Union County is laid out in beautiful mountains and valleys of prestigious land by nature, but in order for the land to inhibit its full potential, we the people must do our part to keep it clean. Dump sites and roadside litter are perceived regularly across the county and citizens and the community must work together to minimize the litter epidemic.

Until I began working for Hamilton County Schools at Birchwood Elementary, I had not heard of the Tennessee Sandhill Crane Festival (or Birchwood TN Sandhill Crane Festival). I don’t know why not. This is a gem of an educational and fun opportunity.

Most hiring managers don’t know that people who are blind can read just as well as people who can see -- because of new technology. Screen readers allow blind or visually impaired users to read the text that is displayed on the computer screen with a speech synthesizer or braille display.

Although doctors of chiropractic treat more than just back pain, many patients initially visit a chiropractor looking for relief from this pervasive condition. In fact, about 31 million Americans experience low back pain at any given time. Some interesting facts:

Back pain can affect people of all ages, from adolescents to the elderly. Experts estimate that up to 80% of the population will experience back pain at some time in their lives.

Back pain is the third most common reason for visits to the doctor’s office, behind skin disorders and osteoarthritis/joint disorders.

As many of us who grew up around Luttrell would attest, the railroad holds a special place in our childhoods: walking the tracks, smashing pennies or hearing the train whistle late at night on a coal run to Middlesboro. In our county's history, the coming of the railroad, too, had an impact on lives. Today's society may take for granted the magnitude that railroad accessibility has had on the development of Union County.

Welcome to 2020! One hundred years ago, it was 1920, the start of a decade of American history known as “The Roaring Twenties”. Were we able to, as my mother once said, be a genie for a day and turn back time one hundred years. How strange it would seem.

I would not go to sleep wearing my CPAP machine, watching one of four televisions in my house as I went to sleep. I would not awake to that same television in the morning and place my CPAP into a machine that would clean it for me at a preset time during the day while I was at work.

You would think I would have learned by now not to always be in such a hurry. Apparently I haven’t.

A few days before Christmas, I was wrapping presents in the basement. I had retrieved two canisters of chocolate covered raisins to wrap up for my husband Tim. Carrying one in each hand, I ran back down the stairs. Yeah, you read it right. I was running down the stairs. And since I was carrying the presents, I couldn’t hold on to the railing.

There is a surprise in this cheese ball. Chicken flavor is hiding out in there. Don't tell your guests what is in it until after they have tasted in spread on Ritz, club or soda crackers. They will never guess that it hides ramen noodles, too.

CHICKEN CHEESE BALL
1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup minced onion
1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
1 package (3 ounces) chicken ramen noodles
3/4 cup finely chopped pecans
1/3 cup minced fresh parsley
Assorted crackers

I have never outgrown my love of a fresh snowfall, which takes a bleak winter scene and transforms it into a wonderland. The quiet a snow brings is both eerie and wonderful, and a walk in the snow on a moonlit night is something you simply must experience.

A lot of folks think that snow begins as rain that freezes on its way down and turns into snow. It's usually the other way around, with rain beginning as snow, which melts as it falls.

I think a cheese ball makes a party spread very festive. You make them ahead and only have to bring on the chips and crackers to get things going. I like this one. It has a bite to it with the jalapeno pepper.

JALAPENO CHEESE BALL
8 ounce pkg cream cheese,softened
8 ounce pkg sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup minced red onions
1 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro or parsley