Newspapers / The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, … / April 29, 1993, edition 1 / Page 5
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Fields Of Blue BY BILL FAVER Sometimes during the period from March to May wc are likely to expe rience some fields ol blue. These open areas arc cov ered by a small and frail plant called toadflax. Individually FAVFR ihcsg plants arc not very impressive, but when they blanket roadside fields wc arc forced to notice them. Toadflax belong to the snapdrag on family and have the scientific name of Linaria Canadensis. The part wc see is the one-to-two-foot stem with two-lipped blue flowers along the stem. Small leaves arc clustered at the base of the stem and may not be noticed. These plants prefer dry, sandy soils such as old fields and road sides. Some grow behind the dunes along the beaches if they don't have to competc with other plants. Flowers arc pale violet to blue and have two humped, white lips with a spur beneath them. A patch of color at the narrow entrance to the supply of nectar would suggest these flowers are pollinated during daylight hours, since the nectar guides would be useless in the dark. The nectar within the flower is in a long spur, which suggests the pollinators arc long-tongued in sects or hummingbirds. PHOTO BY BILL FAVH Individually, toadflax plants are small and frail, but give us each spring some fields of blue. Another variety of the plant has weeds. That is probably bccausc orange-yellow flowers and is called we have not taken the time to look butter and eggs, but we have none closely at this remarkable little of these in the coastal plain where flower and to learn to appreciate the blue variety is plentiful. the frailty and complexity and Toadflax is another good exam- beauty of this gem of the plant pic of planus we consider to be world. Enjoy the fields of blue. MORE LETTERS Attorney Takes Exception To Article To the edilor: This is in response to Eric Carl son's article on the Leo Hcwctt mat ter in the April 15 Beacon. Before getting into the substance of that response 1 would like, through you, to congratulate Eric on the attainment of his law degree and license. I didn't know he was study ing the law, much less that he had bccomc licensed and proficient in that field. With respect to his allegation that (Acting County Manager John) Harvey violated both state law and county policy in this matter, it is my considered opinion that Mr. Harvey did not. Perhaps there was a miscommuni cation in my response to Eric when he asked if I had advised Mr. Harvey of the legality of the Hcwctt action. Mr. Harvey and 1 never specifically discussed the question of legality because the action was clearly legal and within Mr. Harvey's authority. State law, G.S. 153A-82 provides that a county manager shall make appointments, etc., with approval of the board or, by resolution, the board can delegate that authority to the manager. The last part of that statute reads that if the board has al lowed the manager to exercise that authority without prior approval (which in Brunswick County it has) then it may require the manager to report the action to it. It is my recol lection of events that this is just what Mr. Harvey did, although not required to by the board. As to the allegation that Mr. Harvey violated county personnel policy, Mr. Carlson assumes the ac tion was taken under those sections cited by him. His assumption is in correct. Like a first-year law student he seizes onto the first section which appears to answer the question, as sumes the correctness of his premise and then quixotically jousts with windmills thereafter. Unfortunately, disclosure of the pertinent applicable provision of that policy would by necessity reveal confidential personnel information. Even Mr. Carlson knows that state law docs not allow disclosure of any but the most basic information con cerning county employees. I can say, however, the Leo Hcwett action was, in my opinion, properly done under specific provi sions of the county personnel policy. To sustain credibility in the fu ture, 1 suggest Mr. Carlson be more cautious before jumping to legal and factual assumptions. His desire to practice in a field in which he is not qualified or to scoop a story, should not besmirch a dedicated public ser vant like Mr. Harvey. He should also be aware that accusing someone of a willful, illegal act is libelous, per se. 1 think he owes the gentleman an apology. Michael R. Ramos County Attorney EDTTOR'S NOTE: Our story did not accuse Mr. Harvey of an illegal act. It noted that the county manag er's actions "raised legal questions" and "may" have violated policy and statutes. Mr. Ramos was asked to comment, and his response was re ported. The Beacon also consulted David M. Lawrence, professor of public law and government em ployed by the University of North Carolina's Institute of Government. Whose Mouthpiece? To the editor: Many thanks for Eric Carlson's reply to a letter from Shirley Hew ett. Ms. Hewett made a number of charges about David Clcgg, none of which was substantiated by facts. When Mr. Carlson asked if she had written the letter, her response gave the whole show away. A number of people who arc con stant observers of Brunswick County politics know exactly who used Shirley Hewett as their mouth piece. M.L. LaMar Yaupon Beach dr i D's irA rates ? Richard C. Glenn SECURITIES AMERICA, INC. PO Box 2865 18 Resort Plaza Shallotte, NC 28459 Shallotte (919)754-6771 Member NASD/SIPC AREA'S MOST MODERN CARPET CLEANING SYSTEM TRUCK MOUNTED CARPET STEAM CLEANER COMPLETE PROFESSIONAL CLEANING _S<SDPH> Teflon FABRIC PROTECTANT AVAILABLE COMMERCIAL RESIDENTIAL CARPET STEAM CLEANING ?K1le, 3 ROOMS $45 c OMPLETE CLEANING SERVICES BONDED 842-4528 INSURED The Instrument Of The Devil There's a joke that's gone around for many years in journalism circles. It's an editor's definition of hell: A place where the telephone never stops ringing and you MUST answer it The cynic Ambrose Biercc would have sympathized. It was he who called the telephone "an instrument of the devil." And so it can be. After all, the telephone presents a volatile setting, a combination of the personal and the anonymous, of contact and distance, of technology and humanity. For some that is a form of liberation. They will say things over the telephone they would never have the gall to say face-to-face. For others, having to communi cate with voice alone is a handicap ping situation. Studies indicate that up to 70 percent of our communica tion is non-verbal?our body lan guage. That means when using the telephone we may not be sending or receiving the intended message. It helps if you can "read" voice tone and inflection, but those can be readily misinterpreted or even mis leading. For some special people I know, it seems to be a way to playfully test out new roles or identities, the "sexy" voice one day, and perfect secretary the next. People who arc nice, even solici tous in person can turn icy cold and indifferent on the telephone. It is just them, or have you caught them at a bail lime? Those who arc friendly and helpful in person can seem gruff and even rude on the telephone. Making or receiving telephone calls can be frustrating. For starters, it can he time-consuming and humil iating as we play telephone games like "keep mc on hold indefinitely" and "dominoes" lo get to the right person by Sunday. Finally you get the right office and the person either isn't in, or can't or won't talk to you. Then there arc the incoming callers who can't or won't lake no for an answer. They usually buzz on Tuesdays, which is ihe day this newspaper goes to press and every person (in the newsroom or other wise) who works here is under the gun. As you might guess, we do try, but we're not necessarily on our best "telephone behavior" on Tuesdays. That's especially true as deadlines loom and the calls have nothing to do with stories we're working on for that edition of the paper. We try lo keep in mind that people who don't deal with daily and weekly dead lines as we do have trouble under standing what that entails. However, some callers just won't accept that our weekly newspaper doesn't have an inexhaustible supply of reporters and photographers available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Maybe they're under the gun, loo, perhaps because they promised to "arrange some publici ty" and forgot to call ahead and arrange for a story to run in advance of the event. Try explaining that no one's in a position around here to scoot out ort a Tuesday unless it's been a very slow week, or the story is a "must have," important enough to get at some sacrifice in other news. Facc it, very few of us arc not re ally good at using the telephone. 1, for one, have known for some time now that I could benefit from tele phone training, even when you take into account the guy from a Greens boro radio station who liked my voice so much that he drove to the Associated Press office in Raleigh one Saturday just to meet the desk editor who went with it. (He WAS disappointed, by the way.) They offer those telephone cours es periodically at Brunswick Com munity College but, you guessed it, on Tuesdays. C'cst la vie! Perhaps only on an instrument of the devil would such telephone training be needed. GUEST COLUMN Getting Your Money's Worth BY THOMAS GOOLSBY Most of us are still smarting from the bite of the tax man. However, before we forget the pain of taxes until this time next year, we must all make this promise to ourselves?we will get as much of our money's worth as legally possible out of our lax dollars over this next year. How can this be done? One of the best and most enjoyable ways to get the maximum out of your tax dollars is to make use of al! the "free" things provided to you as a citizen of the Tarheel State. After a recent weekend trip from my Wilmington office to Highlands in the Blue Ridge mountains, 1 realized just how beautiful our state truly is. Many of us complain, and right fully so, about the size and expense of government, but too often we don't stop and smell the roses. We all pay, out the nose many times, for our public lands, and we might as well enjoy them. Since you have already paid for it, why not use it? Look around you. No matter where you live in this great state, there is a beautiful state park, battlefield or forest near your home. Make a promise to yourself? today?that at least one weekend a month, you will get out of the house and enjoy "your" land. Stop by your local bookstore. You will find numerous well-written books that list hundreds of day trips and give fascinating details about the history of our land and its peo ple. Get the spouse and kids out of the house and away from the TV set. If you're not married, have no chil dren or just wish to get away from the kids, make it a romantic day jaunting through the woods. Regardless, get out of the house. Put off washing the car until the next weekend. Hire a neighborhood kid to mow the lawn. Take along a pic nic lunch. Slow down and enjoy the fruits of your labor. Tcns-of-thousands of people visit our stale every year and enjoy North Carolina's beauty and hospitality. Sadly, most North Carolinians never experience all or even part of the wonder this land offers. Have you ever visited Jockey's Ridge State Park near Nags Head, Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, Carolina Beach State Park or Fort Fisher out side Wilmington? Have you ever en joyed the Eno River State Park near Durham, the Cliffs of the Neusc State Park off Highway 70 near Goldsboro, or Morrow Mountain State Park outside Albemarle? Have you ever visited the State Capitol in Raleigh, driven the Blue Ridge Parkway or climbed White side Mountain near Highlands for a breathtaking view of the Appa lachians? All of these sights and hundreds more are yours for the visiting, and you arc paying the bills to maintain every one of them. Each offers good, clean fun at very low cost?in addition to the taxes you already pay. The weather is heating up and the winter hibernation is over. You have no excuse. Break the umbilical cord of the TV set and get out and get all of your money's worth! You won't regret it. Thomas Goolsby is a writer and attorney who lives in Durham. , im.c. \ v?" I \ _/ y HIGHWAY X. \ .*T PATROL/ AS\>r?\<? FREE ) / W~^v^S^ J^M <^fo EYE EXAMS i(3 4th Annual CHILDREN'S HEALTH FAIR Sat., May 8,1993 1:00?3:00 PM ?<m KKk* ua-JQSo~J IW? A* AJtw/lv ftll (wA *U /L A\, THE BRUNSWICK HOSPITAL Highway 17 South-Supply, North Ccirolina-(919)754-8121
The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, N.C.)
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April 29, 1993, edition 1
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