Not in Brooklyn, Part 2

This morning, NPR featured a story about a big time republican fundraiser who had bundled for Bush and, this cycle, had signed on to raise funds for Tim Pawlenty. He was stricken when the Gov. pulled out of the race and, then, when the first call he received was from Mitt Romney, he "prayed on it" before signing on to the former Mass. governor's campaign.

It wasn't until I moved to Winston-Salem that I realized that many people (indeed, perhaps an overwhelming majority of people) in this part of the world seek Divine guidance before making any sort of important decision. (I also began to note that people here pray "on" something when I always had thought praying was "about" something; ditto having a picture "made" as opposed to "taken." Perhaps, if explorers had used the "made" formative instead of the "taken," the subjects of their picture taking/making might have been less afraid that the box was altering their essence by taking something away.)

This nearly ubiquitous praying on decisions before they are made got me thinking. Is it the fact that there is a Holy Trinity in Christianity that allows such involvement in all aspects of life? Surely the job of informing everyone about every important decision, while still controlling those things which happen regardless of human thinking (like weather) would be too much for a single guiding entity. Or, maybe not.

You're Not in Brooklyn Anymore

I've been a North Carolinian by choice for over three decades, but it never fails to amaze me how different life is in this part of the Tar Heel State than it was in New York City and its environs. Take, for example, this morning. I visited my dentist's office for a routine bit of mouth maintenance. This office is not a small operation. There are twenty or so dentists practicing under one roof. All with multiple chairs and assistants, hygienists,lab techs etc. If it can be done to your mouth, it can be done under this roof. Believe me, I know. The entire operation is a vestige of the time when Reynolds was way ahead of most of corporate America in providing benefits to its employees. Reynolds established this clinic as a nearly free perq for any employee that wanted to take advantage of it.

As I sat in the waiting area, having finished my usual quick front to back examination of our local paper, I noted the magazines sitting on the table next to me. Nothing unusual about magazines being in a dentist's waiting room. Usually, they are out of date Times, Newsweeks and Sports Illustrated, placed their after the dentist has finished reading them at home. Might be a couple of issues of Highlites, intended to placate the child who came with his or her parent.

Not so in my dentist's waiting area. Right on the top of the pile was the September/October 11 issue of "Turkey Country." This is not a magazine for turkeys, of either the human or animal kind. Rather, it is a publication "...dedicated to the education and entertainment of National Wild Turkey Federation members..." Who knew?

For those of you who are not familiar with this publication, here is a sampling of some of the featured articles: "Lucky Clover Food Plots - Bring good fortune to your hunting spot with a combination of good habitat management and clover" (I never knew turkeys liked to eat clover; when I had a house with a lawn, I sure could havee used a turkey.);"Dove Hunting 101 - Watch smiles fly at this Women in the Outdoors event geared toward new hunters" (Are they hunting the women ((something I knew about in New York)), or are the women carrying the guns?; and "Campfire Confessions - Woeking Hard for a Black Bear" (I wouldn't touch that one with a ten foot pole).


Just as I was about to jump into the mag with both eyes, I was called to the dentist's chair, so I never had the opportunity to learn more about "Turkey Country."