Table of Contents December 29, 2016
Whine Line 4 Jenny is Wright 6 Kris Fisher 8 Insider 10 News 12 Feature 16
A Year in Review
What’s Up Calendar Nightlife Sightings NYT Crossword The Eight Austin Rhodes
23 24 28 30 32 34 36
16
EDIT
CREATIVE
Amy Christian
Joshua Bailey
Joe White
amy@themetrospirit.com
joshua@themetrospirit.com
joe@themetrospirit.com 706-373-3636
Arts Editor/Production Director
Lead Designer
Stacey Eidson Molly Swift Staff Writer
molly@themetrospirit.com
Contributors Jenny Wright, Austin Rhodes, Kris Fisher, Michael Johnson, Tyler Strong
Publisher
Johnny Beckworth
Staff Writer
stacey@themetrospirit.com
BUSINESS
SALES
circulation manager
johnny@themetrospirit.com
Joe White Publisher
joe@themetrospirit.com 706-373-3636
COVER DESIGN: Kruhu
Metro Spirit is a free newspaper published weekly on Thursday, 52 weeks a year. Editorial coverage includes local issues and news, arts, entertainment, people, places and events. In our paper appear views from across the political and social spectrum. The views do not necessarily represent the views of the publisher. Visit us at metrospirit.com.Š 15 House, LLC. Owner/Publisher: Joe White. Legal: Phillip Scott Hibbard. Reproduction or use without permission is prohibited. One copy per person, please.
Want to advertise in the Metro Spirit? Call or email Joe at 706.373.3636 joe@themetrospirit.com
V27|NO52
OPINION
Jenny is Wright: 6 | Kris Fisher: 8
The Whine Line
Ron Cross is a real jerk and manipulates the development community to hook up his friends and buddies.
OK, we know how much Bob Young paid for his expensive trip up to NY to interview with Dictator Trump. It would be interesting how much Romney and other former presidential candidates had to pay to meet up with Dictator Trump at his NY Trump Towers or his personal Florida estate. How much did Trump manage to make them pay with their own monies just to find out “no thank you” or “no way” for jobs they obviously were willing to grovel for? To remedy the conflict downtown between bar owners and the addition of some breweries, why can’t the breweries use the Regency Mall and have a food court with restaurants that compliment their beer. There is plenty of room for expansion, and plenty of parking. It would also make use of an eyesore and help bring back that area of Augusta.
everyone keeps paying for it and looking at it, anyway. It drags down your respectability.
Listening to the Deke morning show is like listening to someone reading the phone book. Tell me the absence of the NY Times puzzle is only temporary! I need my puzzle, please! Called the 1-800 # about my C______T cable bill. Went through all the telephone prompts and finally reached the stage where it says I am being connected to a Customer Representative.... then I hear a dial tone and I was disconnected. I called in three more times going through all the telephone prompts and the SAME thing happened. On the 5th try... I finally got connected [to ‘John’ overseas]. To say the least..... it was not a pleasant
conversation. I thought this company was working on the their ‘customer ‘service’ since they are one of the worst rated companies in America. Oh, by the way.... my December bill had a whole page of rate increases [reason: due to new technology] starting January 1st. Suggestion.... bring your customer service back to the USA and focus on the technology around your delivery of customer service!!! AWFUL. When Trump finishes cleaning up DC maybe he’ll give the same a try in Augusta. Can the speeding and running of red lights get any worse in Columbia County?
The Spirit needs to can the unnamed sourpuss who writes the Insider column and hire someone who walks on the sunny side of the street. Negative waves...always negative waves. I love to listen to WGAC because it is supposed to reach the Augusta and surrounding areas. The problem is once you get passed Brown Road you can no longer pick it up clearly. Instead it becomes a mix between Austin and Rap music. Can you fix that for my Christmas present? Should we really be afraid to go down town, or should we be afraid to go to Columbia County? No murders on Downtown Broad St. As responsible journalists, how can you justify printing the extremist rantings of your longtime columnist? The mental gymnastics in which he engages to keep from holding conservatives unaccountable for even the smallest infraction - much less electing a raging moron tyrant toddler as president - is the intellectual equivalent of Michael Bay movie physics. No one believes it. It doesn’t exist in the real world. But
WHINELINE@THEMETROSPIRIT.COM Have something you want to get off your chest? Send your whines to whineline@themetrospirit.com. The Metro Spirit reserves the right to edit submitted whines for content, but we will otherwise print them pretty much exactly as you type them… spelling errors and all. 4 METROSPIRIT AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
29DECEMBER2016
fin c h a n d f i ft h . c o m
(706 ) 36 4-5300 f o u n ta i n l e v e l su r r e y c e n t e r
Lunch of
Champions daily from 11:30 to 3:00
V27|NO52
Finally! WE dId fINallY GET a TREE up. We put all 800 or so lights on it and, yes, I tested the lights first, only for several strands to crap out once all connected. My husband ran out and bought all new lights. Nice guy, right? He brought back 800 LED lights. I know, I know. They’re more energy efficient and blah blah blah. Not only that, they’re blue. Even when the box says white. And yes, we tried the “warm” ones. Still blue. Before you tell me I’m acting like a spoiled brat, what with my complaining about the lights, The Man mostly agreed, and The Kids said the new blue lights looked terrible. Back to the store he went, returning with eight strands of regular, cheap, run of the mill white lights. He got the tree completely relit, which, because of a faulty fuse or something, went out again within minutes of being plugged in. I’m not sure how many total strands we’re looking at right now, and only some of them are illuminated, but the tree looks gorgeous. Finally. We barely got the stockings hung, our nutcrackers just made it to the mantle, and we used break and bake cookie dough for Santa. That last one stings a little, but not for the reason you think. I don’t bake, but you people do. We weren’t given a single Christmas baked good this year. Not a piece of fudge. No seven layer bars! None of those cookies with the Hershey’s kisses in them. I’m a very forgiving person, and I also take rain checks. We survived. The pile of tissue paper remains, along with empty shirt boxes that we seriously can’t throw away, because I will totally reuse them and the gift bags we got. Yeah, yeah. Put them in the closet with the others, because we didn’t reuse those, either. I have a large collection, with at least one for every occasion, hanging neatly in a closet. One can never be too sure, and when I’m standing in the gift wrap aisle in Walgreens, I’m never sure. The Kids seem happy with their gifts. New bikes, a tambourine, a little bongo drum, board games, a ukulele, and so many other things are in a pile in our den. Lucky kids. We also got one of those Echo things, where you talk to Alexa about, well, whatever you want. I’ve found her useful for telling me the weather around the world, turning the volume down on the music (because it’s just too exhausting to push those pesky little buttons on the phone all by myself), and answering random questions, such as, “who lives in a pineapple under the sea.” I’m sure I’ll figure out her capabilities eventually, but at the moment, she seems like a valid excuse to talk to myself — with responses. I can’t wait to hear her cuss. The news of Carrie Fisher’s death popped up on my phone a few minutes ago. Add to the list Sharon Jones, George Michael, David Bowie, Gene Wilder, Prince, Florence Henderson, Nancy Reagan and so many more, and you’ve got folks calling for 2016 to hurry up and end already. Trust me. I get it. I spent the better part of 2016 caring for my mother and mourning her loss. Don’t people die every year? I’m not being insensitive. 2016 wasn’t my best year, either. It’s not the worst, though. Aren’t you still here? Looking, listening, breathing and drinking wine? That last part may only apply to me. Suit yourself. Count your blessings. Learn from the things that aren’t. Love your people, people. Here’s to you and yours in what’s sure to be a prosperous 2017. Cheers! JENNY WRIGHT’S humorous observations
on marriage, motherhood and living in Augusta have earned her a devoted following, both in print and on Facebook. When she’s not spying on other parents in the carpool line at school, you’ll probably find her with either a camera, tennis racquet or wine glass in her hand.
29DECEMBER2016
Be safe (and warm) this winter! Sig Cox will check all of your heating system’s connections, the gas pressure, burner combustion and your heat exchanger (A dirty burner or cracked heat exchanger causes improper burner operation). Improperly operating gas (or oil) heating systems are a fire hazard and can contribute to health problems.
Call today to schedule your pre-season checkup. 706.722.5304 www.sigcox.com
Making Memories EvERy CHRIStmaS since we’ve had kids has made me reflect on Christmases of my own childhood. So many memories. The year that my brother and I got our Nintendo was a great one. There was also the year that we got up a little too early and had to wait until all the presents were wrapped. However, some memories are too distant to fully remember. Luckily, my mom has photographic evidence of the year that I peed my pants while laying on the floor looking at the tree. Actually, now that I think about it, that last memory wasn’t even really of me. It was a friend of mine. Not even a friend, really. A friend of a friend. It’s not important. In fact, never mention it again. Since I now have kids of my own and we’re making memories of our own, I often think back to those Christmases. I think about what my parents did to make those moments special. Then I wonder If I am doing it right. This Christmas, I realized that I’m in uncharted waters. After the unwrapping of the loot, as I kicked back with a cup of ‘nog, my son informed me that I had to set up his new gaming system, which also meant that I had to figure out how to work it. This was no easy task. I had to connect it to Wi-Fi, set up a gamer profile and buy a subscription to the gaming network. Why are video games so complicated now? That year that my brother and I got the Nintendo, all we had to do was plug it in and turn it on. There weren’t any profiles to set up. No network needed. If we wanted to play video
games with a friend, they would come over. Side note: Can we all just agree right now that Minecraft is the most boring game ever made? While I was setting up No. 4’s game console, No. 3 came to me with two gadgets that also needs to be set up, then No. 2 needed help setting up a profile on his gift. Before I was done, No. 4 came back with another gadget that needed to be set up. This is when I realized that my parents didn’t know how good they had it. Everything my kids have needs some sort of profile, membership, app, bluetooth, cloud, calibration or who knows what. I can’t tell you how many profiles I set up that day. I also can’t remember the first password, which every device required. I don’t remember my dad having to do any of this. Actually, I didn’t remember it because my parents did all that the night before Christmas. Only theirs was in the form of assembling bikes, big wheels, play sets or whatever our big gift was that year. I guess me being unable to find the Setup menu on a GoPro is the equivalent of not being able to figure out the axle assembly on a Power Wheels car. It’s one of the things we don’t think about when our kids are born: One day, I’m going to be cussing the makers of some new gadget for this little bundle of joy. It goes with the season, I guess. In the end, I love every minute of it. I know in a few years, I’ll miss it and hopefully my kids will remember these Christmases with the same full feeling in their hearts.
KRIS FISHER,Kris Fisher is the midday host and program director for HD98.3 and an Augusta radio staple. He is a husband, father of three and lover of all things adventurous, as well as activities most people would have outgrown years ago. djkfish.com.
29DECEMBER2016
V27|NO52
NEWS
The Power of Rev. William Barber II: 12 | A Year in Review: 16
Change is coming to Richmond County THERE IS NO DOUBT ABOUT IT, change is extremely difficult for some people. When it comes to Augusta-Richmond County’s government, change can even be painful. Come 2017, three longtime Augusta elected officials will be moving on: Augusta Superior Court Judge Carlisle Overstreet, Richmond County Clerk of Courts Elaine Johnson and Richmond County Marshal Steve Smith. While Overstreet and Johnson are both retiring, Richmond County voters elected Ramone Lamkin to replace Smith, who has been marshal for almost three decades. Over the past few weeks, some employees in the city’s Marble Palace have noticed tension mounting on the seventh floor where the marshal’s office is located. Change is definitely coming and it can be felt throughout the building. As promised during his campaign, Lamkin is planning on shaking up the marshal’s office when he takes over next week. But no one should be surprised by Lamkin’s actions. He was very honest about his feelings regarding some of the current employees of the marshal’s office during this year’s election. “I’ve heard complaints of people being promoted in the marshal’s office just because of who they know or what they can offer,” Lamkin told the Metro Spirit earlier this year. “But it should be based on your merits and how well you do your job and how well you know your job. It shouldn’t be who you know.” During the campaign, Lamkin promised to “change the culture” on the seventh floor. Lamkin is replacing longtime Marshal’s Chief Deputy Teresa Russell, who is also the wife of former City Administrator Fred Russell, with Richmond County Sheriff ’s Maj. Scott Peebles. Peebles, a former candidate for Richmond County sheriff, is extremely popular in the city, but Teresa Russell had some obvious political power over the years in the Municipal Building, so the move was definitely controversial. Lamkin is also replacing two other employees within the marshal’s department with FBI National Academy graduate Nikema Butts and Capt. Eugene Brantley of the Richmond County Sheriff ’s Office. All of this comes as Smith is preparing to leave a position he has held for almost 30 years. That’s not easy for anyone, but it’s particularly painful when an exit comes as a result of losing an election. “This position has been a big part of my life,” Smith told the Metro Spirit earlier this year. “Next to my faith and my family, it has been 28 years of my life and I love my job.” Good luck to Lamkin and his new transition team. Hopefully, once they’re on board, they’ll be able to unite all the employees in the marshal’s office. While most everyone is thrilled that Richmond County State Court Judge John Flythe won the election to fill the seat currently held by Superior Court Judge Carlisle Overstreet, some people in the local law community are having definite concerns over Hattie Holmes-Sullivan, who is Richmond County Sheriff Richard Roundtree’s administrative assistant, taking over as clerk of court. When Richmond County Clerk of Courts Elaine Johnson announced she was retiring this year after four decades of working in the clerk’s office, it wasn’t a huge surprise. After all, Johnson’s husband, Maj. Gene Johnson of the 10 METROSPIRIT AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
Richmond County Sheriff ’s Office, decided to retire in 2014 after serving this county for almost 50 years. If two people in Augusta deserve some rest and relaxation, it’s definitely Elaine and Gene Johnson. But Elaine Johnson has served as clerk of court for almost 25 years. Prior to becoming the clerk in 1993, Johnson was the chief deputy clerk for the office from 1988-1992 and has been employed by the clerk of court since 1973. Now, that’s a legacy. Change will be tough for a lot of the judges, attorneys and staff who have relied on Elaine Johnson’s efficiency over the years. While Elaine Johnson was clerk, the office digitized most all of the county’s court records for juvenile court, state court and superior court. In Richmond County Superior Court, the court has exclusive constitutional authority over felony cases, cases regarding title to land and equity, declaratory judgments, habeas corpus, mandamus, adoptions, name changes, divorces, child custody and child support enforcement. The clerk of courts is responsible for handling all those types of cases. In addition, the clerk is responsible for recording deeds and maintaining the chain of title to all property in the county. Those duties impact everyone in Richmond County.
The clerk of courts is also charged with the responsibility of attending all court sessions for superior, state and juvenile courts, and to file and maintain accurate records of the proceedings. Needless to say, after Elaine Johnson’s almost 25 years as clerk of courts, her office is a well-oiled machine. Some are worried that things won’t run very smoothly under Holmes-Sullivan. Now, Holmes-Sullivan has experience in the clerk’s office. She started working in the clerk’s office back in 1978, but left in 2005 to become an assistant to State Court Judge David Watkins. She even ran against her former colleague Elaine Johnson back in 2012, but was handily defeated. But now it is her turn to take over the clerk of courts’ office. All eyes are watching to see how Holmes-Sullivan handles taking over the wheel.
29DECEMBER2016
V27|NO52
The Power of Rev. William Barber II
The 10th Annual Interfaith Celebration presented by the Progressive Religious Coalition will feature the Rev. Dr. William Barber II When the Rev. Dr. William Barber II stepped onto the stage at the Democratic National Convention this summer, he made a call to action that brought the audience to its feet. He warned that people cannot continue to ignore the nation’s mounting problems regarding issues such as gun violence, immigration and the racial tension between the police and minority communities. There are forces, he said, that are intent to “stop the heart of our democracy.” “We are being called like our forefathers and foremothers to be the moral defibrillators of our time,” Barber told the audience at the Democratic National Convention. “We will shock this nation and fight for justice for all.” Barber, the pastor of Greenleaf Christian Church in Goldsboro, N.C., and the president of the North Carolina NAACP, will be the keynote speaker at the 10th Annual Interfaith Celebration presented by the Progressive Religious Coalition on Thursday, January 5, at Tabernacle Baptist Church. “I think having Rev. Barber speak here is probably serendipitous because of the way people are feeling about the results of the election this year,” said the Rev. Dr. Gaye Ortiz of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Augusta, who is also a member of the Progressive Religious Coalition. “But it is not so much the election. It is the things that have been unleashed by it: All the tendencies towards closed-mindedness and intolerance.” When Barber speaks, he exposes the roots of these problems and inspires people to address these issues instead of ignoring them, Ortiz said. “He has got tremendous energy and a sense of urgency that we need,” she said. “Because a lot of us feel like we should just crawl back under the covers for the next four years and that is not going to happen.” Turning your back on these issues will only make them worse, Ortiz said. “I think Augusta has a lot of energy that is not really being engaged,” she said. “So that is why I am hoping he will come here and just galvanize everyone and we’ll talk about the issues that really need to be worked on in a progressive way.” Often described as one of the most prophetic voices of our time, Barber is also the architect of the Forward Together Moral Movement that gained national acclaim with its Moral Monday protests, or more accurately described as “progressive activist vigils,” held in Raleigh at the North Carolina General Assembly. These weekly actions drew tens of thousands of North Carolinians to the state legislature and more than 1,050 peaceful protesters were arrested, handcuffed and jailed in 2013. The peaceful protesters were voicing their concerns about the governor and many of the Republican lawmakers making policies that made it more difficult to vote in North Carolina and their scaling down of state environmental and labor regulations. The North Carolina government also rejected the so-called Obamacare Medicaid expansion and repealed a law that commuted death sentences in that state to life without parole if a court found that race had shaped the initial decision to hand down a death order, according to The Washington Post. More recently, Barber has publicly condemned the actions of Republican lawmakers in North Carolina who have been accused of waging a legislative coup by attempting to strip
12 METROSPIRIT AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
By Stacey Eidson
power from the state’s incoming governor, Democrat Roy Cooper. Earlier this month, Republicans filed dozens of new bills attempting to impose measures to slash the number of state employees appointed by the governor, require Senate approval for all of the governor’s cabinet picks and strip the governor of the power to appoint University of North Carolina trustees. Another bill aims to weaken the governor’s control over the state Board of Election and yet another Republican bill would strip some power away from the Democratic governor and give it to the lieutenant governor, who happens to be a Republican, according to the news program, “Democracy Now!” “We had this election, and what you have here are a group of extremists, tea party extremists, who are very afraid of the changing South and the changing demographics in North Carolina,” Barber recently told “Democracy Now!” “They’re scared because we’re the only state that held off the full weight of Trumpism in the South. We have a movement there, and that movement has been working for years, and particularly over the last three years with Moral Monday movements. We were able to change the consciousness of the state. And the governor lost the election.” However, Barber said the Republican governor continued to fight the election results. “It’s a sign of things to come, when we organize in the South. And so, the governor and those extremists refused. They did everything they could. They even purged votes during the election,” he said. “They lost again, and we forced votes to be put back on the books. So they have seen that they have tried everything, but when there is a movement of the people, a moral movement of the people, we can, in fact, change the South. And if you do that, you change the nation. And so now, with these losses, they are now engaging in this extreme power grab and policy grab.” 29DECEMBER2016
V27|NO52
When Barber speaks, he immediately grabs the audiences’ attention, Ortiz said. At the Democratic National Convention, his speech covered everything from criminal justice reform and immigration policies to wages and labor conditions, gun laws, homeland security and LGBTQ rights. Barber also did not shy away from the role religion plays in politics these days. “I am worried by the way that faith is cynically used by some to serve hate, fear, racism and greed,” he told the audience. He talked about the power of faith and how religion should lift and unite all people instead of continue to divide this country. “Jesus, a brown-skin Palestinian Jew, called us to preach good news to the poor, the broken and the bruised and all those who are made to feel unaccepted,” Barber told the audience. “We need to embrace our deepest moral values... When we love the Jewish child and the Palestinian child, the Muslim and the Christian and the Hindu and the Buddhist and those who have no faith but they love this nation, we are reviving the heart of our democracy.” The Rev. Dr. Sid Gates, an ordained Presbyterian minister and one of the cofounders of the Progressive Religious Coalition of Augusta, said Barber’s message mirrors the Progressive Religious Coalition’s mission to bring different religions together to celebrate one another’s culture. “There is much more that binds us and bonds us than divides us,” Gates said. “So, there is kind of a credo of this group. There was a Catholic theologian who once said, ‘There will never be peace among the nations until there is peace among the religions.’ He went on to say, ‘There will never be peace among the religions until there is dialogue among the religions.’” Gates believes this nation needs that kind of dialogue now more than ever because of the divisiveness of the presidential election. “I woke up on November 9 and I thought to myself, ‘WTF?’” Gates said. “WTF, standing for, ‘Where’s the Faith?’ Where is the faith with issues having to do with Citizens United and gerrymandering. Even the electoral college was done to placate slavery in the South. And where are the clergy talking about these issues? They certainly shaped elections and they will more so in the future. So I am very concerned about single-issue voters in this country that get manipulated.” Therefore, Gates believes holding the 10th Annual Interfaith Celebration honoring Martin Luther King Jr. on January 5, which is sponsored by the Augusta University’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion and hosted by Tabernacle Baptist Church, is perfect timing. “Even better than dialogue is co-worship,” Gates said, adding that interfaith event includes Buddhists, Hindus, Jews, Bahá’ís, Christians, Muslims, Sikhs and Unitarian Universalists. “This is a chance for mutual respect, love and learning from one another about what unites us, but, at the same time, nobody compromises their faith.” While Rabbi Emeritus Robert Klensin of the Congregation Children of Israel said he understands people’s frustrations regarding the presidential election, he wanted the guests of the interfaith celebration to realize that this is not a political event. It is a worship service meant to unite all people. “There was an election and people voted for lots of different reasons and they might not agree with the candidate they voted for on everything,” he said. “But there are many people, however they voted, that are concerned with protecting our nation’s values like justice and freedom.” These are values that Barber holds dear, Klensin said, adding that he clearly recalls the first time he ever met the reverend from North Carolina. “The first time I saw Rev. Barber was the march in Selma across the bridge,” Klensin said. “There was a gathering of the Jewish participants in the march. There’s an old synagogue there that had only a few members, but they got it open and we met. Rev. Barber spoke there and it was a wonderfully inspiring speech. He has a really prophetic voice. It is very powerful, so I think he will move many people here in Augusta.” The event will be reminder that Dr. Martin Luther King’s dream of unity, racial and social justice and peace has not yet been achieved, Klensin said. “It is not finished,” he said. “A lot of us felt like we were making real progress, and, now, there is a fear that it is not just a matter of finishing his vision, but even more so to stop it from getting stalled.” 10th Annual Interfaith Celebration with Rev. Dr. William Barber II Tabernacle Baptist Church, 1223 Laney Walker Blvd. Thursday, January 5 6:45 p.m., gathering and music by Davidson Chorale 7 p.m., service prc-augusta.org
29DECEMBER2016
The Ultimate ICE CREAM EXPERIENCE
®
# %' " ! % % ) + , ( (&' #% , 16.5877_© 2016 Kahala Franchising, L.L.C. The COLD STONE CREAMERY design is a registered trademark of Kahala Franchising, L.L.C.
FREE ICE CREAM
Buy One Signature Creationâ„¢ or Create Your Own (Ice Cream + 1 Mix-in), Get One FREE
# %' " ! % % ) + , ( (&' #% , Served in a cup. Waffle products and extra mix-ins available for additional charge. Excludes tax. Limit one per customer per visit. Price excludes tax. Valid only at participating locations. Excludes Hawaii and Guam. No cash value. Not valid with other offers or fundraisers or if copied, sold, auctioned, exchanged for payment or prohibited by law. 16.5877_© 2016 Kahala Franchising, L.L.C. The COLD STONE CREAMERY is a registered trademark of Kahala Franchising, L.L.C.
Expires 1/31/17 PLU # 98
V27|NO52
A Year in Review
Politics, prostitution, the fallout from the Marshall Square fire, marijuana, the Irish Travellers and the loss of a local legend were stories that made headlines in 2016 By Metro Spirit Staff Many PeoPle won’T Soon forgeT 2016. Whether you feel good, bad or indifferent about this year, 2016 has definitely generated some major headlines, both nationally and locally. But this year, the Metro Spirit has focused on many local issues making national news. Whether it is Georgia politics, the slow trend toward the legalization of pot, prostitution or the investigation into the Marshall Square fire, it has been quite a year. Let’s all hope that 2017 brings great success and cheer to the Garden City. Pot in the Peach State One frequent topic this year has been debates over marijuana possession in Georgia. The year began with a discussion initiated by state Sen. Harold Jones II about whether 16 METROSPIRIT AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
Georgia should eliminate felony marijuana possession charges. Despite his best efforts, many Georgians simply didn’t understand Jones’ proposal and immediately took it as a call to legalize pot in Peach State. That was definitely not his intention. Jones was simply trying to prevent lives from being destroyed as a result of a felony marijuana possession charge. “What we are looking at is all of the different collateral consequences that happen once you get a felony charge, such as losing the right to vote, losing the right to sit on a jury, and, if you are in school, you can lose scholarship money,” Jones explained in the beginning of 2016. “With a felony charge, you are also totally banned in Georgia from receiving any kind of federal aid like Supplemental Nutrition Assistance, which is old school for food stamps. The federal government allows you be totally barred, if 29DECEMBER2016
V27|NO52
try and dispose of those cases,” Williams said. “So when we started from that position, we said, ‘What do we really want to do? And what can we legally do?’” The last thing the city of Clarkston wanted was to enter into a legal battle with the state of Georgia over its marijuana laws, so the city council carefully reviewed its options, Williams said. “Currently, you cannot decriminalize possession of marijuana because the Georgia Legislature has deemed it a criminal activity. So we can’t do that,” Williams said. “But what we can do is fix the fine.” The Clarkston City Council change in its local ordinance regarding marijuana possession officially began a statewide discussion about the topic. “Right now, we encourage all cities around Georgia to take a strong look at their laws in this area because the Georgia Legislature allows them to look at their laws and it allows them to regulate in this area,” Williams said. “But there is no such thing as Clarkston city officials trying to decriminalize marijuana. We can’t do that by law.”
your state wants to, from receiving those kinds of funds.” But the misunderstanding of Jones’ bill seemed to stall any efforts to get the proposal even discussed in the Georgia Legislature. Meanwhile, however, the small town of Clarkston, Ga., in DeKalb County may have forever changed the way local governments view simple marijuana possession across the state. With a city motto of “Where Possibilities Grow,” the Clarkston City Council took an incredibly bold stand this year by unanimously approving the most progressive marijuana ordinance in Georgia. The new city ordinance allows for only a $75 fine and no jail time for individuals caught with less than an ounce of pot within the Clarkston city limits. Clarkston’s new municipal ordinance, which was approved on July 5, basically flew in the face of state law. Here in Georgia, possession of less than an ounce of marijuana is considered a misdemeanor and is punishable by up to a year in jail and up to a $1,000 fine. But now in Clarkston, the city’s police officers have the discretion of deciding whether to charge a person facing simple marijuana possession under state law or with violating the local ordinance and ticket that individual a $75 fine. And, let’s just say, the Clarkston City Council isn’t being shy about the fact that it wants local law enforcement officers to choose to follow the city ordinance. “This particular ordinance came to our attention because we had various people within our Clarkston community who had been cited or ticketed and they had paid various fines,” said Clarkston City Councilman Mario Williams. “Some had paid $200, some of them had paid all the way up to the $662 maximum here in Clarkston.” As the chairman of Clarkston’s public safety committee, Williams decided the city should study the issue and hold public hearings to discuss the matter. Williams said it was important for the city to do its homework regarding the law. “We did a lot of fact finding on this issue and we decided that the starting point is that, for every city in Georgia, those cities have the ability to regulate in the area of possession of one ounce of marijuana or less to 29DECEMBER2016
The Fallout from the Marshall Square Fire The Metro Spirit dedicated a lot of time and effort this year to its coverage of the lawsuits involving the deadly fire at the Marshall Square retirement community in 2015. It has been extremely important for the newspaper to highlight the many mistakes that occurred during the horrific fire at the Evans retirement complex to ensure that such a deadly tragedy will never occur again. But there are still several unanswered questions revolving around the Marshall Square fire. Even though the state’s Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner Ralph Hudgens ruled this year that the deadly fire at Marshall Square was “accidental,” local attorneys representing the former residents of the building have made it their mission to find the specific source and cause of the fire. For more than a year, speculation had centered around a Goodman Company’s packaged terminal air conditioner/heater, often referred to as PTAC, that was located in Marshall Square’s billiard room. “It was an accident. Sure. Nobody intended to start the fire,” Jack Long, who is representing several former Marshall Square residents, told the Metro Spirit earlier this year. “But we think it started with the air conditioner unit. We think they are going to find that it was a bad electrical connection on that particular unit and that caused the fire.” It also appears the Goodman Company has a track record of failing to properly report that some of its PTAC units posed a fire hazard. In September, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that Goodman Company agreed to pay a $5.55 million civil penalty to settle allegations that it failed to timely inform the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) of a fire risk posed by certain air conditioning and heating units, many of which were installed in hotels, schools and hospitals. The complaint also alleges that, when Goodman ultimately reported the fire risk to the CPSC, it misrepresented the number of fires that had occurred. “Goodman knew of a fire risk but waited roughly two years to inform the CPSC,” Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division, stated in a press release this year. “Companies must report these safety issues immediately, as the law requires, to protect the public
from an unnecessary risk of injury.” The chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission was also dismayed by Goodman’s actions. “Goodman’s conduct was illegal, dangerous and unacceptable,” CPSC Chairman Elliot Kaye stated this year. “Goodman’s decision to hide information about serious fires for years, while continuing to profit from sales, slowed down the announcement of a recall and put the safety of many families at real risk.” Specifically, the government’s complaint alleges that Goodman knew in 2008 that certain PTACs it manufactured between January 2007 and April 2008 had improperly crimped power cords that could pose a fire risk. During that time, the federal government alleged that Goodman had been receiving reports about the Subject PTACs catching fire, smoking and overheating. And these weren’t just fires during the company’s testing of the PTAC units. These were actual fires in occupied buildings. The federal government claims that, in May 2011, Goodman learned of a fire at a lodging facility in New York. “At that hotel, the complaint alleged that Goodman replaced the control boards and power cords for over 100 Subject PTACs,” the Department of Justice stated. “Goodman made similar large-scale replacements in 2013, replacing the power cords and control boards for more than 335 Subject PTACs at seven hotels, following two hotel fires in Indiana and Idaho. But Goodman did not report the fire risk to the CPSC until Nov. 26, 2013, at least six months after it learned of these fires.” While it appears that the federal government has proven that Goodman was less than forthcoming about possible fire hazards involving its PTAC units, in agreeing to settle this matter, Goodman has not admitted that it violated the law. That fact doesn’t sit well with the former residents of Marshall Square. To make matters worse, it seems Goodman is trying to weasel out of paying its portion of the settlement agreed to in early December. According to a motion filed last week, the settlement was to be paid within 15 days. Apparently, all of the other defendants have paid the money owed to the former Marshall Square residents in lawsuit except for
AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
METROSPIRIT 17
V27|NO52
Goodman. So, attorneys for the former residents are having to drag Goodman back to court this week to settle the matter. But Goodman is far from the only problem involved in the Marshall Square fire. Some Columbia County residents were shocked this summer after reading a cover story in the Metro Spirit that detailed the complete and total confusion by Columbia County Fire Marshal Brian Clark during his deposition. As soon as his testimony began, there were early signs of trouble when John Price, an attorney for Marshall Square, asked how far Clark had gone in school. “Ninth grade,” he said. So, the fire marshal who oversees all of the fire code inspections throughout Columbia County has a ninth-grade education? Now, he does have a GED and job-specific certification and training, but that was a concern for some residents. The deposition also revealed that, in order to become a fire marshal for Columbia County, you actually aren’t required to have any firefighter training at all. Prior to joining the fire marshal’s office, Clark was a car salesman, worked in insulation and was eventually a jailer and deputy for the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office. In fact, in Columbia County, the fire marshal’s office is not even a part of the fire department. During his deposition, Clark also went back and forth as to whether the fire code required Marshall Square to have a fire safety plan and an evacuation plan. At first, Clark believed Marshall Square did not have to meet such requirements. But then Clark began questioning that decision in the beginning of 2015 after Dr. Paul Bilodeau, whose mother lived at Marshall Square, contacted the fire department with concerns about the retirement community’s alleged shelter-in-place policy. “I did a little more research, and when I saw that R-2 (apartments) in the fire code stated it had to have all those procedures, I told (the Marshall Square staff) that it was required,” Clark testified. “And it was later — I don’t remember the exact time — that I realized that the R-2 was only specific for colleges and dormitories.” It was clear that Clark was confused about the fire code requirements for Marshall Square prior to the fire. 18 METROSPIRIT AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
But even during his deposition, Clark became confused about the fire code requirements and once again did a complete 180 about his views on the county’s fire code. That fact should seriously concern the residents of Columbia County. But when it was Columbia County Fire Rescue Chief Doug Cooper’s turn to testify, his deposition was equally concerning. Once Columbia County Fire Rescue arrived on the scene of the fire around 3:30 a.m., it was discovered that the sprinklers inside Marshall Square were also manually shut off by Marshall Square’s property manager, Chris Bryde. However, Bryde testified that Columbia County fire personnel told him to shut off the sprinklers as soon as they arrived on the scene around 3:30 a.m. While being questioned by Aiken attorney Robin Braithwaite, who is representing the Nebraska-based company Resort Lifestyle Communities that owns Marshall Square, Cooper insisted that no one from his department would shut off the sprinklers. “We never turn off sprinklers in any building that’s got live smoke in it until we have that completely under control,” Cooper said. “That’s just an unwritten law.” Braithwaite asked the chief if he ever discussed the sprinkler system with his firefighters following the Marshall Square fire. “I did,” Cooper said. “I just said, ‘If anybody cut that sprinkler system off, they better own up and let me know.’” “And nobody owned up; is that right?” Braithwaite asked. “That’s correct,” Cooper replied. Braithwaite’s line of questioning then began to be more specific. “Let me ask you this, have you made any kind of an assessment or determination what role the shutting down of that sprinkler system played in the spread of this fire?” Braithwaite asked. “I think it was detrimental,” Cooper replied. The fire chief insisted that, while the sprinkler system may not have been able to totally extinguish the fire, it definitely would have helped suppress it. But Cooper again insisted that his firefighters know better than to turn off the sprinkler system. “I don’t think any individual fireman would cut a sprinkler off,” he said. “I know my firefighters responded appropriately. I know they did. That thing could have been a lot worse than it was.” Cooper said the fire personnel understand the consequences of any such actions. “Let me ask you this, would that be dereliction of duty on the part of any fireman who would tell Mr. Bryde to turn that off?” Braithwaite asked. “It would probably end their career,” Cooper bluntly said. The fire chief appeared extremely confident about his firefighters’ actions until Braithwaite announced he was going to play an audio recording of radio communications between the firefighters during the early morning hours of June 2, 2015. On the recording, a male voice can be heard saying, “All right. Let’s shut off the sprinkler system as soon as we can.” After the audio file ends, Braithwaite asked Cooper if he was able to hear the recorded conversation. “Sounded like something… about shutting down the sprinkler system,” Cooper replied. “‘As soon as we can,’ did you hear that?” Braithwaite asked. Cooper said he did hear that part of the audio file. “All right, sir. And if I were to tell you that that transmission was made at 3:43, you would agree that’s within 13 minutes of the arrival of your personnel at the scene of the fire; is that correct?” Braithwaite asked. “That’s correct,” Cooper said. “And do you recognize the voice on there?” Braithwaite asked. “Sounded like Danny Kuhlmann,” Cooper said, referring to the operations chief for Columbia County Fire Rescue. Braithwaite asked Cooper to listen to another audio file that occurred almost one minute later at 3:44 a.m. inside the Marshall Square retirement community. On the recording, a male voice can be heard saying, “I’ve got Engine 3 on their way. We’re by the sprinkler system control valve.” Again, Braithwaite asked Cooper if he was able to hear the voice on the recording. “That was Danny,” Cooper replied. “All right, sir. So if Chief Kuhlmann is saying we need to shut down the sprinkler system as soon as we can, why would he be saying that?” Braithwaite asked. “Do you have any idea?” Cooper said he didn’t know. “The only idea I would have is he thinks he’s got the fire put out,” Cooper said. Braithwaite asked if hearing the recording changed Cooper’s mind about the actions 29DECEMBER2016
year end
clearance
Storewide savings through new year’s eve Save even more by taking an extra 10% off
lessons available on all instruments 4020 Washington Road, Augusta | 706.738.1651
year end coupon Take an extra 10% off * one single item 10PERCENTOFF
Coupon Valid Dec. 26 - Dec. 31, 2016
V27|NO52
of the fire department. “It does if he shut that sprinkler system down,” Cooper said. “Like I said, that’s a career-ending move right there.” And, yet, to this day, not much has changed within the Columbia County Fire Rescue. Politics, Politics, Politics While the national political scene has generated a lot of attention this year, elections in Augusta area were far from peachy. There were so many local, state and national races in 2016, it was hard for even the most informed voter to keep track of all the candidates. And there was no lack of political scandals this year, either. One total political meltdown that was on full display this year was the failed attempt by local attorney Chris Nicholson to unseat Superior Court Judge Carl Brown Jr. A perfect example of Nicholson’s bizarre behavior this year came during a political forum for candidates in May sponsored by the Augusta-Richmond County Committee for Good Government. During his speech to the crowd, Nicholson began referring to William S. Morris III, the founder of Morris Communications Co. and publisher of The Augusta Chronicle, as “the white devil.” “He went after the black politicians,” Nicholson said of Morris. “He went after (former state Sen.) Charles Walker. He went after other people and he tried to destroy all of the black leadership in Augusta.” Now, it’s no secret that Nicholson had filed a lawsuit against The Augusta Chronicle claiming that the paper published a “false” and “libelous” article about Nicholson in February. In the lawsuit, Nicholson requested a whopping $50 million in punitive damages. “What I’m telling you is, we need to get rid of the white devil,” Nicholson told the audience. “We don’t need him running our government.” While Nicholson lost the election, he also faced professional defeat this year. In October, the Georgia Supreme Court justices unanimously concurred that Chris Nicholson should be disbarred and no longer be allowed to practice law in Georgia. “Considering the nature of Nicholson’s misconduct, his prior disciplinary history, the absence of remorse, his indifference to restitution, and his repeated and contemptuous efforts to obstruct the disciplinary process, we conclude that the appropriate sanction in this case is disbarment,” the justices wrote in an opinion released on Oct. 3. It was a sad ending to what was once a very successful law career. But even if your name is cleared of all wrongdoings, it doesn’t always mean you’ll win an election. Such was the case for local attorney and former candidate for Georgia House District 123 Wright McLeod. Even though the Toombs Judicial Circuit District Attorney Dennis Sanders announced earlier this year that there would be no indictment of Wright regarding a bizarre case relating to the false imprisonment of a former Augusta Warrior Project employee, the scandal still probably cost Wright his election. In the beginning of the year, McLeod learned Richmond County Magistrate Court Judge William Jennings had signed a warrant for his arrest involving allegation against him of false imprisonment of former Augusta Warrior Project employee Janice Jamison. The entire community was stunned. Not by the absurd allegations of a disgruntled employee, but by the fact that the judge would sign a warrant for McLeod’s arrest along with Augusta Warrior Project Director Amy Palowitch. Before McLeod knew it, he was booked into the Charles B. Webster Detention Center on Phinizy Road. 20 METROSPIRIT AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
After sitting in jail for about two hours and being released on his own recognizance, McLeod was shocked that Jamison was claiming he and Palowitch refused to allow her to leave the office on Dec. 28, 2015, until they searched her purse and backpack. The only reason that McLeod, who serves as a volunteer board member for the Augusta Warrior Project, was at the AWP office that day was that the staff had requested he assist in the termination of Jamison. And McLeod insisted the termination was justified. “The termination was done legally, it was done extremely professionally and it was done ethically,” McLeod said. “Never once did I state or infer that she was not to leave the office. In fact, I was there to get her to leave the office. And I think the evidence will show all of that to be true.” Obviously, Sanders agreed with McLeod.
“All parties agree that neither defendant physically touched or restrained Jamison,” Sanders wrote. “On the day of the incident, Jamison did not tell the officer that either McLeod or Palowitch had prevented her from leaving Jamison’s office. Additionally, when the officers specifically asked if she wanted a police report done regarding the incidents surrounding the termination, Jamison indicated that she did not.” Even though, McLeod and Palowitch were falsely accused and the case was completely dismissed, many still believe the scandal cost McLeod the election in his race for the House District 123 seat. Private Dancing and Prostitution Whether it was a local private dancer’s controversial application in Augusta to work as an “adult entertainment independent contractor license” or the recent busts in Columbia County regarding prostitution at two local Asian spas, showing skin is always a hot topic in the CSRA. When local resident Sharon Bush Ellison applied for an “adult entertainment independent contractor license” in Richmond County this year, it definitely caught the Augusta Commission off guard. “I can’t really form an opinion or know how to vote unless I have a demonstration of what she is going to do. Seeing it is worth 1,000 words,” Augusta Commissioner Grady Smith jokingly told the Metro Spirit this year. “I have to see what I’m voting on.” 29DECEMBER2016
For several months, city officials tried to explain to Ellison that, in order for her to legally work as an adult entertainment dancer in Augusta, she was required to be licensed to dance at one of the permitted adult entertainment establishments in downtown, such as the Discotheque Lounge, Fantasy’s Showgirls or Vegas Show Girls. If adult entertainment dancers were allowed to receive independent licenses and perform in private residences, the city would be unable to properly monitor their activities. But Ellison said it is “illegal and unconstitutional” for the city to require her to get a license that would only allow her to work at one of the permitted adult entertainment establishments. She insisted it was a form of “indentured servitude or indentured labor,” to have such a requirement. But Augusta’s Deputy Planning Director Rob Sherman told the commission that simply wasn’t true. “A person who wants to have a dance club, he or she has to comply with the zoning requirements, just like an alcohol license,” Sherman told the commission. “She was wanting to dance at private homes. By our current ordinance, she cannot do what she would like to do. Therefore, the sheriff’s department denied it and the planning and development department denied it.” In the end, commissioners voted 9-1 to deny Ellison’s appeal. Ellison was dismayed by the commission’s decision. “It’s not obscene,” Ellison said of her private dancing. “The ones down on Broad Street where you get total buck naked is completely absurd to me.” She insisted dancing at private parties should be a licensed business in Augusta. “Doing a private party is not unheard of,” she said. “People have bachelorette parties and bachelor parties, but because I want to do it and I want to be on my own and be independent in doing it, something has got to be wrong with it?” Apparently so. But at least Augusta wasn’t facing some of the problems popping up in Columbia County this year. Just last month, two of the women working at King’s Spa on South Belair Road— Sun Okay Kim, 62, and Mun Sook Choi, 49 — were arrested and charged with trafficking a person for sexual servitude, while Sun Ja Song, 36, was charged with prostitution. According to the incident reports from the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office, the three women were taken to jail on Nov. 9 after Song did “knowingly and willfully consent to perform sexual acts for money.” A few hours later, the sheriff’s office also discovered illegal sexual activity occurring just a couple miles away at Gold Spa on Columbia Road in Martinez. Officers arrested and charged Chong Huy Lee, 49, with prostitution after she consented to “sexual intercourse and oral sex” for money, according to the incident report. But that wasn’t the first time employees at King’s Spa have been arrested on similar sex-related charges. Since 2008, women have been busted for masturbation for hire at least three previous times at King’s Spa, but the spa’s doors remained open until just last month. When asked if Columbia County Sheriff Clay Whittle was going to recommend to the Columbia County Board of Commissioners that King’s Spa and Gold Spa’s business licenses be revoked, Morris replied, “The sheriff has not made a recommendation.” Earlier this year, a violent crime also struck King’s Spa when a 39-year-old Atlanta resident, Damione Aaron Evans, was arrested after allegedly assaulting two of the spa’s female employees, raping one of them, and then robbing the business of approximately $300. While King’s Spa recently closed its doors following the undercover operation by the sheriff’s office, Gold Spa appears to still be open for business. Like many communities across the state of Georgia, Columbia County is struggling with the problem of how to properly handle these massage parlors, while also protecting the rights of legitimate massage therapists throughout the county. North Augusta in the News Whether it was the federal indictment of 20 local Irish Travellers, the mystery surrounding the Scuttle’s Island water park or the slow moving development of Project Jackson, North Augusta has certainly been in the news this year. Probably the biggest story over the river in North Augusta in 2016 was the federal fraud case involving Irish Travellers living in Murphy Village. More than 20 individuals were charged under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) for allegedly committing crimes of fraud including schemes to obtain life insurance benefits, food stamps and Medicaid funds and providing false information involving vehicle financing. The 45-count indictment states that several of the defendants are also accused 29DECEMBER2016
of mail fraud, wire fraud, structuring monetary transactions to evade tax reporting requirements and interstate transportation of stolen items. If found guilty, some of these Irish Travellers could face up to 20 years in prison. The federal government has already seized about 25 vehicles, and it is currently seeking five properties all located around North Augusta’s Murphy Village. While these federal charges clearly shook up Murphy Village, actions by the South Carolina Department of Social Services this year also enraged this close-knit community. In September, the South Carolina Department of Social Services removed six young girls, ages ranging from 6 to 13, from their parents’ custody. The children were allegedly removed during the middle of the school day from Our Lady of Peace Catholic School by DSS. While DSS said it could not publicly comment on the case involving the children, many local residents believed that the agency is looking into allegations that these young girls were already being groomed for the Irish Travellers’ custom of arranged marriages. Some have gone further to suggest that the state is looking into allegations of sexual abuse. The Irish Travellers insist such allegations are completely untrue. The allegations have turned Murphy Village, the home of about 3,000 Irish Travellers in North Augusta, upside down. Many local residents are now asking: Will these charges against the Irish Travellers be the end of Murphy Village? Only time will tell, but it may be a long wait. The trial for Irish Travellers accused in a racketeering scheme out of Murphy Village has been pushed back to April. Another question that lingered on folks’ minds this year was whether or not the Scuttle’s Island water park would ever open in North Augusta. It appears there won’t be a $21.5 million water park constructed off Interstate 20, at exit 5. Cedar Rock Holdings, the company behind Scuttle’s Island, has been asked to file bankruptcy, according to documents filed with the United States Bankruptcy Court earlier this year. The company’s creditors filed an involuntary petition for bankruptcy stating Cedar Rock Holdings owes nearly $554,000. AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
METROSPIRIT 21
V27|NO52
So, not only have the developers never moved an inch of dirt on the land located off exit 5 in North Augusta, which just happens to be owned by an Irish Traveller living in Murphy Village, but the developers also owe creditors more than $550,000. This appears to be a very disappointing ending to a project that once caught the attention of a lot of local residents. However, many people are still holding out hope on the future of another major development in North Augusta, Project Jackson. Ever since Project Jackson was proposed along the Savannah River in North Augusta back in 2012, there has been a great deal of interest in the future of the multi-use development next to the Hammond’s Ferry neighborhood. Project Jackson is far from just the future home of the Augusta GreenJackets. The estimated $180 million project is expected to include not only a baseball park, but a proposed hotel and conference center, restaurants, retail shops, luxury residential units and an office building. While there has been a lot of excitement over the future project, there has also been some criticism regarding the slow progress of its construction.
22 METROSPIRIT AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
But North Augusta Mayor Lark Jones still insists that Project Jackson will be built once all of the financial pieces of the puzzles come together. “The project was announced in December 2012 and, from the outset, this was a very, very ambitious project for the City of North Augusta,” Jones said. “It’s unlike anything that has ever been done here before. And we said the only way it could happen would be to have enough private development to pay for the project.” No matter how long it takes, North Augusta is committed to sticking to that financial plan, Jones told the Metro Spirit earlier this year. “That sounds too good to be true to some folks, but most of the opponents that talk about stadiums and minor league teams that are not working, those have projects that they built the stadium and hoped other things would come,” Jones said. “That is not what this project is. This is, we build it together. And part of the latest delay has been on making sure all the pieces to the puzzle fit and the numbers work.” Regardless of people’s concern over whether Project Jackson will ever materialize, the City of North Augusta is determined to build the project, but to “do it correctly,” he said. Finally this year, there was very sad news about local legend and North Augusta native Sharon Jones. On Nov. 18, Jones, the soul and funk singer of the Dap-Kings, died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 60. The last time the Metro Spirit spoke to Jones was right before the Godfather of Soul’s birthday last May where she truly dazzled the entire Augusta audience. Jones, who was often called the female James Brown, was always so full of life and kind to everyone she met. It is hard to believe she is gone. But, no matter what, Jones will always be near and dear to Augusta’s heart. While it has been a long year, here’s to positive growth, happiness and good cheer in 2017. A very, happy New Year, Augusta!
29DECEMBER2016
V27|NO52
whaT’s up
Calendar: 24 | Music Listings: 28 If you have any questions, or would like to submit an event to our calendar, please email Amy Christian at amy@themetrospirit.com.
LeT The CounTdown Begin everyone knows what’s going to happen tonight: the sitter (that you paid dearly for) will arrive, you’ll go out and, eventually, after a few too many cocktails, you’ll ring in the New Year. What about the kids, though? Don’t you think they want to get in on the action, too? Well, they can if they visit the Episcopal Day School Gym at 11 a.m. this Saturday. That’s when Countdown to Noon, a New Year’s Eve celebration for kids and their families hosted by Tara Scheyer and the Mud Puppy Band, will take place. Not only will Tara and crew sing a few songs (audience participation encouraged, of course), including “Auld Lang Syne,” there will be balloons, noisemakers, a raffle for a Mud Puppy Ukulele and more. In addition, all four HiFi Felix CDs will be available for $10 each, so your kids can sing along all day long. They’ll either be in fine form or exhausted once the babysitter gets there. But that won’t be your problem, now will it? CounTdown To noon Episcopal Day School Gym Saturday, December 31 11 a.m. $5, students; free, grownups and those ages 2 and under tarascheyer.com
This week
saTurday
If you’re looking for something a little different to do this New Year’s Eve, why not spend it at the City Winery in Atlanta at their wine pairing dinner. The menu sounds absolutely incredible, the $80 ticket include a voucher for a seat to any non-sold-out 2017 show, and you can visit their speakeasy (just tell them you know Ms. Acree to get in) for a craft cocktail. And while the two Indigo Girls shows there that night are sold out, you can always put your name on the waiting list and keep your fingers crossed. 29DECEMBER2016
sunday
So you overindulged last night, but made a resolution to do better by your body in 2017. Why not start the New Year at one of the three First Day Hikes scheduled in the area? At 10 a.m. there’s one in Aiken State Park, while the two others — at both Mistletoe State Park and Redcliffe Plantation State Historic Site on Beach Island — are at 2 p.m., which may give you a little more time to recover from your hangover.
Monday
Yep, the kids are out of school, but you can never really take a vacation from their education, now can you? If you live in Richmond County and have been pondering whether a magnet school or program is right for your child, you need to make a decision quick. Applications for these schools and programs, available at rcboe.org/magnet, are due January 6. Get on it!
Tuesday
While you’re filling out applications, the deadline is nearing to enroll your middle school students in Augusta University’s Junior Model United Nations. Held Wednesday, March 15, from 8:30 a.m.4 p.m. at the Jaguar Student Activity Center on the Summerville campus, this simulation will let students act as diplomats from other countries. The registration deadline is January 16.
For more information on these events, see our calendar of events on page 24. AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
METROSPIRIT 23
V27|NO52
EDUCATION Thu Dec 29
10am - noon Computer Help Lab Wallace Branch Library Call 706-722-6275 or visit arcpls.org.
Mon Jan 2
3:30pm - 5pm Intermediate Spanish Friedman Branch Library An adult class led by Edwin Perez of the Asociacion Cultural Hispanoamericana. Call 706736-6758 or visit arcpls.org.
Thu Jan 5
5pm - 9pm Jimmie Dyess Symposium Augusta Museum of History Rotunda This event includes remarks by Major General Perry Smith, the honoring of three individuals with the Jimmie Dyess Distinguished American Award and more. Free. Call 706-722-8454 or visit augustamuseum.org.
Ongoing
Applications for Enrollment SAIL: School for Arts Infused Learning, the recently approved statewide-enrollment charter school based in Augusta will hold its first school year beginning in August 2017 and is accepting applications for enrollment until January 15. The school is also accepting educator and operational personnel applications. For more information, visit sailga.org.
Magnet School/Program Applications Applications for Richmond County magnet schools and programs are now available. The deadline for turning in an application is January 6. For more information, visit rcboe.org/ magnet.
James Brown Family Historical Tour Augusta Museum of History Available each Saturday at 11 a.m. and lasting approximately two hours, this bus tour includes Brown’s elementary school, his childhood home, his statue and more. $15 fee, includes admission to the museum, which houses the largest collection of James Brown memorabilia. Reservations 24 hours in advance required. Call 803-640-2090 or visit jamesbrownfamilyfdn.org.
Guided Tours 1797 Ezekiel Harris House Offered by appointment only Monday-Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Last tours of the day begin at 4 p.m. Adults, $2; children, $1. Call 706-722-8454 or visit augustamuseum. org.
North Augusta Driving Tour Arts and Heritage Center of North Augusta Offered by appointment and includes a 30-45-minute guided tour and admission to the center. Self-guided tours are also available through an iPhone downloadable audio tour or a Google Maps-based tour. Guided tours: $5, adults; $3, students K-12. Call 803-441-4380 or visit artsandheritagecenter.com.
Tours
Rhythms Exhibit Closing Reception Jessye Norman School of the Arts Friday, December 30 5-7 p.m. It’s your last chance to see this exhibit by artist Troy Campbell, whose work is inspired by music. It will be on display and tomorrow from noon-3 p.m. jessyenormanschool.org/ann-and-ellisjohnson-gallery-of-art/
Boyhood Home of President Woodrow Wilson Guided tours, approximately 45 minutes long, are offered Thursday-Saturday on the hour from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Group tours are available by advanced reservation. Adults, $5; seniors, $4; kids K-12, $3; under 5 years, free. Call 706-724-0436 or visit wilsonboyhoodhome.org.
Historic Trolley Tours of Augusta Augusta Visitors Center Tours aboard the Lady Libby available at the Augusta Visitors Center with 24-hour advanced reservations. Tickets include admission to the Augusta Museum of History. Call 706-724-4067 or visit visitaugusta.org.
ELSEWHERE Wed Jan 4
10am Gladys’ Gang: Smooth and Shiny 24 METROSPIRIT AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
29DECEMBER2016
V27|NO52
Columbia Museum of Art A free early childhood arts and literacy program for those ages 2-5 that includes story time in the galleries and hands-on art projects. Pre-registration required. Call 803-799- 2810 or visit columbiamuseum.org.
Ongoing
“Psychedelic Design: Rock Posters from the Mel Byars Collection, 1966-1971” Columbia Museum of Art An exhibition of posters from the 1960s San Francisco Bay area. On display through March 12. Call 803-799-2810 or visit columbiamuseum.org.
EXHIBITIONS Ongoing
SEEDS Exhibit Westobou Gallery An exhibition of small works by local and regional artists, all available for $300 or less. Featured artists include Andrea Anderegg, Ellie Benson, Anna Bliss, Ethan Brock, Sydney Ewerth, Tom Hubbard, Gabi Hutchison, Jay Jacobs, Chase Lanier, Anna Patrick, Staci Swider, Jacob Vaz, Kelsea S. Windham and Leonard Zimmerman. The exhibit will remain on display until January 27 and the gallery is open weekdays from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Call 706-7552878 or visit westoboufestival.com.
Rhythms Jessye Norman School of the Arts An exhibit by artist Troy Campbell whose work is inspired by music. It will be on display each Thursday, Friday and Saturday from noon-3 p.m. through December 31 in the Ann & Ellis Gallery. Visit jessyenormanschool.org/ann-and-ellis-johnson-gallery-of-art/.
Exhibits Augusta Museum of History Includes the following: “The Godfather of Soul, Mr. James Brown; “Celebrating a Grand Tradition, the Sport of Golf”; “Augusta’s Story”; “A Community That Heals”; “Into the Interior: A History of the Georgia Railroad and Banking Company”; “Local Legends”; “One Man, Two Ships: Lessons in History and Courage”; “A Quilt Journey”; and “Canteens to Combat Boots”. Call 706-722-8454 or visit augustamuseum.org.
of each month. Sessions are free and open to the public. Visit sebuddhist.org.
KIDS-TEENS
FLIX
Fri Dec 30
Tue Jan 3
Aiken Public Library For those ages 0-5. Call 803-642-2023 or visit abbe-lib.org.
5:30pm Free Movie Tuesdays Headquarters Branch Library Call 706-821-2615 for weekly selections.
HEALTH Tue Jan 3
7pm - 9:30pm Ready and Able Doctors Hospital A five-session Lamaze class that continues Tuesdays through January 31. Pre- registration required. Call 706-651-2229 or visit doctors-hospital.net.
Thu Jan 5
7pm Center for Women Tour Doctors Hospital Pre-registration required. Call 706-651-2229 or visit doctors-hospital.net.
Ongoing
Insure GA Open Enrollment The nonprofit Insure GA has 41 licensed health care navigators staffed in a call center with both English and Spanish speaking employees to help Georgians understand their options for insurance under the Affordable Care Act. In addition, navigators can help with hardship exemptions, re-enrollments and referrals to other programs like Medicaid and Medicare. They will also host in-person enrollment events in all 159 Georgia counties, and will host a Get Covered GA Tour with stops in major cities. The call center is staffed from 7 a.m.-7 p.m. For more information about this free service, call 866-988-8246 or visit insurega.org.
Meditation Sessions The Yoga Center, North Augusta Led by members of the Southeastern Buddhist Community the first and second Wednesday 29DECEMBER2016
10am - noon Play & Grow Activity
4:30pm Lego Club North Augusta’s Nancy Carson Library For those in grades K-5. Call 803-279-5767 or visit abbe-lib.org.
Sat Dec 31
11am - 1pm Countdown to Noon Episcopal Day School Gym A New Year’s Eve celebration for kids and their families that features a concert by Tara Scheyer and the Mud Puppy Band. The event will also feature a countdown to noon with balloons, noisemakers and singing “Auld Lang Syne,” plus a raffle for a Mud Puppy Band Ukulele. All four HiFi Felix CDs will be available for $10 each. $5, students; free, grownups and those ages 2 and under. Visit tarascheyer.com.
11am Hap-Pea All Year Story Time Barnes & Noble Call 706-737-0012 or visit bn.com.
Mon Jan 2
10:30am Jr. Lego Club Headquarters Branch Library For those ages 2-4. Legos provided. Pre-registration required. Call 706-821-2623 or visit arcpls.org.
Wed Jan 4
10am Wacky Wednesday Story Time Barnes & Noble Call 706-737-0012 or visit bn.com. AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
METROSPIRIT 25
V27|NO52
SPECIAL EVENTS Thu Dec 29
6pm, 7pm and 8pm “Season of Light” Dupont Planetarium, Aiken Weather permitting, the observatory, housing the Bechtel Telescope, will be available for viewing after each show. $1-$5.50. Call 803641-3654 or visit rpsec.usca.edu.
Fri Dec 30
5pm - 8pm Wine Not It’s Friday Whole Foods A $5 wine tasting in which participants get five 3-ounce samples of featured wines. Call 762-333-0259 or visit wholefoodsmarket.com.
Sat Dec 31
8pm - 1am New Year’s Eve Bash
New Year’s Eve Canal Ride Savannah Rapids Old Lock and Dam Saturday, December 31 10 a.m. The SRG Sierra Club event will begin at the lower parking lot, and participants will ride along the canal, eat downtown and return for a total of about 18 miles. Fat tire bikes recommended; helmet and water bottles required. dgavigan@live.com
Ongoing
Youth Futsal League Kroc Center A league for those ages 5-12 that will be held February 13-March 24 from 5-9:30 p.m. Registration is in January. $40, members; $55, non-members. Call 706-922-0171 or visit salvationarmyaugusta.org.
Junior Model UN Registration Augusta University Middle school students who are interested in assuming the perspective of a diplomat from a United Nations Member State and representing their position can register for the day-long simulation at Augusta University. January 16 is registration deadline; February 15 is the late registration deadline. Email Dr. Craig Albert at calbert@ augusta.edu or visit augusta.edu/pamplin/ pols/juniormodelun.php.
Homeschool PE Kroc Center For kids ages 5-12 and meets Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 9:30 a.m. or 10:30 a.m. Members, free; nonmembers, $2 per visit. Activity follows the Richmond County school calendar. Call 706-364-5762 or visit salvationarmyaugusta.org/kroc-center/. 26 METROSPIRIT AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
Toddler Time Kroc Center A program for parents and children up to age 5 that includes story time, crafts and hands-on activities. Meets Fridays at 10 a.m. $1, members; $3, non-members. Call 706-364-5762 or visit salvationarmyaugusta.org/kroc-center/.
Kroc Tots Kroc Center A program for parents and children up to age 5 that includes work on physical, social and emotional development, as well as cognitive skills and language development. Meets Tuesdays at 10 a.m. during the school year. $2, members; $5, non-members. Call 706-364-5762 or visit salvationarmyaugusta.org/kroc-center/.
LITERARY Thu Dec 29
10am - noon Morning Book Club Maxwell Branch Library This month’s selection is “Homage to Catalonia” by George Orwell. Call 706-7932020 or visit ecgrl.org.
Wed Jan 4
6pm Page Turners Book Club Barnes & Noble Call 706-737-0012 or visit bn.com.
Augusta Jewish Community Center A formal event for those 21 and older that will include hors d’oeuvres and cocktails. Single tickets: $65, members; $75, nonmembers. Couple tickets: $120, members; $140 non-members. Call 706-228-3636 or visit augustajcc.org.
Ongoing
Shoe Collection Drive Augusta area podiatrists are conducting a shoe collection drive of new and used shoes, which will be distributed to those in need in the local community. Donations may be brought to your local Augusta podiatrist’s office through January 2. All types of shoes are needed regardless of size, condition or type. Contact Dr. Kent Kronowski at 706724-0586 or your local Podiatrist for more information.
SPIRITUAL Thu Jan 5
7pm Lifting the Veil on Islam Islamic Society of Augusta Part of a monthly program to enlighten newcomers about Islam, this one on the subject of the Muslims Building America. This series, held the first Thursday of each month, is open to the public and refreshments will be served. Visit openhouse.isaugusta.com.
Ongoing
Creative Arts Kroc Center A program that meets each Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. in which those ages 13 and older worship and develop their gifts in dance, drama and music. Call 706-364-5762 or visit salvationarmyaugusta.org/kroc-center/.
Kroc Kids Kroc Center A program for those ages 3-12 years old that meets each Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. Participants will develop character and and understanding of God through games, singing, arts, crafts and more. Snacks
provided. Call 706-364-5762 or visit salvationarmyaugusta.org/kroc-center/.
AMP’D Kroc Center For those ages 13-17, this program meets the first Friday of each month at 6 p.m. and promotes a God-centered message through fellowship. Call 706-364-5762 or visit salvationarmyaugusta.org/kroc-center/.
EPIC A Christ-centered time of fellowship for those ages 18-35 that meets the second Friday of each month at 6 p.m. Call 706364-5762 or visit salvationarmyaugusta.org/ kroc-center/.
Golden Agers Kroc Center A seniors group that meets every Monday at 9:30 a.m. for Bible study, crafts, exercise, educational workshops and more. Call 706364-5762 or visit salvationarmyaugusta.org/ kroc-center/.
Food, Faith & Fitness Kroc Center A faith-based fitness class that meets each Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. Call 706-364-5762 or visit salvationarmyaugusta.org/kroc-center/.
Adult Bible Study Kroc Center For those ages 18 and older, this study meets each Monday at 5 p.m. Call 706-3645762 or visit salvationarmyaugusta.org/ kroc-center/.
Women’s Group Kroc Center A group that focuses on worship, fellowship, education and service. For those ages 16 and older. Meets each Monday at 6 p.m. Call 706-364-5762 or visit salvationarmyaugusta. org/kroc-center/.
Men’s Club Kroc Center A group for those 16 and older that plays games, goes on outings and participates in community service projects. It meets each Monday at 6 p.m. Call 706-364-5762 or visit salvationarmyaugusta.org/kroc-center/.
Community Care & Outreach Kroc Center A group for those ages 18 and older that meets each Tuesday at 11 a.m. to go to nursing homes and hospitals. Call 706-3645762 or visit salvationarmyaugusta.org/ kroc-center/.
SPORTS-OUTDOORS Sat Dec 31
10am - noon New Year’s Eve Canal Ride Savannah Rapids Old Lock and Dam The SRG Sierra Club event will begin at the 29DECEMBER2016
V27|NO52
lower parking lot, ride along the canal, eat downtown and return for a total of about 18 miles. Fat tire bikes recommended; helmet and water bottles required. Email dgavigan@live.com.
Sun Jan 1
10am - noon First Day Hike Aiken State Park Participants should bring water, binoculars, insect repellent, hiking shoes and a camera. Free with park admission, which is $2 for those 16 and older and free for those under 16. Call 803-649-2857 or email aiken@scprt.com.
2pm - 3:30pm First Day Hike Mistletoe State Park A ranger-led hike along the Cliatt Creek trail that meets at the nature center. Dogs welcome. Participants should bring water and wear sturdy shoes. $5, parking. Call 706-5410321 or visit gastateparks.org/mistletoe.
2pm First Day Hike Redcliffe Plantation State Historic Site Free. Call 803-827-1473 or visit southcarolinaparks.com.
Thu Jan 5
9:30am - noon Orienteering Mistletoe State Park An event for those ages 8 and up in which park staff will teach participants to use a map and compass to navigate to checkpoints through a 1-mile course. $5, plus $5 parking. Call 706-541-0321 or visit gastateparks.org/mistletoe.
Ongoing
Kroc Taekwondo Kroc Center A class for all ages that meets Tuesdays and Fridays at 5:30 p.m. $75; pre-registration required. Call 706-364-5762 or visit salvationarmyaugusta.org/kroc-center/.
Fencing Classes Augusta Fencers Club Classes for children as young as six, as well as teens and adults, meet five nights a week. The next round of introductory classes will start Monday, January 23, and meet weekly. The 10-week course is $180, with all competitive equipment and text provided. The class meets as follows: teens ages 10-13 meet Mondays at 5 p.m.; youth ages 6-9 meet at 6 p.m.; and those 14 and up meet at 7 p.m. Call 706-7228878, email rvolk1@comcast.net or visit augustafencersclub.com.
SUPPORT Mon Jan 2
6:30pm Cancer Share University Hospital For those with any type of cancer. Call 706774-5946 or visit universityhealth.org. 29DECEMBER2016
6:30pm Pink Pistols A group for women in their 20s and 30s dealing with breast cancer. Call for location. Call 706-774-4141 or visit universityhealth.org.
Tue Jan 3
10:20am Moms Connection Augusta University Medical Center This free weekly support group for new mothers meets in the Terrace Dining Dogwood Room on the second floor. All new moms and their babies are welcome and an international board certified lactation consultant/educator/perinatal nurse will answer questions and offer resources. Call 706-721-8283 or visit augustahealth.org.
5:30pm Weight Loss Support Group AU Professional Building 1 Free, but pre-registration required. Call 706-721-2609 or visit augustahealth.org/ weightloss.
Wed Jan 4
1pm The Lactation Club University Hospital A breastfeeding support group for mothers of NICU babies. Call 706-774-2825 or visit universityhealth.org.
5:30pm Girl Talk Support Group
locations, visit them on Facebook under La Leche League of Augusta or at lllaugusta. wordpress.com.
Alcoholics Anonymous
Celebrate Recovery
Narcotics Anonymous
Journey Community Church This Christ-centered recovery program meets every Monday night at 7 p.m. The meetings last two hours and childcare is provided. Pre-registration suggested. Visit cr@journeycommunity.net.
Trinity Hospital of Augusta Meets Fridays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 7 p.m. Visit na.org.
Diabetes Youth Support Group
Holds several meetings locally. For a current schedule, visit augustaaa.org/meetings.pdf.
Beyond the Bars A support group for those with incarcerated loved ones. Call 706-855-8636.
Meets quarterly. Call for more information. Call 706-868-3241.
Families Who Have Lost a Baby Support Group
Overeaters Anonymous
For more information, call 706-721-8299 or visit grhealth.org.
Meets at St. Andrews Presbyterian Church at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesdays, at 7 p.m. Thursdays at Unity Church, and at Covenant Presbyterian Church at 1:30 p.m. on Saturdays. Call 706-863-9534 or email oa.augusta.recovery@gmail.com.
Adult Sexual Assault and Rape Support Group Provides group counseling at University Hospital for those who have experienced sexual assault, incest, rape or childhood sexual abuse. Call 706-724-5200 or visit universityhealth.org.
VOLUNTEER Ongoing
Senior Companions Needed Senior Citizens Council The council is seeking those ages 55 and older who can serve 20 hours a week with a special needs adult. Benefits include stipend, travel reimbursement and annual physical. For more information, call 706-868-0120.
Doctors Hospital A support group for those who have pelvic health issues. Pre-registration required. Call 706-651-4343 or visit doctors-hospital.net.
Thu Jan 5
10am Alzheimer’s Association Support Group Kroc Center For those dealing with Alzheimer’s and/or caregivers. Pre-registration required. Call 706-860-5233.
Noon Active-Duty Parent Support Group Fort Gordon’s Family Outreach Center Meets the first Thursday of each month. Call 706-792-5220 or visit fortgordon.com.
Ongoing
TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) GA, 110 Augusta St. Alban’s Episcopal Church fellowship hall The group meets Mondays, with weighin beginning at 5:15 p.m. and the meeting beginning at 6:30 p.m. Call 706-790-0391 or visit tops.org.
TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) Pine View Baptist Church The group meets Tuesdays, with weigh-in beginning at 4:45 p.m. and the meeting beginning at 5:15 p.m. Call 706-868-0539 or visit tops.org.
La Leche League A breastfeeding support group. For more information on meeting dates, times and AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
METROSPIRIT 27
V27|NO52
Stillwater Taproom - Pub Quiz Surrey Tavern - Trivia w/ Christian and Mickey
Upcoming Sierra Hull
- Imperial Theatre January 13 Monica and Friends
- Bell Auditorium January 14 Hot Rize
- Imperial Theatre February 10 Vince Gill
- Bell Auditorium February 17 Dwight Yoakam
- Bell Auditorium March 3
Funk You, the Funk Brotherhorns, the Phillip Lee Band Sky City Friday, December 30 Doors, 8 p.m.; music, 9 p.m. Featuring one originals set and one James Brown Tribute set. $10 skycityaugusta.com
Garrison Keillor
- Bell Auditorium March 8 Steep Canyon Rangers
- Bell Auditorium April 27
Elsewhere Waka Flocka Flame
- Center Stage, Atlanta December 29 Anthony Hamilton
- Fox Theatre, Atlanta December 30 Drivin’ N’ Cryin’
- Center Stage, Atlanta December 30 Indigo Girls
Thursday, December 29 Live Music
Fox’s Lair - Beats Down Under Open Mic hosted by Happy Bones Mellow Mushroom (Aiken) - Live Music on the Patio The Red Pepper (Aiken) - The Mike Frost Band Wild Wing - Sabo & Dave The Willcox (Aiken) - Thursday Night Jazz w/ 4 Cats in the Dog House
What’s Tonight?
Bar West - Open Mic Night w/ Jonathon Flowers Carolina Ale House - Trivia w/ Mike Sleeper (9 p.m.) Chevy’s - Karaoke Cotton Patch - Old School Thursday w/ DJ Groove Coyotes - Karaoke with Bam Helga’s Pub & Grille - Trivia The Highlander - Butt Naked Trivia Joe’s Underground - Trivia The Loft - Karaoke MAD Studios - Open Mic, Spoken Word Pizza Joint (Downtown) - Trivia w/ Mike Sleeper (7 p.m.) Shannon’s - Karaoke w/ David Doane Somewhere in Augusta - Poker for Fun; Thursday Night Football; Paint Nite
Friday, December 30 Live Music
Bar West - Live Music Cotton Patch - Live Jazz Country Club - Jared Ashley Eli’s American - Friday Night Live The Highlander - Angwish Polo Tavern (Aiken) - Sir Edward Phillips and the Psychedelic Blue Shannon’s - Mike and Walter Sky City - Funk You: one originals set and one James Brown Tribute set featuring the Funk Brotherhorns Somewhere in Augusta - All Bets R Off Stillwater Taproom - Circus #9 Whole Foods - Music @ the Turn
Wild Wing - DB Bryant The Willcox (Aiken) - John Vaughn
What’s Tonight?
Soul Bar - Disco Hell Vera Cruz Mexican Restaurant - Karaoke
Saturday, December 31 Live Music
Cotton Patch - Live Jazz & Blues Country Club - New Year’s Eve Party w/ Justin Dukes Coyotes - New Year’s Eve Party w/ OutShyne Shannon’s - New Year’s Eve Party w/ Perfect Picture Stillwater Taproom - The Phillip Lee Band Wild Wing - New Year’s Eve w/ Bad Cash The Willcox (Aiken) - John Vaughn
What’s Tonight?
The Backyard Tavern - Karaoke Bar West - DJ Fugi Chevy’s - DJ Nicky B Helga’s Pub & Grille - Bluegrass Brunch (11 a.m.-3 p.m.); Trivia, nights The Highlander - Karaoke Joe’s Underground - Ladies Night, Singles Night Sky City - New Year’s Eve Music Tribute Party w/ DJ Coco Somewhere in Augusta - Football Soul Bar - New Year’s Eve Party Vera Cruz Mexican Restaurant - Karaoke
Sunday, January 1 Live Music
Mellow Mushroom (Aiken) - Brunch w/ Mike Frost and Lauren Meccia Wild Wing - Live Music The Willcox (Aiken) - John Vaughn
What’s Tonight?
Shannon’s - Karaoke w/ Mike Johnson
Monday, January 2 Live Music
Metro Coffeehouse & Pub - Blues Monday w/
28 METROSPIRIT AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
Famous Last Words
What’s Tonight?
The Backyard Tavern - Karaoke Joe’s Underground - Poker Shannon’s - Karaoke w/ David Doane Somewhere in Augusta - World Tavern Poker; Monday Night Football Wild Wing - Trivia Wing Place (Aiken) - Trivia
- City Winery, Atlanta December 31 Yacht Rock Revue
- Georgia Theatre, Athens January 6 Matisyahu
- City Winery, Atlanta Janury 8 Umphrey’s Mcgee
- The Tabernacle, Atlanta January 13-15
Tuesday, January 3 Live Music
Fox’s Lair - Irish Music with Dr. Fisher and the Undefeated Army Joe’s Underground - Open Mic The Willcox (Aiken) - Hal Shreck
What’s Tonight?
Bar West - Trivia The Cotton Patch - Trivia Limelite Cafe - Bottom’s Up Trivia Mellow Mushroom (Aiken) - Trivia Shannon’s - Karaoke w/ David Doane Somewhere in Augusta - Big Prize Trivia Twisted Burrito - Trivia w/ Mike Sleeper
Wednesday, January 4 Live Music The Highlander - Open Mic Night Shannon’s - Mike and Walter Wild Wing - Live Music
REAL PEOPLE REAL DESIRE REAL FUN.
What’s Tonight?
The Backyard Tavern - Karaoke Bar West - Karaoke Cotton Patch - Trivia and Tunes The Loft - Karaoke Mi Rancho (Downtown) - Karaoke Mi Rancho (Washington Road) - Karaoke Pizza Joint (Evans) - Trivia w/ Mike Sleeper The Playground - Krazy Karaoke w/ Big Troy Polo Tavern (Aiken) - Karaoke w/ Tom Mitchell Sky City - Conspiracy w/ DJ Knightmare Somewhere in Augusta - The Comedy Zone Southbound Smokehouse - Trivia
Try FREE: 706-434-0108 More Local Numbers: 1-800-926-6000 Ahora español Livelinks.com 18+
Meet sexy new friends
FREE TRIAL
706-434-0112
V27|NO52
SIGHTINGS
Michael Johnson | mejphoto.photoreflect.com
Morgan Newman, Patti Hubbard and Mahayla Battle at Metro Pub and Coffeehouse.
Andrew McDainils, Lauren Dukes, Tyce Dukes and Alex Givens at Craft & Vine.
June Moats, Kim Grubbs and Patty Otts at Whiskey Bar (Kitchen).
Amanda Carelock, Ashley Farrow, Madison Carelock and Kristy Klingenmeier at The Bee’s Knees.
Marcus Searing, Morgan Wooten and Brent Entriken at Knuckle Sandwiches.
Jadah Gutierrez and Armada Ferguson with Beth and Tyler James at Stillwater Taproom.
Alex Hegley, Veronika Walker and Russell Swann at Helga’s Pub and Grill.
Lizzie Markwalter, Courtney Fuhrmann, Ashlyn Hutto and Alison Bowles at Sheehan’s Irish Pub.
Tricia and Ron Rhodes with Nancy Greenwood at Sheehan’s Irish Pub.
29DECEMBER2016
MIRROR REFLECTION By Derrick Niederman/Edited by Will Shortz ACROSS 1 One of the blanks in the cereal slogan “____ are for ____” 5 Tinker, for one, in olden days 14 Certain blade 19 Spread dirt, in a way 21 Legendary Egyptian queen 22 Run off 23 Stick together 24 Liberal-arts college in the Keystone State 25 Like many a lot 26 Hood lead-in 28 Caterpillar product 29 Dud 31 Historical period 32 One of Frank’s wives 33 Member of the cat family 35 Father, familiarly 36 Japanese auto make 38 Court concern 39 Big Australian export 40 One of five on a starfish 42 Set of clubs in a bag 44 These could amount to fortunes 48 Dead follower 50 Where to find grooms 53 Vingt-____ (multiple de trois) 54 This does not fly 56 Anagram of the letters O-N-D 58 State with part of I-81: Abbr. 60 What you might call a dog 62 Instrument for an angel 63 Caspar, Melchior and Balthazar, e.g. 65 Something you can do with flies 66 First name of an Oscar-nominated actress of 1957 67 Time in ads 68 Square ____ 69 Animal in an Aesop fable 70 White House sight 72 White House sight 75 Animal in an Aesop fable 76 Square ____ 77 Time in ads 78 First name of an Oscar-nominated actress of 1957 79 Something you can do with flies 81 Caspar, Melchior and Balthazar, e.g. 82 Instrument for an angel 83 What you might call a dog 84 State with part of I-81: Abbr. 85 Anagram of the letters O-N-D
86 This does not fly 87 Vingt-____ (multiple de trois) 89 Where to find grooms 92 Dead follower 94 These could amount to fortunes 98 Set of clubs in a bag 100 One of five on a starfish 102 Big Australian export 103 Court concern 105 Japanese auto make 108 Father, familiarly 110 Member of the cat family 113 One of Frank’s wives 114 Historical period 115 Dud 117 Caterpillar product 118 Hood lead-in 120 Like many a lot 122 Liberal-arts college in the Keystone State 125 Stick together 126 Run off 127 Legendary Egyptian queen 128 Spread dirt, in a way 129 Certain blade 130 Tinker, for one, in olden days 131 One of the blanks in the cereal slogan “____ are for ____”
35 Ingredient in an old-fashioned 37 Exams required for some prep schools 41 “Stat!” 43 Part of a plant embryo that develops into a root 45 Together 46 Remove a label from 47 One runs through the middle of Kansas City 49 Like Norton software 51 Raise again, as a flag 52 Vehicle used for grooming ski trails 55 Small songbird 57 Very busy 59 Florida State athlete, for short 60 Walks in rain boots, say 61 En ____ (chess maneuver) 62 Tried 64 “What’s this?!” 67 Feared 70 Blacksmith’s tool 71 Nav. rank 72 Ending with syn- or ant73 Longest bone in the human body 74 Thrown with force 80 Eats (at) 82 Lewd look 87 Month after Av DOWN 88 Chemo target 1 Harry or Bess in the White House 90 City that, despite its name, is smaller 2 What many Oscar speeches do than Little Rock 3 Ape 91 Sole 4 Home star of Cthulhu, in fantasy tales 93 Prattle 5 1975 TV debut, briefly 95 Like hand-me-downs 6 Like a more-than-full spoonful 96 19,101-foot volcano next to Peru’s 7 Barrels ____ second-largest city 8 Grim sort? 97 Like Joan of Arc 9 “____ Little Tenderness” 99 Gone bad, in Britain 10 Bus. card abbr. 101 “Liliom” playwright Ferenc ____ 11 Boxer’s reward 104 Bets 12 Old German ruler nicknamed “the 105 Something that stuns Short” 106 Marketplace of old 13 Facefuls in slapstick 107 Common strip- steak weight: Abbr. 14 Publish anew 109 “____ saw a little bird …” (Mother 15 Suffix with schnozz Goose rhyme) 16 Slithy ones 111 ____ Rica 17 The Marx Brothers spent a night at 112 Plains dwelling: Var. one 116 The year 1601 18 V-shaped fortification 117 Sherlock Holmes accessory 20 Skin diving locale 119 Like dungeons 27 Fix, as a pool cue 121 Tokyo, once 30 Carbon compound 123 ____-Tiki 34 Something to brush off a jacket 124 D.C. player
1
2
3
4
5
19
20
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
21
23
24
26
27
32
33
38 45
29
34
60
46
47 54
61
30
35 40
53
42
48
49
55
56
37
50
51
57 64
69
71
72
73
75
76
77
78
84
82 85
89
90
92
98 105
106
108
114 120
99
107 115 121
126
127
129
130
87
93
94
100
101
109
110
116 122
74
83
86
91
59
65
68
81
52
58
70
80
88
95
96
102
103
111
112
117 123
97
118 124
113 119
125 128 131
PREVIOUS PUZZLE ANSWERS A M E R P A P I B R I T C U A B B A R E A L E F T P E T C A L L M S L E D R A B C F L A T T O P R C R Y I M P A P E A L A G E N R E X T E R A S P
18
43
63
67
79
17
31
36
41
62
66
16
25 28
39 44
15
22
I C A S T S O I S H E N T N U C E A S N U M B E O B O L S R A T E I N E B S A Y H O R E A N T I H E A D S A N K C D E R A P S A L R C O P Y E O N S E S O R N T N O S G I
A N G L E R
D E L L S
T H A T H U C R I T T S E I E C G A O N S T S L I D
I E U T O N I S H S A G S N A E T D S R U S T I N R C K L I I C O T S B O A T E W I Y G E W A R S I L E T L L D O L I N I C F E S A S D
M A U I S O C K S S T E N O
S U R E L Y B O Y S A S S T
A A R L I E A
A S H A T U A L M I N G T O A M A I L A N Y D S O T I C R I C E E K E N A C T S D O R A A W A Y T I S F I L M I P S E R P M I N G E N E E R G O D
104
V27|NO52
THE EIGHT
BOX TOPS No surprise that the latest Star Wars installment stays in the top spot over the holiday weekend. RANK TITLES
WEEKEND GROSS TOTAL GROSS WEEK # LAST WEEK
1
ROGUE ONE
$64,377,000
$286,375,674
2
1
2
SING
$35,290,000
$55,902,640
1
-
3
PASSENGERS
$14,850,000
$22,175,201
1
-
4
WHY HIM?
$11,050,000
$11,050,000
1
-
5
ASSASSIN’S CREED
$10,280,000
$17,772,398
1
-
In Theaters December 30
DRAMA “Fences,” rated PG-13, starring Denzel
DRAMA “Hidden Figures,” rated PG, starring Taraji P.
DRAMA “Live by Night,” rated R, starring Ben Affleck,
Washington, Viola Davis. This movie is based on the 1983 August Wilson play of the same name. Just as they did on Broadway in 2010, Washington and Davis star in this 1950s-set story of a former baseball great who works as a garbage man to support his family. Word has it that this heartbreaking tale contains some of the strongest performances of both Washington’s and Davis’ careers… and that’s saying something.
Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monae, Kevin Costner, Kirsten Dunst, Jim Parsons. Based on the true story of three African-American female mathematicians who helped the U.S. put a man in in space before the Russians in the 1960s. Dorothy Vaughn, Mary Jackson and Katherine Johnson were pioneers, and it’s about time someone told their story.
Scott Eastwood, Zoe Saldana, Elle Fanning. Say what you want about Ben Affleck as an actor but, in the director’s chair, he’s usually pretty solid. “Gone Baby Gone,” “The Town” and “Argo” all got great reviews (and awards), and now he’s back to star in and direct this Prohibition era-set story of organized crime in Boston based on a Dennis Lehane novel. We’ll give it a shot, based on past performance alone.
34 METROSPIRIT AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
29DECEMBER2016
V27|NO52
Celebrating 50 Golden Years on Inspiration Just as I am sIttInG down to transfer this week’s column into pixels, the bulletin hit my laptop like a blaster hitting a womp rat: “Carrie Fisher... Dead at 60.” Just damn. It may be time for me to find that life-sized cutout of Princess Leia in her slave girl outfit I have stashed in the closet and give it a proper place of honor in my media room. If we think that 2016 has been some “cursed year” for the icons of our youth, we just need to check the ages of some of these folks who have left us and understand the ticking clock pulls no punches. Yes, some people are living to 90 these days, and that is all well and good, but the excesses of celebrity life do tend to take a toll. When you combine that with the fact that “modern pop culture” as we tend to know it was really born with the careers of Elvis and The Beatles, the “time” for so many of our heroes and idols is at hand. Chances are if you had an entertainment career that peaked during the heyday of the baby-boomer generation, in 2016 you are well north of 60, and living in a body that saw more substance and lifestyle abuse than you can remember. In other words, folks, these “sad Hollywood bulletins” are just getting warmed up. Time, and its toll, waits for no one. If you have remained a fan of your youthful obsessions, as I admit I most certainly have, these deaths really have a way of slowing you down a bit. Just as it was devastating for so many when Elvis and John Lennon died, especially because their passing came so young and by such horrific means. More than anything else those deaths reminded us how fragile life could be, and that selfish and excessive behavior, either self inflicted or brought by another, can end any life at any time. This is no recent phenomenon; John Belushi, Marilyn Monroe and just this year Prince, all gone in a heartbeat, all leaving us at what should have been great times in their respective lives. For several generations of American youth hooked on music, television and movies, our devotion was honest and, quite frankly, predictable. When our icons died, of course it affected us, even if we were not part of their family, they were most certainly part of ours. If you were to ask my parents, they might tell you that young Austin took the “pop culture” contributions of some of those entertainment folks a little too seriously. And they would be probably be right. But it wasn’t my fault. Three of my main objects of affection/obsession came to life in 1966, when I was just a year old. While Mom and Dad did not make a habit of propping me up in front of a TV for hours on end, they did see to it that I was with my Aunt Kay and cousins Dean and Christi as often as possible. I blame them. They were the ones who insisted that the TV be on when the Starship Enterprise was battling the Klingons. Seven-year-old Dean was always happy to share Batman and Robin with his toddler cousin, and if 12-year-old Aunt Kay was looking after 2-year-old Austin, you better believe she was doing it with a Monkees album playing on the record player in her room. I knew the words to “I’m a Believer” long before I knew the words to “Happy Birthday.” The “David and Goliath” story came later in life than Captain Kirk versus the Gorn, and years before I learned of the “Axis” America fought in World War 2, I knew that Batman had his hands full with the Joker, the Penguin and the Riddler. I also figured out that Catwoman was the laundry lady all four Monkees fell in love with, one of whom may have been 36 METROSPIRIT AUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
the father of the baby Dr. McCoy delivered when she lived on the planet Capella. In addition, I discovered that Mr. Spock’s wife was also a lady vampire in love with Davy Jones, and that Batgirl out of her costume was actually a crazy, green, Orion animal woman with the hots for Captain Kirk. All brought to you in glorious living color on ABC and NBC. While Kay and the cousins moved on to other things, as kids that age tend to do, I stuck with what I knew, and what I loved. About the time I was able to navigate a TV and a record player on my own, Star Trek and Batman were in heavy rotation in afternoon reruns, and all those Monkees albums we once listened to together had been handed down for me to keep, and play whenever I wanted. Even now. 1966 was also the year the most important movie theater of my formative years was born, National Hills Theater. If there was a bigger thrill than seeing the Batman TV cast assembled for their movie on the big screen at National Hills, I didn’t know what it was. Until of course another movie based on one of my favorite TV shows popped up on that screen in 1971, “The House of Dark Shadows.” I saw that one with the Cooper boys from across the street, scared the Hell out of all of us! It was pure awesome from beginning to end, and also based on a series that was born in 1966. That theater became one of the most important destinations of my young life. It was the first business my parents allowed me to walk to from the house, alone. I saw hundreds of movies there over the years, many pictures for multiple sittings. I remember one Saturday hitting “Silver Streak” at the first showing and watching it four times. It wasn’t unheard of; it was 1976. When the theater closed in 1996, I made it a point to attend the last showing of the last movie that played at National Hills. “Cutthroat Island” was no “Batman,” but there was no way I was not going to be there to say goodbye and thanks for the amazing memories. Hard to believe that was 20 years ago. Imagine my surprise recently when the former manager of the theater, Mike Rogers, reached out with some amazing news. He was able to salvage a few pieces of the building when it was demolished, including one of the doors that lead from the lobby into the main theater. He knew my connection with the place, and he offered it as a memento. That door now serves as the centerpiece table in my media room and, as you can see in the picture, it is home to every single episode of “Batman,” “Star Trek” and “The Monkees.” All those seasons restored in high definition, looking as brilliant and bright as the men and women who created the shows in their youthful productivity 50 years ago. Somewhere in each of those 258 episodes were messages that no amount of conventional classroom time could deliver. If Kirk and Spock trusted and depended on Lt. Uhura, and they
most certainly did, who was any man on this Earth to doubt the value of a human, based on their race or gender? If four odd looking teenagers could combine their voices and talents in such an amazing and entertaining way, what might the rest of us accomplish if we find the right team and work together? And if we use our resources and strength to fight evil and criminal behavior wherever it exists, how can the righteous not eventually prevail? In 2016 I celebrated 50 wonderful years with the amazing material that helped inspire my love of music, fantasy and adventure. All of my earliest memories involve these amazing and fun characters embracing teamwork, diversity and the lesson that it may take a half hour, a full hour or even a cliffhanger and a two-hour episode to deliver. What an amazing treasure it was to enjoy! So when our pop culture icons pass away, of course it affects us. They were our refuge and our distraction, they were the colorful and talented people we wanted to grow up to be. They were our heroes, but, more than that, they have been, and always shall be, our friends.
austIn RHodEs
A long-time radio talk show host who can be heard weekdays on WGAC from 3-6 p.m. The views expressed are the opinions of Austin Rhodes and do not necessarily represent the views of the publisher.
29DECEMBER2016