Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Mr. Common Sense.
Mr. Sense had been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape.
He will be remembered as having cultivated such value lessons as knowing when to come in out of the rain, why the early bird gets the worm and that life isn't always fair. Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you earn) and reliable parenting strategies (adults, not kids, are in charge).
His health began to rapidly deteriorate when well intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place - reports of a six-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.
Mr. Sense declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer aspirin to a student; but, could not inform the parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.
Finally, Common Sense lost the will to live as the Ten Commandments became contraband; churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims.
Common Sense finally gave up the ghost after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot, she spilled a bit in her lap, and was awarded a huge settlement.
Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust, his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason. He is survived by two stepbrothers; My Rights and Ima Whiner. Not many attended
Hi, Everybody I have a story to tell you.
We advertised on the internet to sell our motorhome. The asking
price of $29,900. We received an answer from someone who said he was in
Ok. for the price of $28,000. We said okay and then he told us he was
doing this in behalf of his client. We still thought it could be okay
until he started to tell us that his client bought something else and
was getting a refund check for $35,000 which he wanted to use for our
motorhome. He said due to bookkeeping and company policy they had
to issue us the check for the full amount and that we could send back
the difference of $7000 to the buyer.. We figured now this was a scam.
We said okay because we wanted to see the check and have it
investigated.
This morning we received the check and took it to the bank for them to
see. There was discrepancies on the check such as different numbers,
California spelled wrong, Ed's middle initial was wrong also. Also, if
it was real when the bank copied it it would have shown void. It did
not. This was a counterfeit cashiers check which you would think was
real. We took it to the local tv station and they had us go to the
Better business bureau and put it on the news. The Fed Ex tracking
showed it came from Nigeria. The better business bureau said the
international scammers use this money to fund terrorists overseas.
The Secret Service is now on the case. We still have the check, we are
going to laminate it. I am going to block the email address this
came from, so I won't have to deal with him anymore. I just wanted
to let you know about this. The reason I went to the tv station is
because I wanted the people here in the valley to be aware of this. We
didn't get caught but if we had cashed to the check it would have come
back to bite us in two weeks and we would have to pay the consequences
of losing our money. This is going on all over the United States.
Karin
PICTURES YOU WON'T SEE ON THE EVENING NEWS
Please pass the pictures on. Sometimes in our everyday lives we tend to forget what's going on elsewhere in the world and that the brave men and women of the service are just like you and I. They have family and friends back home who love them very much and are praying for their safe return
HEATHER BERRY
by Rickey Dunn
Most teen-agers probably are not sure what they want to do with the rest of their lives. Heather Berry is the exception. At sweet 16, this young lady is already a veteran of the stage, performing bluegrass and gospel music.
Born and raised in beautiful Lyndhurst, Virginia, Heather lives with her
family at the foot of the Blue Ridge Parkway, about a mile from Sherando
Lake. She began learning to play the autoharp at age 12 and was
introduced to the stage by the well known bluegrass gospel group The
Lewis Family. She plays 3 or 4 shows a week and has played up to
8. She considers the Lewis family one of her major influences an another
is Linda Ronstadt. If I compared myself to anyone vocally she says, it
would have to be her. Linda has such a great voice and she’s done
everything from light opera, rock n’ roll to country and bluegrass.
Heather has also had the pleasure of opening for some well known groups
and entertainers. Stonewall Jackson, Kitty Wells & Johnny Wright, John
Conlee, IIIrd Tyme Out, Charlie Waller & The Country Gentlemen, Del
McCoury Band, Ralph Stanley, The Easter Brothers, Nothing Fancy, Jim &
Jesse and of course The Lewis Family. Heather says she would love
to perform at the Grand Ole Opry one day although it is not her main
goal. I’m so happy doing what I’m doing now. The Lord has blessed me and
I want to do his will whatever he has planned for my life and career.
The Berry Pickers was the name of Heather’s band from the time she was 14 until September,2003. Her current band, Virginia Carolina is from Roanoke, Virginia. Henry Biotnott on mandolin, Judy Biotnott on bass, Wayne Goad on guitar, and Harvey Mays on banjo. It was at the Three Little Pigs Restaurant in Roanoke where she first heard them perform. Henry invited Heather on stage to sing a few songs. They hadn’t gone over any tunes before hand, but yet something wonderful happened that night. When it was all said and done, everyone including Virginia Carolina knew it too. It was like adding that certain ingredient to a recipe to make it special. Heather says making music with Virginia Carolina is a blast and she is very thankful to have met them.
Two artists that Heather would like to do a duet with one day are Larry Sparks and Sonya Isaacs. I think Larry has such a down home voice, Heather says, with those neat inflections, that’s unusual in older traditional bluegrass. There’s been several groups that Heather has joined on stage at their invitation, to sing a song or two. Charlie Waller & The Country Gentlemen, Larry Stephenson Band, Alvin Breeding & The Virginia Cutups, Ralph Stanley II & The Clinch Mtn. Boys, and Jim & Jesse and The Virginia boys. She was only 12 when she first saw Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver and IIIrd Tyme Out. But from that day her dream has been to perform with both groups. I think their music is so punchy and kicking she says. Heather will be the first to tell you she’s a traditionalist at heart. She says it’s evident that more mainstream bubble gum lyric country is finding it’s way into blue-grass. Heather also notes that they’re still artists and groups working hard to keep traditional bluegrass strong.
The autoharp isn’t seen in a lot of bluegrass bands and the reasoning Heather says, is how it is played. I don’t use the original scratchy back-stroke like Mother Maybelle did. I’ve developed my own style that adapts to bluegrass. When the mandolin takes a break, I can take over chopping by bringing my wrist down across 3 bars at the same time on the down stroke, after hitting a good part of the chord. It makes for a good heavy chop.
So as long as youngsters like Heather Berry keep carrying the flame, traditional bluegrass fans won’t ever have to worry about the fire going out.
Rickey Dunn