The Gaffney Ledger from Gaffney, South Carolina • Page 6

f- Page 6 The Gaffney Ledger Tuesday, December 31, 1996 Ann Landers i e- Legalize marijuana? Dear Ann Landers: I have a quick suggestion for ing the crisis of overcrowding in our jails; Stop locking up marijuana consumers. Seventeen out of every 100 federal prisoners are there for maryuana crimes 17,000 marijuana prisoners in all. At least another 20,000 marijuana offenders are in state prisons and local jails. That prison space With planning, your goals can be achieved in the new year I 1 1 Vv. anemia do usea ior rapists, muggers and other dangerous criminals.

There are more than 400,000 maryuana arrests each year. Think of how we could better use our limited police resources. I firm ike clockwork, legions of people around the world will set resolutions and goals for the new year, only to be disappointed before spring. Ann Landers ly believe we But Dr. Bruce Meglino, a University of I.

should allow responsible adults to South Carolina management professor, says with some careful planning, goals and resolutions can be achieved. Be specific. Picking goals is easy. Just about everyone has desires to improve himself or herself, be it by losing weight, quitting smoking or becoming more organized at work. The key to obtaining those goals is to be specific about what you want grow and consume marijuana in the privacy of their own homes and then watch how quickly prison overcrowding is reduced and the black market dries up.

-Chuck Thomas, director of communications, Marijuana Policy Project, to accomplish. "Specific goals always lead to better performance than general ones. For example, when losing weight, if I set the goal of doing my best, that's a very general goal. One the other hand if I say, 'I'm going to lose 10 that's a specific goal," Meglino says. "Specific goals work better, because you have a benchmark, a tangible measure of success.

Gen Washington, D.C. Dear Chuck Thomas: 2 eral goals can be reinterpreted, and we're not a motivated to chart our progress." Give yourself feedback. Meglino says whenever setting goals, you should provide yourself with feedback on how well you are accomplishing them. "If you make a New Year's resolution to quit smoking, your specific goal might be cut back to a half You've hit a hot button. I'd like to hear both sides of this story.

How about it, readers? Explore your world Dear Ann Landers: I want to encourage in South Bend" to take your advice and explore the world before going to college. In 1972, 1 was a high school senior. My grades were not terrific. I couldn't have gotten into Harvard or pack of cigarettes in three week and then quit completely in six weeks. You can physically count the number of cigarettes you've been smoking, chart your progress and give yourself feedback.

The more feedback you can give yourself on how you are doing, the better," he says. Set hard goals. When setting goals, Meglino says, challenge yourself. "Hard goals are better than easy ones. As you see yourself improve, hard goals are more satisfying.

You might not reach your hard goals, but you will generally feel better about your progress than people who set easy ones," Meglino says. Accept your goals. Whether you set goals in the workplace or personal goals at home, Meglino says a major key to success is accept your goals. "You have to be committed to the goal before you start. Everyone can set a goal to do outrageous things, but you've got to be strongly committed something you're going to strive for.

As long as you accept them and are strongly committed to your goals, they can be accom Yale, and even a state university was questionable. It didn't matter much to ime because I didn't want to go to Navyfr'fo'1'' While most of my friends were in college, I lived overseas and learned plished," he says. Reward yourself for progress. It's also helpful to reward yourself as you make progress on achieving your goals, Meglino says. Rewards tend to cause people to repeat the same behavior.

If you reward yourself because you've made some progress, then you're more likely to make additional progress. But you've got to be careful See RESOLUTIONS, Page 7 a trade. I decided a naval career wasn't for me, but those four years were the best thing I could have done. When I left the service, I quickly found a job on a small newspaper. A few years later, I used by GI Bill to Bataiam The Ride debuts in the spring at Six Flags Piedmont artists exhibit in Shelby SHELBY The Gallery at Cleveland Community College will host an exhibit of works by the Piedmont Painters Association January 6-February 14.

The Piedmont Painters Association was formed in the summer of 1984. The artists gather once a month in members' homes to share group commentary on each other's work. The group was formed as, and continues to be, a support system and source of constructive critique for artists working in any medium. Many of the members have won awards in juried art shows. Works by some of the members can be seen in corporate collections.

Some members have work in commercial galleries, several members are art teachers, and some are involved in commercial art work. The exhibit is free and open to the public during regular college hours, 8 a.m. -10 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 8 a.m. -4 p.m.

on Fridays. For more information, contact Hal Bryant, 704-484-4023. Thrilling ride is centerpiece of Gotham City ATLANTA In the spring of 1997, guests at Six Flags Over Georgia will have the opportunity to take a walk on the wilder side of thrill ride technology with the debut of Batman The Ride. With Batman The Ride, the looming walls of the batcave enfold guests as they go forth into a realm of good versus evil, and thus into a themed environment unparallel in magnitude at Six Flags over Georgia. From the minds of renowned innovators Bolliger MabiHard of Switzerland has arisen a heart-pounding journey on a path of twist ed steel, sending guests to dizzying heights and speeds that can only be found in the world of superheros.

The ride will soar up to 105 feet above the ground and measures 77 feet at its tallest loop. Guests will be propelled ski-lift style along 2,700 feet of inverted steel track with nothing but air beneath their Haggling feet. Ridere will experience almost 4 G's of force as they careen through two vertical loops, two corkscrew turns and a zero-gravity roll. "Batman The Ride combines the best ride elements with the most elaborate theming we've ever produced to provide a total thrill experience," said John Bement, president and general manager of Six Flags Over Georgia. "This new addition represents the continued commitment we have to providing quality family entertainment for our guests." Representing the largest capital investment in Six Flags Over Georgia's 30-year history, Batman The Ride is the centerpiece of Gotham City, the theme park's 9th themed land.

Guests will journey into a fantasy world where fun, excitement and adventure are found at every turn. Encompassing 8.6 acres of land, Gotham City will feature the one-of-a-kind suspended-track thriller Batman The Ride as well as the famous batmobile and many new retail locations. Batman The Ride joins other coaster favorites at Six Flags Over Georgia such as NINJA, Viper, MindBender, The Great American Scream Machine, Georgia Cyclone and the Dahlonega Mine Train. go to college. It took four years of night school to get an associate's degree, but I graduated with honors.

Today, I have a great job with a future. Had I gone to college right out of high school, it would have been a "waste of money and I wouldn't be JNhere I am today. lJ -C in Columbia Dear Columbia: Thanks for sharing your story. I'll bet you helped a lotofundecideds" who read my column today. Get a second opinion Dear Ann Landers: I want to warn your readers about the importance of early detection of testicular cancer.

A lot of doctors have a lax attitude about taking their patients seriously when they complain Ht problems. I did a self-examination and found a lump. When I went to my doctor, he said, 'It's a fibroid tumor and benign. It's nothing to worry about" I took his word for it. Six months later, I asked him to refer me to a specialist, and he reluctantly agreed.

Guess what? The urologist who did the ultrasound and blood tests found that the "benign lump" was testicular cancer. I was only 29. 1 had the tumor surgically removed, but the cancer had already spread to my left side. I have since had six months of chemotherapy, and the doctors say I am doing wefl. Now I'm stock paying medical bills that could hare been avoided if that first doctor had done his job and paid more attention to that lump.

Cancer, especially testicular cancer, is not a death sentence if it is caught Li time, but every person must do reg-i 6t If-exaisinations and report any I 3 a to the doctor. If your rC Yttce this seriously, go 7. to 6wc, it1 -1 demand follow-up tests. Better sorry. -Con.

cr ia CiLTion, JfJ. Dear Farvivor! You've written a great letter that vI F3ve lives. TLank you. And now ry vc'-e Usjraun? It's K', 3 a to a second opiiuoa. 6 Going Places' features top vacation spots TTTTTh is London tne most popular vaca WW tion destination in AMI the world? Why do L'-V sv.v-.4 the Guard to the kitsch and clamor of Covent Garden.

Other famous faces include that of authorbarrister John Mortimer as he strolls through the gardens and halls of legal London and actor Michael Caine making a case for British cuisine at Shepherd's Restaurant, a popular restaurant he owns. Going Places makes its way to New Orleans (127) for a "mock funeral" at Lafayette Cemetery, where old jaxzmen and Big Easy hustlers go to die. For gourmands, there's a chance to peek into the pots of famous Southern chefs. Future episodes of the series feature a Caribbean cruise, a sojourn through Tuscany and a visit to Sydney, Australia. and then takes a turn down the beaten path.

The series begins on South Carolina ETV Monday, Jan. 13, at 10 p.m and then continues Mondays at 10 p.m. beginning Jan. 27. Each one-hour episode of Going Places explores and samples virtually every aspect of a place, from culture and history, to shopping and dining, to recreation and sightseeing.

As for the sights in these locations, they never take a back seat to the colorful characters. They are, rather, he perennial backdrop. The series kicks off in the eobble-stoned city of London (Jan. 13 where the famous face of Big Ben serenely observeseverything from the pageantry of the Changing of more travelers and conventioneers go to Las Vegas than any other place in America? What's the best recipe for a spicy time in New Orleans? Is it more than the allure of the high seas that inspires growing number of tourists to sail away? Golaf Places, a new series hosted by NBC weatherman Al 1 Roker, invites viewers to enjoy, the vicarious thrill of following real people as they visit the world's most popular vacation spots. Traditional tourists meet up with eccentric locals in the whimsical itinerant which hits sH the highlights of favorite vacation destinations Al Roker hosts Going Placet, an eight-part series that invites viewers to some of the world's most popular vacation spots airing on Mondays on S.C.

ETV beginning January 13 at 10 p.m..