October 2019 Murfreesboro Pulse

OCTOBER 2019 / VOL. 14, ISSUE 10 / FREE

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

COUNTRY ARTIST ERIN ENDERLIN TALKS NEW ALBUM, COLLEGE DAYS

Fall Fun

Guide to Seasonal Events in Middle Tennessee PAGE 22

OLIVER LANGSTON ART EXHIBIT AT ARTS CENTER OF CANNON COUNTY

e

Middle Tennessee

Haunted Attractions PAGE 20

INSIDE

MONSTER BURRITOS AND FLAVORFUL NACHOS AT FREEBIRDS

FLOAT ALCHEMY / WARRIOR REVIVAL / JET PIONEER / SWEENEY TODD / ART CRAWL / WEIRD SISTERS / AND MORE!

Contents

14 22 FEATURES

34

IN EVERY ISSUE

4 Events

12

ERIN ENDERLIN

CALENDAR Star Parties, Dog Agility Championships, Boots and Brews, Milton Fall Market and more!

Country songstress set to release debut full-length album.

14

FLOATIVATION

Seeking physical and mental benefits of flotation therapy at Float Alchemy.

16

JET PIONEER

Retired Air Force General Carl Schneider donates proceeds from book sales to veterans groups.

8 Sounds

MUSIC NOTES Warrior Revival, Whole Hog Fundraiser, Odie Blackmon

Get scared when you visit 13 haunted attractions in Middle Tennessee.

CONCERTS Stolen Faces, Music City Swing, Tubaween, Sam Rorex, Mixtape, ’80s Halloween Bash, The Southern Shame and more!

FALL FUN

ALBUM REVIEWS Weird Sisters

20

HAUNTED ATTRACTIONS

22

Area corn mazes, pumpkins, trick-ortreating and more seasonal fun.

38

KNOW THE CONSTITUTION

Groups encourage study.

Publisher/Editor in Chief: Bracken Mayo

24 Art

36 News

THEATER Sweeney Todd

BUSINESS MOMENTUM City Cafe: A historic local business.

DISPLAY John Dixon paints new Pulse newsrack, Boro Art Crawl, Oliver Langston exhibit

POETRY Southern Festival of Books

32

Reviews MOVIE Ad Astra

NEW RELEASES A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, The Addams Family and more!

REVIEW Freebirds World Burrito

Contributors:

Advertising: Don Clark, Leslie Russell-Yost

Melissa Coker, Jennifer Durand,

Art Director: Sarah Mayo

Angela Loupe, Rick Malone, Zach Maxfield,

Copy Editor: Steve Morley

Luke Kautzky, Laura Lindsay, Blaine Little, Edwina Shannon, Jay Spight, Andrea Stockard, Phil Valentine, Kory Wells, Michelle Willard

41 Sports SPORTS TALK Titans end September with big win in Atlanta.

42

Opinion

GAME River City Girls

18 Living 34 Food GARDENING Wrap up the garden to start again, collect heirloom seeds.

BUSINESS BUZZ The Full Plate, Yummy Poki, Bittersweet Bakery and more

PHIL VALENTINE Nashville officials kept criminal record of illegal alien from public.

LIVE . . . WELL! Finding the extra SPIRIT MATTERS Haunted houses of hell READING Ecce Deus

Copyright © 2019, The Murfreesboro Pulse, 10 N. Public Square, Murfreesboro, TN 37130.

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

10 N. Public Square, Murfreesboro, TN 37130 • 615-796-6248 To carry the PULSE at your business, or to submit letters, stories and photography: bracken@boropulse.com

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The Murfreesboro Pulse

SHORTLY AFTER CONSTITUTION DAY, in the midst of a little Constitutional research I was conducting, a Wisconsin group that pushes the principle of separation of church and state filed a complaint against Rockvale football coach Rick Rice after he conducted a prayer with his players prior to a game. This incident sparked some community debates regarding religious liberty and prayer in school, and extracted all sorts of perspectives from various viewpoints.

A lot of Americans point out that in a land that guarantees freedom of religion, taxpayer-funded organizations and employees must show care to not give the impression that they favor or promote one particular religion.

Others note that the Constitution does not say “separation of church and state.” It does however clearly state that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” If Congress allocates money that winds up in the Rutherford County School System, and school principals or administrators communicate to their employees that “Any prayers or religious activities must be student-initiated and student-led.

Employees are not to lead the activities or participate,” as RC Schools official James Evans said, they are getting quite close to prohibiting the free exercise of one’s religion.

Maybe those who support separation of church and state are attempting to make the case to do away with public schools altogether if they are going to be oppressive institutions restricting the religion of their employees. This group that filed the complaint appears to be more set on restricting freedom of religion rather than promoting its free exercise.

If a coach told a player that they wouldn’t play in the game or make the team unless they said the prayer with him, okay, that’s an abuse of power and an infringement of liberty. But many of the Rockvale players seemed to support the coach publicly and agree with the notion of saying a brief prayer before they got to take the field before a game. Students decided to lead a prayer of their own prior to their next game.

Here in Rutherford County, we understand that Rockvale High, a new school with a football program in its first year of existence, needs all the prayers it can get, thrown into a division with Oakland, Blackman and Riverdale.

The Tennessee Philharmonic, formerly the Murfreesboro Symphony Orchestra, presented a great program of in its September season-opening concert; highlights for me included “Ride of the Valkyries,” “Hall of the Mountain King” and Satie’s “Gymnopedies,” performed in the beautiful First United Methodist Church sanctuary.

Now is the time for haunted stuff and digging out the jackets, pumpkin carving and getting all costumed up.

Pumpkin soup season! When it finally cools off . . .

Thanks to artist John Dixon for rockin’ out another Pulse rack for us. Check it out at Jr.’s Foodland—or view images on page 24.

Play an instrument, sit in the sun. Hold your wife for a moment.

Say yes sometimes; say no sometimes. Hear live music.

Do something new—you may find it exciting and inspirational. Stay focused on your plan. Over time, you’ll sit back and realize the progress and results. Take care of your body, mind and soul.

Peace, BRACKEN MAYO Publisher/Editor in Chief

Events OCT. 2 & 3 POLITICAL ECONOMY RESEARCH LECTURES The Political Economy Research Institute at MTSU will host a lineup of public lectures throughout the 2019–20 academic year.

The series kicks off Wednesday, Oct. 2, at 12:40 p.m. with “The Continuing Relevance of F.A. Hayek” from Dr. Peter J. Boettke, who has authored 14 books, including Living Economics and The Battle of Ideas. The following day, Thursday, Oct. 3, PERI will host Dr. Jay Cost, a columnist at National Review Online and the author of A Republic No More: Big Government and the Rise of American Political Corruption, at 7 p.m. for “Make Congress Great Again: The Problem of Legislative Responsibility and the Prospects of Institutional Reform.”

Both lectures will be in BAS Room S102.

For more information, call 615-898-5916, email peri@mtsu.edu or visit mtsu.edu/peri.

CALENDAR / OCTOBER 2019 especially outdoors in nature. Meet on Saturday, Oct. 5, at 9 a.m. at the beautiful Gateway Island (1875 W. College St.) for a free session. Yoga focuses on improving balance and flexibility, while at the same time reducing stress. Beginning and intermediate levels are welcome (ages 13 and up). For more information, contact bjohnson@murfreesborotn.gov.

OCT. 5 THREE RIVERS DENTISTRY CELEBRATION Join Three Rivers Family Dentistry for a 10-Year Anniversary Patient Appreciation Celebration on Saturday, Oct. 5, from noon–3 p.m. featuring food, games, bounce slide, obstacle course and fun including a Dunk the Doc Tank at Lane-Agri Park’s barn area (315 John Rice Blvd.).

RSVP by calling or texting 615-9073456, or find the event on Facebook.

OCT. 5

OCT. 6

LADIES FALL EXPO

BOOCHES AND POOCHES

Join the Ladies Fall Expo for a fun, free shopping day Saturday, Oct. 5, from 11 a.m.–4 p.m. at Lane Agri-Park Community Center (315 John Rice Blvd.). Thousands of LuLaRoe pieces are available along with other vendors like Scentsy, Fresh Blue Mornings, Paparazzi, Dot Dot Smile and more. For more information, find the event on Facebook or Eventbrite.

Join Float Alchemy, Dog Friendly Rutherford and Purple Paws on Sunday, Oct. 6 from 3–6 p.m. at Float Alchemy (131 Cason Ln.) for the dog-friendly Booches and Pooches event. Get discounts on fresh kombucha on tap in the Kombucha Taproom. BYOB is allowed. The event is free, and vendors include My Roots Curbside Culinary food truck, Puppy Love Dog Treats and Freeze Warning Shaved Ice. Meet photographer Renee Rome with a Purple Paws photo area, a splash pool for pups, cornhole and sidewalk art for kids and door prizes. This year features Puppy Paw Painting. You and your pooch can paint and take home an original painted canvas using your choice of non-toxic washable paint. Cost is $25 and is payable at the Facebook page purplepawstn or at the event. All proceeds benefit Purple Paws, a local nonprofit that financially assists area animal rescues.

OCT. 5 HIKE TO MACHINE FALLS Meet at the Wilderness Station (401 Volunteer Rd.) for a trip for a two-mile hike to the gorgeous Machine Falls in Short Springs Natural Area in Coffee County. The hope is that the leaves are changing and that the air is crisp. This is a short hike, but it is very steep and rocky in places. Wear closed-toed shoes with good traction and bring water shoes if you want to wade into the water. Registration is required. Ages 8 and up are welcome, but anyone under 18 must be accompanied by an adult. Departure is at 9:30 a.m. and a $10 fee includes transportation. For more information, contact 615-217-3017 or outdoormurfreesboro@murfreesborotn.gov.

OCT. 5 YOGA AT THE ISLAND Yoga is a great way to wind down, 4 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

BY ANDREA STOCKARD

OCT. 9 LIVING SENT MINISTRIES The October Living Sent Murfreesboro meeting is Wednesday, Oct. 9, from 11:45 a.m.–1 p.m. at the Experience (521 Old Salem Rd.). Major General Carl G. Schneider, U.S. Air Force (Ret.) is the application speaker. He shares lessons learned while rising from an enlisted

OCT. 4 & NOV. 1 MTSU STAR PARTIES Join the MTSU Observatory for a 30–45 minute public lecture on the first Friday of each month followed by a telescope observation (if skies are clear). Admission is free and all are welcome. The lectures begin at 6:30 p.m. Free parking is available by the science buildings. The MTSU Observatory is outside of the Wiser-Patten Science Hall. Oct. 4 features Dr. Eric Klumpe presenting Physics 101 Marvel Style: Conservation of Momentum. Nov. 1 is Dr. Irina Perevalova with Terraforming. For more information, visit mtsu.edu/observatory/star_parties.php. private to two-star general and flying some of the most powerful aircraft in the U.S. military arsenal. Murfreesboro Realtor Gordon Carlisle shares his God story. A free lunch is provided. Please RSVP to bob.williams@alhambrapartners.com.

OCT. 10 ESTATE PLANNING CONVERSATION There are certain documents everyone should have in their “Important Papers” file. The future is uncertain, and with the possibilities of Alzheimer’s, dementia, strokes and other conditions that limit capacity, powers of attorney and healthcare directives contain important instructions for the last years of life and allow you to name a trusted individual to oversee your care and financial affairs. The consequences of not having these documents in place can be costly and burdensome to your family. Additionally, estate planning through wills and trusts allows you to customize plans for the distribution of your assets, provide for your pets and choosing who will oversee your estate administration after your death. Local professionals will host a free conversation about

estate planning at Cultivate Coworking on Thursday, Oct. 10, from 6–8 p.m. Heavy appetizers and a signature beverage are served. For more information, find the event on Eventbrite or Facebook.

OCT. 11 BORO ART CRAWL The Boro Art Crawl is a free art event held in businesses and galleries in and around downtown Murfreesboro the second Friday of every even-numbered month, from 6–9 p.m. Local artists show their work in businesses who want to support artists.

Find a map of participating locations on page 25 in this edition of the Pulse.

OCT. 11 & 12 GOATS, MUSIC AND MORE The festival that began in honor of those famous fainting goats of Marshall County returns for its 17th year at Rock Creek Park (101 Old Farmington Rd., Lewisburg) Friday and Saturday, Oct. 11 and 12, with goat shows, musical entertainment and activities for the whole family. The Goats, Music and More Festival includes top-notch free musical entertainment with Ronnie McDowell and Shelby Lee Lowe on Friday night and

T. Graham Brown and Wade Hayes on Saturday night, goat shows that celebrate fainting and Boer goats, barbecue and a variety of other great food, arts and crafts, pony rides, a petting zoo, bounce houses and a 5K on Saturday morning at 7 a.m. For more information on this year’s festival, contact pdavis@cityoflew.com or 931-359-1544 or visit goatsmusicandmore.com.

OCT. 11, 12 & 18 SENIORS ACTING UP A Night to Remember, directed by Angela Ford, features eight comedy skits performed

by St. Clair Street Senior Center talent (325 St. Clair St.). Support them and laugh the night away Friday, Oct. 11 and Friday, Oct.. 18, with a meal at 5 p.m. and curtain at 6 p.m. There is also a performance on Saturday, Oct. 12, with a meal at noon and curtain at 1 p.m. Tickets are $5 each. For more information, contact 615-848-2550 or kherod@murfreesborotn.gov.

Oct. 17, with beer and spirit tastings, live music and food. Join over 20 beer, wine and spirit vendors predominately local to Middle Tennessee. Moe’s Southwest Grill provides dinner and the Dapper Doughnut dessert, all included in a ticket purchase benefiting the local Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault Center. The center specializes in healing and protective services at no cost for all victims of personal violence. Vendors include Uncle Nearest Bourbon, Mid State Brewsters, Mill Creek Brewing, Mayday Brewery, Big Creek Winery Tasting Room and more. Find tickets on Eventbrite or learn more about the Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault Center at dvpshelter.org.

OCT. 12 CAGE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIPS Fighters will enter the cage on Saturday, Oct. 12, at the Mid TN Expo Center (1660 Middle Tenn. Blvd.) from 7:30–11 p.m. (doors open at 6:30 p.m.) for the stacked Cage Fighting Championships 7. Tickets are on sale now at cfcfight. com. The CFC 7 card is packed full of 12 MMA fights including four CFC title fights and a big Halloween party.

OCT. 17 SNAKES: MYSTERIES IN NATURE

OCT. 12

OCT. 12

OCT. 16

PLEIN AIR PAINT-OUT 2019

GIRL SCOUTS RECYCLE CRAFTS DAY

CANNONSBURGH HISTORY POTLUCK

The Rutherford County Area Habitat for Humanity ReStore hosts its first Girl Scouts Recycle Crafts Day on Saturday, Oct. 12, at the Habitat ReStore (850 Mercury Blvd.). Girl Scouts from the Middle Tennessee area are invited to sign up, learn and get hands-on instruction on various ways to “upscale” and craft household items and keep them from the landfills. ReStore encourages people to donate household items. Girls Scouts use cabinet doors to create decorative trays and key holders, will decoupage and paint furniture and make furniture out of shipping pallets. The ReStore keeps over 560 tons of materials out of area landfills every year. Proceeds help in building quality, energy-efficient and affordable housing. For more information, contact 615-603-5395. Girl Scouts can sign up for the event with their troop leaders, at attinyurl.com/yycvafdj or by calling 615890-5877.

Come to the McKnight House at Cannonsburgh Village (312 S. Front St.) and bring your favorite food dish to share on Wednesday, Oct. 16, from 11 a.m.–1 p.m., as Kathy Owen Wallace presents “Cannonsburgh Memories” and Susanne Hebden presents “Churning Butter-Foods of Yesteryear.” All ages are welcome. For more information, call 615-890-0355.

The Murfreesboro Art League aims to develop and maintain a vibrant artistic environment in the Rutherford County/ Murfreesboro community. The Murfreesboro Art League offers classes in many disciplines for artists of all levels and has a gallery located in the back of Cannonsburgh Village. Participate in or observe a plein air paint-out with the Murfreesboro Art League on Saturday, Oct. 12, beginning at 8 a.m. at Cannonsburgh Village (312 S. Front St.). There are beautiful sites to paint and cash prizes; a wet-paint sale of artwork begins at 5 p.m. For more information, visit murfreesboroartleague.blogspot. com, find the event on Facebook or contact suzanne.lebeau22@gmail.com.

OCT. 12 POSTURE REPAIR CLASS Dr. Jen with Jenergy For Life is a doctor of physical therapy who has created a wellness exercise class for the community to get people moving with less pain and with less risk for injury. Her class focuses on improving posture, core strength, proper body mechanics and a positive attitude.

This free class is for all fitness levels and ages but especially helpful for those who sit too much, type on computers and look down at their phones. Onsite vendors help spread the message of positivity and wellness on Saturday, Oct. 12, from 9–10 a.m. at the Fountains at Gateway (1500 Medical Center Pkwy.). For more information, contact jenergyforlife@gmail.com or 615-592-6408.

OCT. 12 HERITAGE FESTIVAL Rutherford County’s first African-American school is celebrating its 15th Annual Heritage Festival on Saturday, Oct. 12, from 10 a.m.–2 p.m. at Bradley Academy Museum & Cultural Center (415 S Academy St.). Enjoy games and activities for the kids, food vendors, art vendors and live music for the entire family. For more information, contact 615-962-8773 or vstembridge@murfreesborotn.gov.

 Send community event information to CONTACT@BOROPULSE.COM

OCT. 17 THE CONNECTION Local small business owners will gather for The Connection: An Evening of Professional Networking and Business Brainstorming from 5–7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 17, at Rutherford County Area Habitat for Humanity ReStore (850 Mercury Blvd.).

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. A discussion will encourage participation from those in attendance, asking them to articulate their vision for their business and calling for examples of some of the business challenges and solutions they are experiencing. The series will continue the third Thursday of each month.

OCT. 17 BOOTS & BREWS The annual Boots & Brews benefit party returns to Copper Ridge Event Venue (3597 Betty Ford Rd.) on Thursday,

The Wilderness Station will host Snakes: Mysteries in Nature on Thursday, Oct. 17, at 5:30 p.m. This free program will introduce you to the world of snakes and will cover the history of snakes as they entered the new world and populated the Southeast. This program, for ages 12 and up, would be great for college students concentrating on life sciences, young adults or anyone interested in the snakes that call Middle Tennessee home. For more information, call 615-217-3017 or email efann@murfreesborotn.gov.

OCT. 17 FIREFLY SUPPER Local chefs offer a unique “farm to table” dining experience providing delicious cuisine with a local flair while spreading awareness about the Doors of Hope Mission. All proceeds go directly towards empowering more women to break the cycle of addiction and incarceration. Meet at The View at Fountains (1500 Medical Center Pkwy.) on Thursday, Oct. 17, at 6 p.m. Tickets are $125. RSVP at 615-9000634 or visit opendoorsofhope.org for more information.

OCT. 17 McFADDEN FALL FEST Join the McFadden Community Center (211 Bridge Ave.) Thursday, Oct. 17, from 5–8 p.m. for its Fall Fest and Haunted Hallways. Everyone is invited for food, fun, fellowship and fright. Some highlights of the night are the Moon Bounce, carnival games, T-shirt walk and a DJ. Admission is free. For more information, contact mphilpott@murfreesborotn.gov or 615-907-2251.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 6 BOROPULSE.COM

* OCTOBER 2019 * 5

OCT. 19 BORO INTERNATIONAL FEST Celebrate the world at Cannonsburgh Village (312 S. Front St.) Saturday, Oct. 19 from 11 a.m.–4 p.m. for international arts, crafts, food, games, music and dance performances. For more information, contact tena.bailey@cityschools.net.

OCT. 19 SIT. STAY. SHOP. MARKET

OCT. 12 MILTON FALL MARKET & CRAFT FAIR ON OCT. 12 The rural hamlet of Milton will be buzzing during the second Milton Fall Market & Craft Fair at The Gathering at Milton from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 12. The event celebrates the first anniversary of the re-opening of the site last year after it underwent eight months of renovation by new owners Phillip and Alanna Vaught.

“Maybe I’m a little crazy,” Phillip Vaught said. “But I like a project, and part of me hated to see a piece of history slipping away. It has been a lot of hard work, but Alanna and I are both passionate about the potential of this area. We are raising our family on a farm nearby and we think there is a great future here.”

Milton Fall Market will host more than 50 artists and vendors both inside the former country store and outside on the lawn. The first 100 people arriving will get a fresh, hot sugar-cinnamon minidoughnut from The Dapper Doughnut, and a drawing will take place for a free rental of The Gathering at Milton.

“We plan all year to have a wonderful event during The Fall Market and Craft Fair,” Alanna Vaught said. “It is so much fun to see people come and enjoy the day with us. We are very selective about the vendors who show their wares, and think people will be pleased.”

Vendors include 3 Sisters Vintage and Marlena Jean Living By Design, showcasing rustic décor, painted furniture and farmhouse chic pieces; potters Jonathan Griffith and Blue Pony Art; local artists LaDonna Bell with her hand-painted signs at River Lane Relics and painter Donald Ray Alexander of The Farmer’s View; woodworking artisan Kenneth Gunnell with his hand-turned bowls; the Rural Route Bus Boutique, Grace Goodman with Castle and Carousels, Milton Metal Works, and so much more.

Children can enjoy a petting zoo provided by Mini Creek Farms from

6 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

Lascassas, a tractor-themed bounce house and slide and face painting by Woodbury FFA. Plus, Double Creek Farm Alpacas will present a spinning of fiber demonstration. Eats will be available from Good Ol’ Sloppy Top and Holy Smoker food trucks. Other treats include sno-balls, jams, jellies, the fried pies and canned goods of Dot McCullough, popped-onsite kettle corn, cookies, cupcakes, coffee, cider, apples and more.

Learn about local history from Shirley McKee and Teresa Davenport at the “Reminiscing Milton” booth. They will be gathering the many memories and stories people have about Milton.

Davenport administrates a popular Facebook page focused on Milton’s interesting past and is writing a book about the community to celebrate its upcoming bicentennial in 2020.

Mums and mini-pumpkins will be available for your fall decorating.

Admission is $5 for adults and free for children 12 years and younger.

The Gathering at Milton and the Milton Fall Market & Craft Fair are located at 12026 Milton St., about 15 miles outside of Murfreesboro just off Highway 96 (look for the signs). For more information, call 615-653-6018 or visit facebook.com/thegatheringatmilton.

The Gathering at Milton, a nearly 120-year-old building, once hosted Manuel’s Cajun Country Store, where catfish and music were served, and Cherry’s Market, which reportedly had one of the community’s first televisions.

New owners Alanna and Phillip Vaught, who represents the eighth generation of his family to live in the area, bought the building at auction in 2018 and restored the building to host weddings, reunions, meetings, retreats and parties.

Join Sit. Stay. Shop. Merchants Market (2221 North Rd.) for a family-friendly and pet-friendly day Saturday, Oct. 19, from 10 a.m.–4 p.m. Take in local musicians, vendors, food trucks, pet portraits, costume contests, and even adoptable dogs from Rebellion Dog Rescue. For more information, find the event on Facebook.

OCT. 21 AUTHOR HEIDI HEILIG The Friends of Linebaugh Library brings children’s authors from across the country to speak at public schools and do a onenight presentation at the library. Linebaugh brings in Heidi Heilig from New York on Monday, Oct. 21, at 6:30 p.m. Heilig has two series of YA books and she discusses her works and latest book coming out in October with a book signing afterwards.

Books will be available for purchase and refreshments will be available. For more information, contact 615-893-4131 or evagraalman@hotmail.com.

OCT. 22 BUSINESS AFTER HOURS Business After Hours, presented by and held at Murfreesboro Medical Clinic (1272 Garrison Dr.), is Tuesday, Oct. 22, from 5–7 p.m. This informal, social networking event is designed to connect guests with business professionals from across Rutherford County. Bring plenty of business cards. Admission is $10 for members and $20 for future members. No registration is required. For more information, visit rutherfordchamber.org/events.

OCT. 23 DISASTER PREPAREDNESS FOR SMALL BUSINESSES Join a Disaster Preparedness/Recovery for Small Businesses program with Tennessee Small Business Development Center of MTSU (to be shown via Skype) at the Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce (3050 Medical Center Pkwy.) hosted by SBA’s Kathy Cook, Wednesday, Oct. 23, from 1–2 p.m. Businesses and their staff face a variety of hazards: natural hazards such as floods, hurricanes, tornadoes and

earthquakes, health hazards including the flu, human-caused hazards including accidents and acts of violence, and technologyrelated hazards such as power outages and equipment failure. There is much that a business leader can do to prepare his or her organization for the most likely hazards.

Business leaders learn to make a preparedness plan to get ready for these hazards: Identify Your Risk, Develop a Plan, Take Action, Be Recognized and Inspire Others. For more information, contact 615-898-2745 or amaginn@tsbdc.org, or visit tsbdc.org.

OCT. 24 SPECIAL KIDS GOLF TOURNAMENT Play “fore” the kids Thursday, Oct. 24, at Cedar Crest Golf Course (7972 Mona Rd.) at 11 a.m. with an awards ceremony following. A team of four is $600 or $150 per individual player and proceeds benefit Special Kids. This year’s featured child is Ellie, a sweet, funny and loving girl who was born with a host of medical conditions including coordination-impairing Olivopontocerebellar Atrophy (Ataxia). Ellie came to Special Kids at the age of 6 and received physical, occupational, speech and feeding therapies. Now 14 and a part of the nursing program, Ellie has far surpassed what doctors initially believed she would ever be able to do. For more information on Special Kids and the upcoming golf tournament fundraiser, contact rbraziel@specialkidstn.com, call 615-893-4892 or visit specialkidstn. com/golfclassic.

OCT. 26 HALLOWEEN COMICFEST All branches of the Rutherford County Library System give away free comic books for Halloween ComicFest on Saturday, Oct. 26. The comics are specially published for this event by DC Comics, Marvel, Dark Horse, IDW Publishing, BOOM! Studios, Dynamite Entertainment, Image Comics and a number of other independent publishers. Enjoy candy, games, movies and costume contests; each Rutherford County Library branch hosts a unique event. Everyone is encouraged to dress up as their favorite characters. This is made possible

by The Great Escape in Murfreesboro. For more information, contact 615-893-4131 or doflaherty@rclstn.org, or visit rclstn.org.

OCT. 26 HARVEST DAYS Join Cannonsburgh Village (312 S. Front St.) for Harvest Days, including handmade crafts, hayrides, the Cripple Creek Cloggers, 231 South Band, Uptown Country, Mid-State Cloggers, Murfreesboro Art

League and Rutherford Blacksmith Association, on Saturday, Oct. 26, from 10 a.m.–4 p.m. Tour the Antique Auto Building and enjoy food trucks, storytelling and hands-on demonstrations. For more information, contact 615-8900355 or shodges@murfreesborotn.gov.

Murfreesboro Chess Club meets each Thursday at 6 p.m. at First Cumberland Presbyterian Church (907 E. Main St.). Chess players of all levels are invited to come meet and play against other local chess enthusiasts.

For more information, call 615-713-9256 or email murfreesborochess@gmail.com.

OCT. 27

FRIDAYS

HARVEST HOEDOWN

PARATREKS GHOST TOURS

World Outreach Church (1921 New Salem Rd.) hosts its annual Hallelujah Harvest Hoedown Celebration from 1–4 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 27. Several hundred volunteers from the church work to create a fun environment for kids and adults with games, inflatables, popcorn, candy, music and more during this massive event. Free and open to the public.

Certified Paranormal Investigators host a 90-minute tour beginning at 9 p.m. Fridays, Oct. 11, 18 and 25, on the Murfreesboro Public Square providing a mixture of Tennessee folklore tales, interesting Murfreesboro history and ghost stories about locations along this walking tour. Find out fun and interesting history about former residents of that are still haunting buildings, restaurants and more. For more information or to register, contact info@ paratreks.com or visit paratreks.com.

OCT. 27 MAGIC SHOW The Walnut House (116 N. Walnut St.) presents magicians Jimbo Hooten and David Williams on Sunday, Oct. 27, with doors at 2 p.m. Enjoy tricks and treats and a matinee of magic. Wear a costume!

General admission is $12 with 12 and under $10. Tickets can be purchased at walnuthousemurfreesboro.com.

OCT. 28

OCT. 23–27 DOG AGILITY CHAMPIONSHIPS Nearly 750 canine athletes from nine different countries are headed to Murfreesboro Oct. 23–27 to compete in the U.S. Dog Agility Association’s prestigious Cynosport World Games Dog Agility Championship at the Tennessee Miller Coliseum (304B W. Thompson Ln.). The world’s best canine athletes are unleashed individually to race over obstacle courses against the clock while being navigated by their human partner using only voice and hand signals. Competitors battle for the sport’s most coveted prizes, including the Grand Prix of Dog Agility World Champion title and the right to compete for more than $10,000 in prize money in the Dog Agility Steeplechase. Cynosport World Games also features numerous shopping opportunities for pet lovers. Daily activities run from 9 a.m.–5 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 23, through Sunday, Oct. 27, with evening events on Saturday at 6 p.m. Event parking is $5 per car on Saturday and Sunday. For more information, call 888-AGILITY-244-5489 or visit cynosport.com.

NOV. 2 COOKIN’ TO BUILD Join Rutherford County Area Habitat for Humanity for the 12th Annual Cookin’ to Build at the Historic Murfreesboro Public Square on Saturday, Nov. 2, from 11 a.m.–1:30 p.m. Purchase tickets prior to event and get in at 10:30 a.m. A $20 ticket includes a bowl to take home and “all you can eat” from excellent soup, stew and chili cooks. Paint your own bowl at The Pottery Place for $5 through Oct. 15. All proceeds are used to build Habitat for Humanity houses in Rutherford County for low-income families.

Tickets are available at Habitat ReStore (850 Mercury Blvd.). If you would like to cook, contact 615-890-5877 x.100 or shelby@rchfh.org. Sponsors should

SHADOW CHASERS

the Heart of Tennessee club, visit heartoftennessee.toastmastersclubs.org.

Join the Shadow Chasers of Middle Tennessee (Paranormal Investigation Team), a group of experienced paranormal investigators, both believers and skeptics, based in Murfreesboro.

The first tour leaves at 7 p.m. and then every 30 minutes after until 9:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday nights in October. Leave from Big B Cleaners on the Square (7 S. Public Square).

For more information, contact contact@shadowchasersmidtn.org or visit shadowchasermidtn.org. Tickets $5 at Big B Cleaners.

WEDNESDAYS

SATURDAYS

TAI CHI

HISTORY AND COFFEE

The Movie Maker’s Club of Nashville is getting ready to shoot a feature-length, horror/comedy film. Many people are needed for the crew and talent. Weekly meetings are held every Sunday from 3–4 p.m. at Old Hickory Towers (930 Industrial Dr., Old Hickory) in the Media Room. The book and screenplay are already completed. For more information, contact yhmmc@yahoo.com.

Tai Chi is an ancient Chinese discipline consisting of slow movements and postures done in a fluid and relaxed manner. It is used to reduce stress, increase flexibility, improve muscle strength, increase stamina and agility and increase the feeling of wellbeing. Ages 15 and up can join a free Tai Chi session at Gateway Island (1875 W. College St.) Wednesdays, Oct. 9, 16, 23 and 30 at 9 a.m. For more information, contact bjohnson@murfreesborotn.gov.

Rutherford County Historical Society invites everyone to visit Ransom School (717 N. Academy St.) Saturday mornings from 9 a.m.–noon to discuss history over a cup of coffee. Bring old photos and memorabilia, and leave with a better understanding of, and appreciation for, your past. For more information, visit rutherfordtnhistory.org.

TUESDAYS

WEDNESDAYS

HEART OF TENNESSEE TOASTMASTERS

BORO2SQUARE RUNNERS

BEP DRIVE FOR EDUCATION The Business Education Partnership will host its golf tournament Drive for Education on Monday, Oct. 28, from 10:30–11:30 a.m. Every golfer gets a $50 Pro Shop gift certificate. Four hole-in-one contests include two $5,000 cash prize contests sponsored by Murfreesboro Nissan, one TravisMathew signature outfit plus a $500 online shopping spree and one set of Cobra King F8 Irons. For more information, visit rutherfordbep.org/drive-for-education.

FRI. & SAT.

contact 615-603-5395 or melissa@ rchfh.org. For more information, visit rchfh.org/cookin-to-build.

SUNDAYS MOVIE MAKER’S CLUB

The Heart of Tennessee Toastmasters is an international organization devoted to helping others advance their communication and leadership skills. Through participation in a variety of roles at each meeting, learn better listening skills, critical thinking, goal setting and public speaking. Meet at 7 p.m. on the first, third and fifth Tuesdays of each month at KellerWilliams Realty (450 St. Andrews Dr.).

For more information on Toastmasters and

Boro2Square Runners is a running group for individuals interested in running and socializing with other runners. Weekly runs begin at 6 p.m. each Wednesday, starting from the Boulevard Bar and Grill, 2154 Middle Tennessee Blvd. Distances covered are 3–5 miles, with runners of all paces welcome to participate. For more information, visit facebook.com/boro2square.

THURSDAYS CHESS CLUB

ONGOING ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS If you want to drink That’s your business If you want to stop We can help Alcoholics Anonymous 615-831-1050 aa.org

ONGOING AL-ANON Attend Al-Anon meetings, a fellowship program for the families and friends of alcoholics, weekly at 435 S. Molloy Ave. (off of Bridge Ave.). Meeting times include 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Sundays; 6:30 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays; 10 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays; and noon Saturdays. For more information, contact 270-293-5201.

BOROPULSE.COM

* OCTOBER 2019 * 7

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MAYDAY BREWERY HOSTS WARRIOR REVIVAL CONCERT MAYDAY IS BREWING HOPE FOR VETERANS on Saturday, Oct. 12, through a special evening, billed Warrior Revival, featuring four published singer-songwriters who all have strong military ties.

Songwriters Sal Gonzalez (an America’s Got Talent contestant), Stephen Cochran and Tyler Jay all served in the United States Marine Corps. Singer-songwriter Sam Tate is a Vietnam Army veteran. He’s known for co-writing such songs as the powerful No. 1 “Moments” by Emerson Drive, “Shut Up and Drive” by Chely Wright and the No. 1 “If You’re Going Through Hell” by Rodney Atkins. Heavy-hitting country music artists Gary Allan, Mark Chesnutt, Joe Nichols and Sammy Kershaw are also among those who’ve taken him up on his words.

Additionally, Tate has appeared in music videos of Cochran’s.

Benefiting the nonprofit CommuniServe, this intimate event is SAM TATE designed to demonstrate and be a reminder that “we all have our demons, but we also have each other.” The concert begins at 9 p.m. Tickets are $65. Proceeds from ticket sales and sponsorships will go toward providing free essential home care for veterans within the local community.

Find more information on the Warrior Revival Concert on Facebook and Eventbrite.

SAL GONZALEZ — MELISSA COKER

GO WHOLE HOG AND HELP FEED THE HUNGRY IT TAKES A COMMUNITY to feed a community.

That’s the motto for Spring Hill’s The Well Outreach, which will be hosting the John Maher Builders’ Whole Hog Festival on Saturday, Oct. 5, to raise funds for feeding families in need—something the organization has been doing since 2006.

The all-ages, all-day event, offering live music, family fun, food and a 7 p.m. fireworks finale, will kick off (rain or shine) at 10 a.m. on the grounds of the sprawling Tennessee Children’s Home campus (804 Branham Hughes Circle, Spring Hill).

Hit Warner Brothers country duo High Country tops the bill of nine musical acts, a lineup spanning country, rock, Christian and Americana. Also appearing is Adam Warner, whose “Welcome to the South” routinely greets the Tennessee Titans’ visiting opponents.

Add in a petting zoo, arts and crafts vendors, circus performers and a hog-calling contest, and you have a mighty nice way to spend a day—and help feed hungry families in Middle Tennessee. Admission is $5, and children 10 or under are admitted free of charge. Food donations are encouraged, and much appreciated.

— STEVE MORLEY

ADAM WARNER

 ENTERTAINMENT

TRIVIA, KARAOKE & BINGO NIGHTS Send karaoke, trivia and entertainment info to listings@boropulse.com  MONDAYS

 WEDNESDAYS

 FRIDAYS

AHARTS PIZZA GARDEN Trivia 7 p.m.

CAMPUS PUB Karaoke 10 p.m.–2:30 a.m.

GEORGIA’S SPORTS BAR Karaoke 8 p.m.–12 a.m.

HANK’S Karaoke 7–10 p.m.

LEVEL III Trivia 7 p.m.

MELLOW MUSHROOM Trivia 8 p.m.

SAM’S SPORTS GRILL Trivia 8 p.m.

STATION GRILL Trivia 7 p.m.

THE BOULEVARD Trivia 8 p.m.

VAN’S BAR & GRILL Bike Night, Karaoke 6 p.m.

GEORGIA’S SPORTS BAR Karaoke 9 p.m.–1 a.m.

 THURSDAYS

 SUNDAYS

HOP SPRINGS Trivia 7 p.m.

VAN’S BAR & GRILL Pool tournament 7 p.m.

SAM’S SPORTS GRILL Trivia 8 p.m.

HANK’S Open Mic Night 6–9 p.m.

HOP SPRINGS Poker 7 p.m.

JACK BROWN’S Trivia Night 7 p.m.

LEVEL III Trivia 7 p.m.

MT BOTTLE Bingo 7 p.m.

 TUESDAYS COCONUT BAY Trivia 7:30 p.m.

HOP SPRINGS Karaoke 7–10 p.m.

NACHO’S Trivia 7 p.m.

OLD CHICAGO Trivia 8:30 p.m.

8 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

MUSIC NOTES

LIQUID SMOKE DJ night 10 p.m.

MT BOTTLE Karaoke 9 p.m.–3 a.m.

 SATURDAYS CAMPUS PUB Karaoke 10 p.m.–2:30 a.m.

GEORGIA’S SPORTS BAR Karaoke 9 p.m.–1 a.m.

MT BOTTLE Karaoke 9 p.m.–3 a.m.

NACHO’S Trivia 7 p.m.

VAN’S BAR & GRILL Karaoke 7 p.m.

LIVE MUSIC IN THE ’BORO WED, 10/2

SUN, 10/6

MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Confucius Day Concert with Mei Han, Jun Tian, Niu Hong, Qingnan Deng and Ji Jie THE WALNUT HOUSE Middle Tennessee Song writer Series with Billy Plant, Thomas Stegar, Trinidad Ramirez, Allen J. Morrell, Delyn Christian, Terry McClain, Logan Piercey, Ericca Latza, Kimma Phillips, Jackson Cole Harrison, Roland Justice

HANK’S Crosstown MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Brass Chamber recital

THURS, 10/3 HANDLEBARS World Famous Thursday Night Blues Jam HANK’S Lauren Christine HOP SPRINGS Acoustic country music jam and singalong MEDIA RERUN Butch & the Fat Doobs, Hannibal’s Tea Party, Urges, Aconundrum MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING MTSU Women’s Chorale; Meistersingers PUCKETT’S GROCERY Kristy Cox VIEW AT FOUNTAINS Music City Swing

FRI, 10/4 COCONUT BAY CAFE Krazee D Crazyoke HANK’S Sarah Martin; Chazz Wesley MAYDAY BREWERY The Lilliston Effect MEDIA RERUN KarateChad EP Release; Sad Speller; The City Planner; Jake Kroll MILANO II Jack Popek MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Christine Kim; Arunesh Nadgir PUCKETT’S GROCERY Pickin Crows VAN’S BAR & GRILL Six String Revolver

SAT, 10/5 HANK’S Brad Dix & Evan King; Justin Dukes MAIN STREET MUSIC Pink Floyd tribute; Raygun PUCKETT’S GROCERY Runaway Home

MON, 10/7 MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING MTSU Jazz Ensemble PUCKETT’S GROCERY MTSU Music Monday

TUES, 10/8 BURGER BAR Sarah Martin HANK’S Don Mealer MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Ryan Schmidt

WED, 10/9 MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Kailyn Juday; Chris Combest; Richard Blumenthal THE WALNUT HOUSE Jeremy Pinell & Friends

THURS, 10/10 HANDLEBARS World Famous Thursday Night Blues Jam HANK’S A Slice of American Pie MEDIA RERUN The Low Blow; The Sewing Club; Ouro; Juke of June MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING MTSU Wind Ensemble; MTSU Symphonic Band THE BORO Radical Arts Open Mic PUCKETT’S GROCERY Sam Rorex and Fred Reilly

FRI, 10/11 COCONUT BAY CAFE King and the Rebel HANK’S Delyn Christian; Jack Finley Band MILANO II Jack Popek PUCKETT’S GROCERY Steel Blossoms THE BORO Embodiment; Ruinous Scourge; Primeval Well VAN’S BAR & GRILL Kelson Buck and the Buck Wild Band

SAT, 10/12 COCONUT BAY CAFE DJ Ceiz

CONCERT CALENDAR HANDLEBARS Monkey Wrench HANK’S Joe Hooper; Cherry Avenue MAIN STREET MUSIC Classic Rock All-Stars; AC Drive PUCKETT’S GROCERY The Mighty Trainwrecks THE BORO Symptom of the Universe, Rainbow Black

SUN, 10/13 HANK’S Rebecca Daniels

MON, 10/14 PUCKETT’S GROCERY MTSU Music Monday

TUES, 10/15 BURGER BAR Sarah Martin HANK’S J Kyle Reynolds

WED, 10/16

SAT, 10/19 GEORGIA’S Phoenix Rising HANK’S Colleen Lloy; Zack Neil HOP SPRINGS The Stolen Faces (Grateful Dead tribute) MAIN STREET MUSIC Rubiks Groove MEDIA RERUN Shin Kira, Vamptones, Z MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING MTSU Symphony Orchestra, Shauna Mason THE BORO Boomstick & Jibber Jabber

SUN, 10/20 HANK’S George Dunn MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Jacob Coleman; ToniMarie Marchioni; MTSU horn studio recital

THE WALNUT HOUSE Jimmy Lloyd, Mike Palmer, Luisa Marion, Robyn Taylor, Nancy Layne, Levi Massie, Kyra Sunflower, Everette Brown, Gary Renales, Kelsey Keith, Kristen Parisi, David Reuter

MON, 10/21

THURS, 10/17

BURGER BAR Sarah Martin HANDLEBARS World Famous Thursday Night Blues Jam HANK’S Delyn Christian

CROSSROADS Pocket Vinyl; Gabrielle Grace; Georgia English HANDLEBARS World Famous Thursday Night Blues Jam HANK’S Spencer Maige MEDIA RERUN Year of October; blindspot; Wrong Eagle MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Randall Kohl

FRI, 10/18 COCONUT BAY CAFE Escape Band HANK’S Sara Simmons; Clayton Mann Band MAYDAY BREWERY Steady Rotation Band MILANO II Jack Popek MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Daria Rabotkina THE BORO The Southern Shame VAN’S BAR & GRILL Pigfoot

 View the Concert Calendar online at BOROPULSE.COM/CALENDAR

OCTOBER 2019

MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Stones River Chamber PUCKETT’S GROCERY MTSU Music Monday

TUES, 10/22

WED, 10/23 THE WALNUT HOUSE Jeremy Pinell & Friends

THURS, 10/24 HANK’S Pontiac Alley MEDIA RERUN Saddle of Southern Darkness; Flummox; Mortius PUCKETT’S GROCERY Brianna Alomar RIDENOUR ODP Bluelight Sessions THE BORO Radical Arts Comedy

FRI, 10/25 COCONUT BAY CAFE Zone Status HANK’S Blake Esse; Jack Finley Band MAYDAY BREWERY Julia Jade

MEDIA RERUN Jackie DeVille MILANO II Jack Popek THE BORO Skeetzo N’ Krysis benefit show VAN’S BAR & GRILL The Real Deal

SAT, 10/26 COCONUT BAY CAFE My July Band HANK’S HunterGirl; Lady Sundown HOP SPRINGS Mixtape MAIN STREET MUSIC Burning Las Vegas PUCKETT’S GROCERY Hannah Jae THE BORO Halloween Bash

SUN, 10/27 HANK’S Karree J Phillips MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Tubaween

MON, 10/28 MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING MTSU Schola Cantorum PUCKETT’S GROCERY MTSU Music Monday

TUES, 10/29 BURGER BAR Sarah Martin HANK’S Lauren Christine MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Hannah Feathers

WED, 10/30 MEDIA RERUN Tender Mercy; Barely Civil; Local Cult; Merrill Miller MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Tubaween

THURS, 10/31 HANK’S Ira DeBoer HANDLEBARS World Famous Thursday Night Blues Jam MTSU WRIGHT MUSIC BUILDING Cedric Dent, Jim Ferguson & Ashley Kimbrough THE BORO ’90s Cover Band Halloween Party

FRI, 11/1 RIDENOUR Grace Cathey EP release

IF YOU GO Burger Bar 1850 Old Fort Pkwy.

615-895-5555 Campus Pub 903 Gunnerson Ave. 616-867-9893 Coconut Bay Café 210 Stones River Mall Blvd. 615-494-0504 Crossroads 6097 Lebanon Pk. First United Methodist Church 265 W. Thompson Ln. 615-893-1322 Georgia’s Sports Bar 555 S Lowry St., Smyrna 615-267-0295 Handlebars 2601 E. Main St. 615-890-5661 Hank’s 2341 Memorial Blvd.

615-410-7747 Hop Springs 6790 John Bragg Hwy. 615-628-8776 Main Street Music 527 W. Main St. 615-440-2425 Mayday Brewery 521 Old Salem Hwy. 615-479-9722 Media Rerun 2820 S. Rutherford Blvd., 615-907-0901 Memories Bar & Grill 574 Waldron Rd., La Vergne 615-280-7220 Milano II 114 E. College St. 615-624-7390 MTSU Wright Music 1439 Faulkinberry Dr. 615-898-2469 Puckett’s Grocery 114 N. Church St. 629-201-6916 Ridenour Rehearsal Studios 1203 Park Ave. 615-956-7413 Smyrna VFW Post 8422 10157 Old Nashville Hwy., Smyrna 615-459-9832 Spinelli’s 211 W. Main St. 615-900-1926 The Boro Bar & Grill 1211 Greenland Dr. 615-895-4800 The View at Fountains 1500 Medical Center Pkwy.

615-890-4651 The Walnut House 116 N. Walnut St. 615-705-7897 Van’s Bar and Grill 2404 Halls Hill Pk. 615-624-7767

BOROPULSE.COM

* OCTOBER 2019 * 9

Sounds

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MTSU’s Odie Blackmon

MUSIC NOTE

Serves on Music Licensing Collective Committee to Help Build a Future for Songwriters MTSU’S COMMERCIAL Songwriting Program coordinator Odie Blackmon is attempting to help current and future colleagues put a little more cash in their pockets by serving as a member of a new U.S. Copyright Office music licensing committee.

The group, part of implementing last year’s new Music Modernization Act, is working to ensure that songwriters receive proper royalties for digital plays of their music. America’s original music royalty laws didn’t fully account for composers’ online sales and streaming play.

The music industry has been struggling to resolve the issue for years, working with Congress to meet new music distribution processes and establish fair royalty rules.

The new law created a nonprofit agency, now known as the Music Licensing Collective, to form a musical database for songwriters’ words and music, establish blanket rates for streaming services and distribute those royalties to writers.

Music industry colleagues, in a group comprising the Nashville Songwriters Association International, Broadcast Music International, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, and the National Music Publishers Association, tapped Blackmon and four fellow writers to be part of the collective’s Dispute Resolution Committee.

“I see this as a way to help the future. This is an extension of what we’re already doing at MTSU: building a future for songwriters,” 10 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

MTSU Commercial Songwriting Program coordinator Odie Blackmon at a recording demonstration in MTSU Studio B. PHOTO BY J. INTINTOLI

says Blackmon, a Grammynominated songwriter whose work includes Lee Ann Womack’s 2005 CMA Song of the Year “I May Hate Myself in the Morning,” George Strait’s “She’ll Leave You with a Smile” and Gary Allan’s “Nothing On but the Radio.”

“I consider it important work because I’ve seen firsthand what’s happened to our royalty streams. I want my students to be able to go out and have a career like I have. I want them to be able to not only write great songs but to be able to put food on the table with those songs,” Blackmon says.

The U.S. Copyright Office, which oversees music licensing, approved nominees from multiple genres for multiple new committees, including Blackmon. His dispute resolution group—which includes fellow songwriters Aimée Allen, Gary Burr, David Hodges and Jennifer Schott, along with five music publishing company representatives—has been meeting weekly via conference call and Skype to get their part ready for Jan. 1, 2021, when the new royalty payment process must begin.

They’re setting up rules for copyright owners who need to dispute music ownership interests and establishing a way to hold disputed funds until the dispute’s resolved.

“It’s a big deal. It’s alive, and it’s important to the future of songwriters and publishers,” Blackmon says of the new law

and the collective’s work. “It was a huge step for us, and now we’ve got to do the work. There’s a lot to be done right now . . . a lot of meetings and a lot of throwing around ideas and figuring out the best way to serve.

“We want to do the best we can for writers, [especially] for writers who maybe don’t even know they’ve got money out there waiting on them. The good news is that this is a streamlined way of doing things that has not happened before, so it’s going to cut out a lot of paperwork and make things happen a lot faster for getting writers paid, but we’ve got to get the processes and steps all figured out.”

NSAI President Steve Bogard said in a Music Row magazine report announcing the selection of committee members that the “Music Licensing Collective will be constructed in a way historically beneficial to American songwriters, from the way unclaimed funds are required by law to be distributed based on a songwriter’s activity to the MLC being funded by streaming services, therefore paying songwriters 100 cents on the dollar on digital mechanical royalties.

“The writers and composers chosen for the board and MLC committees represent the absolute best in our profession, and the endorsements we’ve already received speak volumes about the confidence the American music industry has in the MLC.” Just like radio, TV and other traditional broadcast media, digital platforms play millions of songs and have to obtain

licensing rights—and pay for using—each one. Performance rights organizations like BMI, ASCAP and SESAC monitor broadcast and live, or “public,” performances of their members’ copyrighted work and pay them songwriting royalties.

Composers also earn mechanical royalties whenever their music is sold as a CD or digital download or when it’s played on demand by streaming services. Until the Music Modernization Act, however, copyright law lacked uniform royalty rules for streaming plays, and there was no central location to find the copyright owner.

The new database required by the law finally creates a place where digital providers can report streaming plays to the Music Licensing Collective, which then will pay royalties to composers.

“Probably because of what we’ve seen happen to royalties and songwriters, an important part of this [was] to make sure that writers had a voice in these meetings, not just getting to sit in but actually be voting members,” says Blackmon, who cowrote “Two More Wishes” with Grammywinning Americana artist Jim Lauderdale for Strait’s No. 1 Billboard country album Honky Tonk Time Machine, released earlier this year.

“It’s a pleasure and a joy to hear George sing a song, yes, but things have changed.

It’s a singles game as far as making a living right now. We’re missing out on a lot of wonderful music because of the way things are, ’cause when great songwriters can’t get paid, they end up doing other things.”

Blackmon, an MTSU recording industry alumnus and Arkansas native, also serves as a board member of the Association for Popular Music Educators. He was a member of the Music and Entertainment Industry Educators Association board and vice president of the advisory board for MTSU’s Center for Popular Music.

Find more on the Music Modernization Act, and what it means for songwriters at copyright.gov/music-modernization.

More information about MTSU’s Commercial Songwriting Program, based in the Department of Recording Industry in the College of Media and Entertainment, is available at mtsu.edu/programs/commercial-songwriting.

ALBUM

THE WEIRD SISTERS The Weird Sisters

FOUR-PIECE Middle Tennessee rock group The Weird Sisters has captured a great variety of styles, instruments, vocals, feels and tempos with a fun, funky swagger to it all on its self-titled 2019 release, available now.

The collection travels, track by track, from powerful rock riffs and hip-hop influenced beats both acoustic and synthesized to spacey, ethereal guitar picking, deep electronic fuzz and downtempo, Pink Floyd-esque excursions.

The Weird Sisters demonstrates its wide variety of influences and musical directions while keeping a quirky sense of humor.

I’m goin’ down to Texas, gonna get myself some toast, Izaac Short belts out on “Texas Toast,” a track that begins maybe a little too much like “Purple Haze” but then takes on a personality of its own as Short rips loose on a screeching guitar solo (more within the Jack White sphere of influence) and Gabrielle Lewis contributes the warm, vintage sounds of her Fender Rhodes keyboard.

“The Improbable Beat” goes in a more funky rap direction as Lewis, that weirdo with wings on her feet, makes sure all knows she’s the host with the most.

I got helium in my veins, helium in my veins . . .

A CLASSIC OUTSTANDING

Lewis busts out the saxophone on “John Coffey Style” and “The Martian Queen,” further demonstrating her impressively broad musical abilities.

The Weird Sisters album begins with an intense hard rock riff, almost Tool-like. The female vocals and feel of the verse calm that opening track, “Masterminder Rewinder,” a bit, but it later later picks back up into some rock ’n’ roll throwdown.

“Can’t Stop the Sound,” which also features some sax, is tame but groovy.

“Will You Be Mine?” can first seem a little draggy, but wait for it, as the song builds to epic proportions while still keeping its slow tempo a la Floyd.

The classic rock fan has to appreciate those warm, vintage electronic piano sounds. The quartet does a nice job melding 1960s rock with modern sensibilities and gadgets, blending mellow and warm with more harsh distortion and phasing sounds, the delicate with the abrasive, slow beats with hard rock guitars.

It’s not too serious, but seriously funky.

Space, space the final frontier, there’s plenty of girls and there’s lots of beer.

Check out The Weird Sisters on Spotify or Bandcamp or at theweirdsistersband.com.

— BRACKEN MAYO

AVERAGE BELOW AVERAGE

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Erin Enderlin Songwriter talks about new album, school days at MTSU, Opry nights and bluegrass

BY MELISSA COKER

Y

ou left my heart as empty as a Monday morning church / It used to be so full of faith and now it only hurts. Those aching words recorded by Alan Jackson were co-written from the pen of Erin Enderlin—and years after Jackson recorded it during Enderlin’s time as a student at MTSU, she’s been blessed to take to the stage time and time again as she takes in a view of some very different sets of pews than the ones in that somber song: the very full ones that line the floor throughout the cherished Opry House or the affectionately dubbed “Mother Church” that is Nashville’s long-revered historic Ryman Auditorium.

But back to education: History was in the making when Arkansas native Enderlin made her way to MTSU, majoring in recording industry with minors in mass communication and entrepreneurship.

12 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

“I didn’t know much about the program beforehand; I just knew I wanted to be close to Nashville. There were a bunch of professors who had a huge impact on my career,” Enderlin says. “Beverly Keel, Amy Macy, Dr. John Dougan, Tom Hutchison, just to name a few. I was a part of a couple projects in the on-campus studios.” Also while on campus, Enderlin met Reese Faw, an industry pro who was speaking about artist development. “She agreed to meet with me and let me play her some songs,” Enderlin recalls. “Ultimately, she really liked ‘Monday Morning Church’ and introduced me to her boss, publisher Jeff Carlton. Jeff took money out of his own pocket to demo five of my songs, including ‘Church.’ He played it for Alan’s producer Keith Stegall and the story I heard is that Keith and Alan were at lunch and Keith said, ‘I’ve got one song to play for you back at the

(From top) Jeff Hanna, Matraca Berg, Erin Enderlin and Whisperin’ Bill Anderson at the Bluebird; Bobby Tomberlin, Jeannie Seely, Rhonda Vincent and Erin Enderlin; Enderlin’s 2019 full-length album release Faulkner County; (at right) with Charlie the official Opry dog

office’ . . . and the rest is history.”

Enderlin’s played the Opry seven times so far, met Terri Clark, Rhonda Vincent, Vince Gill, Bill Anderson and many more of her inspirations, but she still gets starstruck. One most recent example is when she got to meet her “celebrity crush,” Charlie, the Opry dog.

When asked who had her most in awe, she gushed, “Definitely Opry Charlie! I mean, have you seen those eyes?”

Her heroes, though, have always been cowboys—and they still are, it seems. She’s been a featured performer on Willie Nelson’s Country Throwdown tour and has written songs about him (“World Without Willie,” which received heavy rotation on CMT). But she wasn’t always living high.

So what’s it like to break on through to the other side as a performer?

“I love being able to connect with people

ERIN ENDERLIN PHOTO BY RYAN NOLAN 

Sounds

more as an artist,” she says. “I’ve gotten some really great compliments from folks about my videos; it’s really cool to see my music connecting people. I love music videos and it’s really cool to get to see mine on CMT. I feel so lucky to be able to make records that I absolutely love, and to get to work with some of the most amazing writers, musicians and of course producers of our time. It’s the kind of thing that makes me feels like all the years, and miles and struggle have been worth it.”

Enderlin’s had songs recorded by Rhonda Vincent (the recent No. 1 “Like I Could”), Grand Ole Opry icon and multiple hall-of-fame member Bill Anderson, Lee Ann Womack (“Last Call”), on recent albums by Rodney Crowell, Reba McEntire, Terri Clark (for whom she’s also opened) and more. “I met Bill Anderson in his Fan Fair line in 1998. I was so nervous that

I forgot to get a picture! That being said, he did not immediately want to write songs with nerdy 16-year-old me even though I was carrying around a Trapper Keeper full of all the songs I’d written, in case anyone did.”

Not only has Whisperin’ Bill since changed his tune and written with Erin, she even sweet-talked him into featuring her alongside him with the likes of Tanya Tucker and Opry star Jeannie Seely in his 2018 video for “Waffle House Christmas” (co-written by Enderlin).

“Bill got together with Alex Kline and me,” she says “and I had this crazy idea for a song about having Christmas at Waffle House. At the time I didn’t realize that Bill is from the home of Waffle House in Georgia—so I guess it was meant to be! I believe the video was the brainchild of Bill’s manager Lee Willard, and it was so cool that Bill let me sit right up next to him in it,” Enderlin says. “I think the best advice from Bill is more in what he does than what he says. For example, the first time I wrote with him he was still pushing for the right lines at 7 p.m. He doesn’t have to do that, but he loves the music and he takes a lot of pride in what he does. He’s one of a kind.”

Those days of carrying around a Trapper Keeper led Enderlin to be somewhat of a dream weaver— literally. She can add co-writer on a number-onecharting bluegrass song to her credit, as her dreams recently became even more vivid when Opry star Jeannie Seely (“after bugging her for years to write with her”) rang Enderlin up one night to inform her, “Okay, I had a dream we were writing so I guess we better do it!”

It just so happened that Enderlin was working with hit writer Bobby Tomberlin (a Grammy, ACM, CMA nominee) when the call came in. So, soon making good on her promise, the three—Enderlin, Tomberlin and Seely—gathered together and out came “If I Could.”

“She had that great idea and we wrote it in an hour or less,” recalls Enderlin. “Jeannie ended up with Rhonda Vincent at an event and told her about the song. She ended up playing it for her and Rhonda loved it and said ‘I’m cutting that!’ I actually got the call from Jeannie that Rhonda was cutting it on my birthday, which was extra special,” Enderlin adds. “I just love how Rhonda did it, she’s just amazing and has been so kind to have us all out at the Opry and places when she’s been singing it.”

Known to many as the “Queen of Bluegrass,” Vincent and her band, The Rage, often take the stage at Uncle Dave Macon Days, where she was awarded the festival’s Heritage Award in 2006 and in 2018 hosted an album release party for her Bluegrass Legends project. Most around Murfreesboro are aware that Vincent’s a woman of many talents.

Following Enderlin’s self-titled release, 2013’s I Let Her Talk, 2017’s concept record, Whiskeytown Crier, and a quartet of passion-project EPs, Enderlin’s much-anticipated full-length 14-track project, Faulkner County, will be available Nov. 1. Produced by Jamey Johnson and Jim “Moose” Brown, it features the songs from her EPs plus two new to Faulkner.

Enderlin wrote Faulkner’s two new tracks, “Hell Coming Down” and “Run, Baby, Run” with Ryan Tyndell and Felix McTeigue and (album co-producer) Jim “Moose” Brown, respectively. “I love both songs—lots of fiddle and steel and some great harmonies too,” she says. Among the special guests to appear on the album are Vince Gill, Alison Krauss, Terri Clark and Cody Jinks.

Enderlin was a featured act on Jamey Johnson’s SiriusXM Outlaw Country Tour, AmericanaFest and CMA Fest, and crossed the Atlantic for her first UK run (“There are some great people over there . . . and I’m never driving on the left side of the road, ever!” she says).

In June, she took home three Arkansas Country Music Awards including Female Vocalist of the Year and Songwriter of the Year.

From Whiskeytown to Faulkner County, the local world traveler continues to create just the right mix of strong songs to savor.

“I gravitate towards songs and production that make me feel something—and like Reba says, if it speaks to you, it will probably speak to someone else.”

Oh, and her entrepreneurship minor is proving its worth as Erin’s company, Black Crow Productions, has prominent placement front and center on the cover of Faulkner. Take a look at the artwork and you’ll see the creature perched atop the album’s title.

She’s a rare bird for sure.

She encourages dream-seekers of today to “Be out there working! Write, play shows, take advantage of opportunities to meet and learn from industry professionals.” As for the demands of road work, she laughs and says, “I am a very gifted sleeper—I can sleep in cars, on planes, catnaps between meetings.

It’s one of my best skills.”

Enderlin is excited to be a part of the 3rd Annual Dottie West Birthday Bash on Oct. 9 at 3rd & Lindsley in Nashville. Hosted by Jeannie Seely, this year they’ll be honoring Bill Anderson. And on Oct. 18 she’ll open in her hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas, for Texas country “Outlaw” artist Sunny Sweeney (a sometime-co-writer who inspired “Waffle House Christmas” after Enderlin once spent Thanksgiving with Sweeney at the beloved breakfast bungalow).

Album pre-orders and bundles are available at erinenderlin.com; also find Enderlin on YouTube at youtube.com/user/arkansassy42.

Living Steve Morley relaxes at the Float Alchemy oxygen bar following a flotation session; flotation therapy can have many physical and mental benefits; Float Alchemy owners Mark Chesshir and Amy Grimes

Floativation

, Part 1

A series on seeking saltwater serenity (and more)

BY STEVE MORLEY AS LONG AS I CAN REMEMBER, I’ve been prone to anxiety and physical tension, frequently feeling uptight, easily irritated or too excitable when under pressure, often overthinking things. Though I’m a decently functioning human being, I usually don’t feel extremely comfortable in my skin. In years past I had tried medicating my anxiety and discomfort, both legally and otherwise, but ultimately found neither method to be successful. I benefited in various ways from counseling, emotional healing ministries, alternative therapies and prayer, but I still didn’t feel a sustained sense of ease and well-being.

One thing I hadn’t done, but had long wanted to do, was to try out a flotation tank.

It was easy to just let that idea float low on the bucket list—the entire state of Tennessee didn’t even have a commercial tank available until 2013. Turns out there’s a reason for that: float tanks fall into a grey area regarding health department regulations, and they’re misunderstood. Tanks are legally defined as swimming pools in Tennessee (and other states), and it’s impractical to apply pool regulations to tanks, pound for pound. Perhaps the main problem, though, is that the general public is misinformed, if informed at all, about float tanks and their use for pain management, stress relief and muscle recovery (often for athletes).

14 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

“A lot of people have not heard of float therapy, and they perceive it as a new-age, hippy-dippy kind of thing, not realizing that the float tank has been around for 60 years,” says Amy Grimes, owner of Murfreesboro’s Float Alchemy. “There is a large body of research, including clinical research, that shows the positive results of flotation therapy.”

In 2011, Grimes and partner Mark Chesshir set out to bring float tanks to Middle Tennessee, beginning with a small three-tank facility in Davidson County. Float Nashville, the first such facility in the entire state, was two years in the making, opening in August of 2013. As she later explained in a blog entry at floatnashville.com, It was the hardest thing I have ever done. People thought we were crazy, the health department thought we were crazy. We couldn’t get funding. No one would rent to us because they didn’t understand what kind of business we were starting.

People had never heard of float therapy so we had a lot of education to do!

Murfreesboro’s Float Alchemy, which took 10 months to become a fully functioning reality in its current Cason Lane location, realizes Grimes’ vision for an affordable respite from day-to-day stress. In April of 2018, the facility was permitted to open its Kombucha Taproom, offering a variety of healthenhancing and surprisingly tasty fermented beverages; in June, Float Alchemy’s three

styles of float tanks became available for use.

(In subsequent installments, you’ll learn about the facility’s full range of services, or you can learn more at floatalchemy.com).

After scheduling my first float, I received an email confirmation that contained a link to all the information needed to prepare me for my first time in the tank. I knew to eat a light meal an hour before arriving, and not to consume coffee or other stimulants that might diminish the experience, which is intended to minimize sensory stimulation. I was advised not to shave, and to reschedule my float if I had any open wounds. Why? Well, because tanks contain roughly 1,000 pounds of Epsom salts. Any cut or opening in the skin is going to sting, at the least, and possibly burn like the dickens when salt enters it (as in the case of one floater who, initially unbeknownst to the staff, had entered a tank while covered in road rash from a recent motorcycle wreck).

Tank users can cover small cuts with a protective jelly provide onsite.

Arriving at Float Alchemy amidst midday traffic at 96 and Cason Lane, and hearing the whooshing and whirring at the selfservice car wash adjacent to its parking lot, I entered to find a quiet, aesthetically pleasing atmosphere . . . where all the external hubbub quickly dissolved. Calming, spacious music wafted from behind the counter. Hammock swings beckoned invitingly to my right (Grimes invites curious passers-by to try them—there’s no fee for just hanging out).

Shortly thereafter, music ushered me into the float experience, which began with a quick shower in the private, low-lit tank room. No, Steve, you don’t have to towel off . . . you’re getting into a tank of water, dude.

Malleable wax earplugs, perfect for keeping ears dry and salt-free, muted the music, which faded away shortly thereafter. I was told the music would return an hour later to serve as a gentle cue that it was time to emerge and rinse off the salt.

So, what would floating feel like? Would I feel any different afterwards? I had never succeeded in learning to swim, so I had always been apprehensive about surrender-

ing myself to a quantity of water. Also, I’d learned in recent years that my mother, while pregnant with me, had unusually low levels of amniotic fluid, resulting in what is called a “dry birth.” (The term is somewhat misleading, though, as an infant cannot survive with no fluid whatsoever in its mother’s womb.)

I wondered if my infant brain had ever even experienced a full feeling of buoyancy.

I had chosen the pod, the smaller of two types of enclosed tanks onsite (an uncovered tank is also available). Slightly disoriented in the small, low-lit space, awkwardly reaching around and above me to pull the door closed (it can remain open, but I wanted the full experience), I bumped my head against it. Sheesh! I chuckled and readied myself to let the salt water support my entire frame.

Holding a roughly 10-inch foam ring that serves as a head support, I fumbled around to arrange it under my head, raised a foot to test the large button on the tank’s left side that turned off the light, and . . . let go.

I was afloat. I needed to do nothing but relax and allow it to happen.

After maybe 20 minutes, I had become so settled that it actually felt as though something solid was underneath me. I scissored my arms and legs back and forth, allowing myself to more consciously experience the sensation of resting atop a foot of water.

Breathing deeply and clearing my mind, neither of which came easily for me, seemed possible for short intervals, at least. Enjoying the experience but feeling restless, I emerged before the music cued the end of my session.

Reaching up to open the pod door, salt water dripped from my arm . . . straight into my right eye. I grabbed the spray bottle of pure water left just outside the tank for just such a purpose, gratefully spritzing my eye. I stood up . . . and noticed feeling lighter on my feet.

Showered and dressed, sipping complimentary tea, I sat in a lounge area, savoring the feeling of serenity. I was advised, though, that I would likely begin to experience a greater benefit after a second or third float.

Stay tuned, Murfreesboro . . . and may the freedom of the float be with you.

Living

T

here are few people who strike a truly significant chord within us; people whom we aspire to be like.

We ask them what their secrets are, and we do our best to imitate them. But it seems that we have it all wrong. In meeting one of these rare people, it becomes clear that the secret is not in replication, but rather, in application—a life well spent.

Two-star Major General Carl Schneider is one such individual. Though he is 91 years old, Schneider, now a Middle Tennessee resident, doesn’t appear even remotely his age. I’d estimate his age at closer to 70. He reinforces this idea by saying, “I’m 71, but I’ve got 20 years of extra experience.” His physical stamina and his clarity of mind are sharper than my own at 45, and his spirit of adventure rivals that of children. While those surface elements are truly awe-inspiring, there are much deeper layers to be discovered that expose the reason for his reality.

Raised in a West Texas cotton field, he aspired early on toward greater things. As a child, he recalls being in the cotton field with his brother and seeing an airplane in the sky. He said he knew then and there that flying was his destiny. His vision is my first glimpse into his secret.

Life on the farm was hard work. Schneider’s early years were spent alongside his family helping keep their farm in order.

It was commonplace for children to work throughout the day back in those days.

There were no video games, and often not even toys. From dawn to dusk, much of his early childhood was spent in various labors, in between schooling and church. While he

16 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

Jet Pioneer

USAF Gen. Carl Schneider Balances Hard Work with Childlike Enjoyment of Life

BY ANGELA LOUPE

doesn’t speak of these labors with fondness, he does credit his father for setting a good example of hard work, and he emphasizes the benefits derived from the values he grew up with: country, duty and jobs.

Schneider gives me another glimpse into his secret as he talks about the rare spare time he had as a child. Sometimes, they’d play ball. However, back then it was a lot harder to get a hold of the basics. So, they improvised. His father had whittled a two-by-four piece of wood into a bat for them. A ball of twine became their ball.

The bases were old gunny sacks with dirt in them. If you wanted to shoot something, you’d carve a base out of whatever you had available, and you’d find some old rubber tires to use as the sling.

Vision, hard work and ingenuity are three foundational secrets to Schneider’s success. While he continues to build upon these ideas, it is clear that these three principles have given him a solid foundation to build upon. They helped mold the formidable man that sits before me, and served as the backbone upon which his frame hangs.

With great enthusiasm, he tells me

about being a fighter pilot in the U.S. Air Force.

“A fighter pilot never has to grow up,” he says. Schneider goes on to tell me that he has had a lot of fun.

“People say, ‘You’re 91?’

And I say, ‘No, I’m just still a boy. I’m just having fun.’”

And that’s a word that gets thrown around often as we chat. Fun. He’s followed the fun in life, and it’s paid off.

He’s learned how to be the most responsible, prudent and charitable 91-year-old child I’ve ever met.

We change course with the same ease as the F-86 Sabre plane he says he likes best. He tells me another story that reveals the roots of his many branches. When he was a buck private in the military, a corporal had told him “don’t choose guys that don’t volunteer for nothin’.”

He obviously was affected

by that advice, as he decided right then and there that he was going to volunteer for everything. While that mentality was risky, it also paid off in big ways.

Schneider recounts a time when he was a second lieutenant, and his commander had addressed the men, telling them that he needed, “one bachelor volunteer for a dirty detail. Anyone stupid enough to volunteer?” In the midst of the other men likely doing their best to suppress the desire to head for the hills, Schneider stepped up and said, “Yes, sir!” The commander followed that up by letting the men know that they could eat their hearts out for what they were about to hear. The dirty detail turned out to be a stint in New York City, staying in Hotel Pennsylvania and flying brand-new airplanes all over the United States for six months.

His thoughts on this? “Talk about a good deal!”

Another story he details involves one of many times that he didn’t act in accordance with strict regulations. His boss was gone at the time, so Schneider was running a large military depot.

There were about 20,000 people there. The mayor of Macon, Georgia, at the time was a big supporter of the Air Force. Anything the Air Force needed (from a community standpoint),

the mayor would get for them. As it happened, one day Schneider received a call from the mayor’s aide. The mayor needed emergency surgery within six hours or he would die. He had to make it to Houston.

No commercial flights could do it. Could he help?

Gen. Schneider looked out the window of the depot office and spotted a strategic Air Command tanker. He knew the commander of the organization, so he asked the colonel, “Instead of going around the flagpole, would your guys like to take the mayor to Houston?” His response was, “You give me a direct order, General, and we’ll do it!” So, Schneider said, “You got it!”

“So, here’s the scenario: we’re a different command, commandeering a totally unauthorized airplane. My boss [a higher ranking general] calls me up from Dayton, Ohio, about an hour later, and he said, ‘I understand you have commandeered a strategic airplane with no authority, to send a civilian to Houston. Is that right?’ I said, ‘Yes, sir!’ He said, ‘Well, tell me about it.’

So, I told him the story, and all he said was, ‘Don’t do that again.’ So, I said, ‘Yes, sir!’”

This leads me to understanding the next secret of his success. Common sense.

Schneider tells me of a time when he “ran an outfit” down in Texas, and they didn’t

have a major aircraft accident for two and a half years. When the inspector general came asking how he’d managed to accomplish that, and inquired as to where the rules and regulations book was, Schneider reached up on the top of the filing cabinet, and produced a dusty old book that he had to blow the dust from. The resulting bafflement, while understandable, is easily cleared up once Schneider further explains his methodology.

“Well, I just checked everybody out well, and I told them to use common sense, fly safe and do what you’re supposed to do. And they all did it.

We didn’t lose a single pilot, and we didn’t lose an airplane. It wasn’t by the rules and regulations in a lot of ways, but just use your good old common sense.”

I’m getting to the deepest layer as he expounds on what is, in my opinion, the core of his success. It’s all about the attitude you have. Schneider says he only

knows one number, and that’s number one. He says that if the head person in any organization has high standards, and he or she lives up to them, leading by example, that is the recipe for success.

It’s no surprise that the two-star major general spends most of his time giving back these days. Schneider has two very well-written books about his fascinating life available for sale at jetpioneer.com.

All proceeds from the books are donated to veterans. He’s also involved in educational efforts that will require high school students to take and pass the naturalization test. He feels strongly that the children of this country should understand the hard work and sacrifice that the country was built upon, and that they should know the contents of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

He’s also been a big part of the Veteran’s Heritage Project, which gives children the opportunity to interview WWII veterans

and then write an article on the experience, to be included in a compilation stored at the Library of Congress. Participants in this program have experienced an unusually high rate of success as adults.

Schneider is additionally an avid supporter of living debt-free. He relays the benefits and freedoms in relationships and life while living in a debt-free environment.

“It really takes the pressure off,” he says.

He advocates that children and adults alike should take this advice seriously.

Ultimately, Schneider thinks that life is all about balance. He lives the kind of life he advocates. He thinks that everyone should follow their dreams and have fun.

An excerpt from one of his books, also featured on his website, really best sums it all up. “Develop your God-given talents, balance your goals, work smart, work hard, and enjoy life: it has an expiration date.”

It has an expiration date? Well, Schneider could have fooled me.

Hear more of Schneider’s story at this month’s Living Sent Murfreesboro meeting, held Wednesday, Oct. 9, from 11:45 a.m.–1 p.m. at the Experience Community, 521 Old Salem Rd. Contact bob.williams@alhambrapartners.com for more details on that gathering.

BOROPULSE.COM

* OCTOBER 2019 * 17

Living

Farmers Market Education Series

BY EDWINA SHANNON

Wrap Up the Garden to Start Again Save Your Heirloom Seeds

DID YOU HAVE A GOOD GARDEN THIS YEAR? Would you like to grow some of the same vegetables next year?

You can save your own seed, but you would only want to put your effort into collecting if the seed is viable to produce again next year. You need to collect heirloom seeds.

What is an heirloom seed?

It is an open-pollinated heritage plant, an old-time variety. Typically, they have been around a minimum of 40 years and are passed down within a family. Their characteristics would include adaptability to the local climate and resistance to local pests.

Heirloom seeds produce plants that allow you to grow the same crop next year from the seeds saved from this year’s harvest.

Heirloom does not reflect how it is grown, so all heirloom seeds are not grown organically, and organically grown vegetables are not necessarily heirloom.

Some seeds are hybrid and not heirloom.

The heirloom plants are open-pollinated and any character changes happen naturally over time. Hybrids have been modified by man to meet a specific purpose: early harvest or resistance to a particular disease, for example. Hybrids are the result of a cross-breeding of plants. They can not produce seed that is viable for next year’s garden. You need to know what you are growing before collecting seed from it.

To further define plant alterations, I quote from gmoanswers.com: “This is the principle difference between cross-pollination, 18 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

which just occurs naturally between sexually compatible plants; cross-breeding, which is a human-facilitated process by which humans do this; and GMO technology, where in a laboratory we’re able to move one trait with precision to confer some new quality or some new trait onto a plant product . . . taking away 50 years of breeding time.”

If you know that you have heirloom species growing, definitely save seed from some of the crop’s best specimens. Tomatoes, peppers, beans and peas are the easiest vegetables from which to start saving seed. If you are saving beans and peas for next year, allow the pods to stay on the plant until they are dry and rattle inside. Often, this can take a month longer than your harvest. Remove the pods from the plants and continue drying indoors for at least two weeks. They can be stored in the pod or shelled for storage. Glass jars are ideal storage containers.

Peppers and tomato seed can be dried on paper towels. Leave the peppers on the plant until they start to wrinkle. Then remove the seeds from the plant and spread out to dry on paper towels. Be sure to mark the paper towels with the name of the seeds drying on it. When dry, place into storage. As tomato seed is in the pulpy part of the tomato, the seed does need to be separated from the pulp. I will slice open a ripe tomato and begin the separation of seed with a knife and my nails. Often, the seed will need to be picked off the paper towel after dried.

Tomato seed savers also use a wet method for separation of seed. You can scoop out the

seeds and the surrounding gel from a ripe tomato and put it all in a jar of water. You need to swirl or stir the mixture once a day for five days. Pour off the liquid, rinse the seeds and then spread them on a paper towel to dry.

At the heirloom seed expo in September, I was made aware of world efforts to save the heirloom seeds of their areas. A Japanese heirloom seed business began in the 1930s. The South African heirloom seed company started with a boy’s dream 30 years ago. I got some useful shelf life info from their literature. Their US website is theseedstead.com and I share some of their seed-saving advice. First, be sure to label what you are drying and storing. Secondly, carefully choose the storage location.

You need the storage area to have a stable temperature and stable humidity. Use the Rule of 100 for seed storage. Add the temperature in Fahrenheit to the humidity percentage. If the sum is under 100, you have a good seed storage spot.

Of course, you can freeze seed as well.

When removing from the freezer, allow the units to get to room temperature before opening the containers. This should reduce condensation on the seed.

Properly prepared seed in a carefully selected home storage space does have viability life spans. It does get extended in controlled environments when stored correctly. Beans typically have a three-year storage life before viability is challenged.

Peas can be stored for four years. Peppers have a two- to five-year storage life and you can expect tomatoes to last up to 10 years.

Be sure to mark your seeds with their name and the year harvested and dried.

Seed storage is not limited to vegetables.

If you do decide to grow a vegetable or herb from another location, be vigilant in monitoring its adaptation. It can become invasive. The plants could naturalize, which means they grow fine but offer little to nothing for the continued life cycle of native plant and animal species (think kudzu).

There is a Master Gardener presentation on the RC Farmers Market Education Series YouTube channel entitled “Saving and Organizing Seeds,” given by Marilyn Rogan. Although the presentation was done several years ago, the information is still relevant. You may want to subscribe!

Market Activities in October CLASSES AT THE AG CENTER on John R. Rice Boulevard are held on Farmer’s Market days, Tuesday and Friday, at 9 a.m. They are free and open to all. Typically, classes last about one hour. The market and the classes do end this month. Find out more at rutherford.tennessee.edu.

OCT. 1 Stormwater OCT. 4 Pruning OCT. 8 Trees and Shrubs OCT. 11 What is a Master Gardener?

OCT. 15 Money Habitudes OCT. 18 Managing Your Money OCT. 22 Seasonal Eating OCT. 25 Preparing Livestock for Winter OCT. 29 Seasonal Eating OCT. 5 is the monthly presentation at the Linebaugh Library, given by the RC Master Gardeners. This month’s topic is Soils 101. It begins at 9 a.m. that Saturday. Please call the library at 615-893-4131 to preregister.

OCT. 15 4-H is having an open house from 6–7:30 p.m. at the Lane Agri-Park Community Center. Sign up for the after-school project groups which are open to all students in the 4th–12th grades.

OCT. 18 & 25 The 6th Annual Chili and Soup Fundraisers will be held at the Farmer’s Market.

Listener Supported Public Radio

Living Middle Tennessee

Haunted Attractions Thrill seekers travel down spooky trails, enter haunted houses this October

BY LAURA LINDSAY TO CHOOSE YOUR ADVENTURE this season, you might follow one of these paths.

Find more spooky mazes, paths, corridors and trails all over the Middle Tennessee area.

1

BEAST HOUSE

3976 Dickerson Pk., Nashville Open through Nov. 2. Step into this haunted house and step back into time and a story of a murder and betrayal. Attraction also includes Beast Jump with a free-fall from the actual roof. For days, hours and more information, visit beasthouse.com.

2

BLOODY ACRES HAUNTED WOODS

318 Big Station Camp Blvd., Gallatin Open through Oct. 27.

Follow the haunted trails in the secluded woods, make your way through revamped maze and wander into various rooms and scenes. Bloody Acres describes itself as family-friendly, with gore and without controversial themes. Hours vary depending on day. For days, hours and more information, visit bloodyacres.com or call 615-974-8589. Admission is cash only.

3

CLARKSVILLE ZOMBIE HUNTERS

3975 Marthas Chapel Rd. Open Fridays and Saturdays through Nov. 2. Enjoy a zombie paintball hayride, zombie mission and shooting gallery, and a pitch-black dark maze. For hours, visit clarksvillezombiehunters.com.

4

CREEPY HOLLOW WOODS

2133 Joe Brown Rd., Spring Hill Open 7–11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays through Nov. 2 and on Halloween.

Haunted woods, haunted house, zombie maze, bonfire and haunted hayride with storytelling. More information at creepyhollowwoods.com.

20 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

5

DEAD LAND HAUNTED WOODS

7040 Murfreesboro Rd., Lebanon Near Cedars of Lebanon State Park Open Fridays and Saturdays and Halloween from 7 p.m.-midnight through Nov. 2 All-new attraction The Vampire Crypt and favorites Written in Blood and The Curse.

This is a family-friendly event with a bonfire and concessions.

“For the first time, we are selling Monster Kryptonite for the little kids,” owner Dana Chapman said. “When they hold it, it will keep the monsters away.”

More information at deadlandwoods.com.

6

DEVIL’S DUNGEON

510 Davidson St., Nashville Open through Oct. 31.

Travel through the dark and dismal to escape the undead. Hours vary depending on day. For days, hours and more information, visit slashvillehaunts.com.

7

HAUNTED HELL

3930 Apache Tr., Antioch Open through Oct. 31. Journey through twisted chambers of shock and mayhem.

Along your travels, encounter an old plantation house that is not what it seems.

Hours vary depending on day. For days, hours and more information, visit slashvillehaunts.com.

8

MEYERS CREEK HAUNTED WOODS

4734 John Bragg Hwy., Murfreesboro Open Fridays and Saturdays 7–11:30 p.m.

through Nov. 2.

Tickets $18 for adults, $10 for children under 10. For safety, guests can not wear open-toed shoes at this attraction.

More information at meyerscreekhauntedwoods.com.

9

MILLERS THRILLERS

1431 Carters Creek Pk., Columbia Open Fridays and Saturdays 7–11 p.m. through Nov. 2.

Opening one hour early on Oct. 19 and 26 for children who would rather visit the woods before it gets dark.

Millers Thrillers features new scenes this year. Zombie Paintball is a 30-minute ride through the woods.

The Haunted Woods walk has expanded to a full hour, and a new interactive allows guests to choose to be competitors or audience members.

More information at millersthrillers.net.

0

NASHVILLE NIGHTMARE

1016 Madison Sq., Nashville Open through Nov. 9.

Multiple attractions include a haunted house and the interactive mini-escape games. Hours vary depending on day. For days, hours and more information, visit nashvillenightmare.com.

q

PARATREKS GHOST TOURS

Certified Paranormal Investigators host a 90-minute tour beginning at 9 p.m. Fridays, Oct. 11, 18 and 25, on the Murfreesboro Public Square providing a unique and fun mixture of Tennessee folklore tales, interesting history and ghost stories

about locations along this walking tour.

Find out about former residents of that are still haunting buildings, restaurants and more. For more information or to register, contact info@paratreks.com or visit paratreks.com.

SHORT MOUNTAIN HAUNTED WOODS

w

8280 Short Mountain Rd., Woodbury Open 7 p.m. to midnight on Oct. 18, 19, 25 and 26. Cost for the haunted woods is $10, benefiting the volunteer fire department and Cannon County Rescue Squad.

Short Mountain Distillery also offers dinner, tours and tastings.

For more information and to make reservations, call 615-563-1243 or visit shortmountaindistillery.com

SLAUGHTERHOUSE

e

3445 Lebanon Pike, Hermitage Open Fridays–Sundays through Nov. 2, and Oct. 29, 30 and 31.

Nashville’s longest running haunted house featuring new and veteran actors and elaborate sets. Slaugherhouse now has outside entertainment for people waiting in line. Also available are weekend horror movies at the onsite theater and dinner with select movies.

For more information, call 615-321-3111 or visit fullmoonslaughterhouse.com.

Living

Fall F l Fun in Middle Tennessee

The mansion is normally locked at these hours but is ready for trick-or-treaters on Halloween night. from 4–6 p.m.

OCT. 11–13, 18–20, 24–27

t

Boo at the Zoo

The season for corn mazes, pumpkins, hayrides and trick-or-treating

BY LAURA LINDSAY SAT., OCT. 5

1

Fall Festival and Fish Fry

Good Shepherd Children’s Home 203 Woodcraft Dr., Murfreesboro 11 a.m.–6 p.m. Plenty of events for kids and entertainment all day. Fish fry at 3 p.m., $10 a plate. Benefit auction at 4 p.m.

More information at gsch.net.

FRI., OCT. 18

2

Spooky Splash

Patterson Park 521 Mercury Blvd., Murfreesboro 6–9 p.m. There will be open swim, craft time, pizza and pudding. Bring a white T-shirt to tie-dye. Cost is $5 in advance or $7 at the door. Reserve a spot by calling 615-893-7439.

OCT. 18–21

3

Pumpkin Decorating

Linebaugh Library, 105 W. Vine St. Choose your favorite character from a children’s book and decorate a real pumpkin to look like that character. No carving allowed. Pumpkin can be decorated using any materials. For information, call 615-893-4131.

FRIDAYS AND SATURDAYS

4

Shadow Chasers of Middle Tennessee Ghost Walks 7 S. Public Sq., Murfreesboro Walking tour of downtown Murfreesboro leaves from Big C Cleaners on the square every 30 minutes starting at 7 p.m. with the last tour beginning at 9:30 p.m. Tour lasts about an hour and costs $5.

for seniors/veterans/current military, $10 for college students with ID/children 6–10.

For information, visit samdavishome.org.

OCT. 18–20, 25–27

6

Judgment House

Mt. Hermon Baptist Church 2433 Mt. Herman Rd., Murfreesboro 6–8:30 p.m. An annual walk-through production that presents a true-to-life judgment story. Free for all ages.

FRI.–SAT., OCT. 25–26

7

Barfield Bash Twilight Trail & Carnival Barfield Crescent Park 697 Veterans Pkwy., Murfreesboro 5–9 p.m.

The Twilight Trail is a fun and not-frightening activity followed by games, puppet shows, stories and visiting live animals at the park. Carnival is free, $4 for hayride.

For information, call 615-893-2141.

OCT. 24–26

8

Flashlight Nights at Oaklands Mansion 900 N. Maney Ave., Murfreesboro from 7–10 p.m.

Explore and experience mourning customs and superstition of the Victorian era. Bring your own flashlight to the tour.

Cost is $10 for adults and students ages 2 and up and $5 for children ages 6–11.

Children under 2 are free. More information at oaklandsmansion.org.

SAT., OCT. 26

9

Harvest Days

OCT. 18–19, 25–26

5

Sam Davis Home Ghost Tours 1399 Sam Davis Rd., Smyrna 6–10 p.m. Spooky hayride, ghost stories and tour of the house in the dark. $15, $13 22 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

Cannonsburgh Village 312 S. Front St., Murfreesboro 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Old-time demonstrations, storytelling, hayrides, apple cider making, clogging and dancing and children’s activities. Call 615-890-0355 for more info.

SAT., OCT. 26

0

Goblins and Goodies at the Park Veterans Memorial Park 115 Floyd Mayfield Dr., La Vergne from noon–3 p.m. Includes a hayride, games and hike along the park trail to trick-or-treat from local businesses. Free admission.

SAT., OCT. 26

q

Shabby Lane’s Fall Treats & Holiday Sneak-A-Peek

Lane Agri-Park Community Center 315 John R. Rice Blvd., Murfreesboro 10 a.m.–4 p.m. Join over 90 vendors for shopping, trick-or-treating, games, costume contest and food. Free admission.

SAT., OCT. 26

w

Halloween in the Park

Sharp Springs Natural Area Park 1000 Espey Dr., Smyrna 3–8:30 p.m.

Smyrna Parks and Recreation presents the annual Halloween in the Park, with games, a free inflatable, a pie eating contest, booths and vendors. A costume contest will be held in age categories: 3 and under at 3:15 p.m., 4–5-year-olds at 3:45 p.m., 6–7-year-olds at 4:15 p.m., 8–9-year-olds at 4:45 p.m., 10–14-yearolds at 5:15 p.m., and ages 15 and up at 5:45 p.m. Free to attend, $2 hayrides.

Nashville Zoo at Grassmere 3777 Nolensville Pk., Nashville from 5–9 p.m.

With games, Howl-O-Ween Hayride, trickor-treat and scary tours.

Tickets are $19 for adults and teens and $14 for children 2–12.

Members save $2 per ticket.

ONGOING

y

Lucky Ladd Farms

4374 Rocky Glade Rd., Eagleville Wednesday–Saturday 10 a.m.–5 p.m. and Sundays noon–5 p.m.

Featuring a corn maze, pumpkin patch and fall concessions. Lots of activities for kids and adults; $13.99 for adults, $11.99 for seniors over 65 and kids 2–12 For more information, package and group rates, visit luckyladdfarms.com.

u

THROUGH NOV. 3

Brown Farms Corn Maze

7231 Cainsville Pk., Lascassas Open Fridays 5–10 p.m., Saturdays 1–10 p.m. and Sundays 1–5 p.m. $8 for adults, $6 for children ages 5–12, age 4 and under are free. Corn maze, pumpkin patch, animals and concessions. Strollers can be brought inside the corn maze.

Brown Farms Corn Maze is a four-milelong corn maze that is divided into two sections. The attraction also has a hayride.

This year’s corn maze theme is the Wild West, with images of a bucking bronco and the Grand Canyon against the sunset.

“We are keeping it all the same as last year, and we have dropped our prices,” said Manager Rebekah Brown.

THROUGH OCT. 31

i

Walden Pumpkin Farm

e

THURS., OCT. 31

Trick-or-Treat on the Square Murfreesboro Public Square 3–6 p.m. Kids collect goodies from downtown businesses.

THURS., OCT. 31

r

Trick-or-Treating at the “Old Maney Mansion”

900 N. Maney Ave., Murfreesboro

8653 Rocky Fork Rd., Smyrna Open 3–6:30 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays; 9 a.m.–6:30 p.m.

Saturdays and noon–4 p.m. Sundays until Oct. 31. Pick a pumpkin and other fall items, enjoy the hayride and visit the farm animals. Food and beverages including pumpkin fudge and chocolate-dipped cheesecake are available for purchase.

Free admission and free parking. More information at waldenfarm.biz.

Art

 EVENTS

Boro Art Crawl Returns Friday, Oct. 11  BORO ART CRAWL RETURNS to downtown Murfeesboro on Friday, Oct. 11.

The event, held one Friday evening from 6–9 p.m. every other month, features local and regional artists displaying and selling their artwork at many downtownarea businesses.

The October Crawl includes work from Jennifer McGuire, a watercolor artist, and Audrey Wallace, who creates lino prints “mostly of animals, nature and abstract thoughts,” on display at Boro Town Cakes.

The Walnut House will show work from a diverse group of artists: Rachel Odom, Amber Langford, Karen Watkins, Celeste Akari Davis and Bruce Frazier.

The City Hall Rotunda features a big collaborative exhibit with work from Susan Truex, Ryan Frizzell, Carol Berning, Mary Veazie, Lisa Sims, Abby Reish, Mira Patel, Diane Stockard, Elizabeth Bray and many others. Find cacti paintings from Becky Dickovitch, mixed media art from Chara Nicole and paintings by Jennifer Taylor at Transparent Heart Yoga, along with a wide variety of other painted, sculpted, knitted, photographed, wired and strung creations from local artists.

Artist John Dixon Creates Another Colorful Custom Newsrack for the Pulse MURFREESBORO ARTIST JOHN DIXON has painted another custom newspaper rack for the Murfreesboro Pulse.

The latest colorful creation features a jellyfish on the front panel. Each side of the piece looks quite different from the other, with pyramids, a vibrant butterfly and a teardrop from a beautiful green eye as well as swirls, spirals, stars and geometric patterns.

Grab a copy of the Pulse from the rack outside of Jr.’s Foodland on East Main Street.

24 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

Patterson Park Gallery Hosts Artwork by Destiney Powell The WASHINGTON THEATRE AT PATTERSON PARK Community Center will host Colorful Cultural, a collection of art by Destiney Powell, through Oct. 9.

Destiney Powell, creator of Poetically Illustrated Inc., is a 28-year-old AfricanAmerican visual artist born and raised in Batesville, Mississippi. Powell earned her bachelor’s degree from Mississippi State University in 2013. With a signature style of bright, bold watercolors and controversially themed acrylic paintings, Powell has kept her social media following and investors tuned in for more.

“My work serves as a celebration of all the beauty we embody even in the midst of our sometimes dark circumstances,” said Powell.

The precise, yet whimsical and colorful works created by Destiney Powell are the result of diligent attention to detail paired with imagination and the freedom of a creative mind. Powell’s watercolors and acrylic paintings are the product of countless hours of planning and rendering.

The gallery space is an interdepartmental partnership between Murfreesboro’s Patterson Park Community Center and The Washington Theatre. Its mission is to offer a platform for the local community to engage in the production of, and ideas generated by, contemporary art through exhibitions, dialogue, educational programming and community events.

For more information about the gallery space, The Washington Theatre, or Colorful Cultural, please contact Susan Hicks at: shicks@murfreesborotn.gov.

Art

 EXHIBIT

Arts Center of Cannon County Displays Oliver Langston’s Expression from Visions THE CANNON HALL of the Arts Center of Cannon County will display Expression from Visions, a collection of work by Smyrna artist J. Oliver Langston, through the end of October.

“I paint to create something different . . . not to conform,” Langston says.

The artist uses oils, acrylics and even melted crayons to create his bold landscapes, “paintings that came from the mind’s eye,” as described by the artist.

Langston will be on hand at the gallery for a meet-and-greet from 6:30–7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 12, and from 1–2 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 13.

He says he believes that it is important to have fun while creating art and works to grow and promote the art community in Middle Tennessee. “Art has been a major part of my life since I was a young boy and will be for as long as I am able,” Langston says.

View Expression from Visions Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m.–4 p.m. Admission to the gallery is free. The Arts Center of Cannon County is located at 1424 John Bragg Hwy., Woodbury. For more information, visit artscenterofcc.com.

26 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

presents . . .

Art

 THEATER

The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Comes to the Center for the Arts THE CENTER FOR THE ARTS continues its the 2019 season with Sweeney Todd. This beloved Stephen Sondheim play has been a theatrical favorite since its Broadway debut in 1979. The musical, with equal measures of tragedy, horror and dark comedy, was also a 2007 blockbuster film by director Tim Burton.

“Sweeney Todd has always intrigued me and I am so excited to have the opportunity to direct this musical,” says director Renee Robinson. “The story, while leaning towards macabre and dark, teaches lessons that always seem be applicable, no matter the time period. The cast and crew have been dedicated in telling this story and are doing an amazing job bringing these characters to life.”

David Cummings and Alexius Frost in Sweeney Todd; (below, from left) Nicholas Lewandowski, Aiden Shirk

One of the darkest musicals ever written, Sweeney Todd is the unsettling tale of a Victorian-era barber who returns home to London after 15 years of forced exile to take revenge on the corrupt Judge Turpin (Ro Coger) who ruined his life. When revenge becomes harder than he had hoped, Sweeney (David Cummings) swears vengeance on the entire human race, murdering as many people as he can. Meanwhile, his business associate Mrs. Lovett (Alexius Frost) bakes mysteriously delicious meat pies and sells them to the unsuspecting public. Sweeney Todd is lush, operatic and full of beauty.

Sweeney Todd is rated R for graphic violence. Tickets start at $14 and are on sale at boroarts.org, by calling 615904-ARTS, or at the Center for the Arts Box Office, 110 W. College St., in downtown Murfreesboro. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays, Oct. 11, 12, 18, 19, 25 and 26 at 7:30 p.m.; and Sundays, Oct. 13, 20 and 27 at 2 p.m.

Art

 POETRY BY KORY WELLS

Gaylord Brewer, Mike James, June Hall McCash, Kory Wells and Others Bring Murfreesboro Touch to Southern Festival of Books WHILE THIS COLUMN usually focuses on Murfreesboro literary and spoken word events, October is an exception because of a big event in Nashville—and no, I’m not talking about country music awards. For us book lovers, The Southern Festival of Books: A Celebration of the Written Word is a paradise, a homecoming and a must-not-miss event. Now in its 31st year, the free three-day festival, Oct. 11–13, connects thousands of readers of all ages and over 200 writers of all genres through panel discussions, readings, book signings, exhibits and much more. It’s fun to browse the exhibit booths and festival bookstore run by Parnassus Books on Legislative Plaza, but don’t miss all of the sessions also going on in the Nashville Public Library and other locations.

Authors with Murfreesboro connections who are scheduled to appear include poet and MTSU English professor Gaylord Brewer with his latest poetry book, The Feral Condition; recent Murfreesboro transplant Mike James with his recent poetry book, First-Hand Accounts from Made-Up Places; writer and MTSU professor emerita June Hall McCash with her new novel, Eleanor’s Daughter: A Novel of Marie de Champagne; Murfreesboro Poet Laureate Kory Wells with her new poetry collection, Sugar Fix; and MTSU alumnus Josh Floyd speaking on self-publishing with IngramSpark. A full schedule and list of authors is available on the Humanities Tennessee website.

Poetry in the Boro takes a break in October because it conflicts with Southern Fest.

30 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

But here at home there are plenty of other events to enjoy this month: WEDNESDAY, OCT. 16 The Tennessee Steam Festival is bringing popular author and NPR commentator Andrei Codrescu to Murfreesboro to speak on “Communicating Science Through Storytelling.” This event will be held at the MTSU Science Building. A reception at 5:30 p.m. precedes the 6:30 p.m. lecture.

Founded by Murfreesboro’s Discovery Center, the festival runs Oct. 11–20 at locations throughout the state. Visit tnsteam.org for more information.

SATURDAY, OCT. 19 MTSU Write will be holding its annual oneday writing conference.

With a theme of “Keep Going, Keep Growing,” the event will feature keynote speaker Mary Laura Philpott (I Miss You When I Blink) and breakout sessions for a variety of genres.

Registration is $60 for the public, or $40 for students and others affiliated with MTSU. Find more information at mtsu.edu/write.

MONDAY, OCT. 21 Heidi Heilig, author of For a Muse of Fire, The Girl From Everywhere and other books, will be speaking at Linebaugh Public Library at 6:30 p.m. in a Friends of Linebaugh Library event. Free and open to the public.

THURSDAY, OCT. 24 The local storytelling project Bloom will return to the Walnut House for its one-night show Moonlight, Magic and Mystery. The

multigenre event will include Leeann Love with art and a story, Jimbo Hooten with magic and a story, live music, and other tellers and poets, including Nick Bush, Kheanne Fontaine, Amie Whittemore and organizer KJ Kemp. Donations will be accepted at the door, which opens at 6:30 p.m. for the 7 p.m. show.

Two open-mic slots, five minutes each, will be available to interested audience members to share a story or poetry.

THURSDAYS IN OCTOBER The MTSU English department’s “In Process” series continues, with fiction writer Brian Kitely on Oct. 17, fiction writer Jennifer Wachtel Kates on Oct. 24, and poet Kory Wells with folk musician Kelsey Wells on Oct. 31.

BOROPULSE.COM

* OCTOBER 2019 * 31

Reviews

OPENING IN OCTOBER

AD ASTRA DIRECTOR James Gray STARRING Starring Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones, Ruth Negga RATED PG-13

Ad Astra (Latin for “to the stars”) is a very ambitious and well-made science-fiction film set in a near and recognizable future, where earth’s governments have set up space bases on the moon and Mars. Known for his calm under pressure, and for being the son of an heroic astronaut who led the first manned voyages to explore our outer solar system, Major Roy McBride (Pitt) followed in his father’s footsteps in achieving astronautical accolades.

Thirty years after his father’s failed final mission to Neptune, the Lima Project, Roy is tapped for a top-secret mission to Mars to try to stop earth-threatening energy surges that seem to be originating from the Lima Project’s last known location.

This is director James Gray’s first foray into

science fiction, his previous films focusing mostly on different historical periods. Preceding Ad Astra, he directed the sprawling The Lost City of Z, a muddy and meandering tale of British explorers’ ambitions being stoked and stomped out by the untamable Amazon forest. Yet, Ad Astra has more in common with the likes of Conrad’s Heart of Darkness than that jungle tale. It’s Apocalypse NASA with Pitt’s acting spectrum of cold, cool or crazy suiting the role perfectly as the stand-in for the jaded Captain Willard. An aging and bearded Tommy Lee Jones is the gone-native, lost his marbles Colonel Kurtz character, who, being

GAME RIVER CITY GIRLS There has been a dearth of side-scrolling brawlers in the last few years. Once arcade mainstays, the genre had a brief resurgence thanks to small, digitalonly releases, only to yet again fall by the wayside

as gamers demanded more content, and more variety.

Thank goodness then that River City Girls, the latest in the long-running Kunio-kun series, is here to show the world that it is still possible to A CLASSIC

32 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

make a satisfying, modern brawler. While the game is far from perfect, River City Girls serves as proof that it is fine to do just one thing as long as you do it really well.

River City Girls lets players choose between controlling Misako and Kyoko, two high-school girls with serious anger management issues who are out to save their kidnapped boyfriends.

The two heroines are likable and reasonably well-written, injecting just enough emotion into the nonstop jokes and constant brawling to keep players invested in their straightforward quest. The game makes the unfortunate decision of ending on a meta-joke that undermines much of what has come before and will

OUTSTANDING

AVERAGE

the sole living person farthest away from the earth (at nearly 3 billion miles), would be, according to Karl Pilkington, “the loneliest man ever . . . in the world.”

Gray said he wanted to make “the most realistic depiction of space travel that’s been put in a movie,” and using the framework of Conrad’s classic tale for a sci-fi movie, much as Coppola did with Vietnam, he came very close to achieving that goal. Still, something may keep it from reaching the acclaim of Apocalypse Now, but that something is intangible. There’s an over-reliance on voice-over narration, sure, but it’s well-integrated into the plot device of McBride’s constant psychevaluations. There’s something off about Roy’s escape from Mars, but it’s so beautifully shot by Hoyt van Hoytema (whose name and cinematography credits are awesome) that you forget to ask “why?” The film often jumps genres—from space epic to action thriller to horror show—but the score and sound are so excellent, often muted to echo the silence of space, that it never feels hokey or disjointed. I expected a pretty space movie with a cool car chase on the moon. What I got was that and then some, Heart of Darkness in space. And what’s darker than space? — JAY SPIGHT

make little sense to players new to the series, but up until that last-minute fumble, River City Girls is a lighthearted romp.

That being said, players are not here for the story; they are here for the white-knuckle action the series is known for. In that regard, River City Girls does not disappoint. As players purchase new moves and upgrade their core stats by leveling up, they will accumulate a wide variety of increasingly devastating combat options. River City Girls never lets players feel too secure, though, as boss fights and later encounters ramp up the difficulty considerably.

The game’s biggest flaw is that its in-game economy can create devBELOW AVERAGE

astating failure spirals.

If the player attempts a boss fight, uses their healing items and loses, then not only are they reset outside the fight without their used items, but they also incur a heavy penalty to their in-game wallet for dying. This can result in some frustrating moments where failing a boss fight results in having to spend time beating up low-level goons before trying again, which brings the game’s pace to a crawl.

But solid brawler gameplay, gorgeous retro visuals and a killer synth-pop soundtrack all ensure that the game constantly exudes quality and personality, even in its more frustrating moments.

— LUKE KAUTZKY

AVOID AT ALL COSTS

DEAD

PLAYING THIS MONTH

OCT. 4 Lucy in the Sky • Joker • Gemini Man • Low Tide • Semper Fi

OCT. 11 The Addams Family Zombieland: Double Tap Little Monsters • Parasite

OCT. 15 Jay and Silent Bob Reboot

OCT. 18 A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Maleficent: Mistress of Evil

Food

See more restaurant features at

BoroPulse.com/category/food

Monster Mex Freebirds World Burrito keeps it fresh, flavorful and fun with foil art STORY BY BRACKEN MAYO • PHOTOS BY SARAH MAYO

FREEBIRDS WORLD BURRITO is not the only fast-casual burrito joint in town, but its juicy steak, spicy creamy jalapeño sauce, fun atmosphere, variety of toppings, special promotions and massive monster burritos make it worth flying in sometime.

Diners enter Freebirds, located in one of the complexes that has popped up on Medical Center Parkway within the past few years (next to Volunteer State Bank), make their way to the counter and order their burrito—or bowl, nachos, tacos or quesadilla if they wish—with precisely the 34 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

ingredients and flavors that they want.

Choose from the wide variety of toppings to customize your Tex-Mex creation.

Select a flour, spinach, cayenne or whole wheat tortilla, if you plan to go with a burrito.

Then fill it with juicy steak, smoky grilled chicken, pork, veggies or the increasingly popular Beyond Meat.

Pick from jalapeño cilantro rice or a tomato-based spanish rice; Freebirds offers black, refried or pinto beans. Other selections beyond the standard lettuce, shredded cheese, tomato and sour cream include

roasted corn, pico, grilled onions, cilantro and the delicious, spicy, in-house-made creamy jalapeño sauce.

“Great selection of ingredients. I love the jalapeño sauce!” says Freebirds diner Stephanie Brewer Wright.

Cams Carpenter agrees: “The definite reason to pick Freebirds is their creamy jalapeño sauce,” he says.

The large thermometer gauge at the counter lists creamy jalapeño as its second spiciest sauce, even above the death sauce, and just below the habanero.

“I haphazardly told the server to add two spoonfuls of creamy jalapeño,” Roger Medina said of his Freebirds burrito. “I handled the spiciness alright, but it’s not for the faint of heart.”

Add guacamole or queso for to a burrito for an additional $1.40.

All of these possible ingredient and flavor choices result in over 171 billion possible burrito combinations, according to Freebirds signage.

Vickie Crocker reports Freebirds is a “good place for a quick, cheaper meal,”

while Troy Glidden says “the food is delicious, the options are seemingly endless, and it is always fresh.”

Chase Bobier compliments Freebirds—a Texas-based chain that reached east in 2017 and opened Tennessee locations in Murfreesboro and Green Hills—for quality of ingredients and “the integrity of the burrito.”

Yes, a huge half-eaten burrito can scatter its contents all over the place when not handled properly, but the staff clearly instructed a new customer how to methodically peel the foil from the burrito as it is eaten, from top to bottom, to preserve that burrito integrity until the very end. The Freebirds team even takes care to make sure each burrito stands up on end so the diner can place them upright on the table mid-meal without all of the contents spilling out—even the massive monster burrito.

“The steak was so good,” according to a review post from Will A. Matthews IV. “This place has amazing customer service.”

And Andy Hill calls Freebirds “one of the superior Mexican-burrito fast-casual chains . . . their portions are huge!”

burrito at a time.”

Many customers report on the freshness of ingredients.

“We don’t have freezers here,” Herman says. And he adds that the meat is made in small batches, so it’s never too far removed from the grill.

In a neat artistic twist, Freebirds encourages customers to use the foil burrito wrappers to create artwork, and the restaurant displays some of these foil art creations throughout the room.

A cool octopus and dinosaur, each made from foil burrito wrappers, hang out near the napkin and drink counter.

Overall, the packaging at Freebirds is kept minimal and natural. The burritos come wrapped in a single small sheet of foil, most of the to-go containers are plant-based and biodegradable, and the While the queso has its to-go bags are paper. fans, some find it to be a Freebirds will occasionlittle similar to a Velveetaally host special seasonal based dip. dishes such as brisket, and RESTAURANT If you don’t want a tortithe eatery tries to keep the Freebirds World lla shell, chips or rice, and atmosphere fun and relaxed.

Burrito intend to stay low-carb, it’s It does not require strict LOCATION 2222 Medical Center simple to do so at Freebirds. uniforms for employees, Pkwy., Ste. A, “Great burrito bowls for though most are decked out Murfreesboro us low carber/keto folks,” in various Freebirds gear.

PHONE Michelle Roysden posted While most sit-down 615-549-8740 after a visit to Freebirds.

Mexican restaurants serve HOURS Burritos start at $7.30 their version of burritos Everyday: 10:30 for a standard size, but I scalding hot, the Freebirds a.m.–9 p.m. conquered the monster burritos are more of a roomPRICES burrito! temperature affair.

Monster burrito: $9.50; Two tacos: “Holy cow, the monster Some may not care for $6.30; Large chips burrito puts all burrito some of the stronger spices with queso: $3.95; places to shame,” Isaac and flavors used, but most Pot brownie: $2.25; Miller posted in his review. who have tried it seem to Kid’s burrito, bowl or quesadilla: $4; “I will be back.” really enjoy building, and Nachos: $7.50 While this monster enjoying, a big Freebirds ONLINE of a burrito could cost burrito. freebirds.com $11–$14, depending upon “Honestly, the best buradditional toppings, it rito I’ve ever had.” Dannie could absolutely feed two (average) people, Gately posted. or serve as two meals, and most diners say “Little monsters” under 12 eat free on the large portions of food at Freebirds are Sundays, and show your tattoo on Tuesworth the price tag. days for free chips and salsa.

“I had a monster burrito which cost me 10 The Freebirds team caters and provides bucks, but I did not leave hungry,” Michael food for lots of special events; as its caterJohnson said. “I will definitely be back.” ing materials state, burritos or nachos can Herman Langley said he was pleasantly make many different types of events betsurprised at how good the Freebirds burter—tea parties, toga parties, block parties, ritos tasted. baptisms, bonfires, barn-raisings, make“My best half and I each had the nextups, breakups and more. to-largest they make. We ate half there and For those up for a real challenge, I hear the next day ate the rest for lunch,” Langley myths of a super monster burrito . . . posted. “The steak was very good.”

David Subak reports it’s “nearly five “I would say it’s worth it for the amount pounds of solid, delicious burrito (yes, I of food you get,” Yajaira Luna stated. weighed it!) . . . and yes, I did finish it, Freebirds Regional Manager Andy though it became a sort of an all-day meal,” Herman says that he and his team “want he said. “I definitely would recommend this to make the world a better place, one place for all your enormous burrito needs!”

The Dish

AROUND TOWN ’BORO BUSINESS BUZZ

The Full Plate, Yummy Poki, Designer Shoe Warehouse, CycleBar, Bittersweet Bakery

THE FULL PLATE CATERING has opened in the Hyde Park complex, 1800 S. Rutherford Blvd., offering to-go meals, custom cakes and catering service.

“Some of my fondest memories were made in the kitchen. With the busy pace of today’s world, the time for homemade goodies and meals is often still desired, but just not possible,” says owner Rachel Wheat. “Enter The Full Plate! We are here to help bridge the gap between busy schedules and precious time with your family.”

BY MICHELLE WILLARD Smyrna fish fans are rejoicing as YUMMY POKI announced it is going into the former location of Cali’s Coffee and Creamery at 901 Rock Springs Rd., Suite 110, Smyrna.

Set to open in early October, Yummy Poki will serve sushi and poke bowls along with appetizers and noodle dishes in a full-service atmosphere.

Downtown Murfreesboro is getting a new high-end coffee shop. Called BRASS HORN COFFEE ROASTERS, the coffee shop and roaster is slated to open in the fall at 410 W. Lytle St. This is the same company reported on in this column last month. Owner Jeremy Florida said Florida Coffee Works products can be found at MOAB, Batey Farms, The Hamery and other area retailers.

Another coffee shop and bakery is opening in Smyrna, too. BITTERSWEET BAKERY & BISTRO will be located at 11473 Old Nashville Hwy. Owners Wesley and Ashley Manning will serve made-fromscratch breads, cookies, cakes, pies, truffles, chocolates and daily puffs with your typical assortment of coffee drinks, teas and such.

The following signs have been spotted across town: • ZAXBYS at 2122 Memorial Blvd.

• EL MONTE FRESH MEXICAN FOOD on Lascassas Pike • KIM’S INTERNATIONAL MARKET on Memorial Boulevard in the former ASC Signs building next to Blue Coast Burrito • SEASONS OF MURFREESBORO in Clarion Inn’s restaurant space (formerly Nobody’s) • KITCHEN WAY GREEK GRILL in The Oaks, in the former location of Deezie’s Hot Chicken.

DSW DESIGNER SHOE WAREHOUSE is planning to build a new store in The Oaks shopping center, located at the corner of Thompson Lane and Medical Center Parkway. The new 15,000-squarefoot store would be located in the lot next to Stein Mart. The Columbus, Ohio-based 36 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

retailer has more than 500 stores in the United States.

music playlists. Learn more at cyclebar.com/ location/murfreesboro.

DROVER RIDESHARE announced it is coming to Murfreesboro. Just like other rideshare apps that shall not be named, Drover asks that users download its mobile apps from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store to request a ride. What makes Drover (not to be confused with Rover) different is that it donates two percent of every fare to a local, Tennessee-based charity. Potential drivers in Murfreesboro are encouraged to take a gander at the Drive for Drover page for more information on how it all works.

After searching for more than a year, THREE RIVERS FAMILY DENTISTRY found an experienced associate dentist to join the team. Dr. Darren Songstad comes to Murfreesboro with more than 21 years of experience, including previously owning his own practice. Learn more about Three Rivers at threeriversfamilydentistry.com.

In other rideshare news, Smyrna mother Katie Darby has launched SPACE SHUTTLE, an Uber-style bus service for kids in Rutherford County. Darby said she wanted to help kids get safely to and from school and extracurricular activities. After a $25 per child registration fee, the cost is $10.50 per day for a full week of service, $15.50 per day for a partial week and $20 per trip for emergency/ one-time service. Find out more about Space Shuttle at spaceshuttletransportation.com.

TBH ADVISORS announced the opening of a new Murfreesboro office in The Avenue at 1560 Medical Center Pkwy.

The financial advisor has been in the Brentwood and Franklin area for more than a decade and is now expanding into Murfreesboro. Anchoring the new office is Murfreesboro’s own Jeff Littrell, who has had a 15-year career in the financial services industry previously working with both Edward Jones and Wells Fargo Advisors. TBH assists clients with retirement planning, education planning, business, estate planning, major purchases, insurance, tax planning, 401(k) management Services and other investments.

CYCLEBAR MURFREESBORO has opened on Medical Center Parkway. Located conveniently near the new Krispy Kreme, CycleBar is a franchise indoor cycling studio. Indoor cycling, also called by brand name Spin, is a great full-body cardio workout. CycleBar offers a multi-sensory experience with certified instructors and

UNITED WAY of Rutherford and Cannon Counties have presented banking executive Yolanda Greene with the 2019 Carl Quakenbush Volunteer of the Year Award. Greene is Rutherford County market president for First Tennessee Bank and received the award for her outstanding community service. United Way is a community organi-

zation with various programs aimed at improving the health, education and financial stability of every person in Rutherford and Cannon Counties. For more information, visit yourlocaluw.org.

Is COSTCO coming? Two Murfreesboro City Councilmen say the wholesale franchise has been poking around, looking for a place to land and confirmed the rumors are true, but Costco officials wouldn’t return calls about the matter. A recent report implies that the Costco deal hinges on a plan for the city to extend Beasie Road from Warrior Drive near New Salem Pike to River Rock Boulevard, creating a more direct route to I-24. The road project would include a bridge over I-24 and the Stones River.

The Industrial Development Board on Sept. 25 approved tax incentives for Costco to build off Warrior Drive. If approved by the Murfreesboro City Council, the project would become the first retail business in recent memory to receive a tax break in Murfreesboro.

This presents the same question that has plagued so many projects in Murfreesboro recently: isn’t there a better place for it? Like the Swanson property on NW Broad Street next to International Paper? Seriously, it’s empty and there’s already a great road right next to it. And why are we giving them money to build here? Granted, Costco pays better than Walmart, but we shouldn’t hand out tax breaks to discount retailers whose mere presence will hurt locally owned businesses.

Many think Costco is a great idea, but this spot is close to the existing Sam’s Club and would likely encourage more development in the already overpacked Cason Lane area.

It’s like the Murfreesboro City Council doesn’t know anything about city planning.

Another long-awaited project has gotten the green light on South Church Street. After years of speculation, ALDI is finally coming to South Church Street.

In early September, the Murfreesboro Planning Commission again approved plans for the field between Joe B. Jackson Parkway (formerly County Farm Road) and Savannah Ridge. The project was first approved in 2006 and 2017. Called the Marketplace at Savannah Ridge, the development will include retail and townhouses. It will be anchored by an Aldi store. A representative for Baker Storey McDonald said tenants can expect to move in next year.

The development plans for 12 commercial buildings and 30 single-family homes.

News

Know the

Constitution When Middle Tennessee resident Joni Bryan worked at a retirement community, she spoke with a resident there, a former constitutional lawyer who had been involved in the civil rights movement in the 1960s and who had previously run for government office.

“He said ‘My dear, when’s the last time you read your Constitution?’” Bryan recalls.

That conversation helped inspire Bryan to not only read the text of the oft-debated and discussed document that set up the government of the United States of America, signed in 1787, but to also form the 917 Society, a group that encourages students and all Americans to study and know the governing document of their nation.

As Bryan began this effort and spoke with more and more people about the U.S. Constitution, she came to the realization that, or so it seemed to her, “99 percent of people have never read it.”

The 917 Society held a celebration of the Constitution on Sept 17, or 9/17, the anniversary of its signing, and the group works throughout the year to distribute copies of the Constitution, particularly to eighth-grade students in Tennessee. Bryan references a U.S. law, part of the 2004 Omnibus Act, that requires all schools that receive federal funds to hold a program on or around Sept. 17 for Constitution Day, and requires federal agencies to provide educational materials concerning the U.S. Constitution to each employee on Sept. 17 of each year.

“However, the law offers no funding and teachers are left to their own resources to come up with a program,” Bryan shares with the Murfreesboro Pulse. “The 917 Society’s mission is to provide a free resource for eighth-

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grade students and teachers, as this is the year civics is supposed to be taught in depth in the curriculum.”

Bryan says that preserving Constitutional freedoms for many more years to come requires educating the next generation of American voters on what the Constitution says.

“Our founders wanted to make sure the government doesn’t become too powerful.

The Constitution was created to make sure the people have the power, not the government,” Bryan says.

She also wants to see voter participation increase.

“Participation is vital,” Bryan continues.

“We must, as citizens, take our rights seriously, and protect those rights. We have a responsibility to be informed . . . when you don’t realize what you have in front of you, you take it for granted.”

Bryan says that getting people familiar with the Constitution is her only agenda.

“We present the Constitution as written, not a political interpretation of it,” she says, pleased that some of these introductions to the document have sparked some interesting discussions and debates in Tennessee middle schools regarding voting rights, prayer in schools, gun rights and other Constitutional subjects.

This year, the 917 Society helped reach over 90,000 students across the state of Tennessee in time to honor Constitution Day, and plans to begin a push to distribute durable, pocketsized Constitutions to other states soon.

MTSU also celebrated Constitution Day this year with campus-wide Constitution readings conducted hourly at various buildings on campus. Voter registration tables were set up

Groups encourage study of founding document of the United States

BY BRACKEN MAYO

across the MTSU campus all day to help citizens prepare for the upcoming 2020 elections.

MTSU’s Constitution Day celebration also included a panel discussion about women’s right to vote. The U.S. Congress passed the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, which gave women the right to vote, in 1919. Tennessee’s General Assembly narrowly ratified the 19th Amendment in 1920, delivering the necessary three-fourths majority of states to amend the U.S. Constitution.

Among those participating in the Constitution readings at MTSU was Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett.

“My short-term goal is for every member of this community, whether it be students, faculty or administrators, to be registered to vote and to be engaged in this process because I believe every vote matters,” Hargett said.

Other Constitution Week activities in Murfreesboro included a Constitution trivia night at Linebaugh Library, presented by the local chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.

September 2019 marked the 232nd anniversary of the signing of the Constitution of the United States of America.

Joni Bryan

“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America,” the Preamble states. The document follows that by outlining the structure of the three branches of our representative government.

Congress ratified the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, known as The Bill of Rights, in 1791, four years after the signing of the original Constitution. To commemorate Constitution Week and to encourage the study of the document, the Daughters of the American Revolution provided some Constitution Facts and thoughts to consider: – You might have heard the phrase “that’s unconstitutional” or “that’s my constitutional right!” Many times Americans believe that some sayings and phrases are in our Constitution, but they really aren’t. Celebrate the Constitution by resolving to be better informed citizens. Read the Constitution!

– Nowhere in the Constitution does it say “it’s a free country.” Amendment 1 of the Constitution does not include the words “freedom of expression.” Over time courts have ruled to include limits to the freedoms of speech, press and assembly for defamation, perjury, contempt of court, hate speech, size of public demonstrations, trade secrets, noise pollution, classified information and treason.

– The 5th Amendment states that “No person shall be . . . deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law” and it protects us from double jeopardy and self-incrimination.

However, the phrases “innocent until proven guilty” and “presumption of innocence” are not found in the 5th amendment nor in any part of the Constitution. These phrases are derived from English law and are part of our system and considered common law today.

– The U.S. Constitution, the basic document of our republic, which protects the individual liberties of all citizens, is the oldest constitution still in active use in the world today.

– “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal” and “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” are not in the Constitution, but both are in the Declaration of Independence. “Of the people, by the people, for the people” is neither in the Constitution nor the Declaration, but comes from the Gettysburg Address – The only place in the Constitution that “Lord” or any reference to God appears is where the date is written: Seventeenth Day

Planning for Death

& Estate Planning Awareness Do You Have Your Will, Power of Attorney and Wishes in Order?

BY ASHLEY STERNS THE U.S. CONGRESS DESIGNATED THE third week of October each year as National Estate Planning Awareness Week (H. Res. 1499) in 2008 to help the public understand what estate planning is and why it is a vital component of financial wellness.

Proper estate planning can prevent family members or your intended beneficiaries from being subjected to complex legal processes requiring significant expenditure of time and expenses, and greatly reduce confusion or even animosity among family members or other heirs upon the death of a loved one. Basic estate planning should be on every adult’s to-do list.

There are certain documents that you should have, regardless of your health, wealth or age: 1. DURABLE POWER OF ATTORNEY Authorizes someone to act on your behalf in the event that you become unable to handle your financial affairs. The person you designate in the durable power of attorney can pay bills, file taxes, direct investments and make other decisions on your behalf.

2. MEDICAL POWER OF ATTORNEY Allows you to specify the medical treatments you desire in the event you cannot express your wishes, and appoints someone to make other medical decisions.

3. WILL Distributes your property as you desire after your death. If you die without a will, disbursements are made according to Tennessee’s intestate succession CONTINUED FROM PAGE 38 of September in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty seven.

– You cannot be denied the right to vote because of race or gender. But the Constitution never clearly ensures us the “right to vote.” The 26th Amendment requires that 18-year-olds must be able to vote; however, states can allow persons younger than 18 to vote if they chose. The qualifications for voters are left to the states, as long as they do not conflict with anything in the Constitution.

– The right to privacy has come to the public’s attention through various Supreme Court rulings. Privacy is not specifically mentioned in the Constitution, but over the years the Supreme Court has made decisions that have established that the right to privacy is a basic human right and as such is protected by the 9th Amendment.

– Inauguration Day is set in the 20th Amendment. The Presidential and Vice Presidential terms end and the next term begins on Jan. 20 following an election. For Senators and Representatives, it ends and begins on Jan. 3 following an election. The time between the election and Inauguration Day is known as the lame-duck period, particularly if the president was not reelected.

laws, which might not align with your wishes. A will also names an executor to settle your estate.

Some other areas of consideration: Do you have minor-aged children? If so, you will need to consider who you want to serve as guardian, and establish a trust for their benefit.

Do you have a special needs beneficiary? If so, you do not want to disqualify them from public benefits and may need to establish a special needs trust.

Do you have a blended family? If so, the laws which stipulate how your estate passes at your death may not align with your wishes.

Are you in a second marriage and have children from outside of the marriage? If so, you may consider doing a marital trust to provide for your spouse’s lifetime needs while controlling where the assets go at the surviving spouse’s death.

Do you have an irresponsible adult beneficiary? If so, you may consider leaving their inheritance in trust, which can still be used for their health, education, and support, while preventing the beneficiary from spending all of the assets at once.

Because wills, trusts and powers of attorney are legal documents, it is crucial that they be properly executed under Tennessee law and drafted by a licensed attorney who practices in this technical area.

For more information on estate planning and being prepared for death or the death of a loved one, join attorney Ashley Stearns for The Pulse Stops Here: An Estate Planning Conversation on Thursday, Oct. 10, from 6–8 p.m. at Cultivate Coworking, 107 W. Lytle St. Begin the process of getting your important documents in order and ask questions about legal matters related to death. The event is free to attend and includes appetizers and beverages, though attendees should register in advance on Eventbrite.

– The Constitution does not give the right to have cases heard by a jury of “my,” “their” or anyone’s peers. The 6th Amendment does assure those accused of crimes “the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury.”

– The Constitution does not have the words “separation of church and state” anywhere in it.

– The only crime that is defined in the Constitution is treason. Specifically, it is adhering to or giving comfort to the enemies of the United States.

– (editor’s addendum) The Constitution does contain the phrases “probable cause” and “due process,” and states that someone suspected of a crime shall not be compelled to “witness against himself.” As convoluted and criticized as the American criminal justice system can be, most can avoid interaction with it if they do not voluntarily provide probable cause that they have committed a crime, or choose to bear witness against themselves. If you are accused of a crime, that is generally not the best time to exercise your “freedom of speech.” You have the Constitutional right to keep your mouth shut!

Read the full U.S. Constitution at constitutionus.com.

BOROPULSE.COM

* OCTOBER 2019 * 39

BUSINESS MOMENTUM

BY BLAINE LITTLE

City Cafe

E

ven for those new to Murfreesboro, it’s hard to imagine anyone wouldn’t discover the City Cafe. The century-old diner, a historic landmark just off the Square, is a local staple.

The food is good, but so is the company. There are always lively discussions and exchanges of ideas.

That’s what attracted the Kelloggs to the restaurant in the first place—the people.

When they first heard the business was for sale, the Kelloggs realized it was an opportunity to bring a dream to fruition. Teresa Kellogg and a business partner bought the Cafe in 2014. In 2017, Teresa’s husband, Rollin, retired and the Kelloggs bought out the previous partner. Now, it is truly a family business. Rollin added baking to his set of skills, while Teresa runs the kitchen.

The couple says it’s easy to be business partners when you are best friends.

The restaurant first opened on Feb. 10, 1900.

Though it has moved a couple of times, it has always been in downtown Murfreesboro and been a favorite gathering spot for local residents. It was founded by Dorsey Cantrell, who also ran a dairy atop the original location. Though there have been a handful of different owners over the years, the menu has remained largely the same.

Though you can’t get a hamburger for a nickel any more, you can get great home cooking at a good price. The establishment has always provided a hearty breakfast or meat-and-three for lunch.

However, that doesn’t stop the owners from changing up the menu every now and then. Rollin offers seasonal pastries and, very soon, Teresa will be serving her red beans and rice.

A challenge the current owners face is retention of staff, a common issue for all restaurateurs. Though, they do have some servers who have been with them for years and even employees who have been with the Cafe for over 30 years. It’s that type of loyalty that keeps good consistent customer service.

I ask the owners “What gives you momentum?”

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A Historic Meat & Three “It’s the love of what we do,” Teresa said. “Older people say they remember coming in here when they were in college and now their children [and grandchildren] come here.”

It is said if you want to know what is going on in Murfreesboro, City Cafe is the place to be. For years local politicians have held court and pundits have discussed current events in the restaurant. There is also the occasional prayer breakfast upstairs. As Teresa put it; “You may come here as a stranger but you will leave here as a friend.”

The majority of Murfreesboro residents were not born here, but a visit to the City Cafe is a great way to immerse yourself in Middle Tennessee culture.

There are old menus and an original sign adorning the walls. The food is also a nod to antiquity, as it is all made from scratch.

City Cafe is open from 6 a.m.–2 p.m. every day but Sunday. Currently, dinner is not available, but you may reserve the restaurant in the evening for special events. The dinner option is something the owners are considering bringing back, but of course, that means more staff and food items.

As for promoting the business, it was featured on Tennessee Crossroads a while back. Live music on Saturdays will bring in some people as well.

“You have to utilize the tools you can use, and social media is a big thing,” Rollin states.

Check out daily City Cafe specials at facebook.com/citycafe.murfreesboro.

City Cafe truly is a Rutherford County institution. On Feb. 10, 2020, the Cafe will celebrate 120 years of continuous business. That could very well make it the longest running restaurant in the entire state.

Blaine Little is the founder and CEO of Momentum Seminars Training, helping companies remain profitable by investing in their people. Learn more at momentum seminars.com.

SPORTS

TALK

COLUMN BY “Z-TRAIN”

titanman1984@gmail.com

Fans Losing Faith in Marcus and Titans Offense After Colts, Jags Games, but Titans End Month with Big Win in Atlanta

THE TRAIN DADDY IS BACK with sports news, life lessons and politically incorrect talk. All aboard!

Let me start by saying Bernard Pollard, the former Titan safety, can suck a squirrel nut. Quit trying to be relevant by bashing the Titans and the team’s owner, encouraging her to sell the team and tweeting that the Titans need a “New coach.

New GM. The fans deserve better.”

Pollard was a walking 15-yard penalty when he played for Tennessee.

This city didn’t have love for him then or even now, as he still resides in Nashville. Pollard made a big deal and twisted Delanie Walker’s words; Walker later clarified Pollard was wrong. Pollard likes to hit low when his opponent is down.

In my last article I gave my thoughts on the Titans’ strengths and weaknesses before the season kicked off, and I wasn’t even close!

By no means am I a delusional fan.

When this team sucks, I will say so, and when they are hot, I will praise!

I will be a fan for as long as this team resides in Tennessee, God willing, until I am an old, decrepit man.

But understand this, I am a fan!

It doesn’t matter if I think Marcus Mariota has no awareness in the pocket and throws far too many ill-conceived passes, and it doesn’t

matter if I think Coach Vrabel possibly doesn’t have what it takes to properly run this team. The fact remains: I will always be here, and those two men won’t.

Before I get further into the Titans, let’s discuss a few other stories. First, Antonio Brown. What a hell of a story. We have an idiot as well as an alleged sexual assaulter, it appears. Here is a quick timeline of Brown’s 2019. This past March, Brown is traded to the Raiders by the Steelers. In May all seems well, and coaches seem happy. Come July, Brown shows up to training camp with severe frostbite on his feet. He later leaves camp in protest due to the NFL banning his outdated 10-year-old helmet. Later in August, Brown is fined 40k for his unexcused absence in camp.

Come September, Brown gets into a confrontation with Raiders general manager Mike Mayock and calls him a cracker.

Later that month the Raiders suspend Brown for his conduct, then Brown issues an emotional apology. After another fine from the Raiders, Brown demands to be released and he gets his wish. On Sept. 9, Tom Brady knocks on the door and Brown answers, becoming a Patriot. The next day, Brown

is accused of sexual assault. Five days later Brown plays his first and only game as a Patriot, and scores a touchdown. The next day out comes another allegation of assault. Nike drops Brown. The Patriots release Brown five days after his first game.

Brown states he will never play in the NFL again. He enrolls in online college courses. And then days later says he wants to play again.

When you read it you can’t help but say “wow”!

Another quick topic before we talk Titans: J.Lo and Shakira will headline this year’s Super Bowl halftime performance. The Latininspired theme plays well with Miami’s Hispanic landscape. Yet it’s not the show many fans wanted, especially with Jay Z serving as the NFL’s “live music entertainment strategist.” It seems many AfricanAmerican fans preferred some rapper or socially charged activist to perform. And it appears that Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider isn’t happy either, stating, “Once again the great heavy music that rocks the stadiums week after week, game after game, is completely ignored. I guess we don’t shake our ass enough.” I am not even a tad bit excited for this halftime show. It’s booty-shaking sexual pop nonsense

that has no intrigue for me except the ass shaking. Shakira is a beautiful woman (and is managed by JayZ’s Roc Nation), but aside from that I would prefer anything else.

Here is my Top 3 wish list for Super Bowl halftime performances: Will Smith and Kodi Lee from America’s Got Talent getting jiggy with it, Garth Brooks solo, or a Post Malone and Elton John collaboration show!

Alright, let’s wrap this article up with some Titan talk! The Titans play the Bills, at Denver, the Chargers and the Bucs before the next article comes out.

If I am being honest, they should be able to defeat the Broncos and Bucs, and possibly give the Bills a good show. The Chargers offense is on fire.

I wrote most of this before heading down to see the Titans play the Falcons. You can understand the mood I was in after the loss to the Colts and the beatdown to the Jaguars.

After a solid week 1 beatdown of the Browns I thought things were looking up for the Titans. The defense looked top-notch, Marcus looked decent, and I assumed the offense would begin to click. Then Adam Vinatieri attempted to give the Titans a free win, missing two extra points for the Colts. Yet the Titans lost that game 19–17.

Week 3 against the Jags was one of the worst games I can remember ever watching. Let’s just forget that.

It was annihilation, and was hopefully a big wake-up call to Marcus Mariota and coaches.

I am starting to have serious doubts about Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith. This offense has problems executing and is very predictable. I hope Smith figures this new role out soon.

My breakdown of this team so far: the play calling has been awful and that falls on Head Coach Vrabel and Arthur Smith. It must be fixed.

The offensive line has been horrible. Mariota has no time to look downfield. Taylor Lewan will return in week 5. Let’s just hope one man has what it takes to fix that line.

Nothing else on this team matters if that problem doesn’t get fixed. A bad offensive line equals a guaranteed bad season and many firings.

The pass rush has been nonexistent, aside from Cameron Wake in week 1. Harold Landry needs to step up, and Jurrell Casey hasn’t looked like himself since returning after an injury. The secondary looks great, though. If this team managed to generate a consistent pass rush, this defense would be a great group.

As far as I am concerned, don’t let Adoree Jackson ever return a punt again!

Mariota is one of this franchise’s most controversial players ever.

Bring up his name among Titan fans and you may have an immediate fight. The former Heisman winner better get it together, because if the Titans put Ryan Tannehill in it’s going to be the end to the Mariota saga. We can blame the offensive line, or five offensive coordinators in five years, or injury or weather or whatever, but Marcus must win.

And win he did in Atlanta.

I’m adding in this Falcon update less than an hour after the game.

Respect to all the Titans fans who showed up in Atlanta. I’ve never, ever, seen so much Titans blue at an away game. Hats off to Mariota and A.J. Brown. Great game to Corey Davis as well. The defense looked top-notch to close out September.

Both the offense and defense played so well as a team. I am proud of what this team and its fans did in Atlanta. Shout-out to Scott, John, Justin, Jeff and Glenn, all my brothers in that picture posted here.

With Marcus making better decisions and receivers catching balls, this team can make a mark.

Let’s get Henry running. Let’s get the football in Adam Humphries’ hands. Let’s make Delanie Walker a star again and keep throwing the ball towards A.J. Brown. Let’s continue to grow as an organization and team.

If the O-line can continue to improve and the D-line can get a little pressure, this team will win games. Keep it up, Marcus, because Ryan has a cannon and you’re losing my faith.

The Train’s rolling into the station. Choo-choo!

BOROPULSE.COM

* OCTOBER 2019 * 41

Opinion Nashville Officials Kept Criminal Record of Illegal Alien from the Public

I

t’s become a familiar refrain with me, but I too often have to say that media bias isn’t necessarily what they tell you; it’s what they don’t. One case in point is a recent story of an incident in Nashville. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents attempted to apprehend a criminal illegal alien and he fled in a box truck, almost running over one of the agents as he does.

One of the ICE agents fired shots, and the suspect was hit. He later turned himself in and was treated at an area hospital.

That, in and of itself, is a rather dramatic story. It got local coverage in Nashville, but inexplicably got virtually no coverage on the national news. It was what I was able to learn afterwards, and what was not reported, that was so disturbing.

But let’s back up to the original story itself. This illegal alien, who allegedly tried to run over a federal agent, was called a “victim” in a statement issue

by Nashville Mayor David Briley. Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition called ICE a “rogue agency” that was “terrorizing and traumatizing the entire community.”

I knew ICE didn’t routinely arrest illegals who were just going to their jobs (although I think they should). They normally removed violent criminals from the country. I wanted to know what this particular illegal alien’s name was, and what crimes he had committed. My staff and I were stonewalled at every turn. Nashville police referred us to ICE and wouldn’t tell us the suspect’s name, nor would they reveal his crimes in Nashville. ICE referred us to the FBI, which had taken over the case because a federal agent had been involved in a violent incident. The FBI wouldn’t return our inquiries.

I finally made contact with a government official in the know who asked to remain anonymous. I will

VIEWS OF A

CONSERVATIVE

PHIL VALENTINE

philvalentine.com

tell you that this person is as close to this investigation as you can get and the information he gave me is beyond question. I was able to confirm that the suspect’s identity, which we got through other investigative avenues, was correct. The man’s name is Jose Fernando Andrade-Sanchez. He’s been living in the Antioch section of Nashville. He has a conviction of aggravated child abuse and another conviction of domestic violence. He’s a bad man, and ICE was trying to get another violent illegal alien criminal off the streets. Instead the government and the news media tried to keep that information from the public. My government source told me I was not the only one from the media to whom he had imparted that information, which meant I was just the only member of the media actually reporting it.

Now, if you’re doing a story on ICE trying to apprehend an illegal alien and it ends with the suspect being shot, isn’t the reason for his attempted arrest an important part of the story?

I would suggest it’s the most important part of the story, yet no news media outlet bothered to inform the public. This is a blatant attempt to avoid depicting an illegal alien in a negative light, even though he deserved to be.

What’s more, Mayor Briley, (now former Mayor Briley), fully knowing that this guy was a convicted child abuser, issued an executive order to ignore state law and forbid anyone in Metro Nashville government from working with ICE. Even when he issued the EO, the news media still kept it under wraps that Briley was protecting a violent criminal.

We should all be outraged over this, but it’s hard to be outraged if you never even know.

“I knew ICE didn’t routinely arrest illegals who were just going to their jobs. . . .

They normally removed violent criminals from the country.”

42 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

Phil Valentine is an author and nationally syndicated radio talk show host with Westwood One. For more of his commentary and articles, visit philvalentine.com.

Live Exceptionally...Well!

BY JENNIFER DURAND

Finding the Extra in the Ordinary LIFE HAPPENS ALL AROUND US, moment by moment, with or without our noticing. Most of it is ordinary. We get up, do morning routines, go to work, communicate with others, interact on social media, see or talk to family members. We come home, do evening routines, maybe help kids with homework, take care of animals, take care of our homes, cars and such. These all sound pretty common and ordinary, right? So where’s the extra in all that? There is an “extra” element to be noticed inside this seeming non-extraordinary existence.

There is a wisdom to be gained from the simple, day-to-day activities that we claim as ordinary.

Sun lighting a child’s hair. A friend’s embrace. Slow dancing in a safe and quiet place. The pleasures of an ordinary life. – Judith Viorst The extra comes in the simple moments of noticing what’s happening in the middle of the ordinary.

Parents come home from working a long day.

There are children to take care of, and lots of extra tasks to do. Preparing food, eating, cleaning up.

Preparing for bedtime. Baths. In these activities the extra that is found could be order, discipline, skill development, love, patience. Sometimes tempers flare. It’s what happens after those moments that counts. Whether you talk through issues or ignore them, the extra is what’s happening to you and those around you.

Extra happens when someone offers the bigger slice of pie to their friend, or when you see someone struggling to carry too much and another offers assistance, or stopping for a moment (or an hour) to listen to the emotionally wounded.

Making someone feel like they belong is an extra. It shows grace and kindness. Don’t be so preoccupied that you miss an opportunity to make someone else feel important. Being understood is one of the most profound things people seek.

One of the hardest things I see people deal with is their own fear—fear to get out of their comfort zone and do something new, something perhaps that many consider ordinary, but maybe out of the ordinary for them! Taking just one step in a different direction can turn a sullen, scared or bored attitude into a brilliant smile. That’s making the ordinary come alive!

The ordinary acts we practice every day at home are of more importance to the soul than their simplicity might suggest. —Thomas Moore A simple hug can bring warmth, safety, a sense of belonging, love and understanding. It’s an ordinary gesture that sometimes provides an extra unexpected feeling.

Keep making the ordinary come alive! Instead of constantly striving for the extraordinary, try finding the wonder and magic in ordinary living. Experience the taste of a juicy peach or tomato. Feel the infinite pleasure in the touch of a hand. Feel the tears of sadness and the sinking heart of anguish.

Watch that same heart pound with excitement and anticipation of the next ecstatic moment. Watch and listen to what is going on around you. Notice the subtle nuances of others. See their joy, their frustration, happiness or disappointment. Feel the power in the moment when someone “gets you.”

Then do this for another.

Talk less, listen more. You can’t learn anything when you’re doing all the talking. Keep making the extra come alive by finding the wonder and magic in the ordinary.

One of my favorite memories of finding the extra in the ordinary is when I was mowing our two acres with a riding mower. My young son wanted to ride on the mower with me. Once he was positioned on my lap he wanted to take the wheel and mow the yard.

Well, I had begun a very nice even line pattern in the grass and thought I would instruct him to “follow the path.” Then something magical happened. He had a different idea. He wanted to freestyle it and let the mower go wherever his little heart and arms desired.

It was all over the place! It took me a minute to get over “my way is the right way” thinking and let the joy and brilliance of his inspired method bring laughter and happiness to both of us. It was a chance for him to feel leadership, freedom and accomplishment.

And I learned that my way wasn’t the only way, and that we could both discover extra in the ordinary. The icing on the cake is he now owns his own lawn care business and is still doing it his way.

I am forever chasing light. Light turns the ordinary into the magical. — Trent Parke One of my other favorite sayings came from my other son. After we made time for a rather deep discussion, he was so filled with happiness that he burst out, saying, “I love you so much, I can’t even stop!” It is one of the most precious ways I’ve ever heard someone describe this feeling. That’s what I call finding the extra in the ordinary.

Jennifer Durand is the owner and operator of The Nurture Nook Day Spa & Gift Shoppe; she is a certified QiGong and Breathe Empowerment instructor, a skin care and makeup specialist and is licensed in massage therapy, body work and somatic integration. Learn more by visiting nurturenook.com or call (615) 896-7110.

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SPIRITUAL

MATTERS

Haunted by Houses of Hell at Halloween “And to Him was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations and men of every language might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed” (Daniel 7:14).

It’s October, and Halloween is just around the corner. Children will soon be canvassing the neighborhoods dressed up as everything from fairy princesses to flesh-eating zombies. And parents will be on watch for these trick-or-treaters all through the night.

Halloween festivities make this night a fun holiday for kids, but for me, it has never held a great appeal. I don’t eat a lot of candy, and I honestly could pass on ghosts and goblins and dancing skeletons. Nevertheless, a lot of people make a big fuss over Halloween.

Even some churches get in on the action with their haunted judgment houses and virtual trips to the underworld. They try to give people a taste of what they think hell is like, with the goal of making participants desire to avoid going there.

As I said, I’m not a big fan of the Halloween season, and to be honest, I am not a big fan of those church Halloween houses either. The motive behind those “houses of hell” are sincere, but I believe they are significantly misguided. A few churches host these types of events because they wish to find a way to reach out to young people with the beautiful message of the gospel of Jesus and bring those people to faith. But I’m afraid what they usually end up doing is using hell to scare kids into heaven. By the time the young people finish their “tour of the tormented” they are brought into a room with counselors and asked a few simple questions. The goal, of course is to get them to make a decision for Jesus, a profession of 44 * OCTOBER 2019 * BOROPULSE.COM

faith. They are told that if they simply open the door of their hearts and allow Jesus to come in then they can have assurance in that decision that they will never have to go to that terrible place when they die. But a setting like this can be a little intimidating to say the least, and some young people can easily be made to feel like they are being interrogated under a spotlight until they give the correct answer to those questions.

The call of the gospel message is to have faith, but I have a hard time thinking this is the way we should frame that message.

And I have a hard time thinking any of the Apostles, or our blessed Savior Himself, would ever have done this kind of thing to the young people of their day. Jesus said He wanted this gospel, or good news, to be proclaimed to people throughout the whole world (Matthew 24:14). But is this the way He wanted us to do it? We can coerce young people into making that “decision for Jesus,” but we would all have to question whether such a decision was true faith, made out of a genuine love and desire for Him. I don’t believe we find Jesus doing this type of evangelism. Instead of leading a group on a haunted house tour of demons, I find Jesus and His disciples bringing deliverance to those who were oppressed by demons. Instead of displaying the arms of hell reaching out in dark hallways to drag people in, I find Jesus and His disciples reaching out hands of love and compassion to the lost and the wayward. Their method of evangelizing was to invest themselves into the lives of those they encountered, sharing the good news of the kingdom to come. We see this in the gospel accounts: “And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent

BY RICK them out to proclaim MALONE the kingdom of God and to heal” (Luke 9:1–2).

Jesus cared for the sick and healed the lame and fed multitudes and taught about the kingdom of God with compassionate stories of redemption and reconciliation. The sweetness, love and compassion of His manner drew people to Him. Even the little children gravitated to Him by sensing an aura of love in His life and actions. And I believe this is the best example for us to follow. We must show the beauty of His kingdom in the brokenness of this world. As I see these houses of hell at Halloween, I cannot help but wonder, is this how we really wish to communicate this good news of the glorious kingdom Christ has ushered into His fallen creation?

We must be careful that our evangelism does not promote a shallow view of what Christ has accomplished. Jesus is not simply our eternal fire insurance policy, or our “get out of hell free” card. Our Lord’s gospel message is not primarily based upon what we are delivered from but what we are delivered into. For we are delivered into an everlasting dominion of what the human race was always meant to be, a dominion of the peoples of all nations serving our God and King.

I am all for sharing the truth of the gospel so that hearts will be opened. That is why I write these articles each month.

But the gospel is much more than a way to escape hell. The gospel is the glorious announcement of the kingdom which Christ ushered into this world through His death on the cross. It is the glorious announcement that Jesus, as the eternal God, took upon Himself humanity, and in this humanity, He suffered and died for my sins, which satisfied His own holy wrath toward me. In that death, He redeemed and reconciled me to Himself. And as He returned from that death into life, He ushered that kingdom of His new life into this world. He now reigns as the King of that new life and new world, and new, redeemed humanity.

The gospel is the good news that Christ has absorbed my death into His and gives His life to me through the Holy Spirit, who applies the benefits of that death through the gift of faith. Therefore, the biblical call of the gospel is not simply a profession of faith, but a call of faithful obedience to that King and His heavenly kingdom. And that gospel is to be shared for the purpose of bringing that obedient faith into people

throughout the world (Romans 1:5).

It is not to be shared to cultivate a cornered commitment or a potentially superficial decision void of true living faith. Our Savior warns us of this: “16 You will know them by their fruits.

Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.

19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them. 21 Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven” (Matthew 7:16–21).

The Apostle Paul tells us that our spiritual father Abraham was justified (or counted to be in a right standing before God) by having a faith which was placed upon Christ, who is our rightness (Romans 4:3). And so, the possession of a true and genuine faith in Jesus is of absolute necessity. Let us be careful not to confuse an imitation with real faith, for a cheap imitation can lull someone into a false sense of security that goes unquestioned. A saving faith is so much more than a superficial decision. Paul tells us again, in his letter to the Ephesians, that true faith comes to us as a gift from God. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8). True faith is a new and foreign set of desires brought into a person’s heart by the life-giving grace of God. The power of His Spirit, which makes us alive in Christ, brings faith alive in us. And Christ becomes our King, for He becomes our reason for life itself. As we live the love of Christ in this world and encourage deep and lifealtering relationships with God, we see the fruit of the good tree which He has planted in us. And this fruit gives us true security and assurance that our faith is real.

I encourage my readers to be a vibrant part of the life of a church which evangelizes with the love of Jesus, a love that shines out into our Murfreesboro community and the world. The grace of God is to be seen in the life of His spiritual family. And this grace gives the world a glimpse of the beauty of the heavenly kingdom of Christ.

Reach Rick Malone at myspiritualmatters@gmail.com

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Ecce Deus

Essays on the Life and Doctrine of Jesus Christ

BY JOSEPH PARKER (1867)

Ch. XVIII

The Relation of the Cross to Practical Morals Are men at liberty to live as though the cross of Jesus Christ had never been introduced into human history? Or does the very fact of the existence of that cross involve responsibility on the part of men? This inquiry leads to the consideration of the practical aspects of Christ’s work.

We have said that Christ’s morality was the active side of his theology—not something added to it, or made to be collateral with it, but essentially part of it, so essentially to as to have no existence without it. This position is amply sustained by the Sermon on the Mount. One expression in that sermon seems to govern the whole doctrine; the expression occurs again and again, with so much gravity that the hearers must have felt themselves in immediate contact with the divine mind: the words are—“Father which is in heaven.” It is interesting to mark with what ease Jesus Christ finds his way from the commonest subjects of his discourse to his Father, and how he varies the expression from my Father, to your Father, as if he were addressing his younger brothers. For example, when he teaches the love of enemies, he gives as the reason—“That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven”—when he refers to the dispositions and courtesies of the Christian life, inculcating a deeper love and a wider salutation than the publicans exemplified, he says, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect”—when he teaches respecting alms, and fasting and prayer, he warns his disciples against so acting as to “have no reward of your Father which is in heaven”—and when he refers to the conditions of of entrance into the heavenly kingdom, he states explicitly that “not every one that saith, Lord Lord, shall enter, but he that does the will of my Father which is in heaven.” This lofty expression can alone interpret the morality of the Sermon on the Mount; it is a heavenly morality; the sources of its inspiration and the rewards of its practice

are divine. There is nothing earthly in the tone; there is nothing earthly in the motive; there is nothing earthly in the result.

Look for a moment at the complete unselfishness of the manhood that would be trained by such doctrine. From beginning to end the discourse leads man away from himself: and to what does it lead him? It leads him to the cross: throughout we have discipline, self-denial, crucifixion. The cross of Christ was as truly, though not as visibly, set up on this mountain as on Calvary. Christ graduated the revelation of the cross so wisely that at first men did not see it; but, after the full revelation came, every introductory word acquired its true meaning, and was seen in its relation towards the great end. A few references will show how the cross was to be the agent in discipline, and how the whole life of man was to be constantly tried by the test of crucifixion. The offending right eye is to be plucked out; the offending hand is to be cut off; the man is to go to the offended brother, not to wait for the offended brother to come to him; the natural love of display is to be mortified, so that giving, fasting and praying may be done in secret; thought of life is to be given up; perishable treasures are not to be amassed; and men are to prepare for a strait gate and a narrow way. What is all this but the cross? What but the spirit of crucifixion can bring a man to unresisting suffering, to give his cloak as well as his coat, to go two miles instead of one, to give and lend to those who ask and borrow? These “sayings” cannot be understood until crucifixion has been endured.

They were, therefore, hard words with which to open a mission among selfish men, and their utterance at an early period in his ministry instead of its close shows incidentally how Christ came to put the first last and the last first. It has been said that what is known as the evangelical element is absent from the Sermon on the Mount; but no misconception can be greater.

Let any mere theorist attempt to “do these sayings of mine,” and he will find that through every step of the process he will require the help of Jesus Christ, and to feel that is to be conscious of the necessity of the evangelical element. At this point of consciousness the dominion of self is broken up; the theorist feels his weakness, and reaches the crisis when his destiny is determined—he must then build his house either on the rock or on the sand. It is to be observed that Jesus Christ does not offer his sermon as a theory of morals, but as a moral code which is to be embodied in actual life; so long as men look it as a theory, they will expose

themselves to all the dangers of partial and misguided speculation. But when they attempt to do it, they will be driven to ask the speaker himself how it is to be done, for he only can show how a man can conquer his own nature, and set at defiance the bad influences of unchristian society. The first thing, therefore, that is done in any honest attempt to carry Christ’s doctrines into practice, is to fight a decisive battle with one’s own selfishness. We begin where Christ began; he began at the cross, and from that eminence of suffering love, taught that self-denial was the indispensable condition of membership in his society.

But is the motive suggested by Jesus Christ sufficient to enable a man to overcome opposing forces?—or is man called to an impracticable morality? Christ suggests one motive— the reproduction of the nature of God: “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect; that ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven.” He thus says that the man who attempts to carry out his morality will be moving towards God, will be getting away from the earthly and advancing towards the heavenly; lest the man should fail as he thinks of his own ignorance and weakness, Jesus Christ tells him that all the resources of God are at his disposal; he has to but ask, that he may receive—but to seek, that he may find. And if any misgiving should arise as to the willingness of God to help him by heavenly gifts, he is chided by these words: “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” Now is it worthwhile to be like God? The great issue which Jesus Christ puts before men is—Go higher, or go lower, be the children of your Father which is in heaven, or grow away from him into more and more hideous moral decrepitude; if you do these sayings of mine, you shall be like God; if you do them not, you shall be carried away by the floods and the storm.

In general terms, the case may be put thus: In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus Christ lays down the doctrine of complete unselfishness as the cardinal doctrine of his kingdom, and assures all who wish to learn that doctrine that they may look to God for every help they can ever require. The term unselfishness, as here employed, is used in the inclusive sense of mortifying bad personal instincts and extending to others the most magnanimous and beneficent consideration. Man comes to the latter through the former. God has no occasion to do the former; his nature is love, and every motion towards love is consequently a motion towards himself. This is a general view of the Sermon on the Mount; it may be useful to sustain it by going a little into detail.

The description of the “blessed” with which the sermon opens is a magnificent display of conquest over self. The “poor in

spirit” are first blessed; they are empty of pride, of self-defense, of self-satisfaction; they see themselves in their precise relation to God, and before him they utter no boast: the mourners, the meek, and the merciful are entirely unoccupied with self. When a man is his own god, why should he mourn? When a man is sovereign, why should he be meek?

When a man is self-enclosed, why should he be merciful? They who hunger and thirst after righteousness plainly declare that they drink not of their own well, but go out of themselves for spiritual satisfaction: the pure in heart and the peacemakers happily combine reverence for God with goodwill towards men, both of which are incompatible with self-idolatry; and “they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake” are evidently superior to selfish indulgence and comfort. Meekness, mercy, purity, and peace; self-poverty, mourning, desire after righteousness, and uncomplaining suffering for Christ’s sake, all lie quite beyond the sphere of common attainment; yet Christ calls them, so to speak, and them alone, around him, to be crowned openly with his blessing. Is there a single stain of selfishness in any one of them? All the blessed men are good men; all the good men partake of the very nature of him who blesses them. The Beautitudes constitute a complete delineation of Jesus Christ himself: he was poor in spirit, he mourned; he was meek, merciful, pure in heart and peaceful: his meat and his drink were to do his Father’s will; he was preeminent among those who were persecuted for righteousness’ sake. His power was thus derived from his own enjoyment of blessing, so that he could, in the deepest sense, say, “The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” The blessed man himself told how other men might be blessed. He preached, not a sermon that he had learned, but a sermon that he had lived. What would be the effect if society were composed of such men as are described in the Beatitudes? This is Christ’s aim, and its loftiness warrants his followers in claiming for Jesus Christ’s doctrine the most practical moral design.

The manner in which he calls his disciples to the accomplishment of this design is marked by the highest wisdom. With what appears to us as a most startling abruptness, he tells them that they are the salt of the earth, and the light of the world; what more, then, could be required of them? Instead of abusing them, he told them what high things were expected of them, and by so much he gave them power to achieve them. He first recognized the dignity and force of manhood, and then with inimitable grace remarked upon the uses to which high powers might be put. He said, “Ye are the salt of the earth, but remember that salt may lose its savor; ye are the light of the world, but remember that a candle may be put under a bushel.” Here is a beautiful distinction between CONTINUED ON PAGE 46

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 45 the essential and the accidental—between the capacities of human nature and the uses to which those capacities may be put. Men are first to be encouraged, then to be directed; their native dignity is to be saved from bad applications; and they are to feel the responsibility of possessing a great nature. Men are not to be trained by being scoffed at, nor are they to be stimulated by any attack confined merely to their practical abusers. Christ begins with the other word of honor, and then passes to the word of caution: he says, “You are great, don’t prostitute your greatness; you are influential, don’t lose your influence.” What would be the effect of such teaching upon the moral development of society? It would give men a right conception of their powers, and prepare them for diving counsels as to their occupation.

This is what Jesus Christ himself proposes to do. He saves the savor of the salt, and puts the light where it can give light to all that are in the house. Do the non-Christian moralists purpose any higher work? It can only be for want of careful examination of his purposes and methods, that they hesitate to take their places in the school of Jesus Christ. It should be remembered, too, that Christ does not throw discredit upon the dispensations which he came to fulfill and supersede. He would not have it thought that he came to destroy the law or the prophets, nor would he have one of the least

of these commandments set at nought. Still, the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees was to be exceeded, otherwise the kingdom of heaven could not be entered. In this twofold representation, Jesus Christ honored human nature, and honored the means of educating it, which had prevailed from the giving of the law and the ministry of the prophets. He did not accuse them of error; he pointed out their incompleteness. He would not allow men to start off on the plea that if the law had been better they would have been better too: the law was held in its integrity; it was good for the whole period in which God designed it to be operative; still it was only a schoolmaster to bring men to Christ, and now the higher teacher began the higher education.

The base of that education was intensely spiritual—uncaused anger he declared to be murder, lustful desires he set down as adultery. He gave, too, deeper interpretations of the maxims and laws on which human intercourse had hitherto proceeded; and the noticeable feature throughout is that elevation—nothing is relaxed, nothing diminished, the whole scheme of training is raised to the highest level; not only are the hands to be clean, but the heart is to be without a stain; not only must outward law be satisfied, but spiritual law must be honored.

Read unabridged at boropulse.com.