What is so rare as a slow loris in June? Would a slow loris by any other name smell as sweet? Today, we shall journey down a zoological rabbit hole to visit our old friend, the slow loris.

As we all know, Loris is a small town in South Carolina, which stands between Fayetteville and Myrtle Beach. The slow loris is a lemur-like critter that has nothing to do with South Carolina. The slow loris is a native of South Asia. Befitting its name, the slow loris spends most of his day curled up in a ball sleeping in a tree, waiting for night to fall.

This behavior is reminiscent of a congressman or a member of the North Carolina General Assembly waiting for free food at a buffet sponsored by a corporate lobbyist. Like our legislative representatives, the slow loris waits until night to eat.

It is unclear if the slow lorises were labeled when young and placed in special education classes. No slow loris ever had an Individualized Education Program. The slow loris likely got its name in reference to his lack of physical speed. He is a little guy, weighing from about 7 ounces to 2 pounds.

The slow loris, or SloLo as his friends call him, will eat anything — fruits, leaves, vegetables, small birds and little reptiles. To call SloLo by his scientific name, you would refer to him as a nocturnal strepsirrhine primate. Try saying nocturnal strepsirrhine primate three times fast. Go ahead. I’ll wait. Not easy, is it? That’s why his buddies call him SloLo. It’s easier to say.

SloLo has tiny little hands like America’s own Dear Very Stable Genius Leader. SloLo is armed with fingers that allow him to grasp tree branches to hang around for long periods. He avoids falling on the jungle floor where bad things might happen to him.

The dandy thing about SloLo is, despite being the size of an hors d’oeuvre, larger predators give him great respect and don’t eat him. Why don’t they eat him, you ask? He’s slow, tiny and sleeps during the day, making him an easy target.

Despite the difficult hand dealt to SloLo by Mother Nature, he prevails. SloLo has a super power. His tiny little teeth are toxic. He is the only poisonous primate. Despite his cute appearance and yearning eyes, he can poison you with a bite. He has grooved teeth that let him hold poison in his mouth — the better to chomp you.

He stores his venom in glands in his elbows. He slurps down on his elbows, and his saliva, like the activated charcoal in Kent cigarettes, causes the venom to burst into full nastiness. The better to bite you with, my dear. Mamma SloLo licks her elbows to gather venom. She then licks it all over the baby SloLo, grooming him with poison. The other jungle critters know that if they eat a baby SloLo, they will get a case of gastro esophageal reflux that would send them to the jungle Emergency Room — if there were an ER in the jungle. Since the predators don’t have Blue Cross, the baby SloLos can pass their childhood essentially uneaten.

SloLos do have a few enemies. Snakes and orangutans have a taste for SloLo toxin, but the other bad guys know them and leave them alone. A threatened SloLo goes into the freeze mode, remaining still until the danger passes. Unfortunately, the local human population believes SloLos have supernatural powers that can ward off evil spirits and heal the sick. This leads to SloLos being hunted by humans. As the SloLo freezes when frightened, catching them is akin to shooting fish in a barrel. Not very sporting, but very easy.

It remains to be seen if a fast loris exists. We hope for no fast lorises. Consider zombies. The vast majority of zombies are slow and lumbering like those portrayed in “The Walking Dead.” Most people can outrun zombies. Unfortunately, there is a genus of zombies who can run as shown in the movies “28 Days” and “28 Days Later.” If chased by a running zombie, most people will end up as zombie chow, as zombies never get winded because they don’t breathe. If there are fast lorises, the poisonous tooth would be on the other foot as the fast loris could catch and bite the natives who are killing its cousin, the slow loris.

So, have we learned anything today? Once again, probably nothing. Better luck next time. However, if Shakespeare had ever met a slow loris, literary history would have been changed. Consider the plays he would have written: “All’s Well that Ends with a Slow Loris Bite,” “Slow Loris Labor’s Lost,” “Merry Wives of Slow Loris,” “Much Ado about Slow Lorises,” “Taming of the Slow Loris” and “A Midsummer Night’s Slow Loris.” As Mitch Miller once sang, “Be kind to your poisonous primates in the swamp, for a slow loris may be somebody’s mother.”

 As a Tar Heel born and bred, all things North Carolina and most things Southern are the norm for me, so much so that I forget people in other places do not experience the world exactly the way we do. Poor babies!

That truth was brought home to me yet again when one of the Dickson Precious Jewels took off to New York City for her college years, making friends with people from all over the world, including some Skinny-Minnie New York girls who had never heard of, much less tasted, pimento cheese. This Southern mother immediately set out to right that wrong, and the girls loved it so much, we transported containers of PC to the Big Apple since it is not a staple in NYC grocery coolers.

There is nothing like a Saturday morning fried egg sandwich with bacon, tomato, and pimento cheese on a toasted English muffin.

The South is known for its hospitality, which often includes foods like pimento cheese, gumbo, pecan pie, and barbeque with vinegar sauce, but our most enduring contribution to American culture may well be our colorful and unique way with the English language.

“Talk Southern to Me” by Julia Fowler found its way under my Christmas tree, and I have laughed and marveled while wallowing in its pages. Fowler recounts stories of our special brands of charm, family, love and marriage, parenthood and more.

Southerners are great storytellers and have plenty of them to pass along. The best part to me, though, is Fowler’s glossary of Southernisms — or as she expresses them, “stuff Southern folks say that needs interpreting.” Many of them have escaped my lips all my life, but I had no idea they are conspicuously Southern. I thought everyone used these expressions.

These include “billfold” (Americans elsewhere use the word wallet,) “pocketbook” (purse), “lightning bugs” (fireflies), “drop cord” (extension cord), “ear bob” (earring), “mash” (as in press the doorbell), “playing possum” (faking sleep), “rubbernecking” (staring at some sight), “sorry” (as in useless), “stomping ground” (home turf ), “tizzy” (uproar) and “wrecker” (tow truck.)

Others are so Southern even I recognize them for what they are — wonderfully inventive words and expressions to describe elements of everyday life. Julia Fowler lists pages of them, and here are some of my favorites.

“Directly” as in very soon. My beloved grandmother, Gobbie, was always doing things “directly.”

“Get-out,” a form of measurement. I love you more than all “get-out.”

“Forty eleven.” A large amount, as in I have “forty-eleven” emails waiting.

“Tight.” Thrifty, even cheap, as in he’s too “tight” to eat in restaurants. Can also mean having too much to drink, as in Joe is too “tight” to drive.

“Go whole hog.” Go all out, over the top. We are “going whole hog” for this family reunion.

“Hold the phone.” Calm down, chill out.

“Knee baby.” A toddler, as in I’ve known Buddy since he was a “knee baby.”

“Nekid as a jaybird.” Totally nude. My father used this term when the children were bathing.

“Carry.” Transport. I hope John will “carry” me to the doctor.

“People.” Family. Gobbie used to ask my friends “who are your people” to figure out — another Southernism — whether she knew them.

“Pure tee.” Real, genuine. That fellow is “pure-tee” mean.

“Slap.” Completely, as in worn “slap” out.

“Used to could.” Could do in the past. I “used to could” run a 4-minute mile.

“Weuns,” “Youins,” and “usins.” We all, you all and us all.

“No-count.” Substandard. This old car is “no-count.”

“Libala.” Likely, as in if I don’t write down your phone number, I’m “libala” to forget it.

Finally, my all-time favorite, which I have heard all my life and probably used myself.

“Jeet?” Have you eaten yet? As in “Jeet lunch?”

I wonder if I ever asked those Skinny-Minnie New York girls that question.

 I must have missed something along the way when it comes to knowing what is going on with all the grumblings about our airport. I thought our airport commission and the staff at Fayetteville Regional Airport were doing a pretty good job, considering the makeup and nature of our community and the challenges that small, regional airports like Fayetteville face from rising operating costs and competition from the larger, more aggressive metropolitan airports.

For business and pleasure, mostly business, I have flown out of our airport dozens of times over the years. Prices have always been competitive and the service satisfactory. The most favorable factor of all has been convenience.

Rarely have I had to travel to Raleigh for a destination — however, when I have had to, it was costlier after accounting for my time, travel, gas and parking. I never have, nor would I ever, choose to fly out of Raleigh for the personal convenience of avoiding layovers.

Besides, from a business point of view, needless effort is time-consuming and costly to a company, though state, city and county governments may not be that concerned about such wasteful spending.

Case in point: Depending on where you live in Fayetteville or Cumberland County, it is about 77 miles to Raleigh-Durham International Airport in Raleigh. It takes approximately one hour and 15 minutes to arrive at the terminal in normal traffic. And, as everyone is well aware, there is nothing normal about Raleigh traffic.

At best, you can get your car parked in a remote lot, wait on a shuttle to deliver you to the terminal, and, even if you are in the possession of an electronic ticket, you still face going through TSA’s security before taking that hike to your departure gate.

So, now that we know the routine, let’s say your flight leaves Raleigh at 10 a.m. and you want to arrive at the departure gate at least 30 minutes before that. What time would you have to leave Fayetteville? Let’s see:

Drive to airport (no traffic) — 75 minutes

Park car and shuttle to terminal — 25minutes

Ticket counter or kiosk for seat assignment— 20 minutes

Security with TSA, shoes, belt, laptop —20 minutes

Trek down to departure gate — five minutes

Total time — two hours and 42 minutes

If you need to check your baggage, that’s another 10 minutes. Let’s just say twoand- a-half hours for this exercise. So, to be sitting comfortably at the departure gate by 9:30 a.m., you would have to be on the road by 7 a.m. without complications. This means you would probably have to wake up at least by 6:15 a.m.

That’s time, and time is money. Let’s talk money from a business point of view. I assume that if you are in business, your time is valuable. And, now the decision has been made that you are going to spend 2.5 hours getting to your departure gate in Raleigh.

Let’s evaluate the cost: salary, benefits, etc. If you make $35 per hour x 2.5 hours, that’s $87.50. Now, add a mileage charge of 53.5 cents for 77 miles traveled. That equals $41.20. Multiply those numbers by two because you still have to drive home, and don’t forget to add a modest parking fee of $20. Total cost to the business or government: $277.40.

Now, just how much cheaper was that ticket out of RDU? Is $277.40 plus 5 hours of frustration and anxiety worth avoiding a layover for personal convenience? Not to me. Besides, I don’t think it’s fair to criticize the commission or airport staff for an underperforming facility when ignoring the facts and realities of the situation.

The most obvious of these facts is that airlines, like all other for-profit businesses, are not going to come into our market just because we want them to, ask them to or need them to. The only reason they are going to locate their business in Fayetteville is if they can make a profit.

Allegiant Airlines didn’t last six months, and United Airlines, which recently pulled out, really should have known better than to think flying into Washington Dulles International Airport was going to capture the lucrative military market from Fort Bragg. WDI is 27 miles from the Pentagon. That’s an hour’s drive on a good day. The Pentagon is only 2 miles from Reagan International and a five-minute Uber ride. No, I think Fayetteville City Council needs to cut our airport commission, staff and management a little slack and back off the micro-management.

Let our airport succeed or fail of its own volition. After all, we can’t expect an airline company to come in and serve the Fayetteville community if we claim to be an “airline dessert.” Yeah. “Airline dessert.” You remember, just like the food dessert we had out on Murchison Road, where residents didn’t have anywhere to purchase milk, bread, fresh fruit and vegetables, or lottery tickets.

In that situation, Walmart came to the rescue in November 2015 by building a Neighborhood Market, thinking it was winning the economic jackpot by developing an untapped market while doing a good deed for the community by serving humanity. In less than three years, Walmart pulled out after acknowledging the reality that forced Winn-Dixie to exit the area in 1998. Not enough people shopped there.

Everyone was sad and disappointed over the Walmart situation, and as a result, many words were spoken and written about the unfortunate nature of what happened. Yet few could produce any evidence that they supported or patronized the store.

Well, the same goes for the airport. If we readily admit that we have a second-rate facility, and if our leadership thinks flying out of RDU is cheaper, more convenient and more enjoyable with greater amenities, then don’t expect the commission, staff or consultants at FAY to effect the outcome. Let’s continue to support the airport commission and upgrade the facility as much as we can afford to. However, shining turnstiles, faster escalators and convenient coffee shops will not entice airline carriers to serve Fayetteville unless they can make money.

A profit, in addition to aggressive, consistent and continual awareness and marketing, is what the airport needs to tell its story. And, everyone needs to tell it — the Fayetteville Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Fayetteville Cumberland County Economic Development Corporation, city officials, county officials, and most of all, the Greater Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce.

After all, there are 1,300 to 1,500 new families moving in and out of Cumberland County every month. Most don’t even know we have an airport. Who’s telling them to go to Raleigh? Let’s tell them why they should fly out of Fayetteville. We have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Let’s start telling our story. Fly Fayetteville!

 Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in the January 2019 issue of Fayetteville Women’s View Magazine. F&B Publications is reprinting it here in order to widen the reach of this relevant and exciting information. For help compiling and/or writing portions of this overview, especially data-related information, special thanks to: Fayetteville Cumberland County Economic Development Corporation; Fayetteville Area Convention & Visitors Bureau; Cool Spring Downtown District; and Dirtbag Ales Brewery & Taproom.

Our community has so much to celebrate from 2018 and many things to look forward to in 2019. While not all-encompassing, here is an overview of reasons to celebrate the past year and reasons to get excited for the new one.

2018: Year in Review

An increasingly positive reputation

• In 2017, Governing magazine began an annual report, called “Equipt to Innovate,” in conjunction with the nonprofit Living Cities. The 2018 report named Fayetteville the most innovative city in the U.S. and the city with the best employee engagement. The study, which has a goal of helping cities improve their ability to innovate, judged cities based on seven factors: dynamically planned; broadly partnered; resident-involved; race-informed; smartly resourced; employee-engaged; and data-driven.

Learn more at www.governing.com/topics/urban/gov-fayetteville-best-man- aged-city-equiptinnovate-lc.html.

• The Fayetteville Area Convention & Visitors Bureau launched three new videos in its “Find Your Pursuit” series this year, bringing the total in the series to eight. All three new videos — “Pursuit of Brotherhood,” “Pursuit of Harmony” and “Pursuit of Discovery” — feature beautiful, high-quality clips of this area’s events, businesses and landscape. View them on YouTube; you can’t help but feel hometown pride while watching. Search “Visit Cumberland County NC” on YouTube.

• Cool Spring Downtown District initiated a new city of Fayetteville recognition – the Hometown Hero Award. The award is presented annually during Fayetteville’s Veterans Day celebration to honor a resident who contributed to development of the relationship between the city and the military. Gen. James J. Lindsay received the first Hometown Hero award Nov. 10.

New initiatives supporting local makers and growers

• Dirtbag Ales Farmers Market debuted in April 2018 with its inaugural Strawberry Festival, which featured 20 local vendors, and strawberries that sold out in the first two hours. DBA created the Hope Mills-based market in partnership with Sustainable Sandhills to help citizens engage with local producers of crafts and goods as well as local farmers. Every Sunday from April through November, 20 to 25 local vendors of everything from handblown glass to freerange meats to microgreens set up their wares on DBA’s idyllic outdoor grounds. The market reopens April 28, 2019.

Learn more at facebook.com/dirtbagfarmersmarket.

• Prima Elements Wellness Center and Sheridan’s Philosophy hosted Fayetteville’s First Annual Vegan Festival in June. Between 2,000-3,000 people came to browse more than 50 vendors and educators of all things vegan-related. Leading up to the festival, Prima Elements also started hosting monthly vegan potlucks from its location in downtown Fayetteville. Those potlucks will resume in February 2019.

Learn more at www.veganfestivalfaync.com.

Economic growth and new jobs

• Management and technology consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton announced expansion of its Fayetteville operations Aug. 28 that will create 208 new jobs. Business services provider eClerx, which has one U.S. delivery center — in Fayetteville — announced expansion of our local center Oct. 18 that will create 150 new jobs.

Progress for healthcare and research

• The Cumberland County Healthcare Next

Generation Partnership, an initiative led by the County Workforce Development Board, brings together more than 20 representatives from Cape Fear Valley Health, Womack Army Medical Center, private providers and other related businesses. Its June 14 session was the first of its kind in North Carolina. Next Gen Partnerships enable business leaders to champion their priorities and work with local, regional and state partners to achieve specified goals. The partners are forwarding actions to increase the coordination of care, strengthen the talent pipeline into the healthcare industry and prevent obesity.

Learn more at www.fayedc.com/2018/06/nc-nextgeneration- partnership.

• June 8, Womack Army Medical Center and the

Geneva Foundation launched the Fort Bragg Research Institute at Fayetteville State University. The institute aims to link the vast research infrastructure of our community with the growing requirements of operational readiness at Fort Bragg. Working with the Cape Fear Research Consortium, the FBRI’s mission is to optimize military performance and improve health disparities of southeastern North Carolina through scientific innovation.

Learn more at www.uncfsu.edu/fort-bragg-research.

2019: Year in Preview

Fayetteville’s new baseball team debuts

• Construction on downtown Fayetteville’s new $37.8 million ballpark dominated conversation last year. The stadium heralds this area’s first minor league baseball presence in 17 years, and this spring, the wait will finally come to an end. The Fayetteville Woodpeckers, a minor league affiliate of the World Series Champion Houston Astros, will play their first home game April 18, 2019, against the Carolina Mudcats. The Astros signed a 30-year lease, indicating their investment in the long-term success of the city. The stadium will also host the NCAA Big South Conference baseball tournament May 21-25. Learn more at www.milb.com/fayetteville.

The debut of the stadium and team will be complemented by Prince Charles Holdings’ $110 million plan, which includes the renovation of the Prince Charles Hotel, along with other downtown revitalization projects.

Development and new business

• Improvements to Concourse A, the first phase of Fayetteville Regional Airport’s $35 million renovation project, are expected to be completed in July. The first major renovation since the terminal was built, the updated concourse will be triple the size of its predecessor, seat 128 passengers and include a new restaurant serving salads, sandwiches and local craft beer. The second phase is expected to start in November, which will improve the facade of the building and include new escalators, elevators and stairwells.

• Launched a year ago and gaining steam, The CORE is an innovation corridor in downtown Fayetteville with a mission to connect the talent and resources of our community while providing a central location for tech companies, DoD Contractors and entrepreneurs to develop and deploy next-gen technologies. This hub plans to provide a coworking space for innovators in cybersecurity, digital healthcare, energy, Internet of Things, augmented reality and other related technologies.

• Campbell Soup Supply Company, in partnership with DHL Supply Chain, will open a new, state-of-the-art distribution center in Cedar Creek Business Center by this summer. The project will result in a $40 million investment and the creation of 195 jobs.

Quality-of-life activities

• Though it technically started in 2018, Cool Spring Downtown District’s busker program will grow in strength this year, adding a delightful element of live music to downtown Fayetteville every Thursday, Friday and Saturday evening, along with Saturday and Sunday afternoons. CSDD has more exciting plans for the year: Jan. 25-27, there will be outdoor ice skating downtown; Feb. 22- 23, a gaming tournament; an every-Wednesday lunch in Cross Creek Park starting in March; and summer concerts every Thursday night this summer.

Learn more at www.visitdowntownfayetteville.com.

Welcoming new troops at Fort Bragg

• Fort Bragg’s leadership announced they anticipate adding 2,500 to 3,000 troops in the coming years, increasing the installation’s total population to around 57,000.

 Maya Johnson

Westover • Senior • Volleyball, bowling, softball

Johnson has a grade point average of 3.93. She is a member of National Honor Society and Westover’s Ladies of Grace.

 Delsin Burkhart

Westover • Senior • Cross country, soccer, football, track

Burkhart has a 3.6 grade point average. He is a two-time state qualifier in cross country and was the placekicker for the football team. He is a member of National Honor Society, Academy of Health Sciences, and Brotherhood of Successful Students.

 For a second straight year, Cumberland County Schools will join the work of the Kay Yow Cancer Fund to raise money for cancer research through the Play4Kay program.

The fundraiser encourages college and high school basketball teams to select a game on their schedule to use as a focal point for raising money. It pays tribute to the late North Carolina State University women’s basketball coach, Sandra Kay Yow, who was a victim of cancer.

Vernon Aldridge, student activities director for Cumberland County Schools, first became interested in the Play4Kay program following a presentation made sometime back by Que Tucker, commissioner of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association.

Aldridge said Tucker told everyone at the meeting that day that the state of North Carolina was not ranked among the leaders in donations to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund — in spite of the fact Yow was a native of North Carolina and had a lengthy coaching career in the state.

“With as much as she’s done for the state of North Carolina and the young ladies from North Carolina who have played for her, it doesn’t make much sense,’’ Aldridge said.

Cumberland County had a personal stake in getting involved as well, Aldridge said, as Pine Forest High School athletic director Jason Norton is battling cancer.

Last year, during the Play4Kay drive, Cumberland County Schools raised $5,600 for the fight against cancer. Pine Forest raised more money than any other school and received a plaque in recognition of that.

It’s left up to each school to decide how to raise money on the night of its Play4Kay basketball game. They’re asked to pick a game on their schedule where they expect to draw a good crowd.

Some schools just ask for donations from spectators or have a collection point at the ticket gate. Others hold 50-50 drawings. Some offer special Play4Kay t-shirts for sale, and a portion of the proceeds from the sale of each shirt are donated back to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.

Sometimes the competing teams incorporate pink into their uniforms, either using the jersey or something like pink socks, to raise cancer awareness.

Following are the scheduled Play4Kay dates this year for each Cumberland County school. For specifics on what is planned to raise money at each game, contact the home school directly.

Cape Fear — Jan. 8 vs. Pine Forest

Seventy-First — Jan. 8 vs. Scotland

Jack Britt — Jan. 25 vs. Scotland

Gray’s Creek — Jan. 25 vs. Cape Fear

Douglas Byrd — Feb. 1 vs. Terry Sanford

E.E. Smith — Feb. 5 vs. Pine Forest

Pine Forest — Feb. 8 vs. Cape Fear

South View — Feb. 8 vs. Terry Sanford

Westover — Feb. 8 vs. Overhills

Terry Sanford — Feb. 12 vs. Pine Forest

 Following are the Cumberland County players selected to this year’s All- Sandhills Athletic Conference football team chosen by the league’s head coaches:

Defensive player of the year: 

Erick Martinez, Jack Britt

Offensive line

Jack Britt - Justin Milliman

Seventy-First - Benjamin Willis, Jai Harper, Alex Williams

Wide receivers

Seventy-First - Camari Williams

Running backs

Seventy-First - Sincere Bates

Quarterbacks

Seventy-First - Kyler Davis

Defensive linemen

Seventy-First - Thomas Washington

Linebackers

Jack Britt - Mike Matthews, Nico Perofeta

Seventy-First - Devante Wedlock

Defensive backs

Seventy-First - Jah-kahri McLain

Photo: Erick Martinez

 Cape Fear High School’s wrestling team rolled Merry Christmas and Happy New Year into one over the holiday break with some outstanding performances in a couple of tournaments.

Cape Fear’s Dallas Wilson was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler in the WRAL tournament en route to winning the 138-pound weight class. But the best was yet to come for the Colts in Charlotte’s Holy Angels tournament at Bojangles Arena.

Wilson and 170-pound Jared Barbour were both individual champions and helped lead Cape Fear to the team title in the event that draws some 80 high school teams from both North and South Carolina, Georgia and Virginia.

The success at WRAL and Holy Angels vaulted Cape Fear from unranked to No. 1 in the East and No. 2 in the state among 3-A schools in the NCMat.com statewide rankings that were updated Wednesday, Jan. 2.

Cape Fear coach Heath Wilson said the performance of his wrestlers in the consolation rounds proved crucial in winning the team championship at Holy Angels. Cape Fear finished with 165.5 points to beat St. Stephens High School of Hickory with 149. St. Stephens is the No. 1 team in 3-A in the NCMat.com state rankings.

Barbour’s win at 170 was especially crucial for the Colts. In the WRAL tournament, he lost a tough battle to Cael Willis of Wilmington Laney, the No. 1 ranked 4-A wrestler in his class in the state according to NCMat.com.

Barbour, who is No. 1 in 3-A, rebounded and got the win in the Holy Angels tournament.

Cape Fear returns from the holidays for a big Patriot Athletic Conference match at South View on Wednesday, Jan. 9, then goes to one of the state’s biggest regular season tournaments, the Sarah Wilkes Invitational at Eden Morehead High School, Jan. 11-12.

That same weekend, Jack Britt holds Cumberland County’s biggest regular season tournament, the annual Boneyard Bash.

***********************

December high school basketball is most often a blur and quickly forgettable when January rolls around. The boys are especially in flux because many teams are awaiting the arrival of players from football who got a late start because of the state playoffs.

The blur continues into the early days of January. Now that the date for the semester break has changed, when Cumberland County returns to school Monday, Jan. 7, the students who have been academically reinstated for the second semester and the ones who lost eligibility because of inadequate academic performance in the fall will be known. Then, coaches can move forward with complete rosters for the rest of the season. 

Looking back briefly at the Southeastern Athletic Officials Association Holiday Classic results, here’s who appear to be the top teams coming out of December.

Seventy-First’s boys and Westover’s boys, finalists in the Ike Walker Sr. bracket of the Holiday Classic, look to be serious contenders in their respective leagues. Seventy-First won 57-54.

For the girls, E.E. Smith is clearly the team to beat but finds itself playing in a strong Patriot Athletic Conference. Smith is 13-1, 6-0, but only beat Terry Sanford 57-54 in the Gene Arrington bracket finals. Terry Sanford is 9-1, 5-0, and has yet to play Smith in a league game.

Record-wise, Jack Britt’s girls are the best of the county teams in the Sandhills Athletic Conference. Britt finished third in the Arrington bracket, losing 60-33 to E.E. Smith in the semifinals.

Britt is 7-3 overall and 2-0 in the league.

Photo: Dallas Wilson

Meetings

For details about all meetings and activities, including location where not listed, call Town Clerk Jane Starling at 910-426-4113. Until the Parks and Recreation building has been repaired following damage from Hurricane Florence, some meetings may be moved to Luther Meeting Room at Town Hall at regular dates and times. Those meetings are noted with an asterisk below.

• Special Meeting, Board of Commissioners Monday, Jan. 14, 7 p.m., Town Hall, Luther Meeting Room

• Lake Advisory Committee Tuesday, Jan. 15, 6 p.m., Parks and Recreation Center*

• Appearance Committee Tuesday, Jan. 22, 6 p.m., Parks and Recreation Center*

• Veterans Affairs Commission Thursday, Jan. 24, 7 p.m., Parks and Recreation Center*

• Parks and Recreation Committee Monday, Jan. 28, 6:30 p.m., Parks and Recreation Center*

Activities

For more information on these activities, contact Meghan Hawkins at 910-426-4109.

• Martin Luther King Jr. Day Monday, Jan. 21— Town offices closed.

• Hope Mills Area Kiwanis Club at Sammio’s,  second Tuesdays at noon and fourth Tuesdays at 6 p.m.

For details, call 910-237-1240.

Promote yourself

Email hopemills@upandcomingweekly.com.

 The busy season has arrived for the Hope Mills Parks and Recreation Department as registration is underway for the youth spring sports season.

The registration process began Jan. 2 and will continue through Feb. 23 for baseball and softball. Wrestling registration wraps up Feb. 2 because that season begins competition earlier, said Maxey Dove of the Hope Mills Parks and Recreation Department.

“This is probably our biggest season,’’ Dove said of the spring sports program. Athletes are being registered in youth baseball for ages 5-14, youth softball for ages 7-15, indoor soccer for ages 6-12 and youth wrestling for ages 6-12.

The outdoor sports will compete on a total of 13 fields; six at Municipal Park, two at Brower Park, two at Hope Mills Middle School, two at Baldwin Elementary School and one at South View Middle School.

Indoor soccer, which has rapidly grown into a popular sport for the town, is held at the gym at the Hope Mills Recreation Center, with Hope Mills Middle School used for overflow practices.

Dove said it’s important for parents to try and register their children as quickly as possible.

“We’ve got to hurry up and wait for the last day of registration,’’ Dove said. “Seventy percent of our registration is on the last two or three days. There’s really not much planning and plotting and team forming you can do until you actually close the door on the last day of registration. That’s when the hurry up and wait comes in.’’

Another reason it’s important to register early is every child who registers prior to the close of registration is assured a place on one of the town’s teams. Anyone who registers after the registration closes is placed on a waiting list and isn’t guaranteed of being able to play.

The registration fee is $30 per child this year, Dove said. Parents must register in person and should bring along a birth certificate and proof of residency to verify they are within the boundaries for Hope Mills set by Dixie Youth Baseball, the governing body for most of the town’s spring sports, except wrestling. Dove said the town is working on having an online registration process available in the near future, but not this year.

Once registration is finalized, teams are determined, coaches are chosen and the draft is scheduled so practice can begin as soon as possible.

All coaches with the parks and recreation department are volunteers who go through background checks run by the department’s human resources division, Dove said.

There will be one problem with registration this year. Damage to the Hope Mills Recreation Center caused by Hurricane Florence has not been repaired, so the recreation department staff is still in temporary quarters at Town Hall.

Dove said it’s hoped the recreation center will re-open by mid-January. Until it does, parents will have to come to Town Hall to register. “(For) the last six weeks of registration, we’ll hopefully be back in our new building,’’ Dove said.

There is also one big change in registration for Hope Mills this year. Dixie Youth Baseball altered its rules since last season and will now permit anyone in Cumberland County to play Dixie Youth Baseball in Hope Mills. “This opens up our boundaries so we can take in additional kids, which will help build our programs,’’ Dove said.

Anyone with any questions about the youth spring sports program can call the recreation department at 910-426-4109.

  Joe Riddle has no problem with Hope Mills trying to make itself the best possible community it can be for its citizens.

 But the longtime Fayetteville developer is concerned the town may be going too far as it tries to develop a sign ordinance for the city.

Last month, the Hope Mills Board of Commissioners voted to table a decision on a new sign ordinance and scheduled a special meeting to hear public input on the sign question on Monday, Jan. 14, at 7 p.m.

Riddle, who spoke at the previous meeting, plans to share his concerns about the sign ordinance at the upcoming meeting.

“If we continue to grow our codes to parallel these wealthier places, we’re going to run ourselves out of business,’’ said Riddle. “Everybody wants to be like Pinehurst or Cary. The problem is, everybody’s not a millionaire retired from the North with a lot of disposable income who plays golf, bridge and croquet every day.

“Everybody is not an engineer with a Ph.D. who works at a Triangle park for a pharmaceutical company or other good company where the husband and wife are making $150,000 each a year.’’

New sign rules like Hope Mills is considering mean signs have to be replaced. Those replacements tend to be costly, and that’s why Riddle thinks the rules could negatively impact businesses in Hope Mills.

What has Riddle concerned is talk that Hope Mills may be considering the elimination of pylon signs. A pylon sign is a freestanding sign that sits apart from a building and has its own support structure that can include a base made of something permanent like brick or concrete.

Fayetteville has a sign ordinance that Riddle describes as strict but reasonably fair as it strikes a balance between presenting a good appearance while also allowing a business owner to adequately advertise his or her business.

If pylon signs are banned, Riddle said, the only option left for businesses would be monument signs. These include ground signs that are attached to a permanent foundation or base and are two-sided.

Riddle said monument signs are fine for a single-tenant business, like a fast food restaurant. But for something like a strip mall or a shopping center, a pylon sign is preferred so all of the businesses can be displayed.

That was the situation Riddle faced at the Colt Crossing shopping complex on old Highway 24 near Cape Fear High School.

When the new Highway 24 bypass was created, traffic no longer passed in front of the shopping center but behind it. Riddle got permission from Cumberland County to build a large pylon sign on the new bypass that promotes all the businesses in the shopping center, including some he’s not affiliated with. Riddle said the sign cost between $60,000 to $65,000.

The possible banning of pylon signs isn’t Riddle’s only concern in Hope Mills. He said there’s also been discussion of limiting signs promoting real estate to 2 feet by 4 feet.

He noted that on a typical real estate sign, information includes the acreage available, the owner’s name and a phone number.

Squeezing all that information on a 2-by-4 sign that people could read without having to pull off the road and come to a complete stop is difficult.

“I don’t think anyone has looked at the size of the signs,’’ he said.

Riddle thinks the people in Hope Mills need to realize their leaders are considering sign restrictions that would be the strictest of any town Riddle has worked with. That’s quite a statement considering he’s got projects as far flung as Raleigh, Rockingham, Lillington, Raeford, Spout Springs, Cameron and Southport.

“They are definitely going to an extreme,’’ Riddle said. “It sounds like a train is going that I won’t be able to slow up.’’

Riddle is afraid if Hope Mills continues on this track and opts to create other restrictions that will inhibit the growth of business in the town, it could drive some things away from Hope Mills.

“I’ve got a grocer that wants to go to Hope Mills,’’ Riddle said. “I’ve got a Dunkin’ Donuts. I’ve got another full-service restaurant. They are all going to probably get hit with the new ordinance.

“What else is Hope Mills planning to do? If they want to be Pinehurst or Cary, they could get real strict. Everybody isn’t going to want to go to Hope Mills if they get real strict. They’ll just bypass (the town).’’

Riddle said he’s not arguing against Hope Mills developing some kind of stricter sign ordinance, but he thinks whatever is done needs to be within reason.

“They’re going from one extreme to the other,’’ he said.

Photo: Joe Riddle

  If you’re reading this, congratulations— you made it! We’re a week into a brand-new year, complete with thoughts of its challenges, of what victories lie ahead and of the memories gone by. Over the past year, many of us celebrated the joy and excitement of new life, some experienced the sadness of loss, and, if we’re at all alike, we’ve done our best to be a friend offering encouragement in the wake of both the best and worst of times.

If nothing else, 2018 gave me opportunity once again to acknowledge the fact we’re all just passing through. We get, we give, we have and we hold, but in the end we arrive at the same humbling conclusion — everything on this earth is temporary. While we build mighty castles to wall us in or monuments to all we consider great, the only true legacy we leave will be found in how we loved.

Over time I’ve learned to loosen my grip on the things I think I control lest they begin to control me in return. And I am reminded there is a time and season for everything and a marvelous creator who steadies and stills us though it all.

I don’t want to beat a depressingly melancholy drum too long, so let’s peer down the road from these first few days of 2019 with the knowledge that we have choices. We can each choose to see a winding road strewn with rocks, slopes and unknown peril around each bend. Or, we can look a little further to the beauty of the horizon with the realization the road itself is a journey worth taking. Each step brings us closer to something new and often leads us away from things familiar.

In either case, we take those steps both challenged and comforted by an immensely wise creator who seems to say, “Be prepared to let go of anything I take from you, but never let go of my hand!”

You may have entered 2019 without making a resolution or a promise, but there is plenty of positive change anyone can work on this year. Start by simply being grateful. Take stock in all you’ve already been given. More than food, a decent car, a home or stuff to fill it, count the blessings of family, friends and life itself.

At WCLN, our daily charge is to help bring relationships to life and deliver music filled with the good news that God loves every person in the world. We believe the two greatest things we could inspire anyone to do is to love God back and to love others more than themselves. That’s what makes Christian 105.7 different, and it will work for you, too.

Enjoy your family and friends today. Give extra hugs and words of love just because you can. Make the world a happier place by doing some extra act of kindness. Smile a little bit longer. Most importantly, be grateful for the life you’ve been given.

 What really happened to Virginia Dare, the first child of English parents born in the New World? This is the same Virginia Dare whom I suggested recently belonged on “The World Almanac’s” list of famous North Carolinians.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about Sir Walter Raleigh’s organization and establishment of the colony on Roanoke Island as described by Andrew Lawler in his book “The Secret Token: Myth, Obsession, and the Search for the Lost Colony of Roanoke.” He called the expensive and intricate preparations for the colony “the Elizabethan equivalent of the Apollo program.”

In July of 1587, the colonists arrived on Roanoke Island led by its governor, John White, whose granddaughter, Virginia Dare, was born Aug. 18. A few days later, White sailed to England for much-needed supplies. When he finally returned in August 1590, the colony had disappeared, leaving only a carving of “Croatoan” on a tree as a possible clue.

There are a lot of answers to the question of what happened to Virginia Dare, her family and their fellow colonists. Most are legends. Some say Virginia Dare grew up into a lovely young woman and was transformed into a white doe, an animal that still haunts coastal North Carolina. Another story says she and other colonists made their way to Robeson County where some locals will show you her burial site near Red Springs.

Less imaginative authors suggest that the colonists, including Virginia Dare, died from hunger, disease or a massacre by Native Americans. Others suggest that the colonists joined nearby Native Americans and were absorbed by them.

In “The Secret Token,” Lawler gives a history of the developing interest in Virginia Dare and the Lost Colony. After her baptism certificate in 1587, there was no public mention of her until 1834. In that year, Harvard-trained historian George Bancroft published his influential “A History of the United States.” Lawler writes, “It is difficult to overstate his impact on the way we see Raleigh’s colony today.”

For Bancroft, the colony was “the germinating seed” for our country and its institutions, “just as important as its revolutionary coming of age.”

Lawler writes that for Bancroft, “Roanoke was, in essence, the nation’s humble Bethlehem, and Virginia Dare was its infant savior destined for sacrifice.”

Bancroft’s version sparked an explosion of writing and activity around Virginia Dare. In the 1890s, some white supremacy organizations adopted her. Lawler writes, “Roanoke Island emerged as a pilgrimage site for Anglo-Americans seeking to reaffirm their racial dominance at the annual celebration of Virginia Dare’s birth.”

According to Lawler, Marjorie Hudson — Chatham County author of “Searching for Virginia Dare” — takes a different and less exclusive path. She writes that Virginia Dare “is the archetypal mother, a source, like a great river of strength and blood for descendants of a convergence of two great peoples.”

Lawler chronicles efforts to learn where the colonists, if they survived, went. To Croatoan, now a part of Hatteras Island? To Site X, a place marked under a patch in a map drawn by John White, located where the Roanoke River flows into the Albemarle Sound? Or to the Chesapeake Bay near where the Jamestown Colony settled and where Powhatan, the local Indian king, massacred them?

Or near Edenton, where in 1937, a California man said he found a large stone? It was inscribed with a message from Virginia Dare’s mother, Eleanor, to her father, John White, reporting the death of her husband, her daughter Virginia, and other colonists. Lawler’s account of this probable fake “Dare Stone” is almost as interesting as the story of the colonists told by Harnett County native and Pulitzer Prize winner Paul Green’s outdoor drama, “The Lost Colony.”

 Individuals with disabilities have long struggled with and continue to struggle with a lack of appropriate assistance. Many who cope with physical or mental impairments have not always received appropriate assistance because of their limitations. As a consequence, career and educational options can seem dim for these individuals.

In the past, society offered little to no support related to jobs and educational opportunities for individuals with disabilities. This was primarily because of a lack of acceptance for those individuals coupled with problems in providing adequate accommodations for individuals who needed them.

Currently, our society agrees that it’s important to treat all people fairly. Acceptance is growing nationally for those who have disabilities. Many areas of government are inspiring and encouraging people to live rewarding lifestyles regardless of their situations or limitations. Federal and state laws are helping everyone reach for academic accomplishment and achievement.

Contemporary standards and regulations associated with the Americans with Disability Act protect individuals with disabilities from discrimination at federally funded colleges. Fayetteville Technical Community College collaborates with this initiative by providing students with quality, non-discriminatory education. FTCC’s Disability Support Services Office works hard to assure students that FTCC is working on their behalf.

Students who have documented psychological and medical disabilities often obtain services through FTCC’s Disability Support Services Office. FTCC provides these services, known as academic accommodations, to students at any time as needed during each semester. Accommodations depend on the student’s diagnosis.

A few examples of common accommodations students might receive include extended time on assessments, a separate setting for assessments, use of assistive technology, preferential classroom seating, extended time transitioning between classes and more.

Accommodations related to a student’s disability are determined according to the proper diagnostician and Office of the Civil Rights recommendations. Approvals for services are accessible through a straightforward application process for academic assistance.

FTCC ensures that faculty and staff employees throughout the college understand the importance of implementing ADA standards and regulations. FTCC also promotes assured methods of maintaining ADA compliance. FTCC also provides professional development opportunities and training for school personnel to verify policies and procedures are efficient and effective.

FTCC provides equal learning opportunities to all regardless of a student’s physical or mental impairment. An office representative from the Disability Support Services Office will be happy to assist current and future FTCC students with their inquiries about eligibility for receiving accommodations.

Students can sign up now for spring classes, which begin Jan. 14. For additional information, please email grooverc@faytechcc.edu or call 910-678-8479.

 The Givens Performing Arts Center presents “So Good for the Soul: A Tribute to Motown Music” Saturday, Jan. 12, at 8 p.m. in Pembroke.

“We are excited to start the new year with this nostalgic concert,” said Chad Locklear, marketing director of GPAC. “It will feature a cast of about eight veteran entertainers and their bands.”

Locklear said some of the entertainers are former members of The Marvelettes, and some are past Broadway performers who have had leading roles in shows like “Dreamgirls,” “Porgy & Bess” and “Show Boat.”

The show’s director, musical director, choreographer and costume designer have jointly won more than 25 of America’s most prestigious theater awards. Cumulatively, the cast members have performed on recordings with more than 30 million record sales and have more than 40 years of experience.

“It is a very talented cast of performers, and it is a tribute to Motown music (with) a lot of the songs everyone will be familiar with because folks have grown up with them,” said Locklear. “They are iconic songs by performers that everyone will be familiar with like Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, Gladys Knight & The Pips, The Temptations, Four Tops, Stevie Wonder, Lionel Richie and many more.”

Locklear added that the show pays tribute to a lot of Motown performers and their songs throughout the 1960s and ’70s.

“We try to do concerts that are nostalgic and will appeal to our older generation, alumni and a wider audience,” said Locklear. “This is one of those familyfriendly shows that any age group can appreciate.”

Adding an extra bit of flavor to this show, there will be a themed meal before the performance. Tickets for the dinner will be sold separately.

“There is going to be a soul food meal prepared by our chef on campus and it will be held in the Chancellor’s dining room,” said Locklear. “The dinner will begin around 6 p.m. We’ve got a grant from the Robeson County Arts Council, The North Carolina Arts Council and McDonald’s Rust Enterprises, and we are grateful that they are sponsoring us. We look forward to everyone coming out to enjoy the show.”

Ticket cost is $21-$36. For more information, visit www.uncp.edu or call 910-521-6361.

 Come join the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra for a magical evening of “Magical Mozart” at St. John’s Episcopal Church in downtown Fayetteville. The concert, set for Thursday, Jan. 17, is the first concert for FSO in the new year. St. John’s Episcopal Church provides an intimate venue for listening to a sampling of works by the famed composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Mozart, a child prodigy who began composing music at the tender age of 5, authored more than 600 symphonies, concertos, operas and chamber music pieces designed for smaller venues, such as a palace chamber, before his death at age 35. Each selection at St. John’s will be discussed prior to the musicians playing it, so guests will know what makes each piece special.

Many people are not aware of the reach of Mozart’s influence but have most likely observed his effects on modern culture. At some point, almost everyone has watched the Looney Tunes cartoon-opera “The Barber of Seville” where “The Marriage of Figaro” is the hilarious ending to the cat-and-mouse game frequently played by Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd. Even the band Queen gave an open nod to Mozart in their classic mock opera “Bohemian Rhapsody.” And, of course, the 1984 movie “Amadeus” featured a fictional portrayal of Mozart’s life.

The song “Rock Me Amadeus” by Falco is a historical pop song dedicated to the composer. Mozart’s works are also used in commercials, movies and TV shows today.

According to FSO President Chris Kastner, the beauty of “Magical Mozart” is that it is set in a historical church with excellent sound quality in the heart of Fayetteville. “There is nothing better on a cold winter’s night than being enveloped with the sound of the music,” she said.

St. John’s seats about 300 people, and the acoustics are perfect for chamber music concerts.

FSO prepared a program to highlight Mozart’s three most popular operas, “The Magic Flute,” “The Marriage of Figaro” and “Don Giovanni,” as well as “Serenade No. 12 in C Minor,” to be played by eight wind instruments in this instrumental-only performance.

“This program is great for high school students or others that may want to perform,” stated Kastner, “and small chamber concerts allow for novices to hear individual instruments where they typically cannot in a large orchestra setting.”

Kastner also noted, “The intimacy of the setting allows attendees to appreciate how hard the musicians work during a performance.” Whether you are a seasoned classical music aficionado or a novice looking to expand your horizons, the FSO concert at St. John’s is a fantastic setting for listening to music by one of the world’s greatest composers.

Tickets can be purchased online or at the door the evening of the performance on Jan. 17. Find out more at https://squareup.com/store/fayettevillesymphony-orchestra/item/magical-mozart-tickets.

St. John’s is located at 302 Green St. The show starts at 7:30 p.m.

Readers of Up & Coming Weekly have likely encountered Pitt Dickey’s funny and sometimes outlandish biweekly opinion column. He has a knack for combining Greek mythology, random factoids, quotes from old T.V. commercials, politics and social commentary in a way that leaves readers chuckling and, on occasion, slightly bewildered.

Dickey is more than just a funny writer, though. He’s an attorney who specializes in advocating for people in need of Social Security disability benefits. He became a partner with Smith, Dickey & Dempster P.A. in 1978 and has been working Social Security disability cases for more than 35 years.

“There’s very little funny in disability,” he said of his career. “There are a lot of people that need help.”

While Dickey likes to poke fun at authority in his column, that strategy connects to a serious ideology. “(Authority bothers me) when it squishes the little people,” he said. “The poor and the sick don’t have that much of a lobbying ability like big pharma.

“Representing people with Social Security disability, basically I’m representing people who the government says are not sick enough to get disability benefits.

“I say they are, and then we have a hearing, and the judge decides for us.”

In a seeming paradox, Pitt said he knew he wanted to be a lawyer as a child because he wanted to know what the rules were. As an adult, he said, he still believes in the importance of rules.

“If we don’t follow the rules, then it’s whoever’s strongest gets to eat the weak people. These folks I represent in disability cases, they’re at the end of their rope. They have no money, and they have no insurance for the most part, unless they’re military. And I can use the rules to help them.”

In 1996, Dickey was working both Social Security disability and family law cases, which he described as “the equivalent of being a legal proctologist.” He needed an outlet, and he’d taken several English classes as an undergraduate student at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill in the early ’70s.

Back to 1996. Dickey ran into Bill Bowman, who had recently become the new owner of Up & Coming Weekly, at Haymont Grill. Dickey asked if he could write a column for the paper.

Dickey’s only foray into published humorous writing at that point was an opinion piece he’d written during his adolescent years at Seventy-First High School. The topic? The lunchroom. The entire edition of that school newspaper was recalled. “You can’t poke fun at the school lunchroom,” is what he learned.

Back again to 1996. “(Bill) said sure, send one in, and I did. And the rest is history.

“The column in Up & Coming Weekly allows me to poke at the powers that be. … You can’t go out and make people do things, but if you point out that what they’re doing is ridiculous, that might in some way change things. Authority doesn’t like humor.”

Ultimately, he said, he also just genuinely enjoys entertaining people. The key to both his writing process and to understanding his articles, he said, is “the drinking of coffee. Then everything makes sense.”

Since 1998, Dickey has also written a monthly column covering various need-to-know subjects for Social Security disability claimants. It appears online at www.seniormag.com and in several local publications.

He’s been married for more than 40 years to Lani Dickey, a longtime educator at FTCC who recently retired.

“We met on the steps of the institute of government on the first day of law school (at UNC),” he said. “She was a Davidson and I was a Dickey, and we were lined up in alphabetical order. Isn’t that beautiful? If she’d been a Smith, who knows?”

Photo: Pitt Dickey

 The North Carolina Department of Transportation had hoped to open a new section of Fayetteville’s Outer Loop by Christmas. But DOT spokesman Andrew Barksdale said it will likely be summer or fall of this year before the segment from the All American Freeway to Cliffdale Road opens to traffic.

“Fort Bragg wanted a way to get from a unit’s motor pool straight to the training area and not have to go out and around (Interstate) 295,” Barksdale said. “A bridge was too costly, so we are building a large enough tunnel — at a cost of $2 million — for the military vehicles to use to travel under I-295.”

Barksdale noted Fort Bragg formally requested the enhancement of the project, and DOT Secretary Jim Trogdon approved it. Trogdon is from Hope Mills and retired in 2016 as the Deputy Adjutant General of the North Carolina National Guard.

A Fayetteville loop was first considered in 1977. But similar projects in Charlotte were given funding priority for several years.

In 2005, the DOT received the I-295 designation as a future route with signs erected along initial sections of the route soon after that. Changes made in 2014 downgraded the freeway to NC 295, a temporary designation pending completion of the loop. The Outer Loop, as it is alternately known, improves connectivity between Fort Bragg and Interstate 95, a commitment the Army sought for decades.

It also provides a new commuter route between the post and the city of Fayetteville. The final design takes the bypass 39 miles around the north, west and south sides of Fayetteville. Once the section to Cliffdale Road is completed, the next project awarded by DOT at a cost of $85.2 million will be a 3.1-mile stretch to Raeford Road.

The final three legs of the beltway are being built simultaneously. A design-build concept makes it possible for Barnhill Contracting Co., Sanford Construction, and HDR Engineering to work together and combine all aspects of the plan from design through construction under a single contract.

Work includes replacing the Lake Rim runoff bridge over Bones Creek on Old Raeford Road. That fragment should be finished by May 2022. Then comes Raeford Road to Camden Road. A contract is set to be awarded by DOT this month with construction to be completed by 2023.

The final leg of the future interstate is from Camden Road to I-95 South just below the Cumberland/ Robeson County line. That $129.7 million design-build contract has already been awarded to the Wilmington-based team of Balfour Beatty Infrastructure Inc., Branch Civil Inc. and STV Engineers Inc. and has a scheduled completion of July 2021.

When finished, I-295 will connect I-95 North and U.S. Highway 13 at Eastover to Fort Bragg. It then curves around Fayetteville and Hope Mills and  reconnects to I-95 South above St. Pauls. Total cost will be $1 billion.

Works of art most often reflect what is important to the artist: beliefs, sentiments or ideas.

For local artist Saundra “Sandy” Smith Rubiera, memory became the core of her inspiration. A personal story, a Southern cultural memory, Rubiera’s childhood in Fayetteville, North Carolina, frames the narrative in her mature body of work. Tuesday, Jan. 15, Gallery 208 will host an opening reception for her latest exhibit, “What Touches Us: Works by Sandy Rubiera” from 5:30-7 p.m. at 208 Rowan St.

The beginning of Rubiera’s accomplished artistic career began when she attended East Carolina University as an art student. By the time she left the university, she had completed a Master of Fine Arts degree in painting with a minor in printmaking.

She married a professional photographer (her son is a professional photographer as well) and they lived in Miami, Florida, for 25 years before she and her family returned to Fayetteville. A former educator, Rubiera has illustrated three published picture books and exhibits nationally, regionally and locally.

Most recently, Rubiera was one of the artists awarded the 2016-2017 Regional Artist Grant. This grant is administered and funded by the Arts Council of Fayetteville/Cumberland County with support from the North Carolina Arts Council and the counties of Lee, Moore, Richmond, Robertson and Scotland, the city of Fayetteville and Cumberland County.

Although the majority of works in “What Touches Us” are Rubiera’s most recent works in Prismacolor pencils, professional markers and acrylic paints, Gallery 208 will present a range of Rubiera’s work so visitors can see the span of her career, including several multi-colored relief prints she made while studying at ECU.

After seeing the early work, visitors to the exhibit will readily recognize that Rubiera’s identity as an artist and what she values was present even when she was a young art student. Her early work evoked a sense of joy and celebrated simple pleasures. The early relief images are figurative and revel in the love between women and children.

Experiences of joy, beauty and simple pleasures are central to Rubiera’s content. Her approach to composition and pictorial perspective was forever altered when, as a student, she climbed a ladder to change a light bulb and viewed her surroundings from above. All of her mature body of work combines a birds-eye viewpoint with bright colors, patterns and a flattened space.

Rubiera is clear about her approach to imagemaking: “I have spent my life studying, teaching and making art. What inspired me to pick up a pencil, brush or pen and make marks on paper or canvas is the same now as when I first started out as an artist: color, pattern and flattened space.

“Although I draw from life, I make a conscious effort to flatten the space in the picture plane by tilting it toward the viewer and altering the perspective. The objects looked stacked, one on top of the other, vertically, rather than one behind the other, horizontally.

“For me, color needs to be intense and as bright as I can make it to be exciting, like opening a new box of crayons on the first day of school. My work is flat and decorative. I love patterns, texture and making marks on a surface. I like the movement they create in a drawing or painting and the way they activate the surface by breaking large shapes into smaller colored areas.”

Memories, the core of Rubiera’s mature work, take the form of sensations, objects and emotions. Unlike in her early work, the figure is replaced with the still life as a subject. Embedded in the still life are memories — like being a small child at her grandmother’s house.

“There is an element of storytelling in my work,” Rubiera said. “The objects I draw and paint are objects I touch or use every day — objects perhaps unimportant to others, but which have meaning for me beyond my finding them interesting or beautiful. These objects evoke stories from my own memories or sometimes stories I make up about them.

“I find these stories funny or whimsical, sometimes sad, sometimes silly. We all struggle, I think, daily, with horrors in the news and difficulties in our own lives. In my drawings, there is no cruelty or violence, no war or hunger or pain. I am aware that this is not the real world, but I want the viewer to forget all that if only for a moment.”

When reflecting on Rubiera’s body of work, I think about the greater meaning successful works of art can have for all of us who view it. While memory sensations have had a direct influence on the work, has Rubiera given voice to a varied and changing cultural landscape of identities and values? Rubiera is presenting her personal reflections and experiences. As an artist, has she left out enough information for us to construct our own meaning?

Positive answers to the above questions relate to the success of Rubiera’s work. Although the image is crowded with objects, Rubiera’s formal choices leave us, the viewers, with enough room to complete the work with our own curiosity. If we let go of preconceived ideas about what a work of art should be, we can rethink the familiar.

Works of art can express feelings and emotions in ways that speech does not. Rubiera successfully stimulates a type of joy that anyone, of any age, can appreciate.

Overall, art reflects what it is to be human, and the cultural dialogue in art is many things. Rubiera brings to the table an important perspective: beauty and joy are still important to our wellbeing. Having knowledge of Rubiera’s career path as an artist, it is easy to see she is a creative role model who can inspire many people of all ages to enjoy art or become artists.

Locally, Rubiera’s work is carried by Lisa’s Picture Framing in the Haymount area of Fayetteville. She also has a website: www.saundrasmithrubiera.com.

The public is invited to attend the Jan. 15 reception of “What Touches Us: Works by Sandy Rubiera,” from 5:30-7 p.m. at Gallery 208, located at 208 Rowen St. The exhibit will remain in the gallery until mid-March. Gallery hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday-Friday. For more information, call 910-484-6200.

 Note from Up & Coming Weekly Publisher Bill Bowman: No one has a better feel for the progress and economic momentum taking place in Cumberland County than Robert Van Geons, president and CEO of the Fayetteville Cumberland County Economic Development Corporation. When an inept Washington, D.C., personal finance website like WalletHub shoots from the hip and publishes its version of fake news at our expense, someone needs to set the record straight. Read on. Van Geons does just that. Let’s see if WalletHub picks up on this story. Or, better yet, maybe WTVD 11 will pick it up.

On the morning of Jan. 3, I received a call from Fayetteville Mayor Colvin asking if I had seen a recent study by WalletHub, which listed Fayetteville last on its list of “Best Places to Find a Job.” Considering all the projects we have underway, the recent economic development announcements and general state of our local economy, his instincts told him this wasn’t correct. While the city’s communication team followed up with the publisher, I took a closer look at the study. We soon found out that the mayor’s suspicions were on point.

Digging deeper, when reviewing the sources listed, it was clear that most of the data had been collected in 2016, before projects like the $130 million Woodpeckers Stadium/downtown development, our new transit center, the $35 million Parks and Recreation Bond and important initiatives such as Pathways to Prosperity. And it certainly didn’t include any of the job-creating economic development announcements made in the last two years, Booz Allen Hamilton, Campbell’s Soup Company and eClerx as examples.

At best, rankings like what was published by WalletHub say a lot about where we’ve been — as opposed to where we are today or where we are headed.

Before going any further, let’s be clear. We are a work in progress. I am confident that most of our public- and private-sector leadership would agree that, while we are making great strides, there remains much to be done. That said, our recent history shows us confronting tough challenges, investing in the future and driving progress forward.

Wanting to understand better the data that went into the WalletHub rankings, we went searching for the reports referenced, starting with the heavily weighted “Manpower Employment Outlook Survey.” To our surprise, that analysis is only available for the 100 largest metropolitan statistical areas, of which we are not one (Fayetteville is #138).

Shortly after this discovery, the city’s communications team received additional information from WalletHub, showing that five data points for Fayetteville were marked “N/A – Not Available,” taking 17.07 of 100 possible points off the proverbial table.

Subsequent conversations with the publisher confirmed that while we were not penalized for unavailable data, based on the sources they chose to use, we could not receive points for any of the following:

• Employment Outlook: Double Weight (6.53 points)

• Job Satisfaction: Full Weight (3.27 points)

• Retirement Access and Participation: Full Weight (3.27 Points)

• Transit Score: Full Weight (2.00 Points)

• Recreation-Friendliness: Full Weight (2.00 Points)

In the end, benchmarking our community against other cities can provide valuable insights. However, if someone is going to saddle a community with a label, the same criteria must be used for all. Putting our city at the bottom of a list that was developed using incomplete data is downright disingenuous.

Our community is moving forward, and I am confident that our citizens — and those considering Fayetteville for a business or personal move — will see past this website’s ranking. While WalletHub left out important statistics about our community, here are a few of which we can be proud.

• 1,200-plus current job openings in Fayetteville (NCWorks Employment Center)

• $200 million-plus announced projects under construction (FCEDC)

• 1,100-plus new jobs announced since January 2017 (FCEDC)

• 3,725 more people working than December 2016. (NC Commerce)

• 2,000 more people in the labor force (NC Commerce)

• 1,00,000-plus square feet of new construction underway (FCEDC)

• 4.6 percent unemployment rate – down 1.5 percent since December 2016 (NC Commerce)

The actions we are taking today set the foundation for us to be a stronger, more vibrant and globally competitive city. Working together, we are committed to building an economic landscape full of opportunity for all of our citizens. No internet study is going to deter us from continued progress along our path toward a brighter and more prosperous future.

 When the 116th Congress convened last week, 25 women were sworn in as senators, and a stunning 102 women became members of the House of Representatives, 43 of them women of color. For the first time in our nation’s history, nearly one-fourth of Congress is composed of women members — nowhere near our 51 percent of the population but far above the paltry numbers of the past.

And, oh, the diversity! At 29, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is the youngest woman to serve in Congress. Two Muslim women were sworn in, one of them wearing a traditional Palestinian gown, a colorful throbe. The other, a Somali native, recalled her arrival to the United States with her father 23 years ago from a refugee camp in Kenya.

Kansas and New Mexico sent the first Native American women to Congress. Marsha Blackburn and Cindy Hyde-Smith became the first women senators from Tennessee and Mississippi, respectively. Six states — Arizona, California, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire and Washington — are now represented by two women Senators. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona is the first openly bisexual person ever sworn into the U.S. Senate.

Our U.S. Congress remains overwhelmingly white and male, but it is beginning to look more like the rest of America than it ever has.

The gains for women are unequal viewed through a partisan lens, however. Far more women ran and won as Democrats than as Republicans, who lost 10 women House members, down from 23 in the last Congress to 13 today. Of the 127 women now serving in Congress, 21 are Republicans. Of the 36 new women members of the House, one is a Republican. Republicans picked up two new women senators, but it is clear that for all sorts of reasons, Republican women remain on the elective sidelines.

Two questions seem obvious. Why is this pink wave happening now, and why is it important?

Many American women were stunned by the election of Donald Trump. Add in the #MeToo movement ignited by sexual harassment and assault from Trump, media moguls and stars, chefs and bosses of all stripes, and women reached a breaking point.

We ran for election to offices at local levels and to win positions as governors and members of Congress, and more of us won than ever before. We are doing so at younger ages, often without prior experience in public life, much less public office. Books are being written about this, including “Good and Mad: The Revolutionary Power of Women’s Anger,” a New York Times best-seller by Rebecca Traister and a powerful and profane look at the lives of American women in workplaces dominated and controlled by men.

It is critical that women serve in public office, because we make up more than half of our nation’s population and because our life experiences are different from those of men, not better or worse but different in all respects.

From childhood, girls and boys experience the world in different ways, just as we do as adults. Like it or not, women continue to shoulder most household responsibilities, including child care and homemaking chores. This does not mean we come to elected responsibilities, from school board to U.S. president, with more skills than men but with different perspectives.

This difference was summed up nicely on a Christmas towel someone sent me online, which read, “Wise women would have asked directions, arrived on time, helped deliver the baby, cleaned the stables, made a casserole, brought practical gifts, and there would be Peace on Earth.”

Neither approach is wrong, just different. The same is true of women in elective office. Some are better at their jobs than their men counterparts, and some are not. Both perspectives are needed at the table when public policy for all is being made.

It is clear that some of us are threatened by changes in American demographics, culture and governance. The Greek philosopher Heraclitus understood that people struggle with change when he wrote, “the only thing that is constant is change.”

American women are going through significant change now, and our nation will be better for it.

 In the three years my column has appeared in Up & Coming Weekly, I do not think there has been a time when I forthrightly characterized anybody. Circumstances, and my assessment of them, force me to do so in this column. I must acknowledge that far too many bullies and wimps populate the United States Congress. For the most part, many Democrats in Congress have earned the “bully” characterization, while a substantial number of Republicans are justifiably labelled as “wimps.”

The most recent event that shines a bright light on this “bullies and wimps” condition is front and center as I start this column Dec. 26, 2018. Twenty-five percent of the federal government shut down because the House, Senate, and president have not agreed on funding for a wall on the Southern border. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has repeatedly stated that Senate Democrats will not approve any funding for a wall. Since this matter was not settled by the expiration of the last continuing resolution Dec. 21, the partial shutdown commenced.

In what is happening here, the bullying shows through, first, in Democrats refusing to negotiate on a matter of national security reasonably. Allowing illegal immigration to proceed as it currently is in America clearly threatens our national security.

Then there is the in-your-face, confrontational, attacking approach employed by many Democrats in dealing with anybody who is part of the Trump administration or supportive of the president’s agenda.

A prime example of this conduct is reflected in comments by Democratic Rep. Luis Gutierrez of Illinois to Kirstjen Nielsen, secretary of Homeland Security, during a House Committee hearing. He brands her a liar, misappropriates a biblical passage and walks out of the hearing as Nielsen starts to respond to his comments. To get the full impact of the point I am making here regarding bullying by Democrats, please watch the clip of the Gutierrez/Nielsen exchange at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ScCMHhnkUk.

On the other hand, Congress has far too many Republicans whose actions show them to be wimps. For the last two years, Republicans have held a majority in the House and Senate and had a Republican in the White House. Donald Trump won the presidency, in great part, by promising to build a wall along the Southern border to curb illegal immigration. Congressional Republicans have given lip service to making the wall happen. Time and again, when they should have taken a stand, they promised to address the matter later. Republicans repeatedly bowed to the bullying of the Democrats.

In March 2018, Congress passed a $1.3 trillion spending bill that funded the government through Sept. 30, 2018. Trump threatened to not sign the legislation because it did not include funding for a border wall. Republican Congressional leadership promised Trump that wall funding would be secured by the end of this year.

After Sept. 30 and into the new fiscal year, no serious action was taken to make wall funding available. An FY 2019 budget was put in place and funding was appropriated for 75 percent of the government. The remaining 25 percent was operating on temporary extensions that expired at midnight Dec. 21, 2018.

The Senate, overly populated by Republican wimps, by voice vote, passed another extension that would have gone into February 2019 — after Democrats take over the House majority. The extension included $1.6 billion for border security but did not include wall funding. Instead of accepting the Senate’s extension, the House passed a spending bill providing $5.7 billion for border security, including wall construction.

The Senate took no action on the House’s bill because Schumer made it clear that Democrats would not vote for wall funding. Given that it would take 60 votes in the Senate and there are only 51 Republicans, the House bill would fail in the Senate. No need to bring it up.

Trump has, rightly, locked in to his position that he will veto any bill that does not provide wall funding. At this point, it is not publicly known what amount would be acceptable to the president. Before the House action, it appeared Trump was about ready to give up the fight until the House Freedom Caucus demonstrated their lack of wimp affliction and encouraged the president to stand his ground. They committed to stand with him. The House Freedom Caucus is made up of 30-plus conservative Republicans led by Republican Rep. Mark Meadows of North Carolina.

Another wimp presence indicator is that when the House was moving toward a spending bill vote, many Republican members had already left Washington, headed home for Christmas. This was especially true of those who were retiring or lost their re-election bid. Still on the payroll, in the midst of a crucial fight, they went home. Some had to be called back for the vote. Despite the urgency, 11 Republican House members did not vote.

In this bully/wimp circumstance, governing deteriorates to a dangerous and disgusting level. Conditions that make absolutely no sense are allowed to fester, and American citizens suffer. Consider some of what, with regard to the shutdown and illegal immigration, illustrates the horrible consequences of being governed by too many bullies and wimps.

Start with the $5.7 billion the House approved. Subtract the $1.6 billion the Senate offered for border security, but not a wall. That leaves $4.1 billion that could be spent on the wall, and Trump would probably accept this amount. An article by Kimberly Amadeo titled “FY 2017 Federal Budget Compared to Trump’s Spending” stated that FY 2017 federal spending totaled $3.982 trillion.

The government is in partial shutdown over $4.1 billion, or one-tenth of 1 percent of the total government spending in FY 2017.

We have 420,000 federal employees working without pay because they are considered essential and 380,000 on furlough without pay. It makes no sense.

An article by Alan Gomez titled “Federal judge blocks another attempt by Trump to limit asylum” addresses an area where the president has tried to take needed action, but the matter requires congressional correction. Following are crucial sections of the article:

“A federal judge in Washington on Wednesday ruled that the Trump administration violated federal law by barring migrants from qualifying for asylum in the U.S. based on their fears from domestic abuse or gang violence in their home countries.”

“Then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced new rules in June that required U.S. officials to deny those applications for asylum and place the applicants into expedited deportation proceedings.”

“Sullivan’s ruling follows a separate decision from a federal judge in San Francisco on Nov. 19, which temporarily prevents the Trump administration from implementing new rules that bar migrants who enter the U.S. illegally from requesting asylum.”

Being granted asylum in the U.S. requires that a person demonstrate that he or she has been, or expects to be, persecuted in their home country and that persecution is due to one of these five reasons: race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, political opinion. Former Attorney General Sessions took the position that these conditions refer to actions by governments. If extended beyond governments, and beyond the five categories, we could have an even more dire situation than now.

As for illegal immigrants being allowed to apply for asylum, given the overwhelming flow across the Southern border, allowing it is unmanageable and does not pass the common-sense test. Both of these are matters that Congress should address, but they won’t touch them. They leave it to the president and then complain about what he does in response to these situations that threaten our national security.

A report by the Federation for American Immigration Reform titled “The Fiscal Burden of Illegal Immigration on United States Taxpayers” (2017) estimates that, after adjustments for taxes paid, illegal immigrants cost the federal government and state governments $115.9 billion annually. Paying $5.7 billion, even $25 billion, appears to be a reasonable investment to reduce that annual expense.

Democrats repeatedly say walls do not work. The Border Patrol says, and has demonstrated, that walls work. Further, research these walls that work: Israel- West Bank; Morocco-Algeria; Cyprus; India-Pakistan; Turkey-Syria. These walls work.

I could go on to address the negative impact of illegal immigration on employment for American citizens; the horrendous human consequence of illegal drugs that come across the Southern border; the additional crime that happens in our country; abuse of the asylum process. The list goes on.

Simply considering what is presented here makes it crystal-clear that Congress is an abysmal failure, and has been for years, with regard to addressing illegal immigration. Sadly, this is just one example among many that shows this institution to be nearing a state of uselessness, if not a danger, to the very survival of America. This condition should not be a surprise where bullies and wimps dramatically outnumber people of reason and courage.

  My wife, Deb, and I were having a discussion this morning and she reminded me of an old cliché that I hadn’t heard in years. “If you’re going to make an omelet, you have to crack some eggs.” I felt this saying to be appropriate for my article.

It surprises me how isolated the American people are to what is happening globally. Here in the U.S., President Trump is considered the No. 1 egg cracker. He is tough, and his style parallels that of Andrew Jackson. Jackson’s style was referred to by many as the “populist laissez-faire.” Middle America loved him, and the urban elitists despised him. Sound familiar?

The fact is, Europe has led the way in the global populist movement. This movement has been fully entrenched in the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, and let’s not forget Greece. The similarities for all these countries have been the issues of immigration, taxes, trade and ultimately, cost of living. Any of that sound familiar?

British Prime Minister Teresa May’s days appear to be limited as her negotiation regarding Brexit — the U.K. leaving the European Union — likely will not pass the parliament. A decision must be made very soon on the agreement because on March 29, a hard Brexit is set to take place. This could prove devastating to the U.K. economy. One of the toughest issues in her negotiations with the EU was an open border with Ireland. You see, Ireland is part of the EU. Northern Ireland is considered part of the British Isles, and this is a huge issue for the UK.

In Italy, the trouble has been immigration as well as budget disagreements with the EU. The 5-Star Movement, a political party, is well organized and has teamed up with other groups to seize control of Italy’s legislative body. As a result, Parliament is now controlled by the populists. They are not likely to bow to EU demands.

A few weeks back, all eyes were focused on France as Macron called up nearly 89,000 police officers to bring an end to the civil unrest. Riots broke out after Macron attempted to increase the gas tax, bringing gas prices to more than $7.90 a gallon — all in the name of global warming. The unrest continued after he reversed his position on the gas tax increase. Now, the “yellow vests” — the rioters — continue their unrest due to the high taxes and the high cost of living in France.

Macron was elected in 2017 and his term is scheduled to end in 2022. Seventy-five percent of the population disapproves of his administration. I bet he does not serve his full term.

He has taken the torch from German Chancellor Angela Merkel, supporting a unified EU. Merkel just announced she will not seek re-election simply because she no longer has support of the people in Germany.

The issue in Germany has been immigration. One of the cornerstone policies of the EU is open borders among its members. As a result, there has been a huge influx of Muslim refugees into Germany.

The borders have closed, but not before a million Muslim refugees made Germany their home. Most of these refugees are uneducated, and most Muslim women are not allowed to work. Medical centers and hospitals are being swamped to meet the medical needs of these refugees — who have no means to pay.

The German citizens have had enough. Hence, the fall of the Merkel dynasty.

The Netherlands appears to be a carbon copy of Italy. The populist movement is led by Geert Wilders. He was the founder of the Partij voor de Vrijheid, or PVV, party. Currently, it is the third-largest party in the Netherlands. It was instrumental in keeping Prime Minister Mark Rutte in office. Immigration was the No. 1 issue for the PVV, and now it has focused on the EU deficit reduction plan. The PVV has clearly focused its attention on Brussels, home of the EU headquarters, as well as the European Central Bank.

The Belgian populist movement has gained traction under the leadership of Steve Bannon of Breitbart. Bannon was a trusted adviser for Donald Trump.

The populist movement is a global phenomenon that started years before the election of Donald Trump. Concepts of secure borders and bilateral trade agreements aren’t all that original. These same issues are coming to a head in Europe and have had an economic impact over all of the continent. Furthermore, these collective happenings have the potential to slow European growth to a crawl, and in some countries, the potential for recession is alive and well.

Populism is a grassroots movement that was born out of the struggles of the working class. I have written many times on the concentration of wealth, which is not just limited to the United States. As you can see, it has impacted the entire world.

If you’re struggling to put food on the table and a roof over your head, it’s hard to be worried about global warming. The last thing you need is a carbon tax on gasoline when it’s already close to $8 a gallon. President Macron, take care of your people first.

Of course we want to lend a helping hand to refugees fleeing war and oppression — but only to the extent we can afford to do so. On our very own Statue of Liberty, it says, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free.” A stone’s throw away, we also have Ellis Island, where migrants were screened for serious medical issues. If medical issues were found, they were treated and deported back to their original countries. We couldn’t risk the cost of spreading epidemics let alone the cost of medical treatment. The EU took none of these precautions, and it is paying the price.

As of this article’s writing on Jan. 3, our government has been shut down for almost two weeks, and Nancy Pelosi was just voted in as speaker of the house. The issue, of course, is the wall and immigration policy. Only time will tell who blinks first. The point is, immigration is a global issue, and I, for one, believe our safety is the first obligation of our government.

So, Mr. President, continue to crack eggs and stir them up in that omelet. If we get a few shells mixed in, so be it. Continue putting America first, and rebuild its heartbeat. Bring our industrial base home and secure our borders. And, yes, drain the swamp.