News Stories

A sample of some of the stories I’ve had published in the paper. 

 

 Clearing the Air     

On November 7th, a majority of Ohioans voted to pass The Smoke Free Workplace Act.  Smoking has been prohibited from places people must frequent like government buildings, grocery stores, hospitals and utility offices for many years.  The Smoke Free Workplace Act prohibits smoking in any structure with a roof and at least three walls.  In other words, the act now prohibits smoking in those places people have the option of going into including bars, bingo parlors and your house if you provide day care services for children, adults or have an employee of any kind.  Smoking is also prohibited in outdoor areas adjacent to the entrance or exit of any establishment or where smoke could enter the building through windows, doors or the ventilation system.  Despite the fact that supporters don’t like to call this act a “ban”, preferring to refer to it as a “request to step outside to smoke”, the terms of the act are rigorous and nearly all inclusive in banning smoking throughout the state.   

 

There are some exceptions to the act.  Twenty percent of the rooms in any hotel can be designated as smoking rooms.  You can smoke in your private residence as long as it is not being operated as a business.  Nursing homes can designate an indoor smoking area provided it is completely enclosed and no smoke can escape to other areas of the building. Smoking is permitted in retail tobacco stores that were in existence prior to the passage of the act and are free standing. 

 

If you’re a smoker in
Ohio too young to reside in a nursing home, you don’t own a smoke shop or have plans to sell your house and take up residence in the smoking room of the closest hotel; options for where you can light up have just been considerably narrowed down.  Whether you smoke or not, the long arm of this act right into your private home or business should make your neck hair prickle at least a little at the evidence of one groups personal rights being trampled under the feet of another group’s.  But, the majority has ruled, we’ve ranted and raved, and all that is left is to examine the options left, among which is quitting the habit altogether.

 

The evidence of the damage smoking can do to the human body is well researched and documented.  It has been linked to cancer and stroke, low birth weight and allergies.  Most smokers know this and yet the horror of even the suggestion of giving up their habit is equivalent to asking them to run naked through a church rally.   Whether the reticence to kick the habit comes from refusing to be told what to do or a fear of the withdrawal process, all smokers have addiction to the chemicals in cigarettes in common, and all can benefit from a little help giving up this life threatening habit.

The

National
Center for Chronic Disease and Health Promotion has several suggestions for smokers who want to quit, beginning with setting a date.  Change your environment; get rid of the ashtrays in every room and your car.  Rearrange your furniture and don’t permit other people to smoke in your home.  They suggest that you review your past attempts at quitting and think about what worked and what didn’t.  Once you do decide to quit, don’t smoke.  “Cutting down” just keeps the chemicals working in your body and prolongs the withdrawal process. 

 

It’s important that smokers seek support and encouragement in their attempts to quit.  There are many studies that show people have a better chance of quitting with help. Talk to your doctor, dentist, psychologist or a smoking counselor.  Local Health Departments have information about smoking cessation programs in your area that can include individual group or telephone counseling. 

 

Replacing the time spent smoking with other activities and distractions also helps the withdrawal process.  Walking, exercise or other activity will not only help with the withdrawal but will also help keep your weight in check so food isn’t replacing your habit.   Changing your routine by drinking tea instead of coffee, eating breakfast in a different place or changing your route to work will also help with the mental struggle of quitting.  Avoid your personal triggers.  Alcohol lowers the chances of quitting, as does being around other smokers. 

 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved five medications to help people quit smoking:  Bupropion SR, nicotine gum, inhalers or nasal spray and the nicotine patch.  Your doctor can help you select the medication that will be most effective in helping you. 

 Other resources to help you quit smoking are available from The American Heart Association, American Cancer Society and American Lung Association. 

Beacons Along the Clay Corridor      

       Seven foot tall, highly decorated vases are popping up in front of businesses all over Muskingum and Perry County.  Called The Weller Museum, Vase in Place Project, these pieces of art represent a herculean effort designed to raise funds and provide an additional community attraction highlighting Southeastern Ohio’s heritage in the pottery industry.  Once the project is completed, the vases will stretch from Zanesville through the towns and villages along what is known as the “Appalachian Clay Corridor” to Nelsonville in Athens County.   

          It started with the desire to turn the old Weller Pottery Company building, located in Putnam, into The Weller Pottery Museum with studios for local potters and artisans. The shape of the vase was inspired by a piece originally designed and marketed by the Weller Pottery Company.  The largest employer of its time with 1,500 employees, Weller pieces are highly collectable. Once organizers had conceived the idea in spring of 2005, the project was adopted as a collaborative effort benefiting The Appalachian Pottery Guild and the Artist Colony of Zanesville, as well as the proposed Weller Museum.         

        One hundred of the vases are being made and will be decorated by volunteer artists from throughout Southeastern Ohio. Made of a weather resistant fiberglass and gypsum composite, once decorated and sealed by the artist, the vases are waterproof and can be displayed outside.  They weigh over 160 pounds and are mounted on a marine plywood base that can be attached to a sidewalk or other surface. 

            The blank vases are produced at The Appalachian Pottery Guild Studio located in Crooksville.  Dale Hague, Director of the Guild, oversees and participates in production of the pieces.  In the stifling heat of the studio, dwarfed by a staggered row of these giant vases ready to be delivered for decorating, Dale took time away from his work to  explain the reason for his support of the Vase in Place project.

            “Our region has an historic and contemporary heritage of fine pottery and other outstanding clay products.  The availability of raw materials, combined with the ingenuity, artistic ability and creativity of our people enables us to accomplish good work.
Southeastern Ohio is a leader in clay product creation and manufacturing, our products are known worldwide for their high quality. The intent of the project is to sustain this heritage, to promote the arts and provide an ongoing opportunity for commerce and tourism.” 

            Familiar with the successful cow project in Chicago, and pig program in Cincinnati, Zanesville Artist, Susan Stubbins, was so enthused by the project she was the first to sponsor a vase. Entitled “Eyes of Illusion” her vase is located outside the studio she shares with fellow artist Susan Nash at 47 N. Fourth Street.  Even with a narrow ten day window, Linda Regula volunteered to paint the first sample piece she named “Night Settles In”.  It is located in front of Alan Cottril’s Sculpture Studio now, but is in need of a sponsor.   One of the first sponsors to step forward and take advantage of this opportunity was The Community Bank.  They have two of the giant vases, one decorated by Roger Penos at their branch on








Maple Avenue, North Point, and one at their Crooksville branch painted by Alma Hoopes, Susan Wantz and Suanne Goins.

        “I like this project.”  Michael Steen, Community Bank President said.  “I want to see the Weller Museum succeed and I feel it’s a banks responsibility to take the lead in good community projects.”

            Sponsors pay $1,000 to support production of the vase that will be placed at their chosen site through September 2007.   After this September deadline the vases will be auctioned off or sponsors can keep their vase by paying an additional $1,000.  The artists who finish these vases are volunteers but receive $100 per vase for materials.  What to paint on the vase is between the artist and sponsor.  Some sponsors suggest a theme that the artist translates; others have sketched several designs from which the sponsor selects. 

       The fiscal agent for the Vase in Place project is The Muskingum County Community Foundation, a non-profit organization.  For more information on how to sponsor a vase or volunteer as an artist, call Mary Ellen Weingartner at The National Ceramic Museum and Heritage
Center (740) 697-7021.  An up-to-date list of vases currently in place can be found at the Vase in Place website:  www.zanesville.org.

2 Comments Add your own

Leave a Comment

Required

Required, hidden

Some HTML allowed:
<a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

Trackback this post  |  Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed