Clipped recipes

The Olive Garden in Knoxville is Anne and my favorite restaurant. The portions are large and the waitpersons friendly and helpful. It is a welcome upgrade from Mickey D’s or Subway, however, slightly out of our price range. We only go there on special occasions. A few years ago such an occasion occurred. We were celebrating my eighty-ninth and a half birthday in July. When you are approaching the milestone of ninety years on this planet, it is reason to celebrate. We announced when we approached the hostess at the door that we were celebrating. “What are you celebrating,” she asked.

Puffy bread and cheese

If you have milk, eggs and bread, you have the fixings for this delicious breakfast or luncheon dish. It's meatless, so you can fix it for supper the night before payday when your pantry is almost empty.

Old Field Forests

Conversion of an old field: mown grass to tall grass/weeds, to cedar/pine, to hardwoods.

Before World War 2 there was a lot more cleared farmland than there is now. Before chemical fertilizer and lime was readily available, per acre yields for farm crops were much lower and so more land was needed to farm. This was not a problem, as most farms had large families with a built-in labor force. But over the years the land eroded, kids left the farm, and the farmer got older. So gradually the steeper, rougher fields or field edges were let go, and the forest reclaimed them. There are indicators you can look for to tell if a forest was once a field.

ZenTastic Tanning LLC Opens in Maynardville

A tanning bed is ready for customers on opening day
at ZenTastic Tanning LLC. Photo Credit: Helina Bailey

Many expected to say goodbye to the only tanning salon in Union County, Bronzed Brilliance Tanning of Maynardville, last year when the owner passed away. What many do not know is that a patron of Bronze Brilliance Tanning decided to purchase the salon and keep the doors open. Andrea Posani, a frequent customer of the establishment, was heart-struck to find the owner and operator of her beloved tanning salon had passed. When she discovered that the previous owner had no one to take over the salon and that it was up for sale, she decided to take a chance on it.

Tennessee Value-Ag Bootcamp January 30 – March 2

The Knoxville Entrepreneur Center with the Center for Profitable Agriculture, AgLaunch Engine, and others is hosting a virtual training for farmers in the East Tennessee Development District who want to increase farm income through expanding into or improving their current value-added enterprise. The East Tennessee Development District includes Anderson, Blount, Campbell, Claiborne, Cocke, Grainger, Hamblen, Jefferson, Knox, Loudon, Monroe, Morgan, Roane, Scott, Sevier and Union counties.

Raised Bed Gardening by Master Gardener, Marsha Lehman

UT Extension Union County will host Knox County Master Gardener, Marsha Lehman Marsha Lehman spoke at the University of Tennessee’s 2022 Organic Field Day. She has many years of speaking experience for vegetable gardening and has been educating for the past seven years as the Chair of the Knox County Master Gardeners Speakers Bureau. The class will cover types, materials needed, planning, and plants for raised bed gardening. Now is the time to get started for a 2023 garden!

What causes a pinched nerve & how chiropractic Can help: part II

A nerve becomes “pinched” when the nerve itself has been compressed by surrounding tissues. In some situations, cartilage, bone, or swollen soft tissue can impact the nerve itself. Some of the most common reasons why people develop pinched nerves include:

• Issues related to weight and obesity
• The development of rheumatoid arthritis
• Suffering a traumatic injury playing sports or in a motor vehicle accident
• Stress from poor work ergonomics
• Certain hobbies, particularly athletics, that can lead to a pinched nerve through an overuse injury

Crumpled

Have you ever tried to help somebody else only to have it backfire on you? That happened in our house a few years ago and it wasn’t pretty.
I went back to work full time when our daughter Sara was around 11 years old. Needless to say, it was quite an adjustment for me. One of the bigger challenges was keeping up with laundry. Finally, I came up with a way that made it much easier. Before I left for work, I would wash a load of clothes and then I would dry them after I got in that day

Were Times Hard? Were Things Bad?

The traditional course of college study for undergraduates in the teacher education program for many years, including the 1980s, consisted of a four-year undergraduate program ending with a bachelor’s degree and teaching certification in a specialized area of education. Back in those days, the college academic year was divided into four quarters (including summer, each about ten weeks long), not three semesters (each about sixteen weeks long). Traditionally, the last quarter of an education major’s college career was spent student teaching.

Lemon no-bake cheesecake

How many "no-bake" cheese cake recipes do you have? Here is another one. The lemon Jello helps it set properly. No need for a srtingform pan. A 9 by 13 inch baking pan or glass casserole will do. Hope you like it.

I'll stick to real conversations and writing letters

With cell phones and the Internet, few people write letters anymore. Most would not know how to compose an interesting letter. They are so used to sending short blurbs. A detailed letter would almost be like writing a book for them. Another thing—very few people use cursive anymore. Printing is the norm.
I remember my grade school days. I could ace every subject except Penmanship. The old Palmer method was beyond me. Some days I couldn’t even read things I had written a few days before.

CTE Certifications at Union County High School

Work based students at Union County High School deserve special recognition for their hard work and dedication. This semester the program has eighty-seven students enrolled and working towards their industry certifications. For readers unfamiliar with the program, which receives its certifications through Express Employment, it is a wonderful opportunity for high school students to get a leg up in the work force once they graduate.

Handling the Holiday Freeze in your Lawn and Landscape

Cold damage to cryptomeria
Photo Credit: Celeste Scott, UT Extension

The recent holidays blew in with a winter storm that will not soon be forgotten. Here in Tennessee, we missed much of the snowfall that wreaked havoc across the Midwest and Northeast. However, wind and cold temperatures packed a punch for our power grids and landscapes over the Christmas weekend. Now we find ourselves starting 2023 with many questions about the extent of damage and next steps for our lawns and landscapes. Before we get to action steps, let’s recap our recent freeze event.

The leg check

It takes some patients by surprise, but one of the first things a chiropractor will do when you visit for the first time is to measure the length of your legs. If you’ve gone to see a chiropractor because your back is bothering you, it’s reasonable to wonder why the doctor is looking at your legs. But here’s the reason: it’s not uncommon for people to have legs that are of slightly different lengths. Since your legs and feet are the foundation on which the body stands, if those lengths differ even marginally, everything above them is going to be slightly off-kilter.

Still Together

I was so excited when it arrived that I clapped and danced around. What in the world was it? An island for my kitchen. Seriously.
Are you thinking, “You got excited over that?” In my defense, I had wanted one for years. This one is very pretty, it’s portable in that I can roll it to anywhere I need it to be, and it has a top that I can extend out if I need more counter space. In other words, it’s perfect. Of course, I like to show it off when people walk into my kitchen. But my island itself, isn’t what impresses them.

I Remember When I Was a Lad

I remember one day at the Union County Board of Education’s Central Office Ms. Pat Baker came in. She announced she was there to fill out her retirement papers. I was most surprised. Ms. Pat said that she knew that one day she would wake up and know it was time for her to retire, and she said that was the very day.

Smoke no more

I began smoking cigarettes when I was fifteen. It seemed like the sophisticated thing to do. Lord knows, I wanted to fit in. It soon became a habit. I would hunt for my glasses so I could find my cigarettes. I was noted for searching through the ashtray, sorting out the longest cigarette butts. It was hell to run out of cigarettes. We were living on Lee Road east of Michigan Center, Michigan. Extra money was hard to come by, trying to build our house. Every spare cent went into buying materials. Almost every cent, that is.

Trees in Winter Are Worth a Look

When the forest is laid bare each winter there is a tendency to think of it as a bleak and dreary place. But the basic structural skeleton of each tree can be seen at this time, with every branch, twig, and bud visible, thus revealing how it has grown in the past, and how it has prepared for the future. So put on a coat, go outside and go take a look.

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