from the mouths of babes....

I discovered Moon Pies last year.  They originated in Chattanooga and they passed them out as finishers medals at some runs I did.  Goo Goo Clusters are advertised throughout Nashville so I did some research as well as some taste testing.  The Standard Candy Company began making them in Nashville in 1912 and the recipe really hasn't changed much over the years.  The Goo Goo Cluster has 4 of my favorite food groups - marshmallow, caramel, peanuts and chocolate.  If you see old photos of the Grand Ole Opry, you'll notice that they were a big sponsor.  As for the name, the story is that it was selected because goo goo are the first words that babies speak.  This way, everyone asks for Goo Goo Clusters from birth.  The Standard Candy Company is still churning them out and you'll always find a few in my refrigerator.  yum

water sports...

Here's my assessment of water activities in middle Tennessee.  They have got to exist but I have not seen a municipal pool since I moved here.  There are a lot of lakes in Tennessee.  I get the sense that most of them are the result of the TVA.  Boating seems to be pretty big.  The Cumberland River runs through town but it's mostly used for barges.  I rarely see a personal boat on it.  People go out of town for their boating fun.  At the risk of sounding like a snob, there are not any spring fed pools here.  sigh

so corny....

I do my weekday morning runs in my hood.  On Saturdays, I venture out a little bit.  My house is a couple of miles from the edge of town and Clarksville is surrounded by farms.  Some farms have already had a wheat planting this year.  Now they are switching to soy beans and tobacco.  Other farms have massive amounts of acreage committed to corn.  My run is all on 2 lane roads and the corn comes within 5 ft of the road edge in some places.  The locals say that corn should be knee high by the 4th of July.  The crops were about 7 ft tall by then this year.  So much for folklore.  The corn's as high as an elephants eye.  The good thing about being surrounded by corn is that no one can see how slow I'm going.  giggle

help me, i'm melting....

When I moved to Tennessee, I was looking forward to the summers.  I figured that since I was moving halfway to Canada, the temperatures would be a lot milder than they were in central Texas.  Boy - was I mistaken.  Tennessee doesn't have the long string of 100 degree days but it feels much more humid here.  Maybe my disappointment is exaggerating the way it feels but the summers seem brutal. Nashville broke an all time high (ever) last week when it hit 109 degrees.  The happy thought is that electricity is cheap here.  I keep the AC between 78 and 80 since I'm such a tight wad but it still feels chilly compared to the rainforest outside.

the holy land......

The sacred altar of music in Nashville is The Ryman Auditorium.  It was originally a church but eventually became the home of the Grand Ole Opry.  The Opry relocated to a mall (I exaggerate but only slightly) on the east side of town.  The Ryman remains in downtown Nashville and it is still used as a music venue.  I've seen a couple of shows there now - last night was Norah Jones.  The pews from the original church remain and they pack 'em in.  This is not the place for people with personal space issues.  I really enjoy the whole experience.  Halfway through the show, I always expect for the collection plate to be passed.  Please open your hymnals to number.....

praise the lord and pass the crackerjacks.....

Nashville has a AAA minor league baseball team called the Nashville Sounds.  The parent team is the Milwaukee Brewers.  I went to a game this Sunday.  I was a little nervous because they advertise Sunday events as Family and Faith games.  I decided that if I'm going to live in the bible belt, I should see what this is all about.  
While standing in the ticket line, a guy gave me a church bulletin and said that if I showed it at the ticket window, I'd get half off.  That bit of deception didn't seem very Christian so I didn't do it.  giggle.  I paid full price.
I got a ticket in the 2nd row behind home plate.  I do 2 things at all baseball games that I don't do normally - I polished off a whole bag of peanuts and I drank a Bud Light.  yikes.
In the movie Bull Durham, Annie Savoy says "I believe in the church of baseball."  To that I say amen.

sir....

Here's an observation.....
Since I've made the move to middle Tennessee, everyone calls me sir.  I never heard that in central Texas.  I get it in grocery stores, at work, restaurants, etc.  I ran on the greenway this morning and when I said "Good morning" to other runners, I got a "Good morning, sir" reply.  This can be explained by one of many things.
- Did I age a lot when I moved from Texas?
- Are people more respectful of elders in Tennessee?
- Ft Campbell is here.  Is it a military thing?
- Did I get knighted and it slipped my mind?
I guess I should be happy that I wake up every morning and get called anything at all.  giggle