Huge turnout for early bird Black Friday sales
-Prime Outlets in Calhoun drew huge crowds for its pajama-based midnight madness sale early today. Both northbound and southbound lanes off I-75 at exit 312 were jammed as was the retail center. "We were at capacity by 12:30-1 a.m.," says General Manager Janet Paulsen. The three photos above, from the outlets, shows just how deep the overnight crowd was.
-Toys R Us near Mount Berry Square had huge lines when it opened at midnight with some shoppers waiting an hour to get inside the store. The crowds were still there at 10 this morning but a few of the advertised specials were long gone.
-Mount Berry Square opened at 4 a.m. with special deals for early bird shoppers. At 10 a.m., traffic was flowing into the mall parking lot but spaces were still available.
-At Sam's this morning, "door busted" specials were long gone (Netbooks advertised vanished--not sup rising as only a dozen were ordered, said the clerk).
-Even Chick-Fil-A Dwarf House opened at 5 a.m. for shoppers.
-Driving back from Mableton last night, we spotted at least six tents outside Best Buy on U.S. 278 in Hiram as anxious shoppers waited for early opening deals.
-Today, Saturday: Horse and carriage rides return to downtown Rome: Rides will be available from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. both days. Tickets are $5 per person with kids 5 and under free. Photos are available for an extra $5.
-Shopping updates: Facebook users might get a laugh out of some of the updates posted from veteran shoppers already today.
Friday's Buzz:
-Lows below freezing tonight: Complete forecast below.
-Updated screens debut at Movies at Berry Square.
-Saturday/GOP Breakfast Club, River City Bank, 228 North Second Ave, Rome. Speakers: State Rep. Austin Scott, candidate for governor, and Mayor Harold Logsdon, candidate for Insurance Commissioner> Floyd GOP
-Dec. 1/Floyd County Republican Women, 11:30 a.m. lunch, noon meeting, Red Lobster, Shorter Avenue. Guest speaker: Gail Garland, executive director of Harbor House. Gusts are asked to bring a small Beanie Baby for children at Harbor House.
-Latest state business updates from Georgia Trend> Ga. Business
-Track today's Dow, other markets> Google Finance
-Georgia Political & Policy Digest's daily headlines> Ga. Politics
John McClellan's latest playoff picks>Football Report
-Close win--1 point--for Calhoun while Twiggs County poised to end Darlington's post-season run.
-Check scores tonight at www.ga.prepcountry.com
Norman Arey's Norman's No-Nos>Arey
-I predict Georgia Tech beats Georgia by 20; wait, Tech just scored again
Jobless rate in double digits; 9,600 more unemployed vs. Oct. 08
| October working | October jobless | October jobless % | September jobless % | October '08 jobless% | |
| Bartow | 39,770 | 5,877 | 12.9% | 13.2% | 8.0% |
| Chattooga | 9,030 | 1,397 | 13.4% | 11.8% | 9.0% |
| Floyd | 43,829 | 5,366 | 10.9% | 10.9% | 7.6% |
| Gordon | 21,640 | 3,407 | 13.6% | 13.0% | 8.7% |
| Polk | 18,952 | 2,272 | 10.7% | 10.8% | 7.0% |
| State | 4,237,665 | 481,980 | 10.2% | 10.1% | 7.0% |
Source: Georgia Department of Labor
Preliminary reports for October from the Georgia Department of Labor show Northwest Georgia still struggling with high unemployment rates. But a closer look at the reports for last month and for October 2008 show the real impact of the recession. In all five counties, between 1,000 and 2,800 additional people were out of work last month vs. October 2008; 9,600 in all:
-Gordon County, with the region's highest jobless rate at 13.6 percent, showed 3,407 people without jobs, up 2,788 from the same month last year.
-Bartow County, with a 12.9 percent unemployment rate, saw 5,877 people out of work, up 2,836 from a year earlier.
-Floyd County, where the jobless rate settled at 10.9 percent for the second consecutive month, saw 5,366 people without jobs, up 1,930 from October 2008.
-Polk County saw the jobless rate drop a bit, from 10.8 percent to 10.7 percent, but the 2,272 people without jobs last month was an increase of 1,030 from a year ago.
-Chattooga County saw the largest month-over-month increase in the jobless rate, from 11.8 percent to 13.4 percent. Some 1,397 people were out of work last month, up 1,030 from October 2008 reports.
-The state's unemployment rate rose slightly to 10.2 percent in October, up from 10.1 percent in September. Statewide, the number of payroll jobs in October was 3,858,800, a decrease of 227,700 or 5.6 percent, from 4,086,500 in October 2008.
-The over-the-year losses came in manufacturing, wholesale and retail trade, professional and business services, and construction.
-Educational and health services added 13,200 jobs over the year. Also, from September to October, a total of 5,200 jobs were added in retail trade, public and private education, and health care.
Your weekend forecast:
-Friday: Sunny, high of 55, low of 30.
-Saturday: Sunny with a high of 64, low of 38.
-Sunday: High of 66, low of 41; 30% rain chance overnight.
-Extended forecast> Click Local radar / regional radar
Dining & Drink:
-Dining updates: Blue Fin adds new menu items this week> Dining
-Weekly public health restaurant inspection scores> Scores
-Wine News Vine: Special release at Yonah tasting room; final wild game brunch> Wine News Vine
Peak to the wonderful life of Jo Heyman: Perhaps a measure of one's life is best taken by those attending a memorial service. Last Friday, the beautiful chapel on Darlington's campus was packed with those best described as the A-plus list of Northwest Georgia. College presidents, bankers and financial consultants, medical executives, community organizers, chamber executives. Even a former Atlanta TV political reporter. All heard several speakers, including relatives, talk for a few minutes about Jo's passions, her love of family and how she embraced her causes with an unrivaled sense of passion, especially the Cherokee and Chieftains Museum. Jo and husband Lyons have set an incredible standard for community contributions that won't be rivaled any time soon. As sad as all are to see her go at age 80, her life also is one to celebrate--and emulate. 
