MY YEAR in review.

Over the past year, I have been witness to various events from the area, some of which I have shared with you, some of which I haven't. Today, we shall recap George Anderson - 2009.

JANUARY:

I'm sure the first thing that pops into everyone's mind about January 2009 is the "Great Ice Storm."

Dateline: January 26 (give or take 24 hours). The freezing rain came into town with a vengeance not seen since the early 1900's.

Some residents around the area were left without power, without food, without heat, and without jobs. Luckily, I was not one of those without a job.

On Tuesday, Jan. 27, when we all awoke to a blanket of ice, I reported to the DDD office and, together with my "crew," we put out the Tuesday edition of the DDD. (I had an article on South Elementary preparing for MAP tests.)

Shortly after we finished the paper, the DDD office lost power (insert dramatic bass line). For the majority of the afternoon, I worked from my car, driving around and doing interviews and snapping pictures.

When we reported to work on Wednesday, we still had no power. With no power, we could not do the Wednesday paper, hence the only edition (so far) in 2009 that was not printed.

I spent the majority of the day working from home, trying to get as much information as I could from some of the local authorities (I got Mayor Wheeler's cell number at this time. Surprisingly, he hasn't changed it. LOL.)

Thursday, a SMALL group of us traveled to Malden to the Delta News Citizen office with plans to print the Thursday paper. Not long after we set up our equipment, the building lost power. It was then that Mike Buhler (sports editor), Donnie Shelton (advertising), and myself drove to Dyersburg, Tenn., to work from the Dyersburg State Gazette. We (finally) succeeded in printing our Thursday paper, a whopping 8-page layout with the lead story, "KENNETT ON ICE!"

On Friday, we managed to get some generators and we set four computers on one desk and worked from there, continuing to inform our readers of the goings-on in Kennett. That was our setup until power was restored.

January also saw the birth of my niece Kenna, who lives in Florida, and my nephew Wesley, who lives here in Kennett.

FEBRUARY:

The ice storm effects lasted into February. February, however, also saw some other items of interest.

In the Friday, Feb. 20th edition of the DDD, I ran an article about a lovely young lady from Kennett who had celebrated her 100th birthday on Jan. 31, Ms. Isadore "Mother" Rainey.

Rainey told me about her life and growing up as a sharecropper, her time in Mississippi, and how once she got to Kennett, it wouldn't let her go. She said every time she tried to leave, she got sick. Luckily, Rainey decided to stick around. In just under two months, Rainey will celebrate her 101st birthday. Happy Early Birthday Mother Rainey.

MARCH:

March saw the birth of my nephew Kasen, who was born on St. Patty's Day in Cape.

March also saw "cougars" hit Southern Dunklin County, although, Wildlife reps will tell you differently. Again, my condolences go out to Aaron Jamerson for the loss of his dog, Harley. Today the question remains, "What is in the swamps at Hornersville?"

APRIL:

April saw my son celebrate his second birthday. That was the most important thing in April from my perspective. Moving on.

MAY:

In May, I attended more graduations than I ever have in my life, as I reported on the Delta C-7, Holcomb, Kennett, and Southland graduations. It was a busy time, and as I write this, May is only five months away. Here we go again.

JUNE:

In June, I celebrated my fourth wedding anniversary to my lovely wife, Jade.

JULY:

In July, I shared a story about "Adventures in Potty Training" with my blog readers. Today, I am happy to report that my son is potty trained and doing very well. He's growing up so fast.

AUGUST:

In August, I got to hang out with the Strategic Response Team of the Kennett Police Department. That was an experience that I will never forget.

SEPTEMBER:

September saw me celebrate my 27th birthday. Sometimes I feel like I'm getting old (But I'm still a kid at heart).

OCTOBER:

October saw me spend several hours crafting a Scooby-Doo Halloween costume for our office competition. I am happy to say that the newsroom/circulation department won the contest this year with our Scooby theme. Great job guys.

NOVEMBER:

In November, my newest niece, Madeline, was born (Can this family procreate or what?).

It also saw me get turkey drunk and fall asleep at my aunt's house (Oh the holidays. Gotta love 'em).

November was also the month that Kennett was declared a racially charged community by CNN, during the (now infamous) Heather Ellis trial.

As our publisher, Bud Hunt, said in his column following the trial, "Fortunately, it was only CNN."

My condolences go out to my co-worker Joshua Payne, who hands nearly fell off while taking SEVERAL notebooks full of notes, and typing more information than any other media outlet cared to mention. Good job, bud.

That about wraps up my year. December is just getting started and as we prepare for the Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanza, and New Years, I would like to wish a Happy Holidays from my family to yours. Peace be with you.

Here's looking forward to Twenty Ten.