Earth to Mayor Shoemaker & Other Pressing Issues

Concerning the Colbert County Animal Shelter, Tuscubmia Mayor Billy Shoemaker said, "it seemed unfair to ask non-pet owners to pay taxes for the animal shelter and believes the vaccine fee could solve the funding woes."

Okay, Mayor Billy, does that mean when I go to buy my car tag I can say, "Hey, I don't have kids. It's not fair for me to have to pay a school tax. So, just take that amount off before I buy my tag?"

I want to get personal and tell you a story about a friend of mine. I'll call her Lydia because I've never met anyone by that name and I don't want to embarrass anyone. Lydia is one of the most honest and sweet people I've ever met.

Lydia likes to shop more than I do, so that's a lot. One day at lunch she left a dress shop and the alarm went off. Here came all sorts of people who looked through her purse and bag. You might say Lydia was just a little embarrassed by this, but the store apologized when they didn't find anything that she had stolen.

The next week, different store, same scenario. This time the store didn't even apologize to Lydia. Needless to say, Lydia didn't want this to happen any more, but she wasn't sure what was making it happen. Enter Lydia's boyfriend.

Jim was a local police officer, so when he heard Lydia's story, he looked in her purse. Lydia was always dieting, so she had started carrying a small calculator to add up the calories she had when she ate out. Jim took the calculator with him and placed it in his shirt pocket. He went to the same dress store Lydia had trouble with the first time and guess what? You're right, he set off the alarm.

So now Lydia knew her calculator would set off certain alarms. What did she do? What would you do? Remember, she was totally innocent of any theft and she had every right to carry a calculator with her.

If you guessed Lydia stopped carrying the calculator in her purse, you'd be right. She never set off any more alarms that I know of. End of story and now you want to know why I bothered to tell you this.

I once wrote a blog here where I discussed a man who had been accused of rape. He was never indicted but several of us writers thought he should have been. Why? Well, one thing was he'd had the law called on him twice before. Once for a violent act in high school and once in college for whatever the woman had accused him of.

Don't you think this young man should have started choosing girl friends more wisely? If I were 20 years old and had already had two girl friends report me to authorities, I'd sure be on my toes to weed out any prospective girlfriends who might just get mad and falsely accuse me. Note to all young men: When normal women get mad at you they call you a ****head but don't call the police and make up some lie about you.

So to my constant critic who keeps popping up here and there saying how terrible I am to think his friend should have gone through the court system, just remember Lydia. Don't you think your buddy should have been as smart as her?

Bailey

"Chief Tuscumbia Greets the Dickson Family"

Photos by Jimmy Emerson

No, the title of today's blog isn't the name of a new Disney comedy; it's the title of an acclaimed work of art by Jack McMillen, a mural covering the surface of one wall of the former lobby of a vacant US Post Office. Standing at the corner of Sixth and Dickson Streets in Tuscumbia, Alabama, the 1930s era post office in the small Colbert County town closed in 2004. At that time, a coalition of businessmen was rumored to be bidding on the structure with the intent of converting it to a Trail of Tears Museum; however, local businessman Harvey Robbins purchased the building the next year for $129,000.00. Now, Robbins is willing to sell the still vacant building to the city for the same amount, allowing Tuscumbia to place any extra funding toward the estimated $100,000.00 in renovations needed to bring the structure up to code.

No public mention has been made of the fate of the building's New Deal mural adorning the original lobby; however, while the artwork is widely assumed to have been produced by the Works Progress Administration, the post office mural was actually funded by the Treasury Department's Section of Painting and Sculpture established in 1934. The United States Postal Service officially owns these one thousand plus murals; however, according to the TimesDaily, the Smithsonian Institution and the Alabama Historical Society now control this particular work (a fact we were unable to verity). In June of this year, Mayor Billy Shoemaker stated he hoped the mural completed in 1939 could be encapsulated in some manner while the restoration is completed.

The historic mural spans the length of one wall and depicts the arrival of Michael Dickson, Tuscumbia's first white settler. The artwork features Dickson and his family arriving by flatboat via Spring Creek where they are met by Chief Tuscumbia. Much New Deal art is no longer extant. It should be the priority of every Shoals citizen to ensure Jack McMillen's work doesn't fall to the jackhammer in the name of progress.


Shoalanda

Exclusive with Tuscumbia's Carol Burns

Note: Our series on Shoals area forums will continue tomorrow.

Earlier this week Tuscumbia Mayor Billy S. Shoemaker dismissed City Clerk Carol Burns, ostensibly due to misconduct. I spoke with Mrs. Burns today, finding her an articulate and charming lady. Obviously due to legal constraints, Mrs. Burns isn't able to comment on these charges directly, but she did relate her feelings on the current situation in Tuscumbia.

Mrs. Burns served in the Tuscumbia Police Department for sixteen years and hoped to retire there. As a major in the department, she was state president of D.A.R.E. and immensely enjoyed her work with the community. Mrs. Burns commented that making Tuscumbia safe was always her top priority.

While making plans for the future, life often gets in the way, and the retirement of former clerk Flora Hanback offered Mrs. Burns an opportunity she couldn't ignore. Despite her desire to serve in the police department, she realized the clerk's office provided safety and security that was lacking in law enforcement. The position had not been open for 34 years, and Mrs. Burns considered it a "once in a lifetime opportunity" and accepted the lateral transfer.

Asked about the charges and her reaction to them, Mrs. Burns wants the community to know that she did nothing wrong and she hopes the upcoming investigation will prove that. Throughout our interview, Mrs. Burns made her faith in God and His providence clear, and I wish her well in her future endeavors.

I will note here that Carol and her husband Wayne own and run the Thunderhill Race Track in Summertown, Tennessee. Carol wanted me to invite the public to its annual Christmas race in December. Admission is one item of non-perishable food and a gift for a child under the age of 14. Local ministries help the Burnses distribute these items to needy families in Tennessee, Alabama, and Mississippi. Last year the Christmas race enabled them to help 135 families. For more information, you may call 931-964-2120.

Thank you, Mrs. Burns, for what you do for our community. I wish you well in your future efforts.


What's up with this: It seems the town of Killen is now providing scoops to the local papers concerning its council members--As the Sewage Turns?