By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
“…but inside (ATH) it’s so delightful…”
Mayor Ronnie had been in meetings all morning that had to do with such exciting topics as sewers and drainage, and the meetings had gone long, as meetings often do. He was originally going to entitle this edition of Ronnie “The Challenges of Growth,” but then an AI-generated robo-call and a plummeting temp forecast for Thursday night’s Christmas Parade got us to laughing out loud to the point that the only thing that made sense was to change the title to that time-honored Christmas song, “Let It Snow.” I will explain.
Many people are not aware that in the city of Athens, (or ATH, as we are at times referred to with affection) the mayor does not have a vote when it comes to things that pertain to the city. That is actually State law. City councils run cities, the mayors can make suggestions or recommendations, but that’s about it. We were talking for a moment about people’s perceptions when a call came through on his cell phone, and Mayor Ronnie said, “This is about the tenth one I’ve gotten in the last half-hour; listen to this.” He then put it on speaker when a female AI voice began a spiel that tried to do a good job of sounding like a human, and would pause momentarily when Ronnie would interrupt “her.” However, it was when the algorithm actually said, “The government will pay your bills for you,” that he politely with tongue in cheek said, “Ma’am, I AM the government…” and at that, we lost it laughing. Then he looked at me and said, “Did you know that it is going to be 17 degrees (F) outside the night of the parade?” For some reason then we both broke into, “Oh the weather outside is frightful…” at exactly the same time, and laughter set in as a therapy. Once we stopped laughing, I replied that I would be doing my best to avoid parade floats while delivering Athens Now as I had since 2011. “Mister Mayor, this is when I utilize my knowledge of every back alley and one-way street in Athens.” Clearly some joy had been in order, and it definitely hit the spot.
We spoke of the season, its true meaning, and spent the rest of our time together praying, and specifically lifted up other mayors in North Alabama who were facing some tough situations. And once again, it was time for Ronnie to roll.
By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
December 6, 2024
