Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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NEWS OF THE WEIRD by CHUCK SHEPPARD and Taiwan each claim ownership of the uninhabited South China Sea islands of Senkaku or Diaoyu, and the controversy heightened in September when Japan announced that it had formally "purchased" the islands from a private company that reputedly owned them. China countered by "launching" its first-ever aircraft carrier (a vessel junked in 1998 by Ukraine), which it hopes will intimidate its neighbors even though it is useless to planes. Days later, patrol boats from Taiwan and Japan had a confrontation near the islands — drenching each other in a military-grade squirt-gun fight. (Japan won.) [New York Times, 9-25-2012] [Daily Mail (London), 9-25-2012] Compelling Explanations A 14-year-old boy was hospitalized in critical condition in Churchill, Pa., in August after allegedly swiping a Jeep Grand Cherokee and leading the owner's boyfriend on a brief high-speed chase before rolling the Cherokee over on Interstate 376. The boy's mother, according to WTAE-TV, blamed the Cherokee's owner: A vehicle with the keys in it, she said, "was an opportunity that, in a 14-year-old's eyes, was ... the perfect moment." Also, she said, the boyfriend "had no right to chase my son." The boy "could have just (wanted) a joyride down the street. Maybe he (merely) wanted to go farther than he felt like walking." [WTAE-TV (Pittsburgh), 8-13-2012] Irresistible: (1) David Thompson, 27, was arrested in August and charged with stealing a bag of marijuana from the Charleroi (Pa.) Regional police station. While talking to an officer about an unrelated case, Thompson noticed an evidence bag on a counter and swiped it. Caught moments later, Thompson profusely apologized, telling the officer, "I just couldn't help myself. That bud smelled so good." (2) Aaron Morris was charged in August with battery in North Lauderdale, Fla., for groping the buttocks of a woman at a Walmart. According to the arresting officer, Morris explained, "Her booty looked so good, I just couldn't resist touching it." [Observer-Reporter (Washington, Pa.) via NBC News, 8-15-2012] [South Florida Sun-Sentinel, 8-10-2012] Perspective First-World Problems: Ohio death- Modern Warfare: China, Japan row inmate Ronald Post, 53, asked a federal court in September to cancel his January date with destiny on the grounds that, despite almost 30 years of prison food, he's still too fat to execute. At 480 pounds, "vein access" and other issues would cause his lethal injection to be "torturous." [Associated Press via Google News, 9-17-2012] [Daily Mail (London), 8-19-2012] COPYRIGHT 2011 CHUCK SHEPHERD WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM WEEKLY HOROSCOPES BY HOLIDAY For the Week of October 28, 2012 ARIES (March 21-April 19) Though you felt sure that the harmony you created in relationships the past few days would extend in the form of niceties and new plans, the phone may not ring as expected. Bring the focus back to your own life and making it independently fantastic. TAURUS (April 20-May 20) You'll be looking back, examining your life thus far. People are flawed. Everyone is trying to make the best possible choice in a unique circumstance. If your regrets are small, try to shrug them off. GEMINI (May 21-June 21) Understanding another culture will broaden your horizons. This likely doesn't have to do with the culture of a different country or social circle; rather, it's the culture of a particular profession. CANCER (June 22-July 22) You'll be as gid- dy and receptive as a child, which is why the best teachers gravitate to you. People like you, who are eager to learn and appreciative, are the reason they got into teaching in the first place. Chuck Sheppard LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) You'll ask excellent questions that open people up instead of put- ting them on the defensive. Ultimately, you'll be infl uential because you took the time to understand where people are coming from. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Because you refuse to interpret any information as bad news, you'll recognize and act quickly on the opportunities others miss. If a loved one doesn't share your incurable optimism, it provides a system of checks and balances to help you come up with a bulletproof plan. ADVICE GODDESS LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) This week brings you a premium work opportunity. A special relationship strengthens over the weekend. Even though you're among many, you'll only have eyes for each other. SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21) With the sun in your sign, you'll get more publicity than you are typically comfortable with. Try to roll with it, focusing on the potential gains and not on your lack of privacy. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) You'll rather enjoy being the exception to a rule this week. If everyone finds out that you're being allowed special privileges and advan- tages, you will no longer be able to use your freedom for the good of all. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) It's an excellent week to avoid seriousness. You're so responsible that you'll get your work finished whether you approach it gravely or playfully. But you'll find so much more fun and meaning in your process if you ap- proach it with a sense of play. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) Though it's important to keep your goals reasonable, avoid aiming too low. It would help to get an outside opinion from a boss, client or other authority figure about what has worked for others in the past. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) This week's definition of the word "friend" is someone who can help you shake the grip of heavy thoughts. You'll provide this nicety to more than one person this week, and there are a few friends who will do the same for you. Get ready to laugh! By Holiday Mathis I Got Spew Babe You wrote in your column, "Men, especially, are compelled to ditch what's chasing them and chase what's trying to ditch them." It seems you're advising that the simple desire to love a man must be approached without authenticity and personal integrity. Must a woman really scheme to get a man, using a painfully conscious strategy based on men's psychological makeup, and wait and wait like Cinderella until he reaches out to her? — Truth-Teller The Antique Bakery & Cafe Magically, the entire café can be yours to host a special event. •We are more than just coffee and pastries. Monday Magic Sweet Potato, Praline or traditional Pumpkin Pies can be special-ordered. Holiday Pies Dine In • Take Out • Outdoor Seating Daily breakfast, lunch and dinner specials Closed Monday Tues., Wed., Thurs. 9 a.m. - 9 p.m. Fri., Sat., 9 a.m. - 10 p.m. Sunday 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. 253 Westwood Shopping Center (next to the cinema behind the tree) 910.920.4231 to refrain from chasing a man is an idea out of some future gender-neutral utopia where everyone wears Star Trek uniforms, eats single little cubes of lunch, and grows babies in a Mason jar in their front room. As I've written before, any sexual encounter had a hefty potential cost for a woman during the Stone Age — a particularly crappy time to be a single mother. Because of this, women evolved to be choosier about partners, and men coevolved to expect that of them. Times have changed, but our psychology really hasn't. So, when a woman throws herself at a man like a big fl opping fl ounder, he's likely to duck — suspecting that she probably isn't worth having (for anything beyond a quick romp) if she's so easy to get. This is unfortunate, but whining endlessly about it is not an ineffective strategy for getting what you want, unless what you want are polyps on your vocal cords. What you're really arguing for is, The notion that it's morally bankrupt Amy Alkon "Why shouldn't I be able to throw all self-discipline out the window and have the man I want drop down my chimney like Santa?" In a similar vein, I often wonder why I've been unable to become incredibly wealthy by napping. (Welcome to real life. Please visit often in the future.) The answer is neither throwing yourself at a man nor waiting for him to notice that you dropped your glass slipper. You fl irt to indicate that you'd be interested in going out with him, if only he'd ask. Flirting takes patience and self-control, but it isn't exactly a horrible chore. It's playful and fun. Kind of like tag. You run a little, and if all goes well, the guy chases you. Men just love to chase things — women, animals, purse-snatchers. In the U.K., they even have a tradition of chasing a big wheel of cheese down a hill. Wait — don't get ideas. You will need to fl ip your hair and make eye contact and teasing remarks. You can't just throw yourself down a grassy incline. Amy Alkon all rights reserved. OCTOBER 24-30, 2012 UCW 23