Updates on a variety of things in Watkinsville and Oconee County, Georgia

The Oconee Veterans Park gymnasium basketball court appears to be in a whole lot better condition today despite the dozen or so dust bunny clumps I picked up by hand. Also my son has a better jump shot than me in the game of H-O-R-S-E, and I had to resort to the Troy Brewer two handed set shot to even stay close. He convinced himself he could not do a Dr. J reverse spin from one side of the hoop while your body is on the other side shot, but he made it. It is the basketball equivalent of magic, and you do feel truly like a wizard the first time you use it successfully on a drive.

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Glad the Watkinsville Town Council unanimously approved the new beer and wine pouring license for Mirko Pasta, presenting a positive profile for any potential restaurant owner looking at the old and huge Maison Bleu space. I would think this would make a perfect location for a caterer/restauranteur needing to make tons of pastries, cakes, hors d'oeuvres,  et cetera for your special event at the nearby Ashford Manor Bed and Breakfast and wedding factory.  Can someone tell me how much David Weeks forked out for the ability to pour beer and wine at his new eatery? and then how much he stands to make back? And is beer and wine going to be available at the Golden Pantry in town anytime soon?

The city council did table the request of JoJo John wanting to sell beer and wine at the J&B Food Mart to give them a chance to comply with their difficult requirements.

I would still like to think we are prime for an upscale Bodega type place like you see around Chastain and to a lesser degree Piedmont Park in Atlanta. Trader Joe's, I am calling you out. That we even get the snobbier trendies in from Athens to shop here.

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I hope all people interested in history will help out when the Daughters of the American Revolution will tentatively host a clearing of the Watkinsville Cemetery December 10, 2009. The neglected cemetery has an odd past, basically with no clear title ever as best as local records can confess. The lone local record has been an account at Oconee State Bank for the most basic of updates.  The more recently used section is reasonably well maintained while the older, more neglected portion nearer to downtown Watkinsville remains a mess with many markers overgrown and in severe disrepair.  The old South excuse of "well, that's the black section of the cemetery, and we don't take care of that" does not hold weight anymore. Shall we bring in the new century to the dead as well? It should be interesting to see how the DAR reacts to this given their less than sterling reputation on race relations.


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Turns out there was a good reason the State Department of Transportation does not like brick pavers on their heavily traveled state business route, and that is they crumble under the repeated heavy trucks rumbling through the city, as we have thanks to LAD and Athens Seed. Now we get to repave with cement made to resemble bricks, as they have in Athens.

I would love to see the large flashing yellow lights on the signs with the flashing cross walks in at least two places in downtown Watkinsville for the many times the pedestrians are having difficulty crossing Main Street when Chief Lee O'Dillon and his fine police force are not there. I would like to recognize the Watkinsville Police Department for their outstanding work on First Fridays, the Fall Festival and Halloween, but those are the exceptions and not the rule for normal 8 to 5 sidewalk traffic traversing our most important street in the county.

Just for all the other times, it would be good to use every traffic slowing and calming devices as possible. I would welcome rumble strips on the edges of the downtown district and especially on Simonton Bridge Road and Barnett Shoals Roads. There is nothing wrong with letting people know they are coming into a higher density population center with pitch change on the tires going over our roads. The traffic companies can now engineer the changes in the pavement so they sing a song as you drive over them. I would suggest this song.