Preventing Christmas tree fires

December 13, 2008 |

If you are purchasing a fresh Christmas tree, there are several tips that can prolong the life of your tree and prevent fires that can occur with live trees.

First,remember that most trees you buy precut were cut days or weeks, sometimes a month earlier, which can make “freshness” a moot point. Unless you cut your own at a local tree farm, freshness is not guaranteed.

Choose the freshest, greenest tree you can find, one with crisp moist needles. Shake the tree: if a lot of pine needles fall, the tree may be past prime for home decoration.  Leave the tree outside or in a cold garage until you”re ready to decorate it. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: News | No Comments

A writer’s calendar in review

By Turner McCullough Jr. | December 13, 2008 |

The past several months have provided a wealth of images and topics to be covered. Local and regional interests have drawn my attention, eye and words to their descriptive influences.

I thought it a fitting action to showcase the ninety or more days of news coverage to give you, our readers, a glimpse at just how much effort goes into bringing you information and news of your world. Not every image presented here will have been previously included in a published news story. Some of these images are background material and some are just for visual impression. Often we see things which are inspirational, if not exactly newsworthy or pertinent to the immediate story. They have to wait for special coverage like this to have their day. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Events, Opinion | 1 Comment »

The Day the Earth fell flat on its face

By David W. Shelton | December 13, 2008 |

To say that The Day the Earth Stood Still (hereafter DTESS) missed the point is the biggest understatement since a NASA official droned “Obviously a major malfunction” after the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger. Clearly, this is a film that has the dire hope that no one who watches it will have any memory of the 1951 classic of the same name. For those who have never seen the original, they might find themselves quietly wondering if something was missing from this film. In fact, if you’ve never seen the original, just stop reading right now and see the film at your own risk.

For the rest of us, though, this film represents everything that’s not only wrong with modern disaster films, but with American culture itself. DTESS clearly has a lofty series of goals it hopes to accomplish, yet achieves nothing more than one abject failure after another. It’s so bad that I found myself pulling my hair out, wondering why the hell I even bothered.

Surprisingly, very little of the blame can be squared against Keanu Reeves, who plays essentially the same character he’s done for the last dozen or so films. Distant and aloof? Check. Emotionless? Check. Superhero powers? Check. Acting ability? None needed. Perfect! He seems to be drawn to roles that have a not-so-subtle messianic nature to them – to the point that I’m beginning to wonder if he has a certain ego issue. Look for that oh-so-obvious walking on water. Yeah. He’s here to save the earth, but not the people on it. Hallelujah. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Arts and Leisure, Opinion | 2 Comments

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