Nashville City Cemetery

From http://www.thenashvillecitycemetery.org

I ran across a blog with some great photos taken in the Nashville City Cemetery. Few people visit this place, which is across the street from Fort Negley. It was opened in 1822 and received many bodies from the Civil War.

Burmese pythons headed for Tennessee?

I don’t like snakes, but I love snake stories. While reading the April 20, 2009 edition of The New Yorker, however, I learned one potential Tennessee snake story that absolutely gives me the chills: Burmese pythons, which can grow to 20 feet or longer, have established themselves in South Florida, and could, over time, make their way to Tennessee.

Campaign to Protect Rural Tennessee?

Quick–where was this picture taken? Could be in East Tennessee or Middle Tennessee. No matter where it is, it’s a beautiful place, one that would be a joy to live near, commute alongside, or spend part of a vacation just driving past.

The photo was actually taken in the England, and it’s from the website of a remarkable group called The Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE).

And it’s just the kind of organization we need for Tennessee.

Sgt. York artifacts to tour USA

This just in from Lieutenant Colonel Douglas Mastriano; the Sgt. Alvin York artifacts that he discovered have been moved to the US.  I just have one question:  When will they come to Tennessee?

In February 2009, the actual artifacts recovered from where Sergeant York earned the Medal of Honor on 8 October 1918, were transferred to the Center of Military History (CMH). This included roughly 1,000 of the most important items, encompassing some 30 different types of American and 70 different types of German items, personal effects, equipment pieces, etc. The items included German and American bullets, cartridges, canteens, pieces of belts, buttons, combs, brushes, mirrors, whistles, bottles, bayonets, watches, first aid kits, entrenching tools, coins, gas masks, horse shoes, harmonicas, mess kits, straps, hooks, etc.

The L & N Don’t Stop Here Anymore–and won’t anytime soon, either

Looks like Tennessee is not on the list for high speed train lines as a part of the Stimulus package. You’d think they’d have one from Nashville through Chattanooga and then to Atlanta.

Johnson City AIDS doc pens new book

In the early days of HIV/AIDS, Dr. Abraham Verghese was practicing in Johnson City, where he treated what most people would consider the least likely people to have AIDS–rural East Tennessee farmers and others. His first book, My Own Country: A Doctor’s Story, was a wonderful look at a physician encountering a mysterious disease as well as some funny stories about living in Johnson City.

Now he’s back with a new book, Cutting for Stone. The Washington Post has a great story on him today.

Snapshot of Tate Springs, circa 1957

This just in from loyal reader Samuel Spaulding, who writes “This picture was taken in 1957, I was 11 years old at the time. This must have been the last decade that Tate Springs in Bean Station was open.

New suit and an old pro

While back in my old haunts for Christmas, Number One son, on the day he was due to fly back to Colorado, decided to look into buying his first suit. It wouldn’t be the first suit he has owned, but it would be the first one he paid for–a big difference. His grandparents recommended a Broad Street haberdashery called Blakely-Mitchell, a locally owned men’s clothing store. He had some time to kill, so off we went.

Kingsport: sushi on Broad Street

I went back to Kingsport for Christmas and went down to Broad Street, which in my boyhood was the main commercial street of the city, stretching from the train station to Church Circle, a monument to Protestant diversity. On that street I did something I never thought I would do in my hometown: eating sushi.

In Kingsport, Tennessee. The place was Stir Fry Cafe, a small chain with locations in Knoxville, Johnson City, and Asheville. The restaurant was in the old Baylor Nelms Furniture location, where my family used to shop. The sushi was fresh and it was good. Stir Fry is a bright spot in a rejuvenating downtown, and I hope it thrives.

This blog is part of a much larger website, also entitled Tennessee Guy, that contains travel and cultural information about Tennessee. Visit it here.

Cleaning an iron skillet

Probably the quickest way to get thrown out of my kitchen is to to “help clean up” by pouring soap into one of my cast iron skillets. I have worked hard to maintain a good seasoning on all of them, and I clean them out with water and a paper towel. If something has burned on, I might gently attack it with a green scratcher, but I never, and I mean never, use soap.