anonymous comments

I just wanted to give everyone a quick heads-up about our comment policy because I've had some questions about it.
Just as we don't publish anonymous Letters to the Editor, we don't publish anonymous comments, especially if they make accusations (true or not) about those in the community. Similarly, we don't publish anything libelous.
I hope that clears the air. If you have any questions, just let me know.

online ordering at the Eno River Farmers Market

When I heard the Eno River Farmers Market was offering online ordering, I was super excited. I love getting fresh, local produce, but I can't often make the Saturday market hours offered by the bevy of local farmers markets. But ordering what I'd like Sunday or Monday and picking it up during the Wednesday market between 4 and 7 p.m.? That sounds perfect. So, once ordering opened, I decided to give it a try. Well, that's not quite true. I waited until almost the last minute Monday evening to give it a whirl.

But it was awesome.

It was super easy to just look at what the market producers were offering — everything from purple scallions and tons of summer squash to fresh eggs and meat — and just plop it into my online basket. Once you've decided on what you want, the site tallies everything up and gives you a rough estimate. Since some of the produce is priced by weight, the estimate may be a bit off. I have to say that, for me, the pricing was spot on.

Then, all I had to do was wait for Wednesday at 4 p.m. to arrive so I could head down to the Public Market House on E. Margaret Lane to pick up my produce. Even that was easy! For now, I just found Leila Wolfrum, market manager, and she rounded up all my purchases for me. I paid her and that was the end of it. Fresh, local produce in a way that fits into my schedule. I couldn't ask for more.

9 June 2010 paper

Here's some of what we've got in the paper this week:

• Incumbent faces young mom. School board chair Anne Medenblik faces parent advocate Laura Nicholson in a runoff later this month.
• Awards celebrate minority students. The Northern Orange Education Task Force honored minority students accomplishments at their third annual Sankofa awards.
• District sees literacy gains. Orange County Schools students who struggle with reading and took part in a literacy intervention called Whole to Part saw gains in their reading abilities.
• Day health center renamed for late senior advocate. On Thursday, May 27, the center was dedicated to Florence Gray Soltys, who pushed tirelessly for services for the elderly.

poem read at Hands for Habitat dedication

Orange High School construction teacher Mat Hamlett read a really great poem at the Hands for Habitat dedication by Edgar Albert Guest called "It Couldn't Be Done." I really enjoyed hearing him read it, so I hope you will enjoy reading it:

Somebody said that it couldn’t be done,
    But, he with a chuckle replied
That "maybe it couldn’t," but he would be one
    Who wouldn’t say so till he’d tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
    On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
    That couldn’t be done, and he did it.

Somebody scoffed: "Oh, you’ll never do that;
    At least no one has done it";
But he took off his coat and he took off his hat,
    And the first thing we knew he’d begun it.
With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,
    Without any doubting or quiddit,
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
    That couldn’t be done, and he did it.

There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,
    There are thousands to prophesy failure;
There are thousands to point out to you one by one,
    The dangers that wait to assail you.
But just buckle it in with a bit of a grin,
    Just take off your coat and go to it;
Just start to sing as you tackle the thing
    That "couldn’t be done," and you’ll do it.
(via Old Poetry.)

first paper of June 2010

As many I'm sure are aware, school is winding down for those on the traditional calendar, while HES students are getting ready for their summer intercession. Even so, there's still lots going on in the schools and in the town and county. So, here's what we've got for this week:

• PERDUE VISITS STANFORD. Gov. Beverly Perdue came to C.W. Stanford Middle School last week to tour the outdoor eco classroom and talk about literacy. On Facebook? Visit www.facebook.com/NewsofOrange to see photos from her visit.
• BOARD APPROVES ALCOHOL PERMIT. For the first time in its nearly 30-year history, alcohol will be served at Hog Day.
• THE HOUSE THAT LOVE BUILT. The Hands for Habitat home dedication ceremony was late last week, with students, teachers, administrators, the homeowners and community members coming out to celebrate the partnership between Orange County Schools and Habitat that resulted in a beautiful home being built for two Orange High School grads.
• LOCAL SOLDIER INJURED IN WAR. Pvt. 1st Class Matthew Evans was injured by a roadside bomb near Kabul last month.
• MOTION WITHDRAWN AGAINST TOWN, BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT. Orange County withdrew a motion for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction filed against Hillsborough and the Board of Adjustment on Tuesday afternoon.
• Plus, tons of photos from Last Friday (see our Facebook page or the paper), an overview of the construction happening at Partnership Academy, remembering the Rev. Herman Ward and more.