A present from a neighbor

My neighbor, Suzi Sturdy, made this wreath for me. She knows that without her help, I'll never put anything on my front door. I thought it was a genuinely kind gesture. And I love The Star part of the wreath.

Karl Rove weighs in on the election

Everyone knows about Karl Rove. I found this on the Web. It's Karl Rove & Co.'s state-by-state breakdown of who takes each state. He also makes a final call of the election (but as we've said before, voters determine winners, not polls). So vote.

http://www.rove.com/uploads/0000/0049/McCain-Obama_11_3_08_FINAL.pdf

Interestingly, he does indeed call North Carolina for McCain, something more and more people believe will be the case. But it's clear that North Carolina is one of the tightest states for the presidential race. This state appears deadlocked and it will come down to which political party gets out the vote.

Why didn't I follow the instructions?

It clearly says in about 10 places, DO NOT use sharp objects to remove ice from the freezer in my compact refrigerator. It warns that you might puncture the coils.

So what do I do?

I use a screwdriver to remove the ice. And while I successfully removed the ice, I did indeed puncture the coils. The refrigerator dies. A perfect ending to a really lousy day.

I will never ever use a sharp object to remove ice again. Of course, I have to buy a new refrigerator first. Bummer.

Early voting lines healthy

It looked like the early voting lines were extremely healthy on Saturday. Apparently, extending the hours made a lot of sense. Perhaps it will help alleviate long lines on Tuesday in what is expected to be a record turnout.

Family graves, Toluca and 'Knobby'

Here's a column that's running in Sunday's paper:

I might have been born in Gastonia, but I have deep roots in Cleveland County.

That fact was reinforced Sunday when my family came up to visit me in Shelby. From there, I took them on a tour of upper Cleveland County.

I discovered a few things that still have me scratching my head.

My grandfather and grandmother, Hix and Lillie Wellman, are buried at the cemetery at Friendship Methodist Church in Fallston. (By the way, that's a pretty impressive war memorial in Fallston)

What stumps me is the last name Wellman. My grandfather spelled his last name "Wellman." His brother "Bub," just two graves away, spelled the name "Wellmon." So do some others I found in the cemetery. I don't know why there's a discrepancy. Perhaps someone filled out a form incorrectly somewhere along the way. I know reading and writing weren't particular priorities in this era. My grandfather was born in the 1890s.

Regardless, now we have Wellmons and Wellmans and people with both names are related to me -- not all of them of course, but certainly some of them.

Frankly, in the past I've never been one to get particularly interested in family history. But it also surprised me that I have relatives who live in the area who are doing a terrific job of maintaining the gravesites. They had nice flowers on all the family graves. They had also taken care to keep debris off the sites. And I really don't have a clue who they are.

Toluca and 'Knobby'

From there we went toward Lawndale and then I decided to show them Toluca, the area where Cleveland and Lincoln counties come together. I knew they would get a kick out of RedBone Willy's. Based on some phone calls I've received in the past, some folks don't believe Redbone Willy's is actually in Cleveland County. With the county lines all over the place in that area, I can see where there would be some confusion. I checked out the Cleveland County GIS records, and sure enough, the establishment is indeed on the tax rolls of Cleveland County.

Speaking of Toluca, in 1979 the former Jennie Palmer, now Jennie Lambert, wrote about "Knobby," a mysterious and unidentified creature local residents reported seeing around Carpenter's Knob. Some thought it was a bear. Some likened it to "Bigfoot." She wrote several stories about "Knobby." It was a big deal back then. People would travel from other states just to search for "Knobby." The stories live on to this day through the Internet. Folks are posting them on various sites and blogs.

Of course, Jennie Lambert was a writer for the Gaston Gazette at that time. She's the former publisher of The Star and is now publisher of The Gaston Gazette as well and vice president of Freedom North Carolina newspapers. She got a kick out of it when I sent her a link to one of her old Knobby stories. She also has deep roots in Cleveland County.

So whatever happened to Knobby? Do folks still talk about it? Did he die of old age? Did he relocate to Lincoln County? Shoot me an e-mail and let me know. It might be time to resurrect Knobby for an updated news story.

Fantasy football and that big Obama cutout

Two things: My fantasy baseball team looks like the Red Cross all-stars with all the injury crosses. I can't field a healthy team from week to week and I don't want to cut the injured players I have. There's always next year. And frankly, I like baseball better.

Also, did anyone else see that lifesize Obama cutout across the street from the early voting site on Patton Drive and Graham Street? Out of the corner of my eye I thought for a split second it was him. I almost wrecked. I heard people talking about that sign all day long. Early voting appeared off to a healthy start in Cleveland County.

Things are getting better in fantasy baseball

My fantasy baseball fortunes have taken a turn for the better. I'm in three leagues and I've struggled all year. However, in my keeper league I've gone from sixth place to a tie for second with one day to go. Finishing second (or third) in that league is actually an accomplishment.

In another league for editorial writers I've gone from 10th place to the championship round (it's a head-to-head league with playoffs). I'm leading the championship game -- barely. I need to hang on for one more day to win that league. I don't know if I can.

Finally, there's the Pee Dee League I've been in for several years. I'm going to finish a pitiful eighth out of 10 teams. I just couldn't get it going in that league this year. I still don't know what went wrong.

But as Meatloaf once said, "Two out of three ain't bad."

Actually, I'm glad the season is ending. It's tiring and I need to focus on fantasy football.