Thumbs! (8/31/2013)

Excuse us while we whip out our “Thumbs!”…

What’s hot? What’s not? What other clichés can we use? Let’s get to the “Thumbs!”

• Thumbs UP! to the Chatham Star-Tribune newspaper. If you’re looking for in-depth coverage of Pittsylvania County news (with a sprinkling of Danville news added), it’s the best newspaper for you. Jonathan Parker is one of the best reporters in the region and he’ll toss out at least 10 stories in the weekly newspaper. Without reading the Star-Tribune, Danville residents might never find out about an attempted capital murder charge near Leesville Lake that has gang implications. This week’s newspaper also has stories about Pittsylvania County residents getting charged and convicted for solid-waste violations when nobody is really aware what the ordinance allows to be put in the county dumpster sites. the only thing that the Star-Tribune could do better is more information on their website, but their yearly subscription rate of $29 gets you both the print edition and the E-edition. That’s well worth it and I just started my annual subscription.
• Speaking of the Chatham Star-Tribune, I’ve got a big Thumbs UP! for Martha Ramey and her “River City Ramblings” column that you’ll find in every edition. Martha’s home-spun tales and community news brings back the memories of the excellent job she did as one of the writers of the “Eddie’s Colyum” part of the Register & Bee. Martha is one of the nicest people around and her weekly column adds yet another reason to subscribe to the Chatham Star-Tribune.

See? SouthsideCentral isn’t always a snarky and mean-spirited place. But let’s get mean-spirited anyway because this target deserves it…

• Thumbs DOWN! to the major “Baghdad Bob – There are no American troops in Baghdad!” level of horsecrap being thrown out by the Halifax County school system about the “everything is now fixed with soapy water” mold problem at Halifax County High School. You have teachers sick. You have students sick. You have students that are so sick that they’re in the hospital, yet you have Albert Randolph (the principal) saying “We’ve got it all under control.” No. You don’t have it all under control. The school board is holding a special meeting Tuesday night to discuss the problem that is allegedly “under control”. There are some people in the community that are taking matters into their own hands and leading the fight to expose the real problem, and it’s a damned shame that it had to get to that level. I’ve also had other parents tell me that the mold problem isn’t just at the high school, so this issue is still rapidly developing. Now that the school board isn’t a dysfunctional rubber stamp for Paul Stapleton, I’m cautiously optimistic that they will crack down on this problem and publicly declare that the problem is real and they’ll do whatever it takes to get it corrected. I’ve always been impressed with school board chairman Kim Farson, and this is a chance for her leadership of the school board to call horsecrap on the already-presented horsecrap coverup and make a real difference in the problem.

That felt good. Now back to some positive things.

• Although I’ve often given well-deserved hell to Danville’s River District, I’ve got a big Thumbs UP! for the ever-increasing dining choices in Downtown Danville. If you’re looking for daytime good eating, you’ve got Main Street Coffee Emporium and 316 Cibo… and you’ll get the quality of food for what you pay for. If you’re looking for fine dining at night, you’ll never go wrong at Jake’s On Main or the new Golden Leaf Bistro. Both restaurants are future three-diamond level rated places with excellent food and atmosphere. Halifax County has the equivalent with Bistro 1888 and Molasses Grill, with both of those places having became “destination dining” stops. If the River District can ever get the parking issues completed, there will be absolutely no reason to complain.
• Finally, I made a rare stop at Danville’s Public Library Friday afternoon to catch up on some news-reading. The library has really changed over the years and it’s all for the best. Former library director Shelly Hypes had some good ideas and Danville’s library system is missing her leadership as she’s moved to a bigger city. (Oh yeah, you haven’t read that story in the Register & Bee. Maybe they’ll read this article and write about that in the next few weeks. SouthsideCentral loves to give them story ideas.)  Anyway, back to the amazing surprise. There was a covered-up piano in front of the circulation desk which got a “Say, That’s Odd.” from me but around 3:30 PM, Brian Buchanan walks up, uncovers the piano and plays a masterful performance of all types of music and some of the library staff even wrap the hour up by joining in for a sing-along. It was truly a wonderful surprise to see and hear that, and the library system deserves a giant Thumbs UP! for that.

Four UPs! and only one DOWN! What will the SouthsideCentral haters say about this article? If you’ve got something to say on this article, comment below or find us on Facebook. You can also follow SouthsideCentral on Instagram & Twitter. We’ve got more coming from SouthsideCentral!