If you don't have trouble adjusting to the new time, you sure beat me and a lot of other folks who must arise very early every morning! On regular working days I come wide awake and get out of bed at 3:50 AM.. And from a habit well learned during my days in the U.S. Army, I do not need any help in waking at that time each morning. But now and for the immediate future after reporting back from spring break, I will have to be sure that my alarm clock is set every night and in good working order since I will actually be getting up at 2:50 AM.. We can set a mechanical or electric clock up an hour but unfortunately, we can't forward the clock in our heads since they need time to adjust.. And it's hard to go to bed and get to sleep an hour earlier each night.
But as I wrote in my last notes, most of us love this time once we get totally adjusted. It's great to get off work with enough daylight to allow working outside (well at least enough time to think about working outside), taking a long walk, etc..
Although we have had some very bad traffic jams in recent days due to the volume of traffic, tragic wrecks, etc., we still have not had a local traffic situation to again develop quite equal to what we experienced on Good Friday. But can you imagine what it will be like during the Memorial Day weekend if the repairs are not completed to Interstate-75 by that time? Not only could we have a repeat of that "traffic jam" in Newcomb but it's not impossible that we could have some traffic problems in Elk Valley, Morley, Habersham, etc.. Here's hoping that the work is completed well prior to that holiday weekend -due more for the safety aspect than the long delays although the long delays are awfully frustrating.
I served as Alla Faye Monday's high school principal for four years and once a name becomes so ingrained in the mind - and although it can be officially changed - it is much harder to change in the ole memory bank. I had to call Alla Faye the other day and apologize to her for using her maiden name in one of these articles instead of her long standing married name of Alla Faye Rutherford. But she said that she sure didn't mind because a lot of other folks still refer to her as Alla Faye Monday. (She may have just been trying to make me feel better concerning my senior moment. The entire thing reminded me of a conversation that I had recently with a teacher at our school. We both agreed that we had reached the point where we not only couldn't recall what we had for breakfast that morning, but we couldn't remember for sure if we had even eaten breakfast. I blamed "father time" for my problem - but she is still a young woman.)
But back to the subject at hand! I was invited to a recent meeting at Indian Mountain State Park to discuss plans for the park's spring activities and special week to coincide with our Jellico "Clean-up, Fix-up, Paint-up Week" during the period May 7th -May 14th.. Activities will be held at the park on Saturday, May 7th and work that has already started will continue through that week - culminating with an all out clean-up effort on Saturday, May 14th. Alla Faye Monday Rutherford who will sponsor a "Health Walk" this Saturday, April 9th, at the park starting at 9:00 AM, informed those in attendance that she already at that time, had 140 commitments to participate. Most of us can stand a lot more exercise and she is hoping there will be a big turnout. (Yours truly has put on the pounds over the winter - especially during the period I have been trying to recover from a broken ankle - and I hope to participate. My ankle still swells badly after I have been on it for awhile but several who have suffered similar injuries tell me that I might as well just get used to the swelling because it will be around for a long time to come. I sure hope that they're wrong. But in that case - as well as what happens to our memory -father time always takes his toll.)
Rutherford stated that she will also be working with the park staff to sponsor and conduct the "May Day" activities there on Saturday, May 7th. Numerous events are planned that should draw a lot of folks and especially young people.
Park Director Jerome Cummins told me that he enjoyed my last article concerning kite flying and that he and the park staff are considering possibly sponsoring kite flying competition next March to include both "store bought" kites and "homemade" kites. That sounds like a lot of really good old fashioned fun for the kids and here's hoping that he gets a very favorable response to that idea. (Jerome also asked me if I had ever flown box kites but unfortunately, I had to tell him that I never did. I sure didn't have the money to buy one away back then and I was never successful in personally constructing one that I get could off the ground.)
It's "rock crawling time" and the UROC Extreme East Event is scheduled for the weekend of April 21, 22, and 23.. The interest in that sport continues to grow and if the weather is good, we can expect a big turnout of folks coming into town and our area for the competition.
Our veterans are already preparing for the placement of flags on the graves of our deceased veterans for Memorial Day and they will again ask our Jellico High School Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) to help with that task. The number of such graves increases by a good number from one year to the next and I believe the total may now be nearing or exceeding 600 graves. Veteran Herman Heath asked me to inform anyone who wants to be sure that a grave has placement of a flag to feel free to join the veterans and JROTC students as they tour the cemeteries placing the flags. Contributions are also needed with which to purchase flags and donations can be given to Herman or to Helen Ruth Sharp at the Union Bank.
Our annual "Classic Car Show" will be held on June 18th and I was recently informed by our Whitley County School System Title I Director Mr. Terry Skinner in Williamsburg, that he is ready for that event. Terry attended the show for a couple of years and last year he and his wife entered two beautiful classic cars in the competition - and for the enjoyment of those of us who love "vintage" vehicles that like good wine, truly do grow "sweeter" with each passing year.
Tourism Director Jake Bennett, the Tourism Commission, Jerome Smith and his wife and the Jellico city crews do a great job in organizing and conducting the car show and we certainly appreciate their efforts in that and all other activities they sponsor throughout the year.
And although its hard to believe, the last year has gone so quickly that we are now only three months away from our Fourth of July celebration that is the talk of our entire area.. I had a lady to tell me after last year's fireworks display that she had never seen a small town demonstration of fireworks for the Fourth like ours - and she said that she had seen a bunch of them..
We will just have to wait and see how things work out but most Jellico Big Orange basketball fans that I have talked with seem to be genuinely impressed with our new coach Bruce Pearl. And it was good news when Chris Lofton stated that he would remain at U.T. and that he believed that he would love Pearl's style of play that includes shooting the three pointers - something that Lofton does about as well as anyone that I have personally ever watched play. (Former Vol point guard and later coach at the old Powell Valley High School, Rodney Woods, who now coaches in Kentucky and who last summer described Lofton to me as "a great outside shooter", certainly knew what he was talking about. Woods first recommended Lofton to Buss Peterson and that recommendation has sure turned out to be a good one.)
According to the media, the new coaching staff is to talk to Tyler Smith this week. I saw a video clip of Smith on Sports South recently and he sure looked like the real deal. Here's hoping that he honors his letter of intent and comes to the Hill. Wouldn't it be good if Jamont Gordon decided to sign with the Vols during the spring signing period as well? We would then have two recruits with the talent to attend almost any school that they might choose. And it's going to take that kind of talent to take us to the level where we want to go!
I often write of how amazed that I am concerning the number of people who contact me concerning this column - especially those who read it in the Christian Journal-Leader and take it from the Internet. And I receive a lot of calls and e-mails to that effect.
Former Jellicoan Donna Willoughby as we knew her who now lives in Knoxville and has been gone from Jellico for many years, told me that her aunt Josephine Siler collects these notes and passes them to her. She said that she greatly enjoys reading them and then in turn sends them to her brother Tom that many Jellicoans will remember. I understood her to say that Tom lives out of the area and possibly out of state but likes to keep up with what is happening back in Jellico.
I received an e-mail from Tearsa Smith, News Anchor for WATE-TV Channel 6, who emphasized that she does not mind at all my using her name. According to Ms. Smith, she found my column, started reading the first paragraph or two, and became so interested that she ended up reading the entire thing. She then went to the trouble to forward an e-mail to me that included the comment, "I just want to say that I really enjoyed your column. It has a nice balance of charm and news." Coming from someone who works professionally with collecting and reporting the news, that truly was a very nice compliment.
And I have exchanged e-mail with a group of University of Tennessee students in a class involved in a study pertaining to abandoned strip mined land. I informed them of our Indian Mountain State Park that was so beautifully developed from terrible spoil piles that many years ago was visited by professors and students from Penn State University who were interested in developing similar strip mine reclamation projects for the state of Pennsylvania.. I also informed Park Director Jerome Cummins who too got involved in exchanging e-mail and working with the students. Jerome invited them for a visit and at the time these notes were written, they were scheduled to come to Jellico and the park on Wednesday, April 6th
I get an awful lot of e-mails requesting genealogical information (including one recently seeking the whereabouts of a Frank Clifton who once sold insurance in this area but who was not related to best of my knowledge), local history, traffic information, etc. that I simply do not have the information and/or the time in which to respond. But I appreciate them all and hope they keep coming. It's really interesting to read them and I have learned a lot from some of them!
Speaking of folks involved with reporting the news, I get a real kick out of some of the sports writers and sports announcers who -when referring to the entire state or population of Tennessee - often write or state, "any place (or anyone) south of Jellico". I like the way that sounds and we will take all such free publicity that we can get. In fact, it will be okay with us if their bluegrass counterparts start using the phrase, "any place (or anyone) north of Jellico, Kentucky" - just as long as they make sure that they get the Jellico part right. (The town of Jellico, Kentucky that once had its own policeman, "calaboose" etc. went out of business many, many years ago.)
E-mail me at: mayor@jellico.tn.us
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