A Tourist in Mayberry

Question 4: What Happened to the Mayor?

Lacey dreams...

I love her. Candi is my friend. She helps me on good days. She helps me on bad days. She is my friend. She wants me to be happy, and I want her to be happy. She talks to me, and I talk to her. Mostly we talk about our babies and we talk about no money and we talk about our worries. Our troubles, so many troubles. Too many to carry. I am worried. Someone is mean to her. Someone hurt her. She is afraid. I am afraid. She is crying. Someone needs a goes around, comes around. Someone is mean. They need to be afraid too. I will tell. I will tell my Matty. He will know what to do. I will tell. I will tell. He will take care of it. My Matty does not like it when someone is mean to a lady. I will tell. I will tell. I will tell it on the mountain. Go tell it on the mountain that Jesus Christ is here. He is here. I see him right there, right there. He is smiling at me. Sweet little baby Jesus. I love little baby Jesus. He is a good baby.

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Matty Talks to Candi

Matty: Candi, I am concerned about you. What happened to your eye?

Candi who would not look up said something she used to say before, when she was married to Darrell: Oh, it is nothing. I ran into a door.

Matty: Was it at the mayor's office?

Candi: No, no. It was at home.

Matty lifted her chin and looked into her eyes and said: My Lacey is worried about you. Candi, you have nothing to be afraid of. I am going to take care of this. Right now, I plan on a warning, but if you'd like me to break something I will.

Candi swallowed: Break something?

Matty: An arm, a leg, a nose, some fingers, some ribs.

Candi knew he was serious. She smiled slowly: No, no that is all right. A warning is fine. Though if you want to punch him in the gut, that would be ok.

Matty: Done.

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Taken from the Mount Airy News

In a surprise, Mount Airy City Commissioners met this morning and dissolved the controversial Future Economic Development Commission( FEDC). The FEDC has been steeped in controversy because of annex plans opposed by private citizens who have held several private and public debates recently. Area residents involved in the FEDC's annexation plan hired a private attorney last week to represent their interests and what they called "the interests of the citizens, voters, and good people of our small town". Rocky Dellinger, the citizen leader of the group, recently was quoted as saying, "We are all for economic growth and moving forward with the FEDC, but our tax paying citizens have questions and need answers. We want the commissioners to listen to the people who put them in office. We want the private meetings behind closed doors that are so-called personnel-related to stop immediately. This is a Democracy, not a Dictatorship."

"We will not be bullied by a out-of-towner attorney," was the response of a local politician off the record.

Commissioners met behind closed doors and emerged with the decision. Area businessmen who supported the FEDC were at the meeting prior to the closed session and were not allowed to attend. They were visibly upset after the announcement of the dissolution of the FEDC.

Local businessman, Homer Henson, said he was told Mayor Humble Booker, who previously supported the annexation, switched his allegiance at the closed session and his was the deciding vote dissolving the FEDC. "We demand some answers from the mayor," Homer Henson was quoted as saying.