Smalltown Hospitality

A new gas station opened up in town not long ago. The building had been sitting there - Sad. Forlorn. Cobwebby. Gloomy -  since we moved here.

Because there are only 2 others in Jasper (ummm...stations, not people) we decided to give it a try. It looks just like any other filling station. Nothing really special you need to write Mom about. I don't generally get all worked up over world political issues, or whether or not we should use our corn surplus to make ethanol.

I'm much more the silent observer. I mull things over.

I'm the watcher. The ponder-er. ... but not in a creepy, stalker-ish way.

However, no one around here seems to be a fan of the newcomer on the fuel scene. Each gas station in town proudly sports a "NO ETHANOL" banner. I know some say your car doesn't run as well on ethanol but since I haven't done my research I will refrain from entering that debate. Still far too much mulling to be done.

Personally, I vascilate between feeding the world's hungry with all that extra, delicious corn and supporting the creation of renewable energy sources. Its a toughie! I'll need to sit and ponder some more. Call me back in 10 years and I'll give you my opinion.

AND - the fact that there is now a ridiculous amount of oil floating in the Gulf of Mexico just adds fuel to the fire. 

(pun absolutely intended)

Can't we all just get along? But that's another post for another day.

Anyway, the point is - I didn't see the trademark ethanol sign at this new station. There was a different sign. One much less likely to start the pundits' chatter. One that made me want to smile - no mulling or pondering needed.

I couldn't resist taking a picture of the sign on the new shiny gas pumps.

Have we mentioned that we love small town life?

The Knights


P. S. I'm not just a terrible photographer.....it was raining when I took the picture.  :)

**UPDATE** 5/24/2010 - They put up the "NO ETHANOL" sign! All my small-town love and kindhearted a-political gas-staion owner fantasies have now died a sad death. The end.

The Good Grub

If you ever find yourself hopelessly lost in our neck of the woods and in need of some nourishment for both the belly and your Mayberry-esk fantasies then we know just where to take you. We're so generous we'll even give you a choice :)....

Harvey's Pirate Restaurant or the Dixie Freeze.

You pick.

Go ahead.

You'll want to lick your plate clean at either one so its really just a matter of decor or which side of the street you happen to be walking on.

 (Do you feel like crossing the street or not?....hhhmmmm)

Choice # 1 - Harvey's Pirate Restaurant. Yep, thats its real name. Its obvious no one consulted Jack Sparrow about the signage. Just walk by real fast - you won't even notice Scary Toothless One-eyed Pirateman.

Location: South Pittsburg, TN next to the fire station

Decor: Lets call it "Shabby Chic Halloween" or maybe leave off the chic:)

Sadly, no one actually dresses like a pirate - and if you were to give them a good "AARRGGGHH! ME HARDYS!" they'd just wonder what was in your Cheerios that morning and rush some sense-restoring sweet tea to your table stat! 

The black and orange facade was chosen to coordinate with the South Pittsburg Pirate's school colors. Yep, Aunt Bea would be horrified!


For all you overly analytical, logical folks out there...here's the corresponding mathematical equation:

High School Football + Nothing else to do in our small-town kingdom = Football is king.

All the tables and chairs look like they came out of your grandma's kitchen 30 years ago and none of the fine china you'll be dining on matches. It makes your lunch or dinner far more interactive. You have plenty of time to guess who's going to get the mismatched plates before your entree arrives.

Don't worry...you won't care once you get a taste of Harvey's giant cheeseburger...that's really what they call it.

Honest.

**Pssst...Don't tell anyone - but the Pirate's burgers make the Dixie Freeze burgers cry for their mommas they're so good. But don't tell anyone. We like our scary little pirate place and would hate for it to be overrun with papparazi and celebrities.

We're completely objective about this analysis. Its a really complicated, smarty-pants formula involving the amount of grease running down your chin divided by the amount of grease absorbed by the bun, multiplied by the number of napkins you have to use...tricky, tricky stuff**

Menu: Burgers, chili dogs, grilled cheese, chicken fingers. I also hear Harvey dishes up a mean breakfast but I've not ventured that far down the plank into Pirateland. Harvey is still in the kitchen as cook and depending on his mood you may or may not get exactly what you ordered...so come with an open mind and carefree tastebuds ;)

Or its a swim with the fishes for you! (Harvey will make you walk the plank with the blunt end of his greasy old spatula!)

However, if you're really worried about it, the pirate waiter will just hand you the ordering pad and you can write it down yourself. These pirates understand ocd landlovers.


Choice # 2: The Dixie Freeze (We do live in the South folks)

Location: Across the street from the firestation and Harvey's


Decor: Closer to the "Dive" end of "Diners, Drive-In's, and Dives" but the tables and chairs do match. We'll call it "Vintage Retro." A.K.A. - nothing has changed or been replaced in 30 years. Dark paneling is still "in" around here. Who knew I lived in such a progressive place?! This is really what the going green movement is all about anyway....


Waste not want not. Recycling. Repurposing.


Here they skip that whole process and simply NEVER change anything. Seems smart to me.


Work smart - not hard, right?


Menu: Plate specials daily - ask anyone in the neighborhood and they can tell you when Meatloaf Day is or when to show up for Chicken and Dumplings. They also serve burgers, chicken, hotdogs, and their infamous Dagwood Sandwich. I've heard their milkshakes could possibly bring about world peace with their sweet gooness, but I haven't tried one yet. I'll le you know.


So, what's it to be? Are you feelin' more in touch with your adventurous pirate seafaring side or your nostalgic southern comfort food loving inner child?


;)

Where Am I?

Guess!

Come on!...pplleeassee. Pretty please?!

You'll never guess because it is beyond human fathoming.

Okay, I'll give you a hint:

Did it help?? Any guesses? Mmmm...fried moonpies.

Yes, deep fried oreos were involved.

This fancy schmancy hand stamp was required. No, it is not a ping pong paddle.

You can be more creative than that. Think! Use that gray matter!

Give up?! Man, you really stink at this guessing thing......I'll give you a hint.........

I give good hints. Yes, that's right. The National Cornbread Festival. Jealous, yet?

This last weekend we took it upon ourselves to attend the National Cornbread Festival in neighboring South Pittsburg TN. Natalie came up for the weekend...who wouldn't?....(okay, all of you out there with corn allergies are off the hook).... cornbread goodness as far as the eye can see. Its a no brainer.

A rare brother sister bonding moment. I've got the crazy pictures on my hard drive if you want 'em. But since I want to remain Natalie's favorite sister in law I refrained from posting.

Two faces so stinkin cute that they conned me into buying a little bitty teeny weeny coke for $1.50. Such a sucker.

Mountain Cove Bluegrass - I'm pretty sure I glimpsed a tear in several eyes as they played Rocky Top. You missed it, but the guitar player took his Tennessee hat off and held it over his heart. Hilarious!

Yes, folks, its true. The proof is in the pictures.

How about one last picture? You all know how I love pictures. Useful for so many things...like blackmail perhaps?

I'm sure she's available for your next family gathering, birthday party, or VBS.

Anyway, it did decide to rain - well, maybe that's a bit of an understatement - it monsooned outside all weekend, but we did find a rainless window on Saturday morning to join in the festivities. AND...I met almost all of my cornbread-related life goals :)

1. Cornbread T-Shirt...check! "Cornbread - A Taste of the South"

2. Eat as many Deep Fried Oreos as possible...check! (Nat and I are still waiting on our cholesterol to come back down...we like to live on the edge.)

3. Quick walk through the carnival avoiding any eye contact with all over-zealous carnival workers selling overpriced chances to win a goldfish....check!

4. Eat vast amounts of cornbread...oopps. I knew we'd forget something in all of our giddy excitement.


Until next year,

Mandy

I Took The Plunge

That's right folks. I did it. I just jumped right in...with both feet. I was feelin' froggy so I jumped.

Completely reckless of me I know.

So, whatdaya do? Glad you asked.

Some people jump out of airplanes...really crazy people hang glide or climb mountains. The truly odd collect rare species of dead bugs or spend their spare time orienteering (a.k.a. getting lost on purpose and seeing how long it takes to find their way out of the wilderness ...they've obviously never met me...I could get them lost way faster.)

I, however, choose different obstacles. The truly terrifying. The absolutely perilous. The pinnacle of thrilling....

(drumroll please....)

I roasted an entire chicken the other night!

(crickets chirpping)...

What?! Did you hear me?!

You snicker?! You roll your eyes?! You don't think that's truly harrowing?!

Well, you've obviously never looked a de-feathered, headless, chicken in the body cavity and tried to figure out what to do with it! I was very innocently strolling through the meat department last week and happened upon a chicken sale and I don't know what to tell you, but my wild side took over and the next thing I knew I was handing over my Ingles Advantage card.

I brought him home and put him in the fridge. Every time I opened the door to grab a pudding cup or a diet coke- there he was. Just sittin' there. Waiting. What in the world do you do with a WHOLE animal?! I've never roasted a whole anything!

Maybe it has to do with the fact that it requires you to put your hand in a body cavity...which in my opinion never sounds like a good idea. Come on...you've seen CSI.

Maybe its because we don't eat all our leftovers or something. Anyway, it was eerily similar to the trepidation preceeding baking a Thanksgiving turkey..which I've also never done. :)

So, last Thursday I took him out....and stuffed him with onions, garlic, lemon, and salt. Then I ever so carefully (or competely recklessly..depends on your feelings about salmonella and the consumption of animal fats) mixed together butter, salt, pepper, thyme, oregano, and rosemary and rubbed that under the skin and all over the outside. Don't forget...we're living on the wild side here people.

Ummm....excuse me. You're drooling on your keyboard, again.

Finally, I gracefully (translation: did not burn myself) popped him in the oven at 450 for 75 minutes and then let it cool on the stove top...I served it with oven-baked sweet potatoes and steamed broccoli (had to make up for all that butter somehow!). Delicious. Completely victorious. The gold medal is mine....and so is the drumstick.


Mandy ;)

P.S. There are no pictures accompanying this post because we ate first and asked questions later. Besides, I may not be a member of PETA but I still don't condone the posting of poor meatless chicken carcasses on the web. ha! :)

Herb is Here

I'll go ahead and apologize for being a blog slacker...Go ahead! Smack my hand. Send me to the corner! Put me in time out....I deserve it.

Procrastination's normally not my game but life's not just that exciting lately folks. We haven't been sitting around watching paint dry or grass grow or anything. I guess I could have written about my leaking kitchen sink, the fact that my floors are begging for a good mopping, or that there is evidently an entire spider family building cobwebs in my bedroom window - but I don't suffer from insomnia and I bet you don't either. Cruel and unusual punishment that would be.

Nevertheless, we are so glad that spring has finally sprung here in the valley. Everything is fresh and new. The mountains have transitioned from muddy brown to vibrant green in a matter of days.

The whole thing kinda reminds me of that scene from Bambi when the forest wakes up from a long winter's nap and the birds are going crazy and everybody is "twitterpated" according to the owl....

What do you mean you don't remember that?!

Epic childhood Disney action. Shame on you! My favorite blanket as a teeny tiny was covered in Bambi, Thumper, Flower, and all their friends...sigh....the good old days.

Focus, Mandy.

Sorry.

Anyway, I decided to celebrate this vibrant new season by starting an herb garden. No, we are not going to have the "Is it HUH-ERB or ERB" battle. I don't care how you say it. I just like to eat 'em. I love fresh food (especially in summer) and fresh herbs make EVERYTHING taste better so I thought I'd give it a try.

Because herbs tend to be very invasive when planted with other stuff I decided to start with some planters. Now I'm just sitting here, tapping my foot - waiting for them to sprout. According to the seed packets I've got another 7-12 days to wait...Have I told you lately that patience is not one of my virtues?

Just ask Kevin (well, only if you have an hour....or maybe 50 years...sheesh).

Our project this last weekend included planting a vegetable garden and working on our front flower beds. Kevin was outside tilling up the dirt for me like a pro. Such a sweetie! Besides, he knows that the chances of me hurting myself using a self-propelled tool with blades is most likely 100%.

More photos to come!

Mandy & Herb

This is where herb lives...on the back steps. You'll see that Basil and Cilantro are quite cozy in the upper left. The Chives and Oregano haven't joined the party yet...waiting to make a grande entrance. But Rosemary and Parsley are shyly introducing themselves in the bottom left planter. Can't wait.

Ridiculousness

Kevin and I spent the day in Chattanooga the other day....it was Date Day. We get so busy around here that we try to make it a point to spend some QT (quality time) with each other occasionally. We went to see the movie Valentine's Day (two thumbs up), had lunch at Olive Garden, bought some new bedroom furniture (its lovely by the way) and strolled around Hamilton Place Mall. Lucky for all of you I had my camera handy.....

Kevin rocking the sweater vest....I had no idea four years ago that I was marrying Mr. Rogers. Don't worry, I made him put it back on the rack. I'm no fashionista but I'm pretty sure button-up sweaters aren't allowed for at least another 30 years.

I was shocked to discover that there is such a thing as a store dedicated solely (pun definately intended) to the proliferation of ridiculous rubber shoes. I know some of you out there LOVE crocs. I have to give them at least one brownie point for being the only completely recycleable shoe out there. And I'm sure they're comfortable, yada yada yada but I am not a fan....never have been...they come in riculous colors and patterns, are made entirely out of rubber, and people everywhere seem to think its okay to wear them with socks and shorts in the summer. Once again I'm no fashion expert but something about these shoes makes my left eye start to twitch. You'd expect to be openly mocked if you wore wooden clogs in public but somehow if its made of rubber its suddenly okay. Do I wear my blue, furry slippers with the pink hearts on them (thanks sister in law Nat :) out in public?? No, of course not - that would be silly, right? I argue that a croc is nothing more than a naked, furless slipper (same shape - admit it); therefore, if it must be worn, it should remain in the house.

I may stand alone, but I must stand against the ever popular croc. Sorry folks.

Expecting 43 pairs on my next birthday from disgruntled croc enthusiasts everywhere,

Mandy

Construction Progress

Our plan for discouraging construction site visitors. It works about as well as it looks like it would.

Carpet gone....Its wall-framing time.

You are looking through the wall to what will be the youth area.

Drywall is up! This is the chilren's church side.

Front wall in youth center (soon to be covered in drywall)...the stage has been cut down by 2/3 and a TV will hang in the center.

Newly constructed wall on youth side. A couch will sit in the middle. The door on the right will connect the two new rooms because we needed a second exit in case of fire....it should be closed 95% of the time.

We have been under construction for about 3 weeks now and the transformation is great! All the old carpet has been ripped out, the new wall is framed, all electrical is run, and drywall is going up like crazy. The only way this could be more dramatic for our teens and children is if we got to smash something with a bulldozer first (Ty does have us beat there)! We hit some minor electical hiccups because this is an older building but our genius electrician Bill (also our project supervisor) found a way to make everything work...or he'd send Susan and I back to Lowe's and tell us to pick out something else. The way I see it as long as we end up with a functional youth space, the rest is negotiable. I'm flexible.

The teens voted and the main wall behind the stage (where the flatscreen TV will hang) will be Garden Gate Green. The three other walls will be Celery Root Green and the flooring is a cherry/walnut color. The furniture will be chocolate brown, tangerine, red, and chrome (yep, that's right...metal can be an accent color). :) They'll have a new couch with chrome accents, a bar (for Capri Sun and snacks...no alcoholic beverages....promise) made from metal sheeting, stools, stage, game tables (foosball, pool, and air hockey), and lounging areas. We hope this will be a space where they can be comfortable, have fun, and grow closer to Jesus and one another.

The other half of the former sanctuary is being remodeled into a children's church. It will have light maple floors with light yellow, terra cotta, and blue or green on the walls....they also get a big mural on the new wall and miniature sized furniture for the teeny tinys (Wes....I know what you're thinking...its not for me...it really is for the actual kids). We're including a stage for story time and cubby's for storage. We're hoping that an area that's designed specifically for them will give them the tools they need to learn the basics about following Jesus. Its all going to look fantastic when its done!

This space was the church sanctuary until 2004 so it holds a lot of memories for most of our people here. After the new sanctuary was built it was used for storage, children's church, and vbs, but only the front 1/3 of the room was usable. They have been very graceful and excited about taking a space that means so much and re-purposing it to be used on a regular basis by our teens and kids.

More to come soon!
Mandy and Kevin