June 30, 2010

It is so hard to get people to do what's right these days. It took me 20 minutes to cancel a credit card service that has been overcharging my business for about 4 years. When I told them I had found another card processing service that didn't charge ridiculous fees, they wanted to match the fees of my new service. I had to explain to them that it was too late, they should have offered that four years ago. Rainy afternoon. . . . hope Alex isn't forcing copious amounts of oil up into our coastal wetlands.

June 29, 2010

Today, while invoicing some customers, I had the opportunity to speak with the police chief and two councilmen. No, I am not in trouble , but they wanted my opinion about the library cameras as to whether they recorded the recent break-in resulting in the theft of Kathy Couey's laptop computer. While heading down I-65 later in the afternoon, traffic came to a standstill as a fender bender caused one guy to plow into the center divider knocking big chunks from it. (see gaping hole in concrete divider by clicking on picture)

June 28, 2010

Kiwanis at noon, followed by a trip to 73D Kansas St. at West Lee to speak with Ms. Tanya Palmer about opening a hair salon to be named Royal Designs. Other than a few requirements about having a professionally installed vinyl floor and window sign, the code inspector and I felt secure about taking her application before the Commercial Board for a vote. We will try to sandwich her in before the Industrial Board Open Town Forum to be held July 6, 2010 One of my friends sent me this photo of the surf on Orange Beach. It is enough to make you sick to the stomach.

June 27, 2010

When we left the church last night, we made our way down Dauphin Island Parkway to the Mobile Elks club for a barbeque chicken dinner with Deborah's Order Of Athena. There were about 300-400 people there for a social get-together and we sat with all the ladies and their husbands from our Mardi Gras float. Everyone gets a numbered ticket and as they read out your number, you are elimininated. The last five numbers called each get $1000. apiece. We made it down to the last 20 numbers, but were unfortunately eliminated. But a few drinks and the chance to visit with friends is always special.

June 26, 2010

My good friend and fellow Knight, Ray Carney was ceremoniously honored as Alabamas new State Deputy at Little Flower Catholic Church in Mobile this afternoon. Deborah and I attended the mass, even though we had other plans and could not stay for the dinner they had after the Mass. Ray is the guy who consulted with me about running for Grand Knight in the Knights Of Columbus at St. Thomas Catholic Church.

June 25, 2010

Today, after two group projects, three DVD movies and a pop-quiz, we finally received our Environmental Justice diplomas. Lunch was provided by the city and Mayor Ron Davis read names and handed out our well deserved certificates.

June 24, 2010

This was "back to school" day for me. I am taking a two-day, twelve hour course on Environmental Justice, sponsored by a neighboring city grant. Sometimes, companies move into a community and fail to disclose the toxicity of their end-product or by-products of their manufacture. This is very often the case with some chemical plants or landfills. In a case near Spartanburg, NC., many people over the years developed the same type of bone cancer long after the company closed down and the property was resold. The course deals with how a city or town finds the ability to work together, utilizing each volunteer's capabilities to pull off success.

June 23, 2010

This morning was spent researching prices on video projectors for a church and a university. Don't you just know that the model they want-is on back-order, so guess who has to listen to severe whining. Had lunch with a friend and now I will return to my office to see if I can pull off some imaginative miracles. . .

June 22, 2010

The Industrial Development Board met at Catfish Junction along with the Port Of Chickasaw Consortium and several invited guests including Phil Snodgrass and Jim Taylor from the Coast Guard Liaison "Incident Command Post" (ICP), Ronnie Adair from EMA, Representative Randy Davis and Mayor Byron Pittman. Phil keynoted the luncheon discussion and took questions about the safety measures being prepared to keep oil out of the bay and Chickasaw Creek where the Port and Brooks Park are located. As to a hurricane in the Gulf, all we could do is remove the boom, most of the (900) extra ships in the Gulf and pray the surge and winds move little oil

inland. We would then need to survey the damage, ask BP to mitigate the heavy inflow and turn in claims to our business and personal insurance companies. The reason the

"top hat" restrictor atop the ruptured pipe cannot be completely closed off at this point is possible pressure build-up and rupture deep below the sea bottom, causing additional problems.

June 21, 2010

Kiwanis meeting this morning and I was given a Thank You card by Nell Autrey, the lady who won "Citizen Of The Year". We had general discussion about the Kiwanis participation in the Fourth Of July celebration at Brooks Park. I will be helping the president by wrapping sandwiches and cutting watermelon. The have a lot of confidence, trusting me with a knife! Afterward, I had to go downtown to Smith Barney (stockbrokers) in the RSA tower. Nice view from their offices to the Port area. So delighted to be partially responsible for their lavish digs.

June 20, 2010

Today was Fathers Day, so after leaving church we set out for Fairhope to try a new restaurant, Unfortunately it closed at 1:30 PM so we got there as they were shutting down. We wandered around the marshes, but were pleasantly surprised to say we saw no oil where we checked. Afterward we stopped at the Original Oyster House and had oysters and Pompano. A great afternoon and Mama Deb picked up the tab. We got word that Victoria (our grandchild) had a super exciting graduation up in Vermont.

June 19, 2010

Deb and I were present for the Municipal Dinner at the old Gus's Restaurant, downtown on 751 Dauphin Street. I always loved that place and apparently it is being used as an event location. Fed well on prime rib, potatoes, salad and bread-pudding was a way to seriously get our attention. Councilman Mike Dean and Commissioner Merceria Ludgood did a great job hosting the dinner and afterward we heard about the Pay As You Go projects and got an update on hurricane preparedness and the BP oil spill from Ronnie Adair at EMA. Ronnie informed us that there is a 50% chance of a class 3 hurricane entering the Gulf this season. While BP's prime directive is to stop the well head, they are also employing 720 people with over 40 hours training to pick up tar balls and boom off the marshlands and delta. After the meeting, they didn't even want to speculate on the possibility of a hurricane spreading all that oil inland.

June 18, 2010

There was so much going on yesterday that I didn't have time to sign-on. But, this should bring you up to date. The Chamber Of Commerce "Citizen Of The Year" was a wonderful occasion to pay homage to a deserving Nell Autrey. Nell works for the city in charge of the "Meals On Wheels" program, also prepares meals for the Kiwanis, city Christmas and Easter celebrations as well as personally helping many poor and disadvantaged children at Christmas. Our guests were Representative Randy Davis, Mayor Byron Pittman and our featured speaker was Darwin Singleton from WPMI Local 15 TV News. We owe a great deal of thanks to First Baptist Church who provided their Fellowship Hall and their popular pastor, Dr. Creel to give the invocation. Deborah and I attended the Municipal Dinner last night, but we'll save those pictures for another day.

June 16, 2010

Spent an hour over at the First Baptist Church trying to make sure we were all set, sound- system wise, for lunch tomorrow. We have four nominations for Citizen of The Year and want to make sure the lunch runs seamlessly. Then I dropped a couple of suggestions for our I-65 billboard by Byrons office for their perusal. Looking forward to a great program and can't wait to see who the winner might be.

June 15, 2010

Just before the Auburn Urban League meeting was scheduled to start, I was on my way back from Saraland when out of nowhere, Chickasaw's finest stopped a "person of interest". heading northbound on Hwy. 43. While seeing the occasional speeder stopped in that area is no surprise,

it is a shock to see five police cars at one incident not involving an accident. I could only speculate that the guy really acted suspicious or that it was "just not his day." The presentation of Chickasaw's future with modified streets, new retail and business layouts was quite inspiring and gives us all an image to work toward. Just the concept should give us the tools to proudly attract new developers to our community. The Mayor gave an opening welcome and about forty citizens were in attendance. Cheryl Morgan did an outstanding job of explaining the possibilities.

June 14, 2010

Yesterday we went to a train show over at the Hadji Shrine Temple, just across the Florida State line. We met up with several of our South West Alabama Railroad

Modelers (acronym: SWARM) and a few old friends we had encountered before at shows. The first shot is from SWARM's display (which will be at Founders Day this October) of the GM&O building and the second one is a very tiny (N scale) railroad. The full N scale layout is on a board about 2X4 ft. I like the smallness of N, but my eyes have gotten bad enough that it is hard to get the cars back on the track without glasses. Tonight the Commercial Board brings back the Auburn Urban Design team with Cheryl Morgan at 6:30 PM in the Civic Center.

June 13, 2010

This morning after church we decided to go to the beach. Since there was the possibility of closed beaches at Gulf Shores we trekked the extra miles to Navarre Beach, a few miles past Pensacola. We had a great time, stopping by a train show, (more about that later) and enjoyed oil-free sand for what may be the last time for a while. On the way back we stopped at Felix Fish Camp on the Mobile Bay Causeway and had their Grouper almondine to top off the afternoon. Now a quiet evening to prepare for tomorrow.

June 12, 2010

It appears that "Clean Up Chickasaw" day went well. I took note (while throwing away some old twisted 2X4's that the dumpster contained sheet-rock, old rubber boots, an old microwave and gobs of cloth, toys and bottles. Meanwhile, over at the Chickasaw Pool, there were a bevey of kids fighting the 90+ degree summer heat. I'm going to be very happy this afternoon with an ice cold lemonade and HGTV.

June 11, 2010

Shipped two huge power supplies to Miami this morning and had an appointment with Dr. Henry Creel. When I got there, they said he had been called away to Montgomery, but that he wanted me to make sure the First Baptist Fellowship sound system was OK for next Thursday morning.

I spent a few minutes to purchase a birthday card for the chief, whos celebration day is Sunday. If you see Chief Reynolds over the weekend, be sure to run up an shake him by the ears. Now, I'm going to get my coffee. Was going to the Art Walk, but I do not want to fight that crowd downtown looking at the hot-rods. Too little parking and I'm a wimp.

June 10, 2010

I corresponded with the mayor and two councilpeople today, while I was finishing some invoices and paying a few bills. When I finished, I dropped some paperwork by Charles Sauciers office up at Americas Best Inn. Some of our city helpers will be making signs to get the thousands of hot-rodders to stop in Chickasaw as they make their way to Mobile on Friday. That will be a crazy show in the downtown streets.

June 8, 2010

This morning we met at the Civic Center to plan our Citizen Of The Year lunch for June 17th. The minimum number of meals to order and the programs were finalized along with picking up the ticket money from board members. Once the meeting adjourned I went to the house to pick up Deborah and we attended the Saraland Chamber meeting, One of our favorite speakers, Ralph Stacy from the Alabama Chamber was there and he always tells such humorous stories during his inspirational message. I reminded him that we want him to speak to us again soon in Chickasaw and he said: "name the date" so I shall follow up on that. Tonight we will be attending the council meeting and hope it goes well, without invoking the wrath of the "anti progress" crowd.

June 7, 2010

Yesterday evening I was invited to the First Baptist Church to see an excellent dulcimer band. In fact, they play many instruments such as accordion, steel drums and mandolin. Lots of Gospel songs and even some old, anonymous pieces like "wildwood flower" A nice spread of sandwiches, cookies and drinks were served after, but I had eaten so much at lunch I had to decline. I know what you are thinking! When does Tom Hayward turn down food?

Today at Kiwanis lunch we discussed our role at the July (5) Independence Day get-together at Brooks Park with The Kiwanis offering the hamburgers and drinks for the occasion. Our mayor has promised a great fireworks display for the event and it is open to all of N. Mobile. Hope we top last years 1200 to 1500 people. Our speaker this afternoon was Patty Lynn from Alacare, a rehabilitation and hospice provider. Her organization provides spiritual and friendship assistance not only to the patient, but to the main caregiver as well. They are constantly looking for volunteers and would welcome anyone who would like to help provide care to people in need.

June 6, 2010

This morning at the Knights Of Columbus meeting, I was voted in as Grand Knight. I am just very proud to have a Deputy such as Frank Coate and a Chancellor of Charles Czajkowski. We will try to accomplish all the projects that were initiated at todays meeting. After the ceremonies, we went to lunch at Barnyard Restaurant and solved all the world's problems.

June 5, 2010

Our friends from St. Thomas Church, Matt (a knight) and his wife Kathy (ladies auxiliary) Gordon, renewed their marriage vows this afternoon and were sent to The Isle in Biloxi for a second honeymoon. At the 5:30 PM mass we had several couples renew theirs as well. One duo had been married for 63 years. I think it will last for a few years.

June 4, 2010

Picture of the controversial property where city is wanting Advanced Disposal to build a transfer station. The land is across the railroad tracks in dense woodlands, south of O'Neal Steel. It would bring the city $60-80,000. per year and would be subject to a lease cancellation clause if it is not maintained and emptied nightly. For the life of me, I can't understand the problem. But,

that is just my opinion.

June 3, 2010

Nice ride, eh? This is a photo I stumbled upon that says a mouthful about collectible cars. I spent most of my day sending out proposals and conversing with board members and city personnel.

It appears we need to educate our people more on the projects brought before the boards. As most of you know, I try to stay informed with the correct facts so we can help the town gain retail and industrial clients that are good for our community.

June 2, 2010

Kiwanis met today since Monday was a holiday and we voted to donate $100. to the 4H club to help them with water testing in and around Brooks Park at the ChickasawBogue.

Ervin Dailey brought in a 30 lb. statue of an eagle he wants us to consider for Grand Prize in our 5K Freedom Run each year. After lunch I had just enough time to run home and gather up my belongings for the Garden Club Meeting at 2 PM. The sandwich and cookie sale yesterday made $150. which we presented to the treasurer. Our speaker today was Ruth Schmohl from Kirk House and Gardens in Axis, Alabama. She is a master-gardener, specializing in

herbs and was quite interesting. Our president, Ervin Dailey handed out tee-shirts featuring our new Rose Walk logo. The 1-mile Rose Walk is to be held later in cooler weather.

June 1, 2010

Voting Day and Deborah along with her faithful helper, Tom, set up a table in the Civic Center to sell sandwiches, chili dogs, cokes and cookies to the politically astute public. We did suprisingly well for a primary election and made well over $100. for the Garden Club. It is always fun to talk to many of the Chickasaw residents and I asked many of my friends (toungue in cheek) to write my name in for Governor. Tonight we have a 7 PM Commercial Board meeting followed immediately by an Industrial Board meeting. That will bring up for vote the Huddle House and the Advance Disposal Transfer Station.