Long, Long Ago

One of the places that we visited while in Tennessee was an area called Cade's Cove. This area is part of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Cade's Cove can best be seen be the Cade's Cove Loop Road, about 11 miles of protected one-way roadway that will lead the sightseer on a historical tour of early pioneer farms, fields, roads and trails. The panorama below shows Cade's Cove in all it's grandeur. Imagine the fields of corn, wheat, barley and other crops that must have once covered the valley floor.

One has to be careful driving this area as there is plenty of wildlife around. Supposedly bears are a common sight, but usually in the early morning. As we drove through we did spot a number of deer that would just casually come out of the woods and cross the road. These were just a couple that passed in front of our truck.

Many other animals, such as the bobcat, red wolf, coyotes, foxes, call Cade’s Cove home also.

The drive through this valley meanders along the outer edges of the valley and pass along the cabins of the settlers of this valley. The first cabin we came across was the John Oliver place.

In the days of Olde:

This cabin, along with many of the others, have been kept to what they looked like way back when.

This is how it still looks today, built on a spot at the back of a field, at the base of a mountain:

As you turn your back to this cabin, your eye falls upon the whole of the valley stretched out for miles in front of you. Standing there, my minds’ eye travelled back to the old settler days of Conestoga wagons making their steady way across plains to finally find that one perfect spot to set up a home. The settlers of long ago had only their wits and their skills to support themselves. It’s not like they could drive to the local market to buy food. They had to clear forest land to provide sunlight to grow gardens. They had to hunt and fish for meat for their table. At the same time they had to build shelters to live in. Their lives were definitely strenuous, but the settlers were a very hardy God-fearing lot of individuals. Their very survival hinged upon their success in providing for themselves.

With all that these hardy pioneers had to go through, they also had to contend with the Cherokee Indians that lived in the valley. There were stories aplenty of the fierceness of the Cherokee Nation. Thankfully the tribe they shared the valley with were a peaceful sort. The Cherokees shared their food with the first settler family, the Olivers, who was not able to plant enough crops and get enough harvested and preserved before the bitter winter set in.

The Olivers were brought to the valley by their friend, Joshua Jobe. Once he brought them there, he left to bring more settlers in. As time went on, the population grew. There are still many cabins left around the fringes of the valley to show what life may have looked like back then. There are even a couple of churches still standing.

This area is rich in history. What a story this tombstone has to tell.

For more on the story of these first pioneers to settle in Cades Cove Valley, click here.

Besides Cade’s Cove, we also traveled up into Gatlinburg and beyond. Gatlinburg looks like a rather compact tourist town, plopped down in a small valley on the way towards the Great Smoky National Park. I preferred the look of Gatlinburg although it was geared toward the higher end tourist. The architecture, though, that was used is rather pleasing to the eye.

The road beyond Gatlinburg winds through the mountains and provides many beautiful views of an untamed paradise. It is easy to imagine life from the settlers view when gazing out at these scenes. The Appalachian Trail winds through these very mountains and is used by many hikers who dare to travel the full length. We met one such last year on our previous trip to this area. His travels started in Georgia and he told us he was heading to Maine. I hope he made it safely!

After a lovely drive, we headed back to Pigeon Forge. So, OK, I have to admit, we acted like tourists for a day. We visited one of the many Arcades dotting the Parkway and did the bumper cars. It helped that the weather was nice and warm, and it was fun acting like a kid! The rest of the week was spent at the Country Tonight Theater for the competitions.

"Black Swans" and more

Getting off the highway and heading down Route 40 into Sevierville and then Pigeon Forge. This route is the main drag through this area. It's packed with restaurants of all types, stores - you name it, you can buy it here - arcades and amusement park type activities. The road takes a break going from Pigeon Forge into Gatlinburg. It winds a bit through the lower foothills of the Smoky Mountains. The state has turned a large area into the Smoky Mountains National Park with a very scenic drive through the mountains. In Gatlinburg the attractions pick back up. But...I must say, the Townies of Gatlinburg have managed to at least make the attractions much more pleasing to the eye as far as the architecture of the buildings. I do prefer Gatlinburg to Pigeon Forge as far as views go. But then again, it was all designed to bring in the tourist bucks!

When Hubby Dearest and I visited there last year, I did not care to visit any of the touristy, amusement park-style attractions. We did more traveling to the outlying areas where the locals had set up their own little attractions offering their handmade goods. One area was called Artist's Row. To me that was more interesting to see how the locals made do as compared to all the major attractions.

It seems that the economy is starting to hit this area also. As we drive by all the hotels, motels and inns, I can see that the rates they offer now are definitely less than what was being charged last year. A lot of the ones that offered rates last year starting at $29.95 to $39.95 were now listed at $19.95 to $29.95. A good lot of the others also had rates lower by at least $10 or more than last year.

According to Knox News, retail sales are down affecting local sales tax collections by 5.5%. Realty transfers and mortgage taxes collected dropped by 33% from 2008 to 2009. Jobs and homes are being lost all over Sevierville County, and "can't miss" projects are dropping because most of them can't find permanent funding for their projects. One such project is Belle Island - an entertainment project slated for development in Pigeon Forge. Belle Island would be a source of jobs and revenue if the developer can ever find secure financing. As of now, the project is off again. The city worked with the developer to build a Taxpayer funded (!!!) parking lot to serve this entertainment facility. This land that the parking lot was built on now sits empty to the tune of $17 million TAXPAYER dollars. As quoted by Greg Johnson, the reporter for this paper:

Governments across Sevier County - and Tennessee and America, for that matter - have pitched taxpayer money into projects that looked great in boom times. But booms go bust. That's the nature of capitalism. And Pigeon Forge should have seen this black swan coming.

Tough times are even showing in the cabin resort area we stayed in. The place is called Sherwood Forest Resort. It is a development of cabins in differing sizes built on a hillside on the edge of Pigeon Forge. This "Resort" overlooks the Great Smoky Mountains. It is a quiet, idyllic get-away. The cabins are equipped with pool tables, decks with hot tubs, and master bedrooms with jacuzzis.

Hubby Dearest and I stayed there last year in early March. At that time, a lot of the cabins were already filled with visiting tourists. There were even areas marked out for new cabins to be built. Being there this year we saw a lot of the cabins were empty and up for sale; and construction had never started on new cabins. These cabins are mostly owned by absentee owners and managed by rental agencies or realtors. The sole purpose of these cabins is to help make money for the owners. Now, with many of them up for sale, this tells the story that many of the owners living across the U.S. could very well be seeing financial distress.

This is the cabin that we rented with Country Kimberly and her fiancee'.

Altitude Adjustment
Eight ball in the corner pocket!This was a great spot to relax with a glass of wine and look out over the mountains.

A nice little romantic hide away!Time to spend a little time back in reality. More about insights on our travels in another post.

Tennessee Bound

Well, we made it to Tennessee and back. It was a combination vacation / country music competition trip. As I posted earlier Hubby Dearest entered into competition with NACMAI. He did his specified competition slots and came through with flying colors. He took 2nd place "Most Promising Male Entertainer 2009 - Traditional Country"and he and his singing partner, Country Kimberly, took first place "Duo of the Year 2009 - Traditional Country." I am very proud of Hubby Dearest, although I knew all along that he is a great entertainer!

Anywho, the trip down to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee was done over 2 days. We left home on noontime Friday, the 6th of March, stopped at a hotel somewhere in the vicinity of Allentown, Pa. around 7 pm. We continued on Saturday morning, around 9 am and got to the cabin we co-rented in Pigeon Forge right around 2 pm.

Travel on the roadways was pretty decent. There were only a few incidents of "Road Ragers" One was a sports car full of young ladies whom the good Lord above must have been watching out for. The truck driver they cut much too close in front of was not happy with them at all. It was a good thing he had good control of his rig. Those girls could very well have become part of the roadway. Most of the truck drivers we spotted were very good about handling their rigs. They mostly were very courteous about using signals and flashing rig lights for those drivers changing lanes in front of them. There was only one hot shot jockey on our section of highway that misjudged his speed and distance and changed lanes too close. Then, of course, there were a couple of SUV drivers that must have thought that their "Rigs" were untouchable. They changed lanes as if they had no care for who else was sharing the road with them. The only other dangerous person we saw driving was a Cotton-Top driving a Lincoln. This old-timer must have thought his vehicle needed 2 lanes to travel in. He did some lane drifting without signaling. Go figure!!

The trucking industry does seem to be alive and well in the states between Massachusetts all the way to Tennessee. There were actually more trucks that we saw the further south we went as compared to up here in Massachusetts. Some trucks were hauling what looked to be machinery that may have been purchased at auction. The machines themselves looked like they were a few years old.

I saw a lot of farms with sheep and cattle and a lot of land that was being cultivated. I did see some farmland that still had dead stalks of corn from what looked like last years corn harvest. I am not certain if those fields were being left fallow for now, or whether they were lost due to the economy. I did see signs up advertising lots of acreage up for sale for industrial use. Looked like prime farmland to me. The other things I saw from the highway were a lot of dilapidated barns, buildings and mobile homes. We must have been driving through the ass-end of towns as there weren't many, if any, McMansions to be seen.

During our travels we had the radio on, listening to country music, of course! We heard a lot of great songs but there were a couple that really stood out. One of them was a song by Trent Tomlinson "That's How It Oughta Be" That song is awesome!! Another one was by Rodney Atkins - "It's America" The other really great song that strikes into the heart of what our country is going through is John Rich's "Shuttin' Detroit Down" These three songs played quite frequently across the radio stations we were picking up as we traveled across Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia and Tennessee. We picked up a lot of radio stations that were preaching the Gospel too. But that's a given. That area is known as the Bible Belt. There are still a lot of good people there with the Olde Tyme values.

You could see the discrepancies in income in the areas we traveled through. Some of the cities and towns looked prosperous, but I know the eye can be deceiving. Then there were some towns that looked like they were just hanging on by a thread. One town in particular sort of stood out for me as we were driving through Virginia (it was right along the highway) - Atkins, Va. It looked like someone had come in and just plunked a whole lot of mobile/modular homes right down in one area situated around two companies - Merillat and Jerry's Homes (a mobile home company.) According to the Census Bureau records the whole town consists of 5.4 miles of land and has a population of around 1100 people. Median income is around $34,000. The town next to it - Marion, Va. - is a bit bigger with a population of around 6300 with a median income of around $31,000. If those 2 companies in Atkins ever folded, so would the town.

We finally arrived in Pigeon Forge and a long awaited soak in the hot tub! But, Pigeon Forge is another post. LOL!!

A Brief Hiatus

It's that time of year for Hubby Dearest and I. We are heading to Tennessee for NACMAI (North American Country Music Association International) competition. Hubby Dearest is a vocalist/rhythm guitarist and has been entertaining people with music for over 30 years. He will be competing with other vocalists and entertainers from across the country.

Financially, it's not the best time now to do this, but it's a trip that has been planned for many months. I will be taking notes on our trip of what life is like along the road. Hopefully I will come home with a lot to tell.

The Era of the Wandering Gypsy??

Reading the Boston Globe a day ago, there was a headline that just fairly leaped off the page. It read: "Homeless families face strict new rules" It seems that our dear governor is going back on a vow he made, two years ago, to end homelessness here in the Bay State. Now there is a set of new regulations coming out that could very well force hundreds of families that are currently living in shelters, back out on to the street.

All of this is supposed to go into effect on April 1. I won't go into the details here except to say that there is a lot there that will hurt many, many families. The bad part being that it could be any of us that could wind up in those circumstances. The article can be read here: http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/02/17/homeless_families_face_strict_new_rules/

There is one thing that really bothers me about these new regulations. One of the requirements now is that anyone who wants help has to work no less than 30 hours a week and save 30% of their income!! Is the Patrick Administration for real?!?!? In a time when companies are laying off faster than any of us can keep up with? When jobs are few and far between? And if there is a job opening somewhere, there are hundreds of other applicants applying for that same job!!

It seems, also, that some of the regulations are open to interpretation and are up to the shelter directors' discretion. Well, that leaves that door fairly wide open for more problems.

In a time when families are already struggling just to keep the bills paid, home foreclosures rank in the thousands every day, companies laying off left and right, and now this. The state's unemployment rate is around 6.9%. First-time claims for unemployment are around 50% higher than last year. This is supposedly all a move to save the state $520,000 this fiscal year and $11million next year. Ya, OK, if you say so!!!

Unfortunately, the one thing I see happening is there will be a lot of homeless people wandering the countryside. We may wind up seeing tent cities dotting the Massachusetts landscape. Who knows, maybe there will be bands of roving "gypsies" wandering from one place to another.

But.....hey, we're OK. The State Police acknowledged yesterday that they "accepted delivery" of a 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe hybrid to replace a vehicle in the unit assigned to provide security to Gov. Deval Patrick. It only cost the state around $51,000. Not a problem. We can just write a check made on Goodyear Rubber. Gov. Deval Patrick said that the State Police - not him - decided to replace one of their vehicles in his security detail with the SUV. So, he couldn't put the kibosh on this little fiasco? This state isn't in enough financial trouble?? Oh, wait, maybe the plans to put casinos in will save the day!! HAHAHA!!!!!

Now to boot, that wonderful stimulus package was signed. Yahooooo!!! We are Saved!! Sorry, I think it is nothing more than a stop-gap measure to make it at least look like something is being done. Mr. O would not want to blow the rest of his presidency by announcing so early on that we, as a nation, are so bankrupt that it will take generations before we see any improvement. Although, he has gone as far as to state that things may get worse before they improve. I am so glad he told us that. I wouldn't have been able to figure that one out, no sirree bub!!

So, in the meantime I am planning my garden, got my seeds all ready to go and can't wait to get planting. In between times I am perfecting my bread recipes and coming up with new dinner recipes (at least for Hubby Dearest and I) that are cheap and easy to make and allow for variety in our diet with just some basic ingredients. Like dinner tonight was something I want to call "Layered Beef Stew" (or a variation on Shepherds Pie). I was too lazy to mash potatoes and actually devised this tasty dish all from my "pantry." All I know is that Hubby Dearest really liked it.

• 15 to 16 small red potatoes, quartered (these are low on the glycemic index so a diabetic can have this)
• Place them in a baking dish and sprinkle a bit of vegetable oil over them
• Chop an onion and add to the potatoes
• I also sprinkled some McCormick Roasting Rub Savory Herb and some McCormick Smoky Sweet Pepper seasonings over the potato quarters. Mix it all together to make sure everything is coated in oil
  
• Bake this in the oven at 400 degrees till potatoes are tender

• In another baking pan, layer cooked ground beef (you can add mushrooms and onion to this if you want). Add thick brown gravy to the meat and then cover meat mixture with mixed vegetables.
• Place roasted potato quarters on top of all this and put back into the oven and bake for another 25 to 30 minutes
  

** ** ** ** ** ** ** **

The one thing that I am just about certain about what is going on, is that it will take us "Little People" living in our local communities to help hold it all together. A smart move would be to start pooling the knowledge available to you in your local neighborhoods. Those that have essential living skills should help to teach others. Think "simpler times" much like what our forefathers used to live like. Only by banding together will we have a chance of pulling through this.

"Shuttin' Detroit Down"

Ya'll need to check this out. It says it all:

John Rich

Shuttin' Detroit Down

Written By: John Rich

My daddy taught me that in this country everyone’s the same
You work hard for your dollar and you never pass the blame
When it don’t go your way
Now I see all these big shots cryin’ on my evening news
About how they’re losin’ billions and how it’s up to me and you
To come running to the rescue
Well pardon me if I don’t shed a tear ‘cause they’re selling make believe
And we don’t buy that here

Cause in the real world they're shutting Detroit down
While the boss man takes his bonus pay and jets on out of town
And DC’s bailing out them bankers as the farmers auction ground, 
Yeah while they’re living it up on Wall Street in that New York City town, 
Here in the real world they're shuttin’ Detroit down. 
They’re shuttin’ Detroit down.”

Well that old man’s been workin’ in that plant most all of his life
Now his pension plan’s been cut in half and he can’t afford to die
And it’s a crying shame, ‘cause he ain’t the one to blame
When I look down and see his caloused hands,
Well let me tell you friend it gets me fightin’ mad

Cause in the real world they're shutting Detroit down
While the boss man takes his bonus pay and jets on out of town
And DC’s bailing out them bankers as the farmers auction ground, 
Yeah while they’re living it up on Wall Street in that New York City town, 
Here in the real world they're shuttin’ Detroit down. 
They’re shuttin’ Detroit down.”

Yeah while they're living it up on Wall Street in that New York City town
Here in the real world they're shuttin’ Detroit down
Here in the real world they're shuttin’ Detroit down

In the real world they’re shuttin Detroit down, they’re shuttin’ Detroit down.

A Bit Off The Tangent!

I am on a rant right now about Health care. Hubby Dearest and I are now finding out the hard way that this economic fiasco we are going through is affecting the insurance companies. Hubby Dearest has medical insurance through his company and so long as he still has a job to go back to when he is released, he has medical coverage that we will need to pay back to the company.

Now, he is going through therapy for some massive repairs that were made to his shoulder. He has lost a huge amount of muscle mass in his arm. He has been going to therapy but is now finding that he may be denied any further therapy sessions. If the therapist thinks he should have more they have to apply to, get this - not our insurance company, but the one that they are affiliated through. The insurance company we have, Anthem Blue Cross of New Hampshire (Hubby works in New Hampshire) is part of a much larger insurance company - Blue Cross Blue Shield of New England.

The therapy facility has to submit more forms to BCBS of NE to get Hubby Dearest possible approval for further therapy. There is a good chance that this request will get denied, even though under our insurance plan we have 60 visits a year for physical therapy.

It seems that the insurance companies are more and more trying to dodge having to pay out any kind of benefits to anyone who has medical insurance. The really unfortunate part of all this is that here in Massachusetts, we are fined if we do not have medical insurance coverage. But having that coverage now means we have to pay for it. But...here's the kicker...we are now paying for something that the insurance companies do not want to give.

Insurers Profits Up; Premiums Rise, Coverage Shrinks - Companies Forcing Consumers and Taxpayers to Pick Up the Tab

Another Year Of Record Profits - Overpricing policies, underpaying claims pays off big

This state, along with the rest of the country, have played right into the hands of the big corporate insurance companies. These companies are in no way interested in making sure that the little people get the best medical care. The only thing that matters to them is the almighty dollar.

As the world spirals ever deeper into the economic Black Hole, we all will need to try to keep local doctors around who will work for barter, like they used to do eons ago. Either that or find a witch doctor or have an herbalist in town.