…So, what’s new?

Steve & Irene Hiking in TN

Here we are half-way through 2020 already – Irene and I have rigorously maintained COVID-19 quarantine, social distancing, and wearing masks, and we are healthy. We hope that you and those close to you have not been touched by the virus. Living in rural Tennessee has pluses and minuses – there is certainly more space between people, but there also is conservative backlash about the necessity for masks. Sadly, the numbers of infected cases and even deaths have begun to grow in our little county; I expect that mandatory protective rules will be enacted soon. 

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Smokies Stadium

 Tennessee really does have professional baseball – the Smokies (a farm team of the Chicago Cubs) plays a full season in a stadium near Sevierville. In May, 2019 we celebrated the end of the Walters State College semester with Steve’s RHiTA students (Recruiting Hispanics to Achieve) – we all congregated in a private box with snacks and drinks included. And…Irene even caught a high fly ball that made it up to our seats.

Mountain Makin’s is Morristown’s fall arts and food festival. There are many artists and craftspeople showing their works along with local music, dance groups, and lots of great food booths.

Our town hosted the first annual Craft Beer celebration in September. It was such a success that the vendors ran out of suds by 4pm and had to bring kegs in from Knoxville. We will have our first tap-room (and eventually brew pub) on Historic Main Street later this year. Speaking of beer, the Old Oak Taproom outside of Greeneville was another new find off the main roads.

Theatre Bristol
"Into the Woods"

We continue to explore the South. Bristol is a town on the Tennessee/Virginia border (Main Street is divided down the middle as the state line). We saw “Into the Woods” at Theatre Bristol and, of course found a couple of great meals too. There are so many places around our new home to explore. Since Main Street is in 2 states, there are different liquor laws and different sales taxes on opposite sides of the street too.

Jones-borough is the oldest town in TN. Irene had 5 art pieces accepted for their annual juried art show and she did win an award.  Jonesborough is also the home of the International Storytelling Center which cultivates the art of oral narration. And, we stumbled upon the Tennessee Distillery – opened a few years ago by a young mechanical engineer and his wife – our favorite is the Hellcat Gin.

"Papa te amo!" was awarded a Certificate of Merit

This Koi Fish is made from found "junk" - all the scales are beer bottle caps!

 The Morristown Parks Fall Festival invited teams to construct a set piece – Irene and her “Circle of Friends” won the first prize with their “Hocus Pocus” scene.

Panther Creek State Park

November brought son Travis and his wife Abby for a visit. We toured east TN, a bit of Kentucky, and even went to Dollywood. Irene and I keep sending them real estate information in hopes that maybe they’d think about moving out here.

The Cherokee Lake viewpoint at Panther Creek State Park - only 15 minutes from our house is a favorite overlook on the lake.

Cumberland Gap - Connecting Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia

Arial Cable Car to the Top of Ober Gatlinburg

The Martha Washington all decked out for the Holidays

We made a long-weekend Christmas trip to Abingdon, VA which is about 100 miles north of us. Had a great German-inspired dinner at the 249-year old Tavern, took in “Jacob Marley’s Christmas Ghost” at the famous Barter Theatre, and toured historic graveyards and the Old White’s Mill. Our treat was staying at the Martha Washington Hotel which was all decked out for the holidays.

"Our" room at the The Martha

The Tavern

Old White's Mill

Oysters and Martinis 

Bootlegger's Cabin

Vardy is the historic home of the Melungeons – a mixed race community whose history may go back to the 1500s. Proud of their unique ethnic mixture of African, Scotch/Irish, Native American, and maybe Portuguese, this was the site of the first racially integrated school long before national reforms. Our day trip this summer included a visit to Mahala Mullins’ cabin – she was a 19^th century bootlegger.

Hancock county Countryside

Irene’s Head Start classes and my Walters State College programs were modified with the COVID-19 stay-at-home orders in March, 2020. Irene started video recording and reading storybooks for students online. Even the local newspaper caught her many storytime for kids’ videos.

Social distancing has meant finding activities without crowds. Only 3 miles from our house, the Johnson Ridge Trail along the shores of Cherokee Lake is a calming and quiet hiking area which helps keep us “grounded” during these stressful times.

Johnson Ridge Loop Trail on Cherokee Lake

Happy Hikers

Serena and Hannah add love and humor to our lives. They even got their picture on our new bank cards – this saves pulling pictures out of our wallet to show them off.

We are well settled now in our home (it’s been 4 years since we returned from Peace Corps in Jamaica); we welcome your comments and visits too. Take care, be well, and wear your masks! Peace & Love from Irene and Steve.