Jay GreesonYes, it's been really cold outside.
In fact, we were pretty surprised school district administrators didn't call off school one day earlier this week. There was a fair amount of snow on the roads in our neighborhood, and hey, we've seen school called off for way less.
That said, as society progresses, what will be the "Well, in my time " tall tales for the next generation? Think about it.
We need to find the next hyperbole to replace dated jokes about the school transit defying physics and physical science.
Add to that the "Get off my lawn" and the especially dated "Turn your rock-n-roll music down" since a) everyone has headphones and b) rock-n-roll has been dead for years, and well, we need some new laments.
For a collection of us in our 40s, we could lament about the on-demand possibilities.
"Back in my day, we actually had to drive to the Blockbuster and peruse the videos," we might say. "We got input from the clerks and had the chance to buy oversized movie theater boxes of candy.
"And man, if there was a new release, it took effort and punctuality to get there before all the copies of 'Shawshank Redemption' were already gone."
These kids today.
Next generation
As a side note: You have to wonder what the kids of today will be bemoaning about the good-ol'-days of their lives.
My kids are 9 and 6, and maybe they will be telling their kids and/or grandkids about how we actually used to drive cars or how there were these crazy things called hardback books.
With the advances in technology and the growing demand on our school board and county leaders to address the system's overwhelming infrastructure needs, maybe the future will offer the solution.
With more and more classes offered online, maybe future generations will talk about how they actually had to go to a school building back in their day.
(Of course their grandparents went to those buildings and had to walk uphill well, you know the rest.)
Well's there's that
If you have driven by Christy's Sports Bar on Brainerd Road, you likely were not surprised by the eye-popping Super Bowl story that has become part urban legend and part party myth.
To be fair, it's the kind of joint that would take "a hole in the wall" as a compliment, and the photo in Friday's TFP had the ever-inspiring message "Do Not Support Riverbend" across its signage.
Nice.
The details - and the elusive YouTube video that we would advise you not Google on your work computer - Christy's version of a Super Bowl shuffle are, well, adult in nature.
There allegedly is a video - linked to Christy's Facebook page for a brief period, mind you - of naked women doing some things. Matters did not get worse because there may have been a couple of former lawmen there, but who knows.
The powers that be at Christy's said it was a flash-mob-type of situation.
Flash mob, huh? Trench coat optional, apparently.
Good judgment
Here's hoping that Hamilton County General Sessions Court judge David Bales is back on the bench as soon as possible.
This is not about connections or politics.
This is about a man facing the worst of all opponents - cancer.
Bales released a statement Friday saying he was going to step away from his judge duties to focus on the task of getting better.
"As many know, I have been recently treated for cancer and I appreciate the tremendous community-wide support that you have given me," Bales said in the statement. "However, in an effort to fulfill my public responsibility, I returned to the bench prematurely. I now know I need more time to recover. Therefore, I have decided to take additional time off to rest and recuperate so I can plan to return to the bench with full vigor and strength to serve the citizens of Hamilton County."
Kudos to the folks who have helped him along the way, be it personally or professionally. And judge, here's to seeing you swinging a gavel sooner rather than later.
Saturday's star
Gang, the public school system here in Hamilton County has had a rough couple of years.
Really rough.
And in a lot of ways, this space has focused on a lot of the bad things.
Today let's look at a measure of progress.
According to this paper's Kendi Rainwater, who covers local education like kudzu covers Missionary Ridge, 76 percent of the 2016 graduates of Hamilton County public high schools went on to college, be it two- or four-year schools.
That's progress. Kudos.
Now, that progress is as much because of the in-house teachers and counselors as it is the Bonny Oaks leadership, current and former.
But it screams to the growing number of students wanting to be in position to take their education further. Seventy-six percent is 5 percent more than last year and 4 percent higher than the previous best mark of 2013.
Contact Jay Greeson at jgreeson@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6343.