The Chatter Box
By Deborah Bennett

Saturday is the big day - the wedding of our son Jason to his fiancé Kim Godbee. The ceremony will take place 7:30 p.m. at Dry Branch Baptist Church with the reception to follow at the Red Hill Community House. It is sure to be a joyous occasion, despite the few tears I know I am going to shed.

I have often heard it said "a son is a son until he takes a wife, but a daughter is a daughter for all of her life." I don't know about daughters, but I certainly think the part about sons is true - as it should be.

However, I must admit there are times when I don't mind playing "second fiddle" to the other women in my sons' lives. This usually occurs as I am washing the dirty clothes, looking at a full gallon of milk in the refrigerator or eating a sandwich for supper.

Yes, daughters-in-law are wonderful!

******

I read an interesting article last week containing information that might be of interest to local stargazers.

A total lunar eclipse will take place Tuesday, Aug. 28. The moon will darken and turn deep orange near dawn. Although residents of the West Coast will be able to watch it from start to finish, we will just have to be satisfied with a few moments before dawn, as the moon is setting.

If you miss this one, however, another will take place in February.

On Wednesday, Aug. 29, stargazers with a pair of good binoculars will be able to see Vesta, the brightest asteroid in the sky and the only one visible to the naked eye, as it appears to join Jupiter's moons. This visit by the asteroid is supposed to be the brightest it has shown since 1989.

You might also catch a glimpse of the International Space Station as it orbits the planet. It will appear as a slow-moving star and can outshine even the brightest planets.

I have heard it said that sometimes we are not aware of what is going on "under our noses," but these are examples of what we may not know is going on "over our heads."

******

Happy birthday this week to: Martha Robbins, Connie Fields, Cecil Skinner, Stephenie W. Adams, Grady L. Lane Jr., Matt Brinson, Janie Waters, Michelle B. Richardson, Blakey Brown, Carolyn Holmes, Evelyn P. Lane, Mildred Thompson, Jean Rountree, Charlene Jones, Rodney Collins, Brayan Brown, Dorothy Smith, Bill Knight Jr., Skylar Herrington, Chris Chance, Summer McNeely and Frances Chance.

******

Celebrating wedding anniversaries this week are: Mr. and Mrs. Ivey McMillan.

******

Military Active Duty List: Airman First Class Charles S. Woods, Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas; Capt. Andrew P. Thomas, U.S. Marines, 2nd Marine Division, F.A.S.T. Company, Bahrain, Persian Gulf; Stuart Burrus, U.S. Air Force, BAFB, LA; SPC 4 Travis D. Motes, 1st Calvary Division, Camp Taji, Iraq; Capt. Donald Slade Burke, Travis Air Force Base, Fairfield, Calif.; SPC Grade E4 Arthur Lamont Milton Jr., HHC 1-36 Infantry Support, Friedberg, Germany; Staff Sgt. Gilbert C. Sheppard III, 48th Brigade, 118th Field Artillery, Ft. Stewart; Petty Officer 3rd Class Jamie A. Yager, U.S. Navy, Marine Corps Base Hawaii; Petty Chief Officer Andy D. Crosby, U.S. Navy, Elroy Destroyer, Norfolk, Va.; Stephanie Crosby, R.N., U.S. Navy, Lafayette Destroyer; LCPL Dwain "Cade" Lee, 1st Marine Division Combat Service Support Group II Security Element, ArRamadi, Iraq; Jimmy Cooper, U.S. Army National Guard, 878th Engineering Battalion-Augusta, Persian Gulf ; 1st Lt. J.R. Taylor, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Iraq; SPC. Daniel Stuart, 18th MEDCOM, 121 General Hospital, Seoul, Korea; Jeffrey Sweat, U.S. Navy, USS Kauffman, MM3 59/E-Division, AGang, Norfolk, Va.; Cpl. Larry Lamont Clark, U.S. Marine Corp, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C. Bagdad, Iraq; Khan Young, U.S. Navy, U.S.S. Kitty Hawk, Persian Gulf; Robert Milton Jr., E-3, U.S. Army, Ft. Stewart, Hinesville, Ga., Mission Kuwait; SFC Ronnie Perryman, E-7, Georgia Army National Guard, Battery A, 118th Field Artillery Regiment, 48th Brigade Combat Team; Arnold R. Mosley, 2nd Lt., U.S. Air Force, Randolph AFB, Texas; and Debra A. Mosley, Tech. Sgt., U.S. Air Force, Randolph AFB, Texas.