Gravel Driveways Because Silence Is Suspicious

The first layer of gravel has been spread on the driveway!

This is a BIG milestone, which should prevent any more delays on the house delivery scheduled for Monday the 23rd -

Things are moving forward and taking shape!

Miss You

I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss my old house, alas -

But NOT the snow that has fallen since I departed.

Towing The Line

We continue to make some impressive progress clearing the overgrowth from the barbed wire fence line running along the west side of the property.  We took advantage of the weather change; sunny with warm temps, and spent a couple days earlier this week getting our work and exercise in.

It's difficult to really see the progress in the below pics but in person, it's very noticeable -

We've started, what will become, a burn pile with much of the brush, there's just so much -

The tangles and overgrowth are years in the making, so it's taking some oomphs, ouchies and booboos but progress is showing!

We'll need to perform some repairs on the barbed wire that runs along this area, as a good section was damaged by the machine the crew used to take down a number of big trees along that fence line.  It was expected and unavoidable really, in order to accomplish what we were after. 

Phone A Friend

💩

Below The Floorboards

The snow's all melted in Limestone and the red clay has dried enough to allow more progress to be made at the ole homestead!

The crew was finally able to spread the crushed stone around the footers and where the house will eventually sit atop of -

Before -

After -

The house delivery has been pushed out two weeks due to the weather, UGH!  Fingers crossed Mother Nature doesn't throw us any more curves, so we can get the house in place.

More Smack Than a Screen Door in a Windstorm

Friday nights here in East Tennessee are all about Midget Mayhem Wrestling, or at least this past Friday night was and OH what fun it was!

There was a huge turnout; the place was packed -

They kicked off the event with the singing of the National Anthem, with the entire place joining in, then they were off both in and out of the ring.

The littles were a fly'n -

The coup de grâce was an all hands free for all, with even "Mama", pictured ringside above, and her rolling pin taking part -

I don't recall their names but the dude I affectionately referred to as "25 Cent" (I mean he looked very much like the rapper 50 Cent... but smaller 😂) was the last dwarf standing!

Photo ops with the mighty wrestlers, rear view -

They even auctioned off the below trash can prop that was used to clunk and bash little heads during the events.  Someone in the audience actually paid $350.00 for that, which was also autographed -

This organization seems to support and raise money for veterans. Half the raffle take goes to veteran organizations, as do the proceeds from the various in-ring props auctioned off during the event.

The event was very entertaining and well worth the price of admission. We all had a great time!

Again, welcome to East Tennessee!

Where'd The Middle Syllable Go?

Phonetic spelling, crass and unsophisticated, maybe it was a bad telephone connection when calling to place the order or simply a common pronunciation in some places  -

Which do you prefer - Greg-o-ry (3 syllables) or Grey-ry (2 syllables)?

Welcome to the South!

Old Oak Taproom

We found another hidden gem, the Old Oak Taproom, located at 665 Erwin Hwy in Tusculum, a craft beer bonanza -

 A couple cold beers, a couple Black-N-Blue burgers that hit the spot and a magic 8 ball -

Too many beer options to chose from but we found one that fit the bill -

A nice little eatery with great beer selection. The bartender was super nice and friendly, and provided us with several beer samples in helping us decide on which to get.

Where's The Road

Here are a couple pics of what Oakdale Road looked like a couple of days after the snow storm!

There was no indication that a plow had passed through, rather it looked packed down by through traffic only. Slick and slow going.

Heading up -

Heading down -

Welcome to the country!

Roof Teeth

Wholly, Tennessee icicles Batman 🦇 -

It’s colder than a moonshine popsicle in a freezer full of regret 🥶

We Experience Tennessee Hills

We stopped in at the Tennessee Hills Distillery in Jonesborough a couple days ago. 

Although, it was early afternoon, we were the only customers in the place. It's a nice old building and seems like it has the potential to be a fun place.

The plan was to enjoy a few afternoon wobble-pops and some apps but frustratingly we were told their food truck was out of commission, so we only stayed for one drink.

 The building sits right next to the train tracks, so when a train came rumbling by and blowing it's horn, the bartender asked if we were interested in some blueberry concoction shot.  Seems whenever the train goes by and blows it's horn, the distillery offers $1.00 shots.

Of course we partook -

Perhaps, the next visit we'll sample some of their whiskeys.

These Are Draining...

Seems witty restaurant bathroom pictures are a thing here in East Tennessee -

Another local cultural change I need to get accustomed to...

Back Roads

Here are some random pics taken while getting off the beat'n path and driving some East Tennessee back roads -

The sights really can't be beat!

Hello Guinness, It's Me Again...

Another one for the record book of Guinness!  

Like the pictures I took of the cat walking on water, these pics below are of the same near impossible odds of witnessing, let alone capturing on film.

Just like the Dodo, Tasmanian Tiger, Megalodon, Saber-Toothed Cat and the Passenger Pigeon to name a few, here is Miami transplant to East Tennessee, out in the snow, with snow shovel in hand, actually shoveling snow!!

The odds of seeing the above are next to zero, rare indeed! You have a better change of hearing a turtle fart...

Seems Boston weather and temps have followed me down to East Tennessee, alas - 

I took the liberty of modifying the famous "Rain, Rain, Go Away" nursery rhyme to something a bit more apropos ("AP-rə-pō" (the final 's' is silent)) for what we're experiencing here in East Tennessee -

Snow, snow, go away.

Come again another day.

Daddy wants to play.

Snow, snow, go away.

Snow, snow, go away.

Come again another day.

Mommy wants to play.

Snow, snow, go away.

Snow, snow, go away.

Come again another day.

Brother wants to play.

Snow, snow, go away.

Snow, snow, go away.

Come again another day.

Sister wants to play.

Snow, snow, go away.

Snow, snow, go away.

Come again another day.

Baby wants to play.

Snow, snow, go away.

Snow, snow, go away.

Come again another day.

All the family wants to play.

Snow, snow, go away.

Neighborly Love, Not...

Progress continues, as our new underground electrical PVC conduit has been trenched the last 100 or so feet to the electrical pole!

The challenge here was that this section of trenching required digging across the abutters driveway.  Seems our contractor did NOT speak to the abutters prior to digging, which caused a bit of neighborly agita but nothing we weren't able to address and fix - all is good -

So, the electrical PVC conduit is in place from the pole to the transformer and has been signed off on and approved by the Greenville Energy Authority!

We're getting closer!

Organic Free-Range Parking

Well, would you look at that!

Look who finally decided to make an appearance in East Tennessee, all the way from Miami -

We drove to our farm with big plans to unload the contents of the moving truck into our storage unit.  However, karma had other plans in store for us.  The warmer temperatures were just enough to melt the top layer of of mud, making it impossible to drive the trunk up to the storage unit - slipping and sliding we were, as we attempted to back out of the situation!

It's didn't take long for the Miami driver to get the truck stuck, and I mean stuck -

We were NOT getting the truck outta that predicament, NO how NO way -

Fortunately, the crew we hired to prep our land for the house was onsite working, so we had to have them pull the truck out with their heavy machine.

The Miami driver who got the truck stuck keep mumbling - 

“I didn’t spin out I just let the good Lord and the clay have a long conversation.”

Another Homestead First!

Big day!

We received our very first piece of USPS mail the other day!

Alas, it was only junk mail, addressed to "postal customer" and didn't actually have our address printed on it, it was non the less delivered in our new mailbox, therefore I'm gonna take it as a win -

At least it wasn't a bill...

Breathe

I overthink, therefore I am… exhausted -

Please Pick A Spot And GO 💩

What's the deal with dogs, or at least my dog Ms. Trixie, taking forever and a day to chose their spot to drop a deuce 💩?!

She seems to be doing this more and more as of late, what gives?

The two of us this morning -

When we were back in Massachusetts it didn't effect me much, as I would simply open the slider and she'd go out herself, in the safety of the fenced in yard.  However, here in East Tennessee, the yard isn't fenced, she's not familiar with the area and I want to make sure there are no dangers lurking, so I take her out.

This morning for example, at 2:00AMish, then again at 5:00AMish AND in the single digit and gusty, ole Trixster was acting like Dr. Louis Leakey looking for ancient fossils and taking her sweet time - let's go💩 -

It's too cold for all this 💩 AND I want to go back to bed!