Last Thursday I had the great pleasure of attending the 80th Annual Mallard Creek Barbecue. I've written about the event before. It is a must-do on the political calendar in Mecklenburg County each year. The weather was beautiful and the cars lined up for miles to drive through to pick up their boxed lunches or to park and enjoy the gathering crowd.

Diners had a choice of two lines - political and not political. Most chose to walk through the political line. It's a tradition. Candidates and their supporters stand and shake hands and pass out campaign literature. Pictured at left is Charlotte's Mayor Pro Tem, Democratic National Committeewoman and Charlotte City Council At-Large candidate Susan Burgess. Susan should have no trouble at the polls on Tuesday

The event started back in 1929 when men of Mallard Creek Presbyterian Church held a meeting to decide how to raise money to pay for their new Sunday School building. A pig had been barbecued for the meeting and it was decided that later that year they would have a gathering of the church members and surrounding community and sell barbecue to raise money. Proceeds in the first year were about $89. A plate of barbecue and Brunswick Stew today costs $9.

The church is not located on the property where the event is held, but there are several structures, fields and a new well-lit baseball diamond. Throughout the year local community groups and boy scout troops hold meetings and other events there. I'm sure a large part of the building space is used to store all of the tables and chairs.

Dear Bob,

You've milked this for all it's worth. You've raised just about all the money you can on this whole pretend Senate run thing. We all like you and think you do a great job as a congressman for your district, but if we were going to rally around you in the hopes of making you our next United States Senator don't you think we would have rallied already? You and those waiting in line behind you need to show that you are capable of making the difficult decisions. Decide already!

Those of us paying attention in North Carolina know that Kenneth Lewis and Elaine Marshall are running, but for some reason the national press is waiting on you to make up your freaking mind. They're even ceding some ground to Burr - ground we know he doesn't own. How much more real estate are you willing to sign over to him?

The Charlotte Observer editorial board endorsements are out for the Charlotte City Council and while I would have liked to see a 3-1 split for Dems, they didn't do a shabby job of picking strong candidates.

After winning for years without the CharO endorsement, Susan Burgess finds herself in the happy situation of having received the endorsement this year. I'm sure she will be eternally grateful, though I imagine she would easily win without it.

Tomorrow (Tuesday) evening the North Carolina Conservation Network will be meeting in Charlotte. I'm not going to be able to make it, but it isn't too late to RSVP.

Date: 10/20/2009 from 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm (Eastern Time)

Hosted By: NC Conservation Network
Jessilyn Kemp, Organizer jessilyn at ncconservationnetwork dot org 919-857-4699 xt. 108

RSVP by: October 19, 2009 at 8:00 pm (Eastern Time)

Location:

Map REI Community Room www.rei.com/stores/115
9755 Northlake Centre Parkway
Charlotte, NC 28216

(704) 921-0320

We hope you’ll join our organizer Jessilyn Kemp for a casual night of socializing and fun! She will be visiting 6 locations across North Carolina this fall, including a stop in Charlotte on Tuesday, October 20th.

The Charlotte Observer editorial board announced yesterday that it is endorsing Anthony Foxx for the Charlotte mayoral race.

In the end, though, we back Foxx. We think he is a better fit for what Charlotte needs at this point in its evolution as a city.

:::

We believe the next mayor needs to be unusually adept at connecting with residents and uniting a diverse community. He needs to use the mayor's office as a bully pulpit. He should set the agenda and tackle our city's toughest problems with new solutions. He must reach out to our neighbors in the region, in Raleigh and in Washington to seek collaborative approaches. He needs to imbue the city with confidence that we can navigate through this daunting time and emerge stronger than before. He should not do things the way we've always done them.

This is one of the few times lately that I find I agree with the Charlotte Observer editorial board.