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Thumbs up
To those in the community who have helped the United Fund of Surry reach 90 percent of its goal. This is a great accomplishment with a goal of $525,000, and in an economy and time when many are struggling to make ends meet. Please keep up the hard work, and it’s not too late to give for those who want to put a few dollars into the effort that will reach 26 member agencies who receive funding from the United Fund. We want to see the goal rea...
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Trust me, I don’t pass counterfeit currency!
I might be many things, but one thing I certainly am not is a counterfeiter. Yet you wouldn’t know that by the reaction I sometimes get when making purchases at various local businesses, especially when using a $20 bill. The person taking the money sometimes will hold it up to the light and also might mark on it with one of those pens that supposedly determines whether it is fake or not. Maybe I’m not being singled out — many of you mig...
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A taste of candy
It was just one little piece of candy, neatly wrapped in bright, colorful paper. As I put on my coat, I found it in my pocket. It had been given to me a while ago, a small reminder of a time I had left but never really forgotten. I sat the candy on a nearby table and went about my business. As the day progressed, however, I couldn’t help but think more about the candy and what it represented. I thought about when, where, why and how I r...
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‘Diners, Drive-ins and Dives’ Mount Airy-style
Many people who know me well will tell you that I love to cook and my friends who know me very well will tell you that I watch entirely too much cooking on TV. That came in handy recently when I went to do a story about Snappy Lunch being featured on “NC Weekend” on PBS when I was recruited to eat a pork chop sandwich on camera. I think Guy Fieri would have been proud when I took a bite of that sandwich and gave, what I thought, was a very ...
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Do polticians with big money understand daily plights of those they represent?
According to several media reports, as of Monday Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich, the two front-runners in the race for the Republican presidential nomination, have spent nearly $19 million. On the Florida primary. Just on the Florida primary. While the overwhelming majority of that money has been spent by Romney (more than $15 million), Gingrich’s expenditures are equally astounding and highlights what politics in America have too often be...
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The new episode …
After sitting here staring at a blank page on the screen for the past four or five minutes, it has come to my attention that I really don’t have anything Earth-shattering to say. Usually in these situations I tend to gravitate toward telling people about the stupid things I’ve done. So here goes: After last week’s silly little missive regarding my visit to the Dairy Center I had a somewhat troubling call from owner Freddie Snow. He wanted...
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A solemn anniversary
I was a Star Trek kid. No, I didn’t see the Kirk-Spock-McCoy series in its original run. While I was around then, being just 4 when the show debuted meant I was a little young to watch. But as I grew older I watched syndicated reruns of the show whenever I could, counted the animated version of the series among my favorite Saturday cartoons, and read many Star Trek-based novels. Despite what some of my co-workers might say, I’m not a Trek...
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What exactly determines the price of gas?
I’m not a conspiracy theorist by any means, although I’m still trying to figure out how the UNC Tar Heels lost to Florida State by 33 points two weeks ago. But one thing that really makes me suspect that some kind of shenanigans are afoot in high places is the price of gasoline. Monitoring trends in fuel prices is a hobby of mine (I know, I need a life), and I have noted a peculiar pattern in the past few years which seems to be playing o...
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To the Greater Mount Airy Chamber of Commerce for putting on its annual meeting this week at Cross Creek Country Club
To the Greater Mount Airy Chamber of Commerce for putting on its annual meeting this week at Cross Creek Country Club. The gathering is always a success because of the hard work of the good folks at the Chamber. The dinner and meeting include a bit of inspiration and entertainment, the passing of the gavel to new leadership for the upcoming year, and most importantly it is when the Chamber bestows its annual Citizen of the Year Award. Thi...
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Foundation meeting a critical need in county
Once again this community has shown itself to be one whose people understand how to take care of their own. The struggling economy has hurt local school systems in two ways. First, significant funding reductions from state and federal sources have made the process of educating area youth more challenging. Second, more students are living in households which are struggling financially, meaning their ability to pay for and participate in some...
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PART project needs a few more details for public meetings
The Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation (PART) announced yesterday it will be holding a series of meetings around the region for public input into a project “designed to strengthen our communities and promote a sustainable future for our 12-county region.” That sounds fairly vague, and even after reading the rest of the organization’s statement announcing the project, the best we can determine is it has something to do with jobs,...
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Committing to the life change
When the opportunity arose, I went at it full force — or at least, medium force. The Armfield Civic Center is offering a 10-week Life Change Challenge boot camp, which costs a little more than my monthly membership, which I hadn’t used in more than a year, but continued to pay for. So I signed up, hoping the extra cash paid out will be extra incentive to stick to the program, which is to incorporate exercise and nutrition. And in week thr...
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Your chance to help shape YVEDDI plan
Public transportation is always a sticky subject. Few doubt the need for such services in large metro areas, but sometimes it is hard to build momentum for, not to mention funding, such services in more rural areas. The Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation is an example of one such service, which struggles with financing its operations. The Yadkin Valley Economic Development District Inc. (YVEDDI) is now looking at the possibili...
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Of Being Lost and Steak Grills
So last night at about 11 o’clock my roommate knocked on my door and told me that I needed to write a column today. Ummm, okay. That’s a great thing to tell someone when they’re trying to go to sleep! Since I don’t know enough about this area to have an actual opinion or talk about anything with any authority, I’ll just tell you what’s been going on in the Land of Strange since my last introductory column. —- Well, it didn’t take long...
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Thumbs up


To the city school board and the city commissioners for taking action to publicly honor Mount Airy High School for its recognition as a national Blue Ribbon School. When our schools and students do something good, no matter what school district it is, they should be recognized and honored for their hard work, whether that is academically or athletically. The high school’s recognition will now be noticeable to everyone coming in and out of t...
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