Gathering Life: Hanging Around This Town

April 25, 2012

Hanging Around This Town

"I been hanging around this town on a corner; I been bummin' around this old town so long; I been hanging around this town on a corner;
I been bummin' around this old town for way too long."~~~Counting Crows

I love the sign when you cross the state line that says; "Welcome to the Shoals". I haven't checked, but I just decided I need to know just where more of those signs are. I know below where the Cellar Door was between Lexington, Alabama and Loretto,Tennessee there is a "Welcome to the Shoals" sign and another up Chishom Highway at the state line. Really a country girl, that was raised in the greatest part of the Shoals; Whitehead, Alabama. That means I could say I was from Rogersville if I wanted or I could be from Lexington. Whitehead is in the middle of those towns. Yes, Whitehead is part of the Shoals. There are five points of the road that intersect. County Road 76 crosses the Betty Ann Highway and County Road 55 aka The Nugent Hollow Road: all cross at the old Pettus' Store Building. FYI, that is East Lauderdale, as in the East Lauderdale News or as my grandmother called it The Little Rogersville Paper. I have now moved to what we always called, "town." I still am not sure where the four cities of The Shoals begin and end. Well, the river makes Florence easy. The phrase, "across the river," is one that all of us that live in the Shoals uses. I love the ring of that phrase. I should say "hanging around four towns." When you live in the Shoals it is hard to tell when you leave one city and enter one of the other three. Florence to Sheffield, is easy. Then the Muscle Shoals to Sheffield is a bit more complicated, to me. Most of my days I am in three of the four cities. Tuscumbia not so much, unless I just decide to take a longer route at lunch. There are so many issues in the four cities now that my ride to work is a summery of all that I read about every day. Reading anything about the area is one of my greatest interests. We have so many sources to be in the know about what is going on in the Shoals. So much more than just a newspaper. I really am positive that I know more news than the newspaper. This reminds me of the joke. What is black and white and red all over? The Shoals blogs are almost an addiction of mine. They contain tidbits that make me investigate to find out more. I had never heard of Sweetwater Mansion, but something, I wonder, got me driving around to see it for myself. I pass Heathrow's signs to stop the Walmart. I pass the sign about the public meeting. The lavender planted at Sweet Magnolia Cafe is the prettiest I have ever seen. I don't know what Ken does, but it is so pretty. I planted some hoping mine will do that well. Then there was the hottest fireman I have ever seen out this morning at the Fire station in North Florence. Oh, well that ain't news, but I said out loud to myself "man that's a hot young fireman." There are the UNA students that are waiting for me to come along and let them walk across. I am amazed at how so many drivers do not stop when they see a student waiting to cross. On around this town, at the courthouse are the crosses that VOCAL have placed in memory of crime victims. Seeing those crosses this morning; I had never realized the number of victims. It enlightened me each cross representing a life. Then there is the line of people waiting to get in the courthouse and I often wonder if there is a big hearing, when there is a line waiting. Now, it is probably people that waited to the last of the month to get their car tags. Then there is the sign that Frank's Italian Restaurant has moved. TVA Reservation that no longer has it's police. I wonder if the state troopers have considered that someone that has had a few at Outback might want to go,"across the river;" by way of cutting through the reservation; just saying. There are many more. I am amazed that how much I gather; I can pass almost any business, knowing some fact about it. Shoot, I see people and sometimes recognize them from The Hardtimes or Quad-Cities Daily. You so got to feel for them not being ready for a portrait; some with smiles on their face, black eyes, the one with those big buggy eyes and even the pretty young girls with tears. The pretty young girls hopefully will hate this and learn a lesson. Hopefully the best thing that could happen. The Shoals with never dull moment or dull people. "just hanging around this town for way too long."~~~Counting Crows

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Cool Weekend Remember My Chilli

3 pounds ground beef
2 large onions
3 chopped celery stalks
1 chopped garlic clove
1/2 cup bell peppers chopped
1 can chicken broth
1 can beef broth
2 cans rotel chili fixin's
2 cans chili style diced tomatos
3 cans of dark red kidney beans
2 packs McCormick Chili seasoning
Palm full of salt-----Palm full of pepper---Palm full of sugar
Splash of vinegar---Tlbs. or so
Brown ground beef, onion, celery and bell peppers together. Drain Fat
Pour the rest of the stuff in in order listed above except the beans.
Simmer slowly a couple hours or more, then add the dark red kidney beans.

Audrey Hepburn Beauty Secrets

For attractive lips, speak words of kindness. For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people. For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry. For beautiful hair, let a child run his/her fingers through it once a day. For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone. People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone. Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you will find one at the end of each of your arms. As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands; one for helping yourself, and the other for helping others.

Food Memories

The Pigs were part of our food memories. They provided our sauage for breakfast. The lard we used to cook with. The best meal in the world was the tenderloin with gravy and biscuits. This meal was always what we had the night the pigs were killed. Imagine the pig was all over the kitchen a couple of hours before, then you ate it for supper. His head was even on a sheet in the floor most of the day.We all have memories that are associated with food. There are places that I return to from my past, that I actually get hungry pulling in the driveway. My grandmother was a simple cook. Salt, pepper and lard/fat was her seasoning. She did use sage in dressing. She used too much sage in her dressing. We planted watermelons in the rows that the planter skipped on the Mandy Farm. The Mandy Farm was our cotton patch. The rows were one quarter of a mile long. We planted two rows in water melon; that's a half of mile of watermelon. We could eat water melon the fun way, get your own half and spoon it out. We also dried apples on the barn top and car shed. The roofs were tin so they got very hot and dried the apples quickly. Grandmother's version of a fried apple pie was not fried. She made the turnover and baked it in the oven. This to her was a way to not waste the grease. She buttered them when they came out of the oven. I still think this way is better.

Old Wives' Tales

An old wives' tale is a type of urban legend, similar to a proverb, which is generally passed down by old wives to a younger generation. Such 'tales' usually consist of superstition.

My Grandparents had many of them. I have passed them along to my daughters. Saturday night one of them mentioned this one. Giving me the satisfaction that they had listened to things I truely want to pass on to them. Keeping the wonderful things we recieve from our ancestors.

Bad Luck Wives Tales

*An owl hooting three times in a row.

*Spilling salt – this one can be redeemed by grabbing some of the salt and throwing it over your left shoulder. This is believed to be the way in which to throw the salt into the eyes of the evil spirits that are lying in wait.

*A five leaf clover.

*Putting your shirt on wrong side out.

*A rooster crowing at night.

*Never get out of bed with your left foot first or you will have bad luck all day.

*Breaking a mirror will bring on 7 years of bad luck.

*Singing before breakfast .

*Opening an umbrella inside the house is sure to bring bad luck to the entire household.

Joke of the Day

A very gentle Southern lady was driving across the Savannah River Bridge in Georgia one day. As she neared the top of the bridge, she noticed a young man fixing (ready) to jump. She stopped her car, rolled down the window and said, 'Please don't jump, think of your dear mother and father.' He replied, 'Mom and Dad are both dead; I'm going to jump.' She said, 'Well, think of your wife and children.' He replied, 'I'm not married and I don't have any kids.' She said, 'Well, think of Robert E. Lee.' He replied, ''Who's Robert E. Lee?'' She replied, ''Well bless your heart, just go ahead and jump, you dumb Yankee.'

Watermelon Facts

*Not only does it quench your thirst, it can also quench inflammation.

*Over 1,200 varieties of watermelon are grown worldwide.

*Watermelon is an ideal health food because it doesn’t contain any fat or cholesterol.

*Pink watermelon is also a source of the potent

*There are yellow and pink watermelons.

*Early explorers used watermelons as canteens.

*Watermelon is grown in over 96 countries worldwide.

*In China and Japan watermelon is a popular gift to bring a host.

*In Israel and Egypt, the sweet taste is often paired with the salty taste of feta cheese. Every part of a watermelon is edible, even the seeds and rinds.

They Said It

"When you look at your life, the greatest happinesses are family happinesses." ~~~Joyce Brothers

"Worry is a heavy load, but a kind word cheers you up."~~~ Proverbs 12:25

"If we should live a thousand years, our time is all today, today."~~~James Mongomery

Be not angry that you cannot make others as you wish them to be, since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be. ~Thomas à Kempis

"You've got a lot of choices. If getting out of bed in the morning is a chore and you're not smiling on a regular basis, try another choice. ~Steven D. Woodhull

"What saves a man is to take a step. Then another step. It is always the same step, but you have to take it. ~Antoine de Saint-

"Don't wait for the Last Judgment. It happens every day. ~Albert Camus
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Gathering Life

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April 25, 2012

Hanging Around This Town

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