Community News for Green Cove Springs

I was bummed out.

Bear, the number two Big Dog around this house, knew it.  He went to the kitchen, pried open the door to the fridge with his nose, got a bottle of Corona, closed the fridge door with a turn of his tail, and brought the beer to me in the living room.

"What's up Boss?"

"Bear, how could I have missed this? For three years I have prided myself in being the numero uno dog in support of our City's PD.  I have worked to improve their pay and equipment. I have supported better training opportunities.  I feed the guys when they stop by to visit.  How could I be so damn insensitive and not get them a dog?"

Can you think of any time that you, or anybody else for that matter, have walked into a Walmart Store owing $848,184.65, and left the store owing nothing?  Is than an unlikely scenario? 

I witnessed the unlikely today, when Don Bowles, Sue Heath and I entered the Suntrust Bank located in the Walmart Store on Fleming Island.  We entered the store at 1:15 p.m. owing $848.184.65 in City debt.    We presented Tracie Henry a check for $848.184.65.  We left the store at 1:30 p.m. owing nothing. 

Sue, Don and I weren't exactly dressed for the photo op, which I have attached below.  The young man in charge of the bank was doubtful that we were the Assistant City Manager, the City Manager and the Mayor.  When we started taking pictures, he thought that we were casing the joint for a robbery.  OK, maybe we did look a little suspicious.  But, how many bank robbers do you know that would rob a bank while carrying a check for $848,165.84 to pay off the City debt? 

I wrote this message to be delivered during the opening ceremonies of the Green Cove Springs Riverfest 2008 in Spring Park today at 10:00 a.m.   The message is intended for all veterans:

Thank you for being in Green Cove Springs today to help us Celebrate Riverfest 2008. If you are standing next to a veteran, please take a moment to thank them for being here today and to thank them for their service to our Nation. 

Tomorrow is Earth Day, and there can't be any more beautiful places to celebrate than Spring Park in Green Cove Springs.  Fortunately, some folks have put together a celebration for you and all you have to do is show up between 1 and 5 p.m.

Take a frisbee or a good book and enjoy the spring and the maginificent view of the St. Johns River. Pack a picnic or buy some food - hot dogs, hamburgers, funnel cakes and a bake sale - from the Clay High School Band while you're there. And, since the band's gonna be there, you can probably figure out that music is going to be part of the fun.

Last night I had the opportunity to sneak preview the second First Coast Winter Lights festival at Clay Port in Green Cove Spirngs.

I first heard the phrase “belts and suspenders” in the 1970 movie Once Upon a Time in the West.  Henry Fonda, who played a hired gunman “Frank” asked:  “How can you trust a man who wears a belt and suspenders?  Man can’t even trust his own pants.”  A more recent definition of a Belt and Suspenders Guy is found on www.urbandictionary.com.  The first definition is:

Congratulations to the Green Cove Springs Police Department for putting together their second Teen Summit, at the Jr High School.  I hope the kids who attended learned good life lessons. We appreciate that fact that the police department is keeping our kids in mind.   

I learned last night that I wasn’t wise. 

I’m obviously not very bright.  What kind of person with an ounce of sense would spend a perfectly good Friday night in a City Council meeting talking about City budgets?  Obviously somebody who isn’t too bright or who doesn’t otherwise have a life. 

I wasn’t told that I lacked wisdom.  Neither were two of my colleagues on the Council.  However, the three of us—the majority on the Council—were carefully excluded from the elite Circle of the Wise, as defined by a person who spoke about “wisdom” at the meeting.   The absence of wisdom that was implied left two of my colleague a little ticked off, and left me speechless (for once).   All I could think was:  “how dumb is this?  Here is an individual who makes part of his living pretending to be somebody he is not, and who makes the other part of his living milking a City contract awarded by majority vote of the Council.  Now this individual is going public impugning the intellectual skills of the majority that butters his bread.  I might not belong in the Circle of the Wise.  But, I am damn sure not that stupid.”

It may be surprising for some of us to learn that the duties of the police do not just involve fighting crime, apprehending criminals, chasing thieves and other 'crime busting' duties, but include traffic control, dealing with community and social nuisance problems, attending sports/social events, crime prevention advice and many other less pressing tasks, in other words, 'order maintenance'. The police force as we know it today has changed radically from the first policemen that patrolled the streets in the 19th century and criminologists have recently played a large part in influencing police strategies. Recently, a return back to the early days of maintaining order has seemed to have emerged with the appearance of the 'broken windows' theory, an approach to policing that emphasizes creating and maintaining orderly public spaces, suggesting that continuing urban decay of a community will lead to higher levels of crime and disorder.

Budget workshops are done. 

Thank God. 

It was a marathon session:  0800 – 2230.  With a few minutes break for lunch, dinner, and smoke break.  The taxpayers got their money’s worth from the Council, at least as far as effort is concerned.