JT went to the school board committee meeting Tuesday and the board and public were reminded of a phenomenon that JT had not noticed. Of the 11 board members, six are women! Hopefully that will make for a more harmonious group of elected officials that will get things done with a kinder spirit when dealing with each other. Also, there was a big turnover with five new members having been elected. Pastor Steve Harris said it best. “We should all be looking out for the children and not fighting.”
Is it JT or did the first quarter of the New Orleans Saints game against the Philadelphia Eagles remind you of the Clemson-Alabama National Championship game? The way they were getting kicked around, the Saints played the part of Alabama. But unlike ‘Bama, the Saints were able to recover and get the victory.
JT doesn’t think those Alabama fans will recover for quite some time. The Saints now play for the NFC championship against the Los Angeles Rams this Sunday at 2:05 p.m. on the FOX network
The Demon’s men’s basketball team has been in two nail-bitters their last two outings. Coach Mike’s squad lost in the final seconds last Wednesday to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at home, but then on Saturday, took a last second tip in victory over Stephen F. Austin. SFA was the preseason conference favorites. In the 13-team league, games played through last weekend, NSU is tied for sixth place with a 2-2 Conference record, and 7-10 overall record. The Demons return to Prather Coliseum Wednesday, Jan. 23, against Sam Houston State, the current conference leader with a 3-0-league mark.
If you’re basketball hungry and can’t wait, the Lady Demons will be at home Saturday with a 1 p.m. tip off time against Abilene Christian. Natchitoches Central, St. Mary’s, and Lakeview are all in action on Friday but all of them are on the road.
JT got an inquiry last week from a reader wanting to know why there is no marquee in front of the movie theatre telling passers by what’s playing at the cinema. It sure would be convenient to see it on a big sign instead of having to drive up to the building and slowly drive by as you read the posters about the movies.
It would also be expensive to build a lighted sign and then have someone keep it up to date with the various showings. And the age group that theaters appeal now are going to their cell phones to look up everything including what’s playing at the movie. JT has often thought how helpful it would be if the funeral home had a marquee…but that’s another story.
JT is glad there are still two services available to the public that have been around for over half a century. One is the phone number you can call and hear the movies and their times currently playing at the Parkway Cinema. The number is 352-5109 and it’s been around since the 70s…if not longer. The other is the date, time and temperature provided by Exchange Bank. JT can remember calling the 357-8221 a lot.He still does from time to time.
JT sees where the city is no longer offering house-to-house recyclable pickup. The blue trash bin, which was for recyclable items, can now be used as a second garbage can. If you want to recycle, you can take your items to bins that have been placed at the Public Works Department on Mill Street. Apparently, not enough people were recycling to make it feasible for the city to continue the recycling program. And according to reports, the trash and recycling cans were not always being separated when they were picked up. You would think with recycling gone, the customers would see their bills go down. Not so…they actually went up almost $3 a month for residential customers and $3.50 for commercial customers.
Speaking of the City….JT had an interesting questioned posed to him the other day about the city’s street overlay program. The person wanted to know why the city would overlay a street with no residences or business on it. The street was Sabine Street, which is where the city’s Purchasing Office is located. The section of the street that was overlayed, from Dixie Street to Dorothy Street, is primarily vacant lots with the City Purchasing office the only building on the street. The overlay stopped before you got to where the housing started.
It sounds so simple..so therefore, it just can’t work. Sen. Bill Cassidy might be onto something with his idea on how to build the “Wall” on our southern border. Cassidy says we should just use the money confiscated from the drug cartels. There would certainly be enough money to do it. It sounds simple and logical. Unfortunately, a lot of that money is split between the arresting agencies. Those “bonuses” to their budgets are used to purchase items their departments need and help fund their operations. So naturally, they aren’t going to give up that money without a fight. But it does make sense to dedicate some of those dollars to the wall.
JT sees where one Parish Councilman had another one arrested for allegedly threatening him. You would think with the parish calling a tax for road, the council members would be on their best behavior and really keep things low key. The more they meet, the more controversy they create.
Speaking of politics, there are five people who represent Natchitoches Parish in the state legislature….two in the Senate and three in the House. We will be replacing two of them for sure in the October elections. Sen. Gerald Long (District 31) of Winnfield is term limited so he won’t be seeking re-election. As of now, the only one running for the seat is former Natchitoches Parish Clerk of Court Louie Bernard. District 29 Sen. Jay Luneau, who is completing his first term, doesn’t appear to have opposition so far.
On the House side, Rep. Frankie Howard (District 24) is running for Sheriff in Sabine Parish so his seat will have to be filled. Terry Brown, who represents the east side of Natchitoches Parish (District 22) along Red River, is seeking his final term in the House. He has two people in Grant Parish campaigning for his seat already.
