LIMERICK PLANTATION NEWS
By Dot Moss
Conquering the phone company: Why are we still being charged a federal excise tax on our long distance calls? A Savannah Morning News article dated Dec. 13, 2006, clearly stated the federal government repealed the federal excise tax. People were even given the chance to get a refund of taxes they had paid back as far as Feb. 2003. Please scrutinize your bill each month. Make sure you are not being charged a federal excise tax on your long distance calls.
Good samaritans: You know there’s good neighbors and there’s bad neighbors. I just happen to be fortunate enough to have two of the best. Donna and Bill Buttersworth not only have one of the prettiest yards in Lake George, but they reach out to help their neighbors. When Bill saw my sliding screen door had been damaged by my cat (she went through it during a thunderstorm) he removed it, replaced it with a new screen and re-installed it for me. Donna missed her calling to be a landscaper, because her yard looks like something out of Southern Living. Not only does she cut her own grass, she cuts her neighbor’s across the street and next door. She is the “pink bunny” of Lake George, which Bill will attest to. Whenever anyone is in need, these two are the first to step in. God bless them.
Breaking the law: Whatever happened to the law passed several years ago requiring students’ backpacks to be clear? I haven’t seen any clear backpack in any of our retail stores.
The only “legal” fireworks in Georgia are sparklers, yet every year at New Year’s and 4th of July, retailers in Hinesville sell fireworks and nothing is done about it.
Recently I discovered another “law breaker.” In two different retail stores, I’ve seen chains in the pet section, advertising them as a way to “tether” your dog. Tethering a dog is against the law in Georgia since July 2007, yet I see them tethered right here in Lake George and Woodland Lakes. These poor animals are tethered to trees with no water, shelter or food. Animal Control needs to remove the tether, and tether the owner to the tree.
Needed: When my cat outgrew her pet carrier I sold it at a yard sale. Now I need one that would accommodate a 16-pound cat in case I have to evacuate for a hurricane. If you have one you are no longer using and would be willing to sell it to me at a reasonable price, call me at 884-7555 and I will pick it up. New ones are just too expensive. Thanks in advance.
Garden report: Native to southeastern U.S., the fringe tree, sometimes called Grancy Graybeard, is a spectacular sight when in bloom. Its white flowers are fringe-like, hence the name. I spotted two of these on a piece of property at South Main and Frank Cochran and even contacted the owners to see if I could dig them up, but never got around to it. It sheds its leaves in the winter and is one of the last plants to leaf out in spring. Nurseries now carry fringe trees because more and more people are “going native” with plants on their property. Once established, it requires little care. That’s what so great about planting native plants. I bought my fringe tree from my friend Bob Upson at Four Seasons Nursery in Savannah and have really enjoyed its beauty. As for the rest of the yard at this time of the year, I did manage to give away three quarts of figs and ate some myself, but the birds got the rest of them. My Fry and Cowart grapes are getting bigger each day and my vines are loaded. I only have a few pears this first year of bearing, so maybe next year the tree will be full. The blooms that came on my Fuyu persimmon and pomegranate fell off, as did the ones on my pineapple guava trees. They’re just not mature enough to set fruit yet. I’ve had to pull up about six tomato bushes that did their duty, but my newly planted ones are maturing fast, so hopefully I’ll continue to enjoy and share tomatoes with family and friends the rest of the summer.
Scary experience: Several weeks ago my brother, who lives in Meldrim, was in his yard and a homing pigeon landed on his shoulder and would not leave. He walked out to his mailbox with this bird still on his shoulder. He took him off and put him on his porch and several days later, the bird was still there. Fearing his cat would catch the bird and possibly kill it, he brought the pigeon to me. My cat is an inside pet. I put the pigeon in a cage on my deck. Tuesday, while talking to my oldest son on the phone, a huge red-tail hawk swooped down on my deck and lit on the cage containing the pigeon. I rushed outside and the hawk flew away and lit on my yard light pole. I managed to get three pictures of it before it flew across the street and lit on the electric company’s transformer. Two blue jays and a mockingbird kept dive-bombing the hawk until he finally flew away. I can’t tell you how scary this was. Now you know why I tell you to keep your kittens, small dogs or any other pets weighing less than 5 pounds in the house. This homing pigeon belongs to someone. I have “lost and found” ads out, but no one has claimed him yet. He is very tame and I hope to find a home for him very soon.
Yard sale: Tomorrow is the first Saturday of August and you know what that means — it’s the big yard sale at PoJo’s in Midway, next to Ida Mae and Joes. I didn’t make the one in July because of the heat and won’t be there tomorrow, but I hope to be set up in September.