Recovery from Trauma! Reviewing the Results

I’m on a ‘time out’ after a series of traumatic events… Hopefully, I’ll be back in the full ‘blogger scene’ this coming week.

The first photo shows our plant room or pass through to the garage.  It is enclosed with HVAC, but it doesn’t normally look this cluttered.  Yes, we do have a permanently decorated Christmas tree...normally stored in a large closet. 

The second photo was taken looking from our living or family room area over into the dining room…where yours truly was working on a project just to keep me busy.  We were trapped in our living area and kitchen!  We don’t usually have parts of our bed sitting in this part of the house.  All around us there were sights and sounds of change.

Even our primary bathroom was inaccessible!

But…the bonus room over the garage, which is connected to a guest bedroom, bore the brunt of the disorganization.  It’s where my computer lives too.  With the exception of the heaviest pieces of furniture, everything from my office, a dormer room and 2 guest bedrooms had been relocated to this room… Included in the load were about 1,000 books and 80 or so photo albums and a plethora of table lamps.  We even wondered if the bonus room floor could handle the weight! 

So why the mess and distress?  Well the fact was that the carpet on the second floor of our home, on the stairs, and in the primary bedroom suite was well past its expiration date…having served the house even before we moved in more than 14 years ago.  I had to concede that this ‘change’, even if ‘traumatic’, was definitely required!

The hardest part is trying to put the house back in order in a reasonable period of time.  We’re going through books and decorative items, trying to decide what to donate or sell…one item at a time.

Here are a couple of photos showing portions of the new carpet installation.  As every husband knows, “Happy Wife equals Happy Life”…and Laurie is indeed much happier.  I had to write a ‘large check’ with trembling hand, but in fairness the price was reasonable.

Speaking of homes… As I’ve mentioned many times before, new homes have been popping up in the neighborhood without pause.  The woods behind our house is gone.  As of about 7 days ago, this lovely slab foundation had replaced the wooded lot.  We assumed that we were in for many months of construction…

Apparently we were wrong!  This photo is from only 6 work days after the picture of the slab.  A day after this photo was taken, this new home was completely closed up and the entire roof was finished as well.  Our best guess is that this particular new construction was designed by the home owner and there must be a deadline re: completion date.

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

 Where has the time gone?!  It seems like just yesterday that our son, David II, was born... Such a sweet looking little boy!

 Just about a year old!  But I'm not allowed to publicize what year this photo was taken...

As you can see, he grew like a weed, as a teenager already towering over yours truly. 

Then he met and married Amy, the love of his life...and this happened!  David III was born.  Time flies as our 'little boy' was now a dad too.

Lightning does strike twice.  Our 'little boy' became a father for the second time with the arrival of Emmett Lee.

Who is that old guy sitting next to the Birthday Boy?!  David II would like to deny his age but his dad...yours truly, is over 80 years old...so do the math!

This photo of David II, Amy and Emmett was taken while the family was in Hawaii on vacation...a memory to be cherished as David III (Left) will graduate from college this year and he'll be setting off on his own adventure.

So let's do the math... An 80 year old dad and a son who will be 23 this year = ##!

In any case, we couldn't have asked for a better son!  Not only is he a good person, but he's happily married and he and Amy have raised 2 amazing grandsons.

Nice Job Son!  Happy Birthday!

Love, Dad and Laurie

Old Town aka Old City Knoxville Tennessee (1)

…continuing with our ‘adventures’ related to Laurie’s sister Bonnie and her sister’s husband Bill’s late winter visit to our home here in East Tennessee. 

The “Old City”, located adjacent to the Knoxville’s downtown area, is really an historic neighborhood…that is part of the city’s core area.  Originally it was part of a boisterous and vice-laden area known as “The Bowery”.  It wasn’t part of Knoxville until the 1850s when the arrival of the railroad spurred the city leaders into action…and they annexed “The Bowery”.  The arrival of the railroad brought many Irish immigrants and they opened the Old City’s first shops and saloons.  After the Civil War, Knoxville’s Old City became one of the Southeastern USA’s largest wholesaling centers.  This was where East Tennessee merchants and grocers came to stock up their store shelves.

By the early 1900s, Central Street…the main street through the Old City…was lined with saloons and brothels.  Businesses left the area over the years as violent crime and prostitution became a problem.  These issues persisted well into the 1960s.  Finally, in 1986, redevelopment began to revive this area of town and today “Old Town” is home to restaurants, bars and restaurants, along with apartments and condos.  The next step will be the construction of a new multi-use baseball stadium on the fringe of the area.  Old Town is well on its way to gentrification…hopefully providing housing for some of the displaced.

When we saw this storefront, we recalled having amazing tamales made by Good Golly Tamale at the farmer’s market in Knoxville’s Market Square.  At that point…actually years ago...they were selling them from a hot box attached to a ‘tricycle’.  Back then they were making the tamales in a space they rented or borrowed from another local restaurant.  We were unaware that they had since opened a store in Knoxville.  Obviously we need to visit downtown Knoxville as well as the “Old City” more frequently.

Inside Good Golly Tamale, the décor is colorful…sort of a casual or shabby chic.  Back in my earlier days, this look would have been termed as “hippy chic”.  In any case, the décor fits the product as well as the neighborhood.  Everything was neat, orderly and clean.

To bring everything into perspective…Good Golly Tamale debuted at Knoxville’s Market Square Farmer’s market in the early fall of 2013.  It was a couple of years later when our foursome bought the tamales from that tricycle hot box.

Like so many fast food casual restaurants in this day and age, Good Golly Tamale’s customers order at the counter and pick up their food when it’s ready.  The practice holds down costs, simplifies the operation and works better in our current labor market. (Sorry for the blurry picture of the counter)

The menu is equally simple.  You can order tamales, tamales or tamales.  Well, you could just order a side or two… Business must be good.  This store has been open and selling tamales since 2015…8 years surviving on the sale of a filling of ground beef, beans, chicken, pork, cheese and a variety of vegetables wrapped in a soft corn ‘shell’ of masa and then finished wrapped in corn shucks/wrappers…

It was disturbing when we learned that the tricycle with its hot box had been stolen…never to be seen again.

OK…once again, sorry about the photos!  We’d all started eating our tamales and salsa was applied before I remembered to take a photo or two.  I will attest to the fact that we all loved our tamale choices!

Although we can’t claim to be tamale professionals, we’ve had enough tamales over the years to state that the taste and quality of a tamale starts with the corn masa that the meat and vegetables are wrapped up in…  Quality ingredients make Good Golly Tamale’s customers come back for more… They use organic non-GMO corn masa and locally sourced meats and produce when they are available.

Good Golly Tamale is located at 112 South Central Street in Knoxville Tennessee.  To learn more, go to https://goodgollytamale.com/.

Here are a couple of street views from one section of Knoxville’s Old Town area.  Shops include wineries, breweries, restaurants and night clubs as well as specialty retailers.  Young folks are flocking to the area and adapting to an urban lifestyle… Currently, builders and developers can’t keep up with demand.

The restaurant with the turret down at the end of the street in the second photo is The Lonesome Dove Western Bistro.  It is very much a high-end ($$$$) establishment.  Our own dining experience at Lonesome Dove back in 2019 wasn’t very positive but the restaurant is rated at between 4.5 and 4.7 on various rating sites so perhaps we just visited on a bad night.  See their website at https://lonesomedoveknoxville.com/.  That building dates back to 1888, when it was a saloon in a truly tough area of the city…

But now I digress…

I thought that I’d pay tribute to Regina, our United States Post Office mail carrier.  She works hard and she is the best!  However, we’re lucky she’s still on the job.  She was in her delivery van when this huge branch crushed the front end…just missing her.  She just suffered a couple of scratches and bruises.  A couple of feet further back and she would have been seriously injured or worse.  The USPS may not be perfect…but Regina is an exceptional mail carrier and our neighborhood is very happy that she is still following her daily route!

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Where Has the Time Gone? How Can I be This Old?

Another year has passed and yet another birthday has focused me on the march of time.  This time it was one of those birthdays that is considered a ‘milestone’ by some.  It was a positive event in any case.  I’m still here and enjoying life!

So, because of the ‘milestone’ birthday, our Omaha family flew in to help mark the occasion and for the celebration.  Naturally, we took a lot of photos to mark the visit!  From left to right…grandson David III (21), yours truly, Emmett Lee (18), and our son, David II (age is classified/need to know only)

Another photo, this time of the entire Omaha clan.  This time it includes Amy, the proud mama of her ‘boys’.  FYI, given the difficulty and expense involved in travel these days, their visit was easily the most thoughtful and significant present one could hope for… To make it more challenging, there are zero direct flights between Omaha and Knoxville.

Then of course, to mark the occasion “Nana” (Laurie) had her photo taken with our grandsons along with the old guy she lives with, who’s referred to as “Papa” by the boys.

Party or gift bags were available as well… I had insisted that David II and the family skip the gift scene as the visit itself was such a huge present.  That didn’t stop them from bringing some goodies.  I also had a gift bag from Dawn Marie from down in Miami Florida… It was pretty impressive as I'm notoriously hard to shop for.

Among the goodies I received were a “23 and Me” DNA test kit, a color chart used by old guys who collect stamps, a couple of nice large family photos, 3 music CDs I wanted and a book on National Parks.

Another special gift was this “Huskers Grandparent” University of Nebraska t-shirt.  The University of Nebraska (Jeffrey S. Raikes School of Computer Science and Management) is the college where Emmett Lee is attending.  It will be worn interchangeably with my grandparents t-shirt from New York University…David III’s college.

Then of course, we ‘had to have’ a photo with the old guy and his handsome grandsons.  I can’t help but notice that they have great hair…especially in comparison to yours truly!

OK…yes this isn’t a great photo but its all I've got!  DII and DIII seemed oblivious as regarded Laurie with the camera, Emmett was sneaking a peek, while Amy and I seemed to realize that a photographer was at work.  Perhaps the others were mesmerized by the flames evident in front of me…

It seemed appropriate that I should end this post with a photo of the old celebrant/codger with his birthday pie just about when the dulcet tones of the family singing “Happy Birthday” filled the room.  For those of you who are food focused…much like yours truly…it was a French Silk Chocolate Pie. 

And so another milestone in life has passed… Not that the rest of the family visit won’t be covered in future posts.  I just couldn’t let that happen could I?  There was area exploration and of course, dining out too!

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!

Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone!  This special day isn’t just for lovers but it’s also for family members and those special friends that we cherish and love spending time with.

After spending 43 Valentine Days together, our special day will be very low key.  We won’t be going out for dinner and fighting the crowds… Instead, we’ll just spend the time together, perhaps with a Hallmark movie and a bit of wine along with our hugs and kisses…

Valentine’s Day here in East Tennessee can be a bit different than you might expect.  We do enjoy those differences even when the thought process is well beyond our imagination.

Yes, there are flowers involved!  An appointment with my endodontist always results in a cluster of flowers given in appreciation by the happiest and most cheerful receptionist/office manager imaginable! 

FYI, these flowers are Alstroemerias…also known as Peruvian Lilies or Lilies of the Incas.  They are native flowers in South America.

Even area law enforcement is in the mood for love and hugs!  At the first of the month, the following ‘message of love and caring’ accompanied the photo shown above was posted on Facebook.

“Tomorrow kicks off the month for celebrating the love in your life.  And we don’t want you to forget those ex’s that did you wrong either!

Do you have an ex-Valentine and know that they have outstanding warrants?  Do you have information that they are driving with drugs in their car?  Give us a call with their location and we’ll take care of the rest.

This Valentine’s Day Month-Long Special starts off with a set of limited-edition platinum bracelets, free transportation with a chauffeur, a one-night minimum stay in luxurious accommodations and professional glamor shots that will be posted on-line for all to enjoy.  This special is capped off with a special Valentine’s dinner.

We know this special is so incredible that you may be tempted to provide additional referrals.  We don’t blame you, this special is too sweet to pass up.  Operators are standing by!”

They went on to say, “Laugh all you want, but someone reading this is about to call and give someone up!”  Happy Valentine’s Day!

Then there is this…a Red State Valentine Special for sure!

Nothing says love better than gifting your sweetheart with a sleek new shooting iron!  Just make sure that she 1) really loves you, and 2) she doesn’t have a bad temper…

FYI…These advertising stickers were pasted on the front page of our local weekly newspaper for the two weeks prior to Valentine’s Day.  Even more exciting was that if you brought either of these ads into the store, you would receive a 10% discount on the purchase of your sweetheart’s new firearm!

Forty-three (almost 44) years after we first met, we have changed just a tad… Two facts remain though!  We are each other’s best friend and we still truly love each other…

Factoids:

·       Our first encounter was a ‘blind date’.  She’d booked the date on a Thursday because she had to go to work early the next day and that would give her an excuse to bail out early.  However, despite the fact that I was a blind date and ‘an old guy’, Laurie was ‘won over’ when I rubbed her feet that evening… 

·       I did risk our future though as I didn’t call her back until 12 days after our first date.  I didn’t want her to think that I was ‘pushy’ or too aggressive… BTW, she did forgive my serious gaffe!

Laurie had a Burmese cat whose name was Max.  The fact that he liked me immediately was a major plus!  Just think, the rest of my life was determined by a cat’s affection… 

·       Eons ago when CB Radios were the rage, our ‘handle’ was “Beauty and the Beast”.  She’d talk to the truckers and then, at an appropriate time she’d mention that she was riding with “the Beast”. 

Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone!

Thanks for stopping by for a visit…

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave and Laurie

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

 

Laurie and I hope that everyone enjoys a happy and peaceful Holiday Season!  There is no doubt that after what we've all experienced throughout this past year, we do deserve some fun time...some close and warm times with family and friends.  Enough with illness and politics!  We all need love and understanding...

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave and Laurie  

An Economic Dichotomy – Booming Businesses in a Pandemic

We live in a semi-cocoon here in East Tennessee.  The Covid-19 pandemic rages around us and we’ve had 815 confirmed cases with ‘only’ 3 deaths in Loudon County.  Not too bad when you consider that probably 8,000 plus folks who live just in our community are retired and fairly vulnerable.  Also consider that neither the state nor the county have mask mandates. Nearby Knox County does have a mask requirement…

Of course we all know what the pandemic has done to the economy!  Millions of people have lost their jobs.  Many businesses are closing forever.  Others are just scraping by… Food banks are overwhelmed, renters are in danger of eviction and people are behind in their mortgage payments.

And yet there is an economic boom of sorts here in our neighborhood!

I had “assumed” that with millions of people filing for unemployment and an economy in free-fall, the burgeoning spate of homebuilding in our ungated community would go into a quick downward spiral…

Apparently, I’m no economist!  This new home was just started across the street and about a block down from us in the last few weeks.  The foundation is in place as is an all too ubiquitous porta potty! 

One new house wouldn’t prove much… This lot was just cleared for a new home a week ago.  It’s on a street behind us at the back of a house just 2 lots up from our home.

Our street isn’t very long…perhaps 4 or 5 blocks one way and a short 2 blocks the other way.  The first photo shows the beginnings of another new build at the end of our street and the second photo is of a new house nearing completion just across the street from the new home start up!

If you still think that perhaps the previously pictured new homes near us were just a coincidence, here is another flock of homes at various stages of completion along an adjacent street in our neighborhood.

Here is one more home nearing completion.  One fact is obvious.  Home builders and construction crews in our area are not out of work and it appears that they won’t be anytime soon.

Just to finish our tour, these 4 other new homes are located on yet another street in our neighborhood.  Fact: All 14 homes shown above are located within no more than a half mile of our home…and most are within a quarter mile in actual distance.  We still have a patch of woods on one side of our house, its still wooded across the street from us and we have a tiny bit of woods right behind our home.

The main portion of our community stretches along 9.5 miles of Tellico Lake and adjacent property.  Another large section is located a few miles away in Monroe County.  New home construction is happening everywhere!  The last numbers I recall showed that over 180 homes were being built…

What factors figure into our continuing building boom?  Obviously some of the homes were committed to and funded before the economic downturn.  I can only guess that people who were contemplating retirement and who had the financial wherewithal to do so…just decided to call it quits and relocate somewhere where the environment was pleasant and the cost of living was low.

On the other hand…the business news today proves that I just don’t understand the economy!  To quote: “Housing starts in July rose 22.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of nearly 1.5 million.  Permits rose sharply for both single and multi-family dwellings”.

All of the home construction in our area got me thinking… I recalled driving past Tellico West and noting something of interest in this down economy.  This industrial park is managed by the Tellico Reservoir Development Agency.  Its home to several large companies and those companies employ roughly 3,000 employees when business is good

I remembered seeing a number of help wanted signs, and they’d been up for months.  We stopped by and Laurie snapped these photos… The first one is a Yamaha Jet Boats help wanted sign.  The second is a view of just a small part of the finished watercraft at the factory waiting to be delivered.

Master Craft’s boatbuilding operation is in the same industrial park along the shores of Tellico Lake.  They are hiring as well!  Mastercraft also had a 'now hiring' sign out by the entrance to the industrial park...but so did Randstad (a recruiting company), JTEKT (an automotive supplier) and DHL (a global logistics and shipping company).  The only shortage around here seems to be job applicants...

I didn’t see a help wanted sign for Sea Ray but I checked on-line and they are trying to fill positions as well.  This plant manufactures Sea Ray and Lund sports boats and sports cruisers. 

While driving through the area, we also noted a sign for Great Lakes Boat Tops…which is also located in the Tellico West Industrial Park.  They’re trying to fill a number of positions in their plant too!

Who can afford a boat in such an economic downturn?  Apparently those who are still working, who have the money and who are looking for something to do that is relatively safe in that families and friends can enjoy the outdoors and stay ‘socially distanced’.  With most types of travel off limits, boating is a booming business.

Other businesses are booming too!  Home renovation projects, either by professionals or as do it yourself projects include such items as pools, decks, home gyms, saunas, home offices and landscaping, are bucking the economic trends.  So is the recreational vehicle industry.  Dealers have consistently reported strong demand for rentals and sales of new and used RVs as families and would be travelers look for options that minimize their risk of catching Covid-19.  Other industries doing well include makers of cleaning/sanitizing products, video gaming, exercise equipment, streaming video services and of course, group communications services such as Stack and Zoom.

I’m guessing that once we get back to ‘normal’, whatever and whenever that is, there may be a lot of used boats and RVs available for very reasonable prices… Time will tell.

In the meantime…

SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL FOOD BANK!

That’s all for now.  Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Stay Safe and Take Care, Big Daddy Dave