A pastor friend of mine was developing a sermon about being rooted in spiritual maturity and wanted to know about tree roots and their importance to the tree in order to make some analogies to emphasize his message. It was such a good idea that I thought I would do the same thing here.

Annually the University of Tennessee hosts the Mid-South Agricultural Trade Conference. The conference will be hosted at the Renasant Convention Center in Memphis on February 24 as a part of the Mid-South Farm and Gin Show.

A new study suggests that a combination of physiotherapy alongside psychological interventions can be effective for improving physical function and pain intensity — findings that can help improve the clarity of guideline recommendations to better support patients and clinicians in treatment decision making.

Adults with chronic low back pain (lasting for more than 12 weeks) not only experience physical disability but can also suffer psychological distress in the form of anxiety, depression and fear avoidance (avoiding movement for fear of pain).

Being a picky eater, I know how to spot others. First, they push their food around on their plate as they search for something they want to eat. Second, there may be a pile of rejected bits of food on the side of their plate or on a napkin.

People who only see me at work or church are used to seeing me wear ties. Back in the fall I was at a Union County High School football game. As my nephew and I were planning to sell Italian ice to raise funds for the Union County Lions Club at that game, I was dressed in blue jeans. Hunter Collins, the new band director, commented, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you without a tie.” I’ve known Hunter for many years through our mutual attendance at the First Baptist Church of Maynardville. Hunter had just never had the opportunity to see me outside of a church service or on a Saturday.

I like to buy a rotisserie chicken at Food City when i make this dish. Everything goes together so easily then.
In large bowl combine first 6 ingredients. Then in small bowl combine the 6 dressing ingredients and whisk until smooth. Pour over salad. Toss lightly to coat. Chill at least 1 hour. Fold in cashews just before serving. Makes 12 generous servings.

Humans seem to have wanderlust hardwired into their psyche. Our ancestors from countless generations have always moved on to new places. Even in modern times we still yearn for new territory. An average American will live in five homes in a lifetime, and in between we take vacations to see new places. We have the advantage of road maps and high-tech toys like GPS that can tell us exactly where we are and show us how to get to anyw here we wish, but in earlier times direction had to be determined through observing nature.

Some come from Knoxville. Some from Grainger or Claiborne County. But others drive to Maynardville from as far away as Sevierville for the 30-35 pounds of food that they can receive from the New Fellowship Full Gospel Church. This Food Pantry is open on the 3rd Saturday of the month from 9:00 to 1:00, but people often start lining up as early as 7:30 in the morning. Clients do not even have to get out of their cars. Food is brought out and loaded for them.

Recently the Union County Farmers Market held a winter market in the Maynardville Elementary School gymnasium.
Although winter is the “off season” for most of our local farmers, there was still a large turnout of vendors. Unfortunately, the customer turnout was dismal.
However, those who missed out on this event will have the opportunity to catch the spring Farmers Market on March 18 at the Union County Farmers Market Pavilion.

Spring is just around the corner, even if the groundhog says otherwise. As we start to see a few warmer days, green grasses will perk up quick. To get ready for the grooming of your lawns, it is best to think ahead in planning to have your machines ready for better weather since it is likely they have been sitting in the shed all winter. Thanks to the University of Tennessee student branch of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE), a Spring Lawn Mower Clean Up Fundraiser will be hosted in the coming weeks.