Author Archives: Ty

Me Myself and Ty

Spoiler-free Star Wars review

Because it’s really about whether you go see it before the holidays or not.

When I decided to go see The Last Jedi Thursday night, they were last-minute tickets I got for the 11 p.m. showing at the Regal River Ridge Stadium 14 in Lynchburg, Va.

My instinct was to wait until after the opening weekend crowd died down as I had with The Force Awakens, content that the Internet held its collective breath over spoilers after Episode 8 for weeks. TLDR: I’m glad I went ahead and saw it and you should, too. Continue reading →

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Journalism

Students hold sit-in to silence Sam at UNC-Chapel Hill

Students gather at the base of Silent Sam, a Confederate monument on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, on Aug. 25, 2017.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Administrators have said Silent Sam will remain on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for the foreseeable future, and students have vowed to remain at the Confederate monument until it is removed.

The 24/7 sit-in at the statue, which faces Franklin Street from McCorkle Place, stretched into the weekend Friday night as students remained at the foot of the pedestal through rainfall and made plans to spend the night on the quad.
Attempts earlier in the week to pitch tents were thwarted by police, but supporters brought umbrellas, chairs and food for those gathered.

The statue of a Confederate soldier was erected in 1913 to mark the 50th anniversary of the American Civil War through funding from alumni and the United Daughters of the Confederacy as a memorial to the students who died fighting for the South.

Silent Sam, so called because the soldier carries no ammunition, sits on a pedestal bearing carvings, although it was covered Friday by signs and banners.

Signs posted around the pedestal at Silent Sam on campus in Chapel Hill on Aug. 25, 2017.
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Uncategorized

Bedford United hosts vigil downtown

BEDFORD, Va. — Less than 100 miles from Charlottesville, where protesters clashed violently with white supremacists over the weekend, this small town of less than 7,000 put together a community healing event at Centertown Plaza where more than 50 attendees shared thoughts and held vigil for the three people who died Saturday.

Those gathered held signs and lit candles for the two Virginia State Troopers who perished in a helicopter crash while providing air support for law enforcement on the ground and for the 32-year-old woman who was killed when a car drove through a crowd of protestors in downtown Charlottesville.

The event was put together in less than 24 hours to synchronize with similar events across the country held Sunday night. Bedford United organizer Kim Kirsch said she arranged the vigil via Facebook after learning the closest similar event was taking place in Roanoke, Va.

Kirsch told the group she wanted the Bedford community to have the opportunity to come together on its own.

Speakers included Bedford Town Manager Bart Warner and other community members and leaders.

A follow-up event is scheduled for Sept. 17.

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$Texas, Journalism, Me Myself and Ty, Politics

Sen. Tillis holds town call

Sen Thom Tillis (R-NC)

U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) held a telephone town hall Tuesday for residents in Wilson, Wayne and Lenoir counties, taking submitted questions and live inquiries from constituents in Eastern North Carolina.

Tillis, former N.C. Speaker of the House, stressed the need for Republicans to wield their Congressional supermajority with a look to bipartisanship, something he said Democrats failed to do when they held majorities in the House and Senate.

“We need to get members on both sides of the aisle talking,” he said. Continue reading →

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Journalism, Me Myself and Ty

Mt. Olive Pickle sees #ADayWithoutImmigrants attendance dip

Operations went smoothly Thursday at Mt. Olive Pickle, but a number of workers were absent on a day activists nationwide promoted as a general strike for migrant workers.

While social media posts suggested administrative staff were called onto the canning line to fill in for missing workers, Mt. Olive spokeswoman Lynn Williams said Thursday evening she didn’t know if those accounts were true.

“I really don’t know if that’s true or not actually,” she said. “I have no idea. I haven’t seen the social media post either. We did see a dip in attendance today, but we made some adjustments.”

 

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Me Myself and Ty

Kinston’s First Snow of 2017 in Pictures

Lenoir County received enough of a dusting Saturday to transform the landscape of Kinston into a winter wonderland.

Pearson Park as seen from the Farmers Market on Jan. 7, 2017.
Snow covers the Neuse River overlook at Tiffany West Park on Jan. 7, 2017.
Crews work between patches of snow and ice on South Queen Street on Jan. 7, 2017.
Water still flowing behind the Kinston Music Park on Jan. 7, 2017.
Snow covers Harvey Beech Park on South Queen Street on Jan. 7, 2017.
Snow falls at the Lenoir County Courthouse on Jan. 7, 2017.
Snow falls in front of the Kinston-Lenoir County Chamber of Commerce on Jan. 7, 2017.

Continue reading →

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Me Myself and Ty

’16 in 16 photos

Here’s my wrap-up of the year in pictures.

There’s more Trump here than I would like, but that’s what made 2016 so 2016.

A Secret Service agent shrugs at Trump supporters denied entry into a second campaign rally at Fayetteville’s Crown Coliseum on June 14, 2016.
Two white males drive down Queen Street in downtown Kinston on
Still flood waters surround houses, mailboxes and shrubs in the neighborhood behind Bynum Elementary School in Kinston, N.C. almost a week after Hurricane Matthew made landfall.
The Windgate Townhose Apartments complex was completely evacuated ahead of rising floodwaters from the Neuse River nearly a week after Hurricane Matthew made landfall.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) talks to reporters ahead of a rally near Raleigh, North Carolina on March 8, 2016.
Fireworks erupt behind Flue, Thomas Sayre’s newest installment in Kinston, N.C. on July 4, 2016.
Sun sets in Goldsboro, N.C. on Dec. 25, 2016
Donald Trump reacts to a crowd of supporters seeking autographs after a campaign rally in Fayetteville, N.C. on March 9, 2016.
An alligator rests in the surf at Oak Island, N.C. on July 7, 2016
Hashbrown leaps high above Sara to catch a tennis ball at the Rotary Dog Park in Kinston, N.C. on Nov. 21, 2016
Headstones are barely visible in Cedar Grove Cemetery south of Lincoln Street on Oct. 14, 2016.
Donald Trump signs autographs after his rally in Myrtle Beach, S.C. on Feb. 19, 2016.
A young Trump supporter hangs around long after Donald Trump’s post-rally autograph session ended in Myrtle Beach, S.C. on Feb. 19, 2016.
An airplane pulled a banner reading “VETS TO TRUMP STOP HATE SPEECH AGAINST MUSLIMS” above Myrtle Beach, S.C. on Feb. 19, 2016 outside a Donald Trump campaign rally ahead of the S.C. primary.
A blue line of Fayetteville police officers on bikes stands between Trump supporters and protesters following a rally at Crown Coliseum on March 9, 2016.

Continue reading →

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Politics

#NCVotes: By the numbers

trumpfayetcrowd

Donald Trump rallies supporters in Fayetteville, N.C. on March 9, 2016.

Some interesting swing state figures I’ve been sharing on Twitter that all needed a home:

 

 

 

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Journalism, Me Myself and Ty, Politics

Thanks for inspiring me, Donald Trump.

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Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump signs autographs after a primary rally in Myrtle Beach, S.C. on Feb. 19, 2016.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from following Donald Trump across the Carolinas it’s that people appreciate someone who tells it like it is.

Yes, Trump has inspired me. Continue reading →

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$Texas, Me Myself and Ty, Politics, Sports

I never meant to hate Cam Newton.

I was born in Eastern North Carolina, which means I wasn’t born in the heart of ACC country: I was born in Pirate Territory.

I explained to a Kinston tourist that local infatuation with piracy had more to do with a black-bearded man named Edward Teach than East Carolina University, but deep down I knew it was all bluster.

My high school colors were purple and gold; my uncle played at Dowdy-Ficklen back in the 20th century when students could also be athletes; heck my mother got her nursing degree while commuting to Greenville, (but she always rooted for the Wolfpack.)

The ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament (which is not canon if it’s not held in Greensboro) is broadcast in nearly every classroom in the state of North Carolina, but when you talk professional sports, you’ll see a schism in this state, not concerning allegiance, but degree of allegiance.

The Charlotte Hornets might as well have been in Tennessee when I was growing up watching from Goldsboro (Don’t forget this is when cable was 36 channels) and the most connection I ever felt to the team was through Mugsy Bogues in Space Jam.

I “rooted” for the Hornets, but Charlotte still felt a world away.

When the Panthers joined the NFL, though — I remember hearing about it from a clown at a birthday party in 1994 — I immediately became a fan. Continue reading →

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