THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 26, 1995 TAG: 9503240180
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
LENGTH: Long : 132 lines
Friday, March 17
9 a.m. - Green Run High School.
Two teachers, a male and a female, stand guard just inside the front entrance of the school.
A passing administrator comments, ``Pinch her. Pinch her,'' and points to the woman who doesn't appear to be wearing green, the traditional color of St. Patrick's Day.
``She's wearing green elsewhere,'' the male teacher quips.
``You couldn't prove it by me,'' answers the administrator as he continues on his way.
- Lori A. Denney
10:45 p.m. - Five-01 City Grill, Birdneck Road.
The eyes of the people packed around the bar are fixed on a half-dozen television screens scattered around the dark and smoky room.
The last seconds of a stirring drama are unfolding and the crowd murmur rises to a deafening roar.
Petey Sessoms, Old Dominion University basketball star, hauls down the last rebound in a three-overtime game to clinch a victory over favored Villanova. Sessoms' heroics conclude a first-round NCAA tournament game played in Albany, N.Y.
As the jubilation mounts and drinks are drained in toast to the victors, a stocky bartender looks glumly at a small television screen behind the bar.
``I'm rootin' for Villanova,'' he had said minutes earlier. ``I put money on 'em to win by 12 (points).'' Now all he could do was shake his head and dig in the cooler for a fresh round of brews for the Monarch fans who faced him across the counter.
- Bill Reed
Saturday, March 18
5:30 p.m. - Fairfield Shopping Center.
It's a hectic shopping day as cars full of people and packages maneuver through the crowded lanes of the Fairfield Shopping Center.
As traffic increases at one busy intersection, it's apparent that there's one road hog who's determined not to share the road.
A small dark, colored duck slowly zig-zags across the dangerous intersection to a nearby store, as motorists swerve and hit their brakes to avoid a collision.
Without incident, the duck crosses safely to the other side.
``Look at that duck,'' says a woman watching from inside a nearby hair salon. ``Now that's funny. That's some duck.''
- Angelita Plemmer
Monday, March 20
4 p.m. - Fairfield Shopping Center.
A flock of seagulls, more or less permanent winter residents in the busy shopping center, circle noisily overhead as traffic moves fitfully past the Superfresh market.
On the ground more gulls dart from the curb to the roadway and back again causing drivers to brake, swerve or speed up in an attempt to get through.
The problem? Three wedges of pizza, too big for all but the largest birds to carry aloft, have been dropped in the traffic lanes.
A passerby braves the irate drivers long enough to give each of the pieces a swift kick sideways.
When she leaves, traffic resumes. So does the squabbling. Only now the gulls carry on their food fight in relative safety at the base of the curb.
- Jo-Ann Clegg
Tuesday, March 21
5:45 p.m. - Glory's Bakery in Woods Corner Shopping Center.
It's supper time and the line of customers is steadily growing in front of the glass cases of Filipino and American treats.
A young teen is at the front of the line trying to describe a certain Filipino pastry once enjoyed by a friend. The Filipino-American teen working the counter asks her customer several questions before finally figuring out what it is he's wanting. ``Oh, we don't have any of those,'' she says. ``We only have those at certain times of the year.''
The customer sighs, then decides to settle for two dozen dinner rolls.
As the woman heads back into the bakery to fetch them, another customer yells out, ``Get a dozen for me, too!''
The employee returns quickly, and the two customers each pay up.
Next in line is a young man. He too is there for dinner rolls.
This time, though, the girl behind the counter is gone for what seems like a long time. The customer begins poking his head around the counter, concerned that the worker has run into problems. Other customers are now stacked four deep behind him.
Finally, the woman emerges from the kitchen with the golden brown treats tucked inside two boxes. The steam gives clue to the delay. These have obviously just been plucked from the oven.
The man pays up, then indulges himself on the way out the door by stuffing a piece of the piping hot treasure into his mouth.
- Kevin Armstrong
6:45 p.m. - Virginia Wesleyan College.
While the editor of the school newspaper tries to assign articles to staff writers, one student has a pretty good excuse for not being able to work with a one-day deadline.
Since he has to turn a paper into one of the toughest professors on campus, he already has plans for the evening. He says, ``I can't do it tonight. I'll be busy at home - writing my obituary!''
- Holly Wester
Thursday, March 23
7:05 a.m. - The Villas of Glenwood.
It's dog heaven this morning at the condo complex. Baron the basset hound, Suki the pug, Lacey the schipperke, Murphy the terrier and an unidentified white Pomeranian all happen to be walking the grassy berm at the same time. Their owners exchange small talk while the friendly dogs sniff each other, wag their tails and occasionally yelp.
Suddenly Baron and Lacey, both puppies, shoot across the parking lot together in playful abandon. They gleefully chase each other down sidewalks, over porches and through the wet grass, ignoring the calls of their owners. Housemates Murphy and the Pomeranian strain at their leashes and bark wildly as they watch the two deserters enjoy their romping. Suki, in her usual placid state, sits undisturbed at her owner's feet.
Finally, the puppies' owners capture the panting creatures and lead them away. The Pomeranian, however, continues to bark shrilly despite yanks on the leash and the owner telling him to shut up. A couple of groggy faces peer through the window of a nearby unit.
``Well, if anyone was sleeping before, they sure aren't now,'' says Suki's owner. ``What a way to wake up.''
- Pam Starr ILLUSTRATION: The pitter-patter of plenty of feet
Photo by D. KEVIN ELLIOTT
Some 1,600 pairs of feet were pounding the pavement for the 9 a.m.
start of the 26.2-mile Shamrock Marathon. By the time the 23rd
annual run was over, winners Tim Covington and Bonnie Barnard-Lopez
knoew they had the fastest pairs of feet in the bunch.
by CNB