Enough with the sniffiling (probably misspelled)

On Saturday, I watched the movie Marly and Me with one of my friends from college.
Yes, there were some production problems with the film that only a Radio-TV-Film major would notice, but all in all it was a good film. There was laughter and tears, confussion and sniffiling.
Ok, let's set a simple ground rule: when you are watching a movie in the theater and know that it will make you cry — you cry quitely.
There are many reasons for this rule, most importantly so others can hear what is being said in the film. Also, and this one is more asthetic than anything, it is much more dramatic to look over and see a single tear run down someones face. With this said, I did cry in the movie — I am not a totally unemotional person.
I would just like to a watch a movie in the winter-time and not have to be constantly reminded that it is a sad movie or that I could get a cold at any moment.
Angela Weatherford is the Associate Editor at the Athens Review

Holidays + sports = happy husband

As men get older, they care less about Christmas gifts (I'm getting there, I promise ...).
We love to give Barbie dolls and video game systems and perfume and all that stuff.
All we want is sports. Give us our sports!!!
You know you've had the discussion ... you want to watch the parades on TV. We want to watch both bowl games (and the pre-game shows), the NFL game, the NBA game, billards, rodeo, poker and, to wrap it all up, the Hot Dog Eating Championships. And as we fall asleep from time to time as these events are on the TV, please don't turn them. Yes, we are, in fact, listening to them in our sleep.
Is that too much to ask? We don't see it as dominating the TV. We see it as personal enrichment.
So when the husband grabs the remote, just smile and nod. Smile and nod. :)
-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

Step behind the car sir...

These are words I thought I would never hear when being pulled over by a highway patrol. But tonight I did. My family and I headed out Friday to visit some family members for a holiday get together, and on our way back home we were pulled over by a highway patrol. The officer was sitting on our side of the road, with his lights off of course. As we passed him he threw on his lights. I looked at my husband and said,"you weren't speeding were you" and he said,"no that's why I'm wandering why the heck he is pulling us over." So my husband proceeded to pull over to the shoulder. The young man walks up with his flashlight in our face and says, "good evening sir I pulled you over for two reasons, 1. you have a headlight out (which we didn't realize) and 2. your lights on your license plate are burnt out." I thought to myself doesn't this guy have more important things to do than pulling us over for a head light, I mean come on shouldn't you be solving a crime or saving the world. Now I know they are doing what they are suppose to be doing and I applaud and appreciate them for everything they do, because I would not have their jobs for anything. OK so back to the story...so after the officer asks my husband for his insurance and license he said,"sir could you step out of the truck and go to the back." So of course my husband does what he asks but at this point I am thinking Oh my goodness what it he doing? Then the officer proceeds to lean inside the truck and reach in in my direction. Again I am thinking what is this officer doing? Then I notice he is reaching for a new knife that my husband had just received at the Christmas party we went to. It was a big knife I do have to agree! So he proceeds to take the knife out of the holster it was in and he says a few things to my husband that I did not quite hear and then he said,"yes I believe you are OK sir, the knife is only 5 inches." I don't know if it's just me but I had no idea having a large knife was illegal. I know that may sound goofy and I probably should not admit that, but I really didn't realize that. Finally after about 10 minutes we were back on our way home and thank goodness with no more cops bothering us.

I guess I told you this whole story to say....I could only imagine what these men and women see. What they go through in a days work. I mean here we are a nice truck with two kids, me, and my husband. Nicely dressed, very polite, seat belts on (well after we saw the cop that is) and this cop was nervous about a knife in the cup holder. I mean I guess you can never tell with people now a days. Felons come in all shapes and sizes. Please keep our officers in your prayers this holiday season, it is because of them we have safe streets!

--Andi Green, advertising director, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Lady Hornets win

Athens just defeated Chapel Hill, 75-48

The Lady Hornets will play Saturday, should be in the championship game (not sure I can say that for certain just yet). If so, that game is at 6 p.m. They are 3-0 in pool play. Longview is also undefeated but won't be playing because its football team is playing for a state championship tomorrow.

Remember to check out our coverage of the tournament and the Lady Hornets in our weekend newspaper (out Saturday morning) and on the Web at www.athensreview.com.

Thanks for reading!

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Lady Hornets lead heading into fourth quarter

58-33 Athens over CH heading into 4Q

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Athens leads Chapel Hill in 3Q

The Lady Hornets are ahead in the third quarter, 54-28.

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Putting a smile on her own face

Got a chuckle right near the end of the first half. Everyone knows post players aren't the best ball handlers, right? Chapel Hill's Abril Kelley took a pass in the last two minutes or so around the three-point line. Three huge steps later -- without a dribble, mind you -- she got called for a travel.
Abril was laughing out loud at herself before the ref had stopped blowing the whistle.
Isn't it nice to see athletes who don't take themselves too seriously?

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Athens leads Chapel Hill at halftime

Lady Hornets lead at the half, 41-22 over Chapel Hill.
Alex Furr has 19 points at the half and Bailey Starkes is dominating in the paint with 12 points. Jasmine Blakemore may only have four points, but those points don't tell the story of her hustle so far. If she's not rebounding, you may find her on the floor fighting for a loose ball.

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Athens, Chapel Hill under way

Lady Hornets lead after first quarter, 24-11. Alex Furr is off to a blazing start with 16 points. Bailey Starkes and Jasmine Blakemore are playing well on the block, and the defense has forced Chapel Hill into 12 turnovers.

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: State-ranked Longview pulls away

Well, the David vs. Goliath thing Kaufman's girls were trying to pull off at the Art Farber Memorial Classic at TVCC today didn't quite make it.
After both teams battled for the first three quarters, Longview's defense and acute shooting and rebounding ... heck, everything just started working for them. The result was a Lady Lobos 48-35 win over Kaufman.

Athens plays Chapel Hill next. Keep following the bouncing blog ...

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Heck of a game between Kaufman, Longview

Kaufman and Longview are slugging it out during a pool play game here at the Art Farber Memorial Classic at TVCC. Longview nailed a trio of three-pointers late in the third quarter to take a 36-35 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Athens girls teams have had some good ones

Watching the Athens girls basketball warm-up during halftime of the Kaufman-Longview game got me to thinking about the top Athens girls players that have come along over the last 10 years.
There were some very, very, very lean years, but if I remember correctly, they started getting a lot better under Theresa Tindel.
I know I'm going to forget quite a few girls, but it seems like Athens has had one girl come along as a freshman and become one of the school's best players. When I first began covering, that girl was D'wayna Freeman. Then as her time was running out at Athens, along came RaTonya Hunter. Now it's Alex Furr.
Must be something in the water.

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Tournament scores so far

From Thursday:
Kaufman 49, Palestine 34
Kilgore 39, Chapel Hill 37
Athens 68, LaPoynor 55

From Friday:
Robert E. Lee 53, Palestine 34
Athens 62, Kilgore 34
HALF Kaufman 20, Longview 18
Athens vs. Chapel Hill (4:30)
Kilgore vs. LaPoynor (6 p.m.)
Robert E. Lee vs. Longview (7:30 p.m.)

Saturday's schedule
Longview vs. Palestine (9 a.m.)
Kaufman vs. Robert E. Lee (10:30 a.m.)
Chapel Hill vs. LaPoynor (noon)

Consolation finals (3 p.m.)
Third-place game (4:30 p.m.)
Championship (6 p.m.)

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Kaufman leads Longview at half

Class 3A Kaufman is trying to take down somewhat of a giant in Longview, one of the larger 4A schools in the state, with a state ranking, to boot.
Kaufman leads at the half at the Art Farber Memorial Classic at TVCC, 20-18.

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Longview vs. Kaufman, Farber Memorial Classic

End first quarter, Longview 9, Kaufman 8 at the Art Farber Memorial Classic at Trinity Valley Community College.
Longview, you may know, is a state-ranked team in Class 4A.

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Athens 62, Kilgore 32

From the Art Farber Memorial Classic
TVCC, Athens

Alex Furr scored 22 points as the Lady Hornets defeated Kilgore, 62-32, in the second day of pool play at the Art Farber Memorial Classic. Athens is 2-0 in pool play and 9-4 on the season.
Kilgore fell to 6-10 overall. The Lady Bulldogs were led in scoring by Raven Wiley, who had 18 points -- including 14 in the second half.
Athens led 15-14 after the first quarter but pulled ahead in the second by outscoring the Lady Bulldogs, 18-4.
Ten Athens players scored at least two points each. With a wide lead in the second half, Athens head coach Keith Durrett was able to rest his starters.
Athens led at the half, 33-18.

Athens plays again at 4:30 against the Chapel Hill Lady Bulldogs.

I'm trying to run down other tournament scores. Stay tuned ...

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Athens beats Kilgore, 2-0 in pool play

The Lady Hornets just closed out a win over Kilgore in the Art Farber Memorial Classic, 62-32.
I'll post some info from the game in a few minutes.
Athens, now 2-0 in pool play, will face Chapel Hill at 4:30 in their final pool play game.


-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Lady Hornets ahead after three

Game has slowed down a bit, but that's probably got something to do with the score: 47-24.
Athens has held Kilgore to 10 points over the middle two quarters. So much for slow starts.

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Lady Hornets lead Kilgore at Farber Memorial Classic

I take it back. Just heard Coach Durrett encourage a layup. There goes the 15-foot shot theory.

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS BLOG: Being Keith Durrett

Lady Hornets head coach Keith Durrett must be good at math. At least he must like numbers. As I watch his girls warm up for the second half, I'm pondering what in the world he's talking about as he yells a series of numbers to his players during the course of the game.
I've heard "0" and "100." I think I heard a "77" in there somewhere. Obviously he's calling strategy from the sideline. I know this: Kilgore got lots of "100" in the first half, and they would probably like to hear another number in the second half.

By the way, just looked at the numbers. Athens outscored Kilgore 18-4 in the second quarter. Alex Furr leads all scorers with 14 points at the half, and Kemia Jordan has eight. They make a great 1-2 punch from beyond the three-point arc. I think Durrett's got a rule that you can't take a jumper under 15 feet or something.

If you're following now, I'll be blogging throughout this game and again beginning around 4:30 for the Lady Hornets' third pool play game against Chapel Hill. That will be their final pool play game. Consolation title game is at 3 tomorrow, following by the third-place game at 4:30 and the championship game at 6.

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS: Athens girls hoops vs. Kilgore

At halftime of the Art Farber Memorial Classic, Athens is leading Kilgore, 33-18. Athens increased their one-point lead after the first quarter to 15.
Athens and Kilgore traded leads at the end of the first quarter, but the Lady Hornets turned it up a notch in the second quarter. Very similar to last night's win over LaPoynor in that respect. Kemia Jordan scored eight straight for the Lady Hornets earlier in the quarter. At one point, Kemia and Alex Furr took turns firing away from three-point range.

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS: Lady Hornets vs. Kilgore, Art Farber Memorial Classic hoops

Second quarter, and the Lady Hornets' full-court press is suffocating Kilgore right now. Kind of reminds you of TVCC women's head coach Michael Landers' style. After all, they're on the Lady Cards' court.
With 4:39 left in the first half, Lady Hornets lead, 27-15.
-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

LIVE SPORTS: Athens girls hoops vs. Kilgore

Lady Hornets' game vs. Kilgore is underway at Men's Gym at TVCC. Athens leads, 15-14, after the first quarter. Lots of Kilgore turnovers, but lots of Kilgore rebounds so far. Still, Lady Hornets have the edge. Oh, and once again, the Lady Hornets are running a track meet.
This is the second day of pool play at the Art Farber Memorial Classic ...

-- Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

Santa letters rock!

Just got done proofing a couple of pages of Santa letters submitted by our local and area kids. I'm a big softie and always get teary over these letters, which can be hilarious and heartbreaking at the same time.
My Top 5 so far:
1. From those who like to ask about Santa as much as they like to ask for things from him: "How are the reindeers? How is Mrs. Claus doing? Do you like cats Santa? ..."
2. "I have been a bad boy this year. I am sorry Santa." At least he's telling the truth ...
3. This one starts off as abrupt as it gets: "Santa am I on the good list or not?"
4. And this one, from a child who wants to make sure he and his brother are taken care of: "I want 100006 $ dollors. And for my little brother, a monster truck." And you thought your kids fought about one or the other getting a cooler gift.
5. Last, but not least, there's always a bundle from kids with amazingly kind hearts. This one appeared to be from a third-grader: "You are the best in the world next to God. I love you because you never let kids down. You bring presents if they are good and coal if they are bad. Thank you for never letting me down."
I may be wrong, but I'm pretty darn sure that little girl won't be getting coal.

The special section in which Santa letters will be printed, by the way, will be published Sunday.

— Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

Another tree

Another tree ... reader in Tool ... says it's a fake tree, that she went fake because her daughter guilted her about the cost of buying a new tree each year.

— Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

My mistake ...

It was just brought to my attention that I should have disclosed that the Kemp blog reader who sent a picture of her tree has a fake tree. We're still debating real vs. fake, you know.
For the record, I don't think fake trees are ugly. I think the biggest thing for me is just the smell of a real tree. This morning, I went to check our back door and caught a whiff of our tree. I immediately broke out into song.
Not really. But the tree did smell rockin'.
— Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

The greatness of a classic

I'm going to jump off the Christmas train for a moment.
My favorite movie of all time is Bringing Up Baby with Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn. It was billed in 1938 as a "screwball comedy," and it lives up to the label. It is hysterical from start to finish. This clip is one of many that can be chosen from, it is impossible for me to have a favorite scene.
This was released during the Golden Age of Hollywood but was not appreciated at the time. Unfortunately, Katherine Hepburn was not known for her talent but her wardrobe. She chose to wear slacks instead of skirts because that was what she was comfortable in. The public was so outraged she was known as "Box-Office Poison" for much of her career. Hepburn actually had to buy out her own contract because the movie did so poorly.
I believe it is a work of comedic genius that combined the powers of Grant, Hepburn and director Howard Hawks. It is well worth watching.
— Lauren Ricks Staff Writer

UPDATE: Real trees vs. fake

We asked readers of our blog to send in pictures of their Christmas trees, and here's one I received this morning from one of our blog readers in Kemp.

Keep 'em coming, folks. We'll post every tree we receive.

— Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

Christmas movies

At our house, there are movies that we say are "in the rotation." That simply means we have certain movies that we play in the background sometimes when the kids are asleep and we're both doing some kind of work. My wife, a teacher, often slides in "A Few Good Men" and grades papers at night. We've actually talked about buying a second copy just in case something happens to the first one.
Then there's a different class of movies that are in the "Christmas rotation," movies we watch every holiday season without fail that never seem to get old. For my mom and I, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation used to be that movie (and may still be for her). Me, I've graduated to "Elf" with Will Ferrell.
I've heard quite a few people say they either hate Will Ferrell's movies, they hate "Elf" or both. But for me, it doesn't get any better than a knock-down, drag-out fight with a Santa that smells like beef and cheese (movie joke) or the scene where Buddy the Elf (Ferrell's character) doesn't realize that a real-life dwarf isn't, in fact, a real elf (Ferrell's reply after the dwarf drop kicks him into a wall ... "He must be a South Pole elf!").
Stupid? Yeah. Guess I'm just stupid enough to wear that one out, though. What I'm not is a cotton-headed ninnymuggins!
— Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

Some of us have to settle with fake!

Real trees? Us allergy ridden people? Whats a girl to do?

I know I know you are against the fake trees but I will put my tree up against yours any day! I can't wait to get photos from fellow fake tree decorators, so we can put you real tree people to shame! Now come on viewers help me out! For those of you on my side you can e-mail your pictures to agreen@athensreview.com

Let the Battle of the Trees begin!

--Andi Green, Advertising Director, Athens Review

Christmas trees? Gotta keep it real

I'm the last bastion of hope in my family when it comes to Christmas trees. When it comes to our annual Christmas pine, I keep it real.
No fake trees for me. I was raised in a house where a fake tree was frowned upon. Now, sadly, those family members one by one have fallen victim to the ease and convenience of having a plastic pine. For shame.
I didn't get my tree until this past Sunday, and it was a nail-biter. Our local Walmart had just a few left. I had to have one Sunday morning, and the Christmas tree farm wouldn't open until the afternoon.
So I bucked up, channeled my inner Clark Griswold and did what any level-headed man would do: I pondered cutting one down myself. My sister, who was along for the ride in search of the Larson family Christmas tree, put her hands in her head and grinned. Not a funny ha-ha grin, but one that said something like, "Men are stupid, and here's more proof."
Needless to say, I got my tree, fired an ornament cannon and weighed down every branch I could find, and as you see above, now proudly have my tree on display at Larson Manor.
If you're extra proud of your tree -- OK, I'll allow fake trees -- send your pic to editor@athensreview.com and we'll post them on our blog. Don't forget to include your name!
— Jayson Larson, editor, Athens Review

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