Published: April 29, 2008 03:28 pm            

Out 49 & Beyond: Jan. 30, 2008

Recently some area young people were fortunate to take a trip to Atlanta, Ga. While there they attended The Pulse International Dance Tour (Dance Convention) at the Georgia World Congress Center. The Pulse is sponsored by The Broadway Dance Center in New York City and was on a 12-city tour in the United States and Canada.

Taking the trip were Elizabeth Gnida, Erica Harris, Michael McNeil and Kierra Spinks. Erica Harris gives her account of the trip:

"The famous choreographers we met and even took dance lessons from were Dave Scott who choreographed the movies You Got Served and Step Up 2 (in theaters Feb. 14, Criss Judd who choreographed for many years for Jennifer Lopez (Hip Hop), Laurie Ann Gibson was the choreographer for MTV's Making the Band, (Hip Hop) Brian Friedman "Jazzy" Hip Hop Choreographer who has his own line of hip hop dance shoes.

Mia Michaels (Modern Dance) has never had a real dance job because of her weight and size but she is now one of the biggest and most respected choreographers of our time. Dave Scott, Brian Friedman and Mia Michaels are frequent judges and choreographers on the hit show "So You Think You Can Dance."

Not everyone gets to take dance lessons from world famous choreographers. It was very fast paced. It was a great experience. We got a very realistic glimpse of how the professional dance world can be. Saturday we danced from 9:45 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I am glad to have been a part of."

After the Empire Charge Bible Study last Wednesday night, I asked the members of the group to tell me their pet peeves. Only two would share something if they could remain anonymous. A female said it makes her angry to be called a liar when she knows she is telling the truth.

Do you ever pull out in front of a car, go just a few feet and make a right turn? If you do then you just might be the one who makes one of the men real angry.

Now remember I said this was a group of Bible Study members. Maybe that's why they don't get angry very often, but they didn't have any trouble thinking of pranks they pulled when they were young. Knowing these ladies and men now it's hard to imagine them doing this mischief.

When L.B. was young, he and some of the guys would help themselves to this elderly man's pear tree. The gentleman walked with a cane and when he would start down to run after them they would wait until he got almost to them then they would run. When he would get back up to his house they would go to the pear tree again.

B.G.G. and some of the neighborhood boys would carry a lantern to a man's peanut patch at night to "borrow" some peanuts. One night they had to get out fast because they saw the man coming. B.G.G. was wearing a white hat and lost it in the patch while running. The next day the peanut patch owner's brother asked him if he had found his white hat yet.

W.G. would put corncobs in the tailpipes of his dad's car. At first the pressure from the engine would blow them out. He tried it again and had them in tighter, this time they didn't shoot out. Needless to say he was given a whipping when his dad found out what had happened.

When M.S. and her young man wanted to get married they decided to elope. She wanted her parents to know where she was so she wrote a note and put it in the flour bin so her mother would find it when she started to make biscuits the next morning. This was almost 60 years ago and they are still happily married.

When M.G. was young she tied her best friend to a tree in the woods and left her there. Her cries were heard, she was rescued unharmed and the two are still good friends.

Have a good week.



Pattye Harris of Ramseur shares news of interest from N.C. 49, the Empire Charge area and beyond. She can be reached at (336) 824-8198 and invites readers to call her with information they would like to share.

        

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