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The Best Of Jackson 2008 [Community]

Best Public Figure: Gov. Haley Barbour
by Adam Lynch
Photo by Jaro Vacek

Gov. Haley Barbour is, undoubtedly, the most noticeable local public figure to waddle across the television set in recent years. Even though Barbour’s prominence in Washington may be on the outs in an increasingly Democratic-leaning Congress, Barbour has an oasis of influence in his conservative home state. Barbour’s anti-regulation persona made him big business’ best friend, just as Mississippi’s anti-regulation background has helped make it the Mexico of the U.S., with new big manufacturers like Toyota moving in to make a profit.

Frankly, Barbour’s been good for business, so much so that Mississippians will tolerate his demand to keep the tobacco incise tax down to 18 cents a pack, and we’ll look the other way when other state capitol lobbyists complain that their top-paying clients are telling them they’ll have to give their business to Barbour’s lobbyist nephews or forget about any influence in the governor’s office.

He’s the guv. What can we say?

Second: Malcolm McMillin / Third: Frank Melton / Good Showing: (tie) Former City Councilman Ben Allen, Councilwoman Margaret Barrett-Simon, Kamikaze


Most Under-appreciated Jacksonian, Biggest Waste of Taxpayer Money, Best Thing To Get Rid Of: Mayor Frank Melton
by Adam Lynch
Photo by Maggie Burks

Like many years before, Mayor Frank Melton finds himself the winner of multiple categories among JFP readers this year.

For some reason, the sarcasm of JFP voters regarding the “Most Under-appreciated” category annually withstands the test of time. A few of the votes could be genuine, but it’s a fair bet that the vast majority of readers know of Melton’s attempts to undermine the council, his wasteful spending, bad management and never-ending penchant to assign his good buddies to high, well-paid positions within the administration.

Melton most recently removed Shirlene Anderson as police chief, but then installed her as the city’s emergency management coordinator—complete with a nice salary. And we certainly haven’t forgotten Melton promoting his bodyguard Michael Recio to assistant chief. Melton stuck to his guns on the Recio promotion, despite outcry from the council, the police union, city residents and just about every-damn-body who’s ever seen Recio’s patent dead-behind-the-eyes, I-communicate-in-grunts mug shot.

Then there’s the issue with Charles Melvin. Remember when Melton was willing to form a whole new city division just so he could pack away Parks Director Ramie Ford into it and replace him with his friend Melvin? Yeah, we do, too. In fact, it amazes us that none of Melton’s few remaining sober-minded confidants ever told him, ‘You know, guy, maybe you could at least try to hide the cronyism.”

Regarding the Best Thing To Get Rid Of vote, it’s clear that when Melton passes from the mayor’s office, a majority of JFP voters will likely feel as if they have passed a kidney stone.

Most Under-appreciated Jacksonian
Second: Kamikaze / Third: Harvey Johnson Jr. / Good Showing: Ben Allen

Biggest Waste of Taxpayer Money
Second: City Council / Third: Melton’s bodyguards / Good Showing: (tie) Convention Center and Councilman Kenneth Stokes

Best Thing to Get Rid Of
Second: Crime / Third: Councilman Kenneth Stokes / Good Showing: Potholes


Best Change to the City: Sheriff-Chief Malcolm McMillin
by Adam Lynch
Photo by Jaro Vacek

If McMillin’s appearance as police chief signified anything to the city, it was change. McMillin, affable and popular, has more layers than an onion. His face says the same as most any cop: “I see you now, and now I’m waiting for you to do something illegal.” But, there’s untold craftiness there that we haven’t yet wrapped our minds around.

All we know right now is that McMillin is confident and appears to be his own man, unlike the last chief who basically washed the mayor’s dishes. Melton’s demeanor around McMillin indicates that he recognizes who’s the boss in the equation. That’s good.

We don’t know his long-term plans. He paints himself as a temporary flotation device, designed to keep the city bobbing over the waves until somebody sees a shoreline. Who’s to say if the next mayor will want to keep him, or even if McMillin cares to stick around?

For now, at least, JFP calls get returned, so more power to ya, big guy.

Second: Downtown development / Third: Fondren / Good Showing: Mississippi Museum of Art, King Edward Hotel


Best Local Cop: Malcolm McMillin
by Adam Lynch
Photo by Jaro Vacek

Sheriff McMillin came at us like a Blue Whale landing on a farmer who had been praying for water. According to rumor, people working behind the scenes had been orchestrating the changeover from former Police Chief Shirlene Anderson to McMillin for weeks, maybe months. At first, we weren’t sure what to expect out of the venture. McMillin assures us this is not the beginning of a melting of municipal and county government as far as he knows, though we’re not sure if the people who helped install him as police chief feel the same way.

For the time being, city residents seem happy with him. A goodly percentage of them voted for him in the last election, after all. No police unions are burning him in effigy, and the council isn’t ordering him to belly-up and do his job. This is a nice improvement.

Second: Lee Vance / Third: Brent Winstead / Good Showing: (tie) Frank Melton, Montel Cleaver, Wes Snyder


Best Visual Artist: Josh Hailey
by Ari Glogowe
Photo by Josh Hailey

It won’t shock most readers to see Josh Hailey’s name atop the Visual Artist pile. But credit should be given when due, and Hailey’s accomplishments extend beyond his visually arresting photographs and intriguing ceramic forms. His commitment to Jackson, and the Fondren area, has fired up the proverbial kiln inside other aspiring local artists, and his studio’s commercial success suggests that a career in the arts need not result in a lifetime of poverty. His exhibitions across the state and the nation help spread the word that Jackson is more than just the midpoint between New Orleans and Memphis.

Second: Wyatt Waters / Third: Ellen Langford / Good Showing: Roy Adkins, Tony DiFatta, William Goodman


Best Community Activist: Kamikaze
by Sarah Litvin

His music, leadership and community consciousness have earned Kamikaze (born Brad Franklin) this year’s Jackson’s Best Community Activist award. Kamikaze has established the Musicians and Producers Coalition (M.A.P.) and now works with the Jackson Arts Collective.

Through concerts, shows and meetings this year, these organizations have strengthened and unified Jackson’s arts community and amplified cries for change that have reverberated throughout the larger community.

With the help of the National Hip Hop Congress, Kamikaze is adding a community activism arm to M.A.P. that will, according to the organization’s MySpace page, encourage its members to get involved in the community even more aggressively and use their voice for change in the political process. He recently joined Matt Allen to form a non-partisan Young Progressives group to give more people a voice in local policy-making and even wrote in his JFP column—which he started after The Clarion-Ledger refused to allow him to write about politics and substantive issues—recently about why he is now using a kindler, gentler photo. Keep on eye on “Kaze.”

Second: Jeff Good / Third: Donna Ladd / Good Showing: Daniel Johnson


Best Jackson Writer: Eudora Welty
by Greg Williamson

Winner of two Guggenheim Fellowships and a Pulitzer Prize in fiction, Eudora Welty lived in Jackson almost all of her 92 years before her death in 2001. She still remains so much a part of the community. I love her dialogue, which conveys all the complexity of the human condition, and when read aloud makes you feel as rooted to the soil of the South as an old magnolia tree.

Second: Donna Ladd / Third: (tie) Orley Hood and Todd Stauffer / Good Showing: (tie) Lori Gregory and Beth Kander.


Best Local Columnist: Orley Hood, The Clarion-Ledger
by Tiffany Fitch

My children, who are under the impression that I am the best writer on the whole planet, felt I should win this award, but JFP readers were not swayed by their enthusiasm. For the sixth year (that’s every year, folks), Orley Hood takes top honors for best local columnist. His columns are comfortable wisdom that feel like sitting with a friend on the porch when the heat is boiling off the pavement. While I’m a bit biased toward our second place, JFP’s own Donna Ladd (and, of course, myself), Orley Hood never fails to make me think or remember a better time.

Second: Donna Ladd (Jackson Free Press) / Third: Rick Cleveland (The Clarion-Ledger) / Good Showing: Kamikaze (Jackson Free Press)


Best Local Professor: Jean Powers, Holmes Community College
by Margaret Cahoon

With so many institutions of higher education, Jackson has lots of competition for this honor. Holmes Community College’s Jean Powers, professor of speech, edges out the competition for the win, though. She’s famous for her storytelling and dedication to student interaction, and being in her class will make you feel like a kid again. She proudly says her classroom looks like the classic TV show “Romper Room” and that students are often shocked it’s a college classroom. Like a proud parent, Powers keeps and displays her former students’ projects. What’s not to love?

Second: Mark Henderson, Jackson State University / Third: James Bowley, Millsaps College / Good Showing: Ted Ammon, Millsaps College

Best Filmmaker: Anita Modak-Truran
by Cheree Franco

Former Joffrey Ballet dancer and 2007’s Best Filmmaker, Anita Modak-Truran, always has a project in the works. As a partner with Butler, Snow, O’Mara, Stevens & Cannada, she handles tort claims and entertainment law. But as president of Questing Beast Productions Inc., she creates entertainment, including short comedies and her 2002 feature documentary “Belles and Whistles,” which debunks the myth of the Southern Belle. Additionally, Modak-Truran is a founding member of the Crossroads Film Society, reviews films for Channel 16, 94.7 FM and The Clarion Ledger, and regularly develops her talent through the selective Sundance Producer’s Conference. This month, Modak-Truran traveled to Sundance Film Festival as a reviewer and to support the premiere of “Ballast,” a Mississippi-made film on which she served as legal adviser.

Second: Opie Cooper / Third: Wesley Caldwell / Good Showing: Jim Dollarhide


Best College Band: Jackson State University
by Kristen Phillips

JSU’s “Sonic Boom of the South” is no ordinary college band. On any given day of JSU’s band camp, an onlooker might mistake it for basic training. But, those intense drills and a demand for excellence is exactly what inspires excellence, and in the case of JSU’s Sonic Boom, dominance. This world-renowned “Showtime Band” was enshrined in the NCAA Hall of Champions in 2003 and featured in an hour-long documentary on CSS Television in 2005. Each year brings JSU’s Sonic Boom more opportunities to perform across the country and here at home. I dare you to stay seated for a whole performance.

Second: Mississippi State University / Third: University of Mississippi / Good Showing: University of Southern Mississippi


Best High School Band: Murrah “Sound of Perfection”
by Shaketta Toins

Murrah has a talented, fun band that performs unique sounds and movements to prove why they are the “Sound of Perfection.” If you are in the vicinity when the bands are practicing in the field, it is hard to concentrate on what you are doing because of Murrah’s thunderous sound. Sometimes people underestimate Murrah’s band, but winning Best Band for the sixth year in a row proves that the “Sound of Perfection” is a band to beat. If you have any doubt about this band, stop by and listen when football season comes around.

Second: Pearl / Third: Madison Central / Good Showing: Callaway, Northwest Rankin, Provine, Jackson Prep


Best Web site: http://www.jacksonfreepress.com
by Brian Johnson

This year’s repeat winner is no surprise, as everyone in Jackson knows that the JFP’s Web site is top dog for breaking news and commentary. It represents the best of community journalism, generating hundreds of comments on important stories while that other paper’s Web site flounders through yet another reconfiguration. Beyond Jackson, there are few sites in the country that are as energetic and intelligent as the JFP. While most news media remain terrified of the Internet, the JFP’s site continues to grow by leaps and bounds, charging into cyberspace with enthusiasm, creativity and courage.


Second: http://jacksonncrowd.com / Third: http://clarionledger.com / Good Showing: http://wapt.com, http://www.jackpedia.com


Best New Anchor, Best TV Station: Maggie Wade, WLBT
by Kristen Phillips

Tune your TV to WLBT at 5, 6 or 10 p.m. on any weekday, and you will find the quintessential face of Jackson broadcasting the latest local happenings to the Metro. I’m hard-pressed to remember the news around here without Maggie Wade at the helm of its delivery. Winner in this category for the sixth straight year, Maggie serves us our daily dose of news with a little something extra—a quality that makes you trust and genuinely like her. To be honest, I think WLBT’s strong showing each year for top station could be a direct result of the captivating Maggie Wade. Credit also goes to her charming colleagues, Bert Case and Howard Ballou, coming in second and third, respectively.

Best News Anchor
Second: Bert Case at WLBT / Third: Howard Ballou at WLBT / Good Showing: Joyce Brewer at WAPT, Scott Simmons at WAPT

Best TV Station
Second: WAPT / Third: WJTV / Good showing: FOX, ETV


Best TV Preacher: Dr. Ross Olivier, Galloway United Methodist Church
(305 N. Congress Str., 601-353-9691)

by Kelly Bryan Smith
Photo by Casey Parks

Jackson’s best television preacher distinction is a fitting tribute for Ross Olivier, who has just left Galloway to return to South Africa with his family. His spiritual direction and passion for social justice will be missed. I can’t claim to have ever watched the Galloway broadcast, because in the short time since I have attended Galloway, I have preferred to hear his inspirational sermons in person amidst the historic beauty of Galloway Church. Every Sunday, Olivier’s faith and ardor emanated throughout the sanctuary and our lives. And, I have to say, every spiritual journey should be accompanied by such a great accent.

Second: Stan Buckley, First Baptist Church of Jackson (431 N. State St., 601-949-1900) / Third: Keith Tonkel, Wells Memorial United Methodist Church (2019 Bailey Ave, 601-353-0658) / Good Showing: Paul Williams, Metro East Church of Christ (1155 Jackson Blvd., 601-949-2770)


Best Non-Profit: Stewpot
1100 W. Capitol St., 601-948-2941

by Kristen Phillips
Photo by Margaret Cahoon

Stewpot and I have something significant in common: We both celebrate our 27th birthday in 2008. However, the significance of Stewpot’s presence in the Jackson metro community for those 27 years is far beyond the accomplishments of one meager soul. Starting as a small soup kitchen in downtown Jackson, Stewpot has grown to serve and provide for more and more people throughout the years. Today, because of dedication and generosity from thousands of volunteers they have 17 different ministries, from after-school care to a food pantry to shelter. However, Stewpot’s heart and soul still lies in the ministry that started it all back in 1981: the noon meal, served every day of the year.

Second: HeARTS Against AIDS (601-366-9084) / Third: CARA—Community Animal Rescue & Adoption (960 Flag Chapel Rd., 601-922-7575) / Good Showing: Catholic Charities (200 N. Congress St., Suite 100, 601-355-8634); The Good Samaritan Center (114 Millsaps Ave., 601-355-6276)


Best Stage Play of 2007: “Raisin In The Sun” at New Stage Theatre
1100 Carlisle St., 601-948-3533

by Maggie Burks

New Stage gave new life to Lorraine Hansberry’s beloved play following the story of a struggling black family in 1950s Chicago. Both local and visiting actors graced the stage, including New Yorker Beethoven Oden, who passionately portrayed the frustrated protagonist, Walter Lee Younger. When Walter’s father dies, he leaves a $10,000 insurance check, which becomes the vehicle for emotionally charged dialogue and action as the family decides what to do with the money. Mary Tanksley-Jackson played the Younger matriarch, and the mother/son dynamic between Oden and her was believable and compelling. The performance also starred Joy Brashears as Walter’s wife, Ruth; Naima Carter as the spirited medical-school bound student searching for her African identity; and Joei Smith as Beneatha’s haughty African suitor.

Second: “The Mystery of Irma Vep” at Fondren Theatre Workshop (4094 Pine Hill Dr., 601-982-2217) / Third: “Biloxi Blues” at New Stage Theatre / Good Showing: “A Christmas Carol” at New Stage Theatre


Best Local Live Theater: New Stage Theatre
1100 Carlisle St., 601-948-3531

by Kristen Phillips

Is there any doubt about top honors for best local theater? New Stage Theatre is one of Jackson’s most amazing and valuable artistic assets. Subtly nestled among Belhaven’s historic houses, New Stage has been bringing staged drama to this community since 1965. As a little girl, I remember numerous field trips during the holiday season to see their magical production, “A Christmas Carol.” I was mesmerized. Fascination and wonder is a quality New Stage brings out in children and adults alike.

Second: Fondren Theatre Workshop (4094 Pine Hill Dr., 601-982-2217) / Third: Black Rose (103 Black St., Brandon, 601-825-1293) / Good showing: Thalia Mara (255 E. Pascagoula St., 601-960-1537), Actors Playhouse (121 Paul Truitt Ln., 601-664-0930), Ballet Mississippi (201 E. Pascagoula St. # 106, 601-960-1560)


Best Alibi: “I was with Frank.”
by Adam Lynch
Photo by Brian Johnson

Everybody needs an alibi, and this year’s pick for best is inextricably tied to a guy who’s clearly happy to provide one.

“I was with Frank,” or “I was at Frank’s House,” is the crown of verbal hidey-holes in the world of shady characters. Other dubious personalities have used it liberally. Michael Taylor and Fredrica Brunson, two guys wanted for robbing a barbershop, found sanctuary in Frank’s house for months. In fact, both of them were happily chomping away on barbecue, seemingly unfazed by the television cameras, the week Hinds County District Attorney Faye Peterson saw them on the tube and phoned in their pick-up orders to Sheriff Malcolm McMillin.

Second: “I was stuck in traffic.” / Third: “It wasn’t me.” / Good Showing: “I was at a BMI convention.”


Best Place to Watch the Sunrise, Best Place to Watch the Sunset: The Reservoir
by Greg Williamson

There is something about a large body of water that transforms ordinary light into a magical display, especially at the intersection of night and day. In the Jackson area, the largest body of water is the Barnett Reservoir. There are views from the pier near the marina off Rice Road, from Old Trace Park, various campgrounds and on roadside stops along the Natchez Trace and Highway 43. Find your spot or put your boat in at any of the several marinas and enjoy the view.

Best Place to Watch the Sunrise
Second: (tie) King Edward Hotel and Natchez Trace / Third: Jackson Yacht Club (700 Yacht Club Rd., Madison, 601-856-8844) / Good Showing: In bed, Pelahatchie Bay Park at the Reservoir; Pops Around the Corner (2636 S Gallatin St., 601-355-3853)

Best Place to Watch the Sunset
Second: LeFleur’s Bluff State Park (1205 Lakeland Dr., 601-362-5485) / Third: King Edward Hotel / Good Showing: Natchez Trace, Pelahatchie Bay Park at the Reservoir


Best Radio Personality: Bender, Y101.7
by Bailee Grissom

Laughter wakes a person up as well as a cup of coffee. DJ Bender from Y101 gets your day started right on the Morning Showgram with fellow host, Nate West. Bender, originally from Houston, started working for Y101 three and a half years ago, and has fixed himself as a strong part of their public personality ever since. Whether he’s out on the streets or taking calls from listeners, Bender knows how to crack a joke and his distinct personality elevated him into a local celebrity. Tune in every morning from 6-10 a.m. to hear his witty remarks on everything from ghost stories to Britney Spears.

Second: Beaver (93.9) / Third: Brad Stevens (93.9) / Good Showing: DJ Doc (97.7)

Best Radio Station: Y101.7
by Shaketta Toins

Listening to Y101 gives me a sense of diversity. Today’s top 40 hits are just what I need when I am in the mood for great music from artists such as Daughtry, Maroon 5, Wyclef, Evanescence, Jordin Sparks, Hinder, Beyonce, Fergie and more. On my way to school, I love listening to the Showgram with Morris & Bender from 6-10 a.m. Although I often miss Nate West—who is on air from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.—I often find myself jamming with Johnny O after class from 3 - 7 p.m. And after listening to a mix CD for awhile, I can always tune in with Lauren Rae who rocks from 7 p.m. to midnight. Y101 spells great music.

Second: Rock 93.9 FM / Third: Jack 94.7 FM / Good Showing: Miss 103; MPB 91.3 FM; WJMI 99.7 FM; Z106.7; WJNT


Best Jackson Architecture: Capitol Building
by Katie Lightsey

Theodore Link, a Missouri-based architect, designed the Mississippi State Capitol Building on the site of the old state penitentiary. The Beaux Arts style building was actually the third capitol building built in the city of Jackson. Completed in 1903, the building houses the legislative and executive branches of state government and is listed on the National Register of Historical Places. The building is 180 feet tall from floor to dome and is capped by an imposing eight-foot-tall eagle made of copper and coated in gold leaf. The State Capitol Building’s stature and presence make a powerful impact that resonates with Mississippians.

Second: Old Capitol / Third: Standard Life / Good Showing: King Edward, Lamar Life, TelCom Center, Mississippi Museum of Art


Best View of the City: University Club
210 E. Capitol St. # 2200, 601-969-4011

by Todd Stauffer

The Capital Club and the reader’s choice University Club both offer spectacular, if somewhat exclusive, views of downtown Jackson and beyond. I’d agree with the reader’s vote of the University Club because of the unencumbered views of the west side of Downtown, Farish Street, the train tracks and beyond (pictured here with manager John Hardy). You’re struck, almost immediately, by how many trees we have in Jackson—and what a blessing that is in an urban environment. To the handful of voters who said “the rear-view mirror” I say only this, we’ll be right here when you’re ready, and better than ever.

Second: Capital Club (125 S. Congress St. # 19, 601-969-7101) / Third: Top of King Edward / Good Showing: 1-55; Roof of Fondren Corner (2906 N. State St.); rear-view mirror

Editor’s Choice: Looking east from Poindexter.


Best Project Under Construction: King Edward
by Adam Lynch
Photo by Roy Adkins

Even though nobody ever shows it in public, we’ve all lined up to personally prostrate ourselves before attorney David Watkins and Saint Deuce McAllister for their enduring push to develop the broken-down morass that is the King Edward. We’re still not entirely sure why they stuck with it. Thanks to countless development delays, Watkins and McAllister won’t make near the profit on the renovation as they’d originally intended. Perhaps they’ll get a chance to make up the difference with the development of the neighboring Standard Life Building, which seems to be moving along more smoothly than its predecessor.

Second: Duling School / Third: Convention Center / Fourth: (tie) Farish Street, Harbor Walk; Pinnacle Building; Renaissance


Best Place to Hide from the Feds: Frank Melton’s House
2 Carter’s Grove, number unlisted

by Donna Ladd
Photo by William Patrick Butler

What a year. What a pair of years. The Melton Fatigue seemed to truly sink in during 2007, although JFP readers still react to our mayoral situation with humor, if not grace and benevolence. When asked where one would think to hide from the feds, readers overwhelmingly voted for Frank Melton’s North Jackson gated home. And it’s not simply a slap at the mayor; after all, he was the one who has tucked young people wanted by the authorities into his home without turning them in. He’s the one who’s turned it into an unofficial and bizarre witness-protection halfway house. In fact, I’ve been there, eating dinner next to a future district attorney (Robert Smith) while a murder case witness sat nearby. And what with Melton’s heavily armed bodyguards at his beck and call, I mean, really, where else would one hide from the feds, or anyone else for that matter?

Second : Melton’s office at City Hall / Third: King Edward Hotel / Good showing: Martin’s (214 S. State St., 601-354-9712)


Place to Serve a Subpoena: City Hall
219 S President St., 601-960-1037

by Donna Ladd

Interestingly, JFP readers would send the authorities to City Hall to serve subpoenas, rather than Mayor Melton’s home, where they’d hide out from the feds. We’re guessing it’s because reports say that many, many more people than Melton himself have been subpoenaed to testify about the trials and tribulations of this city administration of late, and many of them pass through City Hall on a regular basis. So, if you want to be efficient with your subpoena work, just go there and wait. Just be sure to post someone at the back door as well.

Second: Melton’s House (2 Carter’s Grove, number unlisted) / Third: Pops Around the Corner (2636 S. Gallatin St., 601-355-3853) / Good showing: The Clarion-Ledger (201 S. Congress St., 601-961-7000)


Best New Slogan for Jackson: City With Soul
by Todd Stauffer

Mayor Harvey Johnson tried to get us to go with “Best of the New South” for years; Mayor Melton, bizarrely, changed it to “City of Grace and Benevolence.” (The question on many people’s lips—toward whom?) But the city’s official tourism moniker—“City With Soul”—was both our reader’s choice and, in my opinion, a choice that a lot of Jacksonians can get behind. From the music to the art to the core population of Jacksonians who get up most mornings wanting to fight for their city and its future—it starts to stick with you after a while. Not that “F the Mayor” (as in a “W the President” sticker, but with tongue firmly planted in cheek) isn’t funnier. It is. It still is.

Second: “Let’s Go Walkin” / Third: “Wear Your Vest” / Good Showing: “F the mayor”

 
posted by on 01/23/08 at 03:07 PM. [printer version]    Share |

COMMENTS

 

God I love best of Jackson.

Sigh.

posted by emilyb on 01/23/08 at 06:01 PM

Who stuffed the ballot for Rick Cleveland???

I think it's time for a chick issue.

Love ya Rick. Kisses. Or let's play ball. What would a sports colunist say here?

And we are down for the count until Orly retires. God love him, I do read him and stuff.

And why won't Rick Pettis answer my emails?????

posted by emilyb on 01/23/08 at 06:07 PM

I think Rick Cleveland is great, as a columnist and a person. And Orley isn't my cup of columnist tea, but he has a huge following, and I respect that immensely. I just feel honored that Kaze and I are among such august company. ;-)

posted by ladd on 01/23/08 at 06:13 PM

The cover makes me tingly.

ladd, I have a stack of writing responses regarding the issues young folks face and how they are ignored for the older folks. Great discussion. And I, hand to God, had to tell them what Dixie "means." Can't decide if that's good, bad or just poingent. Dropping them by when my diehards, who have to take it home to finish ALL they have to say, get them back to me. Probably by Friday.

posted by emilyb on 01/23/08 at 06:19 PM

Yes, Jimbo outdid himself again this year on the cover as he has done every year. And definitely get the print edition and look at the contributor photos. They're hilarious. In fact, maybe we can do a gallery of them online.

Would love to see the writings. Bring 'em on.

posted by ladd on 01/23/08 at 06:21 PM

Here's where "Ali" comes out:

"Eudora wins again. That #####."

Can the category next year be "Best Jackson Writer, Eudora understood"? ;)

The issue looks great. I know you guys are kicking back and drinking margaritas for at least a few days....:)

posted by Lori G on 01/23/08 at 08:18 PM

Well, poor Darren is flat on his back with strep throat. I think this issue, and especially the high volume of ads, nearly killed him and his staff! They did a fabulous job, though, as always.

Right now, we're all exhausted. By Sunday, though, we should be rested up enough to celebrate. ;-)

posted by ladd on 01/24/08 at 12:08 AM

Who else was in the running for best professor? It's the only one with no runners up listed.

posted by choctaw on 01/25/08 at 01:52 PM

Thanks for pointing that out, Choctaw. The runners-up are now listed.

posted by maggie on 01/25/08 at 02:05 PM

Rick's very good. In fact, I think he's the best columnist in the state.

posted by Ex on 01/25/08 at 02:58 PM

Waht about best blogger? Best humorist? Shipp and I would win these hands down. What about most blogging errors. I'd win that too. What about most outlandish blogger? Shipp and I would win that too. Kaze would come in second. What about the blogger with the most game. Shipp and I would win that too.

posted by Ray Carter on 01/25/08 at 03:05 PM

Uh no Ray, THE MOST GAME BLOGGER would certainly go to the QUEEN... :-)

But I would certainly give you the most OUTLANDISH Blogger. j/k

posted by Queen601 on 01/25/08 at 04:06 PM

Queen is good, no doubt. However, my outlandishness is a testimony to the depth and range of my game. Plus I'm a gospel blogger, Kirk Frankling style.

posted by Ray Carter on 01/25/08 at 04:12 PM

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Nov 20, 2009 | 02:55 PM
[Editor's Note] Love Thy Neighbor
Wintrhop Sargent: WMartin - At the church I attend, St. Andrew's Cathedral, there is no teaching or preaching about hate (unless you include the teaching and preaching AGAINST hate). I'm ...
Nov 20, 2009 | 02:10 PM
[Doyle] From Dixie, With Love
ladd: A fail-safe principle I've always sworn by: If the Kluckers agree with me about something, I need to rethink it.
Nov 20, 2009 | 01:39 PM
[Doyle] From Dixie, With Love
Goldenae: I would truly be ashamed of myself if I looked at life and others the way the some people do. Some folks can not put themselves in another person's shoes to save their lives. It is ...
Nov 20, 2009 | 01:27 PM
Barbour Wants to Merge State's Black Universities
Goldenae: Why is it so hard to understand that regardless of what we would like to think, there are different standards. That is quite obvious in Barbour's suggestion of ...
 


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