tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-112756412009-11-22T09:43:31.499-05:00My original focus for this blog was an attempt to keep citizens up to date on issues on the Greensboro City Council and other governmental bodies on which I formerly served, to provide more details so "the rest of the story" could be known. As my roles continue to change, so too will the content of this blog. Who knows what you find here next! You can contact me at scarmany@aol.comSandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.comBlogger904125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-58336341846834782712008-09-21T19:35:00.004-04:002008-09-21T19:48:32.012-04:00

No, I haven't dropped off the face of the earth - I have just been VERY busy with my job and other activities. Quite a few people have expressed disappointment at my absence and have urged me to return to blogging. My time is limited, but I will try to check in more frequently. No discussion of politics, though -- that would not be wise in my current position.I spend my working hours here and

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-61300673004910165682008-09-21T19:20:00.011-04:002008-09-21T19:33:02.211-04:00

Today (September 21) is Garrett's first birthday and we helped him celebrate in style. At one year old, he already outweighs his cousin Kammie by 5+ pounds and is the biggest kid in his toddler daycare class. I think he enjoyed the afternoon! Two-year-old Kammie jumped right there with him having fun.

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-70869995462465934892008-03-19T23:01:00.002-04:002008-03-19T23:06:11.163-04:00

Thus begins my latest venture! Friends in elected office are joking that I have "crossed over to the dark side" while friends in administration are saying I have "seen the light." I'm excited and eager to do a good job.

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-19029067283711267182008-03-13T21:19:00.003-04:002008-03-13T21:22:58.172-04:00

My brother Lee down on Oak Island sent me this email description of the nighttime shuttle launch earlier this week."Almost 3am. I walked over to the beach around 2:20 to try to see the 2:28 launch. "Guess-timated" from my watch on the countdown, and sure enough, about a minute later: there it was. Even more impressive (I'm easily impressed) than last time. A red dot coming straight out of the

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-81172160126053869142008-03-13T21:11:00.003-04:002008-03-13T21:17:51.446-04:00

A former colleague emailed this to me today and I thought it was well worth sharing.One day I hopped in a taxi and we took off for the airport. We were driving in the right lane when suddenly a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver slammed on his breaks, skidded, and missed the other car by just inches! The driver of the other car whipped his head around

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-58080916323886503802008-03-09T17:28:00.011-04:002008-03-09T17:57:39.362-04:00

My brother emailed me this "gem" he came across recently. This may have been acceptable in 1943, but it sure wouldn't be tolerated today! Talk about stereotypes and sexism -- unbelievable! 1943 GUIDE TO HIRING WOMEN The following is an excerpt from the July 1943 issue of Transportation Magazine. This was written for male supervisors of women in the work force during World War II. Eleven Tips for

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-63863858803800079462008-03-03T21:15:00.007-05:002008-03-15T08:42:10.355-04:00

I sent the following letter to the members of the Greensboro City Council regarding the recent adoption of "Plan Q." Let's hope I get a posititve response!March 2, 2008Mayor Yvonne JohnsonMembers of the Greensboro City CouncilPO Box 3136Greensboro, NC 27402-3136Dear Mayor and Councilmembers;I am writing to express my displeasure at the recent adoption of a City Council redistricting plan that the

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-26163078046525317342008-03-02T21:46:00.004-05:002008-03-02T21:54:06.943-05:00

As a councilmember who participated in the process of hiring the current city manager and can speak with complete knowledge of what occurred, I say without hesitation -- the information supposedly reported in a local weekly (I haven't seen it for myself) about other applicants turning the job down before it was offered to Mitchell Johnson is absolutely 100% wrong. That did not happen!

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-25497033563152367222008-03-01T20:53:00.013-05:002008-03-01T21:59:38.905-05:00

Here I sit on a Saturday night after a very BUSY week with my duties with the Town of Pleasant Garden (three long 11-12 hour days this past week with evening meeting responsibilities). Plus I've had 'grandma duty' and a weekend of catching up on neglected housework and yardwork. My Inbox is overflowing as well as quite a few comments awaiting moderation. So what on earth am I doing sitting here

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-8183336402483285382008-02-20T18:02:00.006-05:002008-02-20T20:25:44.089-05:00

I live in Greensboro Precinct 50 that has been located in City Council District 5 from the very inception of the district system in Greensboro. Imagine my surprise and chagrin to learn that the current council redistricted me right out of the district that I had represented for the past 16 years and moved my precinct into District 4! Interestingly enough, Precinct 50 was not touched in any of the

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-19725472064894843162008-02-17T21:34:00.006-05:002008-02-17T22:02:02.995-05:00

Sorry for my long silence -- my new job in Pleasant Garden is keeping me REALLY busy these days and I haven't had any extra time to devote to blogging. I am still learning where various files and records are kept in the numerous files in Town Hall plus trying to keep up with preparing agendas and transcribing minutes of various meetings. I have a new understanding why Greensboro's veteran

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-20925051867674604672008-01-31T21:44:00.000-05:002008-01-31T21:51:37.660-05:00

My brother continues to send me old family photos.We think this one was taken on Asheboro Street (now Martin Luther King Boulevard) sometime in the 1940's. My parents rented a house on that street during that time; that's my mother on the far left and her best friend Edna Humble on the far right.Here's my brother Lee in full cowboy regalia --one of his favorite toys in those days.

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-53762804891860128622008-01-27T20:00:00.000-05:002008-01-27T20:16:57.427-05:00

Little Kammie stayed overnight Friday night with my husband and me while her Mom and Dad helped a friend celebrate his 30th birthday. As usual, she spent most of her time following me around and rarely letting me get out of her sight, and not having much to do with her "Paw Paw" at all.Bedtime was a bit of a struggle trying to get her to sleep in an unfamiliar setting -- a playpen set up in my

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-28319685339426166022008-01-20T21:36:00.001-05:002008-01-20T21:52:19.733-05:00

Here's the latest picture and email from my brother Lee who's obviously having fun going through a box of family things.He wrote: "Was thumbing through this old book: "Civil Government of North Carolina and the United States" copyright 1907, but obviously still using it when mama was in school. Did some "googling" to catch up on history. U.S. amendment gave women right to vote in 1920, but NC

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-10619327085045700652008-01-19T14:42:00.000-05:002008-01-21T21:53:16.110-05:00

My brother got a new computer and scanner recently and has been scanning in some old family photos.Here are the two of us sometime in the early 1950's. Heavens, what boney knees!Here's one of my early birthdays. I'll be celebrating another one with a whole lot more candles tomorrow. This one taken when we lived at our grandmother's farm in Pleasant Garden shows that we really did get a real

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-86868038599734972822008-01-15T21:22:00.000-05:002008-01-15T21:39:40.260-05:00

Call me Pollyanna if you will, but I have found that old saying -- "When one door closes, another one opens" -- to be very true in my life. Whenever something happened to me that I considered "bad" at the time, something else came along that was even better than my original plan or goal.That has held true for me this week. I had said I was going to take some time off after I departed my city

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-70894304397746223762008-01-08T20:45:00.000-05:002008-01-08T21:25:39.821-05:00

Here's a brief report on the most recent meeting of the Triad Early Action Compact held on December 3, 2007. Sorry I'm so late getting this posted.There were no surprises in the final summer air quality readings, and according to the calculations based on those readings, the Triad will be certified as in compliance with the 8-hour ozone standard. The NC Division of Air Quality expected to

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-28508560121991687962007-12-31T12:14:00.000-05:002007-12-31T12:19:26.359-05:00

I received the following email over the weekend from a citizen who tells me my blog reports are of some use to him -- guess I'll try to keep on blogging as much as I can.Ms. Carmany,I want to take this opportunity to thank you for all your insightful Coliseum Updates. I have truly enjoyed reading them and I was wondering if there is a site where we can read about the information that you have

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-83001171618304684612007-12-27T10:28:00.000-05:002007-12-27T10:49:55.591-05:00

The current City Council is struggling with the same nagging quandary the previous Council did -- how much protected personnel information can be officially released to 'restore the public trust and confidence' without violating the confidentiality protections mandated by state law?The answer to that question could depend on one's response to THIS question -- Is there a difference between 'in the

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-89015185443414382002007-12-26T15:53:00.000-05:002007-12-26T15:58:14.177-05:00

Grandson Scott personifies the Christmas song "All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth!"His brother Christopher still has all his so far.

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-50946185401578843362007-12-26T15:04:00.000-05:002007-12-26T15:52:37.332-05:00

Now that I made it through Christmas and all its preparations, I'm hoping to post some reports on various topics that I have not had time to write because I was so busy. Today's article in the News & Record about the energy performance contract reminded me that I had neglected to share updates from the December 6 meeting of the War Memorial Commission (Coliseum), my last meeting of the

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-11231561793920361962007-12-24T11:48:00.000-05:002008-01-02T11:58:50.413-05:00

We wrapped up the business of the Blue Ribbon Commission on Charter Schools in Raleigh last week with a vote on the final report to be submitted to the State Board of Education. I supported many of the conclusions, particularly the emphasis on better student performance and the quicker closing of poorly performing schools.However, I was the lone "no" vote on the final product due to my discomfort

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-74846088404544784452007-12-24T11:39:00.000-05:002007-12-24T11:48:19.989-05:00

Last night's performance of Holiday Wonders at the Coliseum's War Memorial Auditorium presented a beautiful look at Chinese culture with some some not-so-subtle political commentary interspersed. The dancers were beautiful and graceful, concealing the strength and athleticism the intricate moves required. My favorites were the Mongolian Bowl Dance, Drummers of the Tang Court, and Forsythia in

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-4873425459632678962007-12-18T21:07:00.000-05:002007-12-18T21:21:32.328-05:00

I had to make an emergency "hamburger run" out to the HondaJet construction site this evening when my husband unexpectedly found himself covering the evening security shift with no food on hand for his supper break. I decided to test drive the newly-opened portion of the western urban loop to get there and was delighted to make the normally 15-20 minute trip across town to the site in about ten

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11275641.post-42214860676618425712007-12-14T14:20:00.000-05:002007-12-14T14:22:55.085-05:00

Would you believe my husband harvested these veggies from the Carmany garden this week? Unbelievable!

Sandy Carmanyscarmany@aol.com0