July
2007 News
July 31 pm Happy 8th birthday wishes
to Abigail McKinney.
July 31 pm Happy 30th Birthday
wishes to Roger McKinney
July 31 pm From the email bag:
Hello! My father's birthday is tomorrow August 1st and I was wondering
if you could let everyone know! His name is Dave Hill and he
will be 40 years old tomorrow, he lives in Two Run and his family would
love to wish him a very very happy birthday! Wife Melissa,
Children: Brandie, Danielle, Cory, Gary And granddaughter Gracey
Paige!
July 31 pm Never under estimate the
power and determination of a band of volunteers. From the email bag:
As the 2007 Football Season gets underway The Clay County Panthers Intermediate
Football (Midget League) is proud to have 94 football players and 40 cheerleaders
participating this year. We are equally proud to have another great coaching
staff to come out this year and volunteer there time to these young athletes.
We hope to have wonderful season....... GO PANTHERS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
July 31 pm Power is off for about
a quarter of the county. Allegheny Power sent out notices that they would
be doing maintenance at the Widen substation today from 9 until 2pm.
Customers affected: Strange Creek, Cora Brown Hill, Sugar Tree Hill, Wilson
Ridge ( hello jimmy miller), Runnion Ridge, Widen, Majestic, Peach Orchard,
Dog Run, Ugly Run, Harrison, Swandale, Groves Creek, Paddy's Ridge, Sand
Fork, Triplett Ridge. Questions? Dial 1 800 255-3443
July 31 pm While you're sitting there
at your desk goofing off, here's something pretty cool. Up to the minute
stats and info on the
World Clock.
July 31 pm In the last Communicator
was note on John Habjan Jr unwilling to pee test as required by his probation
terms. You don't have to whiz but if you don't, to jail you will go. He
did.
July 31 pm Mr Habjan was back before
Judge Alsop this morning. He said that they tested him in jail against
his wishes. That test came up positive for one hard drug and pot. Knowing
full well the pot was still in his system, Habjan refused again to submit
to testing. Back to jail he went.
July 31 pm It's a shame that
a soft drug like pot remains detectable for several weeks while super addictive
stuff like meth, cocaine, oxy leave the system in just a few days.
July 31 pm No matter what, court orders
are just that. Habjan violated the terms of his probation and Judges don't
like that.
July 31 pm Local Badges are after pot
growers this week. Although a little early to get those nice tall juice
laden buds, helicopters and Badges in four wheel drives are all over the
place looking for the state's number one cash crop. Sheriff Holcomb said
they have been pretty succesful this year with some 10 footers already
confiscated.
July 31 pm Deadline for this Friday's
Communicator is Wednesday night late. Get your notices and events emailed
over ASAP. Thanks.
July 30 pm Oooops
Had a guy stop today and asked about the opening of the new Welcome Center
at Two Run. He said this site reported the opening as being in Oct.
Incorrecto... Should happen in the first couple weeks of August.
July 30 pm Most in the
county have utilities restored and Clayberry is once again quiet. Most
businesses are waiting for the new burst in the economy. Translation: Monthly
Govt checks are coming Tuesday. The Town will be alive once again.
July 30 pm If you read the last
edition of the Communicator, you know John Habjan Jr decided he wasn't
going to pee test as ordered in Circuit Court land. After several nights
in the can, Mr Habjan will be back in Circuit Court Tuesday morning.
July 30 pm Yellow tomatoes are now
setting on porches to ripen.
July 30 pm Terribly quiet in
the County. No new stories circulating about.
July 30 pm You know what that means?
Something is going on.
July 30 pm 24 hours into my week
of bachlorhood: Picked up the Sunday newspaper. Stepped in the dog pee
twice thinking it was a roof leak. Cleaned up the pee on the third pass
and with two wet socks.
July 30 pm Where is that bottle of
Maker's Mark.....
July 30 pm Famous words:
"The concept is interesting and well-formed, but in order to earn better
than a 'C,' the idea must be feasible." -- A Yale University management
professor in response to Fred Smith's paper proposing reliable overnight
delivery service. (Smith went on to found Federal Express Corp
July 30 pm Famous words:
"This 'telephone' has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered
as a means of communication. The device is inherently of no value to us."
-- Western Union internal memo, 1876.
July 30 pm Famous words:
"Computers in the future may weigh no more than 1.5 tons." -- Popular Mechanics,
forecasting the relentless march of science, 1949
July 29 pm From the email bag:
Please wish Kalep Cottrill a Happy 4th Birthday on July 30th. He
is the son of Kevin and Missy Cottrill of Indore and the big bubby of Charlie.
Happy Birthday from all of your family we love you very much
July 29 pm Ole Dubbya is asking for
relaxed
restrictions allowing for more surveillance of private citizens. When
will he learn???
July 29 pm B Cup:
Hillary is hot
and bothered over coverage of her cleavage.
July 29 pm With election
year still months away but campaigns in high gear, altering election machines
is also in t the news. Yelp, it's easy
to change election results.
July 29 pm Little mention this
past week on the blood bath in Iraq. Congres is still sitting on their
thumbs as American soldiers die needlessly.
July 29 pm There have been
3,940 coalition deaths -- 3,646 Americans, two Australians, 163 Britons,
13 Bulgarians, one Czech, seven Danes, two Dutch, two Estonians, one Fijian,
one Hungarian, 33 Italians, one Kazakh, one Korean, three Latvian, 21 Poles,
two Romanians, five Salvadoran, four Slovaks, 11 Spaniards, two Thai and
18 Ukrainians -- in the war in Iraq as of July 27, 2007, according to a
CNN count.
July 29 pm Closer to home....
July 29 pm On Monday down in the Federal
building in Charleston, Donnie Welch plead guilty to four counts of conspiring
with Sam Murphy to blow up Sheriff Holcomb in 2005. So use to covering
up and fibbing, he nearly blew his plea deal. After come side bar huddles
with his attorneys, Welch finally told the truth to the Judge. Full coverage
in the next Communicator.
July 29 pm With investigating
officer Gonzales dead, charges against Joe Morris were dropped. Health
Bd Chair Morris was charged with battery last year after smacking the glasses
off the Mel Gibson look alike.
July 29 pm Wednesday's Commission
meeting was a keeper. Earl Elliot from the Lizemore Fire Dept was more
than upset over remarks made by Commissioners and Sheriff Holcomb during
an earlier CCC meeting. Elliot asked that the elected folks quit making
nasty remarks and instead start working with residents in the southern
end of the county. Mr Elliot also announced that the LVFD plans call for
buying their own ambulance to serve that end of the county.
July 29 pm Commissioners had raised
eyebrows and voiced hesitancy on the plan. All kinds of issues came
up. Behind the scenes Team Elliot and others know: If they get a shiny
new ambulance and the CCC refuses to sign off on its use, not a one of
them will get re elected. For that matter, the CCC can expect to be lynched!
July 29 pm Wednesday morning, the Magistrate
ordered town barber Larry Herald out of his Main Street Clay location.
court records indicate herald was three months behind in rent and hadn't
paid his heating bill to boot.
July 29 pm Thursday afternoon, $68,000
in loan and grant funds were signed by Pete Johnson and Earl Elliot for
the Lizemores Fire Dept. Look for the brand new truck, difibulater, and
heart monitor to arrive in Sept.
July 29 pm Storms blanketed the
county Thursday and Friday. Trees fell taking power and telephone lines
with em. Many residents went without power thru Saturday. One power company
guy from AEP said: they hoped to have all service restored by Monday evening.
July 29 pm We had our first fatality
at the Ag Fair held Fri and Sat. One hog succumbed to the heat.
July 29 pm Step by step, inch by inch,
those railroad folks keep on growing. Sunday morning signs went up at their
new Welcome Center at Two Run. Look for the place to open sometime in early
October.
July 29 pm And finally, wifey left
again. She's doing some kind of conference thang in Morgantown.
Vacation time again for the ace cub reporter!!!!!!!!!!!!
July 29 pm Now fellows, those
of you that are married , you know what I'm talkin about... There are times
you shouldn't laugh... screw ups that go beyond an "Ooops"..... and
when you get that look. You know the one, the one that means you're out
of action for weeks!
July 29 pm Over the years most of us
have learned the ropes and know how to handle "those" situations.
July 29 pm 9 WORDS WOMEN USE:
1. Fine : This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right
and you need to shut up.
2. Five Minutes : If she is getting
dressed, this means a half an hour. Five minutes is only five minutes if
you have just been given five more minutes to watch the game before helping
around the house.
3. Nothing : This is the calm before
the storm. This means something, and you should be on your toes. Arguments
that begin with nothing usually end in fine.
4. Go Ahead : This is a dare, not
permission. Don't Do It!
5. Loud Sigh : This is actually
a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud
sigh means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her
time standing here and arguing with you about nothing. (Refer back to #3
for the meaning of nothing.)
6. That's Okay : This is one of
the most dangerous statements a women can make to a man. That's okay means
she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will
pay for your mistake.
7. Thanks : A woman is thanking
you, do not question, or Faint. Just say you're welcome.
8 . Whatever : Is a women's way
of saying *@!$ YOU!
9. Don't worry about it, I got
it : Another dangerous statement, meaning this is something that a woman
has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will
later result in a man asking "What's wrong?" For the woman's response refer
to #3.
July 27 pm We have a new notice from
the Humane Assoc on the ADVISORY page
July 27 pm Storms played havoc with
the County late Friday
July 27 pm By 6 pm electric had
blinked its last blink in the Maysel area.
July 27 pm Around 7pm the
old Fas Chek parking lot looked like a lake.
July 27 pm With the power blinking
around 9:30pm, Sheriff Holcomb was heard on the scanner telling dispatch
that the 911 tower was back up running. Most likely on generator
power.
July 27 pm In between the power blinks,
we were able to get this post online.
July 27 pm More rain and thunder boomers
are expected for Saturday.
July 27 pm Some are asking: Will there
be a Summer Jam Saturday night. Answer: Yes. If it's raining hard, the
musicians will do their songs inside the station. If it's just a little
drizzle at 7pm, they'll try it outdoors. Randy Triplett and Weekend Grass
are on stage. Might be worth getting a little wet!
July 27 pm I rear-ended
a car a few days ago. It was a REALLY bad day! The driver
got out of the other car, and, of all things, he was a DWARF!!
He quickly looked up at me and said, "I am NOT happy!" So I
said, "Well then, which one are you?"
July 27 pm Famous Quotes....
July 27 pm "I am enclosing
two tickets to the first night of my new play; bring a friend --
if you have one." -- George Bernard Shaw to Winston Churchill
July 27 pm "Cannot possibly attend
first night, will attend second -- if there is one." -- Winston Churchill,
in response
July 27 pm "I've just learned
about his illness. Let's hope it's nothing trivial." -- Irvin S. Cobb
July 27 pm "He is simply a shiver
looking for a spine to run up." -- Paul Keating
July 27 pm "He has the attention
span of a lightning bolt." -- Robert Redford
July 27 pm "In order to
avoid being called a flirt, she always yielded easily." -- Charles, Count
Talleyrand
July 27 pm "His mother
should have thrown him away and kept the stork." -- Mae West
July 27 pm Delbert Russell Summers,
Sr., 53, of Widen, see OBITUARY page
July 27 pm Look at him
Pound for pound, Clay County's largest Commissioner. Happy 42nd birthday
wishes extended to Peter Triplett.
July 27 pm Last night's storms
rocked thru the county leaving trees toppled and little kids clinging to
their Mommy's. No major outages reported as far as we have heard.
July 27 pm Last winter John Habjan
got himself in big trouble when his gas company was unable to meet the
most basic of gas service needs. Customers complaints, County Commission
intervention, and Court orders brought about change. THe three gas providers
are now operated by Mountaineer Gas Company and Habjan filed for bankruptcy
protection. Dated
July 26th, the WV Public Service Commission has the complete run down
and Habjan's $10,000 fine on their web site now.
July 27 pm On Tuesday Magistrate
Boggs said Yes to evicting town barber Larry Harold for wrongful occupation.
Mr. Harold says he plans to set up his own building elsewhere on Main Street.
July 27 pm Buck Taylor is usually seen
walking up and down the streets of Clay. On Wednesday he ended up arrested
and at the old Courthouse. Buck owns about a gazillion old cars all parked
on his property near Fola. Brown Shirts issued a ticket for wrecked cars
on his land but when he was told to sign the ticket, Buck said Nope. Getting
a little agitated, Simms and Top Badge Holcomb brought him in for obstructing
an officer.
July 27 pm Faced with a year's jail
time and big fines, Mr Taylor said he thought he would just let the fine
citizens of the county pay for for his room and board for a year.
July 27 pm Interestingly enough....
the ticket mentions junked cars while the hand written criminal complaint
references trash, litter weighing less than 500 pounds and a 32 hour pick
up time limit. Hmmmmmmmmm
July 27 pm Famous Quotes:
July 27 pm From Winston
Churchill: He has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire.
July 27 pm "I've had a perfectly
wonderful evening. But this wasn't it." Groucho Marx
July 27 pm "I didn't attend the
funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying I approved of it." -- Mark Twain
July 27 pm "He has no enemies,
but is intensely disliked by his friends." Oscar Wilde
July 27 pm The new supermarket
near my house has an automatic water mister to keep produce fresh.
Just before it goes on, you hear the sound of thunder and the smell of
fresh rain. When you approach the milk cases, you hear cows mooing and
witness the scent of fresh hay. When you approach the egg case, you hear
hens cluck and cackle and the air is filled with the pleasing aroma of
bacon and eggs frying. The canned veggie department features the sound
of a gentle breeze and the smell of fresh buttered corn. I don't
buy toilet paper there any more.
July 26 8:43 pm It's raining,
thundering and lightning to beat all H. I'm heading for higher ground.
No update until Friday sometime!!!!
July 25 pm TV-3 launched a blog
from their web site on the death of Cpl Gonzales last week. Blog comments,
many supposedly from Green Shirts themselves, are quite revealing. To have
a look see your self, go to the TV-3 site
and then click the link. top, center.
July 25 pm If blog comments make any
difference, looks like heads will roll.
July 25 pm In the case
of Jeff Boggs vs the Big Otter Fire Dept., Jeff Boggs is the victor. Judge
Johnson's decision arrived at the Circuit Clerk's office late on Monday.
July 25 pm When does a deed not count?
When it's ambiguous. From the Court papers: The Court concludes as a matter
of law that in determining boundaries resort is first to be made to
natural landmarks, next artificial monuments, then to adjacent boundaries
and last to course and distances.
July 25 pm The parties were arguing
over a pie shaped piece of land on the western side of the property, nearer
to the Interstate. Although the deed called for a 150 foot road frontage,
the Judge said the intent was to go just 120 feet to a ditch line.
July 25 pm each side has to cough up
$350 and pay County Surveyor Marshall Robinson to find the old ditch (culvert),
and drive stakes to show the exact western border.
July 25 pm Case closed.
July 25 pm The old green dump
truck sold for $300 and the trailer went for $800 during Wednesday' auction.
July 25 pm Full details on today's
County Commission meeting coming mid day Thurs.
July 25 pm
July 24 pm People email over
events postings classifieds and such all the time. We take em at face value
and post. We had the wrong dates for Widen Day over on
the EVENTS page. The correct dates are now listed.
July 24 pm We try to tell a story but
as citizen journalists... sometimes we fall short. The Charleston Gazette
write up on Donnie Welch is well done. The complete article is now on our
ADVISORY page.
July 24 pm Joe Morris slapped the glasses
off that ace cub reporter's head last fall. Charged with battery and out
on bond, Morris was to have gone to court today. Didn't happen. The investigating
officer was Cpl Gonzales who was buried Saturday. With the Green
Shirt gone, the whole deal has to start over again.
July 24 pm So... Did Dave
Pierson take possession of Telford's Chevy/ Answer: No, at least not yet.
It was suppose to happen July 7th.
July 24 pm From US Bankruptcy
records, there is a problem. GM is not willing to turn over the franchise
to Mr. Pierson with Ric Tanner as the head honcho. From the court documents,
several things come into play including: Mr Pierson is a proposed
investor in the dealership and is NOT proposed to become the dealer operator..
As GM understands it, Mr Richard Tanner is suppose to become the Dealer
Operator. ... neither Pierson nor Richard Tanner have provided evidence
that they meet GM's standard requirements for approval...Before any closing
occurs on the sale of a dealership, GM must approve the proposed dealer
operator... based on the proposed dealers' financial plans, GM sales and
customer satisfaction standards, the proposed dealer's net working capital,
the dealer's facility plans and numerous other requirements to ensure that
the buyer meets GM's standard terms and requirements.....
July 24 pm Neither
Mr Pierson, investor, nor Mr Tanner, proposed dealer operator, have provided
the information and/or application materials required to satisfy GM's requirements
for approval including performance history, net working capital,
and customer satisfaction history among other things.
July 24 pm ..... A dealer
operator must be a competent business person, an effective manager, must
have demonstrated a caring attitude toward customers, and should have a
successful record as a merchandiser of automotive products and services
or otherwise have demonstrated the ability to manage a dealership....
July 24 pm Wednesday's hearing
on the matter has been rescheduled for 8-1-07 to decide the matter of selling
all other assets to Dave Pierson.
July 24 pm We knew
something was up when Sheriff Holcomb's new Chevy Taho SUV was taken to
an out of county dealership for warranty work Saturday. Heck, if
they can't replace an under warranty backup light, how can they replace
an engine?
July 24 pm We'll provide the
latest on the Jeff Boggs vs the Big Otter Fired Dept case in the morning.
For now, it looks like the property line will remain at the culvert near
the box elder tree. Translation: Boggs won, deeds, no matter how their
worded can be changed.
July 23 LATE pm Roy G. Mullins,
Sr., 79, see OBITUARY page
July 23 LATE pm Carl A. “Jimmy"
Metz, 69, see OBITUARY page
July 23 LATE pm If you
want to know what's going on in Clayberry, the latest edition of the Communicator
fits the bill nicely. 24 pages of everything you ever wanted to know about
our 342 square miles and some you didn't need to know.
July 23 LATE pm On
that Somber Super Secret Salary thang.... Maybe we've just touched the
tip of the iceberg. Wonder if others in the top echelon of the school
system have untold "add on salaries". Maybe page two untold additional
salaries have been there all along, Maybe the past Superintendent received
em? You have to wonder about top level school administrators as well.
All the scoop in the latest Communicator
July 23 LATE pm We've also got the
details in this edition on the Grand Jury findings. One guy has 14 counts
of sexual abuse against him. 70 cents and worth every penny.
July 23 LATE pm In Clayberry
, news can "seep". Just getting word on the death of Widen's Delbert Summers.
Emailers are saying that a long standing dispute ended with Mr Summers
being run over by a vehicle . Making sure the fellow was dead, the bad
guys backed over him a second time according to the emailers anyway.
July 23 LATE pm Sheriff Holcomb commented
Monday afternoon that his department did NOT handle the investigation.
He felt the incident must have occurred in Nicholas County with local
Badges there handling the paperwork; and, two men had been arrested.
July 23 LATE pm More as we get it.
May require a trip over to Nicholas County for details.
July 23 LATE pm Donnie Welch went before
Federal Magistrate Stanley Monday afternoon to clear up some fine print
in his indictment. After Ms Stanley, Judge Copenhaver heard his guilty
plea on trying to blow up Sheriff Holcomb 23 months ago.
July 23 LATE pm 23 year old Donnie
Welch is looking at 30 years in prison, pay a $1m fine, prosecution
costs, and court fees. Sentencing come later in the year.
July 23 LATE pm It
could have been worse for Welch for a couple reasons... In the deal, he
plead guilty on just four of the 9 felonies. One of the 9 felonies
tossed had a mandatory 30 year minimum sentence.
July 23 LATE pm It almost did go bad
for Donnie. The plea agreement demands him to speak the truth. During testimony
Monday, Welch decided he didn't remember what was in the bomb box, who
did what, and such. The defense team pulled Welch to the side and said
something along the lines of: Your getting ready to blow the whole deal
if you don't tell the truth.
July 23 LATE pm Finally, after years
of fibbing, Welch told the truth and saved his butt from a worse future.
July 23 LATE pm And Yes
mention was made of others involved in the bomb plot to blast away our
Top Badge and others. Time will tell if other prosecutions come.
July 23 LATE pm Before the next
Communicator we'll try and get the latest court documents and provide to
the public.
July 23 LATE pm County Commission meets
Wednesday morning at 10 am. Public meeting and sure to be a winner. Take
time to see our government in action. nice soft seats too!
July 23 LATE pm How about a deal.
how many of you are looking at this site on a crappy old monitor? Staples
on Corridor G has 19 inch flat screen monitors available for $139.00. Monday
afternoon at 5pm they had ten left on the shelf. If you're considering
a new screen, the ones we bought have a good clean image. In short supply,
you might want to call and secure one via credit card before making the
long trip. and no we don't get a kick back either!
July 23 LATE pm As a note.... We're
updating this site earlier each evening and again the next morning before
10am. If you don't see an update by 11pm nightly, it ain't coming until
the next morning.
July 22 pm The newest latest
fact filled Communicator will be on the news stands Monday afternoon. If
you didn't get the last one with all the school system salaries listed,
you need to. The latest edition builds on those salaries with everything
we know about Larry Gillespie's bonus salary that the public didn't know
anything about. Go Mart at Two Run has a few of the last edition on hand.
July 22 pm From that last seven days.....
July 22 pm The nation made it thru
the administration of President Cheney. Praise be that he didn't hit the
nuke button!
July 22 pm Here at home, the
crime wave continued this week when scum bags stole $200 from the Upper
Cut Styling Salon on Main Street in Clay. With her door locked, Renee Holcomb
walked to one block to the Post Office. That was long enough for thugs
to credit card her front door, find the cash, and leave. Left behind on
the counter top was a cup of rum.
July 22 pm Chester Coleman lives
beside the Sheltered Workshop in Lizemores. He's a pack rat with an eye
for antiques. Between Tuesday and Wednesday morning early, a thief or thieves
stole two antique, cast iron, toy trains from his front porch. Each had
an 8 inch long 4 inch tall engine & hopper plus three cars. One set
was was cleaned up and painted nicely. The other was weathered. Intended
as a gift for his grand children, they ain't no more. Anyone seen the stolen
goods please call the Sheriff.
July 22 pm In town businesses
are taking extra measures to reduce their "exposure". Around the county
people are asking, " What is happening here in Clay?" Monday's Communicator
will explain. In the mean time, lock your doors.
July 22 pm Mid week , word spread
that bomb maker Donnie Welch would plead guilty to trying to blow up Sheriff
Holcomb (Sept 2005). When the Judge accepts his plea on Monday, another
chapter in Clayberry's history will close.
July 22 pm Dewey Owlsey was sentenced
to 15 years followed by a 1 to 5 year sentence for the murder of Thelma
Thomas.
July 22 pm All those in summer Class
of 07 Indictments plead not guilty on Tuesday.
July 22 pm Town Council held a special
meeting July 16th to hire part time temporary office help. After 15 minutes
of secret time, two candidates were ready to be voted on. Council
person Joyce Gibson motioned to hire own her daughter in law. Nepotism?
Something's never change in Clayberry. Fortunately, a second motion, to
hire Jessica Ramsey, was successful.
July 22 pm On Wednesday Green
Shirt Marlo Gonzales put his service pistol to himself and pulled
the trigger. Gonzales had had enough of the back room BS common in the
State Police organization. Years ago, when a Green Shirt spoke out
or fell from administrative grace, he was sent to the Turnpike for duty.
These days, company commanders screw with officers by moving them around
to different locations at a moments notice. It's a rotten way of doing
people. The whole idea is to get the officer to quit. In Gonzales' case,
he pulled the trigger on himself to end it all.
July 22 pm What civil service
protection did for other state workers is needed for the Green Shirts.
Until the officers stand up for themselves and speak out, their organization
and the people they serve will suffer.
July 22 pm In the mean time, a good
man is dead.
July 22 pm Saturday, volunteers rolled
up their shirt sleeves and went to work cleaning and repairing the old
Gulf station at Two Run preparing it to be the Whistlestop Welcome Center
and eatery. Word is, the place will be open in early August.
July 22 pm By week's end, rain
cleaned the air and brought moderate temps to Clay. One guy said it feels
like fall
July 21 am This might be the scariest
day of the year. Much worse than Halloween.
July 21 am Today Dick Cheney
will officially be made President while Dubbya gets the garden hose
treatment.
July 21 am Donnie Welch is charged
with a dozen or so felonies for his part in the Blow Up the Sheriff
effort 23 months ago. We understand Mr Welch will plead guilty Monday afternoon
at 1:15pm in the Federal Building in Charleston.
July 21 am With conspirator
Sam Murphy already locked up and Donnie ready for a long term stay, wonder
if others named in testimony will be charged?
July 21 am Web gremlins ate the
EVENTS page late last night. If you emailed a listing and it's not there,
please resend. Thanks
July 21 am We held up the Communicator
until Monday afternoon. Deadline for submissions is today at 6pm.
July 21 am 'been quieter in Clay
the last three days with no scanner traffic reports of thievery.
July 21 am For those wandering about
the Jeff Boggs vs Big Otter Fire Dept. suit... still no decision from Judge
Johnson as of Friday afternoon.
July 21 am We've got a beautiful
weekend coming our way. Get out and have some fun.
July 20 pm Virgle Mullins,
65, of Wallback, see OBITUARY page
July 20 pm Someone blew up the EVENTS
page this morning. Working to restore ASAP. If you emailed over events
in the last three days or so, please re email. thanks
July 20 pm The wake
for Cpl Marlo Gonzales will be Saturday from 5 to 8pm at Teays Valley Missionary
Baptist Church. The funeral service will be held at the same church, 5pm,
on Sunday.
July 20 am Bobbie D. Triplett,
75, see OBITUARY page
July 19 pm We're holding off the Communicator
until Monday.
July 19 pm Ever happen across
a Green Shirt, Black Shirt, Blue Shirt, Brown Shirt that was a 24 carrot
horses' butt? You know the ones I'm talking about. Clayberry has had their
fair share of stinkers. I was thinking back on Wiles for instance. Remember
him? The guy's face would crack before smiling!
July 19 pm Cpl Marlo Gonzales was not
in that category.
July 19 pm Gonzales was easy
with a smile and took the time to talk, to answer questions. Better yet
he had a sense of fairness and added reason to his arrests, conduct, and
actions.
July 19 pm One time the ace cub
reporter mentioned Gonzales as the arresting officer when Dewey Owlsey
drank a pint of whiskey before taking a polygraph test. In reality
the polygraph operator was the responsible party in that mess up.
July 19 pm A few days after the posting,
Gonzales straightened me out on my reporting.
July 19 pm Green Shirt Gonzales killed
himself yesterday. Don't know the circumstances, never will, and don't
really care to know the reason.
July 19 pm The Charleston Daily
Mail coverage is posted over on the ADVISORY page.
July 19 pm People ask why we
use "Badges" instead of Cops in the paper and this web site. ANSWER: Cops
is a degrading term. Police Officer takes too long to type. Badges
fits the bill nicely without the slur of Cop
July 19 pm Green Shirt Badge Gonzales
was a credit to his profession and sets a high mantle for others
to achieve.
July 19 pm He will be sadly missed.
He was a goood Badge.
July 19 am With a busted right arm
and shoulder, get well wishes extended to Senator Randy White.
July 19 am We're in newspaper mode
until Friday afternoon some time. No new posts unless something dumb happens.
July 19 am A lot of folks are still
fuming over the Frontier internet service being down last weekend. There
are choices clickers.
July 19 am If you're in downtown Clay,
Andy Haynes' wireless service is working now with better speed.
July 19 am For everybody else, there
is the satellite ISP Wild Blue.
One fellow out Wilson Ridge says it's pretty fast and available everywhere.
Price looks to be about the same as Frontier.
July 19 am Our community radio station
brodcasts on 101.7 FM and on the web. Greedy music label execs implemented
higher broadcast royalty rates which went into affect July 15th. The higher
rates will bring an end to small webcasters like WYAP. For four weeks now
the greedy ones have been forced to negotiate with Congressional reps in
DC. It appears
those talks are leading nowhere.
July 19 am Unless something changes
reaaal soon, YAP radio will soon be off the net. How sad!
July 19 am Important Info:
Bears are attacking more humans than normal. 1.We advise the outdoorsman
to wear NOISY LITTLE BELLS on Clothing so as to give advanced warning
to any bears that might be close by so you don't surprise them
2. We advise anyone in the outdoors to carry "Pepper Spray" With
him or her in case of an encounter with a bear. 3. Outdoorsmen and
Outdoorswomen should be on the watch for fresh bear activity and
to be able to tell the difference between black Bear droppings and grizzly
bear droppings 4. Black Bear droppings are smaller than Grizzly
Bear droppings and contains lots of berries and squirrel fur. 5.
Grizzly Bear poop has Noisy Little Bells in it and smells a Lot like
Pepper Spray.
July 18 am Some folks are just plain
dumb. Like,,,, when you're indicted by the Grand Jury for a felony, does
it make any sense to blow a big joint before your day in Court?
July 18 am Tuesday morning Kenneth
Stanford stood before Judge Ric Facemire and said Nope, not me, Not guilty
of receiving stolen goods. To stay out on bond Stanford was ordered
to pee test. He flunked it with pot showing up as the culprit.
July 18 am Before noon Tuesday, Mr
Stanford was back before Facemire. After admitting to blowing a big bowl
of the good stuff three days earlier. The Judge was less than happy. Questions
came: Why?.... It's a no brainer... I will not tolerate this ... and something
about bring your toothbrush if this EVER happens again!!
July 18 am To make an impression on
the 22 year old, Judge Facemire ordered Stanford to the holding cell for
the balance of the day to leave an "impression" on the lad.
July 18 am You've been
arrested, put on bond, indicted by a Grand Jury and then smoke pot just
before arraignment day.
July 18 am What was he thinking!!!!!!!!!
July 18 am Angel Cummings was
arrested for her part in the stolen car incident Monday evening.
July 18 am After everything settled
down Monday evening, it didn't. A fight over at Pisgah brought the Badges
back into service. We understand one tall thin, blonde headed young adult
swam the river to get away.
July 18 am Tuesday 11:27am, 911 Dispatch:
I need a public service RIGHT NOW.
July 18 am Tuesday 11:30am Dispatch:
Ambulance needed on Independence Road "Subject has been beat up".
July 18 am Tuesday 11:31am
Green Shirts 311 and 683 headed that way
July 18 am Summer time in Clayberry!
July 18 am Communicator comes out this
Friday. We'll have all we know in it.
July 18 am Email your public
notices, meetings, birthdays etc. ASAP. Deadline is Thursday at noon.
July 17 am Elton Dale Workman
of Clay, see OBITUARY page
July 17 am Here's an update for yesterday's
break in at Upper Cut Styling.... Right after the robbery, over the
scanner came reports of a stolen car possible signal 9, drunk driver. The
vehicle wrecked near the old Boy Scout camp at the top of Dundon hill.
The maroon four door vehicle is owned by Randy Schoonover. Badges
responded quickly. When we got there, we didn't see any driver nor passenger
of the vehicle. At 5;50 we did notice one staggering drunk young man "floating"
up to back street in the downtown area.
July 17 am On a lighter note.
Many of us remember the 1969 Woodstock festival in upstate New York. The
sequel, Goodstock is being held this weekend in Nicholas County.
CMS math teacher Norman Stephens is one of the featured performers. See
EVENTS page.
July 16 LATE pm Renee Holcomb
has worked her butt off for two years growing Upper Cut Styling Salon on
Main Street. Around 3:50pm thieves broke in and stole her earnings for
the day. They jimmied the front door by using a credit card.
July 16 LATE pm How long did
it take to get in, find the stash, get out, and lock the door behind them?
Less than the time it took Renee to walk to the post office and back.
July 16 LATE pm More as we get
it.
July 16 pm Hope your internet
service is back up and running. Lots of people have called Frontier
Tele and gave them total H.
July 16 pm Dewey Owlsey choked Thelma
Thomas to death the day after Christmas in 2005. After pleading guilty,
the Judge sentenced Mr. Owsley to 1 - 5 years for unlawful wounding and
15 years for voluntary manslaughter.
July 16 pm Another sad sad chapter
in our history is complete.
July 16 am Today at 4pm Town Council
will
convene a Special meeting at the water plant/Town Hall to hire office help
July 16 am For web junkies, the
last 24 + hours have been tough, real tough. We found out what it's
like without internet service, how fragile our link to the world really
is.. Even with the internet down, we still sat right there in front of
the screen and stared.
July 16 am Not sure what the
problem is or where, Bluefield or here, but for most all of Sunday and
as late as midnight last night, no web.
July 16 am Clayberry is
tethered to the rest of the world with a single line out strung along the
ridge out past Widen into Nicholas County..
July 15 pm Sorry for the slow posting.
This time it ain't our fault. The over burdened DSL provider was down,
then on and then off most of the morning. Here's our weekend update
July 15 pm Prime
Minister Nouri al-Maliki said Saturday that the Iraqi army and police
are capable of keeping security in the country when American troops leave
"any time they want," ....
July 15 pm . Lets get out of
there! So what's
the hold up? You got it, Dubbya.
July 15 pm There have been
3,894 coalition deaths -- 3,608 Americans, two Australians, 157 Britons,
13 Bulgarians, one Czech, seven Danes, two Dutch, two Estonians, one Fijian,
one Hungarian, 33 Italians, one Kazakh, one Korean, three Latvian, 20 Poles,
two Romanians, five Salvadoran, four Slovaks, 11 Spaniards, two Thai and
18 Ukrainians -- in the war in Iraq as of July 11, 2007, according to a
CNN count.
July 15 pm Maybe West Virginia
should seed
clouds like China does to stop this drought.
July 15 pm The Grand Jury returned
five true bills Tuesday. Winners this time around include: Kenneth
Sanford, receiving transferring stolen goods, Antonio Scott Foster,
burglary, grand larceny, William Arthur Jr, Failure to pay
child support, Justin Canaday, sexual assault 2nd degree, indecent
exposure, Ralph Fields, 14 counts sexual assault and related offenses
July 15 pm We did get a little break
in the drought Wednesday when the heavens opened up and let us have it
for most of Tuesday night. With the thunder and lightning, the power was
off most of the night and into Wednesday morning for many.
July 15 pm Breakins and vandalism has
been the hot topic this past week. The old sewer plant got it Thursday
night . Thugs busted out windows an threw parts and supplies all over the
river bank. It doesn't appear anything was taken just plain and simple
vandalism.
July 15 pm Friday evening
another band of hoodlums took ball bats to a white car driving down
Main Street (in front of the library) busting out windows. broken glass
was all over the place according to eyewitnesses. Badges (Green,
Black and even a Blue Shirt) responded and four arrests were made for battery
and destruction of property. They did not go to jail if your wondering.
July 15 pm This first 15 days
of his term of office has been hectic for Mayor Jack Brown. After Friday
night's Main Street ball bat incident, Brown saw others wondering around
on the two lane. After heading back to Town Hall to read up on ordinances,
he headed back down Main Street with an ultimatum, the curfew is
in affect, skid addle or risk being sent to the slammer.
July 15 pm TV-3 provided region
wide coverage on the boob tube this week.
July 15 pm Our sleepy little hamlet
is once again locking doors, double checking locks, and sleeping with one
eye open.
July 14 pm Ernest Duffield, 81,
of Widen, se OBITUARY page
July 13 pm Check the EVENTS page
for good stuff to do this weekend. Like... Tiffany Farmer and Stephanie
Moore will be at the Summer Jam at the radio station. Great time
to get out and see your buddies. The Concert is free.
July 13 pm Somebody said, you dumb
bunny, you forgot to post the new indictments. Sorry, Thought I did. This
old age thang sucks!
July 13 pm Here's the list from
Tuesday's Grand Jury
July 13 pm Kenneth Sanford, receiving
transferring stolen goods
July 13 pm Antonio Scott Foster,
burglary, grand larceny
July 13 pm William Arthur Jr,
Failure to pay child support
July 13 pm Justin Canaday, sexual
assault 2nd degree, indecent exposure
July 13 pm Ralph Fields, 14 counts
sexual assault and related offenses
July 13 pm We've got problems
world. Last night the old sewer plant was broke into and things tore up.
In the last couple weeks, downtown businesses have been the target of the
vandals. So far, Elk Power Co was broke into, Clay Lumber (robbed of $600
worth of knives and more), can't forget the Dollar Store and the Laundromat
this week.
July 13 pm Around 8:45 Friday night
a white car was seen setting in the road, in front of the Library, with
two side windows knocked out. Glass shards were all over the road as the
crowd formed.
July 13 pm Thursday TV-3 news was in
town making note of the crime wave. Late night news captured us once again.
July 13 pm It appears we have two groups.
One is busting in places and swiping resellable items for quick pocket
money. The other appears to be a younger crowd out to tear things up and
run.
July 13 pm Whatever the case, lock
your doors folks.
July 13 pm Help Randy Help!
July 12 pm Back in April 2007,
the Clay County School Board had on their meeting agenda an action item
to vote in the Superintendent's new annual contract. The agenda item said
Larry Gillespie's salary would be $82,000. That's a lot of money but about
average for a Superintendent.
July 12 pm Truth is, that ain't the
truth.
July 12 pm Near the end of the contract
is word of an additional salary of $11,500.00. That additional salary can
be taken monthly, quarterly, or once a year for a tax deferred annuity.
That $11,500 works out to even more when you consider it is NOT being taxed
at today's salary scale.
July 12 pm Add it all up and add in
the free or reduced benefits, and our Somber Super is up around $115,000.00
per year in compensation.
July 12 pm Good for Larry GIllespie!
July 12 pm The story is the backdoor
way the School Board operates. They put one thing on the agenda , never
mention the real salary and then sign it with a grin.
July 12 pm Back room dealings in Clay
is alive and well in Clayberry.
July 12 pm The only question is, how
long have the hush hush additional salaries been added to employment contracts.
July 12 am The "there's
the door" speech last week may have produced a bail out. Sometime Tuesday,
once Chair and more recently Vice Chair, Paige Willis, tendered his resignation
from the economic development group, the Clay County Business Development
Authority. Willis was the last of the original members appointed during
the Jimmy Sams era of the County Commission.
July 12 am How can you tell when
it's summer time in Clayberry? Just listen to the scanner. Wednesday morning
early early, Badges were called to Clay Lumber Company at Two Run where
the front door was bashed off its hinges and $600 worth of knives were
stolen. Last week Elk Power Co was broke into, They also tried at the Dollar
Store. Not so long ago, thugs got in Clay Middle School and the Board Office
on Gump Street.
July 12 am Are your doors locked, dead
bolted? They should be!
July 12 am Kelly Conrad lived in a
rental home for over three years. She was also a customer of Clay Roane
PSD. Her normal water bill was around $30 or $35 per month. Last October,
as she was moving into new digs, her water bill came as usual. Arrival
was the only part that was usual. The monthly bill card gave notice of
a 1/4 million gallon usage with w dollar amount of $2348.55.
July 12 am The PSD water man came around
and said he could see no leaks. A few days later he returned but said,
Yelp, you've got a leak!
July 12 am Calls to the
PSD were successful with much of the 1/4 million "adjusted" away leaving
a balance of around $870.
July 12 am Unable to pay the $870,
the PSD is taking her to Court August 3rd.
July 12 am She says she never
lost water pressure while the /14 million was running out somewhere; the
service man said he couldn't see any leak; and according to Ms Conrad,
her yard was dry with nary a wet spot!
July 12 am 265,960 gallons
leaked out in her front yard in less than one month and the place didn't
look like a lake? If that doesn't make for a big Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.. what
does.
July 12 am A parcel agenda for
Thursday's Clay Roane PSD meeting is posted on our ADVISORY page.
July 11 pm During this morning's County
Commission meeting Mayor Jack Brown asked the CCC for help. Brown said
the town's sewer plant is in reaaal financial trouble. With only
300 customers to pay the bills, the log factory takes in just a little
over $11,000 per month but costs just a little under $12,000 to operate.
July 11 pm Operating in a deficit since
going on line 9 years ago, Mayor Brown inherited the white elephant
when he took office 11 days ago.
July 11 pm How bad is it? Mayor
Brown has a power company shut off notice laying on his desk. Back bills
add up $3700.00. There are NO backup pumps in case one breaks. And, the
lift stations are the most costly to maintain part of the system.
July 11 pm Brown asked the Commission
for help with the mess.
July 11 pm There's really only three
answers. One, add more customers tot he system by extending high dollar
service thru Maysel. Or, 2, raise sewer rates. Or, 3, cut expenses.
July 11 pm We have some reaaaal sad
news clickers. Real sad. A loss to the community
July 11 pm Please join
me in remembering a great icon. The Pillsbury Doughboy died yesterday of
a yeast infection and trauma complications from repeated pokes in the belly.
He was 71. Doughboy was buried in a lightly greased coffin.
Dozens of celebrities turned out to pay their respects, including Mrs.
Butterworth, Hungry Jack, the California Raisins, Betty Crocker, the Hostess
Twinkies, and Captain Crunch. The grave site was piled high with flours.
Aunt Jemima delivered the eulogy and lovingly described Doughboy as a man
who never knew how much he was kneaded. Doughboy rose quickly in show business,
but his later life was filled with turnovers. He was not considered a very
smart cookie, wasting much of his dough on half-baked schemes. Despite
being a little flaky at times he still was a crusty old man and was considered
a positive roll model for millions.
Doughboy
is survived by his wife Play Dough, two children, John Dough and Jane Dough,
plus they had one in the oven. He is also survived by his elderly father,
Pop Tart.
The funeral was held at 3:50 for about 20 minutes.
July 11 am Many Frontier
internet customers are experiencing no web, slow web, and the web cutting
in and out. We're doing a short post this evening while we suffer thru
the interruptions.
July 11 am County Commission meets
this morning at 10 am. Just one page worth of agenda to get thru but none
the less, might be well worth your time to take it in.
July 11 am The Summer Grand Jury met
yesterday. The front door of the Courthouse was open well past 4pm. We
understand there were just a hand full of true bills this time around.
Will post those indicted as soon as we get our hands on the list.
July 11 Check the ADVISORY page
for the summer reading program at the Library as well as the upcoming rabies
clinic coming to Clayberry. Politicians do NOT qualify for the shots.
July 11 am The latest Communicator
came out Monday. 28 pages and growing every month. Many newspapers
are suffering thru bad times. Not so with the near award winning rag. It
could be that it was endorsed by Commissioner Slinky last month as the
paper to read!..The above the fold article covers the new leadership at
the BDA and the number of times Fran King told wayward Boardsters, "There's
the door!" Wonder who she was referring to readers? Better yet, will they
take the hint?
July 11 am Also in this edition are
the latest school system wages. Pretty interesting reading there folks!
July 11 am Last night's Clay
Co PSD meeting went without much fanfare. Community activist Fred Sampson
expressed dissatisfaction with the PSD not fixing the long standing low
and no water pressure problems in the Little Italy section of the system.
He said back in '94 when the Lizemores/Tucker's Bottom water line extension
project was being proposed, it included fixing the problems in the Little
Italy neighborhood.
July 11 am Chair Fitzwater said they
didn't have the money ($100,000) available now that they plan to buy a
new truck, new ATV, new software, and touch read meter equipment. The project
engineer put the problem squarely on the back of the water provider, the
Town of Clay. He said a bunch of the water pressure was being used to send
wa wa to Maysel and on to Roane County. With the diversion that direction,
water pressure was reduced heading North to Ivydale and Little Italy. With
wa wa pressure under 90 pounds at the master meter, low pressure on up
the line can result.
July 11 am The PSD mentioned
a need to buy chlorinators on the system too.
July 11 am We understand there will
be a special meeting of Town Council next week to hire a new office person.
As stated during the last regular meeting of the group, what they
really need is a part time, Class II, water operator to replace
a guy that quit.
July 11 am Know a Class II operator?
Time to call the Mayor!
July 10 LATE pm Maysel Hash,
91, of Ivydale, see OBITUARY page
July 10 LATE pm James Paul Summers
Sr., 81, of Wallback, see OBITUARY page
July 10 LATE pm Ronald Earl Lyons,
79, of Ovapa, see OBITUARY page
July 9 LATE pm The Communicator
made it to the news stands around 4pm today. 28 pages, count em, 28 pages
of the news and views on life in the slow lane, Clay County West Virginia.
Our lead story covers the last BDA meeting where the new Chair told Boardsters,
"There's the Door" at least four times. Great reading, second to none,
award winning or not.
July 9 am No updates until we get the
Communicator out the door sometime around 3pm today.
July 9 am From the email bag:
Found: approx. 1-2 years, bobbed tail, a mini version of a austrailian
shepard.(looks blue in color with spots) brown on the face on Blue Knob/call
587-7511
July 8 pm Most of us have known for
4 years, the USA can't win in the Mid East. Now the NY
Times agrees.
July 8 pm Back in 04, the Presidential
election was bought. Called "Vote
Caging" here's the scoop. Uhhhh, don't throw away that junk mail.
July 8 pm Hush Hush is the word
from the Shrub in the Prosecuting
Attorney firings.
July 8 pm There have been 3,878
coalition deaths -- 3,593 Americans, two Australians, 156 Britons, 13 Bulgarians,
one Czech, seven Danes, two Dutch, two Estonians, one Fijian, one Hungarian,
33 Italians, one Kazakh, one Korean, three Latvian, 20 Poles, two Romanians,
five Salvadoran, four Slovaks, 11 Spaniards, two Thai and 18 Ukrainians
-- in the war in Iraq as of July 5, 2007, according to a CNN count.
July 8 pm The week started off with
what makes us so special. The Small Town America Independence Day Celebration
brought out yard salers, musicians, little kids, a parade and even
four KaBooms that evening. Nothing fancy , just little ole Clay celebrating
in our own way.
July 8 pm We saw change this week....
July 8 pm During the first meeting
of the new Town Council, priorities were set. Mayor Brown got started by
fixing long neglected parking meters. He said he wanted to get a Town Badge
on the job and the sidewalks fixed. What an idea, add revenue without a
B&O tax and make the place look better!
July 8 pm In this week of change, we
saw all new leadership installed during the Business Development Authority
meeting Thursday night. Gone are Leonard Williams and the Vice Chair. Their
last actions made it clear why they had to go. During their last couple
weeks in office, they refused to follow unanimous Board votes. Voted
into action are Fran King as Chair, Jim Knotts as Vice Chair, Katherine
Knotts as Secretary, and Mike Evans as Treasurer. King said she was going
to put up with the back room bad mouthing and decisions. She said the new
and improved BDA would be a team effort with everybody doing more than
drinking coffee and whistling. Don't like it? There's the door!
July 8 pm 11 years ago the BDA identified
a need in the county, a farmers market. They did nothing with the notion.
The BC&G RR Co-Op did. This week, the first Farmers/Flea Market at
Dundon was held. Several booths were set up which netted big $ for the
vendors. One guy walked away with an additional $800 in his pocket. Not
a bad start for a $6 registration fee.
July 8 pm Charleston newspapers reported
changes in Court processing fees. Instead of paying one Court cost fee
of $160.50, the greedy B**^^!!s will now charge $160.50 for each moving
violation before the Magistrate. Hopefully our local Magistrates will see
fit to drop charges as a form of protest.
July 8 pm Bad news came during
Wednesday's County Commission meeting. While the BC&G RR folks work
their butts off to grow a public campground at Dundon, running along side
their property are floaters in the creek rendering the waterway full of
E-Coli and too risky for wading and swimming. Many homes up stream including
all but a couple in Widen, dump raw sewage in Buffalo Creek.
July 8 pm Great big Congratulations
to the 2007 Ag Fair Queen Hillary Tinney !!
July 8 pm Why are working parking
meters so important to downtown Clay? Answer: We have many business owners
so dumb as to park in front of their places of business all day long. With
the owners parked there, customers can not.
July 8 pm Why are parking meters so
important: ANSWER: To capture those out of town tourist dollars.
Those out of towners are already accustomed to feeding the metal bandits.
Working parking meters are a great way to fleece the tourists with little
resistance.
July 8 pm Jeff Boggs and the
Big Otter Fire Dept. crew waited another week for Judge Johnson to make
public a decision on the land dispute court case. As of the morning mail
Friday morning, no decision yet.
July 8 pm Word spread that a local
doctor was buying the old IGA grocery store building on Main Street. According
to one family member, they ain't heard nothing yet.
July 8 pm No big changes at Telford
Chevrolet as the July 7tth buy out date came and went.
July 8 pm And then the sad side of
Clay. 12:56 pm today, Sunday afternoon. With one ambulance responding to
Camp Creek hill, 911 Dispatch reports a person with "bad" chest pains and
blood pressure , 75 over 55. Clay County Ambulance has no one else on duty
nor anyone to call into duty.
July 8 pm Far away Calhoun County was
called to duty but without a paramedic on the truck.
July 8 pm Kids filled the county's
only public swimming pool. Canoes were seen on the Elk River and at Lake
Sampson. Gardens came back to life after a couple brief showers this week.
Kids rode bikes down Main Street. People sat on their front porches and
heard cars with loud mufflers and even louder radios pass by. The Blue
Haired ladies mumbled their complaints.
July 8 pm Clayberry at its best.
July 8 am Something to hold you
until then... A man enters a bar and orders a drink. The bar has
a robot bartender. The robot serves him a perfectly prepared cocktail,
and then asks him, "What's your IQ?" The man replies"150" and
the robot proceeds to make conversation about global warming factors, quantum
physics and spirituality, biomimicry, environmental interconnectedness,
string theory, nano-technology and sexual proclivities.
The customer is very impressed and thinks,"This is really cool." He decides
to test the robot. He walks out of the bar, turns around,and comes
back in for another drink. Again, the robot serves him the perfectly prepared
drink and asks him, "What's your IQ? The man responds,"about
a 100." Immediately the robot starts talking, but this time,about
football, NASCAR, baseball, super models, favorite fast foods, guns
and women's breasts. Really impressed, the man leaves the bar
and decides to give the robot one more test. He heads out and returns,
the robot serves him and asks, "What's your IQ?" The man replies,"Er,50,
I think." And the robot says... real slowly.....
"So....... ya gonna vote for Bush again?"
July 7 am There's lots of stuff to
do in Clayberry this weekend. Check out our EVENTS page. The Farmers Market
at Dundon continues today 8 to 5pm. Saturday night is the Summer Jam with
Art & Dave Douglas plus Eugene Parson. Don't forget Sunday is the big
Taste of Clay event. Yum yum.
July 7 am According to US Bankruptcy
Court records on Telford Chevy, today is the day Dave Pierson is set to
take over the dealership...
July 7 am A quick look over at
the Sec of State's office web site reveals the new name will be Citizens
Chevrolet. Here's the officer's
page and the addresses
page.
July 7am The new company is set
up and ready to go. Let's see what happens next.
July 7 am The Communicator will come
out Monday afternoon. Deadline for classifieds, events, meetings etc is
tonight at midnight. Email info now.
July 7 am While you're surfing
around this site, check out the ADVISORY page for the $1000 reward being
offered.
July 6 pm Forgot to post something
yesterday. If you're interested in taking a 1st/CPR Class Saturday
morning, 9 am, at the Ambulance Service, better call them NOW, 587-2554.
Wonder what sleepy butt forgot to post the class over on the EVENTS page.
July 6 pm Lost a dog? Jimmy Kearns
down at Bomont found a very pretty red Lab Friday morning. If it's yours,
call 548-5223
July 5 pm Town water operator
Dwana Murphy emailed to say the last full time water operator did NOT make
$70,000 in one year, he only made $60,000. We'll stick with
the $70,000 (actually $68,000 according to the guy himself). Remember,
that's just the gross salary. You can add to that number the cost of benefits
or another $15,000. Not bad for Clay County.
July 5 pm Clay County has needed a
farmer's market for years. The BC&G RR Co-Op is hosting such a thang
this Friday and Saturday at the JG Bradley Cmapground at Dundon. Begins
at 8 am each morning. Another first for the county of Clay!
July 5 pm ALERT ALERT
We're holding off the Communicator until Monday.
July 5 pm Thursday's Business
Development Authority meeting was a keeper. We have a new slate of officers
including Fran King - Chair; Jim Knotts Vice - Chair; Mike Evans - Treasurer;
and, Katherine Knotts - Secretary. That's total new leadership
for the struggling economic development group.
July 5 pm Chair King made it
clear, from now on, it would be a team effort complete with committee assignments.
If you don't like it, there's the door. The days of back door dealing and
back biting, it's over. She said she had had it with those sitting there
like a social club and doing nothing more than drinking coffee and whistling,
I mean singing.
July 5 pm Past Chair Leonard Williams
stayed about long enough to pass the torch and ski daddled. As he
was leaving, Fran yelled out and asked him to stay long enough to sign
a check. He didn't. He wouldn't. He bolted for the door saying he was no
longer an officer.
July 5 pm Check? What check?
July 5 pm During last month's
meeting the Board voted to start an advertising campaign on the local radio
station for the summer months. The ad campaign cost was $50. After
the June meeting, the Chair refused to sign the $50 check according to
Arthur Jarrett. Ditto for the Vice Chair signing the check according to
Fran King. Jerry Nelson, then the secretary, said he was more than willing
to sign the check but what was the use when the Chair nor the Vice Chair
were refusing to honor the Board's wishes. Note: It takes two signatures
on each check.
July 5 pm According to the auditor,
after a Board votes to pay something, the two officers can NOT refuse to
follow orders. In this case, they did just that.
July 5 pm Me thinks that personal vendetta
against that Mel Gibson look alike may have come into play here and
was what Fran was talking about..
July 5 pm Guess what our lead
story will be in Monday's Communicator? You got it, the BDA meeting.
July 5 pm How refreshing, new faces,
new committments, and new ideas. Yes we're gullible, but it is a new beginning.
July 5 pm From the email bag:
The Sermon this Mom will never forget... Dear Lord,"
the minister began, with arms extended toward heaven and a rapturous look
on his upturned face. "Without you, we are but dust." He would have continued
but, at that moment, my very obedient daughter (who was listening!) leaned
over to me and asked quite audibly in her shrill little girl voice, "Mom,
what is butt dust?"
July 5 am Today at 5 in the CCC
room at the Courthouse, the Business Development Authority will convene
for the monthly meeting. With their Chair, oh, excuse me, their President
resigned, they plan to elect new officers. After years of accomplishing
little to nothing, new leadership may revitilaize the county's economic
development group. We can hope anyway!
July 5 am Finally some rain last
night. Tomato plants around the county were heard yelling, Thank You Thank
You.
July 5 am Top Badge Randy Holcomb
may have made another first in the county. The Legislature passed
a new law last year making it a crime to switch wee wee samples.
The law went into effect July 1st. Tuesday Holcomb caught a probationer
falsifying the yellow stuff.
July 5 am For those checking
in from the big cities, yesterday in Clayberry, flags were flying everywhere,
kids watered down their buddies with water hoses, kayaks were seen on the
Elk River, and the smell of people grilling out was everywhere. Small town
America at its best.
July 5 am How about an update
from Tuesday's Town Council meeting.
July 5 am New Mayor Jack Brown made
his priorities clear, he wants a City Badge hired, working parking meters,
and sidewalks repaired.
July 5 am Noticed something else from
the meeting and the Mayor. During discussions to quickly hire a part time
temporary office helper, he insisted on advertising the position. He made
that demand at least three times before it stuck.
July 5 am New Council person Llyn Drake
made her pet project public. Drake, " I have an interest in establishing
a Municipal Court."
July 5 am Back to that new hire at
Town Hall.... they had a part time water operator resign leaving Dwana
and Drema to overtime work. Dwana said she has had a hard time finding
a replacement water operator. Anybody out there with a Class II water operator
license, call the Mayor ASAP. The pay is very good. The last water operator
grossed nearly $70,000 in one year.
July 5 am Has anybody noticed the town
wa wa tasting bad? Council admitted as much Tuesday. Carbon is now being
added to the stuff to make the stuff more pallatable.
Does anybody know anybody that drinks the stuff?
July 5 am The town sewer system
account is flat broke. They only do bills after enough customers come in
and pay. What's the answer? Two Council persons spoke up on extending the
sewer system into Maysel. Do you feel a storm brewing... again?
July 5 am In the early 90s Town Council
Ok'd building the sewer plant twice too big. With only 300 customers in
town, it can't make a go of it until that number doubles. Less than a decade
old, the log factory has many mechanical problems including the need to
replace $8000 a piece pumps and areators. Although equipment costs
are outragious, there's another problem. Many of the Town's storm sewer
drains are hooked to the log lines. During wet weather all the rain water
floods the plant and destroys those little microbes that digest the
brown stuff.
July 5 am Just a few years ago, during
one the overflows, a 150 wide plume of floaters escaped into the Elk. The
Town was fined $50,000 for that negligence.
July 5 am The full scoop in the next
Communicator.
July 4 am Happy 4th of July.
Hope your day is filled with family picnics and thoughts of peace.
July 4 am We're taking the day off.
Details from Tuesday's Town Council meeting and the plan of attack from
new Mayor Jack Brown on Thursday.
July 4 am Busting bubbles....
July 4 am There is no evidence that
Betsy Ross sewed the first U.S. flag. The story didn't even flutter forth
from her relatives until 1870.
July 4 am George Washington did
not toss a dollar across the Potomac. Even if he did toss something, the
dollar didn't come into being until after the U.S. gained independence.
July 4 am Francis Scott Key did
not write our national anthem. He penned the words then set them to an
old English drinking song. It did not become our national anthem until
1931.
July 4 am Most of the midnight
ride of Paul Revere was accomplished by other horsemen. It was Samuel Prescott,
in fact, who carried the warning to Concord.
July 4 am The Declaration of
Independence was not approved on July 4, 1776. Only John Hancock, for the
assembly, signed it that day. The other signatures were made on August
2.
July 4 am George Washington wasn't
the first U.S. President. John Hanson was the president of the Congress
of the Confederation and carried the title of president of the U.S., as
did eight men after him.
July 4 am "Yankee Doodle" is not an
American song. It was a British ditty designed to harass ragtag colonists
during the French and Indian War.
July 3 LATE pm Mary Ann Woodrum,
see OBITUARY page
July 3 am Happy day before a
day off work.
July 3 am Thinking about fall hunting?
Maybe joining a hunting club? See ADVISORY page.
July 3 am Today Town Council meets
at 6pm in the water plant building on main Street
July 3 am The CAEZ does likewise
at 4pm followed by a full Board meeting at 6pm.
July 3 am A couple weeks back High
Street apartments resident Lisa Heidebrecht (we'll just call her Lisa,
it's easier) filed for a restraining order against the guy living across
the hall from her David Hanshaw. According to court documents got the beegeebees
scared out of her when Hanshaw was beating on her door and yelling threatening
remarks. The record says Hanshaw was at it for 45 minutes.
July 3 am Without a phone
to call the Badges nor a back door to run, according to the petition, she
wrote up her Last Will and Testament.
July 3 am The Court Ok'd a temporary
restraining order right after the June 17th incident.
July 3 am Yesterday Judge Facemire
had David Hanshaw and Lisa in the Courtroom. Instead of pointing
the finger directly at Hanshaw, both parties were told to stay away from
each other in a permanent "mutual" restraining order.
July 3 am Mutual? With
all the allegations aimed at Hanshaw, mutual? Maybe the Court knows
something we don't.
July 3 am Did you notice this in the
Charleston Gazette: If you’re going to pay a traffic ticket
with more than one citation in West Virginia, you may be in for an unpleasant
surprise: an extra $160.50 in court costs for every infraction.
Traditionally, state magistrates have not made traffic violators pay court
costs on each citation. But earlier this year, the state Supreme Court
ordered them to start.
July 3 am Lets see now, speeding
ticket, tail light out, loud muffler... that's three times $160.50 for
court costs before any fine is imposed. One Kanawha County Magistrate commented
that he planned to dismiss all the little stuff to avoid citizens paying
outragious administration fees.
July 3 am Raise your hand if you thought
Dubbya was going to pardon Scooter from the get go. One, Three Ten... Yelp
we all knew it.
July 3 am On Jan. 20, 2001, Prez
Clinton granted 140 pardons and issued 36 commutations. During his presidency,
he issued a total of approximately 450 pardons and commutations, compared
to 406 issued by President Reagan during his two terms. During his four
years, President Carter issued 566 pardons and commutations, while in the
same length of time Bush the First granted 77. President Ford issued 409
during the slightly more than two years he was president.
July 3 am Here's the
link to Clinton's reasoning behind the pardons.
July 2 am For those that didn't bookmark
the new Corruption in Clay blog, it is now listed on the LINK page.
July 2 am From the email
bag: HAPPY 9th BIRTHDAY TO MY GIRL!!!!!!!!!! KARLEY
DUFFIELD on July 2nd, WE LOVE YOU KAR
July 2 am Tonight the School
Board meets at 6pm at the Standard Bryant Annex building on Gump
Street. State Open Meeting law requires such public meetings to have an
agenda posted on the front door of the meeting house three days in
advance. As of noon Sunday there was no agenda posted.
July 2 am The School Board is notorious
for keeping the public in the dark. At one point a few months back, it
looked like they had changed their ways and would follow the law of the
land. Looks can be deceiving.
July 2 am So sad they teach good citizenship,
following the law and then set such a stinky example.
July 2 am Tuesday's line up includes
CAEZ meetings at 4 and 6pm.
July 2 am Also on Tuesday, the new
Town Council meets under the direction of Mayor Jack Brown.
July 2 am Thursday's 5pm Business Development
Authority meeting will include election of new officers. As far as we can
tell, that fence that was suppose to be built at the old FIlcon site, ain't.
That straw that was to be cut, ain't. Just another 30 days
and nothing done. Nothing new for the BDA.
July 1 am A new month and the end of
the first half of 2007. Seems yesterday we were talking about a new century
and now 2/3's of a decade is behind us. With the Independence Day spirit
upon us, we're not going to bash the Shrub other than than to mention how
disgraceful his actions and his administration are to the residents of
the world. Lets celebrate the 4th by bringing the troops home
now.
July 1 am From the past 7 days....
July 1 am Wednesday's County
Commission meeting revealed serious health issues along Buffalo Creek.
There, with raw poop from Widen and down stream as well, the waterway
is full of E-Coli. That's the same stream where kids have gone swimming
for years. During the CCC meeting came word, since the homes were built
before 1970, nothing could be done about the logs. A quick look at
§16-9-3 "..... Any person (1) who throws, causes to be thrown
or releases any dead animal, carcass, or part thereof, garbage, sink or
shower waste, organic substances, contents of a privy vault, septic tank,
cesspool or the effluent from any cesspool, spoiled meat or nauseous or
offensive or poisonous substances into any river..."
JUly 1 am Not sure that law would apply,
but it's worth a shot.
July 1 am After 6 weeks of absolute
dry, two light drizzles helped the gardens this week. 75% of the county
uses a well or cistern. Those folks are still doing without and/or hauling
water.
July 1 am Wednesday evening after
a couple late night power blinks, five days worth of Current News vanished
into cyber land.
July 1 am Saturday morning the
BC&G RR group held their annual meeting. The strains of growth were
evident. The down home group of volunteers are struggling to deal with
government red tape and get their campground lodge completed and locomotive
rolling. Word came that the Buffalo Gals will be opening a new Welcome
Center at Two Run in the old Taco Mel's building. Should be open in just
a couple weeks or less.
July 1 am Get this. The place
that will be open on Saturdays AND Sundays to serve our new tourist economy
with brochures, maps, directions, a friendly smile and maybe even an ice
cream cone or hot dog.
July 1 am Clayberry's old line
businesses close down on Fridays and stay shut on the weekends. With the
new economy here, those oldsters will either change or shut down for good.
July 1 am Five days of bachelor hood
came to a close Friday evening with the return of the wifey. Tall House
was cleaned up I thought but.... Something about a sticky floor,
ants in the sink, the dog lookin' much thinner, dirty clothes in front
of the washer, and the smell of cigars...... Will try to do better next
year.
July 1 am Saturday was the Small Town
America Independence Day Celebration in downtown Clay. Yard sales filled
the place with great deals. Local junksters made real $ Little kids
covered their ears as fire trucks aired loud horns during the 1pm parade.
For those little kids riding in the back of a pick up in the parade, it
was as big as the Macy's T Day parade. Smiles came easy as one met
another and old friends told stories and jokes. Kids ran around in
chase. With the sun out in full force, us pasty whites turned red as a
beet.
July 1 am Saturday evening
well over 100 people came back to the radio station parking lot to hear
great West Virginia musicians, meet old friends and find out what makes
Clay County West Virginia so special. Saturday night our secret
pyro provided a teeny, tiny, 4 KaBoom fireworks display.
If anybody asks if Clay had a fireworks display, tell em Yes.
July 1 am We saw the changing of the
guard yesterday. After attending to parade duties, outgoing Mayor King
Arthur took the police cruiser to Jack Brown's home and gave our new Mayor
the keys. With the new month comes new leadership at Town Council.
July 1 am Our problems are many and
the road to a better economy is bumpy BUT, there ain't no place like home.
July 1 am While you wait.....Miranda
rights. Reading him his Miranda Rights, a female
police officer arrested a man for drunk driving. The female
officer told the man, "Sir, you have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say, can and will be held against you."
The drunk replied, "Tits!