Smiley Anders for April 17, 2008

• By SMILEY ANDERS
• Advocate columnist
• Published: Apr 17, 2008 - Page: 1B - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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I was recently invited to Career Day at Zachary High to explain the exciting world of mass communication to Mark Moreau’s ninth-grade algebra classes.

The most positive reaction I had was when I told the students that I would not talk about algebra at all during the class period.

And the most interesting moment to me came when Mark asked students in one class if they had thought about careers.

I recalled my own ninth-grade career choice. I wanted to be a disc jockey, which in those early days of rock seemed the coolest job in the world.

I conveniently overlooked the fact that I had a stutter, and there is not a great demand for stuttering DJs.

At Zachary High, I found that a surprising number of the students wanted to open their own small businesses, an encouraging number were interested in becoming computer experts, and others chose careers ranging from hairdresser to TV anchor, nurse to NFL player.

But my favorite career choice came from a neatly dressed young man who, when asked what he wanted to be when he grew up, answered quickly and calmly, “CEO of a major corporation.”

Now there’s a kid to be reckoned with. …

’Bama blues
Lillian Crook says, “I’m told I still retain my Alabama accent after 70 years in the big city.”

She says our recent countrified quote about being tired from ironing brought back memories:

“The Alabama quote, complete with accent, is ‘I’m am tard like I been arning by the fahr all day and hit a-rainin’.’

“I said this to an acquaintance once and she replied in her hoity-toity Baton Rouge accent, ‘Oh, do you do your own laundry?’ ”

Playing in style
Judy Scimeca says she enjoyed watching grandson Beau Witty and his team, the West Baton Rouge Warriors, win a tournament at BREC’s Oak Villa baseball complex: