“I’m going to make a quick phone call,” I told my 14-year-old son not long ago, after picking him up from school. “Who are you calling?” he asked. “You’ll see,” I told him. I speed-dialed Dennis Ferrier and put the phone on speaker. “Hello?” Dennis said. “Hey!” I said. “I just wanted to let you […]

Here in Nashville, weather conditions these last few weeks have been akin to those in… well, Hell. Temperatures have soared into the nineties nearly every day and the godawful humidity here makes it seem even hotter. Unless I’m poolside with a good book, I despise the weather this time of year. I hate the bugs […]

A good friend from my past posted on social media recently that a close family member suffering from COVID had been put on a ventilator. She asked for prayers. The next day, she posted anti-vax and anti-mask memes. On Saturday, a well-known local talk show host died of COVID. Although he was a COVID skeptic […]

Fruity, rum-filled drinks, a retro Polynesian vibe… and robots. This East Nashville tiki bar has more than a few fun surprises. A few years ago, a man had a dream. “The dream I had last night was so weird,” he told a friend the next day over coffee. “The only thing I really remember now […]

I think of Gatlinburg as a rite of passage for every American traveler. Snuggled up against the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the bustling town offers a colorful juxtaposition to the ancient mountains beyond. Enter Gatlinburg and you’ll find yourself immersed in a dizzying swirl of pancake houses, souvenir shops, tourist attractions, and hordes of […]

Our youngest has always been easy. He’s a natural self-starter and sailed through elementary and middle school rarely needing help or reminders from us, which is good because after 20 years of parenting, you get… well… TIRED. Even better, he’s managed to make it this far without losing his agreeable disposition. Although I had braced […]

I’ve learned over time that what often makes a shop or a tour or even a restaurant really, really special is the owner or guide or chef you interact with while you’re there. When I’m researching a city or town, I sort through hundreds of user reviews, seeking out the bookstore with the charismatic and […]

A couple of years ago, my family and I went on a guided UTV tour of an exotic animal park in Tupelo. We jounced along in an off-road golf cart through a field full of zebras and buffalo while our guide told us about the animals’ personalities and habits. As we approached a group of […]

I’m trying to be very Zen about Nashville’s growth explosion and its resulting traffic and soaring prices and overcrowded everything, and really the only way I can do that right now is by focusing on the food. Until the last few years, the food scene was pretty boring here — Our restaurants catered largely to […]

“I’m still coming to see you Thursday, but I have a Zoom appointment at noon that I can’t reschedule,” I told my mom on the phone recently, “So I’m just going to leave in the morning, pull over somewhere, and do the appointment in my car. Then I’ll finish the drive once it’s over.” I […]