Tuesday updates from www.hometownheadlines.com

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Weather Center / Brought to you by Roman Court

-Weather service: Slight chance of snow north of Rome-Gainesville line

-20% chance of rain/snow showers before 1 p.m. Mostly cloudy, high of 50.

-Colder tonight with a low of  23. Gusts to 15 mph.

-Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 49, low of 23.

-Thursday night: Low of 12 degrees. 

-Extended forecast: Please click WeatherCenter

Politics & General Assembly

-Pettys--Gingrey 'unlikely' gubernatorial candidate: We quote veteran newsman Dick Pettys' article on his talk with U.S. Rep. Phil Gingrey on the potential race: " ... But if I see the Georgia General Assembly in a meltdown – and I hope and pray that doesn't occur; I don't think it will occur – that could change my thinking in regard to a statewide race, and that's where I am right now."> Race

-Gingrey, legislators to push 411 Connector funding: U.S. Rep.  Phil Gingrey and area legislators met Monday at the Capitol to form a plan to keep the 411 Connector a priority for the state. The key: The likely inclusion in an economic stimulus package. The Connector is a hot-button issue again> Politics

-Gov. Sonny Perdue's State of the State address is set for 10 a.m. Wednesday. It will be on Georgia Public Broadcasting's Website at http://www.gpb.org/lawmakers/stateofthestate. GPB Knowledge will air a simultaneous 10 a.m. radio broadcast of the State of the State Address. GPB will broadcast the governor's speech in it's entirety on a special one-hour edition of Lawmakers on Georgia Public Television at 7 Wednesday evening.

-General Assembly online: Your best starting point: Legislature

-Also try: AJC's new Gold Dome Live> Click

-Links to local lawmakers: Northwest Georgia Links

-For updates, check Georgia Political & Policy Digest> Link

-Democrats Reece, Porter, Poythress guest on Kudzu Vine

Tuesday's Buzz:

-Bistro 239 pouring again; merger to come? Bistro 239 renewed pouring licenses on Monday with alcohol again being served by the dinner hour. There is talk of merging the business with another. The last local restaurant merger, McCrobie's and Broad Street Cafe, lasted a few weeks> Bistro 239

-Backyard BBQ moving to Armuchee Village: As hinted in Monday's The Buzz, the popular Redmond Circle barbecue is moving to Amruchee Village, expanding its dining options (breakfast service) and even name, Backyard Barbecue & Grill. Look for service from 6 a.m. until 9 p.m. starting in February.

-Big contract for Engineered Fabrics Corp in Rockmart: The official word--"Meggitt PLC, a leading international company specialising in aerospace equipment, sensing and defence systems, confirmed today that Engineered Fabrics Corp., part of Meggitt Thermal Systems based in Rockmart,  has been awarded a significant follow on contract for its largest ever fuel tank order from the Air Force." Value: $4.1 million. For more, click EFC.

- Cox keynote speaker at chamber annual meeting: Georgia State Superintendent Kathy Cox is the keynote speaker at the Greater Rome Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting on Jan. 22. David Newby, Profile Extrusion Co., will take office as chair. The event begins with a reception at 6:30 p.m. and dinner and the main program at 7 p.m. Tickets are $45 per person; $360, table of eight. Chamber

-Dining for a cause: Bring in the attached flyer to Chili's today (4-11 p.m.) and 10 percent of the sale will be donated to Open Door Children's Home.

-The $187,155 ticket: Rome bookstore cashier Karen Nix, 51, won $187,155 in the Jan. 9 Fantasy 5 drawing. Her numbers, purchased at the Golden Gallon at 3070 Cedartown Highway S.W: 5-6-8-25-28. Click Winner

-New look for AJC.com: This is a week of change at the Atlanta newspaper and affiliates--the Web site has a new look, including a "Buzz" breakout to separate some of the fluff from real news; the comics are reduced--but in color--in the print edition; and Doug Franklin takes over as publisher> AJC

-Free admission to Callaway Gardens in January, February> Callaway

-Marvel's team-up of Spider-man, Obama in limited supply in Rome: There's a special insert in the next issue of Spider-Man featuring the Webslinger and President-elect Barack Obama. The comic is getting big play nationwide (click) but you'd better be first in line to get it at Legends at 317 Broad St. Owner Gordon Lee says he's ordered three or so copies based on recent sales trends of Spider-Man. Perhaps he saw the election results that showed two-thirds of Floyd voters picked the McCain/Palin ticket. The book is due Wednesday. Cost: $3.99.

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Norman Arey's Sports Roundtable / brought to you by Riverside Toyota

- Dangerous combo in '09 college football: Tebow's return, beer-flavored popcorn. For more, click Arey

Sports

-Jan. 31/Second Annual Shorter Baseball Meet the Team Dinner> CH

-Baseball coaching meeting set for Jan. 21: The Rome-Floyd Parks and Recreation Authority is holding a mandatory coaches meeting for Spring Baseball and T-Ball on Wednesday, Jan. 21 at 6 p.m., at 300 W. Third St. Anyone interested in coaching must attend. Details: Daniel Stockdale, 706.291.0766 x 21.

Downtown Headlines

-RACA receptions, annual Hot Stove Gathering, Art of Chocolate highlight coming weeks in downtown Rome> Downtown