"You gotta respect my honesty"

Lyric game points for that. Just leave me a fb message/comment.

There was something I wanted to talk about…oh well. I’ll check the last blog in a minute and see if I can remember from there. Cause it was a good one. A really, really good one. I’m rather upset that I can’t remember it. Oh well. Time to check.

Well, darn, I can’t remember. Might’ve been some sort of music playing in the background.

I remember now! ELECTIONS!

That’s right, it’s that time of year for the Sumner County General election and US midterm primary. My buddy Zach is in full force campaigning for his candidates right now, and if you click on his name, I’m fairly certain his blog (on the inferior Wordpress) probably has some stronger opinions than I; he also regularly updates his Twitter, so if you want to follow him check that out (Be forewarned, he really enjoys your Right-wing “nonsense”---my words, his thought).

Anyway, we’re going to throw my endorsements under three main banners, and maybe use some subheadings if necessary. Hopefully, you’ll follow along.

SUMNER COUNTY GENERAL

School Board

This is an insanely important election for the Sumner County Board of Education. They will be determining the next Director of Schools, as Mr. Benny Bills, the current Director, is retiring from forty-something years of public service effective next summer. Mr. Bills and Mr. (Coach) Merrol Hyde, for whom my glorious Alma Mater is named and a personal mentor and friend of mine, are the only two Directors our county has known for the past thirty-plus years, so the fact that we are going in a completely new direction (there’s that Glee reference again!) is a big issue for the Board.

District One

This is a seat that’s been closely observed by the Hurdle family for some time, as Dad ran for it, albeit unsuccessfully, four years ago. The winner of that election, Mr. Mike Fussell, is a pretty good guy who goes to church with us; however, on the board, it’s apparent that he’s had several ulterior motives over his term, and hasn’t always had the students’ best interests in mind (Let it be known that I still like Mr. Fussell despite his school board endeavors). Mr. Fussell has decided it is no longer his place or desire to serve on the board, and thus is not running for reelection this year. The three candidates vying for his spot are lifetime Sumner resident and longtime attorney John Bradley; educator, husband of a local teacher, and father of an upcoming Kindergarten student, who has also earned a Ph.D., Andy Spears, and PTO president-elect and mother of two, Vanessa Silkwood.

Mr. Bradley, who is endorsed by Mr. Fussell and Nancy Thompson, the widow of late Hendersonville mayor and County executive RJ “Hank” Thompson, grew up in the county school system, and has a daughter who is a 2008 alumna of Hendersonville High School. He has been serving as an attorney for a local clientele for many years, and knows our county well. However, being supported by Mr. Fussell, many of us are concerned, and not without reasonable cause, that he will carry Mr. Fussell’s motives onto the board.

Mrs. Silkwood’s campaign treasurer is the respectable Brian Coulter, who’s been a youth minister for me and my peers for quite a while, as well as a good basketball coach. However, it’s not Brian that’s running for school board, so I’ll focus on Mrs. Silkwood for a minute. She is the president-elect of the Indian Lake PTO, and has two sons enrolled in the school (although one might be at Ellis Middle instead of both at ILE). Her big thing is her Conservative viewpoint, and I feel that implies that she really doesn’t have much else to bring to the table. Added to that the fact that I really have a hard time with radicals and radical-leaning Republicans as Mrs. Silkwood seems to be heading with her excessive touting of her political inclination, I don’t feel that she is a good fit for the board.

Mr. Spears, who is married to Mrs. Courtney Spears, the Theater teacher and (State winning) speech and forensics team coach at MHMS, is by far the most qualified candidate for the District One seat. With a Ph.D. in Education Policy, Mr. Spears has taught at several local universities. He is involved in the community as the President of the Sertoma club, as well as being endorsed by not only the teachers, but also the realtors, of Sumner County. He has served as Policy Director for the Stand for Children advocacy group, and has collaborated with Senator Frist and Governor Bredesen on educational issues. In addition to Mr. Spears’s manifold qualifications, he is also supported by my dad and Mr. Herman Lawson, both of whom ran for the District 1 seat in 2006. For these reasons, and, especially, the fact that he has a wife employed as a teacher and a daughter about to be a student of Sumner County Schools, I personally feel Andy Spears to be the best candidate for the seat. Oh, and did I mention he is a big advocate of communication and government transparency?

District Three

The incumbent of this District, covering the northern part of Hendersonville, Cages Bend, and Station Camp regions, is Assistant Mayor Don Long. He is officially running unopposed, but there is another candidate, Dave Andrews, who is campaigning as a write-in. The reason Mr. Andrews is running as a write-in and not an official balloted candidate is because the man who was running against Mr. Long was pressured, by all inclinations by the incumbent board member, out of the race. Therefore, Mr. Andrews was not able to turn in paperwork in time to be placed on the ballot, but he certainly has been gaining ground since declaring his intent to run. Mr. Andrews’s main priority in running against Mr. Long in District 3 is that he wishes to serve his constituents. He has no other motives than to be a servant to the members of his district and do what is best for them. This also means that, like Mr. Spears, he is for government transparency and communication between the board and the citizens. I feel that his reasons for running, compared with Mr. Long’s track record, make Dave Andrews, the District 3 write-in, the better choice. Because he is a write-in, make sure you correctly enter “DAVE ANDREWS” in the write-in box on your ballot on Thursday. (PS, the links lead to two different sites, Dave’s official campaign webpage, and his Facebook group)

District Five

This is Goodlettsville, Zach’s home, so he’s got a better argument for Shannon Dunn than the fact that Bill Ward is putting his signs outside of his district. That and Zach’s support are the only reasons I would prefer Ms. Dunn on the board. But, check out Zach’s blog and twitter, he’ll have more info for you there.

District Seven

I can’t tell you much about your candidates, Gallatin, but I like Andy Daniels in District 7. He is the father of an autistic child, and wants the special education of Sumner County to be more prevalent and available. He believes that everyone has a dream, and a right to achieve said dream. Furthermore, Mr. Daniels is an alum of the great Samford University. He also seems to have a clear focus of the Board’s focus. He is running against Mr. Jim Huffman—a retired minister who didn’t say anything memorable at a July 22 candidate forum, and who didn’t say hardly anything at all in the Gallatin News Examiner’s July 16 Election Guide—and Mr. Don Sadler, who didn’t even show up at the forum on the 22^nd. I would vote Daniels with my little knowledge of that race.

District Nine

This is blatantly simple, as it has been for the past twenty-two years, Vote Will Duncan for school board. The other guy is older than Rev. Duncan, and his platform? Bringing church and state together. I was least impressed by him at the Forum. So, those of you in the Portland, Castalian Springs, and Bethpage areas, go with the popular candidate.

District Eleven

Mr. David Brown is also an incumbent, and running unopposed for Westmoreland’s district. So, go ahead and vote for him if you’re in that area of the county, I haven’t heard anything about him.

County Commission

Basically, there’s either two candidates up in each district, or both incumbents and a challenger. I don’t really know about any of the district races outside of districts 6-11, and all of those are in my first scenario. So if you’re in Districts 1-5 or 12, find out for yourself what’s going on and who you should vote for. Especially in 1, 2, 3, and 5, in which there are more than two candidates.

Now on to the good stuff, Tennessee.

GUBENATORIAL PRIMARIES

The Democratic Primary is basically set, With Mike McWhorter being the only candidate on the ballot. But the Republicans are where it gets interesting.

Republican Primary

Bill Haslam

I would consider Haslam to be my favorite (I’m lazy so I’m not linking anyone anymore, it should be pretty easy from now on, just www.(insertnamehere).com.) He seems legit, and certainly has a good following across the state. He’s had the experience the state needs right now, so I’d go with him.

Ron Ramsey

As our Lieutenant Governor, Ramsey knows what it takes to get the job done. However, I don’t know if he’s as apt to do it as Haslam seems to be.

Zach Wamp

I don’t know much about Mr. Wamp, but I think he’s probably a little too conservative for my tastes.

Basil Marceaux.com

The video says it all. This guy needs to be our next governor. NOT.

STATE HOUSE PRIMARIES

You pretty much have no choice here, if you’re in Congressional district 45, it’s Maggart if you’re voting Republican, Ihrig if you’re voting Democrat. Moving on, since it’s nearly election day.

STATE SENATE PRIMARIES

Again, in the 18^th Senatorial District, there’s only one choice on each side, in the 17^th, I think there’s three, but the only one I can think of off the top of my head is Beavers.

US CONGRESSIONAL PRIMARIES

This one’s gotten really fun, especially in the Republican side.

Republican Primary

The one person you DO NOT want to vote for is Lou Ann Zelenik. She’s crazy. So insanely radical it’s not even funny. Plus she’s been mudslinging like it’s her only hope. Which, in all honesty, it probably is. So, in conclusion to that argument, please do not vote for Lou Ann.

Our next candidate is Diane Black, who I’ve grown up with her as an elected official from Sumner County, first as a Representative, then senator in the state of Tennessee. I also know Senator Black personally, she has visited my home before, and is very active in her church, St. Tims Lutheran in Hendersonville, where Troop 157 is based. I have seen her at many a Scout functions—Eagle courts of honor, other special events the troop’s held over the years—and I think that’s very important. I’ve never had much of a problem with her, so that’s got to be good for the amount of time she’s been serving.

Jim Tracy, of Shelbyville, is the other main candidate in the Republican primary. He’s kept his nose out of the Diane-Lou Ann fracas for the most part, so I think that’s good. I think he’d be a good Congressman, but I don’t know a whole bunch about him. My vote, had I voted in this primary, would’ve gone Diane’s way.

Democratic Primary

I can’t even remember the other people in this race, I believe there’s a George Erdel running, and maybe Dave Evans is a Democrat, but if you vote in the Democratic Congressional Primary tomorrow, please vote for Ben Leming. I think he is a very good person for the job, as a recently retired Marine, Leming is no stranger to protecting our rights and liberties. I’ve also agreed with a lot of the stuff he’s been saying regarding issues that have come up in the past half year. So, vote Leming for congress if you’re going Democrat tomorrow.

Well, I think I’ve got everything, and just remember to check out Zach’s Blog and Twitter for the things I didn’t really cover, especially SB District 5 and Ben Leming.

Toodles, -ct

POST-ELECTION SPECIAL!!!!!

first off, congratulations are due to president elect barack obama. my prediction came true, and the only surprises were the pennsylvania-ohio complex (thought mccain would've won at least one), virginia and maybe florida. i did predict nc going blue, and colorado i projected on election night before anyone else did. (this was the only one i projected before anyone else, all the others i wouldn't project unless 15 percent of precincts were reporting and fox or cnn had projected it)

other news to come later, gotta film for a show.

-cth

stuff

titans are 8-0!!!!!! i'm super pumped and ready to see the bears get destroyed. it's gonna be no contest...grossman won the game for chicago last week, so naturally he's gonna suck this week. he's consistently inconsistent! so anyway, it's great...election's coming up today and i don't have a favorite i'm gonna go along with what everyone here says...mccain wins tennessee, obama wins the nation. i'll be playin around w/ the magic map on cnn.com...here's the link: http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/calculator/. we'll see what happens...blog to come probably thursday on the result...all i know is that whoever wins, he's my president, and i will support him. so that's the long and the short of it.

iverson traded to the pistons, billups goes to denver...really i don't care about the nba until the playoffs...and then only with mild interest...so it's really no big deal to me.

otherwise, guess everything else is going just fine, visited tech on thursday and wasn't all that impressed...but i got out of school, so it was worth it! saw several mhms grads and that was nice. halloween was fun and so was this weekend....but now that i'm thinking saturday, i'm thinking college football, which reminds me...

FULMER'S LEAVING UT!!!!!! that was very shocking. that man has been the face of tennessee football for two decades now, and his leaving means that that will no longer be the case. i'm more of a vandy fan now, but it still hurts. firing a coach with several conference championships and two national championship appearances after one bad season...even though they tentatively have one of the best recruiting classes in the nation for next year...doesn't make sense...next thing you know they'll fire bruce pearl for not making it to the final four. oh, well, stuff happens...

vandy plays florida next week...make it four losses in a row...after a 5-0 start...classic vandy football in the second half of the season. until next time, i'll be rejoicing, comiserating, and remembering some more stuff to write about...

-cth

12 random journal entries

i had to type these for english class...just another way of gettin my views out i suppose...so here it is:

1. I am a big fan of football. Professional, college, or high school, I always thoroughly enjoy a good game of football. Some of my best art are offensive football plays I have devised. I send out weekly e-mails with my predictions for National Football League games to some of my friends, because that is another thing I enjoy to do concerning football. My favorite professional team is the Tennessee Titans, while I root for the University of Tennessee on the college gridiron and Hendersonville and Station Camp High Schools in their respective divisions.

2. My second favorite sport is basketball. I mainly like college and high school basketball, although I sometimes attend church league games and will occasionally watch a professional game. One of the reasons I am so fond of high school basketball is because I am a statistician for Merrol Hyde’s team. I also really enjoy the atmosphere surrounding the game of college basketball, especially surrounding the national tournament. My take on professional basketball players is that they are a bunch of jerks playing for the name on the back of their jersey instead of the one on the front, which is why I prefer high school and college ball better.

3. I am also a fanatic for baseball. However, unlike basketball or football, I concentrate solely on professional baseball. My favorite teams are the Boston Red Sox in the American League and the Chicago Cubs in the National League. If I had to pick between the two teams and leagues, though, I would go with the Red Sox and the American. My favorite time of year in baseball is October, especially when one of my teams is in Championship contention. October is the month in which the World Series is played. The thing I dislike the most about baseball is the steroids scandal. Despite the drugs, though, baseball still remains a pastime for me.

4. Two common breakfast foods are waffles and pancakes. While they have many similarities, the two menu staples have their differences. Thanks to these differences, one can determine which is better. Waffles can be square or round, while pancakes are normally just round. In contrast to the flatness of pancakes, waffles have grooves in them, which is better for syrup lovers. Waffles, with their grooves and ridges, are better capable of holding more syrup, but because of pancakes’ flatness, it’s not so easy for them to hold syrup. Therefore, I have come to the conclusion that waffles are better than pancakes.

5. In this year’s highly publicized presidential election, the Democrats have nominated Illinois Senator Barack Obama, who is running with Delaware Senator Joe Biden as his vice-presidential candidate. I highly respect, and even somewhat envy, Senator Obama’s speech-giving capabilities, but I’m not sure if I agree with all of his views, nor am I sure if he will be able to deliver on his promises. On the Republican ticket, Arizona Senator John McCain is running alongside of his vice-presidential candidate, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. I am very intrigued by this election, and I am of now undecided. One thing is for sure, the road to Washington is a long and hard one for both parties, and whoever wins the election will be the President, and I will respect that person as such.

6. So far this has been a good school year for me. The classes I am in are English 1010, Chemistry, Interactive Multimedia, and Band. I am not failing any of my classes as of yet, and do not plan to be failing at any point in the year. Among the extracurricular activities I am involved in are Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Flight Club, the high school men’s basketball team, and, once the first meeting has begun, the Junior Classical League. I do not actually play basketball, but because I’m the statistician I am a part of the team nonetheless. I play alto saxophone in the high school symphonic band, and I am also in jazz band.

7. The smell of popcorn. The sound of a foghorn celebrating the readjustment of score. Thousands of fans wanting to get back quickly to the stands to cheer on their Vanderbilt Commodores as they manhandle the University of South Carolina. These are just a few of the many variables that go into working the concession stands at Vanderbilt. On Thursday, August 4, as I have been the last five years, I was privileged enough to be a part of a twelve-man team working concessions for the Commodores game. The experience is a very rewarding one, because it teaches many cooperation, communication, and time management skills. I have thoroughly enjoyed every game I have been a part of, especially when my team gets the win.

8. One of my newer hobbies is photography. I enjoy taking pictures of anything possible. Right now I have a decent point-and-shoot camera, but I want a more professional camera to take my photos with. My favorite things to photograph are sunsets, sunrises, and people. There is a group at my Church devoted to the arts, and our original division was photography. I think being involved in this group got me really interested and started on my new hobby.

9. I am an active member of my Scout Troop. I am just about to earn my Life rank, which is the rank before Eagle. I am also Assistant Senior Patrol Leader, which puts me as second in command of my entire troop. Last weekend we went on a canoe trip. I was acting Senior Patrol Leader during the trip, and I felt it was a very successful weekend for the troop, with only a few minor setbacks. I’ve learned a lot of things through Scouts, including cooking, camping, and communication skills, which I will use for the rest of my life.

10. I am also extremely actively involved in my Church community. I sing in the youth choir and I also am a part of just about every youth activity that one can be involved in. We go on about six trips a year, four or five of them in the summer alone. Among the highlights of each year are our Choir Tour; Warmth in Winter, a conference-wide event; two missions experiences; and a mystery trip, which we ideally do not know the destination of until the morning we leave. I would definitely not give up my experience with my Church for anything.

11. In Multimedia today, we did a group project. This project involved taking a picture of a silhouette in which every member of the group was a piece of. We had a very challenging time discerning what we were going to be and how we were going to make it. Our idea heading out of the planning stage Thursday was to create a whale, but after having a night to think it over, we decided that the difficulty level was too high for our lack of experience. Our next idea was a “human spider,” with each team member’s arms stretched out to create the effect of one person with a multitude of limbs. After a try or two of this idea, we realized that it was too cramped for seven of us to line up in a single file line, in addition to the different body sizes. In the way the picture was set up, there was a floodlight and a white cloth, and the object was supposed to be between the sheet and the light. We were set up in the downstairs hallway where the bathrooms and guidance office are. For our third idea, we tired to make the standard human pyramid. For some reason which I will never understand, someone suggested that I should be on top of the pyramid. So, consenting, and without warning, I leapt off a chair onto the top of the pile, and it immediately collapsed. We tried twice more with me on top, but the pyramid did not last with me on top, even with prior warning of my moving to the top, so we repositioned people, and on the second try of this new arrangement, we succeeded in taking a picture. The picture resembled a giant block with a human trying to catch her balance. We then determined that we were in too close a space to take any good pictures, so we went to the other side of the cloth and began taking pictures from the other side. Our lighting was much better. We then tried the human spider again and a flower, and kept failing miserably. By this time much of the group was starting to get frustrated. After some minor adjustments and much groaning, we tried one last time. This time we took the form of a tree. It was the best picture we had taken the entire day, so we cleaned up and put everything back in place. Granted, it wasn’t professional, but it should be good enough to earn a passing grade. Some of the characteristics we found that we needed to work on as a group were cooperation, planning, communication, and tolerance. As a whole, the project was most successful as a learning experience.

12. There have been three major tropical systems that have been in the news in the past two weeks. The first one, Hurricane Gustav, made landfall on Labor Day some seventy miles to the southwest of New Orleans as a Category Two storm. Hurricane Hanna had downsized to a Tropical Storm by the time it hit the Carolina Coast on the fifth of September. Hurricane Ike, a Category Three storm, is currently moving north of the island of Hispaniola, and is slated to pass over the Bahamas on its way to making landfall somewhere along the gulf coast by Sunday the fifteenth. Ike is most likely the worst of the three storms, and could wreak extreme havoc, bringing back memories of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, especially if it has time to grow before hitting the States. Residents are advised to take cover and prepare for the storm, especially when a landfall date and area are more specifically known, typically about two or three days before the storm hits. For large, potentially deadly storms, citizens are urged to leave everything behind but the essentials and their valued possessions, and evacuate. Refugees are scattered all over landlocked states when the hurricane hits, and, depending on how bad the damage is, go back home in anywhere from a day to three months after the storm makes landfall. Hurricanes are dangerous storms, and are not to be messed with.