Broome Street Blues - A Waxhaw Blog

Help support Kate Zidanic

2012-01-10T08:30:00.000-05:00

Fox's Pizza is having another "Help Support Kate Zidanic" fundraiser this evening from 4 - 8pm, the proceeds of which go to helping cover Kate's medical bills as she fights lymphoma. See my previous post for more details.

If you mention Kate Zidanic's name when ordering, 15% of the proceeds go to covering her medical bills.

It was apparently a busy night the the last time Fox's Pizza sponsored one of these fundraisers, so it may take a bit longer to get your order than normal. From was kind enough to host one of her fundraisers. From an email Rick Giarla sent out:

Last month, Fox's Pizza held a "Kate Zidanic Night" with so many of our parents supporting Kate with purchases of pizza and other items on the menu. Rick Hodge, owner of Fox's told me that it was "his busiest non-weekend night in the history of Fox's Pizza".

So for those of you who have a board of commissioners or Cub Scout meeting to attend, make sure you get your order placed with plenty of time to spare.

Here's a coupon that can be used tonight only to get a 1-topping medium for $8. Three of those dollars go directly to Kate's medical bills fund.

Another Waxhaw Groupon

2012-01-05T20:55:00.000-05:00

This one is mainly for the ladies and I guess the fellas who treat their hair much better than I treat mine.

It's at Noma Hair and Skin Studio and the specifics are:

For $30, you get a hair-styling package (up to a $63 total value) that includes the following:

* Redken color glaze with scalp massage (a $25 value)
* Haircut and blowout (up to a $38 value)

For $58, you get a hair-styling-and-coloring package (up to a $128 total value) that includes the following:

* Partial highlights or lowlights (a $65 value)
* Haircut and blowout (up to a $38 value)
* Deep-conditioning treatment with scalp massage (up to a $25 value)

Only a limited number are available, but it'll be available until Friday at midnight if it doesn't first sell out. It must be used by the end of April.

Check it out if interested.

3 dead in Lancaster County car crash

2011-12-28T21:34:00.001-05:00

This is a sad and strange story occurring just outside Waxhaw. According to an articl e in the Herald:

Van WYCK -- The bodies of three people who died in a crash Christmas Eve in Lancaster County were found down a steep embankment by railroad employees Tuesday.

Lancaster County Coroner Mike Morris arrived at the bridge at U.S. 521 and S.C. 75 near the Van Wyck community about 1 p.m. and pronounced the victims – Darrell Christopher Fisher, 48, of Catawba; his sister Jerilyn Fisher, 47, of Rock Hill; Jerilyn Fisher’s son, William Breon Fisher, 16, of Catawba – dead at the scene

Morris said based on talking to family members he and Highway Patrol determined the crash occurred between 11:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. Dec. 24. After checking with the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office, they discovered one of the Fishers’ sisters reported the family members missing.

The car was not visible from the road, he said.

Read the whole thing.

WSOC has more details on this tragedy as well. Plus a video.

A little eleventh hour Christmas shopping in Waxhaw

2011-12-23T22:14:00.001-05:00

The kids and I went out in Waxhaw looking for a Christmas gift for the special lady in our life. I thought we could head over to the Bead Merchants and make a necklace or something like that for her. But we were thwarted by the their holiday business hours that had them closing up shop on December 21st.

We headed over to the used book store since it's there and came out with a bunch of kids books and a $14 bill. Not a bad price for all the books we got, but it seems like we paid more per book than previous trips to the use book shop. It's for a good cause, so it's not a big deal; just an observation.

Waxhaw Antique Mart was open on our way back so we stopped in there to what kind of gift we could find. Lots of options, but the kids are confident they picked a good one.

New Gazette

2011-12-23T19:06:00.002-05:00

John released another new issue of the Waxhaw Gazette last Friday. My lack of updates means most of the info there is out of date at this point, but he has put together a nice slide show of Waxhaw's Christmas Parade that's worth checking out.

The town also has some pictures of the parade available at Facebook for those interested.

Christmas lights

2011-12-20T21:45:00.000-05:00

I know it's been quite a while since my last post but general business of the holidays, combined with traveling, an uptick in tempo at the office, and probably a dollop of procrastination have conspired to keep me away from the site.

I mentioned last year that Royal Colony Drive was a good. It's still good (although a few of the houses' lights were off when we stopped by), but this year you should make a point to check out the Christmas lights in Wysacky Pack where Essaw Road and Yamasee Road come together.

The light display in Wysacky Park appears to be a joint effort between two houses and it's one of those elaborate displays you can find on Youtube where the lights are tied to music being broadcast via FM transmitter. It's pretty impressive and definitely worth checking out. Unfortunately the display is so big that you cannot watch all of it at once.

If you go, there's a receptacle for canned good donations, so take some if you go.

UPDATE: GingerSnap 5k

2011-12-02T17:16:00.000-05:00

I briefly mentioned this in a prior post, but the GingerSnap 5K takes place in Waxhaw on December 3rd. My wife is already signed up to run.

For those interested, you can still sign up here. Proceeds support "Girls on the Run."

UPDATE 12/2: The GingerSnap 5K is still looking for volunteers for tomorrow morning's race. Citizens of Waxhaw unite! And then sign up here.

First Friday

2011-12-02T16:00:00.000-05:00

Tonight's First Friday of course. See the flyer below.

And that's all I have time for. Have fun if you head out!

Christmas Show & Fundraiser tonight

2011-12-02T10:38:00.000-05:00

The Waxhaw Arts Council is having a Christmas Show and fundraiser tonight to raise money to be used throughout the course of the year.

Visit the Facebook page of the event to get all the details if you're planning on attending. Per Donna Frasca:

This is open to the public. This function is part of Waxhaw’s celebration of the arts – First Friday Art Crawl and celebration of the revision and fast growing Waxhaw Arts Council with a Christmas Sale, Party & Raffle.

A percentage of any sales to the artists and the profit from the raffle will go to help the Waxhaw Arts Council raise money to have future functions free to the public in Waxhaw, including educational programs to school children & public in the Waxhaw/Marvin/Wesley Chapel area.

There will be over twenty-five painters, photographers, potters, sculptors, printers, musicians, etc. participating in this show. Also, you will get a chance to see the new “Bean & Belle” art studio first hand. Jennifer Host Williams teaches classes to children and hosts “art parties” for different functions.

You may email any questions on Facebook ---Waxhaw Arts Council or call Lambeth Marshall, 704-843-5060.

I just wonder where the Waxhaw Arts Council was when I was working on my campaign sign garden. Maybe their input could have turned an ordinary campaign sign garden into an extraordinary one.

In other Waxhaw Arts Council news, John Anderson had an article in the Charlotte Observer about the Waxhaw Arts Council, including detailing the new leadership.

The new leadership for 2012 includes:
President: Scott Bland.
Vice Pres: Carolyn Carroll.
Secretary: Lambeth Marshall, with Lori Sanderson and Linda Dyer as backups.
Treasurer: Lambeth Marshall, with Missy Rose as backup.
In addition, committees were reaffirmed and the leadership established as follows: Social Media and Design, Donna Frasca (chairman), Gina Karpathakis, Verna Witt; Event Coordinators, Carolyn Carroll (chairman), Lori Sanderson (co-chair), Ann Tanzy, Linda Dyer, Verna Witt, Lambeth Marshall; Business Advisers, Consultations with Cathy Murphy, Barbara Faulk (Union County Arts Council), Daune Gardner (Waxhaw mayor) and Melissa Brana (CPCC Marketing); Advertising: Donna Frasca.

Read the whole thing.

Good Living Social deal

2011-12-01T08:28:00.001-05:00

For those of you who periodically eat at McDonald's and like Big Macs and fries, there's a pretty good deal going on through the end of the day.

5 Big Macs & 5 Large Fries for $13

It consists of 10 individual coupons. One burger and one fry coupon can be used at a time (ie. can't use all ten on one visit). While Big Macs aren't my sandwich of choice, I still got one

Follow the link for all the details.

Busy busy busy

2011-12-01T07:56:00.000-05:00

I've been awful busy as of late. In the days leading up to Thanksgiving until now. I figured I'd get a post up to assure the elite few who call themselves my readers (perusers?)that I am in fact alive and well.

The GingerSnap 5K is coming up Saturday morning; expect me and the kids to be out there fighting the cold temperatures cheering on my wife.

In other news, I hope to get up posts about First Friday and the Waxhaw Arts Council's Christmas Show & Fundraiser sometime before midnight, so I guess I'm on the clock.

New Gazette released

2011-11-21T22:33:00.000-05:00

John Tiley released another new issue of the Waxhaw Gazette on Friday. Among other things, it contains a lot of useful information on upcoming events in town, including the light-up night on November 25th and the Gingersnap 5K on December 3rd.

Read the whole thing.

Dairy Barn closes (temporarily?)

2011-11-21T13:34:00.000-05:00

The Dairy Barn had a Facebook post Friday evening saying they were closing up shop due to lease issues. Here's the whole post:

To Our Customers: It is with so much sadness that we announce the closing of our beloved Dairy Barn. We opened a year ago and we have enjoyed serving every one of you this past year. ....and now, at the end of our first year lease, we have encountered some issues that do not seem to have solutions, so we will close for the winter and look for another location to re-open this spring. Thank you for visiting The Dairy Barn, Thank You for believing in our dream, and Thank You for your continued support during this very very difficult time. Jane and Greg Carpenter

The Dairy Barn was one of the businesses in Waxhaw we regularly visited, generally for the ice cream. It was fun to play a game of checkers or Connect 4 while eating our cones.

It's a shame they needed to close up shop, but not really surprising given the revolving door of businesses that have existed in that location since we came to town. For what it's worth, Jackson's Emporium and their overpriced candy was my favorite, followed closely by The Dairy Barn.

Either way, the rent set by the owner does not seem to allow any businesses to occupy this space with serious longevity, at least thus far. But I have no idea what the rent is here or at other downtown locations.

It's times like this where I recall an old County Edge article that detailed the difficulties of starting and maintaining a business in Waxhaw. Of course, it's been so long that this article may just be a figment of my imagination at this point, growing more illustrative of this problem with each telling. For what it's worth, I'm told the Waxhaw library should have an archive of the old County Edges that I should someday take some time to re-peruse.

Either way, keep your eyes peeled for The Dairy Barn in the spring as they plan to investigate alternative locations.

My question: are they still going to have the arcade games? A large handful of tokens is sitting in our cupboard. Hopefully someday they can be put to good use, otherwise I may have to auction these off as arcane tokens of Waxhaw history.

Help support Kate Zidanic

2011-11-21T08:57:00.002-05:00

Tonight is "Help Support Kate Zidanic" night at Fox's Pizza in Waxhaw.

Kate is a little 6-year old girl that was diagnosed with lymphona in May of this year. Rick Giarla passed along this statement by Kate's mom to WAA families:

She was diagnosed in May with Lymphoma. She seems to be responding well to the chemo, but still has a rough month ahead of her. Once this chemo is over, she will have 18 months of maintenance. she lost all of her hair last week but that will begin growing back in the maintenance phase (the chemo is not as strong). This money goes directly to a fund at 5/3rd bank designated for her medical bills.

It runs tonight from 4-8pm at Fox’s Pizza Den tonight. Fox’s is donating 15% of your order to help offset their rising medical costs.

Don't forget to mention that you are supporting Kate Zidanic when you place your order!

So if you've got a hankering for some good pizza or just want to help support the Zidanic family's medical costs, get yourself over to Fox's Pizza for some dinner between 4-8pm this evening.

There was also a coupon in the email for a 1-topping medium pizza for a mere $8, $3 of which goes directly to the Zidanic family.

Pass this along.

UPDATE: Thieves afoot

2011-11-15T13:13:00.002-05:00

WCNC has the story about 15 cars being broken into at the Woodleaf and Aston Manor subdivisions early Monday morning. A snippet:

WAXHAW, N.C. – Waxhaw police are trying to identify and find two people responsible for breaking in to 15 cars early Monday morning in two nearby neighborhoods.

The Waxhaw Police Department said the cars were broken into between 4-5 a.m. in the Woodleaf and Ashton Manor neighborhoods located right across from each other.

All of the cars were unlocked, and the thieves did not have to break any windows. Various items were stolen, including GPS systems, speakers and cash.

Make sure you lock your cars at night as there's no sense in making it any easier for thieves.

UPDATE 11.55pm: Or not. Per one of my most highly-placed Woodleaf sources, suspects were arrested already. But of course it's a good idea to lock your doors regardless.

Recount is over and Poccia is in

2011-11-15T11:43:00.001-05:00

The election is now over, so no one complain about campaign signs for another couple years.

Per a Union County Weekly Facebook update, Sean Poccia survived the recount and joins Mike Stewart as a newly elected board member.

Poccia still wins after recount. four provisional ballots in waxhaw, three not registered so only one counted. That extra vote went to Martin Lane, meaning he lost by three votes

A pretty tight race and an excellent illustration of the importance of getting out there and voting for your candidate. Tough loss for Martin Lane and Phillip Gregory, but I'm sure they'll be involved in town affairs one way or the other.

You know, this blog is always on the lookout for highly motivated former board members to sit in on town board meetings (since they're already in the habit of attending these meetings) and sharing their notes with the town. There are multiple benefits to this: not only will this educate local townsfolk as to what goes on at these meetings, but it also will make it so I won't feel I need to attend these meetings. Not like I attend them now, but I always feel like I should.

Let me end with a hypothetical question for county election junkies out there: what if the other three provisional ballots were all valid and counted for Lane, in which case he would've tied Sean Poccia for the last commissioner spot. Would there be some kind of runoff?

UCW on Gardner victory

2011-11-11T17:01:00.001-05:00

The Union County Weekly has an article up on Daune Gardner's re-election. It was not as close as the commissioner race, of course.

A snippet:

With the win, she became just the second challenged incumbent Tuesday night in western Union County, along with Mineral Springs Mayor Rick Becker, to win re-election.

“That was very gratifying and humbling,” Gardner said. “I’m looking forward to the next four years. We’ve done a lot of work, got a lot accomplished.”

...

Gardner received the majority of votes at the Waxhaw Volunteer Fire Department, Waxhaw Bible Church and Kensington Elementary precincts. Underwood won the majority of votes at the Waxhaw Elementary precinct. All total, 17.75 percent of Waxhaw’s 6,158 voters cast ballots.

Read the whole thing.

UCW on recount

2011-11-11T16:43:00.000-05:00

The Union County Weekly has a nice piece on the Waxhaw commissioner race, where Sean Poccia currently leads Martin Lane by four votes and Phillip Gregory by seven votes. The latter has requested a recount.

But first, provisional ballots must be checked. A snippet:

Whitley said there are currently 101 provisional votes throughout the county that his department needs to sort through before Tuesday, which could also affect the final tally. Provisional ballots are those that have to be checked, if a person voted in the wrong precinct or filled out information incorrectly.

Please note that this is county wide total; there is no word thus far how many of the provisional ballots apply to the Waxhaw races.

Luckily, we've got a good group on commissioner candidates this time around, so we should be okay with whoever ultimately wins.

Stay tuned to the Union County Weekly for more information on this as it becomes available.

11/11/11

2011-11-11T11:11:00.000-05:00

Any self-respecting blogger worth his salt should get a post up on 11/11/11 at 11:11am. So here's mine.

To add something Waxhaw-related, half of my campaign signs disappeared from my yard on Wednesday. The kids and I had planned on keeping them for posterity's sake (much to my wife's chagrin), but some of the faster-acting politicians got to them first. I'm talking about you Daune Gardner, Phillip Gregory, and Sean Poccia.

I quickly gathered up the signs of Martin Lane, Mike Stewart, and Lisa Thornton and hid them deep in the bowels of my garage, so if they come looking for them, they will never find them.

Veteran's Day Ceremony

2011-11-11T11:08:00.001-05:00

I should probably mention that Waxhaw is having a Veteran's Day Ceremony that kicks off in a little less than an hour.

From the town website:

You are invited to the 2011 Veteran’s Day Ceremony in historic downtown Waxhaw. The program is slated for Friday, 11-11-11 beginning at 12 noon and will be followed by a light luncheon. It will take place in front of the Waxhaw Military Wall of Honor located in the East North Main Street block in historic downtown. The program will be emceed by Commissioner Joyce Blythe and will include: the changing of flags by The UC EMS Color Guard and singing of The National Anthem by Caren Bigelow Morgan. Members of American Legion Post #208 will lead the program including Commander James Grainger.

Check it out if you're around town today.

Forever Grateful tomorrow

2011-11-11T10:33:00.000-05:00

Thanks to all those who served or are currently serving our country!

I mentioned this once before, but I just wanted to remind you about the Forever Grateful tribute put together by Scott Farb and Ken Corn that is taking place all day on Saturday. It's a free event with souvenir bags for the kids.

A description:

This FREE day-long event will feature uniforms from every war the American Soldier has taken part in, from the French and Indian War to modern day. Reenactors in uniforms from different periods will enhance your visit to the exhibit. Photographs, helmets, equipment, weapons and war trophies will also be on display. Children who attend will receive a free souvenir package to take home from the event. The exhibit will also feature streaming video shot by local resident Ken Corn, who served as an embedded photojournalist in Iraq.

For more information, please contact event organizers Scott Farb or Ken Corn via Facebook message, or via email, at MarchingThruTime@gmail.com - this is a FREE event, and we certainly hope to see you there!

Plus he added this later:

This event is shaping up to be something big - it will be a memorable day. Come out and see military displays, the likes of which the town has never seen before. We are adding a special display on Medal of Honor recipients, and the US Army Nurse Corps. We hope to see you here!

We'll have to make our way there at some point, although the we've got family in town and a birthday party.

Village Scribe on mayoral race

2011-11-10T14:54:00.000-05:00

Mark over at the Village Scribe talks a little about Waxhaw's mayoral race. A snippet:

To satisfy the nattering nabobs who take issue with the results of a three-way race and apply the negative, I thought I’d expand it and cover that aspect.

So, by Waxhaw voting as they did,

56% Voted against Daune Gardner
67% Voted against Lisa Thornton
76% Voted against Gary Underwood

There you have it, for all you “glass half empty” types, more people voted against Lisa Thornton and Gary Underwood than voted against Daune Gardner.

I think this was pretty evident from the vote totals, but it is another way to look at it. I'm guessing this is a response to these "nattering nabobs" pointing out that only 43% of Waxhaw's actual voters (which is a small percentage of Waxhaw's registered voters and an even smaller percentage of Waxhaw residents for that matter) voted to re-elect Daune Gardner.

Recount requested

2011-11-09T20:52:00.001-05:00

Per a Union County Weekly Facebook post, Phillip Gregory has requested a recount. He finished a mere 7 votes behind Sean Poccia. And Martin Lane could also benefit from the recount since he was 4 votes behind Poccia.

A follow-up comment from the UCW provided some more information:

Mr. Gregory had to fall within 9 votes in order to qualify for the recount. Scott's right, in that he was seven behind Sean Poccia. John Whitney, Union County Elections Director, said there are several provisional ballots to be counted between now and Tuesday. After that vote is complete, then Whitley will present Gregory's request to the Board of Elections next Tuesday, where the count will be done

So if I am understanding this correctly, these provisional ballots must be counted before the recount is to begin. So depending on the specific number of provisional ballots, it's possible that these could make the race even closer or change the results before the recount is under way.

I guess we'll have to stay tuned.

Campaign sign coda

2011-11-09T16:14:00.000-05:00

As promised, below you'll find a couple pictures of the campaign sign garden. As mentioned in an earlier post, I had to get a little creative with Gary Underwood.

Using everything I learned from all those MacGyver episodes as a kid, I jerry-rigged a bendy straw, packing tape, and the Gary Underwood flyer into a small campaign sign.

We originally planned to move the signs around just to mix it up from time to time, but that plan fell through for the most part. There was one or two reorganizations, but we all agreed we liked them in a line as shown. While it may not be Waxhaw Arts Council good, it's not too shabby. Is there a better piece of living political art in Waxhaw?

A couple art hipsters walked by one day. After declaring it "eerily bold yet arrestingly subversive," they went on to describe it as an impressive piece of folk art that "fused scandal with nature, signifying death yet still paying tribute to the thin line of rebirth; a startling exclamation tattooed onto the struggling soul of small-town Waxhaw. Love the bendy straw!"

I shrugged my shoulders and went back to raking up my leaves. We'll probably take it down tonight.

Marathon update (for real this time)

2011-11-09T13:27:00.001-05:00

I discussed last Friday the appalling lack of marathon updates from Tim (of Waxhaw fame) as he tries to run 12 marathons in 12 months.

Perhaps egged on by my post or perhaps due to that guilty feeling you get when not keeping up with your blog, Tim has posted updates to marathons #7, 8, and 9. Follow the links to read each post-marathon follow-up.

Could this be the first time this blog has affected real positive change in Waxhaw? I'll let you be the judge.

Results are in

2011-11-08T22:22:00.001-05:00

The results of Waxhaw's latest election are in.

Incumbent Daune Gardner has won the mayoral race with a 122-vote margin, collecting 43.50% of the votes. Here's the details:

It would've been interesting to see the results of the election without Gary Underwood playing the role of spoiler like Ross Perot in 1992, although I have no idea if the result would be any different.

On the commissioner side, newcomers Mike Stewart and Sean Poccia both won election. Mike Stewart blew the rest of the candidates away with a 137-vote margin, collecting 30.32% of the votes.

Sean Poccia squeaked in with 23.24% of the votes. He had a mere 4 votes on Martin Lane and a mere 7 votes on Phillip Gregory.

Are there any takeaways from this? Did Mike Stewart earn a mandate with that vote total? Is it possible for the losing commissioner candidates to request a recount given the slim margin they lost by?

I suspect there are a handful of Martin Lane and Phillip Gregory supporters out there kicking themselves for not finding a way to get to the polls today.

One final thought compliments of the Union County Weekly. Per a Facebook post:

Overall, just ten percent of registered voters cast ballots in today's election. Out of 84,030 voters, just 8,540 came out today.

Pretty lame turnout.

Voter #339

2011-11-08T20:56:00.000-05:00

That was me.

It took longer to run the gauntlet of politicians and their respective poll workers at Waxhaw VFD than it did to vote. I said hi to Mike Stewart, Phillip Gregory, Gary Underwood, and saw Lisa Thornton pulling in as I arrived.

Clarifying "Land of the Waxhaws"

2011-11-07T23:59:00.001-05:00

I've linked to a handful of "Land of the Waxhaws" (LotW) stuff. For those who aren't aware, LotW is a local internet video broadcast run by Jim Black. Or I always used to think it was run by Jim Black. Actually, it's really a joint venture between Jim Black and our Mayor Daune Gardner.

Other than her frequent appearances on LotW, which I chalked up to her position as mayor and wanting to be in the public eye more, I had never seen any notice this was a vehicle for her other than noticing her business, Creative Plus, was one of the sponsors of the show.

But it turns out she's more than a sponsor and essentially a partner in the endeavor. I've questioned why so few candidates have appeared on the show. And the answer may be found in the fact that another of the candidates heads up the operation.

For the record, Daune stated that there was an open invite for candidates to appear free of charge on a segment if they agreed to allow her to interview them. While I think the odds are slim to none that Daune would take advantage of an opportunity to make the visiting candidate look bad (partially because I think this would rebound to reflect poorly on her), I can understand the other candidates' reluctance to provide her with more time looking gracious in front of the camera to help her campaign, especially Lisa Thornton and Gary Underwood.

If candidates chose to appear on their own segments (speaking with Jim Black instead of Daune), then they would be expected to pay the going rate of $50 per segment that is charged to local businesses.

However, that rate was apparently not set in stone as it appears different candidates were quoted different prices. For example, Martin Lane appeared on air with Jim Black so you would think he would be charged $50 for his troubles. But he paid nothing.

Gary Underwood and Mike Stewart were quoted the expected $50 price but declined to appear.

Lisa Thornton was quoted a $100 figure to appear before the candidates' forum at the Waxhaw Woman's Club.

Since we're speaking about LotW, Jim Black posted a last minute offer for candidates to appear on the show before polls close tomorrow. I'm not sure how much value it would be at this point, but here it is in case any are interested.

ALL POLITICAL CANDIDATES, IN WAXHAW, WHO WOULD LIKE TO PROMOTE THEMSELVES ON OUR INTERNET TV SHOW, CAN DO SO, BETWEEN NOW AND TOMORROW WHEN THE POLLS CLOSE... A FEE OF $50 FOR EACH HALF HOUR IS REQUIRED AND I WILL STREAM YOUR MESSAGE LIVE, FROM YOUR HOME, OFFICE OR ANYPLACE YOU DECIDE THAT HAS A WIRELESS INTERNET CONNECTION..SEGMENTS WILL BE SAVED FOR THOSE WHO CANNOT VIEW IT LIVE...
ALL OF YOU WHO SUPPORT CANDIDATES, PLEASE FORWARD THIS MESSAGE TO THEM...I CAN BE REACHED BY MESSAGE ON FACEBOOK, OR SEND EMAIL TO landofthewaxhaws@gmail.com
THANK YOU AND GOOD LUCK TUESDAY.....JIM BLACK

More ugliness this election season

2011-11-07T22:44:00.001-05:00

I got an email from Daune Gardner and Marvin Councilperson Anthony Burman on Sunday about an apparently new email that some have received entitled "A Call to Action for Waxhaw" emailed out by the anonymous person(s) behind patrioticcitizenryofwaxhaw@yahoo.com.

While it was requested that I do not show the contents of the email, I don't think it's out of bounds to provide a brief general description of the contents since Daune references them in her response below. Besides calling attention to her dismissed DUI charge, providing a picture of her mug shot, and claiming she has a substance abuse problem, a considerable portion is devoted to railing against newcomer candidate Sean Poccia, who is enthusiastically supported by Daune, by claiming it provides Daune with control of the board when combined with Commissioners Erin Kirkpatrick's and Brett Diller's votes.

I'm not sure how many people got this email as this is the first I'd heard about it. I asked a few follow-up questions trying to learn who exactly received the email in an effort to determine exactly when it was sent and if others were CC'd on it, but I didn't get a specific response.

I emailed Anthony Burman, who is apparently working on Daune's campaign in some capacity, some of the same questions along with some others late last night, but still have not heard back. If he gets back to me with some additional details, I will try to update the post.

Did anyone else out there receive this email? I'm curious to hear how many people it targeted.

And as I requested in my previous post on bad behavior, feel free to email me with other similar types of less than desirable behavior by politicians and/or their supporters. Although with voting tomorrow, this will mostly going away until next election. I hope.

As mentioned above, Daune provided me with a statement that appears to be what she wrote up for the person who brought the email to her attention. Here it is for those curious:

Thank you for bringing this to my attention. It is disappointing that there are those who choose to spread lies, half-truths and innuendo on the eve of an election, and are doing so behind the anonymity of email.

While this may be the first you have heard of it, it is true that I was arrested and charged with driving under the influence in 2008. The case was dismissed and the judge went so far as to order all records expunged. Those events have NEVER diminished my passion or ability to perform consistently well and with strength and integrity as your mayor.

As for the allegations of corruption and so forth, my record both as a citizen activist and as your mayor shows that I have consistently stood up to bad development, encouraged citizen engagement and insisted on proper process.

Please call me at 704-578-0763 if you have further concerns or questions.

Best,

Daune Gardner

General election thoughts

2011-11-07T20:29:00.001-05:00

Just a few miscellaneous last minute campaign thoughts that didn't seem to fit in elsewhere. I figured I'd get these off my chest before voting is over, but here we are at 8.30pm. So in no particular order:

* The addition of Gary Underwood into the mayoral race will benefit incumbent Daune Gardner the most. She will get the incumbent vote and Lisa and Gary will somehow split the anti-incumbent vote.

* Predictions: I think Daune Gardner wins the race for mayor for the aforementioned reasons. As for commissioners, I think Sean Poccia wins one spot mainly because all the Daune supporters will vote for her preferred candidate. As for the other slot, I'm not really sure. I think all three are good board candidates, but I'll give it to the more visible incumbent, Martin Lane. Bear in mind, I'm no political prognosticator, but those are my guesses. (NOTE: These predictions were made earlier in the day before any totals are in.

* A question: why was the campaign for mayor so much more heated than the board races? They seemed almost chummy in comparison.

* The campaign sign garden is officially complete at this time. I got signs from all the candidates except Gary Underwood. So I had to improvise. I will get a picture up time-permitting.

Marathon update

2011-11-04T13:11:00.000-04:00

Earlier in the year, I was blogging regularly on Tim's attempt to run one marathon a month for a year.

But if you follow the aforementioned link, you'll notice there's been nary an update since July.

If your first thought is that I have been deficient in keeping up with them (a la the old monthly crime reports), you would be wrong.

If your next thought is that Tim was unable to keep up with this demanding challenge, you would again be mistaken.

If your final thought is that Tim's been completing the marathons, but no longer blogging about them, then you would be correct. One for three isn't too bad.

Number 9 is in the books, so there's only three more to go. If and when he begins blogging about them again, I'll try to link to them.

Parks & Rec Master Plan meeting tomorrow

2011-11-03T23:25:00.001-04:00

Coinciding with First Friday, the final Parks & Rec Master Plan meeting will occur at the Waxhaw Woman's Club on Friday per a Facebook post.

Parks and Rec Master Plan meeting Friday, November 4 from 6:30 to 8:30 pm at the Waxhaw Woman's Club. Come give us your ideas and enter to win prizes donated by local merchants!

Raffle Prizes: 1) A Snap Fitness Membership, Group Ex Trial, A Smoothie and T-shirt.
2) Four hours of garden services for your edible landscape provided by The Garden Growers. They will design, perform maintenance, troubleshoot or build an organic kitchen garden for you. A $100 value.

So while you're walking around town for First Friday, don't forget to stop by and share your opinion.

Hopefully upgrades over at Nesbit Park (behind Kensington Elementary) will be a frequent request by those who stop in. Besides getting some lights for the ball fields over there, more parking is essential. They removed some of the parking down near the soccer fields due to safety concerns. With three new fields (2 baseball and 1 multipurpose) on the way, it will be important to upgrade the parking.

If you feel similarly, please stop by and let them know how important the issue is to you. And sign up for the aforementioned raffles while you're there.

Thanksgiving brew @ Maxwell's

2011-11-03T23:01:00.001-04:00

Maxwell's Tavern posted an update the other day with some good news for local beer connoisseurs. I guess this is a nice First Friday surprise.

Special Treat for ALL OUR BEER LOVERS. This Friday, Olde Mecklenburg Brewery selected Maxwells to tap their limited release Thanksgiving beer, Bauern Bock. A handful of establishments receive one keg and one keg only, and we are the only place to get it in the area. This will go FAST, and then there will be no more until next year.

Bauern Bock is a German-style doppelbock lager, Bauern Bock is rich and malty with a deep amber color to match the changing colors of the fall season. It is also OMB's "biggest" beer at 7.5% ABV.

This will be tapped This Friday (11/4) at 6pm.

Thanks OMB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hmm, what are the odds I can get over there at 6pm?

First Friday

2011-11-03T22:45:00.001-04:00

Just a friendly reminder that First Friday is tomorrow.

Here's the flyer:

Fox's Pizza back on restaurant.com

2011-11-03T11:23:00.003-04:00

I got an email the other day that Fox's Pizza is now back on restaurant.com, making them once again the only Waxhaw restaurant offered at restaurant.com. I blogged about their prior stint earlier.

While this is good news for Fox's Pizza lovers, the deal is not quite as good as it once was. A $25 gift certificate still runs you $10 (and with the constant coupon codes restaurant.com runs, you'll likely pay $2-4 for this), but there is now a minimum purchase requirement of $50.

So this means the total cost will now be a minimum of $27, but you will get $50 worth of pizza and/or other food. Probably not a good deal for the nights my family wants to get pizza, but it will be a good deal for larger gatherings of people, such as kids' birthday parties and the like, where $50 of pizza can be more readily scarfed down. It should save you a decent chunk of change in those instances.

Campaign nastiness?

2011-11-03T09:38:00.002-04:00

Throughout the election season thus far, it seems like the politicians in Waxhaw haven't really been involved in any negative campaigning. From what I've been able to see or hear, the candidates seem to be treating each other cordially enough.

You can't necessarily say the same thing about the candidates' supporters.

Thus far, I have seen a limited number of Daune Gardner supporters who've been acting petty towards mayoral candidate Lisa Thornton. Other candidates' supporters make similar claims. For example, a Facebook friend of mine wrote a piece supporting Daune Gardner and Sean Poccia in which she included the following statement:

There has been a great deal of negativity in this election. Despite all of the attacks, misstatements, and even flat-out lies being spread about Mayor Daune Gardner, she has continued to keep this election about the issues, and has refused to sink to the level of one of her opponents and make attacks against them.

Like I mentioned above, the only campaign negativity I've seen up to this point has been directed towards Lisa Thornton. It wouldn't surprise if other candidates' surrogates have taken the same tact, but I have yet to witness it.

I emailed this person a couple days ago to not only get clarification, such as examples of the "attacks, misstatements, and even flat-out lies," but also to get verification that the negative attacks are occurring since I haven't been privy to them. I have yet to hear back.

I suppose there's no way to say whether this is essentially a proxy war between candidates using surrogates or just a few feeling so strongly about their candidate that they need to denigrate opponents. It surely wouldn't be the first time in politics, and likely not even in Waxhaw politics, that this occurred.

What's your take on the negativity of this campaign? Is it coming from all sides? Both in the mayoral and commissioner races?

Feel free to comment or email me with examples, but given the emotion involved in a topic like this, let's try to keep it relatively cordial. I'm not interested in naming names.

Another campaign sign

2011-11-01T23:09:00.002-04:00

I may have maxed out the sign garden with a week to go in the election.

I got Mike Stewart's this weekend so I now have every candidate except Martin Lane and Gary Underwood. If I get any more, excellent. If not, it was a valiant effort. Although I've got my eye on some of those fancy banners; they'd make a fine addition to the garden.

Although my kids weren't quite as understanding. We were driving home today and my youngest asked "Why won't Martin Lane let us have a sign?" I don't know; I just don't know.

All kidding aside, I was really asked that question so the kids are getting a kick out of the signs. And for the record Martin did say we could have a sign, but I imagine he forgot in the hubbub of daily life which I imagine is only more amplified during election season.

On a side note, Mike Stewart actually stopped by the house to talk with me on Saturday. We couldn't speak real long since I was battling a cold, but he seemed like a pretty straightforward candidate worthy of your vote.

EDIT: fixed typo

Ghost walk follow-up

2011-10-30T23:37:00.000-04:00

I wasn't sure if we'd make it or not, but the kids voted at the eleventh hour to go on the Waxhaw ghost walk. We met up with the others outside Waxhaw UMC. I have no training in estimating crowds, but I suppose there were about 100 people give or take a few. Most everyone in attendance were adults or teens, but there were a smattering of younger kids throughout the crowd.

Cecilia Neal led us on the ghost walk where she passed along tales of death and true crimes that are still apparently leaving their mark on Waxhaw today. She started out with a story from a house that once stood at the Waxhaw Farmer's Market regarding a father who just couldn't take his four kids anymore and hung himself out the window. (By the way, these are just my recollections so some of the details may be off. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.)

Upon hearing this, my wife and I exchanged glances as we weren't sure our kids (youngest in kindergarten) needed to be hearing about stuff like this. But thankfully it didn't appear they were listening real closely and the stories didn't seem quite so bad for the most part.

My youngest was cold and tired, so he only lasted about 25 minutes and spent the rest of the time waiting in a warm car with my wife. My oldest and I lasted one hour before heading home.
My goal next year is to hear the entire thing.

But it was definitely interesting to hear about the apparitions floating around Waxhaw. We heard stories of them from Stewart's Village Gallery, the old surf shop, and a slew of tales from the stretch of businesses starting with the used book store.

Donna took some photos during the ghost tour and posted them here. I personally haven't examined them closely, but it wouldn't surprise me if a specter popped up in one later upon closer examination.

By the way, the Union County Weekly had an article on the walk before Friday. It contained a handful of interesting tidbits on Waxhaw, including this one:

Many may be surprised to learn, according to Neal, that one of our nation’s last witch-hunts occurred in Waxhaw. In the 1700s, the townspeople accused Nancy Craighead of witchcraft after her preacher husband died. To arrive at a verdict, those in charge dug up his body and forced his wife to touch his skull. A finger bleed would be proof of her true witch identity. Lucky for Craighead, her finger never bled, and town leaders dropped the charges.

Santa Picture Groupon

2011-10-30T21:13:00.000-04:00

Since we moved to the Charlotte area, we've been getting pictures with Santa at Carolina Place Mall in Pineville. The Santa there has been the same since 2003, so we've been going back year after year.

This weekend there's a Groupon deal for a photo package with Santa at Carolina Place Mall, Concord Mills Mall, or Monroe Crossing Mall. So if you plan on getting your Santa picture at any of those locations, you may want to consider the following deal.

$11 for Photos with Santa Claus and a Dasher Print Package ($22.99 Value)

The Dasher package gives you (1) 5 x 7 and (2) 3.5 x 5 pictures for $11. We've always just gotten the single 5 x 7 in the past and while I don't remember the specific price, I seem to think it alone was over $11 in years past.

This deal expires Tuesday at midnight, so there's still a couple days to get it if you're interested.

WAA Monster Bash @ Kensington tomorrow

2011-10-28T22:28:00.001-04:00

The Waxhaw Athletic Association is having a Monster Bash for youngsters this Saturday at Kensington Elementary. I had planned to take the kids there, but it appears the family schedule is already booked for these hours.

If you're looking to drop the kids off and get some dinner with your sweetheart, it sounds like a win-win for everybody involved.

South Providence update

2011-10-28T14:17:00.000-04:00

Here's my belated update on Rick Giarla's rooftop fundraiser from a couple weeks ago. From an Elizabeth Belk update over at the Waxhaw PTA Facebook page over a week ago:

THANK YOU to everyone who was able to help support Rick in his effort to raise money for South Providence School this past weekend. He raised right around $5000.00!!!! What a great thing for this school and the kids.

A little way off from the $30000 goal, but in this economy it is still a significant chunk of change I bet South Providence appreciates immensely.

The fundraiser web page is still up, so I imagine you can still contribute if you haven't already done so.

Village Scribe on candidates

2011-10-28T12:48:00.002-04:00

The Village Scribe, a blog that focuses on Union County politics, has put up an election guide. It is also one of the handful of select sites I link to on my sidebar. The site is run by Mark DiBiasio, who freelances at the Union County Weekly as well.

Without further ado, here's his guide as it currently stands:

If you visit his actual election guide and hover your mouse over the icons, you can see what each of them mean. I recommend doing so because it's not necessarily clear as to what each mean. For example, the recycle symbol does not mean Gary Underwood is the greenest candidate.

Ideally, it'd be nice to get further explanations for some of these icons, because it likely isn't clear to many how a candidate gets tagged as "developer friendly" for example. If you visit, check the comments where Phillip Gregory recently wrote a defense against being labeled as such.

Otherwise, based on the current guide, which has changed slightly from a week ago, it appears Mark is leaning towards favoring Daune Gardner for mayor and Sean Poccia and Mike Stewart for town board. Of course, he hasn't broken out a "thumbs up" for any Waxhaw candidates, which would be an official endorsement.

I'll try and check back to see if anything changes before the election.

Waxhaw bouncing back

2011-10-28T11:11:00.001-04:00

WCNC has an article on the small business atmosphere in Waxhaw, which has improved. A snippet:

Mayor Daune Gardner says Maxwell's was one of the first to start a new business movement in the quaint downtown.

"A couple years ago we had over a dozen empty store fronts on Main Street. Last year we had seven. This year now we have two," added Gardner.

Here's the corresponding video clip from which the article derives, which stars the mayor and some of the newer local businesses.

UPDATE: How was the candidate forum?

2011-10-28T07:55:00.006-04:00

Unfortunately, it appears Jim was unable to broadcast the forum from the Waxhaw Woman's Club so sickies like me will likely never know how it went down. Unless someone else made a recording of the event.

So any thoughts on how things went, not just for the potential mayors, but also for the potential board members?

If you have trouble commenting, just drop me an email and I can add the comment for you.

UPDATE 9.52a: I heard from the mayor yesterday and this was apparently the format of last night's forum, for those who weren't able to witness it firsthand. This seemed the ideal post to include this information.

Moderated by the League of Woman Voters. They will accept questions prior and will choose which to ask in the forum. There will be no direct questions from the audience and no debate between the candidates. Each question will be given to either the mayoral or commissioner candidates and each will be given an equal amount of time to respond. Some questions may be given to both sets of candidates.

Reminder: Candidates forum tonight at WWC

2011-10-27T15:14:00.002-04:00

I just wanted to give you a reminder that the candidates forum is tonight at the Waxhaw Woman's Club. It kicks off at 7p.

I think I will have to sit it out as I've been fighting a cold since camping last weekend and a packed room will have little desire to have a local blogger hacking and blowing his nose throughout. To prove I'm not exaggerating, last night my better half described my cough as "annoying." I'm already walking a thin line with some of you as per the comments of this recent post and my sniffling attendance would likely only make matters worse.

Jim Black plans to stream the whole thing on Land of the Waxhaws if he can get an internet connection, which would be neat. I've never watched a LotW broadcast live before, but if Jim's there tonight with gear in hand, I may have to try it this time around.

Anyone know the format of the forum? Debate? Audience questions? Short spiels from each candidate?

UPDATE: Has Leo's Kitchen opened yet?

2011-10-27T14:08:00.003-04:00

I've blogged about them before a couple times (see the latter for a coupon). On the way home from work yesterday, it looked to be open but there was nothing official saying it was open. Call it my blogger's intuition, which is oftentimes wrong for what it's worth.

No word on their Facebook page yet, which hasn't been for two and a half weeks.

UPDATE 11/1: To answer the question in the title, yes, Leo's Kitchen is now open and apparently the grand opening is set for November 19.

3rd man charged

2011-10-26T17:11:00.002-04:00

A third man has been charged in the card game killing last weekend.

The Enquirer-Journal has the story. It contains a tidbit that they weren't playing poker as I had originally assumed or read, likely the former. A snippet:

Quenthoney Kegan Black, 22, of 9931 Waxhaw Highway, Waxhaw, has been charged with first-degree murder and discharging firearm into an occupied dwelling. Black was taken into custody at his residence without incident after investigators obtained a warrant for his arrest, according a Union County Sheriff’s Office prepared release.

...

Tonk is a version of gin rummy that was popular among jazz musicians in the 1930s and 1940s. Writing on the games website www.pagat.com, John McLeod warns, “many players seem certain that their own way of playing is the only correct one. Before starting a game with unfamiliar players, it is wise first to agree what house rules are in force.”

Read the whole thing.

He, along with the initial two suspects, is charged with first-degree murder. Could bullets from all three guns have hit Michael Garlins? I've seen nothing to suggest police have released any kind of ballistics test or even if they have got the guns that the three suspects apparently were firing into the mobile home.

For more information on tonk, here's the rules page referred to in the article.

UPDATE: Poccia's website updated

2011-10-25T23:10:00.002-04:00

I wandered over to Sean Poccia's website and see that it has been updated with questions from a citizen asking for his positions on various issues regarding Waxhaw.

I was particularly curious to read his response on the Waxhaw's historical preservation and was a little disappointed. Here it is:

Waxhaw historical district and preservation: As for the historical district, this is an area of great interest to me. We all know Waxhaw is rich in history and we have some phenomenal buildings that we need to ensure stay true to their heritage. I have participated in and closely followed the Waxhaw Historical Committee meetings and spoken with many residents who own, live in or operate out of a historical building. The several versions of the historical overlay are solid documents. As I recently stated in a Historical committee meeting, there are opportunities to continue creating excitement about the significance of historical preservation. One such idea that I have seen work brilliantly in other communities is establishing an annual (or bi-annual) historical preservation day whereas we create a city sponsored event and bring in experts from around our region who specialize in historical preservation. These types of events allow residents to learn about the techniques, products, services and participate in workshops etc. that will allow a home owner or historical building owner to learn of resources and techniques about preservation. It's been said that knowledge is power and if we really want to become a city where preservation isn't just something we talk about, the government needs to do more than just establish mandates and rules.

I wanted to get his take on the failed historic overlay to see where he would fall on the issue that I've written about before. After parsing this, it reads like he is a supporter of the failed historic district overlay that would've essentially shredded the property rights within the proposed district.

But it must be added that he never comes out and says exactly which side he comes down on. Perhaps the mark of a true politician; I think he's ready for the job.

In other Sean Poccia news, he became the third person running for office to appear on Jim Black's "Land of the Waxhaws," when he was interviewed by Mayor Gardner no less. Two clips here and here.

The fact that the mayor personally interviewed him likely removes any doubt that she's endorsing him, as if the sign at Creative Plus and the Facebook plug weren't enough of a tell already. She's practically showing us her hand. I could continue on with these poker-related analogies but trust me, they'll only get worse.

UPDATE 10/28: The mayor is one who always has problems commenting on this blog so she emailed the following comment:

Every candidate running for office in Waxhaw has been invited to appear on the Land of the Waxhaws internet tv program. You may have seen the spot with Martin Lane from a week or so ago and Mr. Poccia agreed to be interviewed. Our new intern, Jeff Hodge, has contacted the other candidates and extended the offer to them as well. At this point, I believe Mike Stewart is the only other candidate to express an interest in doing so. The offer was made to all but it is their choice.

As for the question of whether I support Sean Poccia for Waxhaw Commissioner, the answer is “Yes, without reservation!”

I've got some further clarifications on Land of the Waxhaws and candidate appearances that I hope to get up later today. Keep your fingers crossed.

Waxhaw homocide

2011-10-25T12:34:00.001-04:00

I went camping this weekend with the Cub Scouts. When I got home, my wife informed me that murder was afoot in Waxhaw as I'm sure everyone has heard by now.

It occurred after a fight broke out over a poker game, so you must be thinking a lot of money was at stake. Uhh, no.

Elisabeth Arriero has the story for the Charlotte Observer:

The price for one Waxhaw man's life may have been as little as $2, some Waxhaw residents said Sunday.

According to investigators, Michael Leon Garlins, 38, of Waxhaw died early Saturday after an argument broke out following a Friday night card game in or near a home on Forest Green Drive.

"It was supposedly over a money debt for $2 or $3," said Richard Weaver, 47, who lives near the mobile home where the shooting occurred.

Investigators believe Garlins was struck by gunshots fired by at least three people during the altercation.

Read the whole thing.

According to an Enquirer-Journal article, two have now been arrested and charged with first-degree murder among other things. No word on if ballistics shows bullets from both men's guns actually struck Michael Garlins. A snippet:

The Union County Sheriff’s Office arrested Joshua Davarius McGill, 23, and Jonathan Alves Henry, 19, in connection with a Waxhaw shooting incident over the weekend.

...

Investigators said Garlins was struck when at least two people fired shots. He was taken to Carolinas Medical Center-Union where he was pronounced dead. The Sheriff’s Office lists Garlins’ residence at Pine Oak Road, Waxhaw, but the N.C. Department of Motor Vehicles has a Charlotte address on file.

Read the whole thing.

Latest Waxhaw Gazette

2011-10-24T22:43:00.000-04:00

John has the latest Waxhaw Gazette up.

In Waxhaw-related news, John linkss to this article in the Charlotte Observer explaining that the Fill Good BP (new gas station near Lowe's) is the first gas station in Waxhaw to offer up E-85 ethanol gasoline.

I guess this is good news, although given gas prices in Waxhaw versus those in Indian Land, SC, the introduction of E-85 into Waxhaw might be met with little fanfare for a significant portion of Waxhaw residents.

There also are downsides to ethanol especially now that more corn is being used for fuel than for animal feed, which is most definitely a contributor to rising food prices.

Campaign sign garden status

2011-10-24T18:11:00.002-04:00

When I left for work this morning, I was still holding at two campaign signs - one from Daune Gardner and one from Lisa Thornton.

I dashed off a quick email to Sean Poccia earlier today and there are apparently two unique Sean Poccia signs in my yard now as well. What can we garner from this? That Sean Poccia is a man who likes to get things done at least as far as it concerns placating local bloggers and the strange artistic demands that come with them.

Martin Lane planned to contribute as well and I've got emails out to Phillip Gregory and Mike Stewart too. I also emailed Gary Underwood, but he doesn't have any currently available.

On the neighborhood front, a representative of the homeowner's association knocked on my door to tell me that the signs couldn't be as close to the road as they were so I had to move them back. I put up quite the fight, screaming something about free speech and flailing my arms and whatnot. Actually, I was packing for a Cub Scout camping trip at the time, so some might say I was as meek as a kitten in agreeing to move them closer to the house.

He did mention that the signs weren't really allowed at all; the lack of political free speech by the HOA seems a little strange, but maybe this is par for the course as far as HOAs are concerned. I suppose I'll have to dig up the HOA contract one of these days and dig into it a bit. Time-permitting, of course.

Campaign website update

2011-10-24T14:45:00.000-04:00

Just a quick update as I finally tracked down Mike Stewart's Facebook campaign page.

Here's the latest links to all the campaign pages in the order I found them:

Mayor: Lisa Thornton / Daune Gardner / Gary Underwood

Town board: Martin Lane / Sean Poccia / Mike Stewart / Phillip Gregory

That just leaves Phillip Gregory. Anyone know if he has a campaign page?

Waxhaw Pub Crawl?

2011-10-23T21:20:00.001-04:00

Apparently the first annual Waxhaw Pub Crawl occurred Saturday night, but who knew? The philosophical side of me wants to ask "Does a pub crawl really occur if I haven't heard about it?"

I suspect I'm not the only person who heard about this fundraising event after the fact. I'm sure others are more well-versed in Waxhaw happenings than I, but I'm struggling to understand how I never caught a sniff of this until the day after. It's practically a part time job for me to keep up with beer-related town news and somehow this failed to enter my radar.

From Lori's Facebook page, the money raised benefited the Adam Faulk Tanksley Foundation to chomp out childhood cancer. I blogged about their annual AdamFest festival back in September. I concluded my thoughts with a note about how I wish I had more notice so I could've blogged about it beforehand.

And here I am once again wishing I had more notice to share the details of this fun fundraising outing for an excellent cause before the event and not afterwards. I suspect more money would be raised towards fighting childhood cancer if the respective parties would get the word out a little better. Who do I complain to at the apparently secretive Waxhaw Social Club?

I've got so many questions: how many attended? Where was one to find out about this event? How did money get raised for the Adam Faulk Tanksley Foundation? Koozie and tee shirt sales only? Or was there a participation fee? Did the bars contribute as well? How much was earned in all? And how fun was it? So many questions.

UPDATE: fixed typo

UPDATE: Waxhaw Ghost Walk / Lantern Tour

2011-10-20T21:50:00.006-04:00

From the town's Facebook page:

WAXHAW GHOST WALK!! Saturday, October 29 at 9 pm! Hosted by CECELIA NEAL and assisted by UCAPS - UNION COUNTY AREA PARANORMAL SOCIETY.
Meet: Waxhaw United Methodist Church parking lot. This is FREE to the public although donations will be accepted for the MS Society.

Sounds interesting. I may have to try and drag the family out to this.

The Museum of the Waxhaws also is doing a Lantern Tour on October 28-29th. Per the description, it is a lantern tour of a Civil War battlefield put on by the NC 35th Regiment.

The Ghost Walk seems like the more kid-friendly event of the two. But according to the website of the NC 35th Regiment, it appears to be family-friendly as well.

Guided Tours will go thru the woods by candlelight stopping at several historic scenarios and watching for the Civil War soldiers battling throughout the woods. A must see event for the entire family.

Something about a spooky lantern tour of a Civil War battlefield (these were typically gruesome, no?) just screams not kid-friendly. Does anyone know for certain?

UPDATE 10/23: Don't miss Captain Jack's comment down below for an clarification on the Lantern Tours. The Cliff's Notes version: it will begin more kid-friendly and get "progressively realistic" as the night goes on when young children will be less likely to be present. Sounds neat.

Meet the candidates

2011-10-20T21:45:00.000-04:00

Just a heads up that you can go meet all the local candidates at the Waxhaw Women's Club next Thursday at 7pm. Sponsored by the League of Women Voters.

Anyone know what the format is going to be? Are the candidates taking questions or will they just spend a little time telling us about them? One obviously more informative than the other.

Martin Lane on "Land of the Waxhaws"

2011-10-20T21:36:00.001-04:00

I thought I linked to this a week ago, but apparently I just created a blank placeholder to be filled in at a later date. And the later date is this evening apparently.

Martin Lane became the second Waxhaw politician currently running for office to appear on Jim Black's "Land of the Waxhaws" internet video broadcasts, which stream live on the internet if you're lucky enough to check his site at the right time.

I pointed out earlier the lack of most of the candidates on Jim Black's "Land of the Waxhaws" internet video broadcasts. Before Martin Lane, Mayor Gardner was the only candidate who had appeared with any regularity and given her current position and the fact that her local business, Creative Plus, has been a supporter of "Land of the Waxhaws," I suppose that's not a surprise.

I contacted Jim a week ago and he sent me a message essentially stating that ideally candidates would buy time on his show. I emailed him a follow-up as to what this might cost each candidate a week ago, but have not heard back from him. So perhaps he has decided to refrain from charging candidates.

More evidence suggesting as much is the fact that Jim invited Martin Lane to appear on the show. However, this begs the question: have the other candidates (for mayor or the board) been invited to be on the show? If so, how come they haven't appeared yet? Other candidates, inquiring minds would like to know.

By the way, leaving comments on this blog is very flaky, so feel free to email me if you can't get through via the comments.

Letters supporting the new guys

2011-10-18T22:17:00.000-04:00

Out with Martin Lane and Phillip Gregory, in with Mike Stewart and Sean Poccia. Or so says a couple letters recently published in the Enquirer-Journal.

Here's a selection for the letter supporting Mike Stewart, an unknown to me:

Mike is new to Waxhaw Politics, which is a blessing in disguise. Needless to say, it is refreshing to know he isn’t part of the good ole’ boy system or “politics as usual” that seems to be the norm in Waxhaw. Mike Stewart is quite intelligent with a strong dynamic personality and gentle soul that truly cares about the heart and soul of Waxhaw, the PEOPLE. Mike takes pride in being part of his community and is ready and willing to go the extra mile to work together with the people, board members and town staff to bring a better government to Waxhaw. Mike has fresh ideas to (1) encourage smaller businesses to come to Waxhaw, (2) STOP wasteful spending, (3) lower taxes, (4) have a smaller government, (5) encourage and initiate transparency, and most importantly (6) ensure appropriate actions are taken according to what the citizens of Waxhaw bring to the board for consideration.

Here's the one supporting newcomer Sean Poccia:

I met Sean Poccia at a meeting and greet and WOW but he is dynamic. Sean is running for town commissioner. New blood, this is what Waxhaw needs and he has it all. He is energetic, objective, analytical and the person to vote for.

Read the whole thing.

Is it safe to assume that neither has any artistic vision since neither Mike Stewart nor Sean Poccia have contributed a campaign sign to my artsy campaign sign garden? Probably not.

Campaign sign garden really coming along

2011-10-18T21:51:00.001-04:00

I came home from work yesterday afternoon to find my first campaign sign, compliments of incumbent Mayor Daune Gardner. The initial piece to my earlier discussed campaign sign garden.

Mayoral challenger Lisa Thornton is set to drop one off as well and I'll graciously accept a sign from any Waxhaw candidate, so that means you Gary Underwood, Martin Lane, Phillip Gregory Sean Poccia, and Mike Stewart. Don't be a square and stand in the way of my artistic vision!

If you'd like to increase your presence in the campaign sign garden and have multiple unique signs, you can bring one of each if you'd like.

The Facade Grant Program

2011-10-17T23:40:00.000-04:00

The Union County Weekly has an article on the new Facade Grant program that was recently approved by the town board. This grant program makes $7500 available to certain favorably-located area businesses interested in approving their façades, essentially subsidizing exterior repairs or renewal of favorably situated private property with taxpayer money.

Here's Brian Carlton's description:

The project is a scaled down and reworked version of the historic district proposal that failed earlier this year. By turning it into a grant program, the council made it a voluntary process this time around, so only those interested would be impacted. The project sets aside $7,500 from the town’s general fund, to be used as grant funding. If a business or property owner wants to restore his facility to the way it originally looked, he or she can apply to the Waxhaw Historic Preservation Committee. If the application is approved, the committee can authorize different amounts, up to $7,500 towards the restoration. To qualify, the restoration has to cost a minimum of $250.

I am not sure I agree with this description since the failed historic district proposal would've been imposed on homeowners with no subsidization of repairs; it just would've dictated what changes or repairs could be made to homes and business falling within the specified district. If I'm not mistaken, the only taxpayer money used for this program would be the salaries of the bureaucrats that maintain it.

The Facade Grant program, however, takes taxpayer money and uses it help pay for refurbishments to accepted applicants. I'm not sure money should be taken from taxpayers and doled out to individuals to improve the look of their personal property.

Brett Diller, Erin Kirkpatrick, and Martin Lane obviously feel differently as they provided the necessary three votes to pass this program. On the other hand, Phillip Gregory and Joyce Blythe voted against it, but hold back warm and fuzzies for them quite yet if saving taxpayer money is your thing.

The article seems to suggest Phillip Gregory and Joyce Blythe didn't vote against it because of the transfer of taxpayer money to a select few, but because they weren't entirely comfortable with the Waxhaw Historic Preservation Committee (WHPC) running the program. Personally, I have more of an issue with the fact taxpayer money will be subsidizing select individuals rather than who will be overseeing the program. Although I suppose the WHPC might be more inclined to favor historic properties, but that remains to be seen.

In the article, Erin Kirkpatrick is quoted as follows:

“It’s an investment in our economic development,” Waxhaw council member Erin Kirkpatrick said. “It’s money we’re investing to bring people to our downtown corridor.”

I honestly don't see how improving the exterior of buildings downtown will more than nominally improve economic development in Waxhaw. Will a handful of improved façades downtown make a significant impact in how much money is spent in downtown Waxhaw? Is there evidence to suggest it will?

Maybe offering up much more than $7500 will attract more people (and Brenda Stewart's comment beneath the article suggests they're already looking to expand the program before the ink is even dry), but a more significant economic development would be having shops that regular folks can shop at. I realize that's beyond the scope of the town board (or so I would hope), but I consider myself a regular guy and besides the restaurants, there are very few shops in downtown Waxhaw I would need to set foot in.

Like the Waxhaw Fresh Market before it, the loss of Southport Gifts removes another store I'd pop into periodically. Where is one to shop in Waxhaw for gifts and knick-knacks besides antique shops? Stewart's Gallery comes to mind, but my ventures in there have been limited as I've normally watched the kids outside (so they don't break anything) while my wife looks around.

Chili Cookoff @ Parkwood Middle

2011-10-16T21:21:00.000-04:00

Just a note that there's a Chili Cookoff & Fall Festival at Parkwood Middle School this Saturday October 22nd from 11a-4p.

If you're looking for something to do next, it's only $5 to taste the chili. $10 to enter the cookoff and taste.

Campaign sign garden

2011-10-14T23:15:00.000-04:00

So far no signs are in my yard, but one candidate has offered to drop one off. If a candidate wants to donate the campaign sign garden (mentioned here), drop me an email and I can send you my address. (Or you can just look it up in the Waxhaw GIS databas e, I guess, but that might be considered just a tad creepy.)

If the campaign sign garden does come to fruition, it may, nay will, be my greatest visual artistic accomplishment. That's not saying a lot but it is what it is.

So if you want local politicians to contribute a sign, I suggest contacting them to have one delivered post haste. They can't ignore the people forever.

#OccupyWaxhaw, anyone?

BBQ results

2011-10-14T17:03:00.001-04:00

The results of Waxhaw's Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff are available at the town website here. Unfortunately, it's a mish-mash of downloadable PDF and Excel files. Not very convenient for looking at the results.

So here they are in all their slightly-more-convenient glory:

Waxhaw Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff
October 8-9, 2011
Kansas City BBQ Society PRO Results

Place Overall
1 Uncle Mac's BBQ Crue, Charlotte, NC
2 Palmetto Smokehouse, Greenwood, SC
3 Serial Griller, Yorktown, VA
4 Up in Smoke, Rock Hill, SC
5 Carolinas BBQ Co., Hildebran, NC
6 Red, White and Que, Waxhaw, NC
7 Rock Store BBQ, Indian Trail, NC
8 Bad Mother Smoker, Concord, NC
9 Smokin' Good, Fort Mill, SC
10 Texas Outback Cookers, Monroe, NC
11 Butt's R Us, Waxhaw, NC
12 Chubby's BBQ, Monroe, NC
13 Kick'n & Grill'n, Waxhaw, NC
14 521 BBQ, Indian Land, SC
15 Jo's Jo's Backyard BBQ, Monroe, NC
16 Just Good, Inc., Monroe, NC

Waxhaw Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff
October 8-9, 2011
Kansas City BBQ Society PRO Results Chicken

Place Chicken
1 Uncle Mac's BBQ Crue, Charlotte, NC
2 Bad Mother Smoker, Concord, NC
3 Palmetto Smokehouse, Greenwood, SC
4 Carolinas BBQ Co., Hildebran, NC
5 Rock Store BBQ, Indian Trail, NC
6 Up in Smoke, Rock Hill, SC
7 Texas Outback Cookers, Monroe, NC
8 Red, White and Que, Waxhaw, NC
9 Butt's R Us, Waxhaw, NC
10 Serial Griller, Yorktown, VA
11 Smokin' Good, Fort Mill, SC
12 Kick'n & Grill'n, Waxhaw, NC
13 521 BBQ, Indian Land, SC
14 Chubby's BBQ, Monroe, NC
15 Jo's Jo's Backyard BBQ, Monroe, NC
16 Just Good, Inc., Monroe, NC

Waxhaw Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff
October 8-9, 2011
Kansas City BBQ Society PRO Results Pork Ribs

Place Pork Ribs
1 Up in Smoke, Rock Hill, SC
2 Palmetto Smokehouse, Greenwood, SC
3 Uncle Mac's BBQ Crue, Charlotte, NC
4 Rock Store BBQ, Indian Trail, NC
5 Serial Griller, Yorktown, VA
6 Chubby's BBQ, Monroe, NC
7 Red, White and Que, Waxhaw, NC
8 Carolinas BBQ Co., Hildebran, NC
9 Butt's R Us, Waxhaw, NC
10 Bad Mother Smoker, Concord, NC
11 521 BBQ, Indian Land, SC
12 Smokin' Good, Fort Mill, SC
13 Texas Outback Cookers, Monroe, NC
14 Jo's Jo's Backyard BBQ, Monroe, NC
15 Kick'n & Grill'n, Waxhaw, NC
16 Just Good, Inc., Monroe, NC

Waxhaw Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff
October 8-9, 2011
Kansas City BBQ Society PRO Results Pork

Place Pork
1 Smokin' Good, Fort Mill, SC
2 Uncle Mac's BBQ Crue, Charlotte, NC
3 Carolinas BBQ Co., Hildebran, NC
4 Serial Griller, Yorktown, VA
5 Rock Store BBQ, Indian Trail, NC
6 Red, White and Que, Waxhaw, NC
7 Bad Mother Smoker, Concord, NC
8 Texas Outback Cookers, Monroe, NC
9 Palmetto Smokehouse, Greenwood, SC
10 Kick'n & Grill'n, Waxhaw, NC
11 Up in Smoke, Rock Hill, SC
12 521 BBQ, Indian Land, SC
13 Just Good, Inc., Monroe, NC
14 Butt's R Us, Waxhaw, NC
15 Jo's Jo's Backyard BBQ, Monroe, NC
16 Chubby's BBQ, Monroe, NC

Waxhaw Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff
October 8-9, 2011
Kansas City BBQ Society PRO Results Overall Brisket

Place Brisket
1 Serial Griller, Yorktown, VA
2 Uncle Mac's BBQ Crue, Charlotte, NC
3 Palmetto Smokehouse, Greenwood, SC
4 Red, White and Que, Waxhaw, NC
5 Up in Smoke, Rock Hill, SC
6 Kick'n & Grill'n, Waxhaw, NC
7 Bad Mother Smoker, Concord, NC
8 Carolinas BBQ Co., Hildebran, NC
9 Butt's R Us, Waxhaw, NC
10 Texas Outback Cookers, Monroe, NC
11 Chubby's BBQ, Monroe, NC
12 Smokin' Good, Fort Mill, SC
13 Rock Store BBQ, Indian Trail, NC
14 521 BBQ, Indian Land, SC
15 Just Good, Inc., Monroe, NC
16 Jo's Jo's Backyard BBQ, Monroe, NC

Waxhaw Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff
October 8-9, 2011
People's Choice Award

Place Butts Team #
1 Carolinas BBQ Co., Hildebran, NC 9
2 Smokin' Good, Fort Mill, SC 15
3 Backwoods BBQ, Waxhaw, NC 1
4 The Sizzlin' Pigs, Monroe, NC 6
5 521 BBQ, Indian Land, SC 7
6 Butt's R Us, Waxhaw, NC 8
7 King B BBQ, Charlotte, NC 4
8 Butt Burners BBQ, Waxhaw, NC 3
Billy Bob Beamer BBQ, Waxhaw, NC 2
Meat and Heat, Waxhaw, NC 5
Chubby's BBQ, Monroe, NC 10
Kick'n & Grill'n, Waxhaw, NC 11
Palmetto Smokehouse, Greenwood, SC 12
Red, White and Que, Waxhaw, NC 13
Rock Store BBQ, Indian Trail, NC 14
Texas Outback Cookers, Monroe, NC 16
Up in Smoke, Rock Hill, SC 17

Place Ribs Team #
1 Carolinas BBQ Co., Hildebran, NC 9
2 Butt Burners BBQ, Waxhaw, NC 3
3 Uncle Mac's BBQ Crue, Charlotte, NC 8
4* The Sizzlin' Pigs, Monroe, NC 6
4* 521 BBQ, Indian Land, SC 7
4* Chubby's BBQ, Monroe, NC 10
4* Red, White and Que, Waxhaw, NC 13
Backwoods BBQ, Waxhaw, NC 1
Billy Bob Beamer BBQ, Waxhaw, NC 2
King B BBQ, Charlotte, NC 4
Meat and Heat, Waxhaw, NC 5
Kick'n & Grill'n, Waxhaw, NC 11
Palmetto Smokehouse, Greenwood, SC 12
Rock Store BBQ, Indian Trail, NC 14
Smokin' Good, Fort Mill, SC 15
Texas Outback Cookers, Monroe, NC 16

*Four way tie for 4th place

Waxhaw Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cookoff
October 8-9, 2011
Kansas City BBQ Society Backyard Results

Place Overall
1 The Sizzlin' Pigs, Monroe, NC
2 Butt Burners BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
3 Meat and Heat, Waxhaw, NC
4 Backwoods BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
5 King B BBQ, Charlotte, NC
6 Billy Bob Beamer BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
7 Somerset Smokers, Waxhaw, NC

Place Pork Ribs
1 The Sizzlin' Pigs, Monroe, NC
2 King B BBQ, Charlotte, NC
3 Butt Burners BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
4 Meat and Heat, Waxhaw, NC
5 Backwoods BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
6 Billy Bob Beamer BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
7 Somerset Smokers, Waxhaw, NC

Place Pork
1 Somerset Smokers, Waxhaw, NC
2 Backwoods BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
3 Butt Burners BBQ, Waxhaw, NC
4 Meat and Heat, Waxhaw, NC
5 The Sizzlin Pigs, Monroe, NC
6 King B BBQ, Charlotte, NC
7 Billy Bob Beamer BBQ, Waxhaw, NC

I wish I could've been there.

UPDATE: Rick's apparently on the roof

2011-10-14T12:59:00.003-04:00

But still no Facebook pictures?!

What the heck is everyone doing in Waxhaw today? Make yourselves useful.

On a serious note, I've already touched upon Rick Giarla's efforts this weekend and urge you to contribute if you can spare a dime or preferably more. He's set a hefty goal, so it be nice to reach it or at least come as close to it as we can. Hopefully the entirety of the county chips in on this fundraiser as it benefits students from across the county, not just those from Waxhaw.

Here's the page to do it.

The Union County Weekly wrote up an article on this fundraiser, providing some specifics about how the money will be spent. A snippet:

Giarla will be on top of Stacks from 8 a.m. Friday to 8 a.m. Monday, while volunteers work down below, collecting donations. He hopes to raise $30,000 for the school. That would allow South Providence to buy eight Smart Boards for the classrooms at $3,400 each and two dozen TI 83 calculators at $85 each.

Read the whole thing.

UPDATE 8.58p: It appears that Jim Black is on the case and has some pictures up now on Facebook.

Another candidate page discovered

2011-10-14T12:19:00.000-04:00

I discovered yet another candidate's campaign page, this time mayoral candidate and former Waxhaw mayor, Gary Underwood.

He has a Facebook campaign page set up.

Here's the latest links to all the campaign pages in the order I found them:

Mayor: Lisa Thornton / Daune Gardner / Gary Underwood

Town board: Martin Lane / Sean Poccia / Phillip Gregory / Mike Stewart

As far as I can tell, candidates without links do not have a campaign web page set up. If anyone is aware of campaign pages for Phillip Gregory or Mike Stewart, drop me an email.

Fox's Pizza Deal

2011-10-14T08:04:00.004-04:00

Fox's Pizza is offering a pretty good deal right now on Eversave, a Groupon-like site. For those of us who enjoy their pizza (or those of you thinking of trying it), it seems like a no-brainer. EverSave is not as widely known as Groupon, but I've gotten a couple things from them in the past, so you can feel confident in using it if the deals interests you.

$10 for $20 worth of food and drinks at Fox's Pizza Den

There's another 4 and a half days left on this deal, so by my calculations you have until end-of-day Monday 10/17 to take advantage.

Too bad they didn't run this deal one day sooner as I had $5 EverSave bucks that expired one day prior, which would've given me $20 worth of Fox's Pizza stuff for only $5. I haven't yet decided if this is enough of a transgression to make my enemies list or not (EverSave, not Fox's Pizza).

I'd also like to add that Fox's Pizza has got to be the best local Waxhaw restaurant (or any business for that matter) to participate in programs that allow their customers to save money. I've blogged about their past participation in restaurant.com and their past Groupon we missed out on. No other business in Waxhaw has embraced social buying and other customer money-saving programs like Fox's Pizza, so hopefully it helps them expand their business.

Museum of the Waxhaws follow-up

2011-10-13T22:20:00.001-04:00

This is extremely belated on my part, but the Union County Weekly ran a follow up to the investigation into the Museum of the Waxhaws. (I blogged about this here, here, here, and here.)

The Cliff's Note version: the Secretary of State has closed its investigation into the Museum of the Waxhaws, but forwarded the complaints onto the Attorney General, so apparently there was enough differences between the tax documents and the complaints that they felt the need to pass it along to the Attorney General. Or at least that's the way I read it.

For example, this snippets below suggests that at the very least not all the required financial information was included on their tax forms that should have been:

Union County Weekly obtained copies of both written complaints and the investigation report. The first complaint, dated April 6, pointed out that the Andrew Jackson Historical Society, the parent group that operates the museum, had two significant grants provided to them in excess of $200,000, as well as several smaller grants. Yet in the six day investigation that followed, department officials said they couldn’t find any evidence the museum had received state funds.

...

Proctor said the investigators missed that information because it wasn’t listed in the museum’s 990 tax return for those years.

“The 990 forms didn’t specify any grant money,” Proctor said. “(The investigators) were just able to look over what we received from the nonprofit.”

If anyone gleaned any other information from this article, feel free to share. I'm not ashamed to admit this is all a little confusing to me.

I've yet to hear any definitive results as to whether the Attorney General felt the need to pursue an investigation or not. If I hear anything more definitive, I will pass it along.

For what it's worth, apparently four complaints were made against the Museum of the Waxhaws, one of them originating from the since terminated Scott Farb.

Dorothy Maloney = video star?

2011-10-13T20:55:00.000-04:00

I mentioned last week that Dorothy Maloney is back and I wasn't kidding.

She's now gone multimedia, showing up on Jim Black's "Land of the Waxhaws."

Somewhat local Groupon

2011-10-12T23:19:00.001-04:00

Not in Waxhaw mind you, but in Monroe.

It's a deal for a winery tour at the Treehouse Vineyards for 2, 4, or 6 people.

I bought the 6-person version figuring it'd be a fun little trip to drag some friends along with us. So if you're friends with us, then you might want to consider buttering my wife and I up if you want to be selected as one of the exclusives guests to accompany us on this Groupon outing.

The specifics:

For $12, you get a winery tour for two, plus one take-home bottle of wine (a $25 value).
For $22, you get a winery tour for four, plus two take-home bottles of wine (a $50 value).
For $30, you get a winery tour for six, plus three take-home bottles of wine (a $75 value).

The winery-tour outing includes:

* A tour of the vineyard
* A wine tasting
* Wine glasses for each guest

This deal lasts through tomorrow so you've got about 24 hour to take advantage of it if you're interested.

Latest Gazette

2011-10-12T23:06:00.001-04:00

John Tiley has another issue of the Waxhaw Gazette up now.

In Waxhaw-related news:

* Another mention of the fact he's only spoken with one of the mayoral candidates.
* He also publishes what appears to be Daune Gardner's letter to the editor (originally featured in the Union County Weekly). He's got in a handy-dandy one-page format for those who still haven't read it.

There's also an article on the ongoing Occupy Wall Street (and related) protests where John appears to approve of the ragtag bunch of hipster protestors and their wide-ranging demands, ranging from higher education being a human right. I personally don't see how they can be taken very seriously. There is much evidence this is just the latest attempt by the left to replicate the more conservative Tea Party, including the Occupy groups hodge-podge of historically liberal complaints and lack of protesting at the source.

Much of their complaints revolve around big business getting its hooks in government, but they've yet to ~~protest~~ occupy the very government that beds itself with big business. Strange. Especially since the head of the current administration has taken in more Wall Street money than any politician in the last 20 years. That's a lot of politicians he's one-upped with Wall Street money.

Don't forget the historic walk!

2011-10-12T22:31:00.000-04:00

Just another reminder that Joyce Blythe and Melvin Faris are doing a historic walk this Saturday. She has a letter to the editor in the latest issue of the Union County Weekly to remind everyone.

Her description:

Waxhaw native Melvin Faris will be joining me again. He is a walking wealth of information when it comes to reminiscing about his boyhood days in Waxhaw. He will tell you about going to the “moving picture show” and the day he played hooky from school because he heard the town depot was being moved. A momentous occasion that he wasn’t about to miss.

We will share some early turn of the century history of Waxhaw springing to life after the railroad came through, and the town was incorporated. We’ll even go back a bit further and tell you a little something about the Waxhaw Indians and young Andy Jackson.

Now, we don’t claim to know all there is to know about Waxhaw’s history, but we’ll share some of the things we do know.

Read the whole thing for all the details.

The big question is what exactly does Joyce Blythe have against WAA families? Other than the historic walk she kindly did for some local Cub Scouts, it seems like every other walk has been scheduled during baseball season. And we've always got a game.

How can one become well-versed in local history if you cannot attend these walks?

Diary of John Osborne cont.

2011-10-12T22:19:00.000-04:00

Scott Farb shares another portion of the diary of John Osborne in last Friday's issue of the Union County Weekly. The first column featuring excerpts from John Osborne's diary was mentioned here.

Both are definitely worth checking out if you have any interest in local history.

How was the festival weekend?

2011-10-12T21:55:00.002-04:00

We were out of town last weekend so we missed Autumn Treasures, the associated BBQ cookoff, and whatever other numerous events were going on.

I hope everyone had as good a time in Waxhaw as we had at the beach. We stayed at a place called Dunes Village which featured an indoor water park, besides the beach that was a stone's throw away. The kids absolutely loved it.

In fact, my youngest told me this evening he liked Myrtle Beach better than Waxhaw. Waxhaw's going to have to work pretty hard to win him back.

Sorry for killing your son

2011-10-11T23:45:00.001-04:00

This is somewhat strange story. Samir Khan at one time was a Charlotte supporter of Al Qaeda. He was discovered a few years ago and lived in Charlotte as an outed supporter of jihad for some time.

I eventually read that he had traveled to Yemen, which has become something of a haven for Al Qaeda and its offshoot, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsular (AQAP).

Another traitorous American, Anwar al-Awlaki, was the leader of this branch of Al Qaeda. Well, apparently these two hooked up and Samir Khan was killed in the strike that took out Anwar al-Awlaki.

Well, the State Department has now called the Khan family to apologize, per a Charlotte Observer article.

See here for some more details. If you want to see the text of the "I Am Proud to be a Traitor to America" article illustrated at the previous link, it appears to be intact here.

It seems odd to apologize to his family given how he openly aligned himself with Al Qaeda, but I suppose that's a consequence of him being an American citizen taken out by an American strike authorized by our president. I can only assume it's a disingenuous apology precipitated by legal and/or political concerns.

Leo's Kitchen coupon

2011-10-11T23:21:00.001-04:00

Just a quick note that we received some Leo's Kitchen (mentioned earlier here) coupons last week in the mail before the store has even opened. Other local restaurants should take notes as Leo's Kitchen is putting you all to shame.

They came in one of those Valupack (or some other similar sounding name) that come periodically in the mail. One of those things where the vast majority get thrown in the trash, but there's one or two worth holding onto if you spend the time to look through them all.

And I can't find the coupon either at this point, so hopefully my wife didn't throw it out. If she did, she's well on her way to making a very powerful enemy.

Meet the potential mayors

2011-10-07T14:13:00.001-04:00

The Union County Weekly Q & A with the Waxhaw mayoral candidates is now live, so go check it out.

I haven't had time to read through it yet, but will have to do so later.

Heartache

2011-10-06T23:18:00.001-04:00

I got an email today from 'til-now-elusive town board candidate Sean Poccia and I'm sad to say that there appears to be no such thing as a "green" candidate in Waxhaw anymore. Sean has informed me that his campaign signs are now in and have started going up around town.

I'm still waiting for the first Waxhaw candidate to offer up a campaign sign for the proposed campaign sign garden I've yet to speak with my wife about. Could Sean be the first? The mayor or Lisa Thornton? Another? I'm on pins and needles here.

On another note, Sean provided me with his website, so if you'd like to learn a little more about him, pay it a visit. See here for links to the other candidates' pages I'm aware of.

Yet another WAA volunteer update

2011-10-06T21:29:00.001-04:00

Rick Giarla sent out another update to WAA members. Here it is:

I promise, this will be my last plea for help. We were just made aware (today) that because of the large turnout that the Town of Waxhaw is expecting for this weekends Autumn Treasures event, they are asking for 24 more volunteers to serve as "block captains" on Saturday to answer questions and give directions to the various venus offered to the public. If you've had a change of plans for the weekend and find that you can give a few hours of your time on Saturday, please go to http://www.signupgenius.com/go/autumn14 and choose one of the available time slots. WAA stands to gain $7,000.00-$8,000.00 from our willingness to volunteer this weekend and I personally will be forever grateful. Thanks so much!

Nice of the town to drop this on the WAA at hte eleventh hour.

Adding the 24 new volunteers needed to the slots still unfilled, the WAA now needs 58 volunteers. So if you've got the wherewithal to volunteer, there's basically one more day left to give Rick and the WAA a hand. Please sign up if you can.

This will probably be my last plea for help as well.

In other Rick-related charity news, you can contribute to his South Providence school fundraiser here. Not many have contributed thus far and $30000 is quite a goal nowadays. Hopefully some local businesses can contribute to help him get closer to his goal.

Dorothy Maloney back

2011-10-06T14:45:00.001-04:00

In print. And badder than ever, I suppose.

With the untimely death of the Waxhaw Exchange, I thought we'd seen the last of Dorothy Maloney, Waxhaw's social columnist. But at the Enquirer-Journal's site the other day, I discovered that her column has been resurrected there.

Read the whole thing if interested.

The highlight is that Commissioner Joyce Blythe is giving another town historic walk. The snippet:

Saturday, October 15th at 10:00 a.m., is the date Town of Waxhaw Commissioner Joyce Blythe, and Melvin Faris have scheduled their Historic Tour of Waxhaw. If you have not had the pleasure of one of these tours, you should not miss this one. Both Joyce and Melvin are superb tour guides. The tour takes about an hour and a quarter, starting at the Waxhaw Methodist Church. You will truly not regret attending this tour. Just show up at 10:00 a.m. on October 15th.

But once again, our schedule prohibits me from attending.

More on presidential candidates coming into town

2011-10-05T23:36:00.000-04:00

The Union County Weekly had an article in last week's issue talking about mayoral candidate Lisa Thornton and cohorts bringing in Michelle Bachmann.

A snippet:

Bachmann traveled to Union for a fundraising breakfast at the France home, speaking with Steward, mayoral candidate Thornton and others who came out. The event came about through Jason Lambert, founder of Right Strategy, who said he hopes to bring all the presidential candidates through Union.

I've got an email out to Lisa to see if any other presidential candidates are in the pipeline to make a stop in Waxhaw. My thumbs are crossed that more can be convinced to make a quick stop in our humble little burg.

Read the whole thing.

First Friday

2011-10-05T23:29:00.000-04:00

With the Autumn Treasures festival going on this weekend, it might be easy to forget that First Friday is upon us again.

Most of you are probably thinking 'Ho hum, another First Friday.' But no, a couple differences that stand out:

* Main Street Grill is offering a full menu this time around.

* Maxwell's Tavern is having a Pint Night, offering free glasses with purchases of their seasonal brew Mecktoberfest.

Good times.

Chip in for South Providence

2011-10-05T23:10:00.001-04:00

I mentioned Rick Giarla's rooftop adventure atop of Stack's Kitchen. (Is that my best headline yet? I was pretty happy with it for what it's worth.)

He's looking to raise $30000 for South Providence school in Waxhaw near the library.

For those looking to contribute to the cause, a site has been set up to make it awful convenient to support the cause. Visit and contribute what you can.

By the way, the WAA still needs volunteers this weekend. Sign up and lend a hand (and score some BBQ at the same time.)

Local campaigns

2011-10-04T23:20:00.003-04:00

Some more election-related observations:

* In my earlier observations, I noted that Lisa Thornton was the greenest candidate since I hadn't seen her signs out and about. But she's now passed the torch to Sean Poccia, supposed candidate for the town board, the now greenest candidate since he appears to be the only remaining Waxhaw candidate without political signs.

* Per Brian Carlton at the Union County Weekly, all the local candidates will be completing a questionnaire that should hopefully run next week. That should be interesting in getting to know all the candidates and especially the lesser known candidates.

* Lisa Thornton plans to provide the Union County Weekly with a introductory column like the incumbent's that ran in earlier issues. Will it run this Friday? We shall have to wait and see.

* The idea to have a campaign sign garden in my yard popped into my head today, perhaps much to my wife's and neighbors' chagrin. It's probably been done before, but I thought it sounded like a neat idea, especially since I've never ever had a single campaign sign in my yard before.

Of course, I'd need to get my hands on signs from all the candidates. Do candidates normally have enough signs to donate to the cause or do they essentially become a pseudo-currency around this time? From what I can tell, this would not violate the town's campaign sign ordinance (PDF) in any way. If any candidates want to donate a unique sign to the garden, drop me an email.

* My kids have taken to pointing out campaign signs as we drive. They made a point to tell me there was a Daune Gardner sign in our neighborhood the other day. I can only imagine how excited they'll be to see their first Sean Poccia sign.

UPDATE 10/20: Fixed two typos.

Update on WAA volunteers

2011-10-04T21:45:00.003-04:00

Rick Giarla sent out another email to WAA parents requesting volunteers for the BBQ cook-off this weekend at the Autumn Treasures festival, previously mentioned here.

I'd estimate 20 volunteers signed up today, but by my count, 47 more are still needed.

Twenty out of forty tasting servers are still needed for 12.30p-3.00p on Sunday.

Twenty-one out of forty servers/clean up persons are needed for the 3.00p-5.30p shift on Sunday as well.

So if you can spare a small shift, either in one of the aforementioned shifts or the other slots where someone is needed, please sign up.

UPDATE 10/5: It's just updates on top of updates here at the Broome Street Blues. As of 12.42p, only 39 volunteers needed with a couple more days left to fill the slots. Keep 'em coming!

Hicks in stix support Rick on Stacks?

2011-10-04T00:18:00.001-04:00

I mentioned the help the WAA and Rick Giarla could use for the BBQ cook-off at Autumn Treasures. I also briefly touch upon Rick's latest feat for the community, but wanted to expand upon it with further details. From the WAA's Facebook page:

Beginning Friday, October 14th, South Providence will be hosting its largest fundraiser to date, thanks to the innovation and dedication of Waxhaw’s own, Rick Giarla. Rick became aware of the needs of South Providence through a conversation with Gale Smith, a custodian at the school. Gale has known Rick and his enthusiastic community involvement through Waxhaw Athletic Association, of which Rick is president. Gale approached Rick at the beginning of the school year in hopes he could somehow help the school acquire some technological needs such as Smartboards. Being a supporter of the community and students alike, Rick was up for the challenge.

Rick has served as PTO president of Waxhaw elementary as well as Parkwood middle, but he saw this as an opportunity to help a school that serves students across Union County. “I can make a difference and help South Providence get the same technology that the more affluent schools receive.” Rick met with Barry Ross, principal of South Providence for coffee in Waxhaw where they discussed the needs of the school and how Rick could help. The idea of “Sitting for South Providence” was born!

Rick fashioned the concept of people around the county, sponsoring him with donations as he spent the weekend atop a local Waxhaw establishment. He spoke with the owner of Stacks restaurant on Providence Road and the two agreed that the restaurant was the perfect location. George, the owner, even offered to feed Rick for the duration of his stay on the roof. The only task left to do was to get the word out and attract supporters for the cause. “The key to success here is getting all Union County schools behind it” Rick stated. He has a goal in mind of raising $30,000 for South Providence and is hoping that the community backs up his effort.

Rick will start his crusade at 8am Friday, October 14th and hopes to make it through the weekend, coming down from the roof at 8am Monday, October 17th. Staff members from South Providence will be rotating in shifts in from of Stacks throughout the weekend, collecting donations and showing their support for the cause. We are hoping for a great turn out and would love to see you there, supporting some of the best students from around the county. “These kids are just like any other kid, they deserve the same benefits.”

As if you needed another reason to support Rick efforts for the South Providence school or the for the WAA at the BBQ cook-off, I'll provide you with a brief personal take, a story I rarely share. My oldest had just signed up for tee ball in the WAA a few years ago, attending a handful of practices if memory serves. Complaining of headaches, he had an MRI that discovered a golf-ball sized tumor in his brain. He was immediately admitted to the hospital and underwent emergency surgery to remove the tumor.

Post surgery, a stranger showed up with balloons (a baseball balloon was tucked in there as well) and it was Rick. Word must've filtered from our coach to Rick and he'd driven all the way from Waxhaw to Levine's Children's Hospital to deliver some balloons and wish our son, who he had never met, well. It made quite the impression on my wife and I.

I strongly suspect there's similar stories about Rick not yet told and my suspicion is that Rick likes it that way. I also suspect he wouldn't mind some support in his local fundraisers, such as this one or the BBQ cook-off supporting the WAA.

If Rick is supporting a cause, it's likely a cause worth supporting.

WAA needs volunteers!

2011-10-03T23:06:00.000-04:00

I mentioned earlier that the proceeds of this year's BBQ cook-off at the Autumn Treasures festival will benefit the Waxhaw Athletic Association. However, they need a lot of volunteers to assist with the BBQ cook-off.

So all WAA parents and supporters need to step up and spare a few hours if at all possible to help out. They've set up a sign-up sheet through signupgenius.com that makes it pretty convenient to lend a hand.

Perusing the list, it appears the biggest need is tasting servers on Sunday October 9th from 12.30p-3.00p and Servers/Clean-up people on Sunday October 9th 3.00p-5.30p. Please sign up and lend a hand. If there's a local organization other than schools that affects more local kids, I can't think of it it right now.

And donating your time to the WAA will also score you some BBQ. Rick Giarla sent an email out explaining the details:

We were just notified that ALL volunteers at this event will receive $10 in tickets to be used at the BBQ Cook-off Public Tasting on Sunday, October 9 from 1:30-4:30pm. So, when you think about it, you are getting PAID to VOLUNTEER!

I suspect there's a lot of people who can pull themselves away from Autumn Treasures for a few hours to benefit a local organization and to score some free BBQ, so please sign-up as soon as possible.

If not for the kids, then do it to help out Rick Giarla who has done tons for this community. He needs his energy for the next weekend when he plans to spend a weekend on the roof of Stack's Kitchen to benefit the South Providence school in Waxhaw proper. He needs his energy for that task rather than running around harried filling in for a lack of volunteers during Autumn Treasures. Please sign up today to lend a hand!

Ribbon cuttings

2011-09-29T23:36:00.001-04:00

John Anderson in the Charlotte Observer touches on all the ribbon cuttings occurring this weekend, including Kim's Curtains (near Snap Fitness), BP Fill Good Gas Station (near Lowe's), and last but not least, Rock Store BBQ (near Lowe's with BP Fill Good Gas Station).

To end this on a BBQ-related note, how does Rock Store BBQ compare to 521 BBQ & Grill? I haven't been there yet. Do they serve mac & cheese? How are the hush puppies?

Anti-Food Lion movement taking foot

2011-09-29T23:04:00.000-04:00

I blogged about the potential new Food Lion here and here.

WCNC has a story on nearby residents attempting to organize to keep the Food Lion from commercializing the property they purchased. A couple snippets:

WAXHAW, N.C. -- Neighbors are banding together in Waxhaw to fight against Food Lion turning 33 acres into commercial property. Right now, the company can't build on the property because it’s zoned for residential use.

...

The property was annexed into Waxhaw, which gives a 60 day window to place a zoning on it. Right now it's zoned for residential property, but down the road neighbors are expecting Food Lion to ask for commercial zoning so they can build a strip mall with a grocery store.

...

NewsChannel 36 reached out to Food Lion and they said they have no current plans to start commercial building. Even if the commission votes to keep it residential on October 11, Food Lion can later petition for re-zoning if they want to start commercial building.

Read the whole thing.

The arguments against as quoted in the article seem to slightly contradict each other. On one hand, commercialization of the property will introduce all kinds of problems, but on the other hand, they're not necessarily against commercial development. Regardless, it seems like Food Lion is in no hurry to push the matter and since they already own the property, I guess they can bide their time.

Bad first date?

2011-09-29T14:22:00.001-04:00

I guess this would qualify as such.

Lori linked to this story of a Waxhaw man accidentally shooting himself on a first date over on Facebook that led to a wave of dating related one-liners from commenters.

Weirdcrime.net (of course there's a website devoted to weird crimes; why wouldn't there be?) has some more details that appears to be straight from the police report.

“The victim advised that he was reaching for his gun which was chained up in a bicycle lock underneath the car seat,” a Charlotte police report said. “The victim advised that the gun accidentally went off as he was pulling on the gun which shot him in the left leg.”

NC gov not the jokester she claims to be

2011-09-29T14:11:00.000-04:00

When speaking to the Rotary Club earlier this week, NC governor Bev Perdue suggested we suspend Congressional elections for two years. Her complete statement: (my emphasis)

"You have to have more ability from Congress, I think, to work together and to get over the partisan bickering and focus on fixing things. I think we ought to suspend, perhaps, elections for Congress for two years and just tell them we won't hold it against them, whatever decisions they make, to just let them help this country recover. I really hope that someone can agree with me on that. The one good thing about Raleigh is that for so many years we worked across party lines. It's a little bit more contentious now but it's not impossible to try to do what's right in this state. You want people who don't worry about the next election."

The News & Observer, despite being there and having a recording of the proceedings, reported it as a joke as claimed by Perdue spokeswoman Chris Mackey.

The recording, found within this Daily Caller article, illustrates quite clearly that Bev Perdue was not joking despite the claims of her spokeswoman

It's not particularly surprising a politician like Bev Perdue, herself at the mercy of the voters, would come up with an (unconstitutional?) idea like suspending elections in an effort to shield politicians from accountability for their decisions.

Plaza Fiesta playground deal

2011-09-29T12:06:00.001-04:00

This is a little outside of town, but for anyone who likes to take their kids to the giant indoor playground at Plaza Fiesta Carolinas near Carowinds, there's a half-off deal running right now in Juice in the City, a Groupon-like website.

$4 for 2 Child Admissions to Happy Zone at Plaza Fiesta

While you won't achieve massive savings from the deal, it will give you a little extra money to spend in the nearby arcade afterwards if you choose.

It appears this deal runs for the next 3.5 days for those interested.

More on local campaigns

2011-09-27T22:56:00.000-04:00

In campaign news:

* Signs for the mayoral race are now out and about. I've seen signs promoting Mayor Gardner scattered strategically throughout town. I even saw a 'Gary Underwood for Mayor' sign or two out there, so I guess he's still running. I haven't seen any signs for Lisa Thornton yet, so I guess that means she's the greenest candidate out there in the mayoral race.

* Election and re-election Facebook pages are now coming out of the woodwork.

Lisa Thornton / Daune Gardner / Martin Lane

Follow the links to check them out. If I become of other candidates' pages, I will update.

* Any word from candidates Mike Stewart and/or Sean Poccia? With the exception of a sign for Mike, I haven't seen anything from these two, who are running for town commissioner. If I'm not mistaken, I believe that Daune Gardner endorsed one of them a while back on her Facebook page, but I can't remember which one and don't have the superhuman fortitude that would be required to slowly work my way back page by page through all her posts to find out which one. The downsides of having a social network-savvy mayor, I suppose.

Barnful of Quilts

2011-09-27T22:24:00.000-04:00

When we first moved to Waxhaw, the first event we attended was Barnful of Quilts if my memory serves. We haven't been back since mainly due to scheduling issues.

I'm not a quilt connoisseur by any means, but I must say the quilts on display were pretty impressive. It's coming up again the same weekend of Autumn Treasures on October 8th, so perhaps you can find the time to check it out at the Fox Family Farm.

Land of the Waxhaws

2011-09-27T18:45:00.000-04:00

Jim Black continues to churn out more videos than I can watch with his online Land of the Waxhaws video show. While the earlier iteration of the show seemed more like the Daune Gardner show given her frequent appearances, it appears Town Manager Mike McLaurin has scratched and clawed up to co-headliner status as he has appeared in a number of recent clips. No word on how the mayor is taking this.

Seriously speaking, there's probably some decent info in these clips for those interested, so check them out if you've got some time to burn.

One suggestion for Jim since election season is coming up: why not give all the various candidates a forum to discuss their thoughts on Waxhaw and what they hope to accomplish if they get elected? Currently only Daune has been able to expound on a given topic and it'd be nice to hear what the other candidates have to say as well. Perhaps he has already invited the other candidates to do so, but if no, I feel this is well worth looking into as it will be a benefit to Waxhaw voters.

On a sidenote, I joined the Land of the Waxhaws Facebook group but had to remove myself from it due to the sheer clutter. I signed up to learn when new video clips were available, but the group was in my opinion overrun by inspirational quotes, citizens of the world, and things having little if anything to do with Waxhaw. Not for me and my already cluttered Facebook page.

NC BBQ makes national headlines

2011-09-27T16:44:00.001-04:00

No, my post on Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cook-Off needing more judges hasn't yet gone viral. That is equal parts unfortunate and inexplicable.

No, the national headlines surround a years ago incident when presidential candidate Rick Perry put his foot in his mouth about North Carolina BBQ no less. Referring to some Eastern NC BBQ, he was quoted as saying "I've had road kill that tasted better than that," which of course doesn't sit well with those who take their BBQ seriously.

The whole article in the LA Times is an entertaining read filled with lots of good barbs and one-liners; check it out.

Waxhaw GIS

2011-09-27T13:34:00.002-04:00

Waxhaw introduced a web-based GIS (geographic information system) a few months back. The blurb from the town's web site:

The Town of Waxhaw is proud to announce that we now offer web-based GIS mapping through ConnectGIS. You can access this information at http://waxhaw.connectgis.com. This service allows you to look up property information, topography, zoning, future land use designations and view aerial photography. You can also print maps from the website that contain only the information you find useful. In the coming months, staff will be adding information such as floodplain data, subdivision data, sidewalks and other planned pedestrian infrastructure. If you have any questions about the website or if you have any ideas about the information that you would find helpful, please contact Katie Ross at kross@waxhaw.com or 704-843-2195 Ext. 238.

This sounds like a useful idea for the limited handful of people who need or would like access to this type of information. However, those with too many people on their enemies list may not like the fact that a homeowner's address can be easily obtained by those up to no good.

Although it's probably not worth worrying about since unfortunately that information is likely online on numerous other places.

Tuesday pint nights @ Maxwell's

2011-09-27T12:14:00.000-04:00

Per a Facebook update, every Tuesday will be a Stella pint night starting tonight.

EVERY Tuesday...Stella Pint Night! Buy a pint of Stella Artois on draft, and keep the glass! Starting today!

They had me at "keep the glass." What can I say? I'm a simple man.

Unfortunately, Tuesday's aren't very convenient for me with Cub Scout and other duties, so I'm not sure when I'll be able to score myself a Stella glass. I may have to make some time the next few weeks.

89 people in Waxhaw

2011-09-26T23:25:00.001-04:00

According to one of the many emails I get inundated with from the Barack Obama campaign, 89 people from Waxhaw have thus far donated to the Obama campaign.

Given the sheer number of emails they send out and the fact this latest was asking for a donation of a mere $3, they may be getting a little desperate.

Since this post is somewhat political in nature, here's a funny video on a rather lame attackwatch.com website created by the Obama campaign:

BBQ judges needed

2011-09-26T14:17:00.001-04:00

From the town's Facebook page:

We are looking for folks that might be interested in judging our Grill'n & Chill'n BBQ Cook-off sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) on Sunday, October 9. KCBS prefers their own judges, but right now we may be short a few. It's a tough job, but someone has to do it!. You would get a little training before hand and would be required to attend from 9:30am-1pm on Sunday. Please e-mail Cathy at events@waxhaw.com if interested.

Here's a testimonial on the fun from one of last year's judges, Martin Lane: "Nothing to it. I would love to do it again, but won't be in town until that afternoon. Let me give you all the low down. You show up at 9:30. The guy tells you to pick your favorite, then you eat free BBQ until lunch time. You get some cool stuff and all the leftovers, then you go home. Seriously, its that easy."

I'm sure there will be lots of interest in free BBQ so get your email in to Cathy ASAP if you want to be considered and more importantly if you can be a fair and evenhanded arbiter in this competition.

And if you fail to be selected due to plain bad luck or some town conspiracy, both nefarious and nebulus, you can still come out and sink your teeth into some excellent BBQ for a good cause. I hear this year the money raised benefit the Waxhaw Athletics Association (WAA).

Blogger meets mayor

2011-09-26T13:16:00.001-04:00

I'm not sure this qualifies as blog-worthy news, but it was a pleasure to finally meet the mayor this weekend. She showed up at the Cub Scouts first campout this weekend and the pack leader was giving her a tour of the arena where we set up tents.

Due to baseball games, I was a late arrival, working with my youngest to get the tent up before a shower came through.

I introduced myself and had to tell her a couple times that I did "the blog," but she soon realized who I was. It was an altogether nice but brief experience except for the fact that neither the pack leader nor the mayor offered to help us set up the tent up.

I'd like to tell you my youngest said "Daddy, why is the mayor and pack leader not offering to help us before the rains come?" with a forlorn look in his eyes as they turned their backs on us to walk away, but to be honest he didn't say that.

I can't think of a better way to earn my vote than to get down in the mud and help me get my tent set up. Failing that there's always warm freshly baked cookies.

Regardless, my 5-year old and I were able to help another first-time camper get their tent set up before finishing our tent just as the rain arrived.

Young & Polite LivingSocial deal

2011-09-26T09:54:00.002-04:00

For those area folks looking for a children's dentist, Young & Polite is offering a deal on LivingSocial for the next six days.

Comprehensive Exam, Cleaning, up to Two X-Rays, Oral Hygiene Instruction, and Nutritional Counseling for $70

Follow the link if you're interested.