Barbecued "SPAM"

Ask almost anybody if they like Spam, and they will turn up their nose. Too bad. Spam is a good pork product. It got a bad rap during WWl!. Spam was probably on the menu far too often and probably prepared only one way-plain out of the can. If you receive commodity foods at a food bank, Spam or Treet (same thing) will be given under its generic name of luncheon meat. There are several ways to fix it. I will offer you a couple. These recipe work with cooked ham, too.

Thanksgiving Road

I’m going to show my age here. Back in the 80s, Tim’s sister had an Atari video game system. One of her favorite games was “Freeway.” The aim was to get a chicken safely across a busy road to the other side. Each time I played; the poor little chick got squashed. Well, Tim and I felt like that chicken one evening a few years ago.

Quilts of Valor

Bill Manning lives in Maynardville. His brother, Van, lives in Maryville. Van was just honored by the Quilts of Valor at the Seymour Heights Christian Church. The mission of the Quilts of Valor Foundation is to cover service members and Veterans who have been touched by war with comforting and healing Quilts of Valor. So far in 2024, 35,333 people have received a Quilt of Valor. Over 408,000 total quilts have been awarded since the beginning of the project in 2003.

A Home-Made Christmas

Giving gifts at Christmas is an old and venerable tradition. It's more personal than the modern process of wading through crowds of people to select a gift from thousands of products in the store aisles. A gift made specifically for someone is special and reflects the fact that you spent time and talent just for them. Since everyone enjoys nature, here are some gifts you can give that come from outside.

Critter Concerns

The Inspirations Quartet once recorded a gospel song that in part had these lyrics:

If all the wealth was put at your disposal
to build a home that you have longed to own,
you wouldn’t be moved in it
until you’d want to make
some changes in your very own new home.

SUPPORT YOUR HONOR GUARD

WATE 6 On Your Side is proud to once again partner with Operation Honor Guard for the annual donation drive. The fundraiser is 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. tomorrow, Tuesday, December 3. You can also donate right now, online at WATE.com!

Grammar Girl

Did you ever slide down into a desk during class? I most certainly did. Whether it was called an English or Language Arts class, I tried to hide from the teacher. Why? Because they had asked for volunteers to diagram a sentence on the board. Surprised? Generally, people think writers are experts in grammar. I’m sure most are, but this one isn’t. Even though I have been writing stories most of my life, I am not a grammar girl.

Holiday Happiness and Heartbreak

Too cold for the porch. So, I am sitting in our bedroom looking out the glass doors remembering Thanksgiving this year and reminiscing about Christmas and New Years of the past. I had dinner with the crew of our world-wide Country Connections Radio Show which concluded four years ago. The crew included David Farmer, Dr. Bob Wyrick, Professor Tim Johnson, Don Bell, Lawyer Roger and myself. The show aired on Sunday nights from 6:00 pm ‘til 10:00 pm EST. We had hits from all over the USA, Australia, Latin America, England, Spain, Portugal, Helsinki, Canada and Ireland. Our radio show was on WYSH, WQLA based in Clinton, Tennessee and broadcast all over the “internet’ world-wide. We were helped around the world by Charlie Pride and his right-hand man, Danny Hutchins who worked for Charlie Pride for forty-two years. On his tours to foreign countries Charlie and Danny would mention and talk about our show during Charlie’s performances on stage. Our show had an enormous audience in Australia. Sunday nights here would be Monday mornings in Australia.