I KNOW HER...sort of

One of the first times I was at Espresso Joe's for the blogger get together I remember seeing an "odd" car as we pulled into the parking lot. The car itself was normal for the most part, but the sign on the door stood out. It looked like one of the easily purchased magnetic signs small businesses use. It said Everythingbrandy and mentioned that they were an eBay seller.

I had not really thought of the sign until I was doing some eBay searching and came across her and her store. She also has a pretty bare website.

Now she sells the main tidbits that most other eBay sellers have, but she also has some items for sale that may be of interest to the readers here.

Coupons.

Massive amounts of coupons for everything from Espresso Joe's to Omni Hut. For someone on a budget this may be a big help. There is also an appliance repair coupon and a few other restaurant coupons from another seller.

There is also some LaVergne stuff (La Vergne also) for sale on eBay also. Enjoy.

I realize I am directing people to a store, but I am getting nothing in return, and have never met this Brandy person before. I just know that sometimes a coupon can really help make a night out easier.

Details of our city

A lot of smallish towns have brushes with fame. Our humble city's brush with fame includes one president, a presidential pardon, a stained blue dress, and a very unusual loan.

Near the end of Bill Clintons second term in office many "questionable" pardons were given out, and one landed here.

"Former President Bill Clinton's brother-in- law Tony Rodham helped obtain a presidential pardon for a Tennessee couple last March over the objections of the Justice Department, Mr. Rodham and lawyers involved in the pardon said today.

"Mr. Clinton pardoned Edgar Allen Gregory Jr. and his wife, Vonna Jo. The Gregorys, who live outside Nashville and own United Shows of America, a carnival company based in Smyrna, Tenn., were convicted of bank fraud in 1982, accused of using the assets of a bank they owned to give loans to friends."

And the loan was rather large that Bill's brother-in-law received.

The Washington Times reported that a bankruptcy judge has frozen Tony Rodham's bank account. A court-appointed trustee is demanding Mrs. Clinton's brother repay more than $100,000 in loans he obtained from a carnival company, United Shows of America, Inc.

How did Tony, who has described himself as a consultant - Gee, could he be a little vaguer? - get his mitts on carnival cash?

Alas the pardoned Edgar Allen Gregory Jr did not get to enjoy his "freedom" from a conviction for long. He passed away three years after the pardon in 2004. 100,000$ may be a lot to you or I, but what price is freedom worth?

That is a detail of our city.

Reading Rally

The Linebaugh Library system will hold a reading rally on Saturday, Sept. 9 from 11 a. m. to 2 p.m.

This annual, family-friendly event to celebrate the written word will be held at Linebaugh Library, Smyrna Library and La Vergne Library. We'll have story telling, crafts, and a visit from your favorite storybook characters. Co-sponsored by Read to Succeed.

Middle Tennessee Bloggers and Podcasters Group Next Meeting

It's just two weeks from Saturday, folks!

The very next meeting of the Middle Tennessee bloggers and podcasters group returns to our old stomping grounds of Espresso Joe's in Smyrna for this month's meeting. We'll meet around 2 p.m CST on Saturday, Sept 16th. For those of you wondering, yes it is the day of UT vs Florida and yes, I will be totally obsessed with that and wearing orange. (Gee, huge shock).

So, make your plans to come on out and invite a friend or two. Surf the blog-sphere and invite some new people to come out. Also, if you've been thinking about coming but putting it off for months now, please make plans to join us. We'd love to see you.

And to all the regulars, we know you'll be there. And we look forward to seeing you.

Here's the info on where we're meeting in case you need to MapQuest it...

Espresso Joe's Coffee Co is located at:
901 Rock Springs Rd.
Smyrna, TN
615-220-2870

Vandals in Smyrna

Kelly asked in this comment if there was any news on the damage done yesterday.

The Daily News Journal has this to say.

Upwards of 20 homes were vandalized in northwest Smyrna over the weekend, but police think it's unrelated to the rivalry between Smyrna and La Vergne high schools.

Most of the property damage occurred Saturday night in the Vineyards, Potts Crossing and Living Springs subdivisions along Rock Springs Road, said Detective Sgt. Scott Byers, public information officer of the Smyrna Police Department.

Most of the reports taken involved hood ornaments being removed from cars, bashed mailboxes and broken yard statues.
............
Byers said he knows of 26 reports that were filed, but probably well over 30 homes in the area had sustained damage. Other instances of damage were reported in other parts of town Friday evening.

Looks like kids out being extraordinarily dumb.

Details of our city

This is an introductory post of a series that will compare our city with others. Now certain bits of technical information are rather boring. The population or average income levels will never be brought up. This series of posts will compare the utterly useless information that exists all around us.

The general sessions court meets in the Town center. Now going to court can be a frightful occasion. So the question of what to wear comes up. Here I compare a few local governments.

Nashville/Metro general sessions court dress code.

1.04 Proper Attire
All parties, including counsel and witnesses, shall dress appropriately for court.

The website for the Rutherford County general sessions court and the Murfreesboro Judicial Department have no dress codes posted.

Now with those brief, or nonexistent dress codes the question arises. What is the city of Smyrna's dress codes.

MEN
A shirt with a collar or a plain T-shirt is to be worn. The shirt is to be buttoned. There is to be no writings or designs on the clothing (except small pocket style print). The shirt is to be long enough to remain tucked in throughout the entire Court session. Pants/jeans are not to have holes in them. They are to fit properly around the waistline. They are not to be worn in a baggy or low riding manner. If the pants or jeans have belt loops, a belt must be worn. Shorts are not allowed. Clothes are to be reasonably clean.

Of course the femmes were not forgotten.

WOMEN
Dresses, skirts, jeans or pants can be worn. Dresses/skirts should be no shorter than three inches above in the knee. Pants/jeans must not have holes in them and must not be 'form fitting'. If the pants or jeans have belt loops, a belt is to be worn. Shirts or blouses must be buttoned. No midriff shall be exposed. Low cut, revealing, tight fitting tops are inappropriate. Shorts are not allowed. Clothes are to be reasonably clean.

Does this mean the other courts are lazy in defining proper clothing, or is Smyrna just "stuffy" in what is proper? That is up to you to decide.

That is a detail of our city.

Next meet-up

So the Snakes on a Plane meet-up was this weekend and that means we can now focus on the next big blogger meet-up.

Our next meet-up is scheduled for Sept 16th. I will be in a tizzy and a lather because that is the day of the big UT vs Florida showdown in God's House (Neyland Stadium).

Luckily the game is an evening one, so I will be able to attend.

So, beyond the date, we don't really have a time or a place. We met in July at the Mothership and it was nice. But we don't want to neglect Espresso Joe's. Or are there other ideas?

Comment and let us know

Great Fishing Spots In and Around Smyrna, TN

Anyone got recommendations on fishing spots in and around Smyrna, TN to take a seven year old boy fishing?

Snakes On A Plane - M's Review

Just back from seeing Snakes on a Plane in Mt. Juliet. I took my two older kids to see it with me. We laughed, I was moved to cry on an occasion or two as well. There was humor and heroics, cheese and meat and plenty of snakes. Samuel L. Jackson does a fine job of being the tough hero guy that we all love.

I also think that they did a great job by incorporating things from the blogosphere. This helped make the otherwise goofy movie into something that was actually believable because the intended audience had a chance to pick it apart beforehand. Bravo on that. And anyone looking for a cue to shout out, I suggest that whenever you see a can of Red Bull or Purell you shout out "Snakes on a Plane!" or something. And for all those who are in Tennessee, shout it out when Samuel L. Jackson says Tennessee!

I had a great time. Go see it.

Football game goes on despite vandalism

Vandals damaged both the LaVerge and Smyrna football fields Thursday evening, leading to some speculation that the week zero clash between these two Rutherford County rivals might be cancelled.

According to reports from the Daily News Journal, the Smyrna football field (where the game was held) had tire tracks put along the 50-yard line.

Damage to LaVergne's field led to cancelling a freshman football game Thursday evening.

The clash between Smyrna and LaVergne went on as scheduled. The Smyrna Bulldogs pounded LaVergne, 42-21. Smyna scored three TDs in the opening quarter.

Luckily for both squads, there were no injuries as a result of the field vandalism.

Outgoing judge dimisses tickets

This morning's Daily News Journal has a front page story about outgoing Smyrna town judge Chris Coats. According to the article, on his last day Thursday, Coats dismissed close to $6000 in fines.

Approximately 20 Rutherford County jail inmates were on Thursday night's docket, along with 120 or so traffic citations. Court Clerk Terry Davenport said most of the traffic citations were dismissed.

"Some he dismissed at no cost, and some he dealt with in the normal manner," Davenport said. "He told me he based his decision on the infraction."

When asked if Coats had ever done something similar during his tenure as clerk, Davenport responded, "This is a bit of a departure, yes."

The position of town judge has recently gone from part-time to full time. Coats has held this position for the past 14 years but recently lost the seat to Keta Barnes on August 3. Coats lost the seat by a 116-vote margin.

Smyrna Municipal Court is one of 30 community courts in the state that has General Sessions powers, meaning it can hear misdemeanor violations of state law punishable by no more than 11 months and 29 days' jail time. Davenport, who was elected Aug. 3 to the post he was appointed to five years ago, said he wasn't sure of how many cases were disposed of and how many resulted in fines because he had not yet handled the after-court paperwork. Mayor Bob Spivey placed the number of lost fines in the $6,000 range. The court expects to collect $1.3 million in fines this fiscal year.

Mayor Spivey is considering filing complaints with the Board of Professional Responsibility and the state Court of the Judiciary.

"It's certainly unethical what he did," Spivey said, adding that he'd attempted to contact Coats, but had not heard from him early Friday evening.

The mayor also said he is looking into the possibility of finding a substitute judge to handle court dates set for Aug. 22, 24 and 29.

Spivey said he would try to attend today's General Sessions Court, which has 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. dockets, consisting of about 300 cases

Middle Tennessee Blogger and Podcaster's Group Meeting - Snakes On A Plane!

Don't forget that in lieu of this month's meeting the Middle Tennessee Blogger and Podcaster's Group will be meeting to see Snakes on a Plane.

Details:

I'll be wearing a black T-shirt with white text that reads "You might be a Zombie if..." Join us to see Snakes on a Plane at the new Consolidated Movie Theater in Mt. Juliet. The show starts at 2:20 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 19th.

You can order tickets on-line. Matinee prices are $6.00 per ticket. If you order on-line you're charged a buck for the processing fee.

The theater is located at:

401 South Mt. Juliet Road, Suite 490
Mt. Juliet, TN 37122
(615) 866-5333

Web site: http://consolidatedmovies.com/default.asp

Smyrna vs LaVerge football

High school football kicks off this Friday with a clash of Rutherford County rivals. Smyrna and LaVerge will play this Friday evening.

The North Rutherford YMCA (located in Smyrna) is hosting a tail gate party before the game. The tail gate party starts at 4:30 p.m. this Friday and goes up until 7 p.m. There will be food from Jim and Nick's, fun, festivities and getting ready for the big game.

Lost puppy needs home

UPDATE: THE PUPPY IS STILL AVAILABLE FOR ADOPTION


My relative came across this poor puppy under their trailer. About 2-3 months old, sweet natured, and house broken.

This young furry lass is looking for a home to go to.

Our best guess is that she is a lab mix.

She has a few white hairs on her chin and a small white spot on her chest.

If you know who she belongs to or you have an overwelming desire to adopt her, please leave a message in comments.



A small bag of puppy chow and puppy treats comes with her.

You know you want her. Admit it. She's just too darn cute for words.

Podcast #7

Better late than never, right? Here's half of the podcast from the last meeting of the Middle Tennessee Bloggers and Podcasters group meeting. (You can listen directly here) On the show are:

• Kathy T. of the LaVergne, TN blog
• Bad Bad Ivy
• Gunner of No Quarters
• Elizabeth of HarelipFrog
• John of Salem's Lots
• Malia
• Michael of Mashby
• Kerry Woo.
• Christian Grantham
• Michael of Big Orange Michael
• Michelle of This is Smyrna, TN

Also, a special segement from Michael and Evo's Wingin' It VoiceMail Show #70 about the Snakes on a Plane challenge.

Don't forget that Saturday, August 19th is the viewing of Snakes on a Plane. Here's some info for you on tickets and such...

We'll be gathering to see Snakes on a Plane at the new Consolidated Movie Theater in Mt Juliet. The show starts at 2:20 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 19th.

You can order tickets on-line if you're interested. (I plan to do so I get a seat I have my ticket ordered and my receipt printed!) Matinee prices are $6.00 per ticket. If you order on-line you're charged a buck for the processing fee.

Here's details on where the theater is:

401 South Mt. Juliet Road, Suite 490
Mt. Juliet, TN 37122
(615) 866-5333

The Giants of Zama Japan

I walked into the town meeting prepared for an empty room. It's become the norm for town meetings. What I did see when I walked in was a standing room only crowd and most were NOT from Smyrna.

I've heard that Smyrna has a sister city in Japan. Outside of putting that bit of knowledge in the back of my head I gave it no heed. That knowledge, and the sister city, became reality for me last night.

It seems that last Friday 20 school age youth and 5 chaperones arrived from Zama Japan. Staying in the home of students across the city, they all made a show to view the city council at work. The youth, their chaperones, and the local hosts, created the first crowd I have ever seen in a city meeting.

The Mayor then introduced our guests and then they all went to the front for pictures and a few words from the head chaperone. I leaned over and asked a one of our "guests" which of the spellings I had written down was correct. Zama, or Zamah? She smiled and pointed to "Zama". I was rather impressed with myself that I was only one letter off.

After some pictures and a few words they all took off for other activities.

At this point I figured I would do a post to introduce you to Zama Japan.

First of all Zama is old. Ancient would be a better word.

In Zama city , signs of early human habitation have been found in the form prehistoric earthenware dating from about 30,000 years ago.
Many vessels and stoneware from the Jomon period have been found along the Sagami River.
People formed small villages during the late Kofun eras proven by the finding of ruins in Zama area.
It is recorded in books written during the Nara and the Heian periods that Zama had been an important traffic point in ancient times.

Smyrna is still a swaddling baby when held up to an old city like Zama.

Of course Zama is a modern city of noticeable size.

After 1948 Zama developed rapidly under the process of democratization and agricultural reform.
Due to the growth of the economy of the nation during the Showa era, population and economy of Zama also grew. It became a municipality, the seventeenth city of the prefecture, on November 1, 1971.
Zama City, whose population exceeds 127,000 today, is promoting the realization of "an attractive city where an abundant vitality is in harmony with comfort".

Now outside of the standard information that any encyclopedia could provide I did find a giant bit of information worthy of delving into.

Kites. Not just kites, but big freakishly large kites.

The flying of large kites began during the Bunsei years (1804 to 1830) in the Edo era, as an event to celebrate Boys' Day on May 5th. Initially such kites were 3 or 4 meters in size, and they were flown by individual families in such regions as Sindenjuku, Yotsuya, Zama, and Kurihara. As time went by, the kites became larger, and young people in regional areas began to fly them in groups, together, the kites reached their present size during the Meiji era. In the Showa period, more and more homes were built, as well as electric utility poles, which made it difficult for people to find places to fly the kites. Around 1955, they came to be flown at only one location by all kite-fliers, in the city of Zama. In addition, concern arose about passing on the techniques of making and flying the kites to future generations, accompanying social changes and the like. Presently, therefore, kite-flying is conducted by the "Zama City Large Kite Preservation Association."

Here is a photosite with many images from a Zama Kite festival.

Now you may ask how heavy these kites are. This site gives some information.

A giant kite 13 meters square and weighing 1 ton is flown using a 200-meter rope.

2000 pounds!?!? A standard Cessna 182 weighs 1540 lbs empty.

Giant kites may never take hold down here in NASCARland as they are a bit more exotic then most are used to, But the idea of giant kites taking flight over Smyrna is thrilling to think of.

Middle Tennessee Blogger Meet-Up

Here's some details of the next blogger and podcasters meet-up.

We'll be gathering to see Snakes on a Plane at the new Consolidated Movie Theater in Mt Juliet. The show starts at 2:20 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 19th.

You can order tickets on-line if you're interested. (I plan to do so I get a seat I have my ticket ordered and my receipt printed!) Matinee prices are $6.00 per ticket. If you order on-line you're charged a buck for the processing fee.

Here's details on where the theater is:

401 South Mt. Juliet Road, Suite 490
Mt. Juliet, TN 37122
(615) 866-5333

Their web site is here: http://consolidatedmovies.com/default.asp

OK, so who's going?

Snakes on a Plane Challenge

Woo-hoo!

My voice mail about our Snakes on a Plane challenge made it onto the Wingin' It voice mail show this week.

I've not heard how I sound or what Evo's responses are that are talked about in the show notes, (I am providing a link in case y'all want to listen, but I will warn you that Wingin' It is definitely NSFW).

So, that brings up the question--where are our responses and suggestions on what we should do for this modern classic? Come on people, we've only got a week and a half!

Let the people speak

Dear M asked for us to submit a profile for this site. Now I'm conflicted on what to send her. I feel I will let the fine people here vote on which one should be posted.

Submission one.

A Kentucky transplant who found love, and a place to live, in Smyrna. Over ten years in the printing industry doing prepress work. Personal interests include personal rights, firearms, and living the quiet life. A graduate of Nashville State tech institute. Dreaming of returning to school to finish his bachelors degree.

Submission two.

An escaped product of the human genome project. Living the small town dream until mutant rights are respected by all in society. Rather confused over issue on why we park in a driveway, yet drive on a parkway. Because of this he feels normal humans are simply odd.

So speak and let your views be known!

Crazy Like Christmas

I've yet to watch the news or read NiT but I gotta tell you, I went to Stones River Mall today and it was crazy as in crazy like Christmas. There was very little parking to be had. Everywhere you looked people were parked on the grassy dividers. The inside of the mall was jammed packed as well. The sales were ho-hum, in my opinion. I think K-Mart had some good prices on jeans, however. The heat made it nearly unbearable to be out shopping.

Did you get out today? How was it for you?

Mudslides, Fires and Floods - Oh, My! Plus a Whole Bunch Of Other Things

I left my workplace in Brentwood yesterday to embark on my usually uneventful journey home to Smyrna. I work in a cube farm and can go an entire day without ever seeing the light, or darkness, of day. Yesterday was no exception.

I had heard it raining and thundering during my work day, they haven't managed to sheild me from that distraction yet... but never guessed it had rained as much as it apparently had. As I drove down Holt Rd. in Nashville I was met by a suprisingly large line of cars waiting to turn on to Nolensville Rd., as I was. I waited and waited and finally got my turn. I listed to the radio as I sat in my car and as I finally turned on to Nolensville Rd. to be met by yet another line of cars I hear over the airwaves that there are not one but two fires on Pettus and Burkitt. Oh, joy. Not only that, as I drove down the road I could see the flooding that was occuring as rivers of water flowed swiftly past houses and crept ever so close to a some.

Then if the fires and flooding weren't enough, there was a mudslide. Yes! a mudslide. Not one like you would see in California but enough of one to certainly cause a lot of trouble for Tennessee drivers and I drove right past it. The road was nearly covered in mud!

All these things occured on the same road and not in the same place. What a fun ride home.

Anyway, I want to say congrats to Wayne Blair for winnng his school board seat. He is one of my karate instructors. He is a very good man.

I'm off to take the kiddies to go do the school clothes shopping thing. Shopping brings out the yin and the yang of me. I both hate and secretly love to shop. If I could spend someone elses' money I'd be perfectly happy to shop. I might not even mind grocery shopping. Just don't mess with my money!

I'm off.

Pets

Are you, or your family, looking for a new pet? If so here is some information you might find helpful.

Saturday, August 5 10am-1:30pm Rutherford County PAWS Animal Shelter offers healthy cats available for adoption 10am - 1:30pm at Tractor Supply, 135 John R. Rice Boulevard Murfreesboro, For more information call, 896-1561. Tractor Supply Company, 135 John R. Rice Boulevard, Murfreesboro; 896-1561

Save a cat from a life of crime.

UT player charged with assault has a Smyrna tie

Marsalous Johnson, a former star football player at Smyrna High, was arrested Sunday night in Knoxville and charged with aggrevated assault.

Here's more from The Tennessean about it.

Redshirt freshman linebacker Rico McCoy was also in the car with Johnson, according to police records, but was not charged.

"I want to find out more about what happened, see what's true and what's not and go from there," said Fulmer, whose Vols open preseason practice Friday. "We've had very few distractions this offseason, and we're not going to let this be one."

The sheriff's deputy who accused Johnson of waving the pellet gun, Mike Hoover, is also a Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency officer and was on his way home from a shift as a boating officer at Center Hill Lake when the incident occurred, said Dan Hicks, the TWRA Region 3 public information officer.

Hicks said Hoover had his nephew in the car with him when Johnson pointed what appeared to be a gun at them.

As of the article, Fulmer has taken no disciplinary action, waiting to see what comes of the charges.

Johnson is in his freshman year with the Big Orange as a defensive back.

Would I Buy Into This? Oh Yeah...

I'm trying with great diligence to become a financially savvy person. In doing so I've subscribed to a website called Bankrate.com. I'm closing on a house in December and am very interested in the interest rates right now. Anyhow, they also have a great number of article on a variety of money oriented subjects. This one caught my attention as it is such a great idea.

New ways to beat high gas prices
By Michael Giusti • Bankrate.com

The way you pay for gas can make a big difference in how much you shell out at the pump. While some drivers go online to find the lowest prices in their neighborhood and others drive around burning precious gas to save a penny or two per gallon, others are learning that "hedging," prepayment options and which credit card to pay with can save serious money when they fill their tanks. more.

Basically people buy gas from this First Fuel Bank in Minnesota in gallons and the gas "bank" stores your gas and you use it at the price that you purchased it at. There are some people who are still pumping gas into their cars that they purchased at $1.00/gallon. You can buy your gas in bulk at the going rate and as prices increase, your costs do not!

What a fabulous idea. Hey Smyrna, I want one!