MILLIANS: Your one-stop shopping

Published 11:40 am Friday, March 21, 2025

Not too long ago, I came across a bottle opener from Pete’s Place. It was at the bottom of a box of stuff in a storage shed.

Remember Pete’s Place? It was on North Columbia Street, across from the entrance to Carrington Woods. 

Printed on the bottle opener were these words: Pete’s Place is the place for picnic lunches, ice, beer, fish bait and tackle. 

In other words, if you were heading north to Lake Sinclair, you had better stop at Pete’s Place and stock up because there wasn’t much else out that way.

Pete Bailey was the owner and operator of Pete’s Place. 

He had served in World War II with the U.S. Marines. He passed away in 2010 at the age of 89 and is buried in Griffin, where he had previously lived. 

When I think of the name Pete Bailey, I also think of the former Baldwin High football star of the same name. 

This Pete Bailey, after playing at Baldwin for coach Tom Chandler, went on to play linebacker for the North Carolina State Wolfpack from 1967-69.

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Harriett Whipple, John Salstrom and others have arranged a special recognition for Sue Speir, wife of former Georgia College president Ed Speir, on Saturday at the Magnolia Room. 

Ed would travel around the world, recruiting students to the international student organization he had started at Georgia College. 

It was Sue’s role to offer hospitality in the Speirs’ home to the international students, as well as supporting their creative endeavors. She provided a home away from home for the international students.

The celebration of life for Mrs. Speir, who passed away this past October, also will give people a chance to see the plaque on her designated tree on the Georgia College campus.

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Remember the TV show “Downton Abbey”? My favorite character was Lady Crawley. She was asked how it feels to be wrong. “I don’t know,” she said. “I have never experienced the sensation.”

Reminds me of Elon Musk, about whom this has been said: “Frequently wrong, but never in doubt.”

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Wendell Carter, 6-10 center on the Orlando Magic, recently went out for supper at Longhorn Steak House. His bill? $106.36. For just himself. 

That must have been at least three hefty steaks. But, hey, he’s got to maintain his weight of 270 pounds.

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I’m excited about the 100^th anniversary of Flannery O’Connor’s birthday celebration next week. Georgia College has something planned every day, culminating with the event on March 29 at Andalusia Farms from noon to 4 with food trucks, birthday cake and free tours.

Georgia College has a real gem in O’Connor expert Dr. Bruce Gentry. I like the similarities he finds between O’Connor’s “A Good Man is Hard to Find” and Truman Capote’s “In Cold Blood.”

“O’Connor’s compassion for criminals is greater than Capote’s, in part because O’Connor has a better understanding of how the expression of meanness is an essential element of compassion,” he wrote.

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I can’t end without the latest news on Georgia quarterback Carson Beck. 

First, a scout is saying that Beck transferring to Miami is a “red flag” for NFL teams when it comes time to draft Beck next year.

Second, the poor guy had his Lamborghini and Mercedes stolen in Miami. I guess they have been recovered.

Now, Beck’s girlfriend has reportedly left him because he was cheating.

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From the comic strip “Born Loser”:

First panel: Man in a restaurant is listening to the waitress saying, “Our special today is chicken-fried steak with sweet potatoes, black-eyed peas, fried okra and cornbread.”

Second panel: Man says, “Yum! I’d like that!”

Third panel: Waitress says, “So you’re a Southerner at heart?”

Final panel: Man says, “Actually, I’m more of a Southerner at stomach.” 

Me too! 

—Rick Millians is retired after working at newspapers in Georgia, Ohio and South Carolina. Reach him at rdmillians@aol.com.