The Petal Journal from Petal, Mississippi • 2

2 Thursday, January 9, 1992 PETAL Journal Weddings Powers- Jordan I 1 4 'i. I hi ft it Schillenger, all of Jackson. Ring bearer was Justin Mundie of Memphis, cousin of the bridegroom. Best man was Roger Graves of Jackson. Groomsmen were Derek Jordan of Petal, brother of the bride; David Mayfield and Wendall Watts, both of Jackson; and Monty Williamson of Bolton.

A reception was held at the church following the ceremony. Assisting at the reception were Cristy Brewer, Teresa Odom and Margie Ferguson and Penne Wor-sham. Following a wedding trip to Orlando, the couple is living in Jackson. Jennifer Rochell Jordan of Petal and Charles Clifford (Cliff) Powers of Jackson were married the after-noon of Dec. 28 in Lakeshore Congregational Methodist Church, Jackson.

Parents of the couple are Margaret A. Jordan and Dores E. Jordan, both of Petal, and Mr. and Mrs. Charles E.

Powers of Jackson. The ceremony was performed by the Rev. Jerry Williamson. Music was presented by Susan Walker, pianist, and Valley Bea Perm, vocalist. Matron of honor was Anne Marie Pope of Jackson.

Bridesmaids were Aimee Farmer, Mechale Mayfield, Betty Stubbs and Michelle -1 I i 1 1 I VV- f6f i i Watson 55th Mr. and Mrs. Clifton (Shorty) Watson of Richton will celebrate their 55th wedding anniversary from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 12, at Zion's Rest Missionary Baptist Church, Sand Hill.

The reception will be hosted their by children. Getting married? The Petal Journal gladly prints engagement and wedding announcements free of charge for readers. To have your wedding or engagement announced, simply: Drop by the Hattiesburg American office at 825 N. Main St. between 8 a.m.

and 5 p.m. and complete the appropriate forms which are provided. Please be sure to specify inclusion in the Petal Journal. Photographs may accompany the announcements and should be of good quality black and white. Please be sure that names are checked for spelling, that cities of residence are included and that connections to the Petal area are specified.

For more information, call 5824321. STEPHANIE KAREN STEVENS of Petal and Jim Edward Bennett of Purvis were married the afternoon of Dec. 14 at Trinity Baptist Church, Petal. Parents of the couple are Bobby and Karen Runnels of Petal and Ada Herrington and James Bennett, both of Petal. Following a wedding trip to New Orleans, the couple resides in Lacombe, La.

LAURINDA KAY (RINDY) Myers and John Kelly Hodge, both of Petal, were married the evening of Nov. 23 at Woodlawn Baptist Church. The couple resides in Petal. Top state worry: Jobs, job, jobs! Editorial Lowering trade barriers: First, get tough at home President Bush travels to Asia this week with the heads of America's Big Three automakers in tow a symbol of his newfound, get-tough stance on Japanese imports. It's a needed mission and a reasonable tack.

Asian producers, particularly the Japanese, have restrictive trade policies that need liberalizing, and hearing that from American business leaders makes great good sense. We only hope the mission can also serve as a reminder to American businessmen that a get-tough policy might also apply to them: that foreign trade barriers aren't the only obstacle to American competitiveness. True enough, U.S. automakers and other manufacturers are handicapped when it comes to trade with the Japanese. Import quotas, restrictive tariffs and market limitations hamper U.S.

access to Japanese markets. Meanwhile, far more liberal domestic trade policies have allowed the Japanese to claim a huge share of American markets up to a third of the U.S. auto market, for example. That uneven playing field has contributed much to the U.S. trade deficit.

Although this year's deficit is, at $67 billion, actually lower than it's been in eight years, analysts expect it to rise again over the next two years perhaps to more than $100 billion. By some estimates, each $1 billion of the trade deficit represents a loss of more than 20,000 U.S. jobs one of the main reasons that expanding markets for U.S. goods is so important. Foreign trade restrictions, however, aren't the only culprit.

So is U.S. industry's ability to work smarter, more efficiently and more economically. Automobiles are a good example. When General Motors laid off 74,000 workers two weeks ago, the first impression was to blame the recession, or foreign competition, or any number of outside factors that have contributed to our economic problems. But economists soon pointed out that such factors actually had very little to do with the GM layoffs.

In a word, GM was fat, they said. The notion holds true for much of American industry. Clearly, a growing trade deficit isn't helping the U.S. recession, but neither is it the sole cause. We hope Bush's trip this week helps open foreign markets to U.S.

manufacturers. But we hope it also reiterates to manufacturers that much of our success both abroad and at home will depend first on how fast and how well we achieve competitiveness. V) wsi Trent tjf Lott When I was in the state talking with people and with a lot of different organizations, I had a chance to really find out what concerns Mississippi. And I'll tell you what, the people of Mississippi have three things on their minds jobs, jobs and jobs. People are concerned about the economy, a number of people are out of work, and others want to make sure that we continue to work very hard to improve the availability of jobs within our state.

So when I came back to Washington for a brief period before the holidays, I was recommitted to working with local and state officials and with the heads of federal programs to try and find every possible avenue to create job opportunities within Mississippi. We have some very positive tax, relieve the tax burden on the American workers, investors and employers and reform the IRA Tax Reform Act of 1986, just to name a few issues which are badly in need ot repair. And we should take advantage of job-positive programs and groups that work in Missisippi, such as planning development districts, Mississippi procurement centers, economic development administration, Farmers Home Administration, Small Business Administration, HUD and the newly-formed Mississippi Department of Economic and Community Development under Gov. Fordice. We must also work with groups such as the Mississippi Employment Security Commission and the Office of Personnel Management which provide job services, fairs and training programs to stimulate the work force.

However, the main thing we need to be concentrating on is economic development. By coordinating our efforts, by reaching out to companies inside and outside of the state of Mississippi and pursuing all options, from tourism to heavy industry and small business to everything in between, we can create jobs. When we do that there will be more money for education, more money for highways and all the other needs that we have in our state. And the time to do that is now. I will continue in 1992 to make the creation and continuation of jobs in Mississippi a top concern.

Trent Lott is a United States Senator from Mississippi. outlooks for the state in 1992. We now have an innovative businessman's attitude in the Governor's Mansion. We also have Jimmy Heidel as out economic director. He has had great success in Boliva and Warren counties.

Also, hopefully we can get some positive legislation passed in Washington which will create a pro-growth package for the economy. We need to resolve the budget deficit, cut the capital gains No job's beneath doing 5 d'i Lorrie iu- Mil Petal Journal All of my life I've known I'm not. a mechanical person. I mean, I know this is a sexist comment, but isn't that why God created men? I always thought it was. Growing up at our house, there were certain things that we girls just didn't do not that we couldn't, but those things were assigned to "the boys." And those things included mowing the lawn, pumping gas, working on go-carts, rebuilding engines, unclogging sinks and changing tires.

When my dad laid the forms for our patio, he gathered up my brothers to help. When he poured the concrete, they were the ones who smoothed it into place. Consequently, I've never been much of a builder or a mechanic. Oh, sure, I can hang pictures with the best of them. I've put up a shelf or two and used a screwdriver on a number of occasions.

I even learned about adjusting the butterfly valve on my brother's 1976 Plymouth Duster when the engine flooded and did not anticipate. Naturally, I've begun making repairs and changes that will leave my personal mark on the house a fresh coat of paint here, wallpaper there, shelves in one corner, a picture on another wall. Saturday, while standing on the toilet to paint wallpaper size (a sandy-film for smooth walls so that wallpaper will adhere) in the bathroom, I slipped and broke a rusted bolt holding the seat in place. For obvious reasons, it had to be replaced, and it couldn't wait until a friend could return from an out-of-town trip Sunday night or until my little brother arrives Thursday night from Oklahoma. That left only me to take care of it.

And to my amazement, I wasn't completely dumbfounded by the instructions. In fact, after I finally got the old rusted metal bolts out, putting together my nifty new all-plastic, snap-together toilet seat was easy. It's funny now, though. I catch myself examining toilet seats in other places to see how they're put together. At the movies Saturday night, I noticed that the public restrooms there are still using those metal bolts, and they are rusting.

It's only a matter of time before they go. At work, the stainless steel fixtures seem best suited for a high-traffic area. Afterall, hundreds of people use that facility. At church, the green seat in one restroom really doesn't match the stark room. It'd be nice to hang a matching curtain and a few pictures to make that green work.

I guess I'm still not ready to join the plumbers union or anything like that, but it's nice to think that next time the toilet seat breaks, I don't have to call the toilet hotline for help. Lorrie J. Quinnelly has been editor of the Petal Journal since'. 1984. beating on the battery cables of my 1975 Pontiac Trans Am when it wouldn't turn over.

But that was about the extent of my mechanic and construction knowledge before last weekend. In a matter of 24 hours, I not only became a master at putting together tc'let seats, but also reached a new conclusion: I'm not as mechanically disoriented as I thought. That may sound like very a simple task to you, but for some of us they're nothing short of life-time accomplishments. I moved into a house a few weeks ago and have discovered many ways to improvise in situations I The Petal Journal is published on Thursday of each week by the Hattiesburg American, 825 North Main Hattiesburg, MS, 39401, Bill Hunsberger, president Bill Hunsberger Publisher Lorrie J. Quinnelly Editor Telephone No.

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