AUGUSTA, Ga.—Pittsburgh natives and one of Augusta, Ga.’s  best-known culinary secrets has been revealed to the world, thanks to the literary efforts of the internationally renowned publication known as Southern Living magazine.

Jackie M’s Restaurant and Catering, a small Augusta business, was featured in the food section of the magazine’s November edition. The book featured specialty menus that were developed by Jackie M, in addition to her penchant for producing uniquely delectable Thanksgiving Day meals.

FAMILY AFAIR—Owners of Jackie M’s Restaurant and Catering from left: Clinton McCalla Sr., Jackie McCalla, and Clinton McCalla Jr. enjoy their newfound fame.

The Southern Living article was appropriately headlined: “A Smokin’ Good Thanksgiving.”

The article’s author, Norman King, said the Augusta family-owned firm deserves the worldwide recognition.

2010 will be a year of transition from the Great Recession to hopefully, a period of sustainable economic growth. Despite the political wrangling, the economy’s vital signs are pointing in a positive direction. Economic growth as measured by the Gross Domestic Product was 5.7 percent for the fourth quarter. The unemployment rate improved from 10 percent to 9.7 percent in January. Reported corporate profits of the S&P 500 companies, excluding financials, improved by 16 percent.

The price for higher education is enough to make a grown man cry. On the date of this writing, the average cost for private college is approximately $22,000 to $28,000. The average cost for public universities is approximately $9,000 to $12,000. As if those prices are not high enough, college tuition continues to increase at a rate of 7 percent annually. That being said, in the next five years college tuition for private and public universities will cost on average $39,000 and $17,000, respectively. As for those of us with younger children, the prices go up from there. “If you think the price for higher education is expensive, try ignorance,” said Earl Graves. Ignorance may be bliss but it’s costly.

(NNPA)—A business plan. A website. A means to track spending and profits. An office space, retail space or home-based business. Time. Money. Sweat equity. None of these, however, means anything if you don’t know what kind of business you want to run.

Starting a business sounds scary, but before you can even do that you have to get past the first step, which is often the hardest (yet doesn’t require a single penny): figuring out exactly what you will found. The good news is two simple questions can provide you some answers right away or at least give you a launch pad.