NW GEORGIA’S PREMIER FEATURE READER FEBRUARY 2010

M AG A Z I N E

After
School
Aces How the team of
instructors at Rome’s
SYLVANLEARNING
CENTER are taking their
mission of tutoring to
the next level

$4.00
2 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine
vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 3
4 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine
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V3mag
FEBRUARY2010
D EPAR T M E N T S

+++FEATURES
17 SMALL TALK
Why Massey’s: The Diamond Store
owner, John Massey, can’t seem to bid
the fine jewelry business ado

20 BUSINESS BUZZ
Known for cranking out as many acts
of kindness as it does “Rotolos”, is it
any wonder Ana’s Deli is still thriving?

26 NWGA BLACKBOARD
With millions tutored worldwide,
Sylvan Learning Center of Rome
presses forward into 2010 with gusto

32 SPECIAL FEATURE
Locked in a tri-state “water war”, some
state lawmakers have their sights set
on devastating the upper Flint River

+++COLUMNS
38 HI-TEKNOLOGY
Taking the tech world by storm,
Google unveils a smorgasbord of new
gadgets and apps to swoon the masses

40 THE ROOD REVIEW

Cormac McCarthy’s The Road leaves
one critic torn on styles issues,
intrigued by the doom of mankind

42 INSIDE & OUT

Newcomer Dianna Edwards tells us
how to land a soul-mate without lifting
a finger in the kitchen

44 TAKE ON HEALTH
The Harbin Clinic Eye Center’s Dr.
Paul Harton puts today’s range of
corrective eye surgeries in perspective
 Harbin Clinic Eye Center Team

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vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 7

 PUBLISHER’S NOTE

M AG A Z I N E
Ahh February… The month
for love, they say. NW GEORGIA’S PREMIER FEATURE READER FEBRUARY 2010

Valentine’s Day is just around the

corner, and I think I’ve misdated my M AG A Z I N E

last check 09 meaning the New Year is After

officially in swing. Hopefully, all of you School
Aces
out there are sticking to your resolutions How the team of
instructors at Rome’s
SYLVANLEARNING
CENTER are taking their

and your lives are better for it. mission of tutoring to

the next level

The holiday I mentioned in the

preceding paragraph is one that receives $4.00

mixed reviews from the masses. The

general idea is to be with “the one” you
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF +
love and celebrate that love on the 14th of PRODUCTION MANAGER +
February, but a lot of folks out there don’t happen to have a “one” just yet, ART&DESIGN
leaving them cast out of the loop. neal howard
Though I have my “one” now, I also grew up with the good fortune of STAFF WRITERS
having my birthday fall the day after Valentine’s, leaving me something to anna armas, will seifert, reagen
lowrey, matt rood, brian foster,
look forward to without having someone to shower with chocolates and dianna edwards
flowers. (Good timing, Mom and Dad.)
Others, however, find themselves doing without on this day, and so CONTRIBUTING WRITER
josh busby
I thought perhaps we could make an amendment to the rules this time
around. If this holiday is truly about love, then that should be the only PHOTOGRAPHY
sabrina wilson, neal howard
qualification needed to celebrate it. The kind of love should cease to
matter. ADDITIONAL A&D
So, come this 14th of February, may the restaurants be filled with anthony barba
happy families and couples alike, and the dog parks overrun with CHIEF OF ADVERTISING + OFFICE
enamored pet owners. Don’t worry about who or what it is you love, just SALES DIRECTOR
ian griffin
take the time to appreciate it. Because in this busy, busy world it can’t
hurt to have a day that reminds us all to tell our loved ones that they are CHIEF SALES REPRESENTATIVE
just that: loved. jeff miller
With that said, I’d like to make the Griffin family’s long-time friend, ORIGINAL AD DESIGN
companion and canine, Sam, who we lost earlier this month, my special anthony barba, ian griffin
Valentine’s Day recipient. Rest in peace, good buddy. LEAD MANAGEMENT +
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
Happy Valentine’s Day to all, anthony barba

PUBLISHER
v3 publications, llc

CONTACT
one west fourth avenue, rome, ga
30161/ phone: 706.235.0748
email: v3mag@bellsouth.net

v3mag.com
8 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine

 






  


  

 
     
  
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South Rome
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Youth Triathlon - Darlington School
Cost: $40 per child ($35 for USAT members)
$65 per adult ($75 after April 1)
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More info at www.darlingtonschool.org/triathlon.
To register, visit www.imathlete.com.

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14 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine

 The Only Solid
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vini vidi vici / v3 magazine $+,,+$%***,-%.*/0
 Massey’s: The
Diamond Store owner,
JOHNMASSEY, tells us
why, when it comes to the
business of fine jewelry, he...

NEVER
CANSAY
GOODBYE
interviewanna armas
photosneal howard

J ohn Massey’s winding path in

and out of the jewelry business
may have its twists and turns, but
ultimately, it has led to a preeminent,
first-class retailer at 110 Broad Street
in Rome. Massey could spend an
entire day talking enthusiastically
about jewelry, and one could spend an
entire day looking over the gorgeous
pieces he currently has on display.
This Jan. 16, he sat down with
V3 to discuss his entrepreneurial of gold, pearls and diamonds. We covered Indeed the store was for sale, and I wound
background, as well as the diamonds, Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama and Florida. up buying it.
gemstones and assorted collections Four years later, a company bought me out.
that have most recently caught his eye. One day I was in town talking to another That’s pleasantly ironic. How long were
jeweler and he asked me, ‘Are you going to you there?
[V3:] Let’s begin with your background. buy Mr. Cade’s store?’ And I said ‘I didn’t I was there for five years until I moved the
Where are you from, and have you always know it was for sale.’ About two weeks later, store to Second Avenue, and then to the
been in the jewelry business? he asked me again and I told him that I corner building at the end of Broad Street.
[JM:] Well, I have lived in Rome since I was really didn’t think it was for sale. However, After seven years in that building I decided
two years old. I went to West Rome High I called Mr. Cade and asked him about it. I was ready to retire from the jewelry
School and Shorter College, and in college I
was friends with Chuck Cade, whose family
owned a fine jewelry store downtown.
“...THE WONDERFUL THING ABOUT THE JEWELRY
Clarence, Chuck’s father, convinced me to BUSINESS IS THAT WHEN YOU DO A PIECE FOR
take a job with a company he knew of as a
jewelry wholesale supplier.
SOMEONE, WHETHER IT’S RIGHT OUT OF THE
After several years (in the mid-’70s), I SHOWCASE OR CUSTOM MADE, THEY ARE
opened my own wholesale supply company EXCITED. THAT IS ONE THING THIS INDUSTRY
OFFERS THAT NO OTHER INDUSTRY DOES.”
vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 17
business, and I actually closed the jewelry
store around 2004.
But you didn’t retire the jewelry business
altogether. How did you get back into it?
I bought another building downtown and
opened The Clearing House, a consignment
store for furniture and accessories. At that
point I bought T. Martooni’s, which was
across the street, and closed [The Clearing
House]. We became a full-blown restaurant.
So you went from jewels to food?
Yes, but while I was in the restaurant
business I had a number of customers who
kept coming to me and saying, ‘We would
really like to see you in the jewelry business.
We want this and that and can’t get it, and
we would love for you to be in the business
again.’
We were in the restaurant business for
two years until I decided that wasn’t really
what I wanted to do. I didn’t want to work
“IT IS JUST AS MUCH FUN FOR ME TO HAVE
A COUPLE COME IN AND PICK OUT AN
ENGAGEMENT RING AS IT IS TO SIT DOWN
WITH A CUSTOMER AND DESIGN A PIECE FOR
HER.THE REACTION THAT YOU GET, THAT
SMILE ON [HER] FACE... IT’S ALL WONDERFUL.”
18 hours a day. If I was going to work
that hard, I was going to be in the jewelry
business.
And at the point you closed it, opened
up another jewelry store on Glen Milner,
then went back to Broad Street?
PIECES BYELMA-GIL
18 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine
Yes, and that is where we are
now. We just finished our third
year here and we are back to a
full-service jewelry and repair
shop. We also do design work,
clock repair, and carry pretty
much any line [in] the industry.
So it sounds like you have
owned and operated a lot of
successful businesses. Do you
consider yourself more of a
jeweler or an entrepreneur?
[Laughs] I would say in the past
I have been an entrepreneur.
But right now I’m a jeweler, and
that’s probably where I’ll stay.
What are some of the lines
you have in stock today?
We carry a variety of fine
lines. We carry an absolutely
gorgeous line from…Elma-Gil.
And we also carry Denny Wong, a Hawaiian
designer who does some absolutely
phenomenal pieces.
We also have Natalie K, which is a
beautiful, high-quality bridal line. We do
Pandora, which is probably one of the most
popular lines in the industry today. We sell a
lot of it.
And we do
quite a bit of
custom jewelry
in-house and
out. We can do
custom [work]
for our clients
at a price that
is no more than
buying a piece
from a showcase,
because of our
[high-tech]
production
process.
Who is your
favorite type of
customer? Is it
the couple that
comes in for
an engagement
ring, someone
PIECE BYGALATEA
seeking a custom-made ring that they’re
excited about, or someone with a
particular brand watch in mind?
All of my customers are my favorite
customers. [Laughs] …The wonderful thing
about the jewelry business is that when
you do a piece for someone, whether it’s
right out of the showcase or custom made,
they are excited. That is one of things this
industry offers that no other industry does.
How many industries can you go into in
the morning to be surrounded by beautiful
art—basically, that is what nice jewelry
is—work with it all day long, make people
happy, and then go home? Where else can
you find that? Nowhere.
And I don’t know that I would have [just
one] favorite customer. It is just as much
fun for me to have a couple come in and
pick out an engagement ring as it is to sit
down with a customer and design a piece
for her. The reaction that you get, that smile
on [her] face, is just as important for one
type of jewelry as it is for another. Or if
someone comes in and looks at one of my
designers like Denny Wong: I show them a
tanzanite ring and they are just wowed. It’s
all wonderful.
And if someone doesn’t know what he or
she wants, what may that customer find at
Massey’s?
We have some pieces now that are basically
pearl pieces, but they incorporate antique
gambling chips that are 250 years old.
People get excited about the history of
those. The gambling chips were created
around the mid-17th century when the
British were in China. They were handmade
by the Chinese for the British upper families
and royalty, from mother-of-pearl.
 They vary in size and shape, but they’re
about the size of a quarter and as thin as a
Call today for Winter Specials!
dime. The chips are hand-engraved front
and back.
…When the British left China, all of
those pearl chips went back to England. A
couple of years ago, a designer discovered
someone who had a collection of them. She
bought them and incorporated them into
the designs of necklaces, bracelets, rings and
earrings.
I also want to mention the Galatea line,
…designed by a gentleman who is amazing
in all kinds of art. He is a sculptor, a painter
and a poet. He carves the outside of pearls
to make them into jewelry pieces, and
sometimes adds diamonds into the carving.
They are very pretty.
One day he was carving a pearl, carved
too deeply, and hit the nucleus of the pearl.
He thought ‘What if there were a gemstone
inside this pearl and I could carve away
some of the pearl to expose that gemstone?’
He took gems such as amethysts and citrine
to a group of pearl growers, who agreed
to try his idea. They implanted the round
gems into the oysters. After a few years, they
harvested the pearls and the oysters had, in
fact, grown a pearl around the gemstones.
He then started carving the pearls to expose
their gemstone centers.

That’s amazing. And now they’re a big

part of his line?
Yes, and we have those in the store. They are
absolutely gorgeous.

From an operational standpoint, what is

your highest priority here at Massey’s?
I would look at that in two ways. First,
our day-to-day function is to supply our
customers with a piece of jewelry that they
want, whether it is out of the showcase of
something we make for them. That is, to
supply them with the best quality that we
can at the best price we can.
We strive to constantly keep our prices as
low as possible because the more affordable
we can make a piece of jewelry, the [easier]
it is for a customer to purchase it.
The second part…is to help people who
All new clients will receive,
have pieces of jewelry that need to be
taken care of, whether it’s cleaning, repair, one professional, photo session
at 1/2 the regular price
whatever. It is to give them the best service
of refurbishing what they have. We do
pretty much anything in repairs. Our bench
jeweler has years of experience, and she
doesn’t like to just fix something, she wants
throughout the month of April.
to get it back to [looking] as new as it can

MARKLAW
be.
So, it is a dual [priority]. Not only do we
want our customers to find the best new
pieces they want, but we also want to help AWARD WINNING WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY
them maintain what they already have. VVV

714 E. 2nd Ave. Rome GA 30161 706.295.5313 www.marklawportraits.com

vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 19

 Known for cranking out as many
acts of kindness as it does its
delicious “Rotolos”, is it really any
wonderANA’SDELI has been in
business a quarter-century?

25years
AND
Counting textJosh busby
photossabrina wilson

20 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine

vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 21
 It wasn’t always the deli that it is today.
Originally, Ana’s was a simple cheese and
sandwich shop, but as time went on, owner
Ana Williamon started adding dishes such
as Lasagna, and offered a refund to anyone
who didn’t like what they received. Needless
to say, there were no returns, and Ana’s has

...A FAMILY OF
FOUR WAS EVICTED
FROM AN AREA
HOTEL, AND THEIR
CHURCH TOLD
THEM TO COME
TO ANA’S. FOR THE
NEXT FEW DAYS
THEY STOPPED BY,
AND WILLIAMON
HELPED FEED THEM
AND GIVE THEM
A PLACE TO REST
THEIR FEET.
been building customer loyalty ever since.
Williamon herself describes the deli as a
mixture of Italian and Spanish influences,
and says that when her bookkeepers tell
her she is giving away too much food, she
replies, “I don’t care. It’s what makes my
customers happy.”
And making customers happy is what
Ana’s Deli is all about.
In fact, the customers who come to see
her regularly are people she knows by name,
and people who appreciate the quality of

W hen walking into Ana’s Deli, it

instantly becomes apparent that
this is not your typical sandwich shop.
There is an eclectic mix of individuals
dining inside, ranging from businesspeople
to blue-collar laborers. The menu reads
“Where Friends Meet,” and, after a thorough
inspection, this truly seems to be the case.
Celebrating its 25th anniversary as
a staple of Rome’s daytime restaurant
establishment, Ana’s continues to thrive by
serving its clientele with the same quality
it has since opening its doors. And voted
“Best Sandwich in Rome” by the Rome
News-Tribune this past year, it comes as
little surprise that as so many restaurants
have gone under in the last quarter-century,
Ana’s has managed to weather the winds of
economic change.
 close to dying. In response, she quickly
coordinated and oversaw a plan that would
allow the boy’s parents to travel all the way
to America to be with him.
In another tale of goodwill, a family of
four was evicted from an area hotel, and
their church told them to come to Ana’s.

...VOTED “BEST SANDWICH IN ROME”

the food she serves. When Ana is not at the
shop, customers ask where she is and when
will she return.
In addition to her role as a business
owner, Ana is also a family woman. Her
husband, Mark, works at the deli alongside
her, and says he enjoys the job as much
as she does. She also has four daughters
BY THE ROME NEWS-TRIBUNE, IT
COMES AS LITTLE SURPRISE THAT...
ANA’S HAS MANAGED TO WEATHER
THE WINDS OF ECONOMIC CHANGE.
ranging in age from 9 to 27.
But in between being a wife, mother and
businesswoman, Williamon still manages
to make time for volunteer work, much of
which goes into helping Rome’s low-income
Hispanic community. A customer of Ana’s
once relayed a story to her about a 17-year-
old boy who was in the hospital and very
For the next few days they stopped by, and
Williamon helped feed them and give them
a place to rest their feet. The family later told
her that she gave them hope that everything
was going to work out for them, and that
because of her they would be alright.
But getting back to the food: With a menu
detailing over 25 delectable dishes to choose
from, there is certainly something here that
will tempt anyone who has an appreciation
for down home, reasonably priced cuisine.
After all, this is “Where Friends Meet”, and
after just one visit you will understand why.
VVV

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vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 23
 v
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ver•ti•cal in•te•gra•tion /vur-ti-kuhl in-ti-grey-shuhn/
1: absorption into a single firm, the capacity to better serve a specific market
by offering each of the components, fundamental to the development, production
and distribution of a product, concept or service; culminating in the firm’s
ability to lower production costs, by avoiding unnecessary price markups,
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After securing a host of skills,

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essential for us to successfully bring
northwest georgia, V3 Magazine,
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main 706.235.0748
fax 706.232.9163
email v3print2go@bellsouth.net
 (left to right) Sylvan instructor Kelly Leonard, owner Angela
Baron, fellow staffers Valerie Harper and Margie Hannah

26 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine

 With millions tutored worldwide and a
staff fit to bound every educational hurdle,
SYLVANLEARNINGCENTER of Rome suggests...

YOU DO THE
+ ++
textbrianfoster
photossabrinawilson

vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 27

“W e’re still here, we just moved
next door!” exclaims Angela Baron. “We
may not have a big sign out front, but we
are still here.”
As owner and executive director of
Rome’s Sylvan Learning Center, Angela
isn’t the least bit shy about expressing
her enthusiasm and love for her
profession. And last year’s short move
across East Third Street to 210 East Second
Avenue has further fueled her passion for
changing lives through education. More
classroom space, brighter learning areas,
and an overall more modern feel have been
the initial benefits for Baron and her staff
of highly trained teachers and tutors. “The
kids love the space when they come back
here,” she says. “It’s fun for us and for them.”
Sylvan Learning Center has over 1,100
branches worldwide, and in its 30-year
history has helped tutor over two million
children and adults, becoming one of the
world’s top providers of supplemental
education. Sylvan has been a fixture in
Rome for almost two decades, providing
tutorial services for all ages, grades,
learning needs and income levels. And
since 2004, Angela Baron and the Rome
branch have given over $400,000 in
scholarships to local students in need of
financial aid, allowing them to take part in
Sylvan’s range of programs.
“Parents that have worked with us
know that not only is Sylvan a place where
they can bring their children for…help
in homework or SAT primers,” Baron
says, “but they can come in and pick up a
28 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine
workbook or learning tools…” From guiding
a young first-grader through his or her first
sentences to helping adults with continuing
education, Angela is confident that her
team can help.
Jonathan Ingram, who has post-
secondary and graduate education in a
number of fields and is one of Sylvan’s more
popular tutors, offers not only a writing
program, but also a variety of services to
some of the older students. “I work with
a lot of the upper-level students,” he says,
“focusing on test prep, test taking, SAT
prep. I also work with people who are
“THE KIDS LOVE THE SPACE
WHEN THEY COME BACK HERE.
IT’S FUN FOR US AND FOR THEM.”
in upper-level math courses (the Sylvan
Advanced Math program).
“Outside of the regular advanced
math program, I do a lot of one-on-one
homework support; trying to keep them up
[to speed] in their classes, while at the same
time filling in the gaps.”
Known for its personalized approach,
Sylvan offers an environment for students
to shine and become active participants
in their own day-to-day growth. “To start
out,” Angela explains, “a parent is going to
call and we are going to try to get as much
information as we can about their child,
their learning situation and what they may
need help in. ‘I want my child above grade
level; my child needs to catch up in math;
my child need SAT prep’; whatever it might
be. We will do a consultation, and if no
assessment is needed, we can move forward
with the plan from there.
“It’s personalized, individualized for the
child. If they need an assessment because
we don’t know why they are struggling in
school, we will perform various batteries
and pinpoint the exact skill that they
missed or didn’t learn in school.”
Aside from growing classrooms and
common learning deficiencies children
may have, Angela sees other factors that
may lead to a student falling behind
their peers in certain areas. “Perhaps the
school didn’t cover a certain area in their
lessons, it wasn’t part of the curriculum,
or maybe the student never grasped the
concept before the class moved on to
something else. Everyone in the...world
has what we call ‘skill gaps’, certain things
that we don’t know or have a harder time
understanding. And when we find these
skill gaps we can build a program for the
student.”
This ethos centered on personal attention
continues beyond the walls of Sylvan. As
the saying goes, “education begins in the
home,” and this is something Angela and
Sylvan have taken to heart with their series
of seminars for parents. While teachers
undergo years of schooling and training
before stepping into the classroom, parents
are often taking on this role unprepared—
and nightly.
“It’s important for us, too,” Baron
stresses, “to help parents at home know
how to help their children. Every parent has
been confused by a third-grade worksheet
that their child has brought home at some
point. We want for them to feel empowered
and know that they can help, so we offer a
number of [parental] seminars.”
Aside from monthly seminars, Sylvan
also offers numerous educational materials
for parents to employ at home, regardless of
whether or not their child has enrolled in a
tutoring program.
In addition to the role Sylvan plays
in educating outside its doors, it
uses a comprehensive online support
system. Different schools adopt different
textbooks and workbooks year-to-year for a
variety of subjects, of course, leaving third-
vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 29
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party tutors with the monumental task of
keeping track of what materials are being
used or building their own libraries. Luckily
for the staff at Sylvan of Rome, their facility
is outfitted with nearly every resource they
could ever need.
As an independent owner, Angela likens
Sylvan’s support to “a strong man that
stands behind me. Sylvan has created this
from parents and students expressing their
gratitude for, and, oftentimes, amazement
at the dramatic improvements they have
witnessed in their child’s classroom
performance. Report cards that once labeled
a child a D student now show an A; an F
is now a B. One local student increased
his SAT score 500 points through Sylvan’s
test prep courses, a number that could be
the difference in

“EVERY PARENT HAS BEEN whether or not he

is accepted into
CONFUSED BY A THIRD-GRADE the college of his

WORKSHEET THAT THEIR dreams.

School is
CHILD HAS BROUGHT HOME AT tough, too often

SOME POINT. WE WANT THEM overcrowded, and

full of enough
TO FEEL EMPOWERED AND distraction to

KNOW THAT THEY CAN HELP...” derail some of our

most dedicated
students. Letters
incredible database that is free to all of our and numbers oftentimes find more
schools to use during the daytime,” she popularity among children through video place to learn, and that’s precisely what
says. “It is a math site that has…almost any games and text messages than in books and Angela and the dedicated teachers at 210
math textbook that you can imagine. You math problems. Rome’s Sylvan Learning East Second are striving to provide. VVV
could say, ‘I don’t understand what is going Center has proven its personal approach
on on page 23’ of a certain textbook, and it works, and Angela Baron’s eight successful For more information on Sylvan Learning Center,
will provide you with a video explanation, years at the helm are a living testament. A please visit: www.tutoring.sylvanlearning.com or
printable notes, activities, extra questions, fun, pressure-free environment is the best call Rome’s Sylvan Learning office at 706.295.3484
and so on.
“It’s like having a tutor at home, so when
we have a student enroll in a program for
math, we give this to them. That goes along
with their program. So if they do have a On Lookout Mountain in Cloudland, GA
problem one night and we aren’t there, they
still feel like they’ve got it covered.” Camp Juliette Low
Sylvan offers online services that align For Girls, Ages 7-17
with the students’ personalized programs as
well, featuring videos, interactive problems One and two week sessions are available
and lessons taught by certified Sylvan June 6th - july 31st
tutors. The company also employs a number
of retired and vacationing teachers to work ACTIVITIES
as tutors, and a recent goal worldwide has
•Ropes Course
been to establish working relationships
with local schools and colleges in an effort •Climbing wall
to offer a more fluid and comprehensive •Archery
learning environment. •tennis
Sylvan of Rome has been a provider
of “No Child Left Behind” services for •hiking
a number of years, having worked with •overnights
both local school systems and those from •sailing
surrounding counties. Area colleges have
collaborated with Sylvan on SAT/ACT prep •canoeing
courses and college information seminars •swimming
for under-privileged students interested in •diving
pursuing post-secondary education. They
have also teamed up with area high schools, •Campfires
such as Chattooga County High, to offer •crafts
parent-approved group learning sessions to
•Horseback riding
Sylvan students on campus.
As one might expect, the number of
770.428.1062-Phone 770.428.1302-Fax
success stories are far too great to list. But
visit us on the web at www.CJL.org
Angela’s office is overflowing with letters
Email-info@CJL.org

vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 31

 A river
RUNS
Throughit: Georgia’s Ongoing Water Crisis
Collides with the Upper Flint
textbrian foster
photosbryan schroeder

w hen confronted with the term “endangered”, we often draw

upon years of reading National Geographic articles and
watching PBS nature specials. Instantly, images of polar bears, bald
eagles and giant pandas come to mind.
Awareness for some of the world’s most endangered species is
often measured in how well an animal can sell itself, for we are all
drawn to the majestic, the cute, the strong. Yet, some of these innate
leanings have saved some of Earth’s most celebrated animals from
extinction.
Recently, one of Georgia’s most celebrated natives found itself atop
another endangered list. It wasn’t the leatherback sea turtle or the
North Atlantic right whale, but the Flint River.
In the spring of 2009, American Rivers, the leading river
conservation organization in the United States, named the Flint
River the second most endangered river in the nation. The reason:
proposed water supply dams. (continued on pg. 33)

32 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine

vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 33
The American Rivers report cites recent
proposals by U.S. Representatives Nathan
Deal of Gainesville (also a current Georgia
gubernatorial candidate) and Lynn
Westmoreland of Grantville, which sought
$10 million in federal dollars to fund a study
on the potential for a series of dams and
reservoirs on the upper Flint River. Fear
amidst the recent two-year drought faced by
North Georgia, and coinciding with metro
Atlanta’s ever-increasing consumption of
water, spurred many Georgia leaders to
reevaluate statewide water policies, with
Reps. Deal and Westmoreland setting their
sights upon the Flint.
Though these proposals were eventually
scrapped, recent events have caused even
greater concern for the river’s future, and
talks of damming the Flint or its tributaries
is again filling the capitol back rooms of
Washington and Atlanta.
In July of last year, a federal judge ruled
that beginning in 2012, the state could
no longer use water from Lake Lanier (a
reservoir of the Chattahoochee) to supply
metro Atlanta’s residential and commercial
needs. Currently, the leaders of Georgia,
Alabama and Florida are having closed-
door meetings with private interest leaders
to decide the fate of our public resources
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34 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine
in this war born of crisis. However, this is
but the latest chapter in a decades-long
struggle between the triumverate of states
with regard to water rights, where dams and
reservoirs seem to be a popular topic.
In an October 2009 statement, American
Rivers again highlighted the growing
concern for the Flint in light of the
news regarding Lake Lanier. “Governor
Perdue is considering a multitude of new
reservoirs on the tributaries to the Flint
and Chattahoochee rivers. Over a dozen
proposed sites are on tributaries of the
upper Flint. Meanwhile, water efficiency
measures are capable of achieving nearly
100 percent reduction in withdrawals from
Lanier, at a far lower cost to taxpayers than
new reservoir construction.”
The Flint, one of Georgia’s most beautiful,
wild and diverse rivers, could be one of the
first true casualties in this tri-state “water
war”. But it is not the mythical Mississippi,
nor is it the raging Colorado; it lacks the
name recognition outside its own river
basin. One trip down its waters or a hike to
the top of its rising bluffs, though, will sell
anyone on the river’s worthiness to exist as
nature intended.
Winding some 350 miles before joining
the Chattahoochee at Lake Seminole,
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(next to Santa Fe Cattle Co.)
and later forming the Apalachicola River
in Florida, the Flint cuts a path through
multiple geological and ecological
landscapes. From its rocky banks in the
central Georgia piedmont to its sandy
shoreline in the coastal plain, though the
river has its rather unglamorous genesis as
groundwater seeping from the crystalline
rocks below Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson
International Airport, it boasts a watershed
of over 8,400 square miles in the west
central portion of the state; providing for
countless plants and animals, as well as over
600,000 residents living in the basin.
The northern-most section of the Flint
River, the upper Flint, works its way south
through Georgia’s Piedmont region and
is part of one of the longest free-flowing
segments of any river in the United
States. After emerging from is subterranean
origins south of Atlanta, it quickly enters an
ecosystem extremely vital to its downstream
health. The riparian wetlands in the extreme
northern section of the river, in Clayton
County, work as both a filter and a flood
plain for much of the storm water run-off
that falls on the increasingly urbanized area
surrounding this part of the river.
The Flint, in a sense, provides itself with
both a natural reservoir and contamination

filter in this area, where heavy volumes of
run-off can swell its banks in a matter of
minutes during bouts of heavy rain.
Considered the most threatened segment
of the river, the upper Flint, from its
urban birth to the fall line swamps near
Montezuma, also bears perhaps the most
beautiful section of any navigable river in
the state. Home to a diverse range of flora
and fauna, the upper Flint is an extremely
unique ecosystem to Georgia—quite
possibly the only place hereabouts where
one can find mountain laurel and other
upstate plants, sharing the same hillside
banks with blue-stem palmetto and low-
hanging Spanish moss, both synonymous
with the coastal South.
There are four federally endangered
mussels located in the upper Flint, and
a fisherman’s favorite, the Shoal Bass, is
found only in the Flint and Chattahoochee
River basins. Some of the pristine public
and private forests that buffer the Flint
are home to black bear, wild turkey and
deer, providing an ideal setting for local
sportsmen to hunt. The only part of the state
known for its mountains and high elevations
is North Georgia, home to the foothills of
the Appalachians, but the west central part
of the state is also home to a small range of
ridges that
run east to ...THE FLINT, ONE OF GEORGIA’S
west out of
Alabama,
MOST BEAUTIFUL, WILD AND
north of DIVERSE RIVERS, COULD BE ONE
Columbus. OF THE FIRST TRUE CASUALTIES
The Flint
River, just
IN THIS TRI-STATE “WATER WAR”.
south of Molena, Ga., enters this region,
and for millions of years has cut, grinded
and winded its way through the high hills
and resistant rocks. This segment of the
Flint is over 20 miles in length, and is home
to numerous shoals and rapids. With high
ridges rising from both its eastern and
western banks, it’s a popular spot with
canoeists and kayakers, not only for its
challenging waters, but for its beautiful
vistas. At the south end of this mountainous
stretch lies Pine Mountain and Sprewell
Bluff State Park, which offer visitors—from
both water and land—some of the most
beautiful and rugged scenery in the state. It
wouldn’t be unheard of for one to double-
check their map to ensure they hadn’t
traveled north to the Blue Ridge Mountains.
But the geologic features that make the
upper Flint attractive to those seeking
adventure or scenic beauty also appeal
to those attempting to impede its natural
flow. The high bluffs along the upper Flint,
especially the cliff banks at Sprewell Bluff,
are prime real estate for any proposed dam
or reservoir.
SPREWELL BLUFF
The recent discussions
and increasing threat of dam
construction at this location
are nothing new. “As early as
1910,” writes Doug Allen in
a 1974 issue of The Georgia
Conservancy Magazine, “the
Flint River Power Company
began plans to purchase land
for a dam site at Sprewell
Bluff, and during the period
from 1912 through the 1920s
culminated the effort.”
For the next 50 years,
Sprewell Bluff and the upper
Flint were listed in a number
of public works proposals,
reaching a head in the early
1970s. In 1971 through
1972, the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers began revising
its plans for the Sprewell
Bluff Project, a congressional
works project started many
years before with the goal of
developing a dam and power facilities at Bluff Dam”, Carter makes his case:
Sprewell Bluff. Reaction to the Corp of “I have personally read all the written
Engineers’ new plans and its Environmental reports and transcripts of oral testimony
Impact Statement were swift, and many made available to me. I have consulted with
conservation groups and state agencies more than fifty delegations. I have analyzed
worked to several thousand letters and telegrams
thwart the and numerous petitions and resolutions.
Sprewell
Bluff Project
I have traversed the area twice by canoe
and twice by helicopter.... In my mind,
from ever there is no doubt that I made the correct
getting off recommendation or decision.”
the ground.
The Scenic
Jimmy Carter, in 1973, knew that the fight
was far from over (his ruling was almost
Rivers Bill, a Georgia legislative proposal overturned the next year by the General
in 1972, sought to grant protective status Assembly), and, in time, those who saw
to this segment of the Flint and deride the the importance of a wild upper Flint River
Corps of Engineers’ plans. Sadly, it failed. would gain strength. “I am convinced that
What happened next was an amazingly among Georgians not motivated directly
concerted effort on the behalf of concerned by financial profit a heavy majority oppose
citizens, state and national wildlife agencies construction of this dam and other similar
and inquisitive politicians, to shed light projects,” Carter continues. “This majority
on a dam proposal that would be neither will probably increase in future years with
financially nor environmentally beneficial to a growing awareness of these irreplaceable
the state. U.S. Senator Herman Talmadge of natural resources.”
Georgia led the effort to expose the financial
downside of the project by requesting a Beginning in 2006 and continuing through
federal accounting review. The U.S. Bureau the summer of 2008, Georgia faced one the
of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife and the worse natural disasters in its history: severe,
Department of Natural Resources made prolonged drought. River-fed lakes such as
public its opposition to the project as Allatoona and Lanier began drying up as the
well, recommending the land be set aside as rain refused to fall. Governor Sonny Perdue
a park. prayed to the rain gods, but the clouds
In October 1973, then Governor Jimmy refused to cooperate.
Carter vetoed the Sprewell Bluff Project, Though an extremely rare event in
citing inadequate evidence from the U.S. Georgia, the recent drought has given
Army Corps of Engineers to justify the rise to justifiable concern across Georgia
effort. With this veto, he also established as to how the state will provide residents
a park, which later became Sprewell Bluff and businesses with water in the near
State Park. In his “Statement on the Sprewell future. With unchecked growth and poor
vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 35
urban resource planning, the metro area
will face the brunt force of the extreme
acts of nature. Droughts will be felt
significantly harder due to a lack of strong
water conservation practices by the City
of Atlanta and surrounding municipalities.
Because of the increase in millions of square
feet of impermeable surfaces in the metro
region, severe flooding and polluted water
systems—as witnessed this past fall—will be
even more catastrophic.
In regard to responsible growth and
public policy, Atlanta faces some important
choices as it moves forward as one of
the fastest growing major cities in the
country. Its failure to do so will not only
affect Atlantans, but the state as a whole.
A growing Atlanta is evermore thirsty,
and with the threat of the region being cut
off from its supply of water in Lake Lanier,
it is looking for broader options to quench
its thirst. “Because of the relative location of
the Flint to Atlanta,” says Bryan Schroeder of
the Georgia Conservancy, “the
river will always be under threat ...A TESTAMENT TO GEORGIA’S
of being utilized as a site for a
reservoir. In the 1960s and 70s,
DIVERSE ECOSYSTEMS, THE FLINT
the issue was the hydroelectric REMAINS A GRAVELY THREATENED
potential of the Flint. Now it’s PLACE WHOSE FATE COULD BE SEALED
the potential to take advantage
of the water resources the river
WITH...THE STROKE OF A PEN.
could provide.”
Atlanta’s first step to easing its water crisis
should start at home, however, and working
to ensure responsible water consumption
should be its primary goal—as opposed
to disrupting a downstate watershed that
is home to hundreds of thousands of
people, numerous endangered species, and
hundreds of business and farms that rely on
its flow.
Studies and further analysis of Atlanta’s
water system have shown extremely
negligent care of its infrastructure. Up
to 15 percent of the water pumped from
the Chattahoochee and Etowah Rivers en
route to Atlanta residents never reaches
the tap, due to both leaky municipal and
residential pipes. The Georgia Water
Coalition estimates that this accounts for
approximately 60 million gallons of water
lost every day in metro Atlanta, and close to
a third of all the water taken daily from Lake
Lanier.
Almost 40 years after the Sprewell
Bluff Project was defeated by the work of
both concerned individuals and statewide
organizations, today, groups from across
Georgia are taking a stand to help protect
not just the Flint, but other watersheds,
including the Coosa River Basin. With the
hope of ensuring “clean, safe and reliable
water” for all of Georgia’s citizens, 25 of
the state’s leading wildlife and conservation
36 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine
organizations have teamed up to urge the
State General Assembly to take a serious
look at immediate water conservation goals
in 2010. Their agenda has been aptly named,
“Leading Georgia Into a Sustainable Future”,
and the goal is clear:
“Instead of wasting time and money on
litigation and massive storage proposals, we
(the state of Georgia) must implement the
fastest, least expensive measures to meet
our water needs. By aggressively managing
demand for water before increasing water
supplies, we can reduce the burden on the
taxpayers, avoid unnecessary capital costs
and conserve water resources.”
This coalition is proposing that the
state “require new multi-family residential
buildings to install meters on each unit to
more accurately measure and charge for
water consumption, known as submetering;
reduce leaks in pipes that carry water to
our communities; restrict daytime outdoor
watering; and require new development to
meet higher water efficiency standards.”
Before the concrete settles on the floor of
the Flint, the state must look at the swift and
relatively cheap conservation measures that
have been proven successful in other cities.
“Look at how much water some…western
states receive. They would be jumping for
joy if they had Georgia’s annual rainfall,”
says Schroeder. “Instead of making the
responsible choice of conservation and
municipal investment, we are seriously
considering destroying the upper Flint for a
reservoir?
“That’s a decision the Georgia
Conservancy has fought in the past and will
continue to fight in the future. The Flint
must remain undammed.”
Many feel that not only should the state
of Georgia and various local governments
be responsible for enacting these urgent
measures, but that the citizens of the state
must step up and do their part. So far, they
have—when asked—but greater action is
needed.
The Georgia Environmental Protection
Division estimates that Georgia residents
have reduced outdoor water usage by up to
28 percent since 2007, proof that the citizens
of Georgia are willing and able to do their
part to help conservation efforts. Mindful
water consumption in the home, emphasis
on the priority of fixing leaks, and the taking
advantage of tax rebates on water saving
appliances will be another step in the right
direction.
The Flint River has been, and will always
be, at the forefront of any future dam
and reservoir proposals due to its unique
geography. But now is one of the Flint’s
most dangerous hours, as state officials are
both directly (through dam proposals) and
indirectly (through lack of conservation)
deciding its fate.
Rep. Nathan Deal, a strong proponent of
using the Flint as a band-aid approach to
healing Georgia’s water issues, is currently
running for governor, and he has the
potential to strongly push new dam and
reservoir projects through should he decide
to do so. Projects that will not only forever
damage the river and its wildlife, but that
could take up to 15 years and billions of
dollars to complete.
Executive director Gordon Rogers of
the Flint Riverkeeper, the Flint’s leading
advocacy organization, sees other
threats to the river’s health and
survival. “Significantly altered
hydrology, due to the urbanization
of north Metro Georgia and to the
over-pumping of subterranean
aquifers [on the lower Flint],” he
says, is also an important issue
concerning water flow.
Pollution is a major issue, too, he adds.
The Flint is constantly under risk from
“hundreds of miles of impaired waters due
to urban run-off, agricultural run-off and
airborne mercury pollution.”
The Flint River, though still a relatively
clean and beautiful one, faces the same
threats from pollution and toxins that all
rivers face.
Having traveled much of Georgia, visiting
some of its most remote and scenic areas,
there is no doubt that the Flint is one of
our most beautiful and unique treasures. A
river that cuts through the state like a
knife, exposing the hidden marvels of
both a mountainous north and subtropical
south. Many of the diverse animal species
that best represent our state can be found
swimming its waters or roaming its banks.
From wild hogs and black bears to alligators
and snapping turtles; from mountain cliffs in
the north to the deep, cool, aquifer springs
south of Albany. Truly a unique river, as
well as a testament to Georgia’s diverse
ecosystems, the Flint remains a gravely
threatened place whose fate could be sealed
with a few backdoor handshakes and the
stroke of a pen. VVV
For more information regarding the
endangered Flint River and Georgia’s water
crisis, please visit georgiaconservancy.org,
flintriverkeeper.org, garivers.org/gawater,
and gastateparks.org/info/sprewell.
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Taking the tech market by storm, the

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O
ver the past 10 years, Google has
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Launched in 1997 by two Stanford graduate different than other Now, you may not think you have any
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Yet, while most computer users simply game. phones has been spawned in the past couple
know the company for its Internet search But while making the jump to email is but of years—including, and most notably, the
engine, in recent years, Google has been out one area in which Google has succeeded, Motorola Droid (left).
to prove that it is no one-trick pony. And it is the newer, more unexplored areas of The Droid has garnered rave reviews,
so far, they have made reportedly selling 250,000 units in the week
tremendous progress in ...WHILE MOST COMPUTER USERS following its release, and was estimated to
branching out to other
areas in computing.
SIMPLY KNOW THE COMPANY FOR ITS break over a million units sold worldwide by
the end of 2009.
The first in this line INTERNET SEARCH ENGINE, IN RECENT On Jan. 5 of this year, the first Google-
of successes would YEARS, GOOGLE HAS BEEN OUT TO based smart phone, the Nexus One (top),
certainly be Gmail, PROVE THAT IT IS NO ONE-TRICK PONY. was released. Word around the campfire is
Google’s free Web mail still mixed, but software upgrades and newly
service, introduced as an “invite only” beta modern tech where the company is aiming available applications tend to drive the
back in ’04. It has since grown to service 146 to divide and conquer. These include the smart phone market, so only time will tell of
million users worldwide, and now boasts Android operating system for mobile its true potential.
a whopping 7 GB (gigabytes) of free email phones, Google Voice, and their most recent This brings us to another new application,
storage for each account. innovative concept, Google Wave. Google Voice, a service that allows users
Not only does it have a ridiculous amount First, let’s begin with the most visible new to have a Google phone number in his or

38 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine

her own area code capable of forwarding
calls to multiple phones based on how it is
set up. Essentially,
it allows you to
answer the call
on any of the
preconfigured
phones, screen
calls as they come
in, and switch
the call from one
phone to another
while the call is
still active.
In addition, the service also provides
features such as voicemail, conference
calling, unwanted call blocking, and even
transcribed voicemails sent to your phone
via text message. The transcription addition
is very cool, as well as the call screening
feature, which makes you feel like you’ve
traveled back to those good old days when
you could just let the phone go to the
machine, then listen to the message as it is
being left for you.
Of course, it is completely up to the
individual as to whether he or she wants to
answer the call during screening (e.g., if it
is important), but all things considered, it
is a tremendous feature that has been left
virtually extinct in light of the popularity of
mobile phones over the last decade.
The Google Voice application is available
for some mobile phones at this time, to be
used for placing outgoing calls while using
the service.
As of today, Google Voice is only available
on a per-invite basis, so if you have a Gmail
account it is definitely worth signing up
(especially given that it is free of charge),
and is a pretty neat tool to boot.
Last, but certainly not least, is the newest
project that Google has embarked upon
over the past year: Google Wave.
Building on their previous successes in
online document collaboration via their
Gmail service,
Google decided to
make a completely
Web-driven
application that
combines all of its
email, document
and chat capabilities into one mashed up
program that aims to reinvent email as we
now know it.
Simply put, what Google Wave Wave
allows you to do is work with multiple
fellow users in the same “Wave” to share
and edit documents in real time, engage in
live conversations, and fully collaborate with
others in a singular environment—all while
integrating email and chat. These “Waves”
can be built upon over any span of time, and
can be played back to see which user made
certain changes over the life of the “Wave.”
In addition, Wave can automatically
fix spelling errors, and has the ability to
translate up to 40 languages using Google’s
extensive automated translation tools.
Though merely in the early stages of its
production, and so ahead of its time that
its almost detrimental, Wave is showing
great promise for the future as it is currently
experiencing day-to-day upgrades in its
initial beta stage. With only 100,000 users
receiving a September ’09 invite to start,
Google has since begun to hand out more
and more invites, and are giving even luckier
recipients a limited number of invites to
pass along to friends and coworkers.
As we have seen, Google is continuing its
push to set the pace in today’s innovative
tech market, pumping out as many
forward-thinking devices and applications
as possible, showing no sign of slowdown.
With more and more new products coming
to fruition and the constant perfecting of
existing technologies, Google is poised to
stay at the forefront of the game. VVV
vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 39
 THEROODREVIEW
withMATTROOD
Cormac McCarthy’s take on the
modern-day apocalypse, The Road,
leaves one critic torn on style issues,
intrigued by the doom of mankind
THE ROAD TO
CONFUSION
I
f you like fuzzy things and happiness,
don’t read Cormac McCarthy’s new
book, The Road. That’s not to say it isn’t
a winner. In fact, just the opposite. Then
again, I can’t stand fuzzy things and haven’t
spoken to happiness in weeks.
Set in the post-apocalyptic destitution of
a dying planet, nameless protagonists Man
and Boy scavenge the roadside for their
next meal or workable tool, all while hiding
out from marauding gangs of rapists and
cannibals. The world has turned to dust and
ash, and nothing is
left alive except a ...the road’s composition
few lost remnants
of mankind, who flowed much more smoothly
is slowly becoming than no country [for old
extinct.
Typically, I men], but there were still tires
don’t particularly
favor McCarthy’s
damming up the current.
writing. His most popular work, 2005’s
No Country For Old Men, would have
been indecipherable if I hadn’t seen the
Coen Brothers’ fantastic film adaptation
first. And though McCarthy does pen
beautifully scripted images and phrases,
they’re horribly placed in his manic stream
of consciousness style. Two sentences in
one paragraph can be placed back-to-back
and have nothing to do with the other.
One sentence might not have a subject or
predicate. One might be dialogue with little
punctuation or no indication that someone
is even speaking.
40 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine
Granted, The Road’s composition
flowed much more smoothly than
No Country, but there were still
big rubber tires damming up the
current. Constantly I was forced to reread
the same page six times (though it should be
noted that I have a horrible attention span).
The story is bleak with a hopeful kind of
ending. After some mysterious catastrophe
turned the world and its population to
rubble, father and son follow a dangerous
road headed south to the ocean, where the
father thinks the Earth’s now London-style
weather might get better.
It’s not very immersive in summary, but
the heavy detail to location and gripping
relationship between boy and dad keep
the reader heavily intrigued. Page by page
you grow increasingly concerned with the
characters’ well-being and survival, which
is good given that for some 300 of those
pages they are the only characters you
meet—besides mass-raping cannibals and
random NPCs.
McCarthy’s universe is barren and
dangerous, and there’s never any indication
as to what type of apocalypse wiped it
out. The man does entertain flashbacks in
random paragraphs, though mainly just
about the Boy’s suicidal mother, which
doesn’t give much insight as to what
happened to the rest of the world.
At first I credited this lack of background
to lazy writing, but by the end I appreciated
the anonymity of the catastrophe, as well as
the characters’ names and vague ending.
If the boy had been named Matt and the
dad named Bruce, and they were both from
North Georgia and the world died of alcohol
poisoning, then I think it would’ve been
harder to walk away when I finished. Luckily
I didn’t have to carry any leftover baggage
afterwards. (Which is good because I’m a
man’s man and we prefer to pack light.)
If you’re a guy’s guy and need a book to
read, then Cormac McCarthy’s The Road is
a good, easy pickup. Just skip through the
paragraphs that don’t make much sense and
refer to the movie tie-in cover for what’s
happening.
However, if you’ve got daddy issues or a
newborn baby, skip this one unless you’re
really confident in that plywood bomb
shelter you built before Y2K. As for the
female readers out there, some of you may
like this dark cloud of a book. That is, if you
don’t like fuzzy things and happiness. VVV
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vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 41

 INSIDE&OUT
withDIANNAEDWARDS

LOVE STORIES
IN THE TIME
Ofcasserole
men were too high wonderment about the life they missed.
and then one day Measuring themselves in combat,
I met a man who living among heroic men. That kind of
exceeded them. companionship is a love story, too, and one
He was my friend that most women cannot understand. I
for years before he didn’t when I visited Columbus, Ga.’s Fort
became my husband. Benning just before the Ranger Battalions
Today, married deployed to Somalia in 1993.
to that friend, I Here’s an excerpt from my journal entry
hear this all the about the Ranger Social that night. “Bill” is
time: “How did you a young Ranger who lost a leg in Panama—
two meet?” That and his sweetheart right after that:
question is never the

I
was married for the first time in the Year real question, as the saying goes. …I have never in my life seen such beauty
of the Cheese Dome. It was 1978, Jimmy But few men are willing to come right out as I saw in that room. At least two hundred
Carter was President, and social Atlanta and ask about Eric’s mystical Delta Force men—and each one of them strong, proud,
served cheese under beautiful and powerful. It was
glass with matching for men, there’s wonderment a solid wall of testosterone;
little knives that rarely
cut butter, much less about the life they missed. palpable from the moment I
walked in.
cheese. measuring themselves in combat, There was a bond between
The cheese domes
latest longer than the living among heroic men. that the men in that room that no
bond with a woman could ever
marriage. At the end kind of companionship is a love approach. They were utterly and
of it, I emerged with a
basset hound named story, too, and one that most completely satisfied with each

women cannot understand.

Lancelot whose dignity
sustained me through
many a dark night. Lance and I were
together for 15 years. He sleeps beside me
still, in a burled walnut box.
The power to sustain. Even when it comes
from an animal, love can do that.
During my single years, I lived in a cabin
that smelled of heart pine and flagstone. I
had friends, family, my work—dreams all
around me. I was told that my standards in
powers, and few women are comfortable
asking how I snagged a man like Eric at
my age. So I graciously help, supplying the
answers I think they really want. Which are,
variously: We met cute and Lethal Weapon
was involved. He walks on water. And I was
the first woman there with the casserole.
But I always sense the other, larger
questions in the air. For men, there’s
other. Yes, there were women
there. Wives and mothers and
daughters and the inevitable
Hooters girls. But these men were focused on
each other. The air was vivid around them
and everyone else faded into the background.
When Bill came in, something holy
happened. He had a hunger on his face that
squeezed my heart. He crutched up the stairs
and watched from the balcony above.
When he finally came down and walked
into those men, they swallowed him up. They

42 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine

surrounded him; stood in line to talk to him. Gordon knew they were going to their like Rome and Cave Spring, but in the wider
They shook his hand, slapped him on the deaths when they asked not once, but three world, there’s still debate among women on
back, saluted him and said, “How ya doing, times, to rescue downed Black Hawk pilot if, when and why to marry. There’s even a
Panama?” Michael Durant. new concept called “settling” (for Mr. OK)
From all the way across the room, I The courage to stand up. Whether it with plenty of logic behind it.
watched him grow younger, taller, stronger. comes from soldiers, fire and police officers, Tell that one to Mrs. Sheila Shaw of Cave
He was visibly made whole by the respect the members of Doctors Without Borders Spring, who married John Shaw, one of
and affection of those our town’s most beloved
soldiers.
Here, with them, he was for women, any conversation gentlemen, 48 years ago
because he “made her toes
perfect again. Better than about love is ultimately a curl.” The Shaws didn’t

conversation about what’s

perfect—he was heroic. build their marriage on toe
With their unflinching curling alone, though. Then,
acceptance, they gave him
back his wholeness. possible in their own lives... as now, they had enough
lifting-up and standing-up
I wished for him that he
could stay here in Never- there’s even a new concept between them to share with
friends all over this country.
Never Land with these called “settling” (for mr. ok) That’s called abundance

with plenty of logic behind it.

ever young, ever strong,
not-Lost Boys who alone
among all the creatures
on earth had the power to heal him…
The power to lift up. Whether it comes from
friends, husbands, parents, teachers or a
community, love can do that.
I’m sure those Rangers knew that night
that they were on their way to Somalia. Just
as I know that once in battle in Mogadishu,
Delta operators Randy Shugart and Gary
now in Haiti, love can do that, too.
Those are heroic aspects of love but they
are not—hear me on this, now—limited to
the province of heroes. We all have the gifts
of lifting up and standing up within us.
For women, any conversation about love
is ultimately a conversation about what’s
possible in their own lives. It may be hard
to believe here in (mostly) marrying towns
and love can do that, too.
Can fill you up until the
happiness just runs right
out of you into other people. The truest
hallmark of falling in love is a rising up of
the spirit to become its best self.
That might be the real story women
want to hear when they talk to me about
my husband. Because women, if not men,
usually know what I represent: I am living
proof that the infinitely romantic can always
happen. With or without a casserole. VVV

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vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 43

 !"#$%&,'(%&%'56
!"#$%&'%($")*+ *7#,8!96%'%"&6,"&6:;#,9*7#,<7;6=%*&6
Dr. Paul Harton,
a surgeon at
Harbin Clinic Eye
Center, answers
your questions
about 21st-century
options for
corrective surgery...
When discussing vision problems,
sometimes the term “refractive error” is
mentioned. What does that mean?
In the normal eye, light is focused precisely
onto the retina to produce clear vision. This
is done by two structures, the cornea (front
windshield of the eye) and the lens (inside the
eye).
If light is not focused sharply on the
retina, a “refractive error” occurs and
results in blurry vision. Refractive errors
include nearsightedness, farsightedness and
astigmatism.
Changing the shape of the cornea alters the
way light is focused on the retina, making it
possible to correct refractive errors.
When did laser surgery originate in the
U.S. and how effective is it in correcting
vision?
In 1995, the Excimer laser was introduced
and this “cool laser” technology
revolutionized cornea-based refractive
surgery. The use of this laser in LASIK
surgery is familiar to most, but the
original use was for a procedure called
Photorefractive Keratectomy (PRK). In a PRK
procedure, the laser is applied directly to the
surface of the cornea.
How is the Excimer used in LASIK and
PRK and how much recovery time is
needed?
In 1996, the Excimer laser was approved for
use in LASIK surgery in the United States.
LASIK has an additional step compared to
PRK. First a flap is created in the cornea,
usually with another type of laser. This flap
!"#$%&'(%&%')'*+,,-,,./000/123/214.
44 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine
Corrective Eye Surgery:
Seeing Your Options More Clearly
is laid back and the Excimer laser treatment
is applied to the deeper layers of the cornea.
The flap is then replaced allowing for quicker
healing.
While both PRK and LASIK are very
effective at correcting vision, most LASIK
patients can return to work the day after
surgery. PRK patients may require several
days before they can function normally.
With the recent addition of Intralase
technology, the LASIK flap can be cut
with a laser instead of a razor blade. This
“all laser” or “bladeless” LASIK approach
adds another degree of precision to this
already excellent procedure. This precision,
quick recovery time, and the ability to
correct nearsightedness, astigmatism and
farsightedness has made LASIK easily the
most popular refractive surgery procedure in
the world.
Is lens implant surgery an alternative
option to laser surgery?
Rather than reshape the natural surface of
the eye, it is possible to correct vision by
implanting a new lens inside the eye. The
most impressive of the lens-based options is
the Implantable Contact Lens or ICL.
The ICL is a powerful tool for the
correction of nearsightedness. I was
privileged to implant the first ICL in the state
of Georgia after FDA approval, and I have
been an instructor at many ICL certification
courses around the country.
The ICL is a very thin lens that is inserted
into the eye under minor sedation and placed
between the iris and natural lens. There are
no sutures and the ICL does not require
maintenance like a regular contact lens. This
procedure also does not require removal of
the natural lens already present in the eye.
Many nearsighted patients who are not
LASIK candidates often can be corrected
with the ICL. Even more impressive is the
fact that the ICL can be combined with
LASIK or PRK. This might be done for an
extremely nearsighted person or one with
significant astigmatism that cannot be
corrected by the ICL alone.
This combination of technologies, called
“bioptics”, allows us to correct patients who
would never have dreamed of having an
option just a few years ago.
Is there a lens-based method available for
older farsighted individuals, where LASIK
is not really on option?
Yes, another lens-based surgery is called a
Refractive Lens Exchange, or RLE.
Here, a lens is also implanted in the eye.
However, while ICL surgery does not require
the removal of the patient’s natural lens, in
an RLE the natural lens is first removed or
“exchanged” for another lens implant, as
would be done in a cataract surgery. It is
also possible to combine RLE with PRK or
LASIK, further increasing the range of this
procedure.
The options can be confusing. How do I
know what is best for my vision?
With so many options available, patients
should seek out a surgeon experienced in all
procedures to be sure they have all options
explained to them thoroughly. VVV
Dr. Harton practices at the Harbin Clinic Eye
Center in Rome as well as at several offices
throughout Northwest Georgia. He performs all
of the surgeries described in the interview above,
in addition to cataract surgery, and is a national
course instructor for the ICL procedure. Harton
has also lectured extensively on various refractive
surgery topics both in the U.S. and internationally.
Free refractive surgery consultations are available
by calling 706.233.8556. More information is also
available at www.harbinclinic.com/eyecenter.
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vini vidi vici / v3 magazine 45

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46 vini vidi vici / v3 magazine