Those kudzu-eating goats have found their own way to cool off in this heat. (Madelyn Mills photo)

Man, it’s hot out there. What do you do? Climb into your water trough, of course. Madelyn Mills of South Street in Davidson captured these kudzu-eating goats doing just that the other day out on the cross-country course at Davidson College.

Madelyn likes to run on the 8K loop of the course and has been seeing a lot of the goats – a herd the college hired to help with its kudzu problem on the north side of campus. She’s a rising 11th grader at Hough High School in Cornelius. Thanks for snapping the photo, Madelyn.

RANDOM ACT OF DAVIDSON KINDNESS

Ron Olsson of Pat Stough Lane was out for a run on Concord Road late Friday afternoon, headed toward downtown, as a storm was brewing. Suddenly, a lightning bolt struck nearby – too close for comfort. He continues:

“I immediately turned around and headed back toward my home. A driver in a black SUV going in the opposite direction slowed and asked me if I would like a ride home. She explained that she and her passengers had seen me turn around when the lightning flashed.

I didn’t take them up on the offer but I thought, ‘Davidson is such a great community.’ Thank you SUV driver!

Have you seen a “random act of Davidson kindness”? Let us know (editor@davidsonnews.net).

LIVE FROM THE PHILIPPINES: COLEEN JOSE

Coleen Jose

Davidson College senior Coleen Jose is traveling in her family’s native Philippines this summer. Her trip is funded with grants from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting and the Dean Rusk International Studies Program at Davidson College.

She says she’s studying efforts to limit over-exploitation of natural resources and the threat to Filipinos’ traditional livelihoods. We learned about some of what she’s seeing when she recently penned an article for The Huffington Post called “Fishing for Survival: How a Global Market Is Shaping One Island Community.”

She writes from the district of Biton, which she says is so small that “it’s not on the map.” She talks about overfishing, including for puffer fish, a delicacy in Japan and elsewhere, which one interview tells her: “Not long ago we could catch puffer fish very close to our shores. Now we haven’t seen any in the waters.” So they raise other local fish in underwater cages they call alkansya, or “savings boxes.”

Coleen also writes about how non-governmental organizations are helping, though some residents are resistant to the outside help.

Coleen is the daughter of Joel Jose, the proprietor of Joel’s Asian Grill & Sushi and J.J. Wasabi’s Grill in Mooresville. We look forward to hearing more from her when she’s back on campus this fall.

HARRY POTTER IS BACK

And in case you somehow missed it, this week marks the premiere of the eighth and final installment of the Harry Potter movie series. “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2″ premieres with a midnight show Thursday night and continues all weekend at Our Town Cinemas in Davidson and other area theaters.

Our Town Cinemas is teaming up with another new business in town, Char-Grill in Davidson Commons, for a Harry Potter Day on Thursday. Wear a costume and get a free “magic milkshake.” They’ll also have chocolate frogs for answering Harry Potter trivia questions, and other giveaways.

For showtimes, see The Guide.

HAVE NEWS?

Life in Davidson is an occasional column about our town. Have news, photos or a story to share? Send to editor@davidsonnews.net.