Simply Put- “Killing Several Birds With One Stone”

June 5, 2008
By: Clint Cox

"Killing Several Birds With One Stone"
Well another school year has come and gone. So the high school sports calendar that starts in late August and ends in mid May is over. With that comes a lull in the action so to speak as far as much of the sporting news that is covered in the Times. Of course there is youth baseball and softball that is still going on and we’ll make sure we give them plenty of coverage. The dilemma is this. Since we are a paper that covers only local sports and recreation news, how do we fill up four pages of sports / recreation during this three month lull? I think I have figured out a way to kill several birds with one stone.
Bird #1 – Fill up four pages of local sports/recreation during the summer. Bird #2 - Folks love old photographs and the stories that go with those photographs. Bird #3 – Folks around here love the Chipola River.
Stone #1 – Have a weekly feature about old local sports / recreation photographs (Yesteryear) and a weekly feature about the Chipola River (Rollin’ Down The River).
Yesteryear will work this way. You, the readers, will send your treasure sports / recreation photographs and memories to the Times. We’ll run the picture and ask our other readers to guess who is in the picture and tell us any memories or information they know about the photograph. The following week we’ll run the picture again along with the memories and information that you the readers have sent to the Times. And each week will also include a new "Yesteryear Photograph".
Rollin’ Down the River will work two ways. You, the readers, will send your treasure pictures and/or stories about the Chipola River to the Times. We’ll run your pictures and stories as part of this feature. Secondly, I will paddle my way (by canoe or kayak) on different runs down the Chipola River as it meanders through Jackson County. I’ll do a little write up for each run, including photographs, and publish that as part of this feature. My goal is to paddle the entire portion of the river in Jackson County over the course of the summer. So you, the readers, will be Rollin’ Down the River all summer long without ever having to leave your house. See this week’s introductory Rollin’ Down the River on this page.
I hope this works and I hope you, the readers, will enjoy our summertime sports and recreation news. But in order for this to work, Simply Put, I need you, the readers to send me your photographs and stories. Send them by e-mail or drop them off at the office (2866 Madison St. in Marianna). If that is not feasible, call me (209-7319) or e-mail me (clintcox@jacksoncountytimes.net) and I’ll make arrangements to pick them up and then get the photos back to you.

From the front porch: Uncle Bob said he doesn’t approve of political jokes. Too many of them get elected.