ROSES to the Chapel Hill High School football team, which last weekend did something no CHHS football team had done in more than 40 years -- won a state playoff game.

Technically, in fact, the Tigers' 21-14 victory over Middle Creek was the first playoff victory in school history. The last time Chapel Hill won a playoff game, as near as anyone can tell, was in 1964, when the school was called Chapel Hill Senior High and its teams were Wildcats. Not until two years later, with desegregation, did Chapel Hill Senior merge with Lincoln High to become CHHS.

Whatever the archival arcana, Friday's win was historic. It's remarkable, actually, that CHHS -- which has long had one of the state's top high school athletic programs, with state championships in basketball, soccer, tennis, volleyball and other sports -- had never advanced to the second round in football.

The Tigers broke that long jinx on Friday. No reason to stop now; keep it going, guys.


ROSES to Chapel Hill-Carrboro School Board member Mike Kelley, who organized a novel approach to clear-cutting the thickets of campaign signs that sprouted in recent weeks along local roadways, and to those candidates who participated.

Instead of candidates and their supporters roaming all over town and pulling up only their own signs after the election, Kelley proposed a plan whereby all the participating candidates would cooperate to remove the signs quickly and efficiently. The towns were divided into sectors and volunteers were assigned to each sector. They fanned out to their assigned areas, removed all the signs -- not just the ones for their chosen candidates -- took them to a central location, at Cedar Falls Park, where the signs were stacked and sorted for pickup by the candidates.

Smart, efficient and collaborative -- precisely the qualities you want in your elected officials. Nicely done.


ROSES to 12-year-old Hunter Mackman and his father, Nigel Mackman.

Last Friday father and son were playing a round of golf at Occoneechee Golf Club.

Hunter's tee shot on the 8th hole, a par-3 over a pond, found the green and rolled into the cup for a hole-in-one.

Two holes later, his dad teed off on the par-3 10th and -- you guessed it -- holed it out.


ROSES to the winners of the first annual Downtown Chapel Hill Awards, presented last week by the Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership.

The Lantern restaurant was honored with the Amazing Sustainable Downtown Initiative of the Year, in recognition of owner and head chef Andrea Reusing's promotion of locally produced foods.

The Partnership awarded the Chapel Hill Museum the Most Amazing Arts, Culture or Entertainment Based Downtown Initiative of the Year, for its wonderful new "Meet Me on Franklin Street" exhibit.

The Spirit of Downtown Chapel Hill Award went to Project Homeless Connect, a one-day community project that brought services to more than 130 homeless people.

The Best Community Partnership Initiative for Downtown Chapel Hill went to the West End Valet Parking Service.

Congrats to all.


ROSES to Francis and Jenny Chan and the staff at Jade Palace restaurant, which is celebrating its 25th year in business in downtown Carrboro.

Mayor Mark Chilton showed up at the restaurant on Saturday to proclaim that day, Nov. 10, "Jade Palace Day."

The Chans and their restaurant have been superb citizens of Carrboro for a quarter of a century. They've earned an extremely loyal customer base, and we join Chilton in wishing them another 25 years of success.