The Times Dispatch Blogs

Football season is here again, so that means it’s time to put on the prognosticating caps and take part in The TD’s annual Football Forecast. Here’s one man’s opinions.
1. Hoxie at Walnut Ridge. The Mustangs have dominated the series in the last few years, but the Bobcats pulled of an incredible fourth-quarter rally to earn a tie last year. I’m going with the 3A Mustangs over the 2A Bobcats in another close one.
2. Troy at Arkansas. Troy won’t be a pushover, but the Hogs should win by a couple of touchdowns.
3. Southside Batesville at Westside. Other than the two local schools, I really don’t follow high school football that closely. When in doubt, go with the home team.
4. Arkansas State at Texas. Steve Roberts has done a terrific job at ASU. He has the Indians competing for the Sun Belt title each year and even took the Indians to a bowl game a couple of years ago. ASU will play hard and represent themselves well at Austin, but the Longhorns will win by a bunch.
5. Corning at Rector. Corning should win this Clay County showdown.
6. Western Carolina at Alabama. Bama by a bunch.
7. East Poinsett County at Marked Tree. Marked Tree.
8. Kansas State at Auburn. Auburn easily.
9. Marshall at Mountain View. See No. 3 above.
10. Ole Miss at Memphis. This is usually a close game that goes down to the wire. I pick Ole Miss in a squeaker.
11. Trumann at Hughes. Trumann easily.
12. Georgia Tech at Notre Dame. It’s always tough to pick against the Irish at home.
13. Palestine-Wheatley at Barton. Barton, I guess.
14. Eastern Kentucky at Kentucky. Kentucky will roll.
15. Valley View at McCrory. Goin’ with the home team.

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My son, Briar, officially became a teenager on Aug. 24. I no longer see a baby when I look at him. I see a clever young man full of laughter and mischief trying to find his way in this world.

I realized this week exactly how much of a teenager he has become when I asked if he needed me to go over his algebra homework and he replied, “No, I don’t think you’ll know how to do it anyway.”

I was also told that I wasn’t the computer whiz he thought I was, while he was doing his computer technology homework. This one really hit home. While I don’t claim to be a computer whiz, I definitely know my way around a computer. After all … it’s my job.

Although I have seen some changes in his attitude, and he now thinks he is smarter than I am, one thing remains constant… his kindness and compassion for others. He is an exceptional young man and I’m very proud of him.

I know that he will continue to spread his wings. I hope that I have and continue to set a good example for him.

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A few days after we came home from the hospital with Colter, my husband and our older son, Conley, went to our neighbor's barn to feed the cows and horses. Conley generally leaves his four-wheeler, a little 50 we bought at Cox Implement, at the barn so he can ride when he goes to the barn with his dad. On this particular night when they got there, they could not find the four-wheeler.

As we had not looked for the four-wheeler since before we went into the hospital, we assumed someone had just moved it. We soon learned, though, that this was not the case. Our neighbor remembered seeing it there on Tuesday, and a friend who had come to the barn on Thursday said he noticed it was not there then. We had to face the truth, someone had stolen it.

I don't know that my four-year-old really realizes what happened. He just knows his four-wheeler is gone. As he sat across the table from me a few days later he looked up at me with sad eyes and said, "Mom, I really want my vroom vroom back." I have never really understood how someone could steal somebody else's possessions, but I really cannot understand stealing from a child.

We reported it stolen, but know the chances of recovering it are slim to none. As adults, we know the realities of life and that people break laws and do bad things, but it is a shame that children have to learn this life lesson, as well.

I know that Conley’s wound is nothing compared to what many other children go through, but the experience did give me insight into how deeply children can be affected by the actions of adults.

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On Aug. 31 Hoxie and Walnut Ridge will face off for the last time on the football field. I will admit that I have mixed feelings about it. This unique cross-town rivalry, that you have to be a part of to understand, got way out of hand, at times. It has also provided MANY amazing memories.

My family moved to Hoxie from Walnut Ridge when I was in the sixth grade. The adjustment from Bobcat to Mustang wasn’t an easy one; however, it was absolute. I bleed green!

Both of my brothers played football for Hoxie. A lot of talk and a lot of pranks led up to a huge battle that played out before our eyes. It didn’t matter how the rest of our season went… whether we lost every other game or went to state… we wanted to be able to say we beat the Bobcats!

Since most of my cousins were Bobcats, the stakes were a little bit higher. We wanted to be the ones with the bragging rights.

So… as the battle unfolds for the last time, I’ll have only one thing to say…

Go, Mustangs!!!

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My baby is growing up. Of course, if he knew I was calling him my baby, he would quickly correct me and tell me he is a big boy now. Conley already didn't like being called my baby before we had our second son, Colter, but now he gets downright offended. I think in his mind he thinks if I call him my baby that means Colter can't be my baby. He always tells me "Colter is your baby, I'm your kid."

Monday, he started school at Greene County Tech. He is in the Pre-K program and though he is not technically in school, it is on the school campus and they have class time and eat in the cafeteria and he will even be able to ride the school bus (which he is quite excited about). He had a great first
day and I was so happy for him, but I was also a little sad. I guess it made me realize that he is in fact right — he's not a baby anymore.
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I, like most people, hate to go to the doctor. I don’t go for routine checkups, but if I’m sick, I will go. During a recent visit, my doctor read me the riot act for not taking better care of myself and scheduled me for all the routine exams I’d been neglecting.

I was relieved that I had five more years to wait before I had to start routine mammograms. Relief was short-lived when a lump was found during my exam. I went today and had my first mammogram. It wasn’t as bad as I believed it would be. Yes, it was uncomfortable, but not painful.

Since I had a problem, there was a doctor on hand waiting to read my results so that I could have further testing if need be. I had to have an ultrasound done of the “suspicious area.”

The doctor talked to me and assured me that he doesn’t think I have cancer, but the area is solid and I should have a biopsy to be on the safe side.

I’m sure this scare will turn out to be nothing, but it did serve as a wake-up call. I will no longer neglect checkups or routine exams. I hope you don’t either.

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Like so many other parents, I’m trying to get my kids ready to go back to school. Tuesday night, Brad, Drake (my nephew) and I went to open house. Brad will be in the new building at Hoxie this year and is excited about that.

The classrooms are really nice and seem to be somewhat bigger than what he has had before. There is also a science lab in the building. Brad loves experimenting, so I hope they are able to use it often throughout the year.

Briar had football practice and wasn’t able to attend with us. Brad, Drake and I visited his classes without him.

Although they both say they aren’t ready for school to start, they seem excited about it. I’m not sure I’m ready for the hectic schedule that the school year will bring. Not only will they start back to school on Monday, Briar has his first football game that night.

Ready or not…

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Saturday my family and my brothers’ families took a trip to the Wild River Country Water Park in Little Rock.

When we first arrived, Briar, Brad, Tim, Rodney, Blake, Drake and I went down what we called the “toilet bowl.” I don’t know what the real name is, but you go down a long tube into a bowl type portion where you are swished around before being shot out the bottom into the pool. It was everyone’s favorite slide.

While we were doing that, Georgetta, Jarah, Grace and Kylie rode a four person raft slide that sends you through the dark around lots of curves and then sprays you with water before the ride ends. I enjoyed this ride with Blake, Jarah and Grace before I got a little bit sick.

I spent some time with Kylie in the pool. Then we all went to the wave pool before having a picnic lunch in the shade outside the park.

We spent a lot of the afternoon in the wave pool. Tim and I floated around the “lazy river” in tubes while the others went down slides or played in the wave pool.

We had a great time! I hope to make the trip again next year.

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Briar and Brad spend a lot of time on either my mom’s computer or our computer at home. I have Brad set up as a separate user because he likes to change the background and put shortcuts on the desktop. Briar likes to browse the Internet, but doesn’t care what kind of wallpaper, etc. he has.

Briar does however, like to try and figure out Brad’s password. He doesn’t really want to login as Brad and use the computer, he just wants to make him mad. I just changed the password Monday, but Briar is getting close again and by the end of the week, I’ll be doing it again.

Brad also wanted to have his own webpage. I had told him that I’d sit down with him on a Saturday when we had some time and work on one with him. He has very little patience, though, and had to have something right then.

I have a Yahoo account, so I set him up a Geocities site. Right now it isn’t much, but on Saturday we are going to add more things to it. As of now, he has had 64 visitors and his guestbook is on the second page of entries.

If anyone is interested in visiting it, go to www.geocities.com/skimahorn_99 and leave us a message!

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