Red Sky in the Morning

Photo from my deck, and yes, it rained all day

Merry Christmas, We Are Back!

We are back! It has been a heck of a December. Mother fell out of her wheelchair in early December. After surgery to insert rods and screws to repair a broken hip and too short a recovery time in the hospital, she was released to a skilled care facility. We expect she will be there several more months.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Daddy came down with pneumonia and Carol with bronchitis. Both illnesses lingered for a couple of weeks so Leslie and I rotated visiting Mother and were careful to avoid Daddy and Carol. Everyone is healthy now...except Mother who is working hard to get back "on her feet."

December was otherwise low key for us. John and I enjoyed dinner with friends scattered though the month, including a memorable meal at Linderhof, where we indulged in a 4 hour food fest of assorted schnitzels, German cabbage, potato salad and lots of talk and laughter. Early in December, the doctor cleared John for all physical activity (remember the collar bone surgery) so we got out on our bikes. Now we are looking forward to January and our first backpack since August.

And somehow, among the fun and family issues, we managed to get ready for Christmas. Below are some pictures of Christmas Day including festivities at the skilled care facility and dinner at Leslie and Mike's house.

In the activities room of the skilled care facility (John is taking photos)

Cranberry glass necklace and earrings, a beautiful gift from Daddy

Wow! An iPod...just what I wanted!!

Carol wearing her new necklace from Daddy

Carol opening something

" Another shirt?" Daddy seems to be saying....

Leslie with a new Christmas ball compliments of Carol's talents

Mother and me

"Another blouse?" Mother seems to be saying....

Leslie and Mike's house, decked out for the holidays

Christmas dinner-lamb, potatoes, salad and squash, yummy!

Mike and Leslie

Two very tired people!

House Mountain Day Hike

John and I hiked House Mountain this morning. We took the Mountain Trail then picked up the Crest Trail to the east overlook (2100') where we could see forever...well, Clinch Mountain and the Smokies anyway. It was a crisp, clear morning, perfect for photos but I forgot my camera so we have no photos.

House Mountain is owned by the state and maintained by Knox County, with a lot of help from local Boy Scout troops. Located only 20 minutes from Knoxville, it is a great place to take a quick hike. A link to the state's website regarding House Mountain is below.

http://www.state.tn.us/environment/na/natareas/housemtn/

Happy Thanksgiving from the Smith Family

The turkey feast is consumed and the pumpkin pie partially eaten. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving; we hope you did too!

Gregory Bald Day Hike

This was the final weekend before Parson Branch Road closed for the season, so John suggested we hike the Gregory Bald Trail (trailhead on Parson Branch). The trail, 9.0-miles round-trip with a 2250' elevation gain and loss, provided a good opportunity to stretch our legs, which, along with the rest of us, are out of shape after being sidelined this summer and fall on account of broken bones.

To get to the trailhead, we had to drive halfway around the Cades Cove Loop Road to the Parson Branch turnoff. It has been a few years since either of us were in the Cove and we had forgotten just how beautiful it is in the morning. There were a number of walkers and bicyclists on the Cove Road but we were early enough that traffic was not a big problem.

The hike was great and the fall colors quite spectacular. All in all a very good day!

Cades Cove in the morning

A misty, beautiful morning in The Cove

Hmmm, I am having more fun than the grimace might indicate

The colors were still spectacular, even this late in the season

Photo by John

"Artsy" photo by John.

The colors are vibrant this year, though they arrived late in the season

Checking the map at a gap along the trail

An unnamed scrubby bush, back lit by the sun.

Beautiful!
John enjoying one more gaze from The Bald before we head back to the car

Art for the Animals

Young-Williams Animal Center in Knoxville held an art auction to benefit the shelter animals. The auction began several weeks ago on ebay, with final bids playing out at this evening's reception. Daddy had two paintings in the auction and both sold to bidders unknown.

Young Williams Animal Center, just off Southerland Avenue. Leslie, Carol and Daddy are walking toward the front door.

The artist and his zebra painting....this is one of our favorites!

Daddy and his rhino picture. The rhinoceros is one of his favorite African animals and often the subject of choice for his paintings.

The Smiths, from left me, Carol, Daddy and Leslie

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Today is Daddy's birthday, the last in the annual Smith family birthday celebrations. We went to Kalamata Cafe for a nice Greek sandwich and discovered that the restaurant is leaning more toward Japanese cuisine....and the sushi, I must say, looks just fine! Don't know what the owners will call the restaurant if a complete menu transition occurs but meanwhile, Greek and Japanese is an interesting combination.

Happy Birthday Daddy and lots of love, from "the sisters"

Ga-Na-Si-Ta

Daniel, John's son, has recently been playing bass guitar with the local band, Ga-Na-Si-Ta. The band name, I am told, is a Cherokee term for dogwood.

The band, with roots in native, jam, funk and fusion music, originated when two of the band members went to Australia as part of their UT curriculum. Along with studies in anthropology, the musicians learned to play the aboriginal instrument, the Didjeridoo. This instrument forms the keystone to their very unique musical style. You can read more about the group by clicking on the link below.

http://myspace.com/GaNaSiTa

Row, Row, Row Your Boat

Each spring we talk about taking rowing lessons. With the Tennessee River in our backyard, the Knoxville area (including Oak Ridge, Maryville and Louisville) hosts a number of rowing clubs and rowing events. This weekend the Head of the Tennessee Regatta was held at Sequoyah Hills Park, so we spent a couple of hours waterfront watching the festivities. The sport is great exercise and competition but ouch...the spandex body suits are unforgiving.

Loading and unloading a scull is quite a process, especially the 4 and 8 person variety! It is all in the team work!

Racks of sculls and lots of rowers

Liked these guys...a team of masters level rowers

We watched the UT Chattanooga rowing team for a while. The coach (on the right) is the Steve Spurrier of rowing....if he had been wearing a visor, we have no question that he would have thrown it down and stomped it flat.

The lady rowers were awesome!

Smash and Grab

We slipped into the late matinee this afternoon to see "Into the Wild". "Into the Wild" is the story of Christopher McCandless, who walked away from his family and privileged life in the early 1990's and hitchhiked across the country to Alaska. The story has a heart breaking end when Christopher dies of starvation in an abandoned bus in the Alaska wilderness. His path back to civilization, blocked by a raging spring river that was only a wide creek at the beginning of his journey into the wilderness.

Based on John Krakauer's non-fiction book with the same name, the movie is compelling and difficult to watch at times. The cinematography is spectacular and it is no surprise that the cinematographer is Eric Gautier, who also worked on another one of our most memorable films, "The Motorcycle Diaries".

Touched by what we had just experienced in the theater, we were slow getting to the car. The first thing that caught our eye was a guy in the car parked next to John's, cleaning glass out of the frame of the driver's door on his Jeep. It took about two seconds before we realized that John's passenger window had also been smashed and glass slivers covered everything. We searched the car and discovered that John's cell was the only thing missing. The guy in the Jeep had his Ipod snatched. John is a combination of angry and violated, I am just angry. What twists in the mind of a criminal that results in such behavior?

Now the "To Do" list for the weekend expands, car detailing, insurance contacts, cellular tasks and replacing the window.

Weekend with the Dunlaps

With John still on the injured list and very restless due to inactivity, we packed up and drove to Huntsville, AL this weekend to visit John's family and see his mother's new house. It was a quick trip but we had a great time and really enjoyed spending time with the family. Below are some pictures from our visit. There are more pictures here in "Family and Friends" http://smithposts.smugmug.com/

John and son Lee, in John's mother's (Bebe) garage. They have been tasked with folding packing paper and breaking down boxes.

Also helping with the task are John's brother, David, his wife Beth and their daughter Caitlin. Actually Caitlin is jumping up and down on the boxes, a combination of play and work!

John, Lee, David and Caitlin...a fine looking family!

Crawford, David and Beth's 3 year old....a very active little boy!

Big sister and little brother taking a break amongst the wrapping paper

In the kitchen preparing lunch, Bebe, Caitlin, John and David. Lunch? Homemade chicken salad and pimento cheese

Crawford on his John Deere in David's backyard

Bebe and Beth in the kitchen

After lunch we drove to McMullen Cove to look at Huntsville 2007 Showcase of Homes. McMullen Cove is a high-end development built on what was once two family farms. One of the farms, the area currently being developed, belonged to John's family.

The property is spectacular and includes mountains, creeks, waterfalls and a lovely valley. The development plan includes not only homes but wooded areas with hiking trails and some 20+ miles of greenways around and through the development. Also included is a clubhouse, chapel, swimming pool and more.

If you get a chance, click here to see the development http://mcmullencove.net/

This is the main street in the neighborhood. Probably 15 or so homes have been built with the development process expected to take about 10 years.

David, Bebe, Lee and John are sitting on the patio in the showcase home. Beautifully decorated by Huntsville designers, this home boasts two fireplaces outside (including the wood burning fireplace to John's left and a gas log fireplace on the second story balcony off the game room), several fireplaces inside, several outdoor fountains, a wine cellar off the dining room, four patio or balcony areas, and numerous inside amenities. Last weekend the home sold for 1.3-million cash.

Elegant swimming for the development ....the lions on each side are fountains with Greek looking statutes across the back of the pool.

One of the weekend tasks was to hang pictures for Bebe. Above is a picture of two scientists trying agree on the best method to figure "the center". Do you measure from top to bottom or bottom to top....and is that left to right divided by two and added to....well, you get the picture. Anyway, David seems to be saying "this is it, centerpoint.

John, Lee and David hanging a mirror in the dining room