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It practically gallops!

In Plain Sight

Allison Kropff left WVLT four months ago. I hadn’t heard any official word about her replacement but I wasn’t looking in the right place. The news has been on Twitter for over a month.

Amanda Hara of Newschannel 5 in Nashville posted a tweet on December 30th stating that she is headed to Knoxville to be the main anchor for WVLT. She starts her new job on February 13. I wonder if they will put her on the air right away or if they will wait until the end of February sweeps. It wouldn’t surprise me if she’s in the audience at Star 102.1’s Dancing with the Knoxville Stars to support her colleague Lorena Estrada.

Amanda has posted a few things about visiting the area and house-hunting in Knoxville. She is already familiar with Appalachian moonshine legend Popcorn Sutton.

Amanda displayed a sense of humor while chasing a stray peacock in a 2010 report. Her bio has some jokes in it too:

  • Amanda Hara is an Emmy and Associated Press Award winning Journalist whose parents violated child labor laws when they allowed her to start a small neighborhood newspaper at the age of 8.
  • In an attempt to ditch Amanda in Seattle, Washington (their hometown) her parents moved to Williamson County six years ago. Much to their dismay, Amanda followed.

Here’s a recent example of her work:

February 4, 2012 | Filed Under Uncategorized | Leave a Comment 

Bacon Power

An article about a cookbook prompted me to buy a cupcake yesterday. The photo on the cover of “The Butch Bakery Cookbook” shows a cupcake topped with bacon. I immediately remembered reading a blurb about maple bacon cupcakes being sold at The Cup this month.

I had some errands to run, one of which put me in the same shopping center as The Cup’s Bearden store. I bought one cupcake to split with my wife, despite the staff’s suggestion that I buy two.

Maple Bacon Cupcake from The Cup - 2/1/12 It was a great cupcake, that I would highly recommend. Candied bacon is used as a garnish on top. If there was more bacon under the icing, I didn’t notice it. Pecans were infused into the cake and more were placed on top. The delicious maple icing was the most dominant flavor. The combination of tastes reminded us of breakfast, not dessert. I had poured us each a glass of milk but my wife said she would have enjoyed a glass of orange juice instead.

February 2, 2012 | Filed Under Uncategorized | Leave a Comment 

Sara Leeway

Ever since getting my Kindle, I have made it a habit to check the list of 100 “bestselling” free e-books on Amazon.com. They have a list of the top 100 free mp3 songs too.

Today I downloaded a free book called “CAKES – 50 Cake Recipes to Tantalize Your Taste Buds” by M. Smith and R. King and then mentioned it on Twitter. That prompted Jennifer Prairie to ask, “Do YOU bake?”

I am much more likely to buy a cake than to bake one, although I have helped my wife bake a few things. Before downloading the cookbook, I glanced at the table of contents and saw two recipes with the word banana in the title. Neither seemed close to the Sara Lee banana cake I loved as a kid. Every so often, the memory pops into my head and I wish I had some in the freezer.

If the free e-book didn’t have a replica of the Sara Lee recipe, maybe the Internet would. I found three candidates that might be worth a try: Banana Cake VI on AllRecipes.com; Iced Banana Cake on PetitChef.com and Southern Living Banana Cake on Food.com.

January 29, 2012 | Filed Under Uncategorized | 2 Comments 

Wish Fulfillment

A few days after each “Dinner with the Bone Doctor,” Susan Seals mails me a few snapshots from the event. The pictures are signed by Dr. Bill Bass. This past week I was fortunate to receive a few pictures of myself with Dr. Bass as well as some pictures that I need to give to others.

Dinner with the Bone Doctor 4 - Melissa Treece meets Dr. Bill Bass Melissa Treece is a fan of Patricia Cornwell’s books and sometimes corresponds with the famous author via Twitter. Melissa plans to start reading the novels and the non-fiction books by Dr. Bass and Jon Jefferson. She bought a ticket to the dinner last Monday night and had a fabulous time. I have three autographed pictures for her.

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Dinner with the Bone Doctor 4 - Amy Sams meets Dr. Bill Bass and Frank Murphy Amy Sams entered the Star 102.1 Fall Fantasy contest last year. Her entry was picked on Halloween morning and she quickly called in to claim her prize. Her wish was to meet Dr. Bass. The radio station paid for Amy and her mother to attend the dinner. I have two autographed pictures for her.

January 28, 2012 | Filed Under Body Farm | Leave a Comment 

Hip to Be Square

Dinner with the Bone Doctor 4 - Dr. Bill Bass brings a different set of bones to each “Dinner with the Bone Doctor.” The fourth such event at Echo Bistro & Wine Bar was held last night. Guests enjoyed sea bass and veal while staring at various bones from the Body Farm. I have had the good fortune to serve as emcee for each of the dinners.

Dinner with the Bone Doctor 4 - Dinner with the Bone Doctor 4 - The first bone of the evening was a native American skull that was about 400 years old. Dr. Bass could tell that the person’s skull was flattened by a cradleboard during infancy. As he placed the skull on each table in the restaurant, guests grabbed their cameras and cell phones to take a picture. Melissa Treece posted her photo to Twitter right away.

Dinner with the Bone Doctor 4 - One of the bones came from the neck of a bison. It had a huge hump spine. Dr. Bass compared it to the same bone from the neck of a human. Before the dinner, Susan Seals of the Bone Zones team said to me, “when Dr. Bass holds up the buffalo bone, be sure to mention that they serve bison steaks here at Echo.” When the time came, I grabbed a menu and read aloud: “Bison Strip Steak ‘Denmark,’ broiled to perfection then topped with sautéed shiitake mushrooms, country ham and blue cheese crumbles.”

Dinner with the Bone Doctor 4 - In the past, Dr. Bass has  shown what remains of an artificial hip from a person who was cremated. Last night he showed an artificial hip from someone who decomposed at the Body Farm. The number 31-05D is visible on the pelvis. According to the Body Farm numbering system, the bones came from the 31st body donated in 2005.

Dr. Bass gave a few hints about the next Jefferson Bass novel, “The Inquisitor’s Key,” which will be released on May 8. It involves the Avignon Papacy, the Shroud of Turin and a mysterious set of bones.

January 24, 2012 | Filed Under Body Farm | 1 Comment 

Tattoo U.

Regal Movies retweeted my comment about “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.” I enjoyed the movie and also enjoyed the fact that I knew almost nothing about the thriller’s plot in advance. Unlike most people I know, I haven’t read the any of the books in Stieg Larsson’s Millennium Trilogy, nor have I seen any of the Swedish films starring Noomi Rapace as Lisbeth Salander. I received a few replies on Twitter from people urging me to see the Swedish version. It’s available via both Xfinity On Demand and Amazon Instant Video.

I was impressed with Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara as Mikael and Lisbeth. I’m not sure why but I especially liked the way Mikael let his eyeglasses dangle under his chin when he was deep in thought. I was also able to forget that Craig is a great James Bond.

Mara impressed me with her intensity and her Swedish accent. I am also intrigued by her family. Two of her great-grandfathers are Art Rooney and Tim Mara, the founders of the Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Giants, respectively. One of her aunts, Bridget Rooney, went to the same school as my sister. One of her uncles, Frank Mara, went to the same school as me.

January 4, 2012 | Filed Under Uncategorized | Leave a Comment 

The Brew Crew

Kim Leslie came down the stairs as soon as I arrived at the Smoky Mountain Brewery. Lauren, the manager on duty, smiled and said she had given Kim one of the same buzzers used to tell patrons their table was ready. When I gave my name at the hostess stand, Lauren activated the buzzer.

I’ve known Kim for years. We worked at different Washington radio stations but had mutual friends. She is now on the air in Nashville. When I read on Facebook that her family was on their way to a vacation in Gatlinburg, I suggested that they have dinner at the Brewery. I had plans to be there for a live video feed on SMOMOtv.com with Taz Cable.

My blogfather, Rich Hailey, and his wife Lissa were also in attendance. I mentioned them as well as a Twitter message I received from Travis Quick, a fan of the Brewery’s Turkey Creek location. Taz and I were on just as the Champs Sports Bowl ended. I was rooting for Knoxville Catholic High School alumnus Harrison Smith, who was playing his last game for Notre Dame. Unfortunately, the Fighting Irish lost but Smith is likely to play again next year in the NFL.

December 30, 2011 | Filed Under Uncategorized | 1 Comment 

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