Stories of the South

When I first moved to Knoxville I was very observant of how the South is different than the Pacific Northwest. I blogged about it here. I still notice many oddities of the South but I sort of forgot to document and share them on my blog. Now that Matt and I know we only have 6-8 months** left in the South, I feel the pressure to note my experiences in the South.

At work on Friday, I was talking with a few people about our upcoming office move and the office dynamics. We work in the tallest building in downtown Knoxville, the First Tennessee Bank Building.

So we're talking and my coworker Michelle said something that was a quick reminder that I live in the South. Before I tell you what she said, you should have a picture of Michelle in your head. She is in her thirtys, dresses fairly trendy, has a pretty "hot" body, has fake red nails and often wears bright red lipstick. She comes across as a very girly girl. Are you picturing her? Something like this only with a little more skin showing:

Then somehow she slips this into the conversation: "Can you believe we can't bring guns into the office? I mean, if though I have a license to carry it, I can't have it here because of the bank. It's so stupid."

Hmm...Okay. Didn't expect her of all people to want to carry a gun. And why in the world would she think she needs to carry it around in lil' old downtown Knoxville? Definitely not something I would have heard at my old office in Vancouver, WA!

And then, to cap the day off, we had our Christmas party in the office and at least 4 guys pulled out pocket knifes at different times to cut open presents. Now I recognize that many guys carry pocket knifes so that isn't that unusual, but in combination with the gun comment, I was totally cracking up.

Oh Tennessee...

In Tennessee guns seem to be taken more seriously than say, Portland... Go figure!

During my first week here I remember seeing bright yellow billboards that said "GUNS" really big and in all caps across the entire billboard and then in smaller font some information about a gun show or something. Those billboards are still around town, just with an updated date and time for the gun show.

Anyway, proof that guns are more prominent here is the law that was sent and passed by lawmakers (House and Senate) to permit the possession of concealed weapons in restaurants and bars in Tennessee. YIKES! I don't really want people who are drunk in a bar to carry a handgun. A bar fight could lead to much worse than a black eye! Fortunately our governor, Phil Bredesen plans to veto the bill.

Hopefully we move before it the bill gets brought back to the table..meanwhile wine can't be sold in grocery stores in Tennessee. Now that law I want to pass!

High Five -Reasons I want to retire in Brentwood, TN

After spending just a few hours in Brentwood, TN last weekend, I've decided that it'd be a great place to live...possibly even retire to.

1.

It's neighbors Franklin, TN. I wanted to visit Franklin after reading about the history there...somewhere I read that it is known for having the bloodiest 15 minutes in American history (a Civil War battle took place there). I further researched and decided that it looked like a cute town with an adorable historic downtown that features many cute restaurants and shops. As it turns out, Franklin is in the 18th wealthiest county in US.

2.

You're probably thinking, Why live in Brentwood and not Franklin? I think it's better to live in a closeby town to the rich town instead of IN the rich town. Unless of course you are rich, then you can live in either. Brentwood is certainly well-off too, which is one of the reasons I like it. The second reason I want to live in Brentwood is the high likelihood of seeing (and maybe even being friends with) famous and/or well-connected people. Tied to Brentwood there are some well-knowns, including Dolly Parton, Carrie Underwood and Niki Taylor. Franklin has even more well-knowns including: Miley Cyrus, Trace Adkins, Kenny Chesney, Sheryl Crow, Sara Evans, the Judd sisters, Nicole Kidman, Brad Paisley, Keith Urban and the coach of the Tennessee Titans.

3.

Because a great place to live goes far beyond cute towns and rich people, I also give Brentwood props for the nice people. Matt and I ate dinner there and really enjoyed our server. He was personable, carried a conversation and was generally very pleasant. Then the manager of the restaurant came to our table to ask how everything was. He too was very pleasant and we carried on conversation for a bit before he left. We finished eating and before the check came, the server brought over a dessert--compliments of the manager since it was our first time eating there. How nice! (and it was delicious of course!)

4.

With the move to Knoxville I have complained to Matt that it is a great city but it lacks places like Nordstrom, Costco and Trader Joe's/Whole Foods. You can probably guess the fourth reason I want to live in Brentwood... They don't have a Nordstrom (but I could see one going in) but they do have Costco and Whole Foods. And those are just the stores we happened to drive by. I'm sure there are some wonderful locally owned stores as well as other chains I love. And it might be a wealthy town, but they still have one of my faves, Target.

5.

The last reason to move to Brentwood is real estate. The homes are beautiful. Many are big, but what I really love is how much characher and how pretty they are. The whole reason Matt and I even went to Brentwood was to drive around and look at all the homes. We aimlessly drove around and oooo-ed and ahhh-ed at many houses. Then we found a development that is being built. The houses were breathtaking and they were still construction sites! I can only imagine how nice they will be when complete and with nice landscaping! Below are some of the houses featured in the flyers we picked up. My favorite were the townhouses (the last two pictures below). They are the most modest and each one is so unique! BUT I was thinking, if anyone wants, the manors are really mansions and we could get a group of friends together and all share one. I mean, really, one has 5 bedrooms with 7 baths and a half bath. Not bad!

You can get tours of some of the interiors and see all the homes at the website:

http://www.windstonetn.com/

*Tennessee!!*

I'm flying to Tennessee today. For as long as I can remember, upon hearing the word "Tennessee" this Arrested Development song pops into my head. And I can't help but start saying, "Tennessee [said in a low voice]...Tennessee [said in my normal voice]." If you haven't heard the song you probably think I'm crazy, but just listen to the song..then you'll get what I'm talking about and hopefully you too can hear this song playing in your head at every mention of Tennessee.



Oh, and did I mention how excited I am!? Knoxville, here I come!!!