Benefits of interval training include:• Losing body fat, while

maintaining lean muscle mass

• Strengthening the cardiovascularsystem

• Efficient utilization of fats and carbohydrates

Always remember that the goal of anycardio exercise program is to get themaximum result for the time you spend.

What Kind of Cardio Exercise Are You Doing?

MelindaDuffie is

a certified personal

trainer, withadditional

expertise in nutrition

counseling and lifecoaching, as well asa B.A. in Business.

Melinda Duffiemvpfit@yahoo.com

Governor Phil Bryant of Mississippi re-cently named Bobby Harper of Columbus,Mississippi to the Tennessee- Tombigbee Wa-terway Development Authority Board of Di-rectors. Mr. Harper, a Columbus bankingveteran, currently represents Renasant Bankas a Senior Vice President and DevelopmentOfficer. Prior to joining Renasant, Harper

served over 40 years as an executive bankerin the Golden Triangle region. He received hisbachelor’s degree in business administrationfrom Delta State University and attended theGraduate School of Banking at LSU.

Harper contributes to the Golden Trianglecommunity, serving as a trustee of the Frank

Phillips YMCA, as a Rotarian andPaul Harris Fellow and as a boardmember of the Golden Triangle Re-gional Airport. He is also past presi-dent of the Columbus Air Force BaseCommunity Council, a recipient ofthe Mississippi University for WomenMedal of Excellence and the Ex-change Club Book of Golden DeedsAward.Harper and his wife, Jo, have a son,

Lane, and a daughter, Neely Hudnall,as well as three grandchildren. eyare members of St. Paul’s EpiscopalChurch, where Harper has served asJunior and Senior Warden, and cur-rently serves as a member of theVestry.e Tenn-Tom Authority is a four-

state compact comprised of the statesof Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi,and Tennessee. e U.S. Congress au-thorized the interstate compact topromote and market the waterwayand its economic and trade potentialto the region and the nation. e fourstate governors serve as members ofthe Authority, along with five otherappointed members from each state. “Serving on this board will be a new

experience. ere will be a learningcurve, but I look forward to being in-volved and working with the mem-bers of the four-states making up thecompact,” said Mr. Harper. “e wa-terway is one of our most importantassets for stimulating much-neededeconomic growth. is year alone,the waterway’s lower cost and moreenergy-efficient transportation serv-ices will help bring nearly $1 billionof new industrial development toMississippi. Its unique water-relatedrecreation facilities attract nearly 3million visitor-days annually, gener-ating nearly $150 million of addi-tional spending each year. As a resultof the four states working together,

the Tenn-Tom Authority has played an im-portant role in helping to bring these regionalbenefits to fruition”, he said.

Other members representing Mississippi onthis board are Nick Ardillo and T. L. “Bud”Phillips of Columbus, Mrs. Martha Segars ofIuka; Bill Cleveland of Tupelo and Dale Pierceof Aberdeen.

e Tenn-Tom Waterway celebrates its 27thanniversary, this year. Since opening to com-mercial navigation in January 1985, it has be-come an important connecting link to 17states, 14 river systems and over half of thenation’s population. Since 1996, the Tenn-Tom has realized an economic impact of $43billion for the region Approximately 6 milliontons of commerce are transported on the wa-terway, saving shippers an estimated $60-90million in transportation costs, each year. ewaterway has also helped attract over $5 bil-lion of new and expanded industrial develop-ment, creating over 70,000 new jobs in thewaterway region.

Inland waterways, such as the Tenn-Tom,are the most energy-efficient, environmen-tally-friendly, and safest mode of transporta-tion.

No Coolers or Pets Please

For complete details contact Main Street Columbus at 662-328-6305 or visit www.marketstreetfestival.com

Another great production of

Market Street After DarkFriday, May 4

Mingo Fishtrap 7:30-9:00 p.m.

Lukas Nelson & The Promise of the Real

$10 Tickets can be purchased in advance at the

www.marketstreetfestival.com or at the gate. Food & Beverages will be available for purchase.

Ticket required for admission to gated area.

Above: Lukas Nelson & The Promise of the Real; to left: Mingo Fishtrap

Lounging with the Locals Saturday, May 5

Columbus Riverwalk 5:00-11:30 p.m. Free Admission

Deacon Jones & The Late Night

5:00 p.m.

Mark “Muleman” Massey Blues Band

7:00 p.m.

Eden Brent

8:30 p.m

Jimbo Mathus & The Tri State Coalition

10:00 p.m.

Market Street Festival Free & Open to PublicSaturday, May 5

9:30-11:00 p.m.

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662-328-6305 or visit www.markets Main St etails contactlete dFor comp

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Special to e Real Story

Impacted StatesExisting River SystemTenn-Tom Waterway

Harper Named to Tenn-Tom Board

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SAINTÊ LEOÊ UNIVERSITYÊ -Ê COLUMBUSÊ AFB

Your local top-ranked university university

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e missionof the National

Day of Prayer Christian Community Or-ganization is to mobilize prayer inColumbus, MS and the surroundingarea, as well as to encourage personal re-pentance and righteousness in the cul-ture.

is local event will be filled withpraise and with prayer for our nation,government leaders, churches, schools,and families. Please join us on ursday,May 3rd, as Columbus and LowndesCounty area citizens and government of-ficials come together in prayer. Musicwill begin the observance at Noon, withthe actual prayer service beginning at12:15 PM, and ending at 12:45, so thatpeople can participate during their lunchbreak, if working that day.

e National Day of Prayer is an an-nual observance held on the first urs-day of May, inviting people of all faithsto pray for the nation. It was created in1952 by a joint resolution of the UnitedStates Congress, and signed into law byPresident Harry S. Truman. In 1988Ronald Reagan signed Public Law 100-307, designating the first ursday inMay as the annual observance for theNational Day of Prayer.

is Christian Community Organiza-tion is a privately funded organization,whose purpose is to encourage partici-pation on the National Day of Prayer. Itexists to communicate with every indi-vidual the need for personal repentanceand prayer, to create appropriate materi-als, and to mobilize the Christian com-munity to intercede for America’s leadersand its families. e local organizationrepresents a Judeo-Christian expressionof the national observance, based on ourunderstanding that this country wasbirthed in prayer and in reverence forthe God of the Bible.

e National Day of Prayer has greatsignificance for us, as a nation. It enablesus to recall and to teach the way in whichour founding fathers sought the wisdomof God, when faced with critical deci-sions. It stands as a call to us to humblycome before God, seeking His guidancefor our leaders and His grace upon us asa people. e unanimous passage of thebill establishing the National Day ofPrayer as an annual event signifies thatprayer is as important to our nationtoday as it was in the beginning.

NationalDay ofPrayer

Special to e Real Story

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I’m sure that everyone knows thatpigs will eat almost anything. Pork-chop is no exception, although hedoes not like raw squash or zucchini.A few weeks ago, I bought some veg-etable chips (trying to eat healthier),but they were pretty much tasteless.However, Porkchop loved them, andjust has a little piggy panic attack if Idon’t get them in his bowl fast enough.ey are a little expensive, though, tofeed to a pig, so I decided I’d buy afood dehydrator to make my own.e first batch was perfectly crispy,and Porkchop thoroughly enjoyedthem. BUT, I took the next batch outtoo early, they weren’t quite crisp

enough, and he did not like them! I’llhave to be careful, in the future, to getthe crispness just right for him!

I have to order his pot-bellied pigfeed off the Internet, and had pur-chased a new bag last week. My hus-band asked if I wanted him to pour itin the old chicken feed bin, and I de-cided that would be a great place tokeep it. Apparently I didn’t rememberwhich bin was the old chicken-feedone, and I, once again, unknowinglycontributed to Porkchop gaining evenmore weight... I poured him some ofthe “new” feed, and mentioned, later,to my husband that I didn’t realize it

was a new kind of food, because itlooked different. e following morn-ing, as I was pouring Porkchop hisbreakfast, I noticed that the feedlooked like the original. So, I askedmy husband where he got that foodfrom, and he laughed and said that Ihad been feeding Porkchop high-pro-tein catfish food! Which, of course,they use to make catfish gain weight!I can’t win, for losing!!

We have the best time, on our bath-room outings, during the day. Pork-chop gets a little exercise to work offthat extra weight I keep putting onhim, and we have fun playing hide-and-seek. Pot-bellied pigs don’t havegreat eyesight, but they do have an ex-ceptional sense of smell - better thanmost dogs! On a recent aernoon, asPorkchop was rooting around in thedirt, I decided I’d go on up ahead andhide. Aer a while, I heard him run-ning, grunting, and he flew past me,headed back to the office. I jumpedout and said, “Boogie-woogie!” andscared that little pig! Haha! Hegrunted and jumped around - it wastoo funny. en he wiggled his fat lit-tle body like he was saying, “You gotme, that time, Mommy!”

Pot-bellies communicate withsqueaks, sneezes, grunts and gurgles,and I never get tired of hearing him“talk” to us or the dogs. When we goout for our bathroom breaks, duringthe day, he’ll inevitably stop to exploreand root in the grass or gravel, so I’llgo on ahead and in a little bit I’ll hearthis whiny grunt, squeal type noiseand hear his fat self running behind

me. I always tell him, “I’m not leavingyou!” When he decides he doesn’twant to come back in, I’ll say, “Ok,Porkchop, I’ll see ya’ later!” Beforelong, he comes running to the doorand waddles to his food bowl for atreat.

I love that little pig! And, I am gladto hear that most of you do, too!!

Safety Tipsfrom the NCPC

How Parents Can Encourage VolunteeringTips for parents on getting kidsto volunteer in the community

Helping out in the community can make yourneighborhood safer, and it can be fun and beneficialto the people who do the work, especially children.Volunteering can help children develop positive re-lationships with adults and other children, and helpthem to develop such skills as cooperation, empathy, and empowerment. And itcan show them that they have the power to make positive change. All of these traitswill help children positively handle the tough situations they face growing up.

You can help your children get involved in the community. Here are a few ideasto get you started:

• With your child, arrange to clean up a local park or school ground. Pick up trash (don't forget to wear gloves!) and plant bushes, trees, and other plants.

• Help your children to create a mural recognizing the contributions of everyone in your community. Include people of all ages, professions, ethnicities, religions, and physical and mental abilities. Find a public place that will let you display it or donate a wall to the project.

• Arrange for your child to create an exhibit at his or her school or your local library. It could be about a different culture, a current problem at school, suchas bullying, or anything that your child is interested in.

• Accompany children to a retirement home to spend time with the elderly, doing what they like. Some possibilities are playing board games with residents, singing or performing for them, or handing out baked goodies orartwork.

• Have your children think of ideas about how they can help. Ask them whatissues most concern them, and who they would most like to help. Brainstorm,with them, on ideas they would most enjoy.

If you work with groups of children as a teacher, coach, scout troop leader, or inany other way, consider leading a service-learning project. ese projects get chil-dren involved in improving the community, as a group, and offer great ways tolearn outside the classroom.

Special to e Real Story

Aimee Shawashaw@realstorypublishing.com

Aimee is the Office Manager at Malone Electric Company, Inc. and also has her own

freelance graphic design business. She is married to Kenneth Shaw of Columbus.

Porkchop, 4 weeks old.

Porkchop, 11 weeks old.

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Walking down the streets of Columbusand noticing all the new shops that areblooming up like tiny buds in our gardenof enchantment, I catch a scent that is soenticing it is not to be ignored. Lettingmy nose lead the way, I end up on 5thStreet North. Looking up, I notice a cutelittle sign stating “Coffee House on 5th”.Opening the door and going in is like en-tering another world.

Coffee – good, smooth aromatic coffee- is the predominant feature of this inter-esting little coffee shop. A nice youngman walks up, extending his hand for ashake, and welcomes me in. He intro-duces himself as Brent Davidson, andthus begins a friendship that I plan tonurture and cherish for years to come.As we sit down to chat, I have a cup ofthis well-done coffee. I am interested ingetting to know this lively, intelligent andambitious gentleman.

Settling in, the first thing I want toknow is how he came up with the ideafor the coffee house and the interestingdecor. He states that he has always en-joyed visiting coffee houses, and wantedto share his love of good coffee and theunique atmosphere that is a coffee housewith the community that he grew up in.e coffee bean bags on some of thewalls, as well as the unique designs onanother wall, as you walk in the door, areenough to grab your interest.

"A coffee shop is a place where you canmake it your own, create the atmosphereyou want it to have and also bring to itsomething different, at the same time, soit holds the interest of the customer." Ilearned from Brent that he enjoys shar-ing his love of different coffees and theprocesses used to prepare these potionsof delight and comfort. Creating a relax-ing, peaceful, and welcoming atmos-phere has proven to be a diamond in the

rough for Brent; he has made e CoffeeHouse on 5th his own, and it is apparentas soon as you walk in the door.

Finding the perfect coffees for his shopwas an adventure in itself for Brent. Hetraveled around, going to different roast-ers, coffee shops and companies, tastingand trying different blends, roasts andtypes of coffee. Aer sampling hundredsof coffees, he settled on a unique blendto carry at e Coffee House on 5th. Inorder to learn how to properly preparecoffee, Brent traveled to Tuscaloosa,where he found the Premier CoffeeShop. Befriending Gail Faulkner, theowner, he offered to work for her, on apro-bono basis, two days a week for sev-eral months, in an effort to acquire theskills necessary to make top-rate coffee.For those not familiar with the process,making the perfect cup of coffee is anexact science, and not for the faint ofheart.

Staff from the roasting company thatBrent selected drove to Columbus topersonally instruct the baristas on the

proper technique. As a result, you arenow assured of receiving a perfect cup ofcoffee, to go along with the fresh bakedgoodies that are temptingly offered.Each morning, fresh items, savory andsweet, are made for the customers’ indul-gence. e sweet potato muffins seem tobe a local favorite, although my personalfavorite is the chocolate sugar cookie.Don't forget the chocolate chip scones,as they appear to be holding their own inthe race to see which one is the best. Besure and try some of these goodies; Iknow you will be hooked.

When we talked about the future,Brent shared some of the exciting thingsto come at e Coffee House on 5th. Hespeaks of having an open mic night, onursdays, where musicians can come inand perform a song or two, then havesomeone else present their poems, the-atrics or music. Brent is excited about theopportunity to present local musiciansand talent to our community, in his com-fortable and trendy coffee shop.

Brent is considering having a cultural

evening of coffee, alternating ursdayswith the open mic nights. ese “cultureof coffee” events would involve present-ing a different country’s coffee, eachtime, with a demonstration of the actualbrewing ceremony for that coffee; twoweeks later, they would feature a differentcoffee, with the corresponding brewingmethod. How exciting it will be, to expe-rience these traditions of foreign landsand sample their delicate coffees.

All in all, e Coffee House on 5th is alittle coffee shop that could well becomeknown for promoting this community,promoting young artists, and offeringthe best coffee downtown.

Coffee House on 5th: Invitingin More Ways Than One

Fran Andresenfandresen@realstorypublishing.com

Fran is a homemaker who enjoys experimentingand creating tasteful diabetic and kidney-

disease-friendly recipes. She is married to John Andresen and likes to crochet in her free time.

Local volunteer Pauline Redmond has been selected toreceive a 2012 Governor’s Initiative for Volunteer Excel-lence (GIVE) Award for Outstanding Service in DisasterRelief.

Redmond, along with thirteen other individuals andorganizations, were honored at the annual GIVE AwardsLuncheon Ceremony on Monday, April 16, at the Mis-sissippi Museum of Art, in Jackson.

Redmond served with the American Red Cross formany years, until she formed own non-profit disaster re-covery and readiness organization.

Local Volunteer Receives Awardfrom Governor’s Office

Courtesy Photo

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Across1 Tiny bite4 ___ race7 Old phone feature11 Mine extract12 Showery mos.14 Actress Baxter15 Moocher17 Romantic outing18 Free (of )19 Shaft21 Pouted24 egyptians’

“paper”28 OT book29 Coin factory30 Employment31 Young woman32 Dover’s locale

(abbr.)33 Mucilage34 Common article35 Picket fence part36 Shakespearean

king37 Makes sorrowful39 Rolls up40 Like the Addams

Family

41 Morsel42 Short sleeps45 Diplomatic agent50 Psychic’s phrase

(2 wds.)51 Rage52 Compete53 Ordinances54 Asner & McMahon55 FBI employee

(abbr.)

Down1 Agree silently2 Anger3 ___ jacket4 Fanatical5 Was a copycat6 Melodic syllable7 “My Heart Belongs

to ____”8 Actress Balin9 Tiny insect10 Confederate

leader13 Unaccustomed16 Put clothes on20 Make a selection21 Fountain favorites

22 Nebraska city23 Sat for a picture24 Milk cartons25 Emperor26 Ordinary27 Clairvoyant ones29 Wander33 Satiates35 H.S. diploma

alternative (abbr.)

38 Prescribed por-tions39 Pugilists’

weapons41 Predicament42 None whatso-ever43 Light __ ___

feather (2 wds.)

44 Sunday bench46 West of

Hollywood47 Gardner of “The

Killers”48 Tractor-trailer49 Thus far

CROSSWORD 04.18.2012

SEE ANSWERS TO THIS CROSSWORDPUZZLE IN OUR NEX T ISSUE

Part I of IIOn April 20, 1912, Boston’s Fenway

Park officially opened with a 7-6, 11-in-ning Boston win over the New YorkHighlanders. e Highlanders wouldbecome the New York Yankees in 1913,but, even then, there was something spe-cial about the Boston-New York rivalry.e home-opener was a one-game ap-pearance by the Highlanders, followedby Washington’s scheduled appearanceon April 23.

e Sox had opened the season with athree-game sweep of the Highlanders atNew York, on April 11, followed by a twogame set at Philadelphia. On Patriot’sDay, the eve of the official start of Fen-way history, the Sox record stood at 4wins and 1 loss. As the season opened,the Boston papers were full of the storiesof the anticipated opening of the newpark. e old Huntington AvenueGrounds, the site of the 1903 World Se-ries that was won by the Boston “Pil-grims”, or the Boston “Americans”, overthe Pittsburgh Pirates, passed into his-tory. e Huntington Avenue site todayis marked only with a statue of DentonTrue “Cy” Young on the spot of the orig-inal pitcher’s mound, at what is now thecampus of Northeastern University. enew ballpark, owned by John Taylor,who also had renamed the team the RedSox in 1908, was built in a marshy areaof Boston that had been reclaimed fromthe “Back Bay” in the nineteenth century.Called the “Fenway District” aer theEnglish term “Fens”, or marshy ground,

the name Fenway Park has been thoughtto be aptly named. However, anothertheory has been advanced, since JohnTaylor’s family also owned the “FenwayRealty Company”, and the naming of thepark may have been good for the familyreal estate business.

However, between April 11 and April20, a tragic event would occur that effec-tively pushed the hype of the scheduledinaugural game off the front pages, rele-gating it to the sports pages deep withinthe Boston papers. at tragedy, ofcourse, was the sinking of the Titanic inthe early hours of April 15, 1912.

e Red Sox would go on to win the1912 World Series over the New YorkGiants, and three more aer that, until1918. In 1915, the Sox beat the Phillies,followed in 1916 by a win over theBrooklyn “Robins” (later the TrolleyDodgers, or just the Dodgers), and in1918 over the Chicago Cubs. In 1919,the team that had been the AmericanLeague “flagship” in the early years of“modern baseball” would be decimatedby Harry Frazee, a name that lives in in-famy in the annals of Bosox history.1918 would represent the last Series winfor 86 years, until 2004.

e copy of the letter featured in this article,(see next page) written in 1946 by Yankee exec-utive Ed Barrow, was found in a trunk at anestate sale in Columbus, MS. Ed Barrow wasthe field manager of that 1918 Championshipteam. Until Terry Francona’s 2004 team com-pleted the most improbable of World Series ap-pearances, no other manager since Barrowcould claim a Red Sox World Series win. FourRed Sox AL championship wins during mylifetime (1946, 1967, 1975, and 1986) had allended in 7 game defeats in the Series.

by Dick “Big Mo” Mahoney #46 on your scorecardTheOnDeckCircle

Courtesy PhotoThe “Green Monster” - left field wall at Fenway Park.

Fenway Park Celebrates 100 Years

See “FENWAY” Pg. 21

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21

How many curvesare there in a

standard paper clip?Look for the answer on page 23!

Although the sale of Babe Ruth to theNew York Yankees is considered the rea-son for the collapse of the team for thenext two decades, one must look at theother stars that were traded or sold out-right, almost without exception to theYankees. From 1919 to 1923, Frazeedealt all of the Sox stars to New York. “IfYankee Stadium has been called the‘House at Ruth Built’, it might be ar-gued that the Yankees, by and large, couldbe called the ‘Team at Frazee Built’.”

Be that as it may, the Sox fortunes col-lapsed and from 1925-1932 the team lostover 100 games each year. In 1933, dur-ing the depths of the Depression,omas A.Yawkey purchased the Soxand dumped over a million dollars intorefurbishing the park for the 1934 sea-son. Among the features was the 37-footwall, topped by a 23 foot screen, extend-ing from the le field foul pole to centerfield. e wall also accommodated thescoreboard that had electronic lightingto indicate the ball/strike counts. erest of the scoreboard remains hand-op-erated up to the present. Covered by ad-vertising, the wall would not become the“Green Monster” until 1947, when thesigns were removed and the wall painteda “grassy-colored” green. is was thesame year that lights were installed, mak-ing Fenway the third-to-last of the orig-inal sixteen parks to host night games.

e Yawkey name would be a presencein Boston for the rest of the 20th century,for while Tom Yawkey died in July of1976, his widow Jean Yawkey, throughthe JRY Corporation and then theYawkey Trust, when she died in 1992,continued the ownership. Over thoseyears, many changes would be institutedin the physical structure. e right fieldbullpens were constructed in 1940 to ac-commodate Ted Williams’ le-handedpower, bringing home run territory 23feet closer to home plate. is area,called “Williamsburg”, ironically only af-fected approximately 35 of the “SplendidSplinter’s” 521 career home runs.

Some other changes, over the years, in-cluded a few rows of upper deck seats

added in 1946; the first message board, installed in 1976; and the relocation ofthe press box on top of the roof boxes, in1999. From a personal standpoint, Imuch preferred the older press box, locatedjust above the screen behind home plate,lower to the playing field, and the rever-beration throughout the box, wheneverthe fans would bang their seats during aSox rally.

e field itself has always had its’ odd-ities, based on the boundary restrictionsimposed by the surrounding neighbor-hood streets. Oen the case with the oldclassic ball parks, Fenway was no excep-tion. e asymmetrical layout of thefield gave rise to many interesting angles,none more so than the “triangle”, wherethe outfield bleachers converge with theGreen Monster, and the bullpen fencesalso come into play. Triples and inside-the-park home runs are born there.Pesky’s pole (so named because JohnnyPesky had hit a few homers that slicedaround the foul pole), down the rightfield line, is the shortest home run dis-tance in the major leagues at 302 feet, butthen the fence goes very deep in the spa-cious right field area. e box seats areso close to the field that fans have littleproblem hearing the ballplayers in theon-deck circles. is also means very lit-tle foul territory, and some ballplayershave made a career of spoiling pitches,until they got the pitch that was ideal forthem to launch over or off the le fieldwall. Wade Boggs, for example, a le-handed hitter who had seven straight200-plus-hit seasons at the start of his ca-reer, was noted for using the wall in lefield for many of his hits.

Editor’s Note: Part II will appear in theApril 25, 2012 print edition of e RealStory.

“FENWAY” cont. from pg. 20

Courtesy PhotoFenway Park - Post Season 1989

Courtesy PhotoEd Barrow Letter, 1946.

Dick “Big Mo” Mahoneydmahoney@realstorypublishing.com

#46 on your scorecard.

by Jeremiah ShortSportsTalk

In 2009, e Mississippi State Bulldogs were blessedto have one of the best linebacker corps in their history.e unit was led by Jamar Chaney—while being flankedby K.J. Wright and Chris White. Chaney got draedaer that season, by the Philadelphia Eagles. Aer thenext season, Wright and White were both draed, in the4th and 6th rounds, respectively.

Wright was draed by the Seahawks in the fourthround of the 2011 NFL Dra. He talked about the feel-ing of getting picked by an NFL team.

“It’s something every college football player wants toexperience. I put a lot of hard work into it, through col-lege and going to the combine - a dream come true,” saidWright.

e process leading up to get draed was a tough onefor Wright.

“It’s a lot of hard work, because you are trying to sellyourself to the teams. You have to train and make sureyou perform well at the combine. You got to go out anddo good interviews, “Wright said.

e NFL was in the midst of a lockout, aer the dra,but the NFLPA and the owners eventually reached anagreement. Wright talked about coming into his firsttraining camp, while having to learn a new position.

“It was hard, at first, because I had to play a position Iwasn’t familiar with—as far as middle linebacker. I hadto get the defense lined up and learn the playbook.

When I first got there it was a real struggle. As time wenton, I got more reps and I got more comfortable,” Wrightsaid.

Wright had been an outside linebacker, his whole ca-reer, but he wasn’t surprised by the move to the middle.

“I wasn’t shocked, because it’s something me andcoaches talked about. ey asked me if I wanted to beon the ball or behind the ball; I said behind. With thedefense the Seahawks run, the Mike (Middle Line-backer) is backing the Sam (Strong Side Linebacker) onthe line of scrimmage,” said Wright.

Wright garnered a lot of praise from the coaching staff,

K.J. Wright: I’m Just Trying to Perfect My Craft

See “WRIGHT” Pg. 22

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prior to the 2011 season, with Pete Car-roll, the Seahawks coach comparing himto Pittsburg Steeler great Jack Lambert. Itwas a bit of a reversal for Wright, who gotovershadowed at times, by Chaney andWhite, during his Bulldog career. He wasnever fazed by not being the center of at-tention.

“Oh, nah, man, I’ve always been good;I have never looked for my name to bethe center of attention. I’m a guy thatcomes to work and wants to get the jobdone,” stated Wright, speaking on not re-ceiving recognition.

e coaching staff continued to showfaith in Wright, starting him in the firstregular season game, aer an injury tostarting middle linebacker DavidHawthorne. He responded with five tack-les.

“at was big. Coming into the season,I wasn’t expecting that. e guy in frontof me had an injury. I started three pre-season games and the first NFL game. Idid really well. It’s something that justhappened and I took advantage of it,” said

Wright, talking about start-ing his first game as arookie.

He settled into a specialteams role for a few gamesaer that - until AaronCurry, a former first-roundpick, was traded in favor ofhim. e decision waswidely criticized - withmany citing Wright’s inex-perience.

“I was honored by it - thatthey think that much ofme,” said Wright.

e critics had plenty totalk about, as Wright strug-gled to adjust to being astarting linebacker in theNFL.

“It was real hard. erewas a lot of stuff about anNFL game that I knewsomething about, justwatching on TV. Towardthe end of the season, yousee how I improved. It’s something mostplayers go through. ey get better astime goes on,” said Wright.

e former Bulldog eventually startedto live up to his potential, late in the sea-son - making 37 tackles and two sacks inthe last seven games.

“I believe it started the first time weplayed the (St. Louis) Rams. at’s thefirst time I knew I’m a good footballplayer, I know I can beat you and can play.I’m a big-time guy, so I need to keep thisgoing,” stated Wright, talking about hit-ting his stride in 2011.

Wright ended with a solid season—fin-ishing with 65 tackles and two sacks. Heis already hard at work to take that nextstep in 2012.

“I need to just keep doing what I havebeen doing - working out and training.I’m working out with my new strengthcoach this year. Get with him and seewhat I need to improve on and gettingwith my linebacker coach and do posi-tion work. I’m just trying to master mycra. So, I can be good by the time mini-camp starts, “Wright said.

Wright is enjoying early success in theNFL, but he does still talk to Chaney andWhite about their unit in 2009.

“Oh yea, we talk about that all the time.It started off with Chaney. I believe it’s

going to keep on going, with CamLawrence and some of those other line-backers coming up. I believe they aregoing to be pretty good, “said Wright.

ere is also a current Bulldog,Bernardrick McKinney, which many arecomparing to Wright.

“I don’t know. I haven’t really seen himplay. I haven’t talked to him, but I knowthey got him at middle linebacker. I knowhe is in good hands; I know Coach(Geoff) Collins is going to get him right.He got all the tools to play but he has toput them together, on Saturdays, to makeplays,” indicated Wright, in sharing hisopinion on McKinney.

K.J. Wright might not have gotten thepraise due him, during his Bulldog career,but he is headed toward becoming anNFL superstar. People will finally get achance to see Wright’s ability on thebiggest stage.

WWW.SUDOKU-PUZZLES.NET • SEE SUDOKU PUZZLE ON PG 9

“WRIGHT” cont. from pg. 21

Courtesy PhotoK.J. Wright.

Jeremiah Shortjshort@realstorypublishing.com

Jeremiah Short covers Mississippi State Universityfootball and basketball. Follow him on Twitter, @JeremiahShort26; or join his Facebook blog,

Real Story Sports: J.Short’s Blog.

Initial Spring Game Outlook

e Mississippi State Bulldogs went into their 4thspring under Dan Mullen looking to answer a few ques-tions and fill some holes. ey have shown steady im-provement, during that time. ere were steps madetoward accomplishing their goals, over the past fewweeks. Several positions are still up for grabs, and kinksstill need to be ironed out; the Maroon-White game,which is scheduled for Saturday, April 21st at 5pm, willgo a long way toward settling those issues.

5 ings to Watch1. Quarterback Competition: Before spring practicebegan, I stressed the importance of the quarterback bat-tle. Junior quarterback Tyler Russell has had a goodspring, but competitor Dak Prescott has performedwell, too. Mullen hasn’t named Russell the starter; so,Prescott will have an opportunity to impress in thespring game. It will be interesting to see who steps up,in front of a big crowd.

2. Running Back Battle: Replacing Vick Ballard is trulya tough task and his shoes won’t be easy to fill. ecoaching staff has had to find that guy, though, duringspring practice. Perkins got the first crack at the feature-back role, but Josh Robinson and Nick Griffin haveeach had a good spring. e backs will likely rotate oncethe season starts, but everyone wants to be number one.e spring game could give one back a leg up in gainingthat top spot.

3. O-Line Play: e offensive line, to be honest, was less

than stellar in 2011. Offensive Line Coach John Hevesywas charged with building depth and preventing a re-peat of the disaster that was the 2011 season. He has de-veloped good depth during the spring, with DamienRobinson, Charles Siddoway, Dillon Day, and Blaine

Clausell stepping up to stabilize the unit. e groupshould continue to trend upward and could get a boostif Tobias Smith returns healthy.

See “PREVIEW” Pg. 23

Maroon-White Game Preview

Courtesy PhotoDan Mullen

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ANNOUNCEMENTSP H I L A D E L P H I AGUN SHOW! April14 & 15, 2012.Neshoba CountyColiseum, Hwy. 15North, Philadelphia,Ms. Sat, 9am-5pm;Sun 10am-5pm. Ex-hibits include guns,military, hutning,knives, gun enthusi-asts, dealers, collec-tors, appraisals. Freeparking and conces-sions available!Hourly door prizes.Buy - Sell - Trade -Appraise. All federal,state and local lawsmust be observed.No loaded guns. Tiedowns required andno loose ammo. Ad-mission: $7 Adults;$1 Children 6-10. Formore info, contactDavid Chancellor,601-498-4235, big-popfireworks@gmail.com

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4 tires with rims - al-most new tires,came off PontiacSports RAV, $300.662-7295

BOATS, RV’s, ATV’s MOTORCYCLES2007 Honda Rincon(680 cc). Excellentcondition, Warnwinch w/front orrear mount, Kolpingun boot, 2wd/4wdswitchable, auto orelectric shift, digitalgauges, garage kept.$5,000. 662-386-3467

2007 Tiffin AllegroOpen Road Class ARV, 13k miles, 35.5 ft,3 slides, 2 AC's, 2 TVs,DVD, automatic lev-eling jacks, in-mo-tion satellite, FordV-10 engine, glassshower, no smokersor pets, garage kept,showroom condi-tion. $74,000. 662-386-3467

2005 5th WheelCrossroads Cruiser,

32’x8’ model 29RE, ingreat condition! Forsale or rent. On theLuxapalila River. CallDennis, 242-0786.

EMPLOYMENTAsst. PropertyM a n a g e r / M i n iStorage Operator,PT. Looking for apeople person withstrong technicalskills. Experiencedesired: mini stor-age/U-Haul opera-tions, customerservice, proficient inMicrosoft Office.Columbus, MS. Sendresume to:cara@gatewaycen-terministorage.com.

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Wooden dinette setwith 6 chairs, greatshape, $120; largegray/beige love seat,like new, used verylittle, two large cush-ions, $60. 329-3216or 549-3006.

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GOT SOMETHINGYOU WANT TO SELL?

4. Linebacker Battle: I promised that the thirdlinebacker spot would be the most intense battle,and it has been, most of the spring. Virtuallyevery linebacker has been first on the depth chart,at some point, but freshman Bernardrick McK-inney seems to have the advantage, right now. Myfavorite to win the job, Chris Hughes, has had agood spring, aer returning from on and off-the-field problems during the 2011 season. ChristianHolmes, Matt Wells, and Ferlando Bohanna areslightly behind, but they could vault ahead withsolid spring game performances.5. Safety Play: e safety position, to put itbluntly, is the eyesore of a promising Bulldog de-fense. Dee Arrington, Louis Watson, and JayHughes are the primary guys, with star SafetyNickoe Whitley limited for the spring, due to re-covering from an Achilles injury. Arrington is themost talented of that group, and looks like the fa-vorite to be the strong safety, aer a solid spring.e rest of the group has had so-so springs. Icringe, thinking about the lack of depth at safety,if Nickoe Whitley isn’t healthy. ey could sur-prise me and have a monster spring game, but Ihave a feeling fans might want to get familiar withincoming freshmen Quadry Antoine, KivonComan, and Deonte Evans.

5 Players to Watch1. Joe Morrow: e vertical game has been non-existent since O’Neal Wilder le the team duringthe spring of 2010. Michael Carr was expected tofill that role, but he never lived up to expectationsand has now le the team. Enter Joe Morrow, the6’4”, 205-pound redshirt freshman wide receiver,who wowed on the scout team, this past season.He has had a solid spring and is expected to bethe Bulldogs’ deep threat in 2012. Saturday’sspring game will be fans’ first chance to see theplayer many think can help take the Bulldog’s of-fense to the next level. 2. Blaine Clausell: Clausell got beat out for thestarting le tackle job, last year. He got a chanceto open this spring as the top guy. e Alabama

native has held onto the job all spring. If the ath-letic lineman lives up to his potential, then theBulldogs offensive line should have better balancethan in 2011; the position would also be solidifiedfor the next three years.3. Denico Autry: e pass-rush for MississippiState, the past four seasons, has been more putridthan “Big 12” defenses. e coaching staff lookedto solve that problem by bringing in five-star de-fensive end Denico Autry. e freakishly athleticplayer has battled Shane McCardell all spring forthe starting job. Autry still has a learning curveto overcome, but he should be causing problemsfor SEC quarterbacks next season. 4. Bernardrick McKinney: Several players havehad good practices, but McKinney has been thetalk of the spring. e K.J. Wright clone looks tobe the likely starter at middle linebacker. Fansshould get a chance to see the next Bulldog starlinebacker and player, at the Maroon-Whitegame. 5. Darius Slay: Slay came along slowly in 2011,but started to become a key player toward the endof the season. He has had a good spring, and verywell could supplant Corey Broomfield to startalongside Jonathan Banks. e explosive athletecould earn that starting job with a strong springgame.

Final Spring Game OutlookI have a feeling that this will be one of the more

competitive spring games and worth the $25 ad-mission. If you can’t make the game, it will beshown live on ESPN3.com and will be televisedon CSS at 7 p.m., on April 22nd.

Jeremiah Shortjshort@realstorypublishing.com

Jeremiah Short covers Mississippi State University footballand basketball. Follow him on Twitter, @JeremiahShort26;or join his Facebook blog, Real Story Sports: J.Short’s Blog.

“PREVIEW” cont. from pg. 22

Courtesy PhotoTyler Russell

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