Battle, KCL Cross Country, and Wimbledon

Hey yall,

Here's to catch up on the last week or so.  Two Saturdays ago, I went to the town of Battle, England which is the site of the Hastings battlefield.  I chose that day because it was the anniversary of the 1066 battle and for the occasion a reenactment was being put on.  The first half of the day was mainly spent walking around the abbey and battlefield.  The abbey was built by the victorious William the Conqueror after the battle as penitence for all the Englishmen he had killed.  I ate my lunch sitting on the famous Senlac Hill where the battle was fought.  Again, for a self-proclaimed military history geek, it was pretty darn cool to be sitting on the hill.  Before the reenactment, there were various demonstrations such as how armor was made and how infantryman and cavalry fought during the time period.  Everyone even spoke French in the Norman encampment.  The battle itself was pretty cool, although the troop movements were in the wrong direction. (for event logistic reasons).

On Wednesday the 19th, I had my first cross country race in the red and blue striped King's College uniform.    On the chest are the letters "KCL" and the college's shield.  The 5-mile race was held at Parliament Hill on the south side of Hampstead Heath.  The course is considered the most famous in England, which is cool, but all of the hills were not.  It was a very hilly course.  After my season last year at Carolina being derailed with a broken foot in the first meet, I really just wanted to come out and run a decent time after a year since my last cross country race.  I ran a 28:56 which I was pretty happy with, especially considering the terrain and being early in the season.  That time should go down a good ways with more races and flatter courses.  Best yet, I finished #1 on the team and we beat our rivals over at University College London.

Then last Saturday, I stayed in London and went to see Wimbledon over south of the river.  With the subway closing large portions of the lines on weekends for maintenance, I had to get creative with how to get there, but I got there sure enough.  First off, I took a guided tour around the grounds.  The tour took us to see, among other sites, Centre Court, the interview room, and Court 18.  Centre Court is what it is.  In the interview room, I got to sit in the same chairs at the very desk that names like Federer, Nadal, and Sharapova have sat in.  But, for me, the highlight of the tour was, without doubt, Court 18:  famous for being the court where Greensboro Page alumnus John Isner played the longest match in history.

Class has been going well so far.  I must say I hate my class on War and International Order, as I really don't care what Hobbes, Rousseau, or Kant thought about the state of nature.  However, my War and Intelligence class is really cool.  My lesson this past week was on "Strategic Deception" which was really interesting.  My professor actually spent 20 minutes of the lesson instructing us how to craft an effective lie.  I promise, I'll only use the skill against bad guys in my future career.

Yall take it easy,
Will

Oxford and Brussels

Hey y'all,

So yeah, it's been a couple weeks since my last post, I apologize.  I'll give my dad credit for his blog, it takes some being intentional to keep these things up to date.  Anyhow, I've been busy the last couple weeks, but I'll try to keep it short.

Two weekends ago I went with four other Tar Heels to Oxford.  We left Victoria Station in London around 8:30, albeit I left slightly later on account of having a bad ticket.  Long story short, I got there 30 minutes behind everyone.  To be honest, I didn't think the university was all that interesting.  I skipped the long tour in preference for the 1 pound tour of the Divinity School.  Harry Potter fans would recognize it as the scene for the Hogwarts infirmary.

Best part of the day was by far the afternoon.  Two of my friends and I walked over to the River Cherwell to investigate "punting."  Punting is essentially an English version of riding a Venetian gondola.  The design of the boats and method of propulsion are the same; long length to beam ratio with a large pole to move and steer.  It took a couple minutes getting used to, but once I did, it was a lot of fun.  We got to float up and down the river for well over an hour.  After dinner and a walk down the (upstream) River Thames, I returned to London around 8 PM.

Last weekend I made my first international trip while abroad.  Destination: Brussels, Belgium.  This was also my first experience on-board the Eurostar, the high-speed train which runs underneath the English Channel over to the Continent.  My train left from St. Pancras International Station early in the morning on Friday.  The station was already prepared for the Olympics, with massive Olympic Rings hanging above the tracks.  We made stops at Ebbsfleet, England and Lille, France before reaching Brussels-Midi Station.  I spent most of my time Friday and Saturday walking around, seeing the sites of Brussels.  I saw the Berlaymont European  Union building, the Grand Place (considered one of the three most beautiful squares in Europe), and NATO Headquarters just to name a few.  Unfortunately it rained all weekend, but that didn't stop me (although it's left me with a cold this week).  Neither did the combination of having everything written and spoken in French and Dutch present too much of a problem.

Belgium is known for its food.  My initial experience on Friday was disappointing.  But I gave it another effort for dinner on Saturday and I'm sure glad that I did.  For dinner, I had Carbonnades Flamades, which was basically Flemish beef stew and it was excellent.  Then for dinner, the Belgian waffle entered my life.  Belgium has two main kinds of waffle, Brussels (light and crispy) and Liege (soft and sweet).  I got a Brussels waffle with hot chocolate syrup, powdered sugar, and chocolate ice cream and it was absolutely incredible.

The highlight of Belgium for a Peace, War, and Defense major, however, was a visit to the Waterloo Battlefield on Sunday.  I woke before the crack of dawn to get a train out of Brussels-Midi station bound for the small town of Braine l'Alleud, just 10 miles outside capital.  From there, I walked around 3 miles (through the rain) to reach the battlefield.  This is the history geek in me, but to stand on the same soil where possibly the most important European battle was fought was breathtaking.  To walk in the footprints of Napoleon, Wellington, and Blucher is a moment I'll never forget.  At the battlefield, I hiked up 290 stairs to the top of the monument and went on a guided tour of the battlefield on a tram.  For lunch, I ate at the Wellington Cafe, situated roughly where the center of Wellington's line would have been.  It truly was hard to leave, but I had to get back to Brussels.  After dinner, my return train left Brussels bound for London.

Dover and First Week of Classes

Hey y'all,

It's been a while since my last post, so there is a bit to catch up on.  The highlight of the past week was a trip to Dover on last Saturday.  I, along with five other UNC-KCL students, left on a bus from the London Victoria Coach Station in the morning for a 2-hour trip to the seaside town of Dover.  The drive took us through the Kent countryside and through a stop at Canterbury.  We arrived late in the morning and, as most of us had eaten little or no breakfast, we sat down for breakfast at a restaurant where I got my first full English breakfast.  It was a very good combination of a fried egg, (country) ham, sausage links and tomatoes.

Our main attraction in Dover was the castle located on a height east of the town.  It was truly an extraordinary site, as it contained history from the Romans, medieval times, 18th-century, both World Wars, and up through the Cold War.  The geographic value of the area was recognized by the Romans who built a lighthouse, or pharos, atop the cliffs.  Later King Henry II, daddy of Richard the Lionheart and King John of Robin Hood) built an imposing castle there for show as much as military reasons.  The main keep was surrounded by two curtain walls and the position atop the cliffs would've made it a tough nut to crack for an invader.  Under the castle was a network of medieval tunnels that were really cool to walk through.  Away from the keep, closer to the cliffs, the English later dug tunnels beneath the earth to house supplies and soldiers fearing an attack from Napoleon.  These in turn were improved upon and extended during the World Wars to include a hospital, command rooms, and larger barracks.  All told, there are some 4 miles of tunnels dug into the cliffs.  Most impressively, it was in these tunnels that Bertram Ramsay managed Operation Dynamo, the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force from Dunkirk in World War II.  During the Cold War, the deepest tunnels became nuclear fallout shelters to house the Regional Seat of Government should the country be attacked by the Soviets.  From the top of the cliffs (yes, the white cliffs of Dover), we could see the French coastline across the Channel.  Pretty neat.

I joined Ryan Dickey in attending All Souls Church Sunday morning in London.  All Souls was the church from which famous preacher and theologian, John Stott, played a primary role in returning the declining Anglican Church back to Gospel-centered Evangelism in the 80s.  Stott seems to be very highly regarded among Evangelicals here, almost like an English Billy Graham.  My school, King's College London, started classes this Monday, and all of my courses (or modules) are from the War Studies Department.  I'm taking classes on War and Global Conflict, Intelligence in War, Naval History, and War and International Order.  The Intel class seems like it's going to be pretty cool.  Beyond class, I attended the KCL Christian Union meeting on Tuesday, a Bible study at St. Luke's Church in Hampstead Wednesday, as well as going to the first KCL Cross Country training session.  I also joined a chorus which practiced on Thursday night.  Our concert is going to include Mozart's Requiem and Carmina Burana.

Anyhow, sorry for a long post.  I'm headed to Oxford tomorrow, and just booked a few days in Brussels for next weekend.  Glad to hear that the Red Sox had their hearts ripped out of their chest and trampled into the dust the other night.  Ah, how I hate them.

Yall be good,
Will

Getting There

On Thursday, my four and a half month summer came to an end, and I don't think anyone could blame me for saying "woe is me."  I reckon that spending three months in England will make up for killing my long summer.  Now that I've thrown that sarcasm away and ticked some folks off, here are the facts.

My plane departed from RDU at 11:30 Thursday morning.  Everything went smooth enough.  They did run me through the full-body x-ray machine, so I guess the Polo shirt, Sperrys, and blazer made me look like a bad guy.  Upon arriving at Boston-Logan, I found ways to kill time, including eating lunch at Wendy's for my last American meal.  I flew out of Boston around 7:15 PM and I feel no shame in saying that the sun setting behind the Boston skyline was a beautiful sight.  I had imagined after countless long bus trips with church and band that I had become hardened to the discomfort of those journeys.  However, the 5.5 hour plane ride did not suit my legs.  Only the movie "Battle: Los Angeles" could put me to sleep (yes, it's that bad).  In the morning darkness flying over Ireland, I used the plane's map to pick out the lights of Cork and Waterford far below, and I thought back to that trip years ago.  Shortly after 6 AM GMT on Friday morning, my plane touched down at London-Heathrow.

I was a bit worried that I received my visa without the security agent looking at any documentation besides my passport, but turns out I was just over-prepared.  Allison Bonner (Farmville, NC connection!) and I met some other Carolina-King's College students at a Krispy Kreme in the airport.  Everything tasted the same, but a single glazed doughnut cost an equivalent of $2.  From there we crammed four of us into a taxi and headed towards the neighborhood of West Hampstead, where my residence is.  My hall, Lord Cameron, is a university residence but is located off-campus in this, what is considered to be, one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in England.  And sure enough, around the Heath (think big park), there are some huge houses.  Friday evening was filled with a hall meeting and social to meet new folks.  They are all real nice, mostly from England, but I have made friends with a guy from Berlin and a girl from Montpelier.  They seemed excited to have an American in their midst.  From my third story bedroom window, I can look out over West Hampstead, the Heath, and see the downtown skyline in the distance.

Today, after a cool (sub-50 degree) run on the Heath, I met up with a group of UNC/KCL students in the shadow of Big Ben.  They were actually having a cycling time trial for the 2012 Olympic qualifying.  After walking around Westminster (British Parliament) and Whitehall (British government agencies), our group continued on walking down the streets of downtown London.  We saw the London Eye, Thames River, Royal Courts, and St. Paul's Cathedral.  In the late afternoon, I went to visit the British Museum where I saw the Rosetta Stone and the library where Karl Marx infamously wrote "Das Kapital".

Overall, getting here and settling in has been alright.  I did feel bad missing church today, but luckily there is a Gospel-centered Evangelical church on my block that I hope to attend in the coming months.  Anyhow, sorry for the long post.  Hope all is well back in North Carolina.

                           Not a bad view from my bedroom window, huh?

The Last Week Down East

It's my last week down here in New Bern at the Governor's Eastern Office.  It hasn't been boring, either.  On Wednesday, the Governor called a last-minute press conference to be held at the Port of Morehead City.  Director Tate Johnson and I went down there for the 5 o'clock meeting.  She announced that PCS Phosphate had voluntarily withdrawn its plans to build a new sulfur smelting facility at the port.  In the last week, many environmentalists in Carteret County had gotten stirred up claiming that no public notice was given of the plans.  And while the Governor assured them that notice had been given, the protesters were happy to hear the news.  I was hoping for some excitement from the protesters, but got none.

On Thursday, my director and I went down to Havelock for the first of the Governor's Military Summits.  This amounted to the big project that I got to help on this summer.  The event was an opportunity for leaders from government, business, military, and education to get together and learn how to better address the concerns of North Carolina's military communities.  Besides the Governor, several Marine officers were present from MCAS Cherry Point as well as NC Secretary of State Elaine Marshall.  Speaking of Secretary Marshall, I recognized her face as she approached registration.  I had met her at a Smith-Grimsley football game in the fall.  But when she reached my desk, I blanked on who she was.  When I asked for her last name and she said "Marshall", the embarrassment was pretty bad.  Meanwhile, Tate Johnson found it downright hilarious and will likely never let me live that down.  Anyhow, a pretty cool day was capped off with me getting a picture with the Governor.

So that's it for this chapter.  I've been blessed with an amazing opportunity.  I can't thank Tate Johnson enough for selecting me and my uncle Alan for opening up his home to me for these 10 weeks.  After a round of golf at MCAS Cherry Point tomorrow, it's back to the Piedmont Paradise which is Greensboro.  Can't wait to get home.  Next up: London.

A Mansion and a Port

It's been a pretty cool last two days travelling for my internship.  On Tuesday, Governor Perdue hosted a reception at the Executive Mansion for the 64 state government interns.  Let's just say it was not a great day to be walking across downtown Raleigh in a suit.  I had to stop in the History Museum just to cool off.  The Mansion is really nice, as you might imagine.  I couldn't help but feel bad looking at portraits of the "first spouses", as Bob Eaves (Bev's husband) was the only man up there.  It was also cool to see a basketball goal in the back yard.  Anyhow, got to talk to several people, most notably Moses Carey, Secretary of the Department of Administration and Carolina alum.  The Governor gave a brief speech at the end of the reception.

On Wednesday, I traveled down to the State Port at Morehead City to represent the Governor's Office at a luncheon held by the Port Authority.  The event was held to celebrate the opening of a new woodchip facility at the port.  The facility will allow trees grown in eastern North Carolina to be turned into woodchips and exported overseas, creating jobs and hopefully helping to rejuvenate the region's economy.  After the luncheon, we got a tour of the port facilities.  Driving through a massive warehouse with rubber, we were told that Morehead City is the second largest recipient of rubber on the east coast behind only New Orleans.  On the far side of the port, we came to the M/V Stellar Grace, the vessel that will take the first shipment of woodchips.    We got to go on-board for a tour by the captain himself.  Leaving with its cargo from Morehead City, NC, the ship is bound for Istanbul, stopping only at Gibraltar.  I couldn't help but feel that North Carolina pride when thinking that our state's exports were bound for Turkey.  That's pretty cool.  For a state that once produced 96% of the nation's naval stores in the 19th century, it's interesting that North Carolina trees provide a global export for the state here now in the 21st century.  Go North Carolina!

Shoutin' About Redistricting

Sorry it's been a while since the last post, but things have slowed down in the Governor's Eastern Office since the General Assembly adjourned.  However, with the Assembly planning to reconvene for a four day session beginning next week to discuss electoral redistricting, Tar Heel politics is about to heat up once more.  With the numbers in from the 2010 Census, districts have to be redrawn to represent the changes in states.  And while North Carolina came up short of acquiring a 14th seat in the US House, lines will be redrawn.  And like I learned in Ms. Enright's AP Gov class several years ago, the party that controls the NC Assembly redraws the lines.  For the first time in nearly a century, the Republican Party will get the task, or more accurately, the opportunity.

Redistricting is politics plain and simple.  There's no hiding that whatever party runs the state will hammer new districts into shapes that increase its chances of winning down the road.  Everyone does it.  Consider the NC 12th Congressional District.  Literally, I've opened up text books and seen it provided as the example of Gerrymandering.  No Republican has a shot at winning that district; it was made that way by Democrats.  Consider the NC 5th, which is a Republican safe seat.  Republicans in the 2011 General Assembly will set forth to create a red state out of North Carolina.  Aside from some requirements for minority districts via the Voting Rights Act, there is nothing to restrain Republicans.  They'll need a simple majority in the Assembly (which they have) and its a type of bill that Governor Perdue can't veto.

Basic strategy for Republicans: Cluster Democratic precincts into minority precincts.  With minority districts required by law (which almost always vote Democratic), Republican legislators will try to pack these districts as liberal as they can make them.  Essentially, they'll seek to make a handful of districts ultra-liberal and dominated by minorities, leaving the rest and majority of the districts for them at best conservative, and at worst moderate.  For example, Greensborians can think of a neighborhood like Westerwood.  Westerwood is a very white, very liberal neighborhood.  Republicans will seek to put neighborhoods like Westerwood into minority districts like those found in East Greensboro, thereby conceding a liberal district they couldn't win anyway, and making Westerwood's former district more moderate.  This will likely result in black politicians representing a higher percentage of Democratic seats both in Congress and the Assembly.  NOTE: this is an example, I don't actually know of any plans specifically regarding Westerwood.  But hopefully for this post, the strategy for Republicans is clarified by such an example.  

To take a title from a book my mother read, "It's All Over But the Shoutin'."  With little the Democrats can do but file inevitable lawsuits, shoutin' is about all that will be done in Raleigh next week.  Here's to hoping the office doesn't get bombarded with people calling and shoutin' at me.

An Ultimate Run and Season Done

I went home this weekend to run in my last "track meet" of the season.  The Ultimate Runner is organized by the Twin City Track Club of Winston-Salem and is hands down my favorite event of the year.  Participants compete in each of the 1600, 400, 800, 100 meter runs and finish up with a 5k cross country.  After a 5th-place finish last year, I was hoping to have similar success.  I seemed to forget what kind of runner I am, turning in my best times in the 400 and 100 meter events.  However, track season left me with tired legs, a tweaked achilles tendon, and a 14th-place finish this year out of a 108-person field.  I blame myself, but Saturday just wasn't my night.

So track season is finished for another year.  And while I return to the track each spring, eager and excited to run faster events, I am quite happy now to hang up the spikes for 8 months.  So ends, also, the 2010-2011 running year for me.  Yet a year that started with promise last August may look something like a sophomore slump now.  My first 5k of the year at the Whirlie Alumni Run resulted in a PR, and in my first Carolina Club meet which was (supposed to be) 5 miles, I ran the first 5k of the race faster than that PR in August.  Things were certainly looking good.  I didn't know at the time, however, that I had fractured a bone in my foot.  Cross country: over.  After returning from that injury, I came back in 4 weeks to run a half-marathon PR before Christmas.  In track, the couple of meets I got to run, I ran sloppy splits and never executed the way I should have, all while nursing a strained achilles.  Then in the early summer, an abysmal (albeit 1st place) performance in the Whirlie Alumni Run was followed up by a 2nd place finish in an 8k road race and a disappointing Ultimate Runner.

All said, sophomore year running was a roller coaster.  I was looking at the best season of my life, only to break my foot.  Then after that encouraging half-marathon finish, track left me unsatisfied.  Yet not all was lost.  Prior to the foot injury, I was in perhaps the best shape of my life.  With some solid summer training, I should be able to return to that point.  After only 4-weeks back, the success in the half-marathon might provide a hint that my greatest potential is in the half/full marathon distances.  And then, despite consistently poor execution in track and an accompanying injury, I manged to produce PRs in my two events.  All told, a down year saw me run PRs in the half-marathon, 8k, 4-mile, 5k, 1500m, and 800m.

Improvement, however small, is improvement, I reckon.  I'm going to take 2 weeks to rest and then it'll be time to gear up for cross country.  Can't wait to see what next year holds.

The Kinston Situation

Over the last couple of weeks, seven homicides have taken place in the eastern part of Kinston.  Most of them have taken place in a neighborhood called Mitchelltown, an area of extreme poverty and gang activity.  I received a call earlier in the week from a lady living in this neighborhood, concerned that the city was not doing enough to address the problem.  Since the last homicide, the Kinston police have put 11 new officers on the streets in this 2009 "All-American City".  The lady visited the Governor's Office today and I and Director Tate Johnson got a chance to discuss her concerns and what can be done above the municipal level.

After some research, I've written up a letter outlining the options that exist to deal with Kinston's problems.  Yet each one, if pursued (and they are not mutually exclusive) could encounter problems.

Option 1:  Law Enforcement-  If the increased police officers are not sufficient, the State Bureau of Investigation can become involved.  I spoke on the phone with an Assistant Attorney General at the NC Department of Justice who told me that for the SBI to become involved in a case, it must be invited in by the local police chief, sheriff, or district attorney.  Having already increased officer numbers, the Kinston Police might be reluctant to make this call.

Option 2:  Redevelopment Commission-  North Carolina General Statutes authorizes counties to create Regional Redevelopment Commissions.  These commissions can then research and recommend a direction for the municipality to take.  The potential problem here is that in order for a county to create a commission, it must also have a contiguous county pass a resolution to also participate in the commission.  It may be hard to convince a Duplin or Jones County commissioner to give their county's time and energy to solving Lenoir County's problem.  If a commission is created, it must receive permission from the municipality to act within the city limits.  The biggest problem would be funding.  The State does not appropriate money for these commissions and so it would have to be funded by the county and/or the city.  Most cities and counties right now are extremely strapped for cash.

Option 3:  Legislative Action-  Kinstonians could also go to their representatives in the Assembly and propose legislation be passed to provide assistance for municipalities in a situation like Kinston.  Representatives William Wainwright and Stephen LaRoque may be willing, but this certainly isn't a quick fix.

                                  

North Carolina Military Summits

One of the bigger things going on at the Governor's Eastern Office  is preparing for a series of military summits to be held this summer and fall.  I have been assisting Director Tate Johnson in planning and coordinating these summits.  There will be four mini-summits that will lead to a larger summit to be held later in the fall.  These summits will be a chance for the Governor to meet with military leaders, state and local officials, and North Carolina citizens on issues affecting the relationship between North Carolina and the armed forces.

I was totally unaware of how large a military presence we had in this state prior to arriving in New Bern and planning these summits.  We have here in our state significant bases for the Army, Marines, Air Force, and Coast Guard.  Governor Perdue often speaks to the military friendliness of the state and how much we value the presence of these forces in North Carolina.  The primary fighting force for the US Marine Corps is the Marine Expeditionary Unit.  The Corps has 7 MEUs spread across the globe; 3 of them are stationed here in the state.  The famous 82nd Airborne Division is based out of Fort Bragg.  No matter where American forces may be engaged in the world, there's a good chance they've been through the Tar Heel State.

The sites for the four mini-summits are listed below with their respective military installations.

1. Havelock, NC-  Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point
2. Jacksonville, NC-  Camp Lejeune, Marine Corps Air Station New River
3. Goldsboro, NC-  Seymour Johnson Air Force Base
4. Fayetteville, NC-  Fort Bragg, Pope Air Force Base

North Carolina's State Sport?

This week, Governor Bev Perdue will sign a bill making NASCAR Racing the official sport of the State of North Carolina.  This led me to wonder whether the stock car racing association is the suitable candidate for the position.  I've hashed out below why NASCAR should and should not take that title, as well as other possible contenders. 


The Candidates

NASCAR 
Why?  More than any state in the country, North Carolina is the home for stock car racing.  Many attribute the birth of the sport to moonshine runners in the mountains of North Carolina.  The state, up until a few years ago was home to two tracks on circuit in Lowe's Motor Speedway in Charlotte and Rockingham Speedway.  Also, two NASCAR royal families, the Earnhardts and Pettys, call the Old North State "home."

Why Not?  The case against NASCAR being the state sport will be the trouble labeling it a 'sport'.  I'm not saying that it isn't a sport, but with almost no physical exertion involved on the part of the competitors, it struggles to justify itself as one.  It would be a stretch to say that NASCAR requires any form of physical giftedness, and thus may not deserve the title it gets in this legislation.

College Basketball
Why?  Simply put, Tobacco Road.  The basketball program at UNC is among the four most-storied in the nation.  It is in company only with UCLA, Kansas, and Kentucky.  The school has 6 national titles to its name.  Arguably the second-greatest head coach in the game, behind John Wooden, is Dean Smith.  Then there's Michael Jordan, Wilmington Laney graduate and the greatest to ever play the game.  Consider also Duke's program which has won a respectable four titles.  Although not as storied and prolific as its light blue rival, Duke, led by coaching great Mike Krzyzewski, has earned itself a top spot among the new elite in college basketball.  Throw in NC State's two titles, and you've got a convincing argument to have college basketball as the state's official sport.

Why Not?  For what it counts, North Carolina does not mean nearly as much to college basketball as it does to NASCAR.  While the state is special having programs like Carolina and Duke, it is not as significant to the sport as the state's contribution to NASCAR.  Plus, outside of the Tobacco Road fanbases, college basketball is not nearly as important as it seems to the blue-bloods.

Golf
Why?  Again, rather simply, the argument can be summed up with Pinehurst.  The Pinehurst No. 2 course is a regular stop for the U.S. Open Championship.  And for a tournament regarded as the toughest test in the golfing world, Pinehurst is one of its toughest courses.  Home to the tournament in 1999, 2005, and 2014, the course may be best known for Payne Stewart's immortal photograph after winning in '99. 

Why Not?  Those North Carolinians who play golf love the sport, but those who don't, couldn't really care less.  And while the state likes to claim itself as the "Home of American Golf," a single course may be the only significant contribution.

Honorable Mention

Baseball  Behind Georgia, maybe the best youth baseball state in the country.  However, without a professional team of its own, and with the last college world series title coming from Wake Forest in 1950, it merits little more than honorable mention.

Soccer  Props to the Carolina women and vibrant youth leagues in the states's larger cities.  Liked by those who play it.  Forgotten by those who don't.  How are the Railhawks and Dynamo doing as of late?  That's what I thought.  Still a European sport.

Not Even in Contention

High School Football No great tradition (as compared to a Texas), and outside of Charlotte Independence, no national programs of relevance. 

Pro-Football  Panthers are terrible, and if it weren't for the Super Bowl trip in 2004, the franchise would be irrelevant like it was before.

Pro-Basketball  The Hornets left the state, and the Bobcats are just kinda...there.

Hockey  Yankee sport.

Lacrosse  See hockey.


Let me know what y'all think.

Raising of Queen Anne's Revenge's Anchor

On Friday May, 27th, I was honored with the opportunity to represent the Governor's Eastern Office for a special moment in history.  This is this blog post I wrote for the Governor's webpage...

In 1718, the Queen Anne’s Revenge, ship of Edward Teach, better known as Blackbeard, ran aground on a sandbar near Beaufort Inlet.  On Friday, May 27, 2011, the anchor of that same ship was raised from the sea floor, entering the North Carolina sun for the first time in nearly 300 years. 

The anchor broke the surface of the Atlantic Ocean a little after eleven o’clock on Friday morning.  On the scene were two ships from the Queen Anne’s Revenge Project.   One of these boats had onboard a team of divers that were responsible for first moving the anchor out of the ship wreckage, and then raising  the one ton object twenty feet to the surface with the aid of inflatables.  Having done so, divers ran a line connected from the anchor to a larger ship which was then able to hoist the anchor onto its deck.  Looking on from two boats were invited guests from pertinent North Carolina museums and agencies, as well media personnel.

The raising of the Queen Anne’s anchor is one of the high points in the midst of the larger Queen Anne’s Revenge (QAR) project.  The QAR Project is a coordinated undertaking involving a number of individuals, organizations and institutions under the overall management of the Division of Archives and History's Office of State Archaeology.  The wreck was first discovered in 1996, and state planners hope to have the whole wreck brought to the surface by 2013.

For more information regarding the Queen Anne’s Revenge Project, please visit its website at http://www.qaronline.org/. 

Introductions first

I reckon to start a blog, I ought to first introduce myself.  My name is Will.  I was born William Edward Wooten III on June 16, 1990 at the Rex Hospital in Raleigh, North Carolina to parents William (Eddie) Edward Wooten II originally of Farmville, North Carolina and Valerie Laverne Layell Wooten of Elkin, North Carolina.  19 months after I was born, my brother, Joseph (Joe) Ray Wooten, came along.  My mom and dad both graduated from the University of North Carolina.  Dad is the sports editor at the Greensboro News & Record and Mom is a school teacher with Guilford County Public Schools.  Joe has recently completed his first year of study at UNC's School of the Arts playing classical guitar.

My grandparents on my dad's side are William (Bud) Edward Wooten and Barbara Paramore Wooten, both of Farmville, North Carolina.  On the maternal side I come from Joe Cleveland Layell and Edith Ray Layell, both of Pleasant Ridge, North Carolina.  Also within the family is my aunt Cynthia Layell Hartis of Elkin, NC, and her daughter, Anna Elizabeth Hartis; as well as my uncle Alan Wooten of Farmville, NC.

I myself have lived in several North Carolina locales, including Apex, Cary, Greensboro, and Chapel Hill.  Growing up, I bounced around elementary schools, attending three each for two years (Cary Academy in Cary, Claxton and Sternberger in Greensboro).  I went to middle school at Kiser (Greensboro) and earned my diploma from Greensboro Grimsley Senior High School in 2009.  I have just finished my second year of study at the University of North Carolina.  I am double-majoring in Peace, War, and Defense and Political Science, with a minor in History.

I've been born and raised in a great Baptist family.  I've attended FBC-Cary, Greenwood Forest (Cary), FBC-Greensboro, and University Baptist (Chapel Hill).  I have worked as a ministry intern at the latter two.  On a humid August day in 2007, I was saved and baptized in the muddy water of a lake in Brown's Summit, North Carolina.

Sorry for the long post, but just wanted to get some stuff said about who I am.  I promise that the posts will be more interesting after this initial one.  Happy Memorial Day!  From the lyrics of James Otto, only "God knows where we'd be without soldiers and Jesus."  Ain't it the truth?

Take care,
Will