February 2022 Murfreesboro Pulse by The Murfreesboro Pulse

INSIDE

FELIX CAVALIERE / CALLISTA CLARK / ERIN KINSEY / BONNAROO 2022 / CIRCUIT CIRCUIT / TOASTMASTERS FEBRUARY 2022 / VOL. 17, ISSUE 2 / FREE

FOOD Middle Tennessee’s Source for Art, Entertainment and Culture News

Can’t Stay

SILENT

Sweets for Your Sweet: Bubble Waffles and Ice Cream at Varin's

Can’t Stay

STILL

Heaven Invades Miller Coliseum for Feb. 25 Experience Worship Night

LIVING

Local Family Working Hard to Adopt Ukrainian Teenager at Risk

NATURE

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Contents

ON THE COVER: Experience Community Worship Leader Kyle Elkins Photo Courtesy of Experience Music

10 FEATURES

IN EVERY ISSUE

5 Events

HEAVEN INVADE

Experience Music hosts free Worship Night at Miller Colisium, Feb. 25.

RAINBOW FALLS

Hike an uphill Smoky Mountain trail to take in Rainbow Falls.

CALENDAR Isaiah 117 House Build, MTSU Spring Lecture Series, Sweetheart Dance, Red Light Fashion Show, Habitat Build and more

Sounds

SAVING YEVHEN

A local family is working hard to adopt a Ukranian teen at risk.

MUSIC NOTES Bonnaroo 2022 set for June 16–19. Felix Cavaliere at MTSU on Feb. 23

PARENT ARRESTED

Callista Clark and Erin Kinsey will perform at at Hop Springs Feb. 5.

CONCERTS CALENDAR

Adam Williams is arrested on school property; faces Feb. court date.

FOLLOW THE MONEY

COVID protocol in U.S. schools: school districts are selling students’ liberty for billions.

Art Director: Sarah Mayo Copy Editor: Steve Morley Publisher/Editor in Chief: Bracken Mayo

Advertising: Nneka Sparks

18 Food

RESTAURANT Varin’s Sweet Shop

23 News BUSINESS MOMENTUM Local Toastmasters clubs help to polish speaking skills.

BUSINESS BUZZ Buffalo Wild Wings, Cooper’s at The Mill, Exodus Outdoors, Cedar Glade Brews, Replay Toys and more

LIVE . . . WELL What are you willing to pay? SPORTS TALK Rams to play Super Bowl LVI in home stadium against Bengals, Halftime show goes gangster. NATURE NEWS Winter Wildflowers: Explore the woods and fields for frost flowers.

Opinion

16 Reviews ALBUM Circuit Circuit

ROMANCE FRAUD Be skeptical if online connections request money before meeting.

MOVIE Scream

FREE YOUR CHILDREN School Choice: Are we willing to sell our children for a pittance?

Contributors: Tiffany Boyd, Melissa Coker, A.J. DePriest, Jennifer Durand, Delores Elliott, Jeff England, Bryce Harmon, Laura Lindsay, Blaine Little, Chase Matheson, Ashleigh Newnes, Jay Spight, Andrea Stockard

Copyright © 2022, The Murfreesboro Pulse, 714 W. Main St., #208, Murfreesboro, TN 37129. Proudly owned, operated and published the first Thursday of each month by the Mayo family; printed by Franklin Web Printing Co. The Pulse is a free publication funded by advertisers. Views expressed in the Pulse do not necessarily reflect the views of the publishers. ISSN: 1940-378X

714 W. Main St., Suite 208, Murfreesboro, TN 37129 615-796-6248 To carry the PULSE at your business, or to submit letters, stories and photography: bracken@boropulse.com SIGN UP for the Pulse Weekly Digital Newsletter at BOROPULSE.COM/NEWSLETTER FOLLOW:

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FANTASTIC NEWS—the Illuminati have recognized the genius of your editor! A representative from the group has contacted me by email and invited me to join their illustrious and powerful organization. He promised me the “limelight of fame, riches, powers and security, [to] get recognized in your business, political race, rise to the top in whatever you do, be protected spiritually and physically . . . in a twinkle of an eye!” Yes! Good fortune has come my way at last. The Illuminati is, of course, very, very selective about those they invite into the society. Now, I get a lot of spam, but I have become savvy at recognizing the bogus messages and scams. This smells totally legit in my book. I replied promptly with my bank account routing information, social security number and all sorts of other personal and business details so the group can better get to know me. Things are looking up for Bracken Mayo. Those observing the local live music scene over the past couple of years may have noticed that a good chunk of the major shows are cover bands and tribute acts. On one hand, I get it. I, and many other music fans, enjoy hearing the music of Tom Petty, Journey, The Grateful Dead, The Beatles, Sublime, Pearl Jam, Queen, The Allman Brothers Band, Hank Jr., KISS, Metallica, AC/DC, Fleetwood Mac (all tribute acts that have performed in the Murfreesboro area over the past few months) and all the greats of yesteryear. It was also kind of cool, though, being a fan of an active band as the original group itself was releasing new material. That would be neat again—to be a fan of a major rock band that has a new album out and is playing concerts. Can you name five rock bands that started after 2000 that you think someone else may have heard of? Can you name one . . . ? Lars may have been right. The unfettered sharing of recorded music among fans may have helped lead to the demise of the rock ’n’ roll superstar. Hey, I was there. I was one of them, burning CDs and downloading music all night long in the late ’90s. “Shut up, Lars,” we would say. “Don’t be greedy. You’re a millionaire. There’s plenty of money to go around. We’ll still buy concert tickets.” But concert tickets skyrocketed, partially to compensate for the loss in revenue tied to recorded music. And many, who perhaps could have been a part of wonderfully creative rock bands for decades to come, just did not have a significant financial incentive to pursue rock music as a career. Enjoy Tool and the Foo Fighters while they are still a thing. Popular music will continue to evolve, and there will surely be a wealth of creative people making all manner of art forever and ever. But, and this is not breaking news, the golden era of the rock band may have reached its peak. Evidently, sharing photos of those with whom you disagree politically or clicking some funny emoji on a family photo of someone when you have no further logical or reasonable points to make has become a practice for multiple social media users. Strange. I am not the biggest user of social media but I have seen this occur a few times recently—someone gets upset about a post another user makes and, instead of replying with words that make sense, shares the other person’s profile image or gets their friends to “laugh” at a family photo, like that is supposed to be hurtful or embarrassing or a good comeback or something . . . a bizarre practice. I do try and remain available and willing to talk through important social issues, and I hope most other Americans can do the same.

Peace, BRACKEN MAYO Publisher/Editor in Chief

EVENTS CALENDAR  FEBRUARY 2022  BY ANDREA STOCKARD THROUGH FEB. 6

FEB. 10

SMYRNA FLAG FOOTBALL SIGNUPS

MTSU UNITY LUNCHEON

Smyrna Parks & Recreation offers ﬂag football for boys and girls ages 7–13 with games beginning Saturday, March 19, at Lee Victory Recreation Park (110 Sam Ridley Pkwy E., Smyrna). Signup deadline is Sunday, Feb. 6. The cost is $75 per player, and includes a jersey and ﬂag belt. To register, visit townofsmyrna.org or contact kyle.mooney@townofsmyrna.org.

FEB. 3 WORLD WETLANDS DAY WALK Celebrate World Wetlands Day on Thursday, Feb. 3, from 9 a.m.–noon with a wetlands walk. Meet at Murfree Spring wetland (460 SE Broad St.) and learn what a wetland area is and why they are so important. Hopefully you can catch a glimpse of the river otters among other various creatures living there. The cost is free; registration is recommended by calling 615-217-3017 oe emailing lrosser@murfreesborotn.gov.

FEB. 3 WHO IS HIBERNATING? Feel some animal pelts and learn cool biofacts while discussing the different ways that animals survive in the cold at the Wilderness Station (401 Volunteer Rd.) on Thursday, Feb. 3, from 9 a.m.–noon, and find out who is slumbering through winter in Tennessee. Meet Gilbert, the resident education opossum. Ages 4 and up are welcome. The cost is free; registration is recommended by calling 615-217-3017 or emailing lrosser@murfreesborotn.gov.

FEB. 4 FIRST FRIDAYS WITH C.A.T. CHOREOGRAPHY C.A.T. Choreography offers two fun and free hip-hop classes every first Friday of the month (Feb. 4, March 4). Dancers ages 8 and up are welcome to bust a move from 4–5 p.m. at Patterson Park Community Center (521 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.). For more information, call 615-893-7439 or email cellis@murfreesborotn.gov.

FEB. 5 HANDMADE MARKET ODell Markets announces its all-handmade

FEB. 5 HELP BUILD HOPE FOR ISAIAH 117 HOUSE Isaiah 117 House of Rutherford County partners with Help Build Hope for a build event. On Saturday, Feb. 5, from 8 a.m.–1 p.m. at the Lane Agri-Park Community Center these two nonprofits will join forces with community members to build the framing walls for the Isaiah 117 House. This is an event for the whole community with ages 5 and up, and all abilities welcome. Professional builders will guide participants to properly build the walls for the home. If you can swing a hammer, you can help. The purpose of Isaiah 117 House is to provide physical and emotional support in a safe and loving home for children awaiting foster care placement. Register in advance for the build at helpbuildhope.com/isaiah117rc. For more information on Isaiah 117 House of Rutherford County, email rutherfordtn@isaiah117house.com. craft fair Saturday, Feb. 5, from 10 a.m.–4 p.m. at Mid TN Expo Center (1660 Middle Tennessee Blvd.). The fair includes more than 80 local artisan vendors, handmade items (no direct sales/resales), full-service food vendors and door prizes for the first customers (get there early to beat the line). Admission and parking is free; vendors take cash and card. For more information, find ODell Markets on Facebook.

FEB. 8 BUSINESS AFTER HOURS Lanes, Trains & Automobiles Entertainment Depot will host the February Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours on Tuesday, Feb. 8, from 4:30–6:30 p.m. The Chamber presents this informal, social networking event to connect business professionals from across Rutherford County. Bring plenty of business cards. Admission is $10 for Chamber of Com-

merce members and $20 for future members. Lanes, Trains & Automobiles is located at 450 Butler Dr.

FEB. 9 LIVING SENT MINISTRIES MURFREESBORO MEETING The February 2022 Living Sent Murfreesboro meeting will be Wednesday, Feb. 9, from 11:45 a.m.–1 p.m. at the Experience (521 Old Salem Rd.). Don Day is a man who has made a difference throughout his life, from his days in the U.S. military to his successful business life. Day speaks about how to be a person of action, not reaction. Eric White shares his God story. White spends his life helping people reach their full potential in health, business, faith and relationships. A complimentary lunch will be provided by Momentum Seminars. To RSVP or for more information, email bob.williams@alhambrapartners.com.

MTSU’s Unity Luncheon will honor five Middle Tennessee “unsung heroes” who’ve served their communities faithfully. A traditional part of the university’s Black History Month events, the 2022 luncheon is set for 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 10, on the second ﬂoor of the MTSU Student Union Ballroom, 1768 MTSU Blvd. Keeping its familiar theme of Where There Is Unity, There Is Strength, the luncheon will feature keynote speaker Sekou Franklin, Ph.D., MTSU professor of political science and international relations. This year’s Unity Luncheon honorees and their categories of recognition include: Education — Elma McKnight, retired Murfreesboro City Schools educator; Excellence in Sports — Thomas Keith, longtime volunteer track and field coach; Advocate of Civility — Carl E. Watkins, retired Murfreesboro police captain, youth volunteer; Community Service — Melbra Simmons, True Blue TV office coordinator and Tennessee Girls in STEM Conference committee member; Commitment to Black Arts — Robert Orr Jr., Murfreesboro artist. The Unity Luncheon is $20 for students and $35 for nonstudents. For more information, contact daniel.green@mtsu.edu. Purchase Unity Luncheon tickets at bit.ly/mtunity22.

FEB. 10 TODDLER ADVENTURES AT CANNONSBURGH: HAPPY HEARTS Celebrate Valentine’s Day at Cannonsburgh Village (312 S. Front St.) on Thursday, Feb. 10. Kids enjoy heart-themed games, crafts, and story time from 10–11 a.m. Admission is $3 per person. Make a reservation by calling 615-801-2606 or emailing mbnevills@murfreesborotn.gov. Ages 5 and under are welcome.

FEB. 10 LADIES NIGHT AT FLEET FEET The annual Ladies Night at Fleet Feet Murfreesboro (544 N. Thompson Ln., Unit C) is Thursday, Feb 10. Come out for a great evening with friends and after-hours shopping, mingling, food, wine and giveaways. CONTINUED ON PAGE 6 BOROPULSE.COM

* FEBRUARY 2022 * 5

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5 Vendors will be onsite with special gifts and event discounts for a fun night. For $5, receive 10 rafﬂe tickets to use for giveaways. For more information, find Ladies Night Murfreesboro at runsignup.com.

with the latest trends for all sizes and ages. Enjoy live performances from upcoming local artists. Streetz 99.3 will host the night. Shop with vendors from 3–5 p.m. The red carpet and VIP area opens at 5 p.m. with the fashion show at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 12, is the Red Light District Pop-Up Show at 1630 South Church St., Suite 119, from noon–6 p.m. Bring the family out to browse while enjoying music from DJ Reezy as well as food vendors, jewelry, clothes, bounce areas and photographers. Sunday, Feb. 13, is The Red Light Auction, also at 1630 South Church St., from 2–5 p.m. The Model Plug In presents a first silent auction for the designers, where participants can bid on clothing, shoes, jewelry and more from the fashion show. Light food is served at the auction with champagne. Admission to the pop-up show and auction is free. For tickets to the Friday event at the Walnut House, find The Red Light Edition event on Eventbrite. For more information on the event, email themodelplugin@gmail.com.

FEB. 11 SAFARI PET RESORT’S SUPER PUPPY BOWL Dogs of all ages and sizes are invited to huddle up for Safari’s Annual Super Puppy Bowl on Friday, Feb. 11, in Doggie Day Camp at Safari Pet Resort (1635 Lascassas Pk.) at 10 a.m. Game-day activities include Hot Dog Huddle, Furry Field Goal Relay, Touchdown Tail Wag, Bow Wow “Brew,” Milk Bones & Dip, and Game Time Online Photo Album. Game day activities and treats are included in the pup’s full or half-day of day camp. Socialization and vaccination guidelines apply. No reservation is necessary if the pet is registered and has passed the evaluation. Admission is $35. For more information, call 615-890-3732 or visit safaripetresort.com.

FEB. 11 LOVE NOTES: A NIGHT OF BIG BAND MUSIC Romance is in the air as the Tennessee Philharmonic Orchestra celebrates Valentine’s Day by performing Love Notes, a big-band concert, on Friday, Feb. 11, at 7 p.m. at Belle Aire Baptist Church (1307 N. Rutherford Blvd.). Do something different and give your sweetheart the sound of jazz presented by some of Nashville’s top musicians performing in the ’Boro. The talented Kelli Cox, Bryan Cumming and M.C. Potts will deliver timeless classics such as “’Deed I Do,” “It Had to Be You” and “Love Is Here to Stay.” This concert celebrates the most inﬂuential American songs and jazz standards from the 1920s to 1950s. Reserve tickets at tnphil.org, on Eventbrite or by calling 615-898-1862.

FEB. 11 COLOR THE RUNWAY FASHION SHOW The Color the Runway Fashion Show is among the highlights of the MTSU Black History Month celebration. The fashion show will be from 7–9 p.m. Friday, Feb. 11, at the MTSU Student Union Building. For more information on MTSU Black History Month activities and a full calendar of events, visit mtsu.edu/aahm.

FEB. 11 ART EXHIBIT: SEVEN DECADES, FIVE CONTINENTS, ONE EYE RECEPTION 6 * FEBRUARY 2022 * BOROPULSE.COM

FEB. 12 DADDY DAUGHTER DANCE Philip Phillips

MONDAYS MTSU HONORS SPRING LECTURE SERIES MTSU Political Economy Research Institute Director Dan Smith has helped MTSU become the recipient of rare books and manuscripts on loan from The Remnant Trust for University Honors College students to utilize in conjunction with the annual Spring Lecture Series. The valuable books and papers include The Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius, Machiavelli’s The Prince, Bibles, Sir Isaac Newton’s The Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy, Thomas Paine’s Common Sense and more for a lecture series called Exegesis. Lectures are at 3 p.m. every Monday through April 4 (except March 7) in the Honors Room 106 (1737 Blue Raider Dr.). February lectures include The Bible in America with John Vile on Feb. 7, Doing Biblical Exegesis During the Biblical Era with Rebekka King on Feb. 14, The Heresies and Heroics of Heliocentrism with Eric Klumpe on Feb. 21 and Dante, Poet of Exile and Redemption with Philip Phillips on Feb. 28. The lectures are free and open to the public. For more information, visit mtsu.edu/honors/lecture-series or call 615-494-7767. Walter LeCroy’s interest in photography began at an early age and has remained a lifelong passion. In the mid-1940s, at around age 10, he began to develop his own film, making contact prints using a ﬂashlight inside a ruby-colored water glass. As a teenager in Decatur, Alabama, his pictures of newsworthy happenings around the city appeared in the Decatur Daily and the Birmingham News, occasionally making the front page. Throughout his career, Walter traveled the world for business and personal interest, continuing to photograph everything that captured his imagination. He became particularly drawn to forms and patterns, both in black and white and color, and to what he calls “the world of the small”—above the microscopic level, but

Daddies (or father figures) and daughters can come out and spend time together with music, food, fun and dancing on Saturday, Feb. 12, at the Patterson Park Community Center Gym (521 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.) from 6–8 p.m. Girls are invited to bring a dad, uncle, grandpa or any other special father figure. All ages are welcome. Enjoy a red carpet, photo booth and live dance instruction. The cost is $15 per couple and $5 for each additional daughter or person. For more information, call 615-893-1802 or contact pmurray@murfreesborotn.gov.

FEB. 13 VALENTINE PAINT AND SIP!

just below what is clearly visible in daily life. The Walter LeCroy: Seven Decades, Five Continents, One Eye art exhibit remains on display through Feb. 24 at City Hall Rotunda (111 W. Vine St.). A reception is Friday, Feb. 11, from 6–7:30 p.m. For more information, call 615-543-0952 or email lbrowning@murfreesborotn.gov. For more on the artist, visit walterlecroy.com.

Enjoy time with friends or your boo Sunday, Feb. 13, at Nirvana Bar & Lounge (1432 Memorial Blvd.) on Sunday, Feb. 13, from 1–4 p.m. with host Brittney Fowler. This is not a couples-only event. Grab your friends and come paint and sip, listen to great music and have some fun. A paint instructor will be onsite to assist with painting. Purchase last-minute Valentine’s gifts from the vendors. Brunch and bottomless mimosas will be available for purchase. For more information, find the event on Eventbrite.

FEB. 11–13

FEB. 14 AND 28

THE RED LIGHT EDITION FASHION SHOW

NASP MURFREESBORO NETWORKING EVENT

The Model Plug In (TMPI) presents The Red Light Edition weekend at The Walnut House (116 N. Walnut St.) beginning Friday, Feb. 11, at 3 p.m. The event includes The Red Light Silhouette Fashion Show, featuring designers

The Nashville Association of Sales Professionals hosts its Murfreesboro networking event the second and fourth Monday of each month (Feb. 14 and 28) in the Burger Bar Restaurant in The Doubletree by Hilton

 Send community event information to CONTACT@BOROPULSE.COM

(1850 Old Fort Pkwy.) with networking starting at 11 a.m. and the meeting at 11:30 a.m. NASP is a professional nonprofit organization that provides a positive forum for skill enhancement training and networking for career sales people. Learn how to become a more polished and successful sales professional by improving your presentation and enhancing your people skills. Everyone from new sales professionals to seasoned road warriors are invited to attend. For more information, visit nashville-nasp.org.

FEB. 19 LOYD ELMORE JR. BOOK SIGNING AT LINEBAUGH

FEB. 14 AND 28 SNAKE FEEDING AT WILDERNESS STATION Learn all about snake adaptations and how they swallow their food whole while watching a live demonstration of the educational snakes getting fed at Wilderness Station at Barfield Crescent Park (401 Volunteer Rd.) on Mondays, Feb. 14 and 28, from 11–11:30 a.m. The event is free and there is no registration. For more information, contact dthomas@murfreesborotn.gov or call 615-217-3017.

FEB. 15 POETRY SOCIETY CONTEST DEADLINE The Poetry Society of Tennessee reminds everyone of its upcoming Student Poetry Contest deadline on Tuesday, Feb. 15, for the elementary division (grades 2–5) and eye poems (all divisions, grades 2–12). Elementary division students may submit poems on any subject, in any form. For the eye poem contest, an eye poem is a poetic collage of visual and verbal imagery. Students combine images from magazine pages with words, phrases and clauses on a single page to create a free-verse poem. The objective is to create a mood or inspiration. Learn more and see examples at poetreytennessee.org under Eye Poems. Students, teachers, home school organizations, clubs, libraries and creative writing groups are all encouraged to participate. For more information on the organization, email poetrytennessee@gmail.com. The contest is open to all Tennessee residents. For more information including full details, formatting requirements and submission methods, visit poetrysocietytennessee.com or contact seth.grindstaff@sullivank12.net.

FEB. 17 HOMESCHOOL DAY AT CANNONSBURGH VILLAGE In the past, more people communicated through letter writing. Talk about the main parts of a letter, write to a friend and visit the post office in the general store at

FEB. 14 SWEETHEART DANCE WITH SIX STRING REVOLVER Love is in the air! The Six String Revolver Band helps celebrate Valentine’s Day at the St. Clair Senior Center (325 St. Clair St., Room 105) on Monday, Feb. 14, from 2–5 p.m., Bring your special someone and dance the evening away. Light refreshments will be served. For more information, call 615-848-2550 or contact kherod@murfreesborotn.gov. Cannonsburgh Village (312 S. Front St.) on Thursday, Feb. 17, for Homeschool Day from 1–2 p.m. Admission is $3 per person. Reservations are required by Thursday, Feb. 10. Call 615-801-2606 or email mbnevills@murfreesborotn.gov for reservations. Ages 8 and over are welcome.

Carmen’s Taqueria will host the February 2022 installment of The Connection: An Evening of Professional Networking and Business Brainstorming from 5–7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 17. All Middle Tennessee entrepreneurs and professionals are welcome to attend this casual, free, no-obligation event, where they can meet other small business owners and tap into one another’s experience and energy. Carmen’s is located at 206 W. Northfield Blvd.

Rotary Clubs come together for a common mission of building affordable housing for Rutherford County residents. Ages 14 and up can participate. Rotarians can sign up with their Rotary Club for 1-hour shifts and work hand in hand with other Rotarians as well as the Habitat Future Homeowner, Alexandria. Afterwards, walls are moved to RCHFH’s Legacy Pointe subdivision community on Twin Oak Drive, and construction starts on Wednesday, Feb. 23. In addition to seeing the walls laid out and “touring” the house with Alexandria, volunteers write words of encouragement and congratulations on the wall studs. This house construction is funded by a donation honoring Norman “Tricky” Ross McDowell. A grant from General Mills, as well as proceeds from Hammer Down for Habitat and Cookin’ to Build help with additional building costs. For more information, call 615-890-5877 or email rchfh.org.

FEB. 19

ROTARY BUILDS PANEL BUILD FOR HABITAT

PATTERSON PARK INDOOR TRIATHLON

Join the Rutherford County Area Habitat for Humanity and the three Rotary Clubs of Rutherford County for the third annual Rotary Builds Habitat Panel Build on Saturday, Feb. 19, from 9 a.m.–2 p.m., at the Lane Agri-Park (315 John Rice Blvd.). Over 100 volunteers from the Rotary Club of Smyrna, The Rotary Club of Murfreesboro and the Murfreesboro Breakfast Rotary Club build all the exterior and interior wall panels for a Habitat house in just five hours. This is the third time all three

Participants swim, bike and run this fun triathlon using the indoor pool, stationary bikes and the indoor track at Patterson Park Community Center (521 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.) on Saturday, Feb. 19, from 8 a.m.–1 p.m. Winners will be announced at the conclusion of the event. The cost to join is $25. Participants will swim 500 yards in the indoor pool, bike 12 miles on a stationary bike and run 3 miles on the indoor track. For more information, call 615-893-7439 ext. 6117 or email rbrady@murfreesborotn.gov.

FEB. 17 THE CONNECTION AT CARMEN’S

Linebaugh Public Library (105 W. Vine St.) hosts local author Loyd Elmore Jr. for a book signing on Saturday, Feb. 19, from noon–2 p.m. Elmore signs and sells copies of his newest book, Malinville, published in November, 2021. He also has copies of his earlier book, The Spaces Between Spaces. Malinville is an adventure on a large and small scale. The story is about a man named Felix who feels utterly alone and without purpose in life. What he doesn’t know is . . . he’s never been alone. This book makes readers realize size doesn’t matter. Born in Fort Worth, Texas, and raised in Murfreesboro, Elmore discovered Steven Spielberg movies, Rod Serling TV shows and Stephen King books in his preteens. Those media helped feed his imagination and formed the passion to create his own worlds with words, but it wasn’t until middle age that he found the courage to turn his passion into reality. For more information, call 615-893-4131 or visit rclstn.org.

FEB. 19 GALENTINES WOMENS EVENT Woman can come together and receive the love they deserve at a Galentines event at Gallagher Unplugged. Come brunch, mingle and make friends with entertainment, mimosas, an open bar, free giveaways, fun activities and a photo booth on Saturday, Feb. 19, from 1–4 p.m. at Gallagher Unplugged (118 S. Walnut St.). Money raised benefits small businesses and independent artists in the community. The dress code is “The First Date” dress attire and Valentine’s Day colors. Everyone attending is encouraged to sign up. For more information, find the Galentines Womens Event on Eventbrite.

FEB. 19 VETERANS NIGHT OUT VFW Post 4575 invites veterans to come out and spend time meeting other Veterans from the Rutherford County area on Saturday, Feb. 19, from 3:45–5:45 p.m. at 60 Minute Escape (167 Mall Circle Dr.). For more information, find the Veterans Night Out event on Eventbrite.

FEB. 24 CROCHET GRANNY SQUARES AT CANNONSBURGH Grab a friend and have fun crocheting at Cannonsburgh Village (312 S. Front St.) Thursday, Feb. 24, from 1–3 p.m. Learn to do granny squares and share other project ideas. Admission is $15 per person. Reservations are required and must be received BOROPULSE.COM

* FEBRUARY 2022 * 7

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7 by Thursday, Feb. 17. Ages 18 and over are welcome. The cost to join is $15. Make reservations by contacting 615-801-2606 or mbnevills@murfreesborotn.gov.

& Taphouse (2839 Medical Center Pkwy.) for a casual networking event designed to connect professionals, build relationships, drive referrals and help grow businesses. Please prepare a 60-second pitch about who you are and what you do, as well as a specific referral request for attendees on what can be done to help promote your business. The approximately 20 minutes at the end of each meeting is reserved for members to set up one-on-ones and socialize. For more information or directions, visit connectnashvillenetworking.com/events.

FEB. 24 AIM FOR A PURPOSE SHOOTING COMPETITION AND FUNDRAISER Aim for a Purpose is the first fundraising event at the new Outpost Armory (1132 Beasie Rd.) on Thursday, Feb. 24, from 5:30–8 p.m. with the Barret .50 caliber experience auction beginning at 5:30 p.m. Liberty’s Station presents the unique shooting competition. Experience the handgun shooting competition, a shooting simulator, and the opportunity to shoot a Barrett .50 caliber. All proceeds benefit Liberty’s Station, a progressive workforce pipeline focusing on those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, physical disabilities or other employment barriers. Employees are assessed, trained and gain work experience to then confidently acquire long-term community employment. Gun enthusiasts and those new to the sport are welcome; limited spots are available for the competition. Spectators can purchase a ticket at the door for $10. Visit libertysstationtn.org to register or find Liberty Station TN on Facebook or LinkedIn. For more information, email fueledbypotential@gmail.com.

FEB. 25 CYBER SECURITY, UNIFIED COMMUNICATIONS LUNCH AND LEARN Learn how to protect your business with cyber security awareness and how to save time and money through efficient communications with a free lunch and learn on Cyber Security and Unified Communications presented by Eagle Communications. Murfreesboro Strike & Spare (1720 Old Fort Pkwy. #2002) hosts the session on Friday, Feb. 25, from 11 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Insurance agencies, mortgage companies, real estate agencies, medical, financial, and small business owners can greatly benefit. Cyber security problems are on the rise for businesses and those who work from home offices. Learn about keeping your customer information safe. Integrate unified communications and streamline your sales process while communicating more effectively with your internal and external contacts. Share information and streamline collaboration securely. Arrive at 11 a.m. for check-in and open networking. Lunch is served at 11:25 a.m. (choice of meal is in the registration). Training starts at 11:30 a.m. sharp with a Q&A at 12:15 p.m. Registration is required. For 8 * FEBRUARY 2022 * BOROPULSE.COM

TUESDAYS/THURSDAYS RAPTOR RHAPSODY

FEB. 24 SHOWTIME AT THE APOLLO The Showtime at the Apollo student talent content is among the highlights of the MTSU Black History Month celebration. The talent show will be from 5–6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 24, at MTSU Tucker Theatre. For more information on MTSU Black History Month activities and a full calendar of events, visit mtsu.edu/aahm. more information, find the Cyber Security – Unified Communications Lunch & Learn by Eagle Communications event on Eventbrite, or email ron@eaglecommunications.net.

FEB. 26 NATURE IN THE WILD ART SHOW Local art inspired by nature is on display and for sale during the all-day art show and fair at the Wilderness Station (401 Volunteer Rd.) Saturday, Feb. 26. Art demonstrations are performed throughout the day from 10 a.m.–4 p.m. All ages are welcome, and it is free to join. Tables are available for artists with nature-related artwork or paintings or nature-related craftspeople such as woodworkers and clay artists. The cost is $25 for a table. For more information, call 615-217-3017 or email dthomas@murfreesborotn.gov.

FEB. 26 CREATED EQUAL: FREE FILM AND DISCUSSION Created Equal: Tennessee Legacy Film Series presents Freedom Riders, a documentary and discussion, from noon–3 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 26, at the Washington Theater at Patterson Park Community Center (521 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.). Admission is free. The moderator is Carolyn Lester and sponsors include Washington Family Foundation, City of Murfreesboro and MTSU Office of Intercultural and Diversity Affairs. For more

information, call 615-962-8773 or email vstembridge@murfreesborotn.gov.

FEB. 26

Have you ever looked an owl in the eye or checked out a falcon’s wings? Meet the Wilderness Station’s (401 Volunteer Rd.) educational screech owl and American kestrel up close and learn about these master predators of the sky on Tuesdays, Feb. and 22, and Thursdays Feb. 3 and 17 from 4–5 p.m. There is no cost to join; registration is recommended by calling 615-217-3017. For more information, contact dthomas@murfreesborotn.gov. All ages are welcome.

WEDNESDAYS

MUSIC IN THE WILD

BORO 2 SQUARE RUNNING GROUP

Cold, dark, wintry nights getting you down? Enjoy live music inside the warmth of the Wilderness Station (401 Volunteer Rd.) on Saturday, Feb. 26, from 6–8 p.m. Tipton County Travelers will play all kinds of tunes, from Americana and folk to rockabilly, country and even a little bluegrass. No registration is required, and all ages are welcome free of charge. For more information, call 615-217-3017 or email dthomas@murfreesborotn.gov.

The Boro 2 Square running group meets at Mayday Brewery (521 Old Salem Rd.) every Wednesday at 6 p.m. The group welcomes runners of all paces and all individuals looking to get out and run and socialize with other runners. Normal run distances are between 3 and 5 miles. Participants are welcome to hang out and socialize at Mayday following the run. For more information on the Boro 2 Square group, visit facebook.com/boro2square.

FEB. 28

SUNDAYS

BLACK HISTORY MONTH KEYNOTE

SHOP. COOK. EAT. WITHIN YOUR BUDGET

Dr. Jackie Walters, a cast member of Bravo’s Married to Medicine, will deliver the keynote address for MTSU’s Black History Month celebration at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 28, in the Student Union Building. Walters, an obstetrician-gynecologist and two-time breast cancer survivor, practices at Comprehensive Women’s OB/GYN in Duluth and Dunwoody, Georgia. For more information on MTSU Black History Month activities and a full calendar of events, visit mtsu.edu/aahm.

Participate in a four-week series for the month of February at Linebaugh Public Library (105 W. Vine St.). Shop. Cook. Eat. Within Your Budget, led by the Rutherford County Extension, is at 2 p.m. every Sunday in February in the Linebaugh Conference Room. Each week’s installment focuses on ways to shop smarter and cheaper while cooking great meals. In this time of increasing prices, it’s a great opportunity to get help in meeting your family’s needs while having fun, too. This free series includes special giveaways each week for participants. For more information, visit rclstn.org and click on the calendar or call 615-893-4131.

MONDAYS CONNECT MURFREESBORO Join Connect Murfreesboro each Monday from 9–10 a.m. at BoomBozz Craft Pizza

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Wednesday, March 2 • 10 a.m.—7 p.m. Friday, March 4 • 10 a.m.—7 p.m. Thursday, March 3 • 10 a.m.—7 p.m. Saturday, March 5 • 8 a.m.—2 p.m.

ITEMS ARE GENTLY USED AND PRICED WAY BETTER THAN RETAIL! MANY ITEMS HALF PRICE ON SATURDAY!

Everything from maternity to baby to kid to teen. Also household items and decor. Consign with us! Visit

www.PACCS.net to sign up, or call 615-243-7089 for guidance

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Sounds

Read more about local music at

boropulse.com/category/music

J. COLE, TOOL, STEVIE NICKS TO HEADLINE BONNAROO 2022 SET FOR JUNE 16–19 BONNAROO HAS ANNOUNCED ITS 2022 LINEUP and, as is the tradition, the slate of performers includes a wide variety of musical artists. J. Cole, Tool and Stevie Nicks will serve as Friday, Saturday and Sunday night headliners, respectively, and the event, set for June 16—19, will also include rap from Ludacris, 21 Savage and Machine Gun Kelly; electronic music from Flume, Illenium and Gryffin; jazz from Herbie Hancock and Sons of Kemet; rock bands Lord Huron, The War on Drugs and Puscifer (Tool vocalist Maynard James Keenan’s other group); jam/ funk music from Lettuce and Pigeons Playing Ping Pong; TOOL guitar phenom Billy Strings, Zeppelin singer Robert Plant with sometime-duo partner Alison Krauss and many others. The 2022 installment of the Manchester, Tennessee, festival will be the first since 2019, if all goes according to plan. HERBIE HANCOCK FLUME As of early February, festival organizers have not announced any official requirements for attendees to produce medical records or wear facial coverings to gain entry to the grounds, but they did warn that “preventative health measures may be required for this show.” General admission tickets for the weekend started at $299 but will soon increase to $370. Parking is not included in the ticket price; parking in the camping area for the weekend starts at $70 per vehicle. For tickets and more information, visit bonnaroo.com.

12 * FEBRUARY 2022 * BOROPULSE.COM

MUSIC NOTES

FELIX CAVALIERE

MTSU FREE SPEECH CENTER CELEBRATES RASCALS’ FELIX CAVALIERE WITH AWARD, FREE CONCERT FEB. 23 FELIX CAVALIERE, a founding member of legendary rock band The Rascals, will be honored with the Free Speech in Music Award on Wednesday, Feb. 23, a night of music and celebration at MTSU. Presented by the Free Speech Center at MTSU in partnership with the university’s Center for Popular Music and College of Media and Entertainment, the honor recognizes artists who have used their talents, fame and visibility to address important social issues and who have demonstrated the power of music as a form of free speech. Cavaliere will receive the award at 7 p.m. Feb. 23, in Tucker Theatre, located inside MTSU’s Boutwell Dramatic Arts Auditorium, 615 Champion Way. The evening, which is free and open to the public, will include a conversation between Cavaliere and Ken Paulson, director of the Free Speech Center, and a special appearance by the artist’s current touring band, Felix Cavaliere’s Rascals. The discussion will also preview Cavaliere’s autobiography, Memoir of a Rascal: From Pelham, NY to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. “Felix Cavaliere has contributed so much through his music and engagement with American society,” Paulson said. “From the anthemic 1968 hit ‘People Got to Be Free’ to his early commitment to onstage diversity to years of supporting important causes, Felix has lived his lyrics.” Cavaliere, who now lives in Nashville, is a member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (with The Rascals), the Songwriters Hall of Fame, Vocal Group Hall of Fame and Musicians Hall of Fame. His career with The Rascals (originally known as The Young Rascals) featured four No. 1 hits, including their first, 1966’s “Good Lovin’,” and “People Got to Be Free” in 1968. Both featured Cavaliere’s distinctive lead vocals and Hammond B-3 organ. The band also stood up for civil rights, refusing to perform on segregated tours and Cavaliere has long been a supporter of U.S. military veterans and their families. He has performed for a wide range of causes, recently in support of Stop Soldier Suicide, Alice Cooper’s Solid Rock teen centers, hospice care and a film on an AM radio pioneer.

NASHVILLE RADIO STATION 103.3 COUNTRY/WKDF is once again dialing in another fun-loving free-for-all for Murfreesboro music lovers with an event series quickly becoming infamous for just that—being free. For all. Headliner of Hop Springs’s Feb. 5 Pickin’ Party, Callista Clark, is an artist with lots of spark—and the industry-buzz-stirring 18-year-old singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist brings a fair share of snark, too. So hark! If you come across her “It’s ’Cause I Am” video—currently in heavy rotation on both of CMT’s cable channels and their Hot 20 Countdown—you’ll be greeted with a scene-setting scenario of a song lead-in which consists of Clark in a car with a guy of whom she casually inquires: “So . . . you wanna listen to some music or something?” Said guy’s reply is less than welcomed, as he considers the question and returns with: “Actually . . . I don’t really like music.” Clark clearly is not thrilled with this astonishing conclusion, cueing the opening of the song’s first verse. You wish that I was simple But I’ll never be that Thinking that I think too much and I talk too fast The tune and beat go on to throw punchy lines like might be born in the same year, but boy we ain’t the same age and might be reading the same book, but we ain’t on the same page. Clark is otherwise setting herself apart by recently opening on Chris Young’s Famous Friends tour. In March, she’s set to head overseas for dates in London and Germany. So, now is the time to catch her locally. Her debut EP, Real to Me, is available now. Pickin’ Party opener and dynamic vocalist Erin Kinsey creates soulful lyrics and, oh, skillfully plays seven instruments. She’s also a songwriter who co-penned “PINK,” a hopeful stance against breast cancer recorded as a collaboration by Dolly Parton, Rita Wilson, Sara Evans, Jordin Sparks and Monica. Her co-written, keep-the-wheels-turning plea “Just Drive” has surpassed 12 million Spotify streams, and her brand-new album (releasing one day before the Party) is titled Hate This Hometown. However, that hometown is in Texas and the title track is about moving to Nashville. So relax, and don’t take it personally. (Especially since the song’s twist is you make it hard to hate this hometown—Kinsey is actually less full of hate for any state and much more full of whimsy). “Her vivacious spirit comes through in all that she touches,” said Creative Artist Agency’s Rod Essig of Kinsey. The free 103.3 Pickin’ Party featuring Callista Clark and Erin Kinsey is Saturday, Feb. 5, at 5 p.m. at Hop Springs Beer Park, 6790 John Bragg Hwy. For more information visit 1033country.com. — MELISSA COKER BOROPULSE.COM

PHOTO BY SARAH KAUSS

CALLISTA CLARK, ERIN KINSEY PLAY FEB. 5 103.3 COUNTRY PICKIN’ PARTY AT HOP SPRINGS

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CONCERTS WED, 2/2 HANK’S HONKY TONK Alexis Taylor MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Cedric Quinn

THURS, 2/3 HANDLEBARS Thursday Blues Jam HANK’S HONKY TONK Becki McLeod MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING MTSU Jazz Artist Series

FRI, 2/4 CARMEN’S TAQUERIA Joe West HANK’S HONKY TONK Delyn Christian HOP SPRINGS Thunderstruck (AC/DC tribute) JACK’S PLACE (MILANO II) Tony Castellanos MAYDAY BREWERY Danielle Cormier MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING David Loucky PUCKETT’S GROCERY The Deltaz

SAT, 2/5 CARMEN’S TAQUERIA Joe West HANK’S HONKY TONK A Slice of American Pie; Michael Keys HOP SPRINGS Callista Clark and Erin Kinsey PUCKETT’S GROCERY Cassidy Daniels

SUN, 2/6 HANK’S HONKY TONK Crosstown HOP SPRINGS Americana Sunday Jam MTSU WRIGHT

MUSIC BUILDING Brady Grippin

MON, 2/7 HANK’S HONKY TONK Open Mic Night

TUES, 2/8 HANK’S HONKY TONK Sir Anthony

WED, 2/9 HANK’S HONKY TONK Robyn Taylor

THURS, 2/10 HANDLEBARS Thursday Blues Jam HANK’S HONKY TONK Cary Watson MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING MTSU Symphonic Band; MTSU Wind Ensemble

FRI, 2/11 BELLE AIRE BAPTIST CHURCH Tennessee Philharmonic Orchestra CARMEN’S TAQUERIA Joe West HANK’S HONKY TONK Lonnie Cook; Jack Finley Band HOP SPRINGS Twilight Train (Neil Diamond tribute) JACK’S PLACE (MILANO II) Tony Castellanos MAYDAY BREWERY Delyn Christian MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Tennessee Valley Winds

SAT, 2/12 CARMEN’S TAQUERIA Joe West HANK’S HONKY TONK Wester; Phil Valdez HOP SPRINGS World Turning Band (Fleetwood Mac tribute)

14 * FEBRUARY 2022 * BOROPULSE.COM

LIVE MUSIC IN THE ’BORO!

MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING MTSU Wind Ensemble PUCKETT’S GROCERY Radio Farm

PUCKETT’S GROCERY Liv Noelle

SAT, 2/19

HANK’S HONKY TONK Open Mic Night MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING MTSU Jazz Combo

CARMEN’S TAQUERIA Joe West HANK’S HONKY TONK The Hammonds; Cooter River Band HOP SPRINGS Vinyl Radio MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING MTSU Symphony Orchestra PUCKETT’S GROCERY Troy Kemp

TUES, 2/15

SUN, 2/20

SUN, 2/13 HOP SPRINGS Americana Sunday Jam MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Chiara Piano duo

MON, 2/14

HANK’S HONKY TONK Will King MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING MTSU Schola (Choral concert)

WED, 2/16 HANK’S HONKY TONK Darryl & Julie O’Donnell MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Gamin and friends (Korean and Chinese music)

THURS, 2/17 HANDLEBARS Thursday Blues Jam HANK’S HONKY TONK Spencer Maige

FRI, 2/18 CARMEN’S TAQUERIA Joe West HANK’S HONKY TONK Liz Bentley; Doc Flannel HOP SPRINGS Smokin’ Peas JACK’S PLACE (MILANO II) Tony Castellanos MAYDAY BREWERY Erin Gibney MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Lindsey Weber

HANK’S HONKY TONK Emily Miller HOP SPRINGS Americana Sunday Jam

MON, 2/21 HANK’S HONKY TONK Open Mic Night MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Stones River Chamber Players

TUES, 2/22 HANK’S HONKY TONK Delyn Christian

WED, 2/23 HANK’S HONKY TONK Phil Valdez MTSU TUCKER THEATRE Felix Cavaliere’s Rascals

THURS, 2/24 HANDLEBARS Thursday Blues Jam HANK’S HONKY TONK Joe Hooper PUCKETT’S GROCERY Jolly String Quartet

FRI, 2/25 CARMEN’S

 ONLINE AT

BOROPULSE.COM/CALENDAR TAQUERIA Joe West HANK’S HONKY TONK Silent Ruckus; Justin Dukes HOP SPRINGS Raygun JACK’S PLACE (MILANO II) Tony Castellanos MAYDAY BREWERY Violet Moons MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Cecilia Smidt PUCKETT’S GROCERY The Road Crew TENNESSEE MILLER COLISEUM Experience Music Worship Night

SAT, 2/26 CARMEN’S TAQUERIA Joe West HANK’S HONKY TONK HunterGirl; Whiskey Smoke HOP SPRINGS The Stolen Faces (Grateful Dead tribute) MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Jason Max Ferdinand Singers; Kaitlin Kessler PUCKETT’S GROCERY Jordan Rainer WILDERNESS STATION The Tipton County Travelers

SUN, 2/27 HANK’S HONKY TONK The O’Donnells HOP SPRINGS Americana Sunday Jam MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Anna South; MTSU Brass Chamber

MON, 2/28 HANK’S HONKY TONK Open Mic Night

If You Go BELLE AIRE BAPTIST CHURCH 1307 N Rutherford Blvd. 615-890-6977 CARMEN’S TAQUERIA

206 W. Northfield Blvd.

615-848-9003

HANDLEBARS 2601 E. Main St. 615-890-5661 HANK’S HONKY TONK 2341 Memorial Blvd. 615-410-7747 HOP SPRINGS 6670 John Bragg Hwy. 615-450-1907 JACK’S PLACE MILANO II 114 E. College St. 615-624-7390 MAYDAY BREWERY 521 Old Salen Rd. 615-603-7699 MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING 1439 Faulkinberry Dr. 615-898-2469 PUCKETT’S GROCERY 114 N. Church St. 629-201-6916 WILDERNESS STATION 401 Volunteer Rd. 615-217-3017 TENNESSEE MILLER COLISEUM 304 W Thompson Ln. 615-494-8461

Reviews

CIRCUIT CIRCUIT Circuit Circuit EP

The Murfreesboro-area punk scene has been burgeoning all over the place with the arrival of several pissed-off, angsty young bands running through The Crossroads Punk House (cXr), with the help of Ethan Rose’s promotional work. It’s a youthful, DIY (apply niche)-core’s fertile stomping grounds around here. Post-hardcore/glitch-metal/math-punk group Circuit Circuit released its four track debut, Circuit Circuit – EP, in 2021, capturing local spirit in thirteen and a half minutes of pure horror. It’s pretty sick. The core duo on the album, Michael Zirnheld (guitars, bass, drum programming, vocals) and Casey Allison (guitars), pulled together at MTSU in 2020, recording the instrumental tracks in Zirnheld’s Scarlett Commons apartment and then taking a year to craft lyrics and record at MT’s Studio C, with Kade Hernandez tapped for additional vocals. The band has been as many as five members strong at its live shows. Instrumentally, “Type Face” teases an easy 8-bit synth intro, first suggesting Horse the Band’s Nintendo-core before Zirnheld and Allison startle the shit out of everyone with shrieking, rapid mini-minor-scale runs up a guitar’s neck, then metal barre chords descending until they find a home in the panic of a horror movie. Blasts of Zirnheld’s thrashing drum programming keep pace with the intensity. As quick as it is, “Type Face” resembles a zealous At the DriveIn feel with the controlled chaos of Atari Teenage Riot. Cracked-out digital oscillations mark transitions between short punk movements of Circuit Circuit’s hyperactive compositions (impressive axe work, sirs). 16 * FEBRUARY 2022 * BOROPULSE.COM

ALBUM Lyrically and vocally, Zirnheln and Hernandez scream-and-respond the age-old saga of a new generation shoving aside the old, described as if the guys translated ancient Japanese proverbs literally: Strap bodies to the ceilings / Let children swat their chests / The man is old in a room of laughs the teenage made. . . . It’s sweet. “Solve” runs a simple Magnus Hammersmith rhythm hard out of the gate, ending its measures in single-gunshot, grunge-fuzz guitar notes and sudden digital audio pauses. A faint, dissonant instrument sounds like another song’s guitar is playing in the background. Lyrically, it’s a song of jealousy that provides a warning to a friend about her toxically masculine prom date. The most popular, and most tampered with, track from Circuit Circuit – EP, “Words of Mouth,” drives out another speedy, multi-directional rhythm that can play you comfortably through a meth high with R2-D2 beeps, RC car suspension stress grinds and more fancy finger-bending. Zirnheld punk-calls and responds, almost scream-rapping at some points. It exhibits a fast-paced metal musicality, but with that “oy! oy!” vocal styling. “Pray” opens even more instrumentally rabid than the rest, as if Circuit Circuit has something to prove, with two high-pitched guitars that never take a breath. Pig squeals (rapidly skritched guitar strings) punctuate the end of some measures, with computerized whirls, blips, glitches and sudden-stop audio pepper throughout. Circuit Circuit changes up this track mid-stream, working in a (And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead-esque) grooving bridge which connects to a climactic final-mansion-fight-scene-score crescendo, still keeping the rhythmic guitar style of Incubus, P.O.D. or something you’d hear in the late ’90s. Circuit Circuit – EP is packed and so insanely composed (there’s seriously a rock opera, or a Godspeed song, compressed in there, if you stretch out any given individual instrument’s audio track in the editor), the speed of Zirnheld and Allison’s guitar work deserves a nodding appreciation for their complex composition skills, completely necessary lightning finger work to execute it, and the memory and attentiveness to keep up with themselves. Circuit Circuit’s Circuit Circuit – EP can be found streaming at circuitcircuitcircuit. bandcamp.com. — BRYCE HARMON

MOVIE

SCREAM (2022) DIRECTORS Matt Bettinelli-Olpin

and Tyler Gillett STARRING Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette RATED R

Scream (2022) claims to be a return to, and reboot of, Scream (1996), when in theory and practice it is little more than Scream 5. Scream (1996) became a huge hit due to its charming, film savvy characters who found themselves unable to avoid the very clichés they mocked. It was both a critique and an exemplar of the slasher genre, but most importantly, it was smart and it was fun. Scream (2022) on the other hand, finds itself mired down in the mythos of itself, sparing little time for real horror films, and focusing instead on the meta franchise within the franchise, Stab, like some horror ouroboros, an infinity loop where we watch Scream about characters who watch Stab about characters who watch Stab about characters who watch . . . The film opens with the classic (tired?) vignette: a teenage girl is home alone and gets a call from a stranger. It’s not mentioned enough how Scream (1996) was the first movie to explore the horror of cell phones. It was no longer “the call is coming from inside the house,” but “the call could be coming from anywhere.” Technology not only made the teen victims smarter, but the killer smarter and scarier too. The only difference in the opening scene in Scream (2022) is that the teen doesn’t like slashers—she prefers what the film mockingly refers to as “elevated” horror—and that she can lock her doors with a phone app. Of course, the killer, berobed in

the same Ghostface costume of the previous four films, has hacked the smart house to be able to control the locks too. Taking the Scream franchise into the 21st century would seem the logical next step, but this opening scene is the only use of such technology, and it’s never explored further. Her house doesn’t even have a doorbell camera for cryin’ out loud. Instead, the killer uses the cell phone like, well, a phone. Scream 4 (2011) toyed with the nascent promise of live-streaming and the proliferation of web and security cams more and better than this movie. In a misguided attempt to get back to its roots (again, Scream 4 already did all of this), Scream (2022) goes back to where it all began, Woodsboro (see Scream 4) and introduces a new crop of young fodder with varying degrees of charisma (see Scream 4) who all have laughable relationships to the characters in the original Scream (1996), while also bringing back the original three: Sydney, Dewey and Gale (see Scream 4). What results is a dour, overstuffed who’s-doin’-it that doesn’t give any of its characters enough time to rouse or disperse suspicion. What little time it does give our gen Z’ers is spent on them discussing the Stab sequels and all but explaining why the very movie you are watching is or is not a good idea, much like The Matrix Resurrections did, giving the film a semblance of self-awareness which the filmmakers believe is justification enough to make the movie (it isn’t). Calling out all the possible critiques that the internet could say about your film does not make your film immune to those critiques. For all the film’s supposed cleverness, it’s not very smart. But it’s biggest crime, what the filmmakers forgot amidst all their reddit-savvy gotchas, is that Scream (2022) just isn’t that fun. — JAY SPIGHT

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M&Ms, pecans and whipped cream. arin’s, located next to The Bangkok “The bubble waffle cones were so yummy Thai Cuisine on Robert Rose Drive, . . . the little bubbles tear off and you can eat is a shop packed with sweets. one with every bite,” Mitsi Parish said folThe smell of waffles greets visitors upon lowing a trip to Varin’s. “Super-fun place.” entering the eatery. Yes, one of Varin’s In addition to the plain bubble waffles, house specialties is a freshly made bubble customers can get chocolate chips or sprinwaffle rolled into a cone shape, placed in kles mixed into the waffle batter, or select a cup and filled with homemade ice cream pandan or taro waffle and various fruits, canvarieties; taro is a tropidies, sauces or cereals. cal root crop similar to a “The bubble waffle potato or yam but with has become trendy,” says RESTAURANT a purple flesh, while the Christina Varin OudomVarin’s Sweet Shop fragrant pandan leaves souk, who owns the shop lend many Asian baked with her mother, Tien. LOCATION 315 Robert Rose Dr., goods a green color. A bubble waffle conSuite A, Murfreesboro “The taro bubble waftains a pattern of large, fle was moist and a little raised spherical bubbles PHONE 615-908-3723 crunchy. It went perfectly rather than the grid of with the ice cream,” ansmall square divots that HOURS other customer, Kaowmark the traditional Mon.–Thurs.: 11 a.m.–8 p.m. Fri.–Sat.: 11 a.m.–9 p.m. waan, reported after a waffle. Otherwise, it’s Sun. 11 a.m.–7 p.m. trip to the sweet shop. similar to the standard Varin’s also offers item, and Varin and her PRICES Bubble waffle with ice cream: a sweet, delicious and “foodie family” are now $7.50; Any flavor regular milk purple taro latte, and bringing the sweet dish, tea with up to two toppings: many other beverage which originated in $4.50; Croffle with ice cream: selections, hot or cold. Hong Kong, to diners in $5; Whole 8-inch pandan These include milk Murfreesboro. cake: $42; Regular Vietnamese iced coffee: $4 teas in flavors such as Try the cookies and mango, honeydew, Thai cream bubble waffle ONLINE tea, matcha, lychee and creation at Varin’s— instagram.com/ varinsweetshop strawberry; fruit teas loaded with cookiesin pineapple, peach, and-cream ice cream, guava, passion fruit and other flavors; Oreos and chocolate sauce—or the fruit party combo that tops vanilla ice cream with creme brûlée coffee, jasmine iced tea, hot chocolate, lattes and more. strawberries, blueberries, banana and kiwi, “The Okinawa [a brown sugar milk tea] all packed inside the fresh waffle. with tapioca pearl was amazing!” Amy Or create your own favorite sweet bubble waffle combination with the various flavors of Huntley said. “Definitely will be back.” Varin’s has all sorts of boba and jelly ice cream and many assorted toppings, from choices to go in the teas as well—passion fruit Fruity Pebbles, coconut flakes and Nutella to popping boba, taro crystal boba, lychee popping boba, coconut jelly, herbal grass jelly— the combination options are virtually endless. “Another major plus for me is the milk alternatives for the milk tea. Love that they have almond milk as an option,” a recent patron named Samantha said. “Love the variety on the menu, quality of the drinks and aesthetic of the shop!” She said that her go-to drink flavors include the honeydew milk tea and the lychee fruit tea, while another customer recommends the taro creme brûlée or the Nagasaki (a honey-milk green tea). A pandan cake topped with fruit—available by the slice—is another Varin’s specialty. And for a dessert dish a bit smaller than

The Dish

Sweets for Your Sweet Behold the wonders of a bubble waffle loaded with ice cream at Varin’s Sweet Shop STORY BY BRACKEN MAYO

18 * FEBRUARY 2022 * BOROPULSE.COM

PHOTOS BY SARAH MAYO

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the full bubble waffle cone, the Varin’s croffles come in various combinations, all with the same in-house-made ice cream and topping options. Try one topped with cinnamon sugar and custard cream, or the S’mores, creme brûlée, blueberry cheesecake or strawberry cheesecake varieties. The strawberry cheesecake croffle displays a delicious, bold cheesecake flavor. These croffles are meant to be a cross between a croissant and a waffle, says Varin, currently a psychology major at MTSU. She said the idea for her shop started with stints working pop-up booths at different special events. During the COVID shutdowns, though, when many events were canceled, she and her mother decided to launch the location on Robert Rose Drive, taking a space in Jack Butchareon’s building. Butchareon, Tien’s uncle, is the longtime owner-operator of The Bangkok. Varin said that, since opening, she has

“become friends with a lot of the customers,” and many Murfreesboro diners seem to appreciate this addition to the Murfreesboro food scene, not just as a place to try new flavors, but as a spot to hang out with friends, play games and socialize. One customer felt compelled to associate the word “kawaii” with Varin’s Sweet Shop, kawaii being the Japanese culture of cuteness. “Varin’s is an awesome little quick bites shop where you can satisfy your sweet tooth,” according to yet another pleased visitor, Kay. “The staff is super-friendly and willing to help you make a tasty decision when you’re undecided.” So consider taking your Valentine to Varin’s, though you may want to go ahead and get separate bubble waffles and drinks for both of you. Your date may end up not wanting to share after they taste the delicious sweets. BOROPULSE.COM

* FEBRUARY 2022 * 19

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 TRAVEL

w o F b al n i a Hike an uphill Smoky Mountain trail to take in Rainbow Falls

STORY BY BRACKEN MAYO

Living

PHOTOS BY SARAH MAYO

f a group of hikers desiring to take in a Tennessee waterfall want a challenging day, the Rainbow Falls Trail, just outside of Gatlinburg, may provide them the formidable journey that they seek. The trail covers a variety of different terrains during the trip up, which the National Park Service officially lists as a 2.7mile hike, although numerous hikers report that their GPS devices clock the distance at over 3 miles. From the trailhead—located just 3 miles south of downtown Gatlinburg, beginning to ascend the towering Mt. LeConte—the trail begins its climb running alongside a stream, with just a slight incline. The scenic LeConte Creek provides some beautiful sights as it tumbles down the hillside near the trail at the onset of the hike, and there are ample ﬂat places to stretch out and relax, but don’t get too captivated. It’s still a long journey. The trail will soon get steeper at points, and about halfway up, well over a mile in, hikers get an incredible view of Gatlinburg and the surrounding mountains as the trail comes around a bend and the view becomes unobstructed. Continuing on, the Rainbow Falls Trail gets quite rocky, and hikers will have to cross a narrow wooden bridge—fairly high up, but with a handrail—at one point, and use large boulders to step across a creek at another point. But here, at the point of using the boulders to cross the water, the traveler is almost to the goal of Rainbow Falls. Finally, coming up a hill, 1,685 feet in elevation higher than the parking lot 2.7 miles away, a party sees the mountainous prize:

Rainbow Falls, the highest single-drop waterfall in the Smokies, in fact. The water plunges 80 feet into a bowl filled with jagged crags and massive boulders. At times, the water volume can be low; during other times, reportedly—particularly on sunny afternoons with a heavy waterﬂow—the mist surrounding the falls produces an impressive rainbow effect, hence its name. During extended freezing periods, the mist may actually freeze and create a ring of ice encircling the plunging water. Take it in, relax, get a photo. Then, prepare for the long descent down the hill. Or, those who want a seriously strenuous hiking challenge can keep on going an additional 4.2 miles (one-way, adding 8.4 miles to the total trip!) and 2,308 feet in elevation to the summit of Mt. LeConte. That would be a truly packed day of hiking, a round trip of 13.8 miles and a total elevation climb of 3,993 feet. A hiking party would probably want a summer day for that one, having the maximum amount of daylight hours to attempt that journey. But just from the parking area to Rainbow Falls and back is a strenuous journey even for the moderately experienced hiker. Even those with a decent level of physical fitness should allow 4–5 hours for the Rainbow trip alone. (But for the older gentleman who says he jogs the entire almost-3-mile incline in 42 minutes, every day, the ascent seems to be a breeze. . . .) In 2017 the National Park Service launched a major project to rehabilitate the Rainbow Falls Trail, stabilizing eroding sections of terrain, placing native stones along the trail corridor to mark and secure it, improving drainage and installing over 350 steps through particularly steep passages, making this an even more pleasant and safe destination for hikers. This hike is not to be taken lightly; it’s not a simple walk in the park. Bring real shoes, bring water. Perhaps bring a walking stick. Make sure enough daylight remains to complete the entire trip. Be prepared to work. Be prepared for leg day! But the views and the sense of accomplishment are worth it. And you may see a bear!

If You Go RAINBOW FALLS Cherokee Orchard Loop, Gatlinburg, Tennessee 865-436-1200 nps.gov

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Living

Saving Yevhen Local family working hard to adopt Ukrainian teenager at risk BY LAURA LINDSAY A MURFREESBORO FAMILY IS working to adopt and bring a Ukrainian teenager to the U.S. by springtime, even during this time of turmoil in the Ukraine and surrounding countries. An orphan in Ukraine, 15-year-old Yevhen, will age out of the Ukrainian orphanage system when he turns 16. The Benson family is working around the clock to adopt him and bring him to the United States before he is put out on the streets in Ukraine. The Bensons have created a website to unite with the community that has gotten to know and care for Yevhen when he visited Tennessee in the past, and to raise funds for the international adoption. Yevhen, who visited the U.S. and stayed with foster parents, met the Bensons’ son, Iver, at a church youth group. “I met Yevhen in the summer of 2019. He came to our church, and he was visiting for the whole summer, and me and my friends got really close to him,” Iver said. “We got to show him how great America is and some of the fun stuff we get to do every day that he doesn’t get to do in the Ukraine.” Iver’s mom, Ashley Benson, added that “the group of boys brought him into the 22 * FEBRUARY 2022 * BOROPULSE.COM

group, and they included him as best as possible and they have gotten over the language barrier [the boy speaks a combination of Russian and Ukranian].” The communication barrier didn’t matter much, Iver said. “It didn’t really make a difference because we were usually playing sports or doing something active,” he said. “It wasn’t very hard to communicate with him. He seemed to understand, and we were able to grow a pretty close bond to him. “He liked playing tag with us. We played a big game of tag all summer, he likes tug of war—we played that at church one night. He liked the big inﬂatables we had at the big parties in the summer, going on those and racing us through.” When Yevhen was back in Ukraine, Iver kept in touch with him through Instagram, texts and video chats. “He’s been able to watch us,” Iver said, “and we’ve been able to see some of the stuff he talks about. He’s been able to see how we do stuff here still and how we’ve changed over the years.” He’s one of the guys—he just lives over 5,000 miles away, Ashley said.

Throughout his life, Yevhen’s birthparents have not been involved in his life, Ashley said, but they also had not signed over custody rights, so Yevhen could be adopted. “Then this summer, the parents were approached in one last attempt to see if they would sign over their custody rights so that he could be adopted,” Benson said, “because in the Ukraine at age 16 they age out of the system—they are kicked out—and at that point they are on their own, they aren’t educated well, they don’t have support and the statistics for these kids is not great.” After his birth parents signed the necessary forms this past summer, Yevhen is now eligible for adoption, just in time. “We’d never thought about or planned this,” Benson said. “When my husband got home, he said he needs to be that boy’s dad— ‘he needs a dad and I need to be it.’ Then I talked to my son the next day—we said your dad and I were talking about this, and what would it look like if we adopted him. My son said he has been praying about this for a long time, and he knows he needs to be here.” Iver’s dad said that a reality set in when he first met the sweet boy. “He was just like my own son, but he was going to get on an airplane and head back to a foreign land and live in an orphanage,” Jeremy Benson said. “I knew my son had hopes, dreams, and was excited about his future. I started to think about this boy—did he have the same thoughts, hopes, fears, or a plan like my son? Then I thought, ‘If he did, who would be there to help, push, pray or walk along with him?’” Ashley Benson said they are working as fast as they can because Yevhen turns 16 in May 2022. They are submitting paperwork and working with home studies and social workers for clearance to adopt, and they need to raise money because it costs about $55,000 to adopt internationally. The family has a webpage called “Team Yevhen” for the many people over the years who have invested in him, prayed for him when he was here, for the women who would host him—Yevhen’s community.

Read Yevhen’s story at teamyevhen.com or on a Team Yevhen Facebook group page. A GoFundMe page is also set up to donate and help with the cost of Yevhen’s adoption. “I don’t know how everything will work out. There are a lot of question marks and of course there is the conﬂict with Russia,” Ashley Benson said. “But we are hoping to possibly also bring our son with us when we go because he is the touchpoint for Yevhen. [Yevhen] is working very hard to learn English, he has aspirations to go to college. “It’s a big deal and there’s no length we won’t go to when we see somebody who has hopes and dreams.”

UKRAINIAN ORPHANS FACE A GRIM FUTURE

From Hope Now ministry, hopenowusa.org LIVING CONDITIONS at Ukrainian orphanages are very difficult for the children who end up there. Since they come from backgrounds that are usually complex and lacking in love and parental care, their situation often goes from bad to worse. For example, Olga, one of numerous Ukrainian orphans, shares a large room with eight other orphans and uses the communal girls bathroom down the hall, where she may have a shower once a week. During the daytime hours, the children use outhouses. In Ukraine, orphans are given bunks to sleep on and donated clothing to wear. Orphanages also provide schooling, but the lessons are often outdated, leaving orphans far behind the education level of other children. Meals are high in carbohydrates and low in protein, with virtually no fresh fruits or vegetables served. After school, the caregivers keep the children occupied with chores, homework tasks and busywork. Around the age of 16, orphans in Ukraine must leave the orphanage. There is no funding for them to remain, and most leave without the basic skills to protect or provide for themselves. These children face a grim future, as they are left to fend for themselves in a world that is not welcoming to them and for which they are vastly unprepared. Because many orphans have nowhere else to turn, 60–70% of Ukrainian orphans become involved in prostitution and organized crime. Twenty percent of children graduating from boarding schools at age 16 end up in prison. Ten percent go on to commit or attempt suicide. Others embrace alcoholism and produce a new generation for the orphanage. Less than one percent make it to a university or higher education.

BUSINESS MOMENTUM

BY BLAINE LITTLE

Two Local Toastmasters Clubs Help to Polish Public Speaking Skills ACCORDING TO MANY POLLS, the number one fear is that of speaking publicly—a fear even greater than death for the majority of people! According to Jerry Seinfeld, “That means the average person at a funeral would rather be in the casket than delivering the eulogy.” Joking aside, it is no laughing matter for those who are almost paralyzed by the notion of addressing a crowd. Through the years, I have trained and coached hundreds of business professionals in the art of public speaking, many of whom told me their jobs depended on them being able to deliver cogent presentations as part of their responsibilities. At this point, developing speaking skills is not an option. A wonderful organization stands to help those in need. Dr. Ralph C. Smedley founded Toastmasters in 1924. Almost 100 years later there are over 300,000 members and 16,000 local clubs worldwide. Typically, each meets a couple of times a month. A meeting starts with the strike of the gavel from the Sergeant-At-Arms. Then a Toastmaster member is introduced who will run the meeting. Many times, this is not an officer. In fact, the word “toastmaster” is a Victorian-era term which simply means the master of ceremonies or host. Unlike most civic organizations, all members are responsible for programming responsibilities including the facilitation of meetings. The host, or “Toastmaster of the Day” will introduce all the speakers scheduled to speak. Most speeches are fairly short, only 5–7 minutes in length. Then, other members will publicly critique the speakers’ skills and offer suggestions for improvements. It’s all done in a spirit of comradery, as the evaluations are intended to be helpful for the individual as well as the other members in attendance. But people take something scary and turn it into something fun, especially with something called Table Topics. It’s a process that has worked for hundreds in the area. “Toastmasters is something that I wish I knew about in college. It has greatly improved my shyness

and overall self-confidence,” says Zachary Williams, president of Murfreesboro’s True Blue Talkers club. “I joined not only for the public speaking and communication skills, but to also overcome fears that I’ve placed upon myself throughout my life.” Shawn Kiser Hawk, an attorney in town, states, “Toastmasters brought me a confidence in public speaking and leadership that I never thought was possible. We are all just practicing for tomorrow, right? Further, I have had so much fun and met so many wonderful people with varied economic, educational, social, religious and international backgrounds, which has simply made me a better person.” Toastmasters Club Growth Director for Middle Tennessee Dean Phillips says that he has received more compliments on his skills and has become more polished as a speaker because of the organization. “But, like most things, it’s a journey, not a destination,” he says. There are two such clubs in Murfreesboro and you are welcome to visit either one. The Heart of Tennessee Toastmasters Club meets at 7 p.m. the second, fourth and fifth Tuesday of every month at 520 Highland Terrace, Suite F (above The Exercise Coach). If weeknights do not fit your schedule, The True Blue Talkers meet at 9:15 a.m. the first and third Saturdays. Each meeting runs 75 minutes. If conquering the fear of speaking or just improving your skills is something on your goal list for 2022, this is where you can achieve that goal. With the annual dues of only about $100, what do you have to lose? Check a meeting out for yourself or visit toastmasters.org to find another club near you. And Toastmasters love guests! All will be welcomed. Blaine Little is the founder and CEO of Momentum Seminars Training and Coaching, helping companies remain profitable by investing in their people. BOROPULSE.COM

* FEBRUARY 2022 * 23

News Murfreesboro Parent Adam Williams Faces February Court Date After picking up his son from school, speaking out against masking BY CHASE MATHESON, A.K.A. THE PATRIOT PUNK DID YOU KNOW that registered sex offenders are allowed to pick their children up from school, but that certain other parents have been banned from doing just that? In fact, after picking up his 7-year-old son from school in November, one Murfreesboro parent was arrested. Adam Williams, lifelong resident of Rutherford County, was arrested by the Rutherford County Sheriff ’s Office within 24 hours of picking his child up from school in early November 2021. Williams alleges that the arrest is retaliation for a formal complaint that he filed on Blackman Elementary Principal Cynthia Ford, and this is not the only time someone in Rutherford County government re-

taliated against Williams for speaking his mind. Williams home schooled his son during the 2020–21 school year after his son’s religious exemption for the mask mandate was denied. By April of 2021, knowing he could no longer continue to home school his son because of the burden it was placing on him and his wife, Williams did what most parents never get around to—he began attending county school board meetings. The first meeting he went to, Adam was denied entry. The school district had imposed a mask mandate and Williams was forced to watch the meeting from his cellphone while standing on the sidewalk outside—almost certainly a violation of state

and federal laws. (In May, the school system dropped the mask mandate.) After pressure from outside groups and a surge in the “Delta variant,” the school board called two meetings and were once again voting on the mask issue. Williams isn’t one who enjoys public speaking, so he simply brought a poster that said “Forced Masking Is Child Abuse.” The mask mandate passed, despite an overwhelming turnout of people who were against it, albeit this one had a slight difference— parents could opt their children out. The Williams family immediately opted their son out and within a few days their 7-yearold was sent home from school because he was demonstrating “COVID symptoms.” There was just one problem: Williams’ son only had one of the two required symptoms listed. The boy agrees he had a headache, but he swears he never vomited. At this time, quarantine guidelines were different for masked children compared to those who had been opted out. Adam was forced to stay home from work for 10 days with his son, who did not have COVID. When the school finally allowed the student to return, Williams went to discuss the situation with the school nurse and principal. This is when he says the principal became belligerent with him. He says her behavior was so unprofessional that at one point he had to take a step back and ask her to get out of his face—all of this unfolded in front of his 7-year-old son. Williams then began looking for a way to file a formal complaint on the principal, and after several weeks he discovered that these complaints are handled solely by the Director of Education. He went through with the complaint process the week of Oct. 20. That same week Principal Ford was walking to her car when Williams was picking his son up from the after-school program. When she made what he felt was a sarcastic remark, Williams informed her that he’d filed a formal complaint against her regarding the behavior she exhibited several weeks prior. At that point Principal Ford said “it don’t matter” and then stopped engaging. Two days later the principal drafted a letter banning him from school property (which she has the discretion to do). The letter threatened him with aggravated criminal trespassing should he set foot on school property. There was just one problem here: the school sent this letter to his ex-wife’s address, where Williams has never lived. 24 * FEBRUARY 2022 * BOROPULSE.COM

So on Nov. 3, when Williams arrived at Blackman Elementary School to pick up his son, he was told he needed to leave. When he asked why he was told to “read his letter”—a letter that he did not know existed. He said as much, and insisted that he was going to pick up his son like he had “every day for the last three months,” and proceeded to walk into the cafeteria where the sign-out sheet is located. He signed his son out and while leaving he encountered Principal Ford. Williams asked if there was anything he needed to be made aware of, and asked what letter he should have received. Instead of communicating, Principal Ford ignored him and proceeded to call the police. Williams waited in the parking lot for the police, who very calmly figured out that the letter had been sent to the wrong address and informed him he had now formally trespassed. Williams thanked the police officer and immediately left the property, now with a new problem: figuring out how to get his son to and from school without setting foot on the property. This is all recorded on video. The next day, two Rutherford County Sheriff ’s detectives arrived at Williams’ home and placed him under arrest for “persons improperly on school premises.” Williams spent approximately six hours in jail, had to post a $1,000 bond, and has had to retain an attorney. He’s not allowed to pick his child up from the after-school program; he has not had a response to the formal complaint filed in October; Open Records requests are still going unanswered. Even more concerning, one of Williams’ longtime friends says he was contacted by the FBI regarding the matter. Williams’ court date is set for Feb. 22; his attorney has filed a motion to dismiss the charges prior to that court date (that is the latest in this rapidly developing situation, as of presstime). You might ask, how do I know so much about this situation? Well, I have been documenting every bit of it. There is evidence, including video, recorded phone calls, and emails supporting every single statement. To stay up to date with Adam’s story as it unfolds, as well as other corruption taking place across the state of Tennessee, visit linktr.ee/patriotpunknetwork to follow the Patriot Punk Network on social media.

Big Bobby’s BBQ

 Owner Robert Donelson Jr. • Corporate chef for Bonefish Grill - 8 Years • Corporate trainer for Ruby Tuesday - 5 Years • Corporate trainer for Chili’s - 5 Years • General manager of Crazytown downtown Nashville Over 10 million in sales first year • General manager of Mellow Mushroom Increased sales by 12% in first year • Corporate general manager of Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar - 8 Years

or some top-notch smoked ribs, pulled pork and chicken wings and excellent pork chops, come out to Big Bobby’s BBQ. Robert Donelson Jr. smokes the meats at this fine local establishment, located at 2805 Old Fort Pkwy., Murfreesboro. A smoker sits near the busy Old Fort Parkway, its fragrant, smoky scent luring in hungry patrons. The ribs take about 12 hours to smoke, while brisket takes about 16 hours and pulled pork takes 10–12 hours, Donelson says. Big Bobby’s smoker also produces some fantastic chicken wings, loaded with an herby, smoky flavor. Call and see if Big Bobby’s has wings on special. “When wings are available, we will have them. Black-eyed peas and brisket is on our special list as well,” Donelson says. “We don’t have brisket unless it’s affordable.” A dry rub goes on everything, Donelson says, one made with “a little of this, and a little of that.” All of the Big Bobby’s sauces are made in-house as well. Customers appreciate all of the great sides available at Big Bobby’s too—fried zucchini, cheesy cauliflower, fried pickles, and some delicious fried okra. One recent customer was quite pleased that they could get four nice rib bones and one side on a $10 plate.

And, it’s quick at Big Bobby’s. “The pork chops are cooked to order. They may take up to 15 minutes to prepare. Everything else is about 6 to 12 minutes,” Donelson says. Robert Lee Donelson Sr. taught Bobby Jr. and his brother, Tony, how to cook growing up in Detroit. Big Bobby’s BBQ is named in honor of him—the original Big Bobby. Today, Robert III now works at the family-oriented establishment. Although Tony has moved on from working at Big Bobby’s to another job “that was a little less stressful,” Robert remembers about working together with him, “my brother and I would have an awesome time, cracking jokes, and having fun. We were always laughing—if you can’t have fun at work, why work?” “A shout-out to our staff, which is a very important part of why we are successful,” Donelson adds. “Stephanie, our cashier; Chef Assistant Robert III; Julie, my wife and co-owner/operator. Even though Chef Tony doesn’t work inside the building, he continues to support and bring us business.” As with many other local restaurants, Big Bobby’s is currently hiring and looking for solid people. And Donelson reminds barbecue lovers that Big Bobby’s is available for catering jobs all over Tennessee. Whether in the restaurant or at a catering job, he says, “Our menu is designed around quality first, speed second, and consistency.”

IF YOU GO: RESTAURANT:

Big Bobby’s BBQ HOURS:

Tuesday–Saturday: 11 a.m.–8 p.m. Sunday: 11 a.m.–4 p.m. LOCATION:

2805 Old Fort Pkwy. PHONE:

615-624-7930

AROUND TOWN

’BORO BUSINESS BUZZ

Buffalo Wild Wings, Cooper’s at The Mill, The Exchange Boutique, Exodus Outdoors, Andy’s, Replay Toys, Red Crab Juicy Seafood BY DELORES ELLIOTT BUFFALO WILD WINGS has opened its new standalone building in front of the Avenue. The new building is located at 2535 Medical Center Pkwy., the site of the former Romano’s Macaroni Grill. Instead of using the same building, though, developers scrapped the old structure and created Buffalo Wild Wings’ new building design—the company’s first new design since 2012. The ANDY’S FROZEN CUSTARD brand has opened a second location in Murfreesboro in addition to its Memorial Boulevard location, which opened in December of 2018. The new Andy’s location is located at 4307 Franklin Rd., next door to Toot’s West. It celebrated its grand opening on Jan. 14 and has appeared to be busy since. Andy’s advertises that its frozen custard is made fresh by the hour, and offers swiftly served creamy treats including seasonal items such as pumpkin and apple pie concretes, sundaes, malts, cups and cones. Andy’s offers drive-thru and walk-up service, a heated patio and outdoor seating 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and 11 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. Friday through Saturday. “We are thrilled to be opening our second Andy’s Frozen Custard location in Murfreesboro. We are so grateful to each and every one of our customers and look forward to serving you the best frozen custard in the world,” said Murfreesboro franchisee Brad Feuerbacher. One of Andy’s local fan favorites is the Nashville Honky Tonk Jackhammer, made with vanilla frozen custard, Spanish peanuts, crème caramel, melted chocolate chips and a marshmallow-filled center. Andy’s also offers take-home treats and pup-cones for dogs. Andy’s suggests customers download the Andy’s Frozen Custard app to enjoy touchless payment options. They also offer a loyalty club called the Yum Squad, which features special offers including 26 * FEBRUARY 2022 * BOROPULSE.COM

The eatery at the Readyville Mill now known as COOPER’S AT THE MILL has announced that it will continue renovations for the next few months in preparation of its grand opening. The Mill will continue to serve classic Americana, Southern and French cuisine and desserts, and will offer specials including a Friday or Saturday steak night featuring beef produced in Readyville, Tennessee; the restaurant plans to hold breakfast and lunch hours from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday through Sunday, and dinner from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Breakfast will include made-from-scratch biscuits and gravy, country fried steak, pork chops, bread pudding, French toast

a free concrete treat after the first visit. For additional information on Andy’s Frozen Custard, visit eatandys.com or find individual Facebook pages for each of the Murfreesboro locations. YUMMY ASIAN HUT has been issued a building permit to construct a restaurant at 1636 New Salem Hwy., Ste. G, in the plaza owned and operated by Gateway Urgent Care, just down the street from Costco. Rutherford County couple Jerry and Aleta Daughtery recently opened EXODUS OUTDOORS USA. Shop with the Miltonbased company at exodus-outdoorsusa.com. It offers unique, quality products that are all made in America. Among the products offered are Bibles, backpacks, guitar straps, knives, overalls, shop aprons, purses, bags,

with blueberry compote, apple cider pancakes with apple butter and streusel toppings, and more. Lunch will include appetizers, salads, chili, sandwiches, burgers, po’boys, catfish, meatloaf, chicken and dumplings, butter beans, fried okra and other veggies. Cooper’s at The Mill will also feature other tasty specialties like bloody mary deviled eggs with bacon and moonshine pickles, cornmealcrusted chicken livers with pepper jelly, and fried green tomatoes with pimento cheese and remoulade. For more information and updates, visit coopersatthemill. com and facebook.com/coopersatthemill.

work gloves and more. According to a recent interview on WGNS Radio, most of the products are made from real leather and are made to last. The business offers items from large companies and small, local vendors. In fact, the business is currently looking for more new and local vendors; those interested can fill out a form on the business’ contact page. “It’s a good feeling to know the product you purchased is from the finest raw materials, and the hands that have crafted it are possibly your neighbors or friends. There is something special about seeing ‘Made in USA,’” Daughtery said, mentioning he has long wanted to start a business offering products made only in America. For more information on Exodus Outdoors USA, call 615-273-0314 or visit exodus-outdoorsusa.com.

CEDAR GLADE BREWS at 906 Ridgely Rd. behind Chuy’s has opened for business. Business hours are 4 to 9 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 4 to 11 p.m. Friday, 2 to 11 p.m. Saturday, and 1 to 6 p.m. Sunday. For more information, visit cedargladebrews.com or facebook.com/cedargladebrews. THE EXCHANGE BOUTIQUE, which previously operated on Main Street just off of the Murfreesboro Public Square, has moved to an online platform where boutique owner Brittany Davidson continues to offer her business’ unique services. Brittany stated in a Facebook post that the boutique would still offer monthly in-person shopping at The Social Exchange at 224 W. Main St. But in addition to occasional in-person shopping, the business also offers live sales CONTINUED ON PAGE 27

* FEBRUARY 2022 * 27

615-900-0284

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Murfreesboro has lost two children’s clothing stores. ONCE UPON A CHILD,

YOU CAN

NOTES LOUNGE on South Church Street has announced that it will close. “We want to thank every artist, performer and promoter who graced our stage. We say ‘Thank you’ to our wonderful patrons for choosing Notes to celebrate your birthdays, anniversaries, engagements and more,” according to a farewell post from club owners Mike and Andrea Butler. “We are not saying goodbye. We look forward to seeing you down the road.”

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RED CRAB JUICY SEAFOOD has suddenly closed its 740 NW Broad St. location. According to its Facebook page, the restaurant’s closure was related to COVID and other unnamed circumstances.

Products are not available in New York and all products may not be available in all states. CD1419 6/21 Woodmen of the World Life Insurance Society: Omaha, NE

on Facebook and Instagram, plus the online shop at theexchangeboutique.com. The Exchange will continue to offer Monday porch-pickup and Tuesday drop-off of items. For more information on how everything works, visit theexchangeboutique.com.

Kayleen Steele 931-450-0098 KSteele@woodmenlife.org

REPLAY TOYS will open a new Tennessee location at the former Smoke Token shop at 1312 Memorial Blvd. The business currently operates additional locations in Hendersonville and Clarksville, and in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Replay Toys offers buy, sell and trade services as well as layaway and shipping options for a variety of products including action figures, apparel and accessories, horror figures and more. Some of its featured products involve anime, Star Wars, Marvel, wrestling, Loungeﬂy and Bioworld bags, backpacks and wallets, and Funko pop figures. For more information, visit replaymytoys.com.

MURFREESBORO YOUNG PROFESSIONALS, a nonprofit member organization that fosters personal and professional development, announced the election of its new board of directors, including the appointment of Tosha Price as chair. Price succeeds Joel Laird and will be responsible for overseeing MYP’s programming, networking and fundraising activities. Members of the 2022 board are: Chair: Tosha Price, strategic partnership specialist, Ascend Federal Credit Union Treasurer: Wesley Bynum, founder, Bynum CPA Secretary: Bri Cole, branch manager, Redstone Federal Credit Union Director of Membership/Chair-Elect: Scott Kimberly, founder, Law Office of W. Scott Kimberly Director of Charitable Contributions: Joel Laird, owner, Joel Laird – State Farm Agency Director of Professional Development: Aaron Carlton, founder, Roofing Right LLC Director of Mentorship Program: William Moore, vice president – Rutherford County Market, First Horizon Bank Director of Special Events: William Fields, insurance sales representative, State Farm Director of Social Programming: Angelique Asbill, administrative assistant, Dogwood Hollow Director of Community Outreach: Robin Seay, affiliate broker, Parks Realty Director of Marketing and Communications: Grace Tant, affiliate broker, SimpliHOM Director At Large: Denise Sweeney, business development director, Law Office of W. Scott Kimberly Director At Large: Alicia Wray, HR business partner, Celero Commerce Director At Large: Polly Hill, marketing coordinator, Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce Director At Large: Lynnette Taschner, employment specialist, Express Employment Professionals “It is truly an honor to be chosen as the new chair of Murfreesboro Young Professionals and to build upon the great work done by Joel and the former board,” said Price. For more information on MYP, visit murfreesboroyp.org.

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located in the Kroger shopping center at Broad and Northfield, has announced it will be closing after 18 years in business. CHILDREN’S ORCHARD, at 2705 Old Fort Pkwy., has also announced its intentions to close shop. Children’s Orchard remains open liquidating inventory at discounted prices in preparation of its closing.

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News Part 1 of a primer on Federal COVID relief funds to schools, in which the federal government tricked our state government into selling our kids to them for the price of cheap Chinesemade masks and dangerous, investigational COVID shots. School board meetings throughout the U.S. are the new battlegrounds for medical freedom. Prior to the COVID “pandemic,” parents rarely doubted the intentions of governmentrun schools regarding their children’s health. It turns out they should have. The internet is teeming with videos of irate, unhappy parents crying and begging school boards all over the country to unmask their kids. We see the panels of stone-faced school board members, silent behind masks (at least while the cameras are rolling) and seemingly uncaring while tears and pleas for help ﬂow. It is time for every parent and every taxpayer to understand that school boards have no teeth. School boards are powerless over what is happening in America’s government indoctrination camps. They know how cruel it is to mask, isolate, quarantine, test and contact-trace kids—all in the name of “health and safety.” They know the “science” behind masking children has crumbled like Anthony Fauci’s credibility. If COVID accomplished anything over the last two years, it opened our eyes to the stark reality that our government education system is a bloated bureaucratic babysitter with no accountability and no transparency. Backed by teachers’ unions, it has an insatiable hunger for power over the minds and bodies of our children—and a hunger for the money attached to each child. Here is the real story of why COVID mandates are destroying what little faith we have left in the U.S. public school system. First, we need to understand where billions of dollars in COVID blood money originated and how it has been used to hold our children ransom across America.

FOLLOW THE MONEY

On March 27, 2020, federal legislation established a three-layer shroud called the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund to support K–12 school re-openings and “pandemic” recovery. The ESSER package is the most money ever given to public education—11 times more than annual Title I spending and five times more than total federal K–12 spending in 2019–20, according to the American Enterprise Institute. Phase I of federal K–12 pandemic relief funding (ESSER I) was implemented under 28 * FEBRUARY 2022 * BOROPULSE.COM

COVID Protocols in U.S. Schools Follow the money, school districts selling students’ liberty for billions

BY A.J. DEPRIEST AND TENNESSEE LIBERTY NETWORK

the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and released in Spring 2020. Most schools had closed by the end of March 2020, and few offered remote learning. The U.S. Department of Education said the $13.2 billion in ESSER funds were supposed to help schools address these challenges and assist in safely re-opening. The CARES Act also established the $2.95 billion Governor’s Emergency Education Relief (GEER) fund, allocated to states alongside ESSER funds. On April 21, 2020, the U.S. Department of Education issued the State Plan for the ARP ESSER Fund. All state education departments then executed a Certification and Agreement for ESSER funding. Part B of this Agreement contains vague and ominous compliance requirements language: The SEA will comply with all reporting requirements, including those in Section 15011(b) (2) of Division B of the CARES Act, and submit required quarterly reports to the Secretary at such time and in such manner and containing such information as the Secretary may subsequently require. (See also 2 CFR 200.327200.329). The Secretary may require additional reporting in the future, which may include: the methodology LEAs [local education agencies] will use to provide services or assistance to students and staff in both public and nonpublic schools . . . ESSER II funds (3.5 times more than ESSER I funds) were allocated on Dec. 27, 2020, as most children still attended school remotely, despite drastically lower COVID cases in most states over the summer and fall and studies showing children have an almost 100 percent chance of surviving COVID and are the lowest candidates for spreading the disease. Even though U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said schools could and should reopen without fear, fears were stoked to a fever pitch by Big Tech, the media, Hollywood elite, and alarmist figureheads like Fauci and Gates. Also in December 2020, Donald Trump signed the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations (CRRSA) Act, ex-

panding COVID relief funding an additional $900 billion. The CRRSA Act gave K–12 schools another $54.3 billion under ESSER II funds and $4 billion in GEER II funds. This brought total ESSER funds to $67.5 billion. ESSER II funds released to states on Jan. 5, 2021, are still being collected by K–12 schools, and are available through September 2023, even though the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published a study in December 2020 showing the total cost for safely reopening all schools would cost approximately $25 billion—for the entire nation. Joe Biden signed The American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act into law on March 11, 2021, as a $1.9-trillion economic stimulus bill. The ARP Act allocated another $122 billion in ESSER III funds to K–12 schools, which are available through September 2024. ESSER III funds were released to states on March 24, 2021. The Rutherford County School District received $43,774,580 in this round of funding, while Murfreesboro City Schools received $12,671,280, according to Tennessee Department of Education reporting of $2.2 billion of ESSER III Allocations.

INTERIM FINAL REQUIREMENTS

(Finally, the STICK) The U.S. Department of Education distributed interim final requirements for all states to ESSER III fund recipients on April 22, 2021. Among these requirements for receiving ARP ESSER III funds, school districts finally discovered what they must do to make good on ESSER funds they accepted and how to receive future ESSER funds: “ . . . the requirement clarifies that a Local Education Agency (LEA) plan must include how it will maintain the health and safety of students, educators, and other school and LEA staff, and the extent to which it has adopted policies, and a description of any such policies, on each of the CDC’s safety recommendations including: • Universal and correct wearing of masks

• modifying facilities to allow for physical distancing (e.g., use of cohorts/podding) • handwashing and respiratory etiquette • cleaning and maintaining healthy facilities, including improving ventilation • contact tracing in combination with isolation and quarantine, in collaboration with the State, local, territorial, or Tribal health departments • diagnostic and screening testing • efforts to provide vaccinations to school communities • appropriate accommodations for children with disabilities with respect to health and safety policies • coordination with State and local health officials. Now that we know how our government behaves with our tax dollars, let’s connect the dots between the most money ever doled out to schools by the federal government and the real issue: our children’s health and why schools continue to push COVID mandates as if COVID is a life-threatening illness that can only be assuaged with draconian measures like masks and quarantines. Think about this: If COVID is such a deadly disease that cheap surgical masks made in China are the only way to keep kids in schools safe, why is there not a single OSHA-regulated hazardous waste disposal bin anywhere in any public school classroom, library, playground, gym or office? Why aren’t kids and teachers required to change their masks and dispose of them per OSHA regulations every hour and a half? Why aren’t hazmat bins being collected daily and taken to certified hazardous waste facilities for proper disposal of deadly pathogen-ridden materials? The answer is simple: COVID is not deadly, especially to children. School boards know it. Our mayors and governors know it. Our departments of education know it. ESSER and GEER funds are the “carrot” for schools to collect millions in COVID relief money—but these funds also carry a very big stick. And all 50 states are holding our kids ransom for money. All 50 states submitted their ARP ESSER State Plans to prove how each state will comply with interim final requirements; all plans have been approved by the Secretary of Education in the swamp. Stay tuned for more on the Tennessee Department of Education’s unholy commitment to big Fed money in exchange for masking, contact tracing, isolating, quarantining, and vaxing students, teachers and staff.

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NEW NAME SAME GREAT SERVICE LET US DO Want to takeDRIVING the hassle out of driving yourse THE FOR YOU Let ROVER WE CAN TAKE YOU shopping at places like The Avenue and Stones River Mall, or to medical facilities along the Gateway. We serve many other areas of Murfreesboro as well. FOR INFORMATION, including routes and fares, visit www.murfreesborotn.gov and click on the Public Transit button, or call 615.217.6837.

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Opinion School Choice: Are We Willing to Sell Our Children for a Pittance? U.S.A., 1932, William Foster, in his book Toward a Soviet America, called for a U.S. Department of Education, the teaching of evolution, elimination of nationalism and religion in schools, the teaching of internationalism, and for the use of the Pavlovian method (direct SCHOOL CHOICE IS A POLARIZING instruction) on the students,” Iserbyt wrote topic right now. Understanding the history of in her book The Deliberate Dumbing Down compulsory education is necessary to underof America. “School choice stand why our educational is a Trojan Horse. The only system looks the way it requirement left to impledoes today. But first, let’s ment school choice is tuition take a look at the roots of tax credits or vouchers which school choice. BY TIFFANY BOYD will take over the private This is not a new fight. sector. If those choice proposals do not ﬂy in Charlotte Iserbyt, former senior policy advisor legislatures or in Congress, federally-funded with the U.S. Department of Education under charter schools will be used, as is already the the Reagan administration, issued a warning decades ago regarding the perils of school choice. case in many states, to implement the schoolto-work planned economic system.” “The chairman of the Communist Party, “For every ten people who are clipping at the branches of evil, you’re lucky to find one who’s hacking at the roots.” — Henry David Thoreau

#FREE YOUR

CHILDREN

She went on to warn that the choice proposals being recommended by most state governors will ultimately destroy all forms of education: public, home school, private and religious. “The most lethal form of education choice is tax-supported public schools (charter schools) which have no elected school boards resulting in ‘taxation without representation.’ This is an oppressive system which caused our nation to revolt and declare war against the British,” Iserbyt said. She predicted that all types of “school choice” will eventually be tax-supported, with the tax money following each child. “Each child, regardless of type of ‘choice’ education, will have an individual education plan (IEP). This will be determined by decisions made by the school/business partnerships (for which kind of workforce training they have determined your child’s intelligence/talents are best suited, for their own profit-seeking purposes). This is the failed communist/socialist job quota system from which millions of foreigners escaped. These immigrants, the backbone of our nation, made enormous sacrifices to come to the United States of America in order to enjoy the upward mobility guaranteed by our free (unplanned) economic system.” Charlotte Iserbyt was on the inside and was the whistleblower who was committed to warning Americans about the initiative to control America’s classrooms. She was the one out of 10 hacking at the roots. Will we listen? I have said many times that school choice will not solve any problems in education; however, it will succeed in doing what it was intended to do, and that is to destroy the freedoms of private schools and home schools. It will also continue to erode the freedoms of those children and families still trapped in the public school system. Politicians who say they value freedom should never peddle school choice as a viable option for any parent or child. I often hear parents say, “It’s my money and I want it back.” My retort to that statement is, “What is more important to you, your freedom or your money? What is more important to you, your child or the money?” That is usually met with the following: 30 * FEBRUARY 2022 * BOROPULSE.COM

“I want freedom to choose.” The truth is, parents already have the freedom to choose. They can choose public school, private school or home school. With school choice, you are simply choosing more of the same. It’s still the same system parents insist is failing, funded by government. The teachers are still all trained the same and the state controls the curriculum. So, what would they be choosing that is any different? Another argument is, “Private schools are better.” The truth is, if a private school accepts government funds then it is no longer private. I have been told that my stance is based on theory; however, there are many families from school-choice states that have shared their testimonials warning parents not to fall for this trap. Should we not listen to them? Should we not listen to those that have lived it and experienced it? Will we not listen to the whistleblowers? Are we really willing to sell our nation’s children for a pittance? The roots of school choice are nefarious. Do not fall prey to the dangling carrot. The pièce de résistance of arguments from proponents of school choice typically resort to this: “You are selfish. Think about the children stuck in low-performing schools.” We, as a nation, need to understand that the government is not a surrogate parent. Coming from conservatives, this statement is ironic. It is virtue signaling and asking those of us who truly value our freedom to forfeit it for the greater good—and that, my friend, is a page right out of the communist playbook. “The common good before the individual good.” — Adolf Hitler Tiffany Boyd is the founder of Free YOUR Children, a home school advocate, consultant, speaker and the founder and administrator of Middle Tennessee Christian Homeschool Connection. She holds a B.S. degree in interdisciplinary studies from MTSU. She is a wife of 30 years and mother to five children, grandmother to two. She is a former tenured public school teacher. She and her husband have home educated for 18 years. Contact her at freeyourchildren@gmail.com.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ANDREA PIACQUADIO/PEXLES

Watch Out for Romance Fraud Be skeptical if online connections request money before meeting

on my way to meet you. But, I am stuck at an airport in a pass-through country without my passport or visa, and without money, because the government officials confiscated them. Can you wire me the money to finish my trip to meet you and pay off the government officials?” So, how do you recognize a romance scam is occurring? Usually, the scammer of the romance scam will only want to communicate with the person they are talking to using email, text messages and other forms of social media. The romance scammer will never use video chat or voice communication with their victims. If you have agreed to meet in person, the romance scammer will usually come up with an excuse every time you are supposed to meet as to why they can’t meet you. So, what can you do if you believe you are a victim or you are becoming a victim of a romance scam? Never send money to someone you have

only communicated with online by messages and text. Never give out personal information to a stranger online. If the person has sent you a photo, websites like socialcatfish.com and tineye.com can do a reverse image search to see where a photo has been used elsewhere on the internet. Take it slow with online relationships and ask questions. File a police report and a report with the FTC. When it comes to online relationships, romance and love, don’t fall victim to romance scams. Jeff England hosts the Twisted Money Podcast to help listeners become better informed on fraud, scams, deceptions and cyber attacks; he is a CPA and a member of the Middle Tennessee Chapter of Certified Fraud Examiners.

BY JEFF ENGLAND FEBRUARY IS THE MONTH OF LOVE, as couples celebrate Valentine’s Day with cards, restaurant dates, candy, stuffed animals, roses, jewelry and other gifts. For many single individuals, Feb. 14 is often a day to ask themselves whether they will ever find that special someone who completes them. With the rise of the internet, lots of individuals have been turning to dating sites and social media to help look for love. Unfortunately, some of these individuals will fall victim to romance scams in their search to find that special someone. Many victims, especially older victims, will not report that they have been a victim of a romance scam because they are embarrassed. However, investigations sometimes do catch the perpetrators. In 2021, authorities charged 11 romance scammers in the Northern District of Texas with money laundering and wire transfer fraud. Often, romance scams will start out simple with a message on a social media or dating site from someone asking “Hi” or “How are you?” Once you respond, the relationship on the other end of the message begins. Back and forth, you and the person on the other end of the message begin building a relationship of trust by asking what seem like normal questions

you would ask during any initial dating phase. Once the target victim responds, scammers often take the conversation from a dating site to text messages, another website, or private messaging services like What’s App and Telegram. Where do you live? What is your phone number? Where do you work? What type of work do you do? Romance scammers will also ask for other personal information about the victim’s finances so the scammer can begin asking for money, iTunes cards, Google Play cards and other types of gift cards. Some of the excuses a romance scammer will use while asking for money may include: I need to buy groceries. I can’t pay my rent / mortgage / car payment / utility bill this month. I need to pay for medical expenses. I need to pay for airline tickets or travel expenses. Romance scammers will commonly ask for iTunes, Google Play or other gift cards because the transactions are usually nonreversible once the money has been transferred to gift cards. If the person on the other end of the romance scam says they are living, working or traveling overseas, these scammers may use the excuse “I was BOROPULSE.COM

* FEBRUARY 2022 * 31

Live Exceptionally...Well! BY JENNIFER DURAND

What Are You Willing to Pay? DO YOU FEEL there is too much emphasis placed on high-performance athletes and highpriced entertainers? I’ve often thought that society’s view of this was skewed, with so much money being paid to a select few. There certainly seem to be other causes and areas of life where that money could do more good while not making it so difficult for many to be able to enjoy such experiences because the price of concert or sporting event entry was just too expensive. It doesn’t, however, stop people with the means to fork over the money and enjoy the show. My irritated view shifted recently when I watched the movie King Richard, based on the lives of two sister athletes (I shared details about the movie in last month’s article—for a different reason!). “Most of the problems in life are because of two reasons: we act without thinking or we keep thinking without acting.” — Zig Ziglar These two sisters worked faithfully, diligently and relentlessly to pursue their dreams. They put in the long hours and the sacrifices, all while keeping their eye on the target: becoming champion players. I have also watched many other behind-the-scenes stories of other “top achievers,” a variety of athletes, actors, performers and public figures. Other notables were people who’d achieved high honors, such as in the military, when they defeated enormous odds including ridicule, harassment and physical challenges such as those experienced by Carl Brashear’s character in the movie Men of Honor, based on the story of the first African American Naval Master Diver. The common thread in each story is the commitment and dedication to get up every day and do what it takes to keep moving toward the target. Most people don’t want to get out of bed in the morning and go to work, let alone carve out time for a workout, meal planning or life planning. For some, going to work is a grand enough sacrifice of time away from family or other personal pursuits. Sacrifice (verb): If we want something we’ve never had, we must be willing to do something we’ve never done. — Unknown These life stories aren’t all about the achiever making top dollar—but many of them are. And we seem willing to pay our hard-earned money to witness their skills and hear their stories. Why? I’m inclined to believe that there’s a part of us that wants to escape our daily grind and simply be entertained in 32 * FEBRUARY 2022 * BOROPULSE.COM

one form or another—being able to feel the emotions that touch us in a story or song, watching the underdog make a goal for the win, or watching someone climb the ladder at work. There are lots of opportunities in our everyday lives to see this in action without paying a hefty price for entertainment. When you need help in life, pay attention to who makes it happen and who makes excuses. I started seeing an underlying reason for shelling out the dough, and that is we are paying to be inspired. We want to be moved in some way that may help us change the course of our own lives toward the greater good. Deep inside, at some level we all want to live like “the other half lives.” In the long run, though, we aren’t really willing to do what it takes day after day to achieve a level of personal or professional greatness. We mostly want the rewards without all the effort. We want to be rewarded for mediocrity. That is not realistic. So instead, we are paying to watch the outcome of the efforts of these achievers. There will be a very small percentage of people who will actually use the inspiration they feel by stepping outside of their comfort zone and progressing toward a goal. Everyone else will get all excited for a short while and maybe even make an attempt at doing something different, but without an actual plan their efforts will get covered up by everyday life until the next time they pay good money to be a spectator rather than the one on stage. Commitment means staying loyal to what you said you were going to do long after the mood you said it in has left you. All the feel-goods aside, I still think we pay top performers way more money than many of them should make. I’m not talking about the self-made leaders who build a company and drive real results. I am referring to high-paid athletes and performers mostly. I can, however, see the effect and inﬂuence they have on others that drive up their value. They do make a difference in the lives of others, even if it’s to bring a happy escape from reality for a short while. I always appreciate seeing other viewpoints and not staying rigid in my thinking. And on occasion I, too, am willing to pay a premium price for that! Jennifer Durand is the owner of The Nurture Nook, a certified qigong and breath empowerment instructor and is licensed in massage therapy, body work and somatic integration. For more on finding your personal “ahh . . .”, visit nurturenook.com or call 615-896-7110.

SPORTS

TALK

COLUMN BY “Z-TRAIN”

titanman1984@gmail.com

THE TRAIN DADDY IS BACK with sports news, life lessons and politically incorrect talk. All aboard! The football season is almost over. The big game will be played the day before those of us lucky enough get our boom-boom on with our valentine. This year’s Super Bowl will be held at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, the home of the Rams and the Chargers. Like 2-Pac said, Inglewood always up to no good. RIP Pac, that thug life was no joke! The Bengals will represent the AFC. Led by QB Joe Burrow, the sensational rookie wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase and rookie kicker Evan “Money Mac” McPherson, Cincinnati got their first playoff win in over three decades. Then they went on the road to beat the #1-seeded Tennessee Titans, only to follow that up with another road victory versus the #2 seed Kansas City Chiefs. I was rooting for the Bengals over the Chiefs because I didn’t want to see the Chiefs in a third straight Super Bowl. And, let’s be honest—seeing Mahomes’ fiancée, Brittany, and his brother, Jackson, crying afterwards was worth it . . . they aren’t exactly the most popular NFL duo. The NFC will be represented by Matthew Stafford’s L.A. Rams, playing a Super Bowl in their own stadium. I have no love for this team. It’s a team of superstar players who came together to create a super-team, and lo and behold, they made it to the Super Bowl. Surprise? While I have much respect for Matt Stafford, who persevered with the Detroit Lions from 2009–20 with no playoff dubs, I just can’t respect this goofy paid-for team. The Bengals did it the honest way, while what the Rams did just feels dirty to me—ring chasing! Are you wondering why the big game seems to be a little later into February than normal? That’s because each team played a 17th regular season game, extending the NFL season to 18 weeks. Super Bowl LVI will be played Sunday, Feb. 13.

HALFTIME GOES GANGSTER

Since the Super Bowl is taking place in Inglewood, it only makes sense we all get our gangster on! Compton and Long Beach together, now you know you in trouble! Ain’t nothin’ but a G thang, baby, two loc’ed out . . . WHOA . . . I can’t type that out, I might get canceled. The halftime show this year is going old-

MATT STAFFORD

JA’MARR CHASE

Rams to Play Super Bowl LVI in Home Stadium Vs. Bengals, Halftime Show Goes Gangster school, and I can’t lie—I am intrigued. Not really a show for my grandparents, but us ’70s and ’80s babies can at least appreciate this one. Because let’s be honest, today’s hippity-hop is garbage in comparison to old-school hip-hop. Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar will perform one of the most-watched shows of the year. I personally prefer more of a rock or blues type show, but I can appreciate these artists I used to bump with in my teenage years: ’84 baby here! It’s like this and like that and like this and uh, so just chill ’til the next topic! Titans football.

BITTER PLAYOFF LOSS

Am I still bitter about the Titans loss to the Bengals? Hell, yes, I am! I was at Nissan Stadium that cold Saturday afternoon with a crew of my people. We arrived early for some tailgating, someone brought doughnuts, and then we had barbecue all while listening to Titans Talk. We had a little Jack Daniel’s, a little football toss, and we were freakin’ ready! Unfortunately, the Titans offense and coaching staff weren’t. Mad respect to the Titans defense for a masterful performance—it was sack city in Nashville. The Titans join the ’84 San Francisco 49ers, the ’86 Browns and the ’93 Chiefs as the only teams in the history of the NFL to have nine sacks in a playoff game. Unlike the Titans, those three teams won. The amazing defensive performance was sadly overshadowed by three turnovers, all three

interceptions courtesy of Ryan Tannehill. Let me say this with pure honesty, though. The Titans will be a better team in 2022 than the team that just secured the #1 seed in the AFC and were knocked out at home in the divisional round. The Titans have the tools on offense and defense and, for the most part, will retain most of those pieces. This is why the Titans will more than likely be rather quiet in the free agent market this off-season. General Manager J-Rob will look at adding a few pieces, but it won’t be Julio Jones or Bud Dupree explosivetype signings. The NFL Draft will be where the Titans acquire any major pieces this off-season, and with the offensive line and its starters getting older, I would expect the Titans to be looking at adding some youth on the line. Tannehill was sacked far too often, and it was clear as day this season, and alarmingly clear in the playoff loss, that Tannehill didn’t have a short pass option in the middle of the field. The Titans must find a tight end that can do more than block.

RESPECT FOR TANNEHILL

I could go on a rant about Ryan Tannehill. Yes, he regressed, and yes, he had another disappointing playoff performance, but at the end of the day the Titans dealt with more injury than any team in the history of the game. Players like A.J. Brown, Julio Jones and Derrick Henry were on injured reserve a good bit of the season. What was Tannehill doing? He was out there every single week, fighting! So let the haters hate,

I still have respect for my quarterback. The fact is, love or hate Tannehill, given his salary cap situation in 2022 he will be QB1 in Tennessee for at least one more season. With that said, it’s about time the Titans found a solid QB2. I wouldn’t be mad at all if the Titans used a first or second round pick on the position. Titans have ignored the backup spot since the day they signed Tannehill to backup Mariota. Ryan Tannehill is a mid-level QB, and while he had excellent 2019–20 numbers due to his lack of mistakes, he isn’t exactly blowing the stat sheets up. With that said, I have faith in Ryan for the upcoming 2022 season. The system is in place for Tannehill to succeed. The Titans defense should continue its dominance up front with the secondary improving, and I believe the offense will plug in a few pieces around Tannehill. More than likely, that will have the Titans competing for a third-straight AFC South title. The haters will tell you this team is doomed with Ryan at the helm, but I believe he will come back hungry. If his line can keep him clean and his skill-position players can stay healthy, we will once again see the Tannehill that Titans fans fell in love with back in 2019. Regardless, congrats to the Titans on an impressive season. AFC South champions. Colts suck! The Titans persevered and beat some solid teams this season, including three out of the four who were competing on Championship weekend—Chiefs, Rams and 49ers. It was a bitter end to the season, no doubt about it. But at the end of the day, I love this team and I will be ready to run it back in 2022 and cheer my Titans on once again. I will continue to do that until I am an old man at the end of my road. But dammit, Tennessee Titans, at least let this superfan experience it one time! I probably have just a little over 30 more seasons or so left in me. So please make it happen one time and bring a Super Bowl championship to Tennessee! All right, my friends, it’s time for the Train to roll into the station. Hope you all enjoy the BIG game. And yes, while it is 100 percent fair to blame slow, bumbling Joe Biden for the ridiculous rise in the price of chicken wings, that still didn’t stop me from buying 30 pounds of them at Costco for my Super Bowl gathering! My motto has always served me well. I live my life by it—the 5 F’s: Faith, Family, Football, Food and Friends! Until next time, choo-choo! BOROPULSE.COM

* FEBRUARY 2022 * 33

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