By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
It was one of those Monday mornings when all was right with the world…even though there was much about which to be concerned, such as Mayor Ronnie’s pet peeve, TRASH! That being said, he told me that there is an account by which things such as the One Bag (trash) Challenge can be supported. “We are going to be able to do the One Bag Challenge,” he said with genuine glee. The One Bag Challenge is an incentive whereby if you collect a bag of trash and register it with Keep Athens-Limestone Beautiful, you are entered into a contest wherein you can earn some cash for trash. The City of Athens is now in a position to reward a total of $500 to “passionate trashers,” and this is something that is super important to the mayor.
The Annual Plant Sale is going to be on April 20 at Athens Middle School, and the mayor told me that the kids do the lion’s share of the work that “makes it work.”
There had been a Senior Buddy day at the Senior Center, and it had been a roaring success. There were members of the Mayor’s Youth Commission who had paired up with seniors who attend the Center, and they had played dominoes, cards, and had what he described as food, fellowship, and fun
Our Earth Day celebration is tomorrow, Saturday, April 20, from 9-3 at the Athens State University Gym, and Mayor Ronnie was genuinely sad that he couldn’t be two places at once. Earth Day is one of his favorites, and he will be at a baseball event with grandson Quinton. Speaking of Quinton, Mayor Ronnie then showed me a pic of a fishing trip with him, and said, “This is just like that Trace Adkins song, ‘Just Fishin’,’ except it’s him, meaning Quinton. Do you know the song?” I had to admit that I didn’t, but I love Trace Adkins, and the mayor played the song/video for me. It generated more than a lump in my throat. Here are the lyrics, and I hope you find them as moving as I did:
I’m lost in her there holdin’ that pink rod and reel She’s doin’ almost everything but sittin’ still Talkin’ ’bout her ballet shoes and training wheels And her kittens And she thinks we’re just fishin’
I say, “Daddy loves you, baby” one more time She says, “I know, I think I’ve got a bite” And all this laughin’, cryin’, smilin’, dyin’ here inside’s What I call, livin’
And she thinks we’re just fishin’ on the riverside Throwin’ back what we could fry Drownin’ worms and killin’ time Nothin’ too ambitious She ain’t even thinkin’ ’bout What’s really goin’ on right now
But I guarantee this memory’s a big’in And she thinks we’re just fishin’
She’s already pretty, like her mama is Gonna drive the boys all crazy Give her daddy fits And I better do this every chance I get ‘Cause time is tickin’ (Yeah it is)
And she thinks we’re just fishin’ on the riverside Throwin’ back what we could fry Drownin’ worms and killin’ time Nothin’ too ambitious She ain’t even thinkin’ ’bout What’s really goin’ on right now But I guarantee this memory’s a big’in And she thinks we’re just fishin’
She ain’t even thinkin’ ’bout What’s really goin’ on right now But I guarantee this memory’s a big’in And she thinks we’re just fishin’ Yeah, aw, she thinks we’re just fishin’ We ain’t only fishin’ (This ain’t about fishin’)
“People need to go fishin’, said Mayor Ronnie thoughtfully. By that I knew he meant taking the time to build relationships with kids, which also builds communities. It was time to pray, and we did, and then it was time once again for Ronnie to roll.
By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
May 3, 2024
