East Nashvillian Issue 04

Vol. 1 Issue 4 March–April 2011

THE “AMBASSADOR”

TODD SNIDER Matt Charette

The Long Road to East Nashville

Running Community

ile m S o T n o s a e R There Is A New ville In East Nash

Publisher Lisa McCauley

Table of Contents

Managing Editor Chuck Allen Art Director Mark Pilkinton Ad Traffic

Full-Service Family Dentistry Cosmetics Implants Sedation

Chuck Allen Stacie Huckeba Carolyn Manney Jeffry Orkin Contributing Writers Chuck Allen Helen Gaye Brewster Elizabeth Chauncey

The Ultimate in New Technology And Comfort TVs in the Ceiling!

Carole King Hannah Meigs Daryl Sanders Andrea Bailey Willits Webmaster and Producer Laura Ewen Advertising Contact:

Dr. Thomas Had le

y

Lisa McCauley lisa@theeastnashvillian.com 615-582-4187

, Nashville, TN 3 7206 Across from Marc hé

615. 227. 2400 after

www.theeastnashvillian.com “The Ambassador” cover photo by Stacie Huckeba Vol. 1 Issue 4 March–April 2011

7 North Tenth St.

THE “AMBASSADOR”

TODD SNIDER Matt Charette

7KH /RQJ 5RDG WR (DVW 1DVKYLOOH

5XQQLQJ &RPPXQLW\

©2011 Kitchen Table Media, LLC

before

The East Nashvillian is published bi-monthly by Kitchen Table Media, LLC. No portion of this magazine may be reproduced without the express permission of the Publisher. All rights reserved.

Work done by Dr. Hadley

www.eastsidesmiles.net

Correction: Lynn Taylor’s website should have read as follows, www.taylormadeplans.com/blog

8 14 18 24 26 28 32 36

East Nasty Get With the Program

By Carole King Todd Snider East Nashville’s ambassador to the world

By Daryl Sanders

Charity Spotlight: East Nashville Beer Festival A Celebration of Craft Beers Benefits a Great Cause

By Helen Gaye Brewster Nashville Rock Block Keeping the Kids Jammin’

By Hannah Meigs Profile: Matt Charette The Long Road to East Nashville

By Chuck Allen Louie A New Leash on Life

By Elizabeth Chauncey Commander Bob Nash A Friend in High Places

By Andrea Bailey Willits

w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

Photographers

East Side Garden Spring Has Sprung

By Gary Wolf

Photo by Stacie Huckeba

Curt Perkins

5

ile m S o T n o s a e R There Is A New ville In East Nash

Publisher Lisa McCauley

Table of Contents

Managing Editor Chuck Allen Art Director Mark Pilkinton Ad Traffic

Full-Service Family Dentistry Cosmetics Implants Sedation

Chuck Allen Stacie Huckeba Carolyn Manney Jeffry Orkin Contributing Writers Chuck Allen Helen Gaye Brewster Elizabeth Chauncey

The Ultimate in New Technology And Comfort TVs in the Ceiling!

Carole King Hannah Meigs Daryl Sanders Andrea Bailey Willits Webmaster and Producer Laura Ewen Advertising Contact:

Dr. Thomas Had le

y

Lisa McCauley lisa@theeastnashvillian.com 615-582-4187

, Nashville, TN 3 7206 Across from Marc hé

615. 227. 2400 after

www.theeastnashvillian.com “The Ambassador” cover photo by Stacie Huckeba Vol. 1 Issue 4 March–April 2011

7 North Tenth St.

THE “AMBASSADOR”

TODD SNIDER Matt Charette

7KH /RQJ 5RDG WR (DVW 1DVKYLOOH

5XQQLQJ &RPPXQLW\

©2011 Kitchen Table Media, LLC

before

The East Nashvillian is published bi-monthly by Kitchen Table Media, LLC. No portion of this magazine may be reproduced without the express permission of the Publisher. All rights reserved.

Work done by Dr. Hadley

www.eastsidesmiles.net

Correction: Lynn Taylor’s website should have read as follows, www.taylormadeplans.com/blog

8 14 18 24 26 28 32 36

East Nasty Get With the Program

By Carole King Todd Snider East Nashville’s ambassador to the world

By Daryl Sanders

Charity Spotlight: East Nashville Beer Festival A Celebration of Craft Beers Benefits a Great Cause

By Helen Gaye Brewster Nashville Rock Block Keeping the Kids Jammin’

By Hannah Meigs Profile: Matt Charette The Long Road to East Nashville

By Chuck Allen Louie A New Leash on Life

By Elizabeth Chauncey Commander Bob Nash A Friend in High Places

By Andrea Bailey Willits

w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

Photographers

East Side Garden Spring Has Sprung

By Gary Wolf

Photo by Stacie Huckeba

Curt Perkins

5

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

>VVKSHUK :[

Rain. Snow. Sunny. Ice. Warm. Cold. Flash floods. Tornados. This year’s winter weather here in East Nashville certainly pointed out the need for a diversified wardrobe. Thankfully, with the Vernal Equinox on March 20th, spring will officially arrive, which means we should be able to put everything away but the raincoat. The harbingers of spring are indeed already upon us; the red buds and forsythias are lending their familiar red and yellow hues to the landscape, yards are turning green again, and cabin fever is in full tilt. Springtime seems to be Mother Nature’s way of saying, “Let not your hearts be troubled, my children, for beauty has awaked from her winter’s slumber”.

Homemade from scratch ^L JHYY` ]LNHU JOLLZL ^L JHYY` NS\[LU MYLL JY\Z[

Yep, it’s time to clean out the yard (check the Metro website for curbside brush collection schedules) and begin this year’s garden. Gary Wolf has some great pointers in the home and garden article he contributed for this issue. Those of you waiting for a sunny day in order to get outside and start moving should check out the East Nasty story about our local running community. If you’re not inclined to join them at least be kind enough to give them the right of way when you’re driving through the area. Speaking of driving, it might be a good idea to have someone do the driving for you if you attend the East Nashville Beer Fest this year- otherwise you may find yourself dealing with one of Commander Bob Nash’s officers.

Fanny’s Music will be hosting the next session of Nashville Rock Block, and you can read all about it in regular contributer Hannah Meigs’ profile of this wonderfully cool organization for kids. As always, Elizabeth Chauncey delivers with a heart-warming story on the rescue and rehabilitation of Louie the Great Pyrenees.

Our business feature profiles restaurant owner Matt Charette’s road to East Nashville and selfdiscovery. On behalf of The East Nashvillian I want to say “Thank You” for your service as a Marine.

;VWWPUN WPaaH

*HYY`V\[ 6US`

SPACE LIFT Remodeling & DIY Help

w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

Kitchen & Bathroom Remodels

Custom Built-Ins

Finish Carpentry

Project Consulting & Assistance

Chuck Allen chuck@theeastnashvillian.com

Drew McDaniel – Carpenter 615.310.4240 spaceliftremodeling@gmail.com

6

*HYY`V\[ 6US`

^^^ P[HSPHWPaaH JVT

As you’ve probably guessed by now our cover story for this issue is about singer/songwriter and longtime East Nashvillian Todd Snider. Daryl Sanders sat down with Todd recently to discuss a variety of topics, including Todd’s passion for the East Nashville he and his wife call home.

So grab a spot outside and enjoy the magazine!

3N NV\YTL[ WPaaHZ

spaceliftremodeling.wordpress.com

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

>VVKSHUK :[

Rain. Snow. Sunny. Ice. Warm. Cold. Flash floods. Tornados. This year’s winter weather here in East Nashville certainly pointed out the need for a diversified wardrobe. Thankfully, with the Vernal Equinox on March 20th, spring will officially arrive, which means we should be able to put everything away but the raincoat. The harbingers of spring are indeed already upon us; the red buds and forsythias are lending their familiar red and yellow hues to the landscape, yards are turning green again, and cabin fever is in full tilt. Springtime seems to be Mother Nature’s way of saying, “Let not your hearts be troubled, my children, for beauty has awaked from her winter’s slumber”.

Homemade from scratch ^L JHYY` ]LNHU JOLLZL ^L JHYY` NS\[LU MYLL JY\Z[

Yep, it’s time to clean out the yard (check the Metro website for curbside brush collection schedules) and begin this year’s garden. Gary Wolf has some great pointers in the home and garden article he contributed for this issue. Those of you waiting for a sunny day in order to get outside and start moving should check out the East Nasty story about our local running community. If you’re not inclined to join them at least be kind enough to give them the right of way when you’re driving through the area. Speaking of driving, it might be a good idea to have someone do the driving for you if you attend the East Nashville Beer Fest this year- otherwise you may find yourself dealing with one of Commander Bob Nash’s officers.

Fanny’s Music will be hosting the next session of Nashville Rock Block, and you can read all about it in regular contributer Hannah Meigs’ profile of this wonderfully cool organization for kids. As always, Elizabeth Chauncey delivers with a heart-warming story on the rescue and rehabilitation of Louie the Great Pyrenees.

Our business feature profiles restaurant owner Matt Charette’s road to East Nashville and selfdiscovery. On behalf of The East Nashvillian I want to say “Thank You” for your service as a Marine.

;VWWPUN WPaaH

*HYY`V\[ 6US`

SPACE LIFT Remodeling & DIY Help

w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

Kitchen & Bathroom Remodels

Custom Built-Ins

Finish Carpentry

Project Consulting & Assistance

Chuck Allen chuck@theeastnashvillian.com

Drew McDaniel – Carpenter 615.310.4240 spaceliftremodeling@gmail.com

6

*HYY`V\[ 6US`

^^^ P[HSPHWPaaH JVT

As you’ve probably guessed by now our cover story for this issue is about singer/songwriter and longtime East Nashvillian Todd Snider. Daryl Sanders sat down with Todd recently to discuss a variety of topics, including Todd’s passion for the East Nashville he and his wife call home.

So grab a spot outside and enjoy the magazine!

3N NV\YTL[ WPaaHZ

spaceliftremodeling.wordpress.com

e a s t s i d e g a r d e n

nearby (the Hall/Crawford back yard already had a small pond); perhaps some habitat for nesting; green gardening techniques such as native plants and low or no chemical use; all followed up with a little paperwork.

It’s hard to say what the usual yard makeover will cost because the situations, plants and homeowner desires can vary considerably, but a big difference can cost less than $1,000, Orkin says. A full renovation might cost $5,000, while a large highend job with both softscape plantings and hardscape construction like patios and walls might cost $30,000.

by Gary Wolf

ong cold winters lead to anxious gardeners in the spring champing at the bit to get their hands dirty – or someone else’s! So for do-it-yourselfers, do it better than I do. For the rest of you, take a few tips from an East Nashville professional. Jeff Orkin of Landscape Solutions understands that going green with sustainable design and gardening techniques is a natural for East Nashville. Not only that, he has installations demonstrating he practices what he preaches.

Like at our house, only better.

Getting a pro to do it Trust someone who’s still working on perfection: it doesn’t come quickly unless you let someone else do it. Steve Hall and Dana Crawford had done so much to their 17th and Russell home that the yard didn’t live up to comparison. So they hired Jeff to solve the problem.

Purple Coneflower

Native Perennial Black-Eyed Susan in bloom.

The stone path meandering through all this color and greenery is surrounded by Angelina and autumn joy sedums, which aren’t native but do provide bright green and pink ground cover that stands up to foot traffic and drought. Instead of the usual boxwoods, Landscape Solutions planted inkberry and itea, both of which are native shrubs we should get to know better. They are small, semi-evergreen species that retain interest through the winter. Itea, or Virginia sweetspire, has long racemes full of tiny flowers in spring, and the foliage turns red to purple in fall. They’re slow-growing, gaining just five feet after 20 years without ever getting huge, so they won’t take over the small yard.

The inkberry doubles as a food source for birds, as do the seeds of other plantings, which fit another criterion for these green homeowners: create a space that could be certified as a Natural Wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. Such a designation isn’t difficult to get and can be fun for the whole family.

It just takes a little planning to cover a few simple requirements: edible leaves, seeds and berries for birds and critters; cover and water

Photograph by Jeffrey Orkin

ww ww w.w. t ht eh e ae satsnt an sahs vhivlillilai na .nc. oc m om

8

“They spent a lot of time every year just trying to clean up,” Orkin observed, so the plan was to install a lowmaintenance softscape. Out came the turf and traditional but non-native bushes, to be replaced with native plants that rarely need watering, never need mowing and are less susceptible to pests and diseases and so don’t need the chemicals some landscaping requires.

Purple coneflowers, blackeyed Susans and salvia bring lots of color (and butterflies and bees), as does the red switchgrass.

At the customers’ request, Landscape Solutions also added a knockout rose, which provides persistent color without the care or chemicals other roses require, and a Japanese maple to match the one they already had.

Photograph by Jeffrey Orkin of Landscape Solutions

The front yard is now a treat for passersby, formal enough for an entryway but naturalistic in style. The back yard used to be little more than a grassy patch from the parking spot in the back to the back door; now it’s a pleasure to walk through and makes the back porch a hangout with a view, which can also be seen from the dining room.

But that’s gardening. Which is a cousin to landscaping, and both require planning as well as planting.

Spring Projects

Figuring out what to tackle is the first step to anything, so a good tip is to just look around and figure out what you’d like to be different.

For us a couple of years ago it was a muddy, shady slope in the side yard we never used much except to walk through from four different entrance points. Some fun with a tape measure, paper and pencil led to an unusual design – an octagonal sitting area that Doing It Yourself is now a shady refuge on hot summer days. The floor Ever the cheapskate, I Salvia is white “oyster mix” gravel, elected to D-I-M when I so rain drips through and we never get muddy. The path around it got tired of mowing that ugly hill in the front yard. We went with is mulched, so it looks natural and contrasts with the gravel. The blue rug junipers for ground cover and wild, upright Hollywood octagon is defined by railroad ties cut at 22.5° angles and stacked to junipers to stick with the neighborhood nickname. They never need accommodate the slope. The main work, besides cutting the railroad watering and my mowing time is substantially less. Wait till I turn ties, was digging out the slope. I did it during the 2008 heat wave and the rest of the yard into a lake... spent a week in a cold bathtub with heat rash, so my best tip is to do the heavy digging in the cool of spring. Better yet, hire someone to Seriously! For that project I may need to call in my neighbor, Todd do it for you.

Cantrell. He’s put in several ponds at his house down on the corner, some formal and one not. The empty corner lot at Ordway and Lakehurst worried us when the house it belonged to went up for sale.

Another great springtime project is a rain We envisioned an apartment complex. But Todd and partner Larry garden. As luck would have it, Landscape Brown had visions of gardens, so Todd built a small pond where a Solutions will be giving a free workshop on larger natural one existed more than a half-century ago. He planted how to build one as part of the March 19th it with fish, lotus flowers and other water plants. Birds, including grand re-opening of the Green Wagon at at least one heron, have found it, and so has Tripod, a three-legged frog they’ve adopted (along with puppies and chickens). The rest of 1100 Forrest Ave. the yard was devoted to Larry’s first love – irises. A dozen beds Cousin to the rain barrel at the bottom of your downspout, a rain with dozens of varieties are garden is a natural or constructed low spot. Water can drain to complemented by other flowers it naturally or be piped into it via a drain line. It absorbs runoff, and a whimsical gate on the especially from roofs, so soil loss is reduced, groundwater is filtered street that opens to nothing but a and replenished, and storm colorful view. All that’s lacking is sewers aren’t overwhelmed a “Welcome to Little Hollywood” in large rains. Ideally, a sign. rain garden will be sized Just down the street at our house, my wife Janie is doing what most gardeners just coming out Autumn Joy Sedum in bloom. of hibernation are doing: seeing what survived our unusually cold winter. The big rosemary bush she’s kept through several winters now may have survived, but not much of it. The arugula and mache (a type of lettuce that re-seeds so prolifically we think of it as a perennial) aren’t as plentiful as they should be. A number of her several dozen different herbs will have to be replaced.

for the amount of runoff, but any size will slow the water down and hold it for a while. The ground itself needs to percolate well, so that may mean sand and compost amendments for the clay soils of East Nashville. Native plants are best because they can handle the water when it comes and survive without it later in the summer.

e a s t s i d e g a r d e n

nearby (the Hall/Crawford back yard already had a small pond); perhaps some habitat for nesting; green gardening techniques such as native plants and low or no chemical use; all followed up with a little paperwork.

It’s hard to say what the usual yard makeover will cost because the situations, plants and homeowner desires can vary considerably, but a big difference can cost less than $1,000, Orkin says. A full renovation might cost $5,000, while a large highend job with both softscape plantings and hardscape construction like patios and walls might cost $30,000.

by Gary Wolf

ong cold winters lead to anxious gardeners in the spring champing at the bit to get their hands dirty – or someone else’s! So for do-it-yourselfers, do it better than I do. For the rest of you, take a few tips from an East Nashville professional. Jeff Orkin of Landscape Solutions understands that going green with sustainable design and gardening techniques is a natural for East Nashville. Not only that, he has installations demonstrating he practices what he preaches.

Like at our house, only better.

Getting a pro to do it Trust someone who’s still working on perfection: it doesn’t come quickly unless you let someone else do it. Steve Hall and Dana Crawford had done so much to their 17th and Russell home that the yard didn’t live up to comparison. So they hired Jeff to solve the problem.

Purple Coneflower

Native Perennial Black-Eyed Susan in bloom.

The stone path meandering through all this color and greenery is surrounded by Angelina and autumn joy sedums, which aren’t native but do provide bright green and pink ground cover that stands up to foot traffic and drought. Instead of the usual boxwoods, Landscape Solutions planted inkberry and itea, both of which are native shrubs we should get to know better. They are small, semi-evergreen species that retain interest through the winter. Itea, or Virginia sweetspire, has long racemes full of tiny flowers in spring, and the foliage turns red to purple in fall. They’re slow-growing, gaining just five feet after 20 years without ever getting huge, so they won’t take over the small yard.

The inkberry doubles as a food source for birds, as do the seeds of other plantings, which fit another criterion for these green homeowners: create a space that could be certified as a Natural Wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. Such a designation isn’t difficult to get and can be fun for the whole family.

It just takes a little planning to cover a few simple requirements: edible leaves, seeds and berries for birds and critters; cover and water

Photograph by Jeffrey Orkin

ww ww w.w. t ht eh e ae satsnt an sahs vhivlillilai na .nc. oc m om

8

“They spent a lot of time every year just trying to clean up,” Orkin observed, so the plan was to install a lowmaintenance softscape. Out came the turf and traditional but non-native bushes, to be replaced with native plants that rarely need watering, never need mowing and are less susceptible to pests and diseases and so don’t need the chemicals some landscaping requires.

Purple coneflowers, blackeyed Susans and salvia bring lots of color (and butterflies and bees), as does the red switchgrass.

At the customers’ request, Landscape Solutions also added a knockout rose, which provides persistent color without the care or chemicals other roses require, and a Japanese maple to match the one they already had.

Photograph by Jeffrey Orkin of Landscape Solutions

The front yard is now a treat for passersby, formal enough for an entryway but naturalistic in style. The back yard used to be little more than a grassy patch from the parking spot in the back to the back door; now it’s a pleasure to walk through and makes the back porch a hangout with a view, which can also be seen from the dining room.

But that’s gardening. Which is a cousin to landscaping, and both require planning as well as planting.

Spring Projects

Figuring out what to tackle is the first step to anything, so a good tip is to just look around and figure out what you’d like to be different.

For us a couple of years ago it was a muddy, shady slope in the side yard we never used much except to walk through from four different entrance points. Some fun with a tape measure, paper and pencil led to an unusual design – an octagonal sitting area that Doing It Yourself is now a shady refuge on hot summer days. The floor Ever the cheapskate, I Salvia is white “oyster mix” gravel, elected to D-I-M when I so rain drips through and we never get muddy. The path around it got tired of mowing that ugly hill in the front yard. We went with is mulched, so it looks natural and contrasts with the gravel. The blue rug junipers for ground cover and wild, upright Hollywood octagon is defined by railroad ties cut at 22.5° angles and stacked to junipers to stick with the neighborhood nickname. They never need accommodate the slope. The main work, besides cutting the railroad watering and my mowing time is substantially less. Wait till I turn ties, was digging out the slope. I did it during the 2008 heat wave and the rest of the yard into a lake... spent a week in a cold bathtub with heat rash, so my best tip is to do the heavy digging in the cool of spring. Better yet, hire someone to Seriously! For that project I may need to call in my neighbor, Todd do it for you.

Cantrell. He’s put in several ponds at his house down on the corner, some formal and one not. The empty corner lot at Ordway and Lakehurst worried us when the house it belonged to went up for sale.

Another great springtime project is a rain We envisioned an apartment complex. But Todd and partner Larry garden. As luck would have it, Landscape Brown had visions of gardens, so Todd built a small pond where a Solutions will be giving a free workshop on larger natural one existed more than a half-century ago. He planted how to build one as part of the March 19th it with fish, lotus flowers and other water plants. Birds, including grand re-opening of the Green Wagon at at least one heron, have found it, and so has Tripod, a three-legged frog they’ve adopted (along with puppies and chickens). The rest of 1100 Forrest Ave. the yard was devoted to Larry’s first love – irises. A dozen beds Cousin to the rain barrel at the bottom of your downspout, a rain with dozens of varieties are garden is a natural or constructed low spot. Water can drain to complemented by other flowers it naturally or be piped into it via a drain line. It absorbs runoff, and a whimsical gate on the especially from roofs, so soil loss is reduced, groundwater is filtered street that opens to nothing but a and replenished, and storm colorful view. All that’s lacking is sewers aren’t overwhelmed a “Welcome to Little Hollywood” in large rains. Ideally, a sign. rain garden will be sized Just down the street at our house, my wife Janie is doing what most gardeners just coming out Autumn Joy Sedum in bloom. of hibernation are doing: seeing what survived our unusually cold winter. The big rosemary bush she’s kept through several winters now may have survived, but not much of it. The arugula and mache (a type of lettuce that re-seeds so prolifically we think of it as a perennial) aren’t as plentiful as they should be. A number of her several dozen different herbs will have to be replaced.

for the amount of runoff, but any size will slow the water down and hold it for a while. The ground itself needs to percolate well, so that may mean sand and compost amendments for the clay soils of East Nashville. Native plants are best because they can handle the water when it comes and survive without it later in the summer.

One tip: It’s best not to put your rain garden on top of utility lines.

In our case, we were hemmed in by the underground gas line, not to mention the driveway, so we put the rain garden on top of the main water line because, darn, that’s where it was. No harm yet. Our other mistake was sticking with the Hollywood theme and planting banana trees and elephant ears. Looked great for a few years, but when they grew too big to dig up, I left them one winter, put on a mountain of mulch and prayed for a mild winter. Now we have a marsh mallow, a form of hardy hibiscus, and other plants there.

Â

Your  neighborhood  solar  installer  barking  up  the  right  tree Â

6XQGRJ 6RODU (QHUJ\ //& Â

 Â

EARTH Â DAY Â 1970 Â

Marsh Mallow

“One of the more popular spring projects may be the raised bed. More digging, but growing is all about soil.�

It may be a little late to make a cold frame, but plan for next spring and build one now if you’re serious about getting an early start on your vegetable garden. Just don’t let Janie near it; we had 300 heirloom tomato seedlings one year. Again, a little digging is required. Plus you’ll need walls of some kind and a lid. Our cold frame was designed to be covered by an old storm door, but it’s been replaced by a wooden lid with plastic windows. A remote thermometer is a good idea so you can see from indoors that even on a cold day the lid needs to be propped up so the temperature inside doesn’t soar over 100 degrees.

One of the more popular spring projects may be the raised bed.

More digging, but growing is all about soil. Our neighbors Craig and Jane Lackey took a neat shortcut last year, just putting bags

Photo by Chuck Allen

A  few  of  us  are  old  enough  to  recall  the  first  Earth  Day.  It  was  prompted  by  pollution:  toxic  waste  under  the  homes  of  Love  Canal,  the  Cuyahoga  River  catching  on  fire,  eagles  disappearing.  Since  then,  we  cleaned  up,  enacted  laws,  created  programs.  We  grew  up.  Â

Steve Hall & Dana Crawford’s Certified Wildlife Habitat.

For more information about having a certif ied Natural Wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation, visit www.nwf.org (look for the “Getting Outside� link in the lower right corner) For details about the grand re-opening of The Green Wagon visit the “Community� page of the Landscape Solutions website, www.landscapetn.com

EARTH  DAY  1990  A  generation  later,  the  second  Earth  Day  woke  us  up  to  how  wasteful  we  are.  We  began  to  see  the  costs  of  waste,  economic  and  environmental.  We  learned  to  reduce,  reuse,  and  recycle.  We  still  have  room  to  improve,  but  Earth  Day  steered  us  onto  a  different,  better  path.  Â

EARTH  DAY  2011  So  here  we  are  in  the  21st  century.  We  know  what  our  challenge  is  —  energy.   Fossil  fuels  got  us  here,  but  it’s  renewable  energy  that  will  power  us  into  the  future.  Â

Enough  solar  energy  shines  on  the  Earth  every  minute  to  power  us  all  for  a  year.  The  fuel  is  free,  it  won’t  leak,  spill  or  kill,  and  solar  technology  pays  for  itself.  Â

:HOFRPH WR WKH IXWXUH 0DNH LW KDSSHQ WRGD\ Â Â

            To  learn  more  about  solar  energy,  visit  us  at:  ZZZ VXQGRJVRODUHQHUJ\ FRP For  a  free  site  consultation,  contact  us: Â

JDU\ZROI#VXQGRJVRODUHQHUJ\ FRP NABCEP-­certified  Solar  PV  Installer Â

Photograph by Jeffrey Orkin

1DVKYLOOH

of garden soil out, poking holes in the bottom, cutting them open on top and planting into them. This year, their garden area is just that much higher and healthier. Our garden used to be raised by bordering it with concrete blocks and raising the soil level. Now, the garden is just higher than the rest of the yard, but we also built a raised bed into a slope with landscape timbers. If you can stand the work, use the French double-digging method: dig a shovel-deep layer out and lay it aside; loosen the subsoil with a fork and add compost; then put the amended topsoil back on. The fluffing below and above will leave behind a raised bed.

Be careful where you put that raised bed (see the drainage tips in the accompanying story), and be green when you start fluffing up the yard – literally and figuratively.

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One tip: It’s best not to put your rain garden on top of utility lines.

In our case, we were hemmed in by the underground gas line, not to mention the driveway, so we put the rain garden on top of the main water line because, darn, that’s where it was. No harm yet. Our other mistake was sticking with the Hollywood theme and planting banana trees and elephant ears. Looked great for a few years, but when they grew too big to dig up, I left them one winter, put on a mountain of mulch and prayed for a mild winter. Now we have a marsh mallow, a form of hardy hibiscus, and other plants there.

Â

Your  neighborhood  solar  installer  barking  up  the  right  tree Â

6XQGRJ 6RODU (QHUJ\ //& Â

 Â

EARTH Â DAY Â 1970 Â

Marsh Mallow

“One of the more popular spring projects may be the raised bed. More digging, but growing is all about soil.�

It may be a little late to make a cold frame, but plan for next spring and build one now if you’re serious about getting an early start on your vegetable garden. Just don’t let Janie near it; we had 300 heirloom tomato seedlings one year. Again, a little digging is required. Plus you’ll need walls of some kind and a lid. Our cold frame was designed to be covered by an old storm door, but it’s been replaced by a wooden lid with plastic windows. A remote thermometer is a good idea so you can see from indoors that even on a cold day the lid needs to be propped up so the temperature inside doesn’t soar over 100 degrees.

One of the more popular spring projects may be the raised bed.

More digging, but growing is all about soil. Our neighbors Craig and Jane Lackey took a neat shortcut last year, just putting bags

Photo by Chuck Allen

A  few  of  us  are  old  enough  to  recall  the  first  Earth  Day.  It  was  prompted  by  pollution:  toxic  waste  under  the  homes  of  Love  Canal,  the  Cuyahoga  River  catching  on  fire,  eagles  disappearing.  Since  then,  we  cleaned  up,  enacted  laws,  created  programs.  We  grew  up.  Â

Steve Hall & Dana Crawford’s Certified Wildlife Habitat.

For more information about having a certif ied Natural Wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation, visit www.nwf.org (look for the “Getting Outside� link in the lower right corner) For details about the grand re-opening of The Green Wagon visit the “Community� page of the Landscape Solutions website, www.landscapetn.com

EARTH  DAY  1990  A  generation  later,  the  second  Earth  Day  woke  us  up  to  how  wasteful  we  are.  We  began  to  see  the  costs  of  waste,  economic  and  environmental.  We  learned  to  reduce,  reuse,  and  recycle.  We  still  have  room  to  improve,  but  Earth  Day  steered  us  onto  a  different,  better  path.  Â

EARTH  DAY  2011  So  here  we  are  in  the  21st  century.  We  know  what  our  challenge  is  —  energy.   Fossil  fuels  got  us  here,  but  it’s  renewable  energy  that  will  power  us  into  the  future.  Â

Enough  solar  energy  shines  on  the  Earth  every  minute  to  power  us  all  for  a  year.  The  fuel  is  free,  it  won’t  leak,  spill  or  kill,  and  solar  technology  pays  for  itself.  Â

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            To  learn  more  about  solar  energy,  visit  us  at:  ZZZ VXQGRJVRODUHQHUJ\ FRP For  a  free  site  consultation,  contact  us: Â

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Photograph by Jeffrey Orkin

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of garden soil out, poking holes in the bottom, cutting them open on top and planting into them. This year, their garden area is just that much higher and healthier. Our garden used to be raised by bordering it with concrete blocks and raising the soil level. Now, the garden is just higher than the rest of the yard, but we also built a raised bed into a slope with landscape timbers. If you can stand the work, use the French double-digging method: dig a shovel-deep layer out and lay it aside; loosen the subsoil with a fork and add compost; then put the amended topsoil back on. The fluffing below and above will leave behind a raised bed.

Be careful where you put that raised bed (see the drainage tips in the accompanying story), and be green when you start fluffing up the yard – literally and figuratively.

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Springtime Painting Tips

Landscape Drainage

Sprucing up the yard with landscaping may spotlight another issue – those windows that need some fresh paint. Since you’ll be enjoying the outdoors more with the arrival of spring, consider starting with those windows on the patio. Then you can use your newly practiced skills on the rest of the windows as the summer progresses, stretching out a time-consuming job.

“Gung-ho gardening and spring landscaping need a warning label,� laughs Bill Carlson of A-Pro Home Inspection Services. “Everything you do outside affects what’s happening under the house,� the East Nashville home inspector advises, thinking about all that dirt people move around in the spring and how water flows and drains as a result. Building code requires six inches of fall within 10 feet of the house. Carlson suggests thinking of that as a minimum. So if you or your landscaper are planning a raised bed, be careful about putting it near or up against the house. “By raising the grade, you’re setting yourself up for moisture issues,� he cautions. If necessary, a French drain can be installed with that corrugated black pipe you see at the big box stores. Be sure to use the perforated variety to catch the water and the solid version to take it away from the house.

A good paint job is more than moving the brush, though. Lynn Taylor of Taylor Made Plans for a few tricks of the trade. Start by cleaning the surface so the paint will adhere better. A simple hosing might work, but be careful not to force water up under the siding. Don’t skimp on the prep work, which is often the hardest and most time-consuming part of the job. Spend a little extra on a premium exterior grade caulk, because , as Lynn points out, “Sometimes caulk is the only thing between the outside and your plaster�.

Ditto for the paint – buy the good stuff or you’ll be painting again sooner.

And buy the right kind for the surface – wood, metal or vinyl.

She goes on to say, “One of the biggest mistakes I see people making is painting when the temperature is too cold or too hot. In either case, the paint won’t cure properly. And it’s not just the temperature while you’re painting that counts but the overnight low temperature, too. Look on your paint can for the recommended temps, but 45-90 degrees is a good range�. No doubt you’ll want to get the job done fast, but don’t be in a rush. As years of hard won experience have demonstrated to Lynn, “Doing it right will add years to the life of your exterior painting project�.

Carlson points out that raised beds up against the house may create a special problem. That brick wall may seem a natural barrier, but not far above the ground level it’s hiding a wood stud wall. Figure out where the top of the crawl space is to identify the sill plate (the lowest wood piece of the wall), and keep the soil level below it. That brick wall is really just a veneer of brick with an air gap behind it. To let air in, the brick ought to have weep holes in the first row above the crawl space, so be sure not to cover them with soil. “Most of the time, drainage is not that difficult,� Carlson says. “Just keep in mind you want to keep water away from the house.� So be careful watering plants up against the house, especially with irrigation systems. Carlson recalls finding a swampy crawl space under an expensive 5,000-square-foot home.

Turns out the sprinklers were aimed at the house! He considers roof runoff the “low-hanging fruit� of correcting most drainage problems. Clean gutters and solid downspouts are just the beginning. What’s often forgotten are those extensions that take water from the downspouts away from the house.

Splash blocks aren’t enough, Carlson says. Those plastic extenders are a cheap fix, but be sure to get that water far enough away and headed downhill.

For an even better solution, consider piping that water to a rain garden.

Learn how to build one at Landscape Solutions’ workshop March 19th at the grand re-opening of the Green Wagon. (For details, visit the “Community� page at www.landscapetn.com.)

“What’s Happening�

Green Wagon Grand Re-opening Landscape Solutions Rain Garden Workshop March 19th, Noon-3:00 1100 Forrest Ave. Home Landscape Workshop Protecting and conserving water UT Agriculture Extension 800 2nd Ave. N. March 19 & 26, 9 a.m. - noon

Inglewood Cherry Blossom Festival April 16th, 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Riverside Village

Perennial Plant Society of Middle Tennessee 20th Annual Plant Sale April 9th, 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Al-Menah Shriner Center 1354 Brick Church Pike Nashville Herb Society Annual Herb Sale April 16 Fairgrounds

YEAR ROUND TAX SPECIALISTS

Advanced Tax & Income Services

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Springtime Painting Tips

Landscape Drainage

Sprucing up the yard with landscaping may spotlight another issue – those windows that need some fresh paint. Since you’ll be enjoying the outdoors more with the arrival of spring, consider starting with those windows on the patio. Then you can use your newly practiced skills on the rest of the windows as the summer progresses, stretching out a time-consuming job.

“Gung-ho gardening and spring landscaping need a warning label,� laughs Bill Carlson of A-Pro Home Inspection Services. “Everything you do outside affects what’s happening under the house,� the East Nashville home inspector advises, thinking about all that dirt people move around in the spring and how water flows and drains as a result. Building code requires six inches of fall within 10 feet of the house. Carlson suggests thinking of that as a minimum. So if you or your landscaper are planning a raised bed, be careful about putting it near or up against the house. “By raising the grade, you’re setting yourself up for moisture issues,� he cautions. If necessary, a French drain can be installed with that corrugated black pipe you see at the big box stores. Be sure to use the perforated variety to catch the water and the solid version to take it away from the house.

A good paint job is more than moving the brush, though. Lynn Taylor of Taylor Made Plans for a few tricks of the trade. Start by cleaning the surface so the paint will adhere better. A simple hosing might work, but be careful not to force water up under the siding. Don’t skimp on the prep work, which is often the hardest and most time-consuming part of the job. Spend a little extra on a premium exterior grade caulk, because , as Lynn points out, “Sometimes caulk is the only thing between the outside and your plaster�.

Ditto for the paint – buy the good stuff or you’ll be painting again sooner.

And buy the right kind for the surface – wood, metal or vinyl.

She goes on to say, “One of the biggest mistakes I see people making is painting when the temperature is too cold or too hot. In either case, the paint won’t cure properly. And it’s not just the temperature while you’re painting that counts but the overnight low temperature, too. Look on your paint can for the recommended temps, but 45-90 degrees is a good range�. No doubt you’ll want to get the job done fast, but don’t be in a rush. As years of hard won experience have demonstrated to Lynn, “Doing it right will add years to the life of your exterior painting project�.

Carlson points out that raised beds up against the house may create a special problem. That brick wall may seem a natural barrier, but not far above the ground level it’s hiding a wood stud wall. Figure out where the top of the crawl space is to identify the sill plate (the lowest wood piece of the wall), and keep the soil level below it. That brick wall is really just a veneer of brick with an air gap behind it. To let air in, the brick ought to have weep holes in the first row above the crawl space, so be sure not to cover them with soil. “Most of the time, drainage is not that difficult,� Carlson says. “Just keep in mind you want to keep water away from the house.� So be careful watering plants up against the house, especially with irrigation systems. Carlson recalls finding a swampy crawl space under an expensive 5,000-square-foot home.

Turns out the sprinklers were aimed at the house! He considers roof runoff the “low-hanging fruit� of correcting most drainage problems. Clean gutters and solid downspouts are just the beginning. What’s often forgotten are those extensions that take water from the downspouts away from the house.

Splash blocks aren’t enough, Carlson says. Those plastic extenders are a cheap fix, but be sure to get that water far enough away and headed downhill.

For an even better solution, consider piping that water to a rain garden.

Learn how to build one at Landscape Solutions’ workshop March 19th at the grand re-opening of the Green Wagon. (For details, visit the “Community� page at www.landscapetn.com.)

“What’s Happening�

Green Wagon Grand Re-opening Landscape Solutions Rain Garden Workshop March 19th, Noon-3:00 1100 Forrest Ave. Home Landscape Workshop Protecting and conserving water UT Agriculture Extension 800 2nd Ave. N. March 19 & 26, 9 a.m. - noon

Inglewood Cherry Blossom Festival April 16th, 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Riverside Village

Perennial Plant Society of Middle Tennessee 20th Annual Plant Sale April 9th, 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Al-Menah Shriner Center 1354 Brick Church Pike Nashville Herb Society Annual Herb Sale April 16 Fairgrounds

YEAR ROUND TAX SPECIALISTS

Advanced Tax & Income Services

:H SURYLGH WKH IROORZLQJ VHUYLFHV IRU LQGLYLGXDOV DV ZHOO DV EXVLQHVVHV WR KHOS \RX PDNH LPSRUWDQW ÀQDQFLDO GHFLVLRQV

- Year-round Tax Service - e-file - Tax Preparation - Bank Products - Personal, Partnership, & Corporate returns - Business Formations - Payroll Services

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East Nasty Running Community has something for everyone East Nasty began in 2004 as a small grass roots group

of runners training for a half marathon with Mark Miller, a track and cross country coach at Christ Presbyterian Academy. Each year, more and more people sought his help and the group’s numbers grew exponentially. They ran on Sundays and by 2008 the East Nashville group was clamoring to add another night to its training. “We like to say that we ended up running on Wednesdays, too, because 3 Crow Bar featured 2-for-1 on that night and that was an appealing incentive to finish our runs,� laughs Mark, whose background includes triathlons, competitive bicycle racing and track and cross country in college. “But I had seen a similar running organization in Atlanta and wanted to create that same type of running community here, where it was natural to hang at the local pub or coffee house at the end of a run, continuing the camaraderie and supporting the local business community at the same time.�

Since then, the East Nasty Running Community continues to grow both its membership and its mission.

“We aim to build fitness as well as community,� says Chuck Hargrove, native East Nashvillian and East Nasty member. “So bring strollers, bring your kids, the family dog and come join us!�

w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

14

On a good weather day, there might be 100 to 200 people running en masse through East Nashville streets. Many of the runners live in the neighborhood, but many also hail from other parts of town. Everyone is welcome and it’s always free. East Nasty is still a grassroots group. Just check their website blog for dates and times and show up!

Made your resolution? Get moving!

East Nasty offers free couch-to-5k training twice a year. Session one, Resolution to King, started in January, with three runs a week for ten weeks leading to the mid-March Tom King Classic 5k, an event sponsored by the Mayor’s Healthy Nashville Leadership Council. The program is designed to prepare those who have never run before or have been on a “running hiatus� to commit to a program and participate in their first 5k. Over the course of 30 workouts, which are generally between 30 and 45 minutes, participants will

By Carole King Photos Courtesy of Mark Miller

“We aim to build fitness as well as community�

- Chuck Hargrove progress from walking and/or running to steady running.

East Nasty founder Mark Miller says “If you are currently a runner you are welcome to join us, but only if you bring a friend who is not a runner. Also, you don’t have to make it to every workout to participate in the couch-to-5k training, but the more consistent you are, the more successful you will be!�

It’s never too late to make the most of your New Year’s resolutions. Wednesday night runs, which are not part of any formal training program, are open to all comers, all year long. These runs are generally three to five miles in length

Micah getting the first East Nasty tattoo (And yes, there are actually 2 REAL east nasty tattoos!)

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and begin at 6 p.m. from 11th and Holly Streets in East Nashville. There’s plenty of time (and runs) to catch up!

Potato to Tomato The second 2011 “Couch to 5k� training program for those new to running is the Potato to Tomato session beginning in June. It finishes with the East Nashville Tomato Festival 5k in early August. Three of East Nasty’s newest members shared their experiences in preparing for the popular run this past summer.

Roy Agee had already lost 100 pounds when a friend began encouraging him to join her on East Nasty runs. “I didn’t want to run. I was afraid to try,� he remembers. He’s glad that his friend persisted. The composer and trombone player now joins the group for regular runs two to three times a week with the goal of losing another 100 pounds. “I like the sense of ownership running has given me over my life, the sense of freedom,� says Roy. On a cold and rainy night when he and his running comrades are preparing to embrace the elements, his enthusiasm — and sense of accomplishment — is palpable.

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Esther Smith had always wanted to be a runner. “I just needed a program,� she says. East Nasty provided the free training which motivated the native East Nashvillian to run her first 5K, and then a month later her first half marathon.

Although she’s been running with the group since June 2010, she still considers herself a “rookie runner.� That’s just fine with her fellow runners! “It’s not about being the best or the fastest,� says Chuck. “East Nasty is about self-improvement and committing to an exercise program.�

When Matt Alley joined he had recently quit smoking and was determined to lose weight. He was diabetic and his doctor had told him if he lost 100 pounds he would increase his chances of never having to take his meds ever again. “My dream then was to just be able to run a single mile,� he recalls. Thanks to the support of East Nasty he was able to complete the Tomato Festival 5K this past summer. “I was surprised at how easily I was able to build up my speed, considering that I had started the program three weeks late.

But running is addictive — in a good way!� says the former smoker. How’s he doing on his weight loss? “I’m not there yet,� says Matt, “but running with East Nasty sure makes pursuing that goal a lot more fun!�

)@HJMD<G (POC@M<I CPM>C â&#x20AC;&#x153; Faith is a living, daring confidence in Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s grace, so sure and certain that a man could stake his life on it a thousand times. â&#x20AC;&#x153; Martin Luther

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East Nasty Running Community has something for everyone East Nasty began in 2004 as a small grass roots group

of runners training for a half marathon with Mark Miller, a track and cross country coach at Christ Presbyterian Academy. Each year, more and more people sought his help and the groupâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s numbers grew exponentially. They ran on Sundays and by 2008 the East Nashville group was clamoring to add another night to its training. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We like to say that we ended up running on Wednesdays, too, because 3 Crow Bar featured 2-for-1 on that night and that was an appealing incentive to finish our runs,â&#x20AC;? laughs Mark, whose background includes triathlons, competitive bicycle racing and track and cross country in college. â&#x20AC;&#x153;But I had seen a similar running organization in Atlanta and wanted to create that same type of running community here, where it was natural to hang at the local pub or coffee house at the end of a run, continuing the camaraderie and supporting the local business community at the same time.â&#x20AC;?

Since then, the East Nasty Running Community continues to grow both its membership and its mission.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;We aim to build fitness as well as community,â&#x20AC;? says Chuck Hargrove, native East Nashvillian and East Nasty member. â&#x20AC;&#x153;So bring strollers, bring your kids, the family dog and come join us!â&#x20AC;?

w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

14

On a good weather day, there might be 100 to 200 people running en masse through East Nashville streets. Many of the runners live in the neighborhood, but many also hail from other parts of town. Everyone is welcome and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s always free. East Nasty is still a grassroots group. Just check their website blog for dates and times and show up!

Made your resolution? Get moving!

East Nasty offers free couch-to-5k training twice a year. Session one, Resolution to King, started in January, with three runs a week for ten weeks leading to the mid-March Tom King Classic 5k, an event sponsored by the Mayorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Healthy Nashville Leadership Council. The program is designed to prepare those who have never run before or have been on a â&#x20AC;&#x153;running hiatusâ&#x20AC;? to commit to a program and participate in their first 5k. Over the course of 30 workouts, which are generally between 30 and 45 minutes, participants will

By Carole King Photos Courtesy of Mark Miller

â&#x20AC;&#x153;We aim to build fitness as well as communityâ&#x20AC;?

- Chuck Hargrove progress from walking and/or running to steady running.

East Nasty founder Mark Miller says â&#x20AC;&#x153;If you are currently a runner you are welcome to join us, but only if you bring a friend who is not a runner. Also, you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to make it to every workout to participate in the couch-to-5k training, but the more consistent you are, the more successful you will be!â&#x20AC;?

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s never too late to make the most of your New Yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s resolutions. Wednesday night runs, which are not part of any formal training program, are open to all comers, all year long. These runs are generally three to five miles in length

Micah getting the first East Nasty tattoo (And yes, there are actually 2 REAL east nasty tattoos!)

&5,,3%/3%26)#%3 %#/--%2#% #534/-#/.4%.4-!.!'%-%.43/,54)/.3 $)')4!,#/.4%.4$)342)"54)/.

and begin at 6 p.m. from 11th and Holly Streets in East Nashville. Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s plenty of time (and runs) to catch up!

Potato to Tomato The second 2011 â&#x20AC;&#x153;Couch to 5kâ&#x20AC;? training program for those new to running is the Potato to Tomato session beginning in June. It finishes with the East Nashville Tomato Festival 5k in early August. Three of East Nastyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s newest members shared their experiences in preparing for the popular run this past summer.

Roy Agee had already lost 100 pounds when a friend began encouraging him to join her on East Nasty runs. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to run. I was afraid to try,â&#x20AC;? he remembers. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s glad that his friend persisted. The composer and trombone player now joins the group for regular runs two to three times a week with the goal of losing another 100 pounds. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I like the sense of ownership running has given me over my life, the sense of freedom,â&#x20AC;? says Roy. On a cold and rainy night when he and his running comrades are preparing to embrace the elements, his enthusiasm â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and sense of accomplishment â&#x20AC;&#x201D; is palpable.

#524 %,%#42)#!6%.5%.!3(6),,% #/-

Esther Smith had always wanted to be a runner. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I just needed a program,â&#x20AC;? she says. East Nasty provided the free training which motivated the native East Nashvillian to run her first 5K, and then a month later her first half marathon.

Although sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been running with the group since June 2010, she still considers herself a â&#x20AC;&#x153;rookie runner.â&#x20AC;? Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just fine with her fellow runners! â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not about being the best or the fastest,â&#x20AC;? says Chuck. â&#x20AC;&#x153;East Nasty is about self-improvement and committing to an exercise program.â&#x20AC;?

When Matt Alley joined he had recently quit smoking and was determined to lose weight. He was diabetic and his doctor had told him if he lost 100 pounds he would increase his chances of never having to take his meds ever again. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My dream then was to just be able to run a single mile,â&#x20AC;? he recalls. Thanks to the support of East Nasty he was able to complete the Tomato Festival 5K this past summer. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I was surprised at how easily I was able to build up my speed, considering that I had started the program three weeks late.

But running is addictive â&#x20AC;&#x201D; in a good way!â&#x20AC;? says the former smoker. Howâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s he doing on his weight loss? â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not there yet,â&#x20AC;? says Matt, â&#x20AC;&#x153;but running with East Nasty sure makes pursuing that goal a lot more fun!â&#x20AC;?

)@HJMD<G (POC@M<I CPM>C â&#x20AC;&#x153; Faith is a living, daring confidence in Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s grace, so sure and certain that a man could stake his life on it a thousand times. â&#x20AC;&#x153; Martin Luther

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Going the distance

Micah Puncochar (non-flexer) Drew Sloss (flexer)

In addition to two couchto-5k sessions, East Nasty offers long runs during the summer and winter/ spring. While the June, July and August runs are not focused on a particular race, at eight to twelve miles, they are a perfect distance to maintain fitness over the summer before training for a fall marathon. The runs take place on trails, which are cooler than running on asphalt streets. East Nasty also provides free 1/2 marathon training geared toward the Country Music Half.

Programs are available for novice, intermediate and advanced runners.

A community that gives back East Nastyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s running community camaraderie also extends to the community at large. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our members are very keen on giving back to our community in ways that make sense for us and what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re all about,â&#x20AC;? says Chuck. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Whatever our involvement, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s always got one foot related to running, so to speak.â&#x20AC;?

Currently the group supports Girls on the Run Nashville (an after-school program for 3rd through 8th grade girls that uses the power of running to prepare girls for a lifetime of self-respect and health living); KIPP Academy Nashvilleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s track team (one of over 80 college prep KIPP Academies serving middle school students across the country); and East C.A.N (a Community Action Network dedicated to facilitating opportunities for neighbors to help neighbors). East C.A.N. founder Elizabeth Chauncey brings a rescued dog to run with East Nasty each week. The group also collects used running shoes, refurbishes them, and distributes them to several Nashville high school track teams, including those at Whites Creek, Glencliff, and Stratford, as well as Trial by Fire, a summer track program for students.

Now, about that nameâ&#x20AC;Ś Drew Sloss, one of East Nastyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s earliest members and an East Nashville resident, came up with the name. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Drewâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dad used to call him up and ask â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;how are things down in East Nasty?â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;? recalls Mark. â&#x20AC;&#x153;And since most of us live in and love East Nashville, we took on that name with pride!â&#x20AC;?

And so began the East Nasty Running Community. The group throws out a wide, sweaty welcome to everyone, regardless of speed, endurance or neighborhood address.

Get nasty!

For more information please visit www.eastnastyforlife.com

in a peaceful community setting for $15-$35 per treatment.

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AďŹ&#x20AC;ordable acupuncture

Going the distance

Micah Puncochar (non-flexer) Drew Sloss (flexer)

In addition to two couchto-5k sessions, East Nasty offers long runs during the summer and winter/ spring. While the June, July and August runs are not focused on a particular race, at eight to twelve miles, they are a perfect distance to maintain fitness over the summer before training for a fall marathon. The runs take place on trails, which are cooler than running on asphalt streets. East Nasty also provides free 1/2 marathon training geared toward the Country Music Half.

Programs are available for novice, intermediate and advanced runners.

A community that gives back East Nastyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s running community camaraderie also extends to the community at large. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our members are very keen on giving back to our community in ways that make sense for us and what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re all about,â&#x20AC;? says Chuck. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Whatever our involvement, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s always got one foot related to running, so to speak.â&#x20AC;?

Currently the group supports Girls on the Run Nashville (an after-school program for 3rd through 8th grade girls that uses the power of running to prepare girls for a lifetime of self-respect and health living); KIPP Academy Nashvilleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s track team (one of over 80 college prep KIPP Academies serving middle school students across the country); and East C.A.N (a Community Action Network dedicated to facilitating opportunities for neighbors to help neighbors). East C.A.N. founder Elizabeth Chauncey brings a rescued dog to run with East Nasty each week. The group also collects used running shoes, refurbishes them, and distributes them to several Nashville high school track teams, including those at Whites Creek, Glencliff, and Stratford, as well as Trial by Fire, a summer track program for students.

Now, about that nameâ&#x20AC;Ś Drew Sloss, one of East Nastyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s earliest members and an East Nashville resident, came up with the name. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Drewâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dad used to call him up and ask â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;how are things down in East Nasty?â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;? recalls Mark. â&#x20AC;&#x153;And since most of us live in and love East Nashville, we took on that name with pride!â&#x20AC;?

And so began the East Nasty Running Community. The group throws out a wide, sweaty welcome to everyone, regardless of speed, endurance or neighborhood address.

Get nasty!

For more information please visit www.eastnastyforlife.com

in a peaceful community setting for $15-$35 per treatment.

Fine  Art Â&#x2039; 7HPU[PUNZ I` *VTTPZZPVU Â&#x2039; >LLRS` *SHZZLZ MVY (K\S[Z *OPSKYLU Â&#x2039; *OHYJVHS 7HZ[LS 6PS 7VY[YHP[Z

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TODD SNIDER East Nashvilleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ambassador to the world

Midway through the performance of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Tensionâ&#x20AC;? from his new live double album, The Storyteller, Todd Snider says in an aside to the audience, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Shit, I live in East Nashville,â&#x20AC;? and the audience responds with a resounding cheer.

East Nashville is home to many great singers, songwriters and musicians who travel all over the world, but no one wears their East Nashville pride with more joy and enthusiasm than Snider. To many, he is East Nashvilleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ambassador to the world â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and it is hard to disagree.

STORY BY

DARYL SANDERS w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

PHOTOGRAPHY

STACIE HUCKEBA

The acclaimed singer-songwriter most famously immortalized the East side on his 2004 release, East Nashville Skyline. Then there is his song by the same name in which he artfully (and accurately) equates East Nashville with a state of mind. And on the quasi-spoken-word number â&#x20AC;&#x153;From A Rooftop,â&#x20AC;? he calls the East side a â&#x20AC;&#x153;dream worldâ&#x20AC;? and says, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got great news and weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re shouting it from the highest rooftop weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got.â&#x20AC;?

On several of his songs, Snider name checks East Nashville spots past and present, like Radio Cafe, the Slow Bar/3 Crow Bar, the Alley Cat, and Lipstick Lounge.

Snider even gives props to East Nashville with the name of his just-for-fun, side project, Elmo Buzz and the East Side Bulldogs. The Bulldogs, who headlined last summerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s big Thirth of July benefit block party, perform a Snider original called â&#x20AC;&#x153;37206â&#x20AC;? which features memorable East-side references, including the inside joke, â&#x20AC;&#x153;I got the T-shirt â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and the bumper sticker.â&#x20AC;?

And Snider isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t just spreading the East Nashville gospel through his music, he is practically moonlighting for the East Nashville Chamber of Commerce in print and on the airwaves.

For example, in a 2007 interview with The New York Times, he says, â&#x20AC;&#x153;When I got here [East Nashville], it felt like Austin in the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;70s. Everybody on your streetâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a musician, too. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s as close as Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll get to Greenwich Village, or that fantasy I had about it when I was a kid.â&#x20AC;?

20 â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ambassadorâ&#x20AC;? Snider standing (not stuck) on the corner of 10th and Woodland at Five Points, East Nashvilleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ground zero.

On his official website, you will find a hilarious video from East Nashville Nature Films called â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Phoner,â&#x20AC;? which documents â&#x20AC;&#x153;the East Nashville folk singerâ&#x20AC;? conducting a phone interview, complete with whispered voice over, a la BBC nature programs, by Snider himself.

Frequently, Snider is asked to explain the difference between Nashville and East Nashville. He has a number of short responses, including: R5 ^ " 5 5 -# 5 ) 5 .)1(5 ( 5 ." 5 )5 *, --#)(5 -# 5 ) 5 town.â&#x20AC;?

R5^ " 5 )(- ,0 .#0 5-# 5) 5.)1(5 ( 5&# , &5-# 5) 5.)1(8_ R5^ " 5,#!".5-# 65." 5 -.5-# 65." 5 ))&5-# 8_ Snider moved to East Nashville from Fairview, TN in the late â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;90s. His wife â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the accomplished artist Melita Osheowitz Snider, whose paintings have adorned his most recent albums, wanted to move into the city. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My wife was looking for a house, there was one in Franklin and one here, and she picked the one here,â&#x20AC;? the self-described hippie folk singer recalls, while on a short break between dates in New York City and the West coast in support of his new record. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think it was because of the bar up on the roof; she thought I would like that,â&#x20AC;? he adds with a laugh. â&#x20AC;&#x153;If weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re gonna talk about the neighborhood we should talk about Skip [Litz], â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;cause I always thought he kind of invented it,â&#x20AC;? he says of the revered and legendary Radio Cafe sound engineer who passed away in 2003. â&#x20AC;&#x153;He was the one who just kept talking about it as if it was a music neighborhood, then all of a sudden it was. That guy was a fucking community leader if there ever was one. When I think back on when I first got here... he was the one who told me about everybody who lived around here and introduced me to everybody, and showed me this was like a music town.â&#x20AC;?

Snider met Litz just prior to the release of his first album for John Prineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s OhBoy label, Happy To Be Here. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I would go for this walk every day which would go past his house five times, for my exercise,â&#x20AC;? he explains. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As I was walking past his house he was out on the porch drinking still from early in the morning. He saw me go past, knew I was going to go past again, and by the time I came past, he had my new record, that wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t out yet, cranked, and he knew that would get my attention.â&#x20AC;?

Snider says Litz â&#x20AC;&#x153;never would tell meâ&#x20AC;? how he happened to have a copy of his unreleased record, but adds, â&#x20AC;&#x153;That started a conversation which lasted about four years, five years.â&#x20AC;?

Not long after Litzâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s death, Snider went into Eric McConnellâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s studio in Lockeland Springs, the same studio

TODD SNIDER East Nashvilleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ambassador to the world

Midway through the performance of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Tensionâ&#x20AC;? from his new live double album, The Storyteller, Todd Snider says in an aside to the audience, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Shit, I live in East Nashville,â&#x20AC;? and the audience responds with a resounding cheer.

East Nashville is home to many great singers, songwriters and musicians who travel all over the world, but no one wears their East Nashville pride with more joy and enthusiasm than Snider. To many, he is East Nashvilleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ambassador to the world â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and it is hard to disagree.

STORY BY

DARYL SANDERS w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

PHOTOGRAPHY

STACIE HUCKEBA

The acclaimed singer-songwriter most famously immortalized the East side on his 2004 release, East Nashville Skyline. Then there is his song by the same name in which he artfully (and accurately) equates East Nashville with a state of mind. And on the quasi-spoken-word number â&#x20AC;&#x153;From A Rooftop,â&#x20AC;? he calls the East side a â&#x20AC;&#x153;dream worldâ&#x20AC;? and says, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got great news and weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re shouting it from the highest rooftop weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got.â&#x20AC;?

On several of his songs, Snider name checks East Nashville spots past and present, like Radio Cafe, the Slow Bar/3 Crow Bar, the Alley Cat, and Lipstick Lounge.

Snider even gives props to East Nashville with the name of his just-for-fun, side project, Elmo Buzz and the East Side Bulldogs. The Bulldogs, who headlined last summerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s big Thirth of July benefit block party, perform a Snider original called â&#x20AC;&#x153;37206â&#x20AC;? which features memorable East-side references, including the inside joke, â&#x20AC;&#x153;I got the T-shirt â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and the bumper sticker.â&#x20AC;?

And Snider isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t just spreading the East Nashville gospel through his music, he is practically moonlighting for the East Nashville Chamber of Commerce in print and on the airwaves.

For example, in a 2007 interview with The New York Times, he says, â&#x20AC;&#x153;When I got here [East Nashville], it felt like Austin in the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;70s. Everybody on your streetâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a musician, too. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s as close as Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll get to Greenwich Village, or that fantasy I had about it when I was a kid.â&#x20AC;?

20 â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ambassadorâ&#x20AC;? Snider standing (not stuck) on the corner of 10th and Woodland at Five Points, East Nashvilleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ground zero.

On his official website, you will find a hilarious video from East Nashville Nature Films called â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Phoner,â&#x20AC;? which documents â&#x20AC;&#x153;the East Nashville folk singerâ&#x20AC;? conducting a phone interview, complete with whispered voice over, a la BBC nature programs, by Snider himself.

Frequently, Snider is asked to explain the difference between Nashville and East Nashville. He has a number of short responses, including: R5 ^ " 5 5 -# 5 ) 5 .)1(5 ( 5 ." 5 )5 *, --#)(5 -# 5 ) 5 town.â&#x20AC;?

R5^ " 5 )(- ,0 .#0 5-# 5) 5.)1(5 ( 5&# , &5-# 5) 5.)1(8_ R5^ " 5,#!".5-# 65." 5 -.5-# 65." 5 ))&5-# 8_ Snider moved to East Nashville from Fairview, TN in the late â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;90s. His wife â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the accomplished artist Melita Osheowitz Snider, whose paintings have adorned his most recent albums, wanted to move into the city. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My wife was looking for a house, there was one in Franklin and one here, and she picked the one here,â&#x20AC;? the self-described hippie folk singer recalls, while on a short break between dates in New York City and the West coast in support of his new record. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think it was because of the bar up on the roof; she thought I would like that,â&#x20AC;? he adds with a laugh. â&#x20AC;&#x153;If weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re gonna talk about the neighborhood we should talk about Skip [Litz], â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;cause I always thought he kind of invented it,â&#x20AC;? he says of the revered and legendary Radio Cafe sound engineer who passed away in 2003. â&#x20AC;&#x153;He was the one who just kept talking about it as if it was a music neighborhood, then all of a sudden it was. That guy was a fucking community leader if there ever was one. When I think back on when I first got here... he was the one who told me about everybody who lived around here and introduced me to everybody, and showed me this was like a music town.â&#x20AC;?

Snider met Litz just prior to the release of his first album for John Prineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s OhBoy label, Happy To Be Here. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I would go for this walk every day which would go past his house five times, for my exercise,â&#x20AC;? he explains. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As I was walking past his house he was out on the porch drinking still from early in the morning. He saw me go past, knew I was going to go past again, and by the time I came past, he had my new record, that wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t out yet, cranked, and he knew that would get my attention.â&#x20AC;?

Snider says Litz â&#x20AC;&#x153;never would tell meâ&#x20AC;? how he happened to have a copy of his unreleased record, but adds, â&#x20AC;&#x153;That started a conversation which lasted about four years, five years.â&#x20AC;?

Not long after Litzâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s death, Snider went into Eric McConnellâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s studio in Lockeland Springs, the same studio

But in approaching his sixth full-length studio album, he didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to wait for the labelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s approval. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I went to Eric and said, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s make a record, and just assume itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s going to be okay. Take a chance on me, man, that youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going to get paid. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Cause Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m going to call them up up and say, hey Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m ready to make a record and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m done.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; â&#x20AC;&#x153;That also led to a whole lot of community,â&#x20AC;? he continues. â&#x20AC;&#x153;â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Cause that was a whole lot of people taking a chance on me, the whole cast of that record.â&#x20AC;? East side players who took â&#x20AC;&#x153;a chanceâ&#x20AC;? on Snider on those impromptu sessions #( &/ 5 ,/'' ,5 /&5 ,# #."65 --#-.-5 0 5 +/ -5 ( 5 0 5 ) 65 ( 5 !/#. ,#-.5 #'5 ,,)&&65 -5 1 &&5 -5 /() # # &5 East Nashvillian guitarist Will Kimbrough, a longtime collaborator and member of the Nervous Wrecks, Sniderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s former backing band.

According to Snider, the sessions werenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t actually scheduled. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Once Eric and I agreed that we were going to do this record, I would just go to his house and start calling to see who was home. It wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t like, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Hey, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m going to make a record next month on this date.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; It was like, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Wanna make a record?â&#x20AC;&#x2122; â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;When?â&#x20AC;&#x2122; â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Now, right now â&#x20AC;&#x201D; pick up a twelver on the way over.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;?

-*#. 5."#-5/(),.") )25 **,) "65" 5(). -65^ " (5#.51 -5 done, it did pretty darn good.â&#x20AC;?

Since then, Sniderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s career has been on the rise, and he gives no small credit to his wife. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Some of my friends are pretty aware that things started working for us comfort-wise around the time of making East Nashville Skyline, but also many of my friends say that was the beginning of artistic growth as well,â&#x20AC;? he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;If thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s true, it very simply a ref lection of my wifeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s artistic inf luence on me.

When heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not on the road, you might find the self-proclaimed hippie folk singer hanging outside the Family Wash in between sets by some of his musical pals.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;She is probably the biggest inf luence I have. The aloofheart-meets-humor riff was hers first, and she showed me how to take that from her work and apply it to mine.â&#x20AC;?

where Jack White produced Loretta Lynnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Van Lear Rose album, to begin work on his final record for OhBoy Records, East Nashville Skyline. One of the songs he recorded for the album was his homage to Litz, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Play A Train Song,â&#x20AC;? which is also one of the performance numbers included on The Storyteller.

Part poet, part jester, part rock & roll wild man, Sniderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ever-evolving artistry is on full display on The Storyteller.

The performances were culled from concert recordings in 2010 by tour manager Elvis Hicks and production assistant Brian Kincaid, and the majority of the songs are from his most recent albums, beginning with Skyline. Many of the tracks came from his Nashville performance at TPACâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s James K. Polk Theater, as well as from performances in Asheville, N.C.. and Ann Arbor, Mich., plus his appearance at Bonnaroo. )(].5 ' % 5 ." 5 '#-. % 5 ) 5 ."#(%#(!5 ."#-5 #-5 &#% 5 ' (35 &#0 5 albums, throw-aways used to fulfill recording contracts.

No matter the greatness of his records, you havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t fully experienced Snider until you have seen him live, with hat and six-string, and without shoes. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I told Brian and Elvis to try and do a â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;best of â&#x20AC;&#x2122; last year,â&#x20AC;?

Snider said of the new live collection. Then he adds with a smile, â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was an easy record for me, I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to do anything.â&#x20AC;?

Hicks and Kincaid took their selections into McConnellâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s studio, and the producer-engineer tweaked and assembled the double albumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 24 tracks. The collection includes a number of stories the artist told in concert, segments he calls â&#x20AC;&#x153;Arlo-type shit,â&#x20AC;? in reference to folk singer Arlo Guthrieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s musical monologues from the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;60s, most notably â&#x20AC;&#x153;Aliceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Restaurant Massacreeâ&#x20AC;? featured in the film and on the album, Aliceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Restaurant.

These days when heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not performing solo, Snider is backed by a jam band from Nederland, Colo., called Great American Taxi, led by guitarist, singer and Leftover Salmon founder Vince Herman. They can be heard on many of The Storytellerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tracks, and are backing him on an album of material by one of his friends and mentors, Jerry Jeff Walker, 1"# "5" 5#-5, ), #(!51#."5*,) / ,5 )(5 -85 " 35., % 5 half the material at the House of Blues studio when both Was, who produced his last studio album, The Excitement Plan, and the band were in Nashville recently. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We did the mellow side, the finger-pickinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; stuff, and then sometime in the next year weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll all get tipsy and do the rest of it, do all the rowdy shit,â&#x20AC;? he says of the tribute planned for Walkerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s seventieth birthday on March 16, 2012.

Before then, Snider will record his tenth studio album with Was, which he hopes to release late this year. But first, he will continue to tour in support of The Storyteller.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d just been here long enough to really feel like I was part of a community,â&#x20AC;? he says regarding his choice of album title. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Then Skip died, and I felt even more part of a community.

[At] that funeral, and those after parties, friendships were sealed that have gone on for years.â&#x20AC;?

â&#x20AC;&#x153;While I am often playing 800-1,000-seat venues, and even 2,000 sometimes these days, I still am often in 300-seaters and probably always will be,â&#x20AC;? he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The amount of towns out there to see is almost infinite and I hope to die trying to see them all.â&#x20AC;?

The making of East Nashville Skyline was a defining moment in the singer-songwriterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s career, a moment when he .))%5 )'*& . 5 , .#0 5 )(.,)&85 - ,# #(!5")15, ), -5 , 5 normally made, Snider says, â&#x20AC;&#x153;You give the record company your songs, and if everybody likes them â&#x20AC;&#x201D; which I think is fair, I never had a problem with that â&#x20AC;&#x201D; then the checkbook comes out, and the studio opens up, and you go cut them.â&#x20AC;?

And while Snider is out there, traveling from city to city, he will continue his work as unofficial ambassador, spreading the word about his beloved East Nashville.

The Sniders (front to back: Lulu, Melita, Cowboy Jim, Todd) return from an enjoyable outing at the dog park.

Sometimes, Sniderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s alter ego, Elmo Buzz, performs with his band the East Side Bulldogs at 3 Crow.

But in approaching his sixth full-length studio album, he didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to wait for the labelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s approval. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I went to Eric and said, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s make a record, and just assume itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s going to be okay. Take a chance on me, man, that youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going to get paid. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Cause Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m going to call them up up and say, hey Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m ready to make a record and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m done.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; â&#x20AC;&#x153;That also led to a whole lot of community,â&#x20AC;? he continues. â&#x20AC;&#x153;â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Cause that was a whole lot of people taking a chance on me, the whole cast of that record.â&#x20AC;? East side players who took â&#x20AC;&#x153;a chanceâ&#x20AC;? on Snider on those impromptu sessions #( &/ 5 ,/'' ,5 /&5 ,# #."65 --#-.-5 0 5 +/ -5 ( 5 0 5 ) 65 ( 5 !/#. ,#-.5 #'5 ,,)&&65 -5 1 &&5 -5 /() # # &5 East Nashvillian guitarist Will Kimbrough, a longtime collaborator and member of the Nervous Wrecks, Sniderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s former backing band.

According to Snider, the sessions werenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t actually scheduled. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Once Eric and I agreed that we were going to do this record, I would just go to his house and start calling to see who was home. It wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t like, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Hey, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m going to make a record next month on this date.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; It was like, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Wanna make a record?â&#x20AC;&#x2122; â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;When?â&#x20AC;&#x2122; â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Now, right now â&#x20AC;&#x201D; pick up a twelver on the way over.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;?

-*#. 5."#-5/(),.") )25 **,) "65" 5(). -65^ " (5#.51 -5 done, it did pretty darn good.â&#x20AC;?

Since then, Sniderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s career has been on the rise, and he gives no small credit to his wife. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Some of my friends are pretty aware that things started working for us comfort-wise around the time of making East Nashville Skyline, but also many of my friends say that was the beginning of artistic growth as well,â&#x20AC;? he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;If thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s true, it very simply a ref lection of my wifeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s artistic inf luence on me.

When heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not on the road, you might find the self-proclaimed hippie folk singer hanging outside the Family Wash in between sets by some of his musical pals.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;She is probably the biggest inf luence I have. The aloofheart-meets-humor riff was hers first, and she showed me how to take that from her work and apply it to mine.â&#x20AC;?

where Jack White produced Loretta Lynnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Van Lear Rose album, to begin work on his final record for OhBoy Records, East Nashville Skyline. One of the songs he recorded for the album was his homage to Litz, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Play A Train Song,â&#x20AC;? which is also one of the performance numbers included on The Storyteller.

Part poet, part jester, part rock & roll wild man, Sniderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ever-evolving artistry is on full display on The Storyteller.

The performances were culled from concert recordings in 2010 by tour manager Elvis Hicks and production assistant Brian Kincaid, and the majority of the songs are from his most recent albums, beginning with Skyline. Many of the tracks came from his Nashville performance at TPACâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s James K. Polk Theater, as well as from performances in Asheville, N.C.. and Ann Arbor, Mich., plus his appearance at Bonnaroo. )(].5 ' % 5 ." 5 '#-. % 5 ) 5 ."#(%#(!5 ."#-5 #-5 &#% 5 ' (35 &#0 5 albums, throw-aways used to fulfill recording contracts.

No matter the greatness of his records, you havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t fully experienced Snider until you have seen him live, with hat and six-string, and without shoes. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I told Brian and Elvis to try and do a â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;best of â&#x20AC;&#x2122; last year,â&#x20AC;?

Snider said of the new live collection. Then he adds with a smile, â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was an easy record for me, I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to do anything.â&#x20AC;?

Hicks and Kincaid took their selections into McConnellâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s studio, and the producer-engineer tweaked and assembled the double albumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 24 tracks. The collection includes a number of stories the artist told in concert, segments he calls â&#x20AC;&#x153;Arlo-type shit,â&#x20AC;? in reference to folk singer Arlo Guthrieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s musical monologues from the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;60s, most notably â&#x20AC;&#x153;Aliceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Restaurant Massacreeâ&#x20AC;? featured in the film and on the album, Aliceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Restaurant.

These days when heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not performing solo, Snider is backed by a jam band from Nederland, Colo., called Great American Taxi, led by guitarist, singer and Leftover Salmon founder Vince Herman. They can be heard on many of The Storytellerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tracks, and are backing him on an album of material by one of his friends and mentors, Jerry Jeff Walker, 1"# "5" 5#-5, ), #(!51#."5*,) / ,5 )(5 -85 " 35., % 5 half the material at the House of Blues studio when both Was, who produced his last studio album, The Excitement Plan, and the band were in Nashville recently. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We did the mellow side, the finger-pickinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; stuff, and then sometime in the next year weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll all get tipsy and do the rest of it, do all the rowdy shit,â&#x20AC;? he says of the tribute planned for Walkerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s seventieth birthday on March 16, 2012.

Before then, Snider will record his tenth studio album with Was, which he hopes to release late this year. But first, he will continue to tour in support of The Storyteller.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d just been here long enough to really feel like I was part of a community,â&#x20AC;? he says regarding his choice of album title. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Then Skip died, and I felt even more part of a community.

[At] that funeral, and those after parties, friendships were sealed that have gone on for years.â&#x20AC;?

â&#x20AC;&#x153;While I am often playing 800-1,000-seat venues, and even 2,000 sometimes these days, I still am often in 300-seaters and probably always will be,â&#x20AC;? he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The amount of towns out there to see is almost infinite and I hope to die trying to see them all.â&#x20AC;?

The making of East Nashville Skyline was a defining moment in the singer-songwriterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s career, a moment when he .))%5 )'*& . 5 , .#0 5 )(.,)&85 - ,# #(!5")15, ), -5 , 5 normally made, Snider says, â&#x20AC;&#x153;You give the record company your songs, and if everybody likes them â&#x20AC;&#x201D; which I think is fair, I never had a problem with that â&#x20AC;&#x201D; then the checkbook comes out, and the studio opens up, and you go cut them.â&#x20AC;?

And while Snider is out there, traveling from city to city, he will continue his work as unofficial ambassador, spreading the word about his beloved East Nashville.

The Sniders (front to back: Lulu, Melita, Cowboy Jim, Todd) return from an enjoyable outing at the dog park.

Sometimes, Sniderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s alter ego, Elmo Buzz, performs with his band the East Side Bulldogs at 3 Crow.

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Just by pushing a button on your iPhone, Blackberry or Android; using the popular SmartStart app

Drop by and see me in our new office at 11th and Fatherland

615-364-7632

TOMMY MPrincipal CRAE Broker 615.227.1514 Each office independently owned and operated.

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Just by pushing a button on your iPhone, Blackberry or Android; using the popular SmartStart app

Drop by and see me in our new office at 11th and Fatherland

615-364-7632

TOMMY MPrincipal CRAE Broker 615.227.1514 Each office independently owned and operated.

Ride For Reading’s mission is “to promote literacy and healthy living through the distribution of books via bicycle to children from low-income neighborhoods. In lowincome neighborhoods...”

Woodland lection at e s r e e b The craft

A Celebration of Craft Beers Benefits a Great Cause Why does a guy who grew up on Long Island, went to college in Florida, married his wife in Atlanta, and learned to love craft beer in Portland throw an East Nashville Beer Festival? Because he’s a beer dork by his own admission.

While living in midtown Atlanta he quenched his thirst for beer and beer knowledge at a variety of pubs, breweries, and retailers. Among Matt’s favorites were Brickstore Pub and Sweetwater Brewery.

Serendipitously for a burgeoning beer lover, Sweetwater Brewery was only seven minutes from his home, making thirst quenching very convenient. In fact, he liked Sweetwater so much that he and his then fiancée, Tracey, had a wedding eve party at the Sweetwater with all you can drink beer. If he got a craving for a burger to go with his beer, a visit to Vortex was in order so that he could indulge in his favorite burger and enjoy their beer selection. And, for an evening at home, Hop City became his favorite Atlanta beer retailer. Not only did he love the selection, but the staff provided a tremendous amount of beer education.

By Helen Gaye Brewster Photos by Chuck Allen

Eventually Matt and Tracey left Atlanta so Tracey could attend Vanderbilt. They chose East Nashville because of the walkability and livability that the neighborhood offered. Of course, high on the list of important issues in a new city was determining where he could find the best craft beer. His Nashville favorites are the 12 South Taproom, which according to Matt truly embodies the craft beer spirit. He also likes Coopers on Porter, which is helping increase awareness of craft beer.

For retailers his top choices are the high gravity selections at Woodland Wine Merchant or Midtown Wine and Spirits.

As a home brewer, Matt loves beer education. And, an idea began to grow for a way to educate other beer lovers and allow them to taste craft beer. Thus, the East Nashville Beer Festival was born.

Matt’s motivation was simple. His goals were to help attendees understand why they like what they drink and what’s used to make the beer that results in the taste profile they enjoy. He wanted to have Brewmasters who could educate the guests on the process of making beer. And, he wanted to have home brew demonstrations.

And, while he was planning all this, he thought, “Why not help a local non-profit while we’re at it?” Ride for Reading was chosen to receive 50% of net ticket sales.

Dan Hensley at East Nashville’s Bicycle Lounge introduced Matt Leff to Matt Portell, founder of Ride for Reading, and a natural bond occurred. Cycling and beer go hand in hand. Matt Leff is a cycler who grew up riding bikes. Matt Portell is an East

Cooper’s array of craft beers on tap

w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

24

Matt Leff ’s love affair with craft beers began with a random decision to visit Portland, OR. The primary motivation for the trip wasn’t a love of craft beer; it was a love of affordable airfare. He needed a vacation and decided on Portland because the price was right for the plane ticket.

Once in Portland he found “The Brew Bus” and took a tour with a certified beer geek as tour director. And, thus a love of beer and a thirst for beer knowledge was born.

Nashvillian who founded Ride for Reading. They’re both named Matt. It only made sense for the East Nashville Beer Festival to support Ride for Reading. Ride For Reading’s mission is “to promote literacy and healthy living through the distribution of books via bicycle to children from low-income neighborhoods. In low-income neighborhoods, the ratio of books per child is 1 ageappropriate book for every 300 children. Reading is an integral part of education, and without books it is hard to build a strong academic base. Our children need materials to read at home and it is our goal to provide the means.”

Nashville is the home of Ride for Reading. During Mathew Portell’s first year as a 4th grade teacher he asked his students to read for 15 minutes at home at night. One student replied that he didn’t have any books at home to read. It did not take long for Mathew to realize that his student’s problem was not unique.

He and his wife, Melissa, felt compelled to do something to help Mathew’s students and others like them. Since being established in February 2008 Ride for Reading has donated over 30,000 books to children low-income families. They have also created partnerships with several local bike shops like Nashville Bicycle Lounge as well as other local and national businesses. Mathew believes that education is not an entity only found within the four walls of a school building. Within the pages of a book you can go anywhere, see anything, and experience everything. Every child deserves that despite economic status.

To donate or learn more please visit www.rideforreading.org or email mathewportell@rideforreading.org.

The East Nashville Beer Festival will be April 9 from noon-5:00 on the East Bank Greenway.

The ticket price is $35 or $10 for DD’s. You must be 21. The festival will include live music, local food and three Brewmasters providing beer knowledge. There will also be a home brewing demonstration area where you can learn the basics of making your own beer!

For all the details and FAQ’s visit www.eastnashvillebeerfestival.com.

And, be sure to like them on FB and follow on twitter.

See you on April 9.

pirits Wine & S

Ride For Reading’s mission is “to promote literacy and healthy living through the distribution of books via bicycle to children from low-income neighborhoods. In lowincome neighborhoods...”

Woodland lection at e s r e e b The craft

A Celebration of Craft Beers Benefits a Great Cause Why does a guy who grew up on Long Island, went to college in Florida, married his wife in Atlanta, and learned to love craft beer in Portland throw an East Nashville Beer Festival? Because he’s a beer dork by his own admission.

While living in midtown Atlanta he quenched his thirst for beer and beer knowledge at a variety of pubs, breweries, and retailers. Among Matt’s favorites were Brickstore Pub and Sweetwater Brewery.

Serendipitously for a burgeoning beer lover, Sweetwater Brewery was only seven minutes from his home, making thirst quenching very convenient. In fact, he liked Sweetwater so much that he and his then fiancée, Tracey, had a wedding eve party at the Sweetwater with all you can drink beer. If he got a craving for a burger to go with his beer, a visit to Vortex was in order so that he could indulge in his favorite burger and enjoy their beer selection. And, for an evening at home, Hop City became his favorite Atlanta beer retailer. Not only did he love the selection, but the staff provided a tremendous amount of beer education.

By Helen Gaye Brewster Photos by Chuck Allen

Eventually Matt and Tracey left Atlanta so Tracey could attend Vanderbilt. They chose East Nashville because of the walkability and livability that the neighborhood offered. Of course, high on the list of important issues in a new city was determining where he could find the best craft beer. His Nashville favorites are the 12 South Taproom, which according to Matt truly embodies the craft beer spirit. He also likes Coopers on Porter, which is helping increase awareness of craft beer.

For retailers his top choices are the high gravity selections at Woodland Wine Merchant or Midtown Wine and Spirits.

As a home brewer, Matt loves beer education. And, an idea began to grow for a way to educate other beer lovers and allow them to taste craft beer. Thus, the East Nashville Beer Festival was born.

Matt’s motivation was simple. His goals were to help attendees understand why they like what they drink and what’s used to make the beer that results in the taste profile they enjoy. He wanted to have Brewmasters who could educate the guests on the process of making beer. And, he wanted to have home brew demonstrations.

And, while he was planning all this, he thought, “Why not help a local non-profit while we’re at it?” Ride for Reading was chosen to receive 50% of net ticket sales.

Dan Hensley at East Nashville’s Bicycle Lounge introduced Matt Leff to Matt Portell, founder of Ride for Reading, and a natural bond occurred. Cycling and beer go hand in hand. Matt Leff is a cycler who grew up riding bikes. Matt Portell is an East

Cooper’s array of craft beers on tap

w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

24

Matt Leff ’s love affair with craft beers began with a random decision to visit Portland, OR. The primary motivation for the trip wasn’t a love of craft beer; it was a love of affordable airfare. He needed a vacation and decided on Portland because the price was right for the plane ticket.

Once in Portland he found “The Brew Bus” and took a tour with a certified beer geek as tour director. And, thus a love of beer and a thirst for beer knowledge was born.

Nashvillian who founded Ride for Reading. They’re both named Matt. It only made sense for the East Nashville Beer Festival to support Ride for Reading. Ride For Reading’s mission is “to promote literacy and healthy living through the distribution of books via bicycle to children from low-income neighborhoods. In low-income neighborhoods, the ratio of books per child is 1 ageappropriate book for every 300 children. Reading is an integral part of education, and without books it is hard to build a strong academic base. Our children need materials to read at home and it is our goal to provide the means.”

Nashville is the home of Ride for Reading. During Mathew Portell’s first year as a 4th grade teacher he asked his students to read for 15 minutes at home at night. One student replied that he didn’t have any books at home to read. It did not take long for Mathew to realize that his student’s problem was not unique.

He and his wife, Melissa, felt compelled to do something to help Mathew’s students and others like them. Since being established in February 2008 Ride for Reading has donated over 30,000 books to children low-income families. They have also created partnerships with several local bike shops like Nashville Bicycle Lounge as well as other local and national businesses. Mathew believes that education is not an entity only found within the four walls of a school building. Within the pages of a book you can go anywhere, see anything, and experience everything. Every child deserves that despite economic status.

To donate or learn more please visit www.rideforreading.org or email mathewportell@rideforreading.org.

The East Nashville Beer Festival will be April 9 from noon-5:00 on the East Bank Greenway.

The ticket price is $35 or $10 for DD’s. You must be 21. The festival will include live music, local food and three Brewmasters providing beer knowledge. There will also be a home brewing demonstration area where you can learn the basics of making your own beer!

For all the details and FAQ’s visit www.eastnashvillebeerfestival.com.

And, be sure to like them on FB and follow on twitter.

See you on April 9.

pirits Wine & S

This past October, an exciting new program for kids and teens opened up in our neighborhood. Nashville Rock Block is a program that places kids together in bands for eight week sessions, during which they

discussion. He or she asks the kids what comes to mind when they think of rock and roll, what kind of music they’d like to play, and what goals they’d like to accomplish by the end of the session. By the end of rehearsal one, most bands have chosen a name and genre for themselves. Past bands have chosen to perform everything from the Beatles to Pink.

For the remaining seven weeks, bands attend closed rehearsals once a week, during which they write and practice songs. While bands are allowed to perform covers, they are also required to write at least two original songs. Minton comments, “I find it’s easier if they write collaboratively as oppose to performing a cover- that way each kid can showcase what they do best, and there’s no ‘wrong’ way.”

Hunter Tidwell on Drums

have the opportunity to learn more about their instruments, write original songs, and collaborate. Each session culminates in a live performance at a public showcase.

w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

26

Tiffany Minton, NRB’s director, worked with Murfreesboro Rock Block for five years before deciding to bring the program to Nashville. Murfreesboro Rock Block began in 2006 as one of many after-school programs sponsored by Youth Empowerment through the Arts and Humanities, a.k.a.

YEAH!, a nonprofit organization.

Now in its second session, Nashville Rock Block has been welcomed into East Nashville with open arms. “We were embraced immediately by the community,” says Minton.“Our first session we had twenty kids and five bands.”

Upon signing up for Rock Block, students can choose what instrument they’d like to play. Whether or not the child has ever touched a musical instrument before is not a matter of concern. Many students sign up to play instruments they’ve never played, and non-traditional instruments are welcomed.

At the beginning of each session, Minton places students in bands according to age group and skill level. During the first meeting, the band’s manager, a capable musician with the ability to teach while drawing out the kids’ creativity, guides the band in an opening

By Hannah Meigs Photos by Carolyn Manney

in a collaborative effort. If they’ve never played, of course we have to be able to help them form basic chords and work with them.

Kids learn so quickly; a program like ours wouldn’t necessarily work with adults.”

Rock Block has a history of success, with some bands continuing to play together independently after the eight week session ends, with many participating in consecutive sessions. A number of students also attend YEAH!’s summer camps, Southern Girls Rock and Roll Camp and Tennessee Teens Rock Camp.

Another unique aspect of Nashville Rock Block that separates it from other programs, particularly private lessons, is its belief in making music financially accessible to all kids by offering full and partial scholarships. “We don’t do merit-based scholarships because that automatically eliminates a lot of kids,” explains Minton. “We just ask, ‘Why do you want to be in this program,’ and we’ll work with you.We want to offset that cost for a kid who maybe can’t afford private lessons but still wants to learn to play the guitar; that’s the kid I want to find our program.” Gear and instruments are also available during rehearsals to students who don’t have their own.

end of each session, during which students perform songs they’ve been working on for family, friends and the public. The last session’s all-age showcase took place at The End in Nashville on March 4th featuring bands from both Nashville and Murfreesboro Rock Block.

Nashville Rock Block’s next session begins Saturday, April 2nd in its new location, Fanny’s House of Music. This session, NRB will be enrolling students ages 7-17, whereas previously the minimum age was ten.

For more information, to enroll, or to donate visit www.nashvillerockblock.org

Photo Courtesy Fanny’s House of Music

Nashville Rock Block

Nashville Rock Block recoups much of the scholarship cost with the showcase at the

Eli Tidwell on Guitar

Minton explains the importance of programs like NRB, saying, “a lot of music and arts programs are getting cut from schools, and those that exist certainly aren’t based around the interests of young kids, like popular music and music that they feel like they have a stake in.”

The vision of NRB is primarily to teach students early on how to collaborate with other musicians and share the creative process. Says Minton, “it’s less important to give them really intensive lessons, because they can get that elsewhere. I think what our program offers that’s different is a safe space where the kids can explore instrumentation through their own process as well as together

www.platinumsaloneast.com find us on facebook & myspace Niah Pruitt on Guitar

This past October, an exciting new program for kids and teens opened up in our neighborhood. Nashville Rock Block is a program that places kids together in bands for eight week sessions, during which they

discussion. He or she asks the kids what comes to mind when they think of rock and roll, what kind of music they’d like to play, and what goals they’d like to accomplish by the end of the session. By the end of rehearsal one, most bands have chosen a name and genre for themselves. Past bands have chosen to perform everything from the Beatles to Pink.

For the remaining seven weeks, bands attend closed rehearsals once a week, during which they write and practice songs. While bands are allowed to perform covers, they are also required to write at least two original songs. Minton comments, “I find it’s easier if they write collaboratively as oppose to performing a cover- that way each kid can showcase what they do best, and there’s no ‘wrong’ way.”

Hunter Tidwell on Drums

have the opportunity to learn more about their instruments, write original songs, and collaborate. Each session culminates in a live performance at a public showcase.

w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

26

Tiffany Minton, NRB’s director, worked with Murfreesboro Rock Block for five years before deciding to bring the program to Nashville. Murfreesboro Rock Block began in 2006 as one of many after-school programs sponsored by Youth Empowerment through the Arts and Humanities, a.k.a.

YEAH!, a nonprofit organization.

Now in its second session, Nashville Rock Block has been welcomed into East Nashville with open arms. “We were embraced immediately by the community,” says Minton.“Our first session we had twenty kids and five bands.”

Upon signing up for Rock Block, students can choose what instrument they’d like to play. Whether or not the child has ever touched a musical instrument before is not a matter of concern. Many students sign up to play instruments they’ve never played, and non-traditional instruments are welcomed.

At the beginning of each session, Minton places students in bands according to age group and skill level. During the first meeting, the band’s manager, a capable musician with the ability to teach while drawing out the kids’ creativity, guides the band in an opening

By Hannah Meigs Photos by Carolyn Manney

in a collaborative effort. If they’ve never played, of course we have to be able to help them form basic chords and work with them.

Kids learn so quickly; a program like ours wouldn’t necessarily work with adults.”

Rock Block has a history of success, with some bands continuing to play together independently after the eight week session ends, with many participating in consecutive sessions. A number of students also attend YEAH!’s summer camps, Southern Girls Rock and Roll Camp and Tennessee Teens Rock Camp.

Another unique aspect of Nashville Rock Block that separates it from other programs, particularly private lessons, is its belief in making music financially accessible to all kids by offering full and partial scholarships. “We don’t do merit-based scholarships because that automatically eliminates a lot of kids,” explains Minton. “We just ask, ‘Why do you want to be in this program,’ and we’ll work with you.We want to offset that cost for a kid who maybe can’t afford private lessons but still wants to learn to play the guitar; that’s the kid I want to find our program.” Gear and instruments are also available during rehearsals to students who don’t have their own.

end of each session, during which students perform songs they’ve been working on for family, friends and the public. The last session’s all-age showcase took place at The End in Nashville on March 4th featuring bands from both Nashville and Murfreesboro Rock Block.

Nashville Rock Block’s next session begins Saturday, April 2nd in its new location, Fanny’s House of Music. This session, NRB will be enrolling students ages 7-17, whereas previously the minimum age was ten.

For more information, to enroll, or to donate visit www.nashvillerockblock.org

Photo Courtesy Fanny’s House of Music

Nashville Rock Block

Nashville Rock Block recoups much of the scholarship cost with the showcase at the

Eli Tidwell on Guitar

Minton explains the importance of programs like NRB, saying, “a lot of music and arts programs are getting cut from schools, and those that exist certainly aren’t based around the interests of young kids, like popular music and music that they feel like they have a stake in.”

The vision of NRB is primarily to teach students early on how to collaborate with other musicians and share the creative process. Says Minton, “it’s less important to give them really intensive lessons, because they can get that elsewhere. I think what our program offers that’s different is a safe space where the kids can explore instrumentation through their own process as well as together

www.platinumsaloneast.com find us on facebook & myspace Niah Pruitt on Guitar

youngest kid in my class. In fact, the catcher threw the ball back to me harder than I pitched it to him,” laughs Matt.

Matt Charette

The Long Road to East Nashville

The Boston Red Sox? Fish & chips? East Nashville? It makes perfect

sense to restauranteur Matt Charette, owner of Batter’d & Fried, Beyond the Edge, Watanabe, and more recently BBQ Drifters, although it has been something of a long and winding road. In a way a road that has come full circle, as we shall see. w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

Hailing from Palmer, Massachusetts, a small town about 60 miles outside of Boston, Matt first began walking down the road which would ultimately lead him here. “The way I describe it to most people is when we would go play baseball against the Boston teams they would call us hicks, but when the folks who lived further west than we did and they came to play baseball against us, then we called them hicks,” he says laughing.

28

“I grew up in the restaurant business.

My father’s a gourmet French chef, and I’m the youngest of seven kids,”

he reflects. “He owned his own catering company as well. And do you know what you do when you’re the youngest of seven kids on a catering job with your dad? Wash dishes. I washed a lot of dishes when I was a kid. Until my sister got married and then my brother-inlaw had to start washing dishes. He

Story & Photography by Chuck Allen had to start at the bottom!” Matt’s dad enjoyed taking the family out to dinner in order to experience what other chefs were creating.

“I remember very clearly we were going to a restaurant in Springfield, Mass called Ledo’s. It was an Italian restaurant and we’re walking across the parking lot and my father puts

his arm around me and kind of pulls me back and let’s the rest of the family kind of walk ahead. And he says, ‘Matt, when we go into this restaurant, I don’t care what you order. I don’t care how much it costs.

Just do not order another goddamn hamburger!’” He continues, “My father’s point was we’re going to a restaurant where the chef has created a menu and he’s created a flavor profile. Experience it, enjoy it. You know, if this place is known for hamburgers, get the hamburger.

We’ll all enjoy the hamburgers, but get something that they’re proud of.

Get one of their signature dishes.

Enjoy it, experience it! He wanted me to experience it the way he experienced, you know?”

In addition to developing an appreciation for the culinary aspects of life, Matt also began his lifelong passion for sports while growing up in Palmer. “High school was sports, sports and more sports for me. In fact, when I was a sophomore in high school I pitched for the varsity baseball team. I was born in December so I was always the

His passion for sports also informed his choice for college. “Right out of high school I went to Springfield College. I majored in physical education and health fitness,” Matt relates. During spring break two years later he realized, “I just wasn’t really happy. I felt like I was just running in place. I really didn’t know what I was doing with my life, and I went and saw the Marine Corp recruiter, and two weeks later I’m in Paris Island going through basic training.”

Joining the Marines wasn’t that great of a stretch for Matt. “I had two brothers that were in the Marine Corp, a cousin that was in the Marine Corp, an uncle that was in the Marine Corp, so it was a big part of growing up,” he says. “I think that’s when I really started to grow and mature... in the Marine Corp.”

Does he apply his experience in the Marines to running his restaurants?

“Well, the thing I really loved about the Marine Corp was when they’re done training you, at least in my experience, they said, ‘do you have this?’ I said ‘yeah, I got it’. Well, a second later you’re expected to do it”. Matt continues, “So you know that’s kind of the way I am with things. You know, I’ll train you, and

I’ll give you time to learn and grow, but once you tell me you have it and you understand it then I expect you to do it.” (laughs)

on the shelf where it stayed until a visit to Parris Island, SC to visit his nephews. “I didn’t want to have anything to do with it. So when I

Matt wasn’t able to go into great detail about his service in the Marine Corp. Suffice it to say he was involved in intelligence and if he told me too much he’d have to kill me! He did serve in the first Gulf War, however, and that experience had a major impact on his life. “You know, once people start shooting at you, you make different decisions. I didn’t realize it but I had post traumatic stress,” he confides. For 16 years Matt all but put his Marine Corp experience

“Well, the thing I really loved about the Marine Corp was when they’re done training you, at least in my experience, they said, ‘ do you have this?’ I said ‘yeah, I got it’. Well, a second later you’re expected to do it”. got down there, got down to Parris Island, and I’m looking around and I’m seeing all these values and I’m seeing the respect and integrity, and you know, the commitment, and I’m like ‘wow, I don’t remember this!’.

It was like, this is really cool that they’re teaching these guys these things, you know? But like I said I had taken my entire experience and I put it on a shelf because to me it was all bad. Right? So, I’m looking around and going, ‘well, what is it?’.

Then I started to realize that I was

youngest kid in my class. In fact, the catcher threw the ball back to me harder than I pitched it to him,” laughs Matt.

Matt Charette

The Long Road to East Nashville

The Boston Red Sox? Fish & chips? East Nashville? It makes perfect

sense to restauranteur Matt Charette, owner of Batter’d & Fried, Beyond the Edge, Watanabe, and more recently BBQ Drifters, although it has been something of a long and winding road. In a way a road that has come full circle, as we shall see. w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

Hailing from Palmer, Massachusetts, a small town about 60 miles outside of Boston, Matt first began walking down the road which would ultimately lead him here. “The way I describe it to most people is when we would go play baseball against the Boston teams they would call us hicks, but when the folks who lived further west than we did and they came to play baseball against us, then we called them hicks,” he says laughing.

28

“I grew up in the restaurant business.

My father’s a gourmet French chef, and I’m the youngest of seven kids,”

he reflects. “He owned his own catering company as well. And do you know what you do when you’re the youngest of seven kids on a catering job with your dad? Wash dishes. I washed a lot of dishes when I was a kid. Until my sister got married and then my brother-inlaw had to start washing dishes. He

Story & Photography by Chuck Allen had to start at the bottom!” Matt’s dad enjoyed taking the family out to dinner in order to experience what other chefs were creating.

“I remember very clearly we were going to a restaurant in Springfield, Mass called Ledo’s. It was an Italian restaurant and we’re walking across the parking lot and my father puts

his arm around me and kind of pulls me back and let’s the rest of the family kind of walk ahead. And he says, ‘Matt, when we go into this restaurant, I don’t care what you order. I don’t care how much it costs.

Just do not order another goddamn hamburger!’” He continues, “My father’s point was we’re going to a restaurant where the chef has created a menu and he’s created a flavor profile. Experience it, enjoy it. You know, if this place is known for hamburgers, get the hamburger.

We’ll all enjoy the hamburgers, but get something that they’re proud of.

Get one of their signature dishes.

Enjoy it, experience it! He wanted me to experience it the way he experienced, you know?”

In addition to developing an appreciation for the culinary aspects of life, Matt also began his lifelong passion for sports while growing up in Palmer. “High school was sports, sports and more sports for me. In fact, when I was a sophomore in high school I pitched for the varsity baseball team. I was born in December so I was always the

His passion for sports also informed his choice for college. “Right out of high school I went to Springfield College. I majored in physical education and health fitness,” Matt relates. During spring break two years later he realized, “I just wasn’t really happy. I felt like I was just running in place. I really didn’t know what I was doing with my life, and I went and saw the Marine Corp recruiter, and two weeks later I’m in Paris Island going through basic training.”

Joining the Marines wasn’t that great of a stretch for Matt. “I had two brothers that were in the Marine Corp, a cousin that was in the Marine Corp, an uncle that was in the Marine Corp, so it was a big part of growing up,” he says. “I think that’s when I really started to grow and mature... in the Marine Corp.”

Does he apply his experience in the Marines to running his restaurants?

“Well, the thing I really loved about the Marine Corp was when they’re done training you, at least in my experience, they said, ‘do you have this?’ I said ‘yeah, I got it’. Well, a second later you’re expected to do it”. Matt continues, “So you know that’s kind of the way I am with things. You know, I’ll train you, and

I’ll give you time to learn and grow, but once you tell me you have it and you understand it then I expect you to do it.” (laughs)

on the shelf where it stayed until a visit to Parris Island, SC to visit his nephews. “I didn’t want to have anything to do with it. So when I

Matt wasn’t able to go into great detail about his service in the Marine Corp. Suffice it to say he was involved in intelligence and if he told me too much he’d have to kill me! He did serve in the first Gulf War, however, and that experience had a major impact on his life. “You know, once people start shooting at you, you make different decisions. I didn’t realize it but I had post traumatic stress,” he confides. For 16 years Matt all but put his Marine Corp experience

“Well, the thing I really loved about the Marine Corp was when they’re done training you, at least in my experience, they said, ‘ do you have this?’ I said ‘yeah, I got it’. Well, a second later you’re expected to do it”. got down there, got down to Parris Island, and I’m looking around and I’m seeing all these values and I’m seeing the respect and integrity, and you know, the commitment, and I’m like ‘wow, I don’t remember this!’.

It was like, this is really cool that they’re teaching these guys these things, you know? But like I said I had taken my entire experience and I put it on a shelf because to me it was all bad. Right? So, I’m looking around and going, ‘well, what is it?’.

Then I started to realize that I was

taught about all these things.

That was my Marine Corp, too. But I had forgotten about that part of it. I just remembered the bad stuff.”

The following year two more of Matt’s nephews joined the Marine Corp. While visiting them Matt came across a bookstore in which he was fortuitously drawn to a particular book by a Lt. Col. Dave Grossman called On Combat: The Psychology and Physiology of Deadly Conflict in War and Peace.

Matt relates, “I start reading this book and I could not put it down. I think that some of the things that were kind of life changing for me were how he was saying during combat you may feel certain things, and he actually stated a few things.

And I said, ‘yeah, that’s how I felt.’

And he said something to me that no one ever said to me. He said it’s okay to feel that way. No one ever told me it was okay to be a Marine and to be scared. No one ever told me that. And so I thought there was something wrong with me. And I felt like I had let my buddies down.

Then somewhere in the book was the diagnostic criteria for post traumatic stress, it was like, if you are two of these or four of those, or one of these or six of these then you have post traumatic stress. And I’m reading, and I’m like, ‘oh, that’s funny, yeah I do that. Oh my god, I do that! Yeah that’s me.

Me. Me. Me!!! Holy Shit!’

And I’m realizing that. Then all the sudden the walls in my brain lifted, and I was seeing things from a much different perspective at that point. I think that’s when things really started to change for me.”

Five years on, this experience continues to resonate. “It’s been very transformative for me and the way that I treat people, and treat myself, and interact with people. It’s very

“Come see us when you just want to relax and enjoy yourself and have a dining experience that’s affordable.

And enjoyable.

That’s all I’m really after.”

important for me to tell guys coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan that it’s okay.

In fact, four of my nephews went to Afghanistan. They’re all back safe now, but it was very important for me to talk to them before they left. Because the one thing for sure that I wanted to tell them was to do whatever it takes to come home and we’ll figure it out later.

Because, you make decisions and then you question your decisions. I wanted them to know that it’s okay to do that, but don’t questions your decisions while you’re there.

Question them when you get home.” He continues, “One of my nephews, he was in Marja (Helmand Province, Afghanistan), and he had fire fights that he was a part of. When he got home I went up and I saw him, and we did what Marines do, we drank together and we talked. I don’t know, it’s hard to explain. It’s like just knowing that someone else has walked in your shoes. I think it’s comforting. I think it makes you feel like your a little less crazy. I don’t know. It’s a tough subject, but it’s a big part of who I am and why do what I do.”

It’s also a big part of what got Matt to Nashville. “When I got home, you know, I just wanted to put the Marine Corp behind me. I was having a hard time fitting in at home, because people expected me to be someone that I wasn’t and I didn’t even know who I was anymore.” He continues, “When I was in the Marine Corp, a roommate of mine was actually from Nashville, and I asked him one day, ‘how many people live in Nashville?’.

He said, ‘Nashville? In the city there’s probably about 100,000 people.’ He kind of knew what I was getting at and said, ‘yeah, we have electricity and running water, too.’ Because growing up in Massachusetts

the only thing of knew of Nashville was He-Haw and The Grand ‘Ole Opry. That’s all I knew about it.”

“I played the guitar and I sang and I wrote music. You know, I didn’t know what I would find when I got down here. I was just looking for something. I didn’t necessarily move down here to be a country singer or a country songwriter necessarily.

I just needed to find myself. So I moved down here, started working at The Wildhorse Saloon. Got a job at the front door and 8 years later I was the general manager.

Worked my way through the ranks - serving, bartending, managing.

Meanwhile, I decided to go back to school. A roommate that I had here, a very good friend of mine, he got his degree from MTSU. I decided to check it out, liked what I saw, transferred all my credits and got my degree there.”

Eventually Matt decided it was time to start a restaurant on his own, so he gathered up his hard

won experiences and set his sights on East Nashville. His business has now grown to four restaurants: Batter’d & Fried, Beyond the Edge, Watanabe, and BBQ Drifters.

Having a comfortable, family atmosphere with an affordable menu is of paramount significance to Matt.

“The most important thing to me to remember is being one of seven kids and there’s nine or ten people going out to dinner on just my father’s income. You know we were always lower middle class. We didn’t have a lot of money. And, one of the things my father always strived to do is take the fear out of cooking and to simplify a lot of complicated recipes so that people could enjoy gourmet food, but not be afraid of it.

So, when we would do catering jobs he would serve them gourmet food.

But he did it in a way where it wasn’t the most expensive thing for him to create. People got to enjoy what he did in a value type of way. And that’s one of the things I like to do too. I like the value. I like coming through the restaurant at Batter’d

and Fried and seeing a lot of families with their kids ‘cause it was always something that was just a part of life with my family.”

The road traveled begins to come full circle when Matt relates the story of his father’s first visit to Batter’d & Fried, “After I opened Batter’d and Fried my father came down, and I introduced him to some of my friends, and he said it was his life long dream to own his own restaurant. And he never did. And he said, ‘Now my son owns two!’

He’s so proud.” Upon reflection, he adds, “I had to move 1,200 miles away from my family to figure out who I was and what I wanted to do, and this moment it seems funny to me that I’m following in my father’s footsteps!”

I asked Matt to sum up what keeps moving him down the road, and after a moments consideration he said, “I remember a server once asked me about how we were doing and how things were going I replied with, ‘what’s your favorite restaurant in Nashville?”

After he told me I asked him, ‘when was the last time you were there?’

He said, ‘two and a half years ago.’ I said, ‘See!’ I don’t want to be that favorite restaurant in Nashville for that reason- because it’s the greatest restaurant in Nashville. I want to be that restaurant that you come to two or three times a week, two or three times a month.

Go to those great places for your birthday or for those special occasions but come see us everyday.

Come see us when you just want to relax and enjoy yourself and have a dining experience that’s affordable. And enjoyable. That’s all I’m really after.”

taught about all these things.

That was my Marine Corp, too. But I had forgotten about that part of it. I just remembered the bad stuff.”

The following year two more of Matt’s nephews joined the Marine Corp. While visiting them Matt came across a bookstore in which he was fortuitously drawn to a particular book by a Lt. Col. Dave Grossman called On Combat: The Psychology and Physiology of Deadly Conflict in War and Peace.

Matt relates, “I start reading this book and I could not put it down. I think that some of the things that were kind of life changing for me were how he was saying during combat you may feel certain things, and he actually stated a few things.

And I said, ‘yeah, that’s how I felt.’

And he said something to me that no one ever said to me. He said it’s okay to feel that way. No one ever told me it was okay to be a Marine and to be scared. No one ever told me that. And so I thought there was something wrong with me. And I felt like I had let my buddies down.

Then somewhere in the book was the diagnostic criteria for post traumatic stress, it was like, if you are two of these or four of those, or one of these or six of these then you have post traumatic stress. And I’m reading, and I’m like, ‘oh, that’s funny, yeah I do that. Oh my god, I do that! Yeah that’s me.

Me. Me. Me!!! Holy Shit!’

And I’m realizing that. Then all the sudden the walls in my brain lifted, and I was seeing things from a much different perspective at that point. I think that’s when things really started to change for me.”

Five years on, this experience continues to resonate. “It’s been very transformative for me and the way that I treat people, and treat myself, and interact with people. It’s very

“Come see us when you just want to relax and enjoy yourself and have a dining experience that’s affordable.

And enjoyable.

That’s all I’m really after.”

important for me to tell guys coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan that it’s okay.

In fact, four of my nephews went to Afghanistan. They’re all back safe now, but it was very important for me to talk to them before they left. Because the one thing for sure that I wanted to tell them was to do whatever it takes to come home and we’ll figure it out later.

Because, you make decisions and then you question your decisions. I wanted them to know that it’s okay to do that, but don’t questions your decisions while you’re there.

Question them when you get home.” He continues, “One of my nephews, he was in Marja (Helmand Province, Afghanistan), and he had fire fights that he was a part of. When he got home I went up and I saw him, and we did what Marines do, we drank together and we talked. I don’t know, it’s hard to explain. It’s like just knowing that someone else has walked in your shoes. I think it’s comforting. I think it makes you feel like your a little less crazy. I don’t know. It’s a tough subject, but it’s a big part of who I am and why do what I do.”

It’s also a big part of what got Matt to Nashville. “When I got home, you know, I just wanted to put the Marine Corp behind me. I was having a hard time fitting in at home, because people expected me to be someone that I wasn’t and I didn’t even know who I was anymore.” He continues, “When I was in the Marine Corp, a roommate of mine was actually from Nashville, and I asked him one day, ‘how many people live in Nashville?’.

He said, ‘Nashville? In the city there’s probably about 100,000 people.’ He kind of knew what I was getting at and said, ‘yeah, we have electricity and running water, too.’ Because growing up in Massachusetts

the only thing of knew of Nashville was He-Haw and The Grand ‘Ole Opry. That’s all I knew about it.”

“I played the guitar and I sang and I wrote music. You know, I didn’t know what I would find when I got down here. I was just looking for something. I didn’t necessarily move down here to be a country singer or a country songwriter necessarily.

I just needed to find myself. So I moved down here, started working at The Wildhorse Saloon. Got a job at the front door and 8 years later I was the general manager.

Worked my way through the ranks - serving, bartending, managing.

Meanwhile, I decided to go back to school. A roommate that I had here, a very good friend of mine, he got his degree from MTSU. I decided to check it out, liked what I saw, transferred all my credits and got my degree there.”

Eventually Matt decided it was time to start a restaurant on his own, so he gathered up his hard

won experiences and set his sights on East Nashville. His business has now grown to four restaurants: Batter’d & Fried, Beyond the Edge, Watanabe, and BBQ Drifters.

Having a comfortable, family atmosphere with an affordable menu is of paramount significance to Matt.

“The most important thing to me to remember is being one of seven kids and there’s nine or ten people going out to dinner on just my father’s income. You know we were always lower middle class. We didn’t have a lot of money. And, one of the things my father always strived to do is take the fear out of cooking and to simplify a lot of complicated recipes so that people could enjoy gourmet food, but not be afraid of it.

So, when we would do catering jobs he would serve them gourmet food.

But he did it in a way where it wasn’t the most expensive thing for him to create. People got to enjoy what he did in a value type of way. And that’s one of the things I like to do too. I like the value. I like coming through the restaurant at Batter’d

and Fried and seeing a lot of families with their kids ‘cause it was always something that was just a part of life with my family.”

The road traveled begins to come full circle when Matt relates the story of his father’s first visit to Batter’d & Fried, “After I opened Batter’d and Fried my father came down, and I introduced him to some of my friends, and he said it was his life long dream to own his own restaurant. And he never did. And he said, ‘Now my son owns two!’

He’s so proud.” Upon reflection, he adds, “I had to move 1,200 miles away from my family to figure out who I was and what I wanted to do, and this moment it seems funny to me that I’m following in my father’s footsteps!”

I asked Matt to sum up what keeps moving him down the road, and after a moments consideration he said, “I remember a server once asked me about how we were doing and how things were going I replied with, ‘what’s your favorite restaurant in Nashville?”

After he told me I asked him, ‘when was the last time you were there?’

He said, ‘two and a half years ago.’ I said, ‘See!’ I don’t want to be that favorite restaurant in Nashville for that reason- because it’s the greatest restaurant in Nashville. I want to be that restaurant that you come to two or three times a week, two or three times a month.

Go to those great places for your birthday or for those special occasions but come see us everyday.

Come see us when you just want to relax and enjoy yourself and have a dining experience that’s affordable. And enjoyable. That’s all I’m really after.”

LOU I E

By Elizabeth Chauncey Photos Chuck Allen

How a Rescued Dog got a new leash on life Interview with Kelli Reeves, Louie’s Adopted Mom & Peggy Hardin, Louie’s original finder.

w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

32

What kind of dog is Louie?

He’s a Great Pyrenees.

How and where did you find Louie?

Actually, he found us. He arrived early one morning in August 2009, covered in burs and stick tights. He was wandering, scared, around Fatherland & 6th. Peggy posted a picture of him on the East Nashville List Serve.

Describe the antics it took to actually capture him?

It took 2 couples, our mailman and another neighbor to get him into the Reeves’ car. We talked to him for a long time because he wouldn’t let anyone pull him on a leash or get too close; after some time he let us lift him into the car. We endured and cleaned up lots of chunky hotdog throw up on the way to the vet. We took him straight to our vet, Dr. Rogers* (the best!) who kept him overnight.

Were you nervous he might bite or attack at any point?

I never felt nervous around him. He mostly hid when anyone took him water and food. I was nervous at first because he was resisting a leash so hard, but after talking to him and petting him and following him a few blocks you could see there was nothing aggressive, and although scared he just didn’t seem capable of fighting; he was really submissive.

Did you anticipate keeping him from the very beginning or did that decision come later?

When his picture posted to the List Serve we just wanted to go help such a handsome guy. Thought we’d find his owner, and if not we could at least foster, but the decision to keep him came after 3 weeks.

How old and big was he when you first saw him?

He was about 18 months old according to our vet; huge but malnourished at 80lbs. He really should have been at

least 100lbs. We had to shave him bald because of the bad shape his coat was in, and once the hair was gone we saw his ribs and hips jutting out.

Had you ever taken a dog off the street before?

Yes, have always found their owners or fostered them until a better situation was found.

What was the reaction of your family and other pets to this intruder you wanted to help?

My kids thought he was fabulous right away! We doubted keeping him due to our other dogs, especially Stan, our 15yr old retriever- we didn’t want to rock his world. Stan growled and snapped at Louie for a couple of weeks so we assumed it would be fostering until we got him healed. But after 2 or 3 weeks they all started getting along great; that’s when we told the kids we could name him.

What was his reaction to them? He was nervous but really gentle; serious expression and never barked. This

changed after a few months – now he smiles all the time, is pretty funny and barks incessantly. He basically followed everyone’s lead. Standing on all fours his head was taller than our breakfast table but he didn’t even try to take any food.

At what point, and why, did you think he’d make a good therapy dog?

We’ve been around a lot of dogs, but Louie seemed like he should be shared. H doesn’t lick, lunge, take food, jump, or move fast in anyway. He’s just a giant fur ball ready to be petted and hugged. I became aware of the role of therapy dogs when a family member suffered a traumatic brain injury and a German Shepherd became an integral part of his rehab. That gave us the initial idea, but a long string of coincidences pointed to training for therapy. He’s basically a beautiful dog that makes people ooh and aah.

Was the training program a difficult, long and expensive process?

Because he was a rescue, Nashville Dog Training Club gives a great discount for their first class, and because he was so well mannered and eager to please, the trainers there allowed him to jump right into level 2 obedience training. Dogs have to pass 2 levels of obedience training before they can take a therapy training class. We took our therapy course (DELTA pet partners) with Therapy ARC out of Franklin, which was 6 weeks and not too expensive considering the hours. It was definitely more complicated than I thought it would be, but incredibly rewarding and stunning to realize how many dogs are out there lifting people’s spirits in nursing homes, hospice, hospitals, addiction centers, etc. At this point, the difficult/ expensive part is simply his grooming. Delta policy requires he is fully groomed within 24 hrs of any visit, and with a Great Pyrenees that’s a good 3 hours of brushing & bathing!

Kelli and Louie Hangin’ Out!

At what point is he currently in his training?

We passed our Delta testing back in November and were classified for ‘complex environments’ which is basically the highest category, so I was pretty proud. We just finished up Vanderbilt’s volunteer process which started at the end of Feb; he’s been assigned to Vandy’s Pediatric Rehab center on Friday mornings. There are over 40 dogs working within Vanderbilt alone – they really believe in the program and the difference it makes!

More information about Therapy ARC can be found at www.therapyarc.org More information about Nashville Dog Training Club and their obedience training program can be found at www.nashvilledog.org If you are interested in adopting a Great Pyrenees please contact Big Fluffy Dog Rescue at www.bigfluffydogs.com.

Jean@bigfluffydogs.com runs the local arm of this great organization. *Dr. Rogers is at Hillsboro Animal Hospital.

LOU I E

By Elizabeth Chauncey Photos Chuck Allen

How a Rescued Dog got a new leash on life Interview with Kelli Reeves, Louie’s Adopted Mom & Peggy Hardin, Louie’s original finder.

w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

32

What kind of dog is Louie?

He’s a Great Pyrenees.

How and where did you find Louie?

Actually, he found us. He arrived early one morning in August 2009, covered in burs and stick tights. He was wandering, scared, around Fatherland & 6th. Peggy posted a picture of him on the East Nashville List Serve.

Describe the antics it took to actually capture him?

It took 2 couples, our mailman and another neighbor to get him into the Reeves’ car. We talked to him for a long time because he wouldn’t let anyone pull him on a leash or get too close; after some time he let us lift him into the car. We endured and cleaned up lots of chunky hotdog throw up on the way to the vet. We took him straight to our vet, Dr. Rogers* (the best!) who kept him overnight.

Were you nervous he might bite or attack at any point?

I never felt nervous around him. He mostly hid when anyone took him water and food. I was nervous at first because he was resisting a leash so hard, but after talking to him and petting him and following him a few blocks you could see there was nothing aggressive, and although scared he just didn’t seem capable of fighting; he was really submissive.

Did you anticipate keeping him from the very beginning or did that decision come later?

When his picture posted to the List Serve we just wanted to go help such a handsome guy. Thought we’d find his owner, and if not we could at least foster, but the decision to keep him came after 3 weeks.

How old and big was he when you first saw him?

He was about 18 months old according to our vet; huge but malnourished at 80lbs. He really should have been at

least 100lbs. We had to shave him bald because of the bad shape his coat was in, and once the hair was gone we saw his ribs and hips jutting out.

Had you ever taken a dog off the street before?

Yes, have always found their owners or fostered them until a better situation was found.

What was the reaction of your family and other pets to this intruder you wanted to help?

My kids thought he was fabulous right away! We doubted keeping him due to our other dogs, especially Stan, our 15yr old retriever- we didn’t want to rock his world. Stan growled and snapped at Louie for a couple of weeks so we assumed it would be fostering until we got him healed. But after 2 or 3 weeks they all started getting along great; that’s when we told the kids we could name him.

What was his reaction to them? He was nervous but really gentle; serious expression and never barked. This

changed after a few months – now he smiles all the time, is pretty funny and barks incessantly. He basically followed everyone’s lead. Standing on all fours his head was taller than our breakfast table but he didn’t even try to take any food.

At what point, and why, did you think he’d make a good therapy dog?

We’ve been around a lot of dogs, but Louie seemed like he should be shared. H doesn’t lick, lunge, take food, jump, or move fast in anyway. He’s just a giant fur ball ready to be petted and hugged. I became aware of the role of therapy dogs when a family member suffered a traumatic brain injury and a German Shepherd became an integral part of his rehab. That gave us the initial idea, but a long string of coincidences pointed to training for therapy. He’s basically a beautiful dog that makes people ooh and aah.

Was the training program a difficult, long and expensive process?

Because he was a rescue, Nashville Dog Training Club gives a great discount for their first class, and because he was so well mannered and eager to please, the trainers there allowed him to jump right into level 2 obedience training. Dogs have to pass 2 levels of obedience training before they can take a therapy training class. We took our therapy course (DELTA pet partners) with Therapy ARC out of Franklin, which was 6 weeks and not too expensive considering the hours. It was definitely more complicated than I thought it would be, but incredibly rewarding and stunning to realize how many dogs are out there lifting people’s spirits in nursing homes, hospice, hospitals, addiction centers, etc. At this point, the difficult/ expensive part is simply his grooming. Delta policy requires he is fully groomed within 24 hrs of any visit, and with a Great Pyrenees that’s a good 3 hours of brushing & bathing!

Kelli and Louie Hangin’ Out!

At what point is he currently in his training?

We passed our Delta testing back in November and were classified for ‘complex environments’ which is basically the highest category, so I was pretty proud. We just finished up Vanderbilt’s volunteer process which started at the end of Feb; he’s been assigned to Vandy’s Pediatric Rehab center on Friday mornings. There are over 40 dogs working within Vanderbilt alone – they really believe in the program and the difference it makes!

More information about Therapy ARC can be found at www.therapyarc.org More information about Nashville Dog Training Club and their obedience training program can be found at www.nashvilledog.org If you are interested in adopting a Great Pyrenees please contact Big Fluffy Dog Rescue at www.bigfluffydogs.com.

Jean@bigfluffydogs.com runs the local arm of this great organization. *Dr. Rogers is at Hillsboro Animal Hospital.

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Commander Bob Nash A Friend in High Places Shaking East Precinct Commander Bob Nashâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hand

â&#x20AC;&#x153;I asked myself, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Where else can I deal with a bunch of people who are inebriated a lot?â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;? Nash recalls with a twinkle. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I said, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Policing! Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a great connection to the music business.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;?

Police work fit Nash for many reasons. The son of a hosiery mill superintendent in small-town Western New York, he grew up with a no-nonsense communal approach to law keepingâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;everyone in the neighborhood watched over each otherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s kids to make sure they didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get into trouble. His uncle and brother were already on the police force, so it seemed natural to enter the police academy and complete a Bachelorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s degree in criminal justice at Middle Tennessee State University.

Nash also credits the improvements to good families who, over the past decade, have moved into older, blighted homes, taken the boards off the windows and fixed them up. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I tell everybody, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s worth a whole squad of policemen when you put people in homes who take ownership of their neighborhood, who say, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not going to do that in my front yard; Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m calling the police,â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;? Nash says. In fact, he hopes neighborhoods will leverage good, old-fashioned social pressure to help curtail youth crime. â&#x20AC;&#x153;None of these kids come from Mars,â&#x20AC;? he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They are children of our neighbors. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re friends; theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re relatives. Most everyone in the neighborhood knows that little Jimmy is a problem. To the extent that we can rebuild communities, and people do feel comfortable talking to their neighbor, or a grandmother, aunt or uncle, we can do a lot to bring the same community pressure that kept me in line, and get these kids back on the right path.â&#x20AC;?

Nashâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s job is certainly tough at timesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hard to stomach crimes that affect the many friends heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s made in East Nashville. â&#x20AC;&#x153;When itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s your friends involved or it impacts their neighborhoods, it can really weigh on you,â&#x20AC;? he says.

Close to Home But Nash doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t bring his police work home to the South Nashville residence where heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lived for 30 years. The family man loves spending quality time with his wife Barbara, their three childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;his son is also a policemanâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and three small grandchildren. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Grandparenting is nothing but the good times,â&#x20AC;? he says.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;No one ever comes in here and shakes their finger, saying, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;What are you doing about this?â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;? Nash says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They say, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the problem; what can we do together to solve it?â&#x20AC;&#x2122;

But thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just his resume. When you ask him his favorite part of the job, heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s quick to praise the residents and community groups who are actively engaged in improving East Nashvilleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s quality of life, folks he long ago began to call his friends. â&#x20AC;&#x153;No one ever comes in here and shakes their finger, saying, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;What are you doing about this?â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;? Nash says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They say, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the problem; what can we do together to solve it?â&#x20AC;&#x2122; And that makes it a lot of fun.â&#x20AC;?

Music Man When Nash moved to Nashville in 1977, it wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t to fight crime. Instead, like many hopefuls before him, he dreamed of drawing crowds to hear him sing. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d just finished six years of what he calls a â&#x20AC;&#x153;hotel, motel circuit where I was the guy in the corner with a guitar,â&#x20AC;? and planned to

After a friend helped him get a job with the department, Nash settled into a career at South Patrol; he logged 13 years in patrol and six years as sergeant on patrol. He was then promoted to lieutenant over sex abuse for several years, followed by a promotion to captain and five years in planning.

While there, his team was instrumental in implementing the CompStat, the weekly accountability meeting of precinct and division commanders Nashville-wide.

In 2006 he was promoted to commander of the East Precinct when his predecessor, Commander Danny Baker, retired. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I had never really worked over here before, but the communities are so engaged,â&#x20AC;? Nash says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The community groups had been very active long before I got here, trying to improve quality of life and rehabilitate some neighborhoods that have been blighted.â&#x20AC;?

The citizensâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; efforts and willingness to work with police, Nash believes, are why crime has steadily dropped in East Nashville over much of his

Photo by Chuck Allen

w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

36

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Hi, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m Nash,â&#x20AC;? he says, and the simple introduction bespeaks a quiet confidence.

After 33 years in the police force, Nash doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t need to flaunt his title. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s climbed the ranks from patrol officer in South Nashville to commander of the East Precinct where he now oversees 130 officers and devotes himself to reducing crime and the fear of crime on the East Side.

He previously headed up the departmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Strategic Development Division and served as commissioner for the Tennessee Peace Officers Standards and Training Commission.

Today he serves as a board member on the Tennessee Sex Offender Treatment Board, Street Works, and the Nashville Prevention Partnership.

make it big in Music City. But newly married, he soon realized he needed a real job.

Photo by Carolyn Manney

is much less intimidating than I expected. When he greets me on a sunny Tuesday morning at the East Precinct of the Metro Nashville Police Department, he looks the part: tall and clean-cut with steely gray hair and immaculate black uniform. But his friendliness offsets the guns heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wearing.

By Andrea Bailey Willits

tenure. Nash meets weekly with groups like Concerned Citizens of South Inglewood, Lockeland Springs Neighborhood Association or resident Bob Acuff, organizer of a popular neighborhood watch e-mail service, to swap information and suggestions for keeping their neighborhoods safe.

In his free time he jogs, fishes and dabbles in musicâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;just for fun. Every year, he and three other musicians from the department get together to play for the annual police benefit. And he recently sang at the opening of the Kirkpatrick Elementary School gym, leading the kids in a rousing rendition of â&#x20AC;&#x153;If I Had a Hammer.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;The music business brought me here initially, and now as Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m looking at changing careers again, getting in the twilight of my police career, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m picking up the music a little more and really enjoying it,â&#x20AC;? Nash says.

In the meantime, however, his goal is unchanged: Reduce crime and the fear of crime in East Nashville, and maintain the esteemed ties heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s established with its residents and community groups. Through a distinguished track record, Nash has proved to be the friend East Nashvillians want to stand beside them in tough times, and he feels the same way about them. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Working together, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve made tremendous progress and hopefully weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll see that progress continue,â&#x20AC;? he says.

Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t Be a Victim!

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Commander Bob Nash A Friend in High Places Shaking East Precinct Commander Bob Nashâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hand

â&#x20AC;&#x153;I asked myself, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Where else can I deal with a bunch of people who are inebriated a lot?â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;? Nash recalls with a twinkle. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I said, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Policing! Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a great connection to the music business.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;?

Police work fit Nash for many reasons. The son of a hosiery mill superintendent in small-town Western New York, he grew up with a no-nonsense communal approach to law keepingâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;everyone in the neighborhood watched over each otherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s kids to make sure they didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get into trouble. His uncle and brother were already on the police force, so it seemed natural to enter the police academy and complete a Bachelorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s degree in criminal justice at Middle Tennessee State University.

Nash also credits the improvements to good families who, over the past decade, have moved into older, blighted homes, taken the boards off the windows and fixed them up. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I tell everybody, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s worth a whole squad of policemen when you put people in homes who take ownership of their neighborhood, who say, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not going to do that in my front yard; Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m calling the police,â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;? Nash says. In fact, he hopes neighborhoods will leverage good, old-fashioned social pressure to help curtail youth crime. â&#x20AC;&#x153;None of these kids come from Mars,â&#x20AC;? he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They are children of our neighbors. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re friends; theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re relatives. Most everyone in the neighborhood knows that little Jimmy is a problem. To the extent that we can rebuild communities, and people do feel comfortable talking to their neighbor, or a grandmother, aunt or uncle, we can do a lot to bring the same community pressure that kept me in line, and get these kids back on the right path.â&#x20AC;?

Nashâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s job is certainly tough at timesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hard to stomach crimes that affect the many friends heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s made in East Nashville. â&#x20AC;&#x153;When itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s your friends involved or it impacts their neighborhoods, it can really weigh on you,â&#x20AC;? he says.

Close to Home But Nash doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t bring his police work home to the South Nashville residence where heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lived for 30 years. The family man loves spending quality time with his wife Barbara, their three childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;his son is also a policemanâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and three small grandchildren. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Grandparenting is nothing but the good times,â&#x20AC;? he says.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;No one ever comes in here and shakes their finger, saying, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;What are you doing about this?â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;? Nash says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They say, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the problem; what can we do together to solve it?â&#x20AC;&#x2122;

But thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just his resume. When you ask him his favorite part of the job, heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s quick to praise the residents and community groups who are actively engaged in improving East Nashvilleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s quality of life, folks he long ago began to call his friends. â&#x20AC;&#x153;No one ever comes in here and shakes their finger, saying, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;What are you doing about this?â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;? Nash says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They say, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the problem; what can we do together to solve it?â&#x20AC;&#x2122; And that makes it a lot of fun.â&#x20AC;?

Music Man When Nash moved to Nashville in 1977, it wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t to fight crime. Instead, like many hopefuls before him, he dreamed of drawing crowds to hear him sing. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d just finished six years of what he calls a â&#x20AC;&#x153;hotel, motel circuit where I was the guy in the corner with a guitar,â&#x20AC;? and planned to

After a friend helped him get a job with the department, Nash settled into a career at South Patrol; he logged 13 years in patrol and six years as sergeant on patrol. He was then promoted to lieutenant over sex abuse for several years, followed by a promotion to captain and five years in planning.

While there, his team was instrumental in implementing the CompStat, the weekly accountability meeting of precinct and division commanders Nashville-wide.

In 2006 he was promoted to commander of the East Precinct when his predecessor, Commander Danny Baker, retired. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I had never really worked over here before, but the communities are so engaged,â&#x20AC;? Nash says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The community groups had been very active long before I got here, trying to improve quality of life and rehabilitate some neighborhoods that have been blighted.â&#x20AC;?

The citizensâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; efforts and willingness to work with police, Nash believes, are why crime has steadily dropped in East Nashville over much of his

Photo by Chuck Allen

w w w. t h e e a s t n a s h v i l l i a n . c o m

36

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Hi, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m Nash,â&#x20AC;? he says, and the simple introduction bespeaks a quiet confidence.

After 33 years in the police force, Nash doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t need to flaunt his title. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s climbed the ranks from patrol officer in South Nashville to commander of the East Precinct where he now oversees 130 officers and devotes himself to reducing crime and the fear of crime on the East Side.

He previously headed up the departmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Strategic Development Division and served as commissioner for the Tennessee Peace Officers Standards and Training Commission.

Today he serves as a board member on the Tennessee Sex Offender Treatment Board, Street Works, and the Nashville Prevention Partnership.

make it big in Music City. But newly married, he soon realized he needed a real job.

Photo by Carolyn Manney

is much less intimidating than I expected. When he greets me on a sunny Tuesday morning at the East Precinct of the Metro Nashville Police Department, he looks the part: tall and clean-cut with steely gray hair and immaculate black uniform. But his friendliness offsets the guns heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wearing.

By Andrea Bailey Willits

tenure. Nash meets weekly with groups like Concerned Citizens of South Inglewood, Lockeland Springs Neighborhood Association or resident Bob Acuff, organizer of a popular neighborhood watch e-mail service, to swap information and suggestions for keeping their neighborhoods safe.

In his free time he jogs, fishes and dabbles in musicâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;just for fun. Every year, he and three other musicians from the department get together to play for the annual police benefit. And he recently sang at the opening of the Kirkpatrick Elementary School gym, leading the kids in a rousing rendition of â&#x20AC;&#x153;If I Had a Hammer.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;The music business brought me here initially, and now as Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m looking at changing careers again, getting in the twilight of my police career, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m picking up the music a little more and really enjoying it,â&#x20AC;? Nash says.

In the meantime, however, his goal is unchanged: Reduce crime and the fear of crime in East Nashville, and maintain the esteemed ties heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s established with its residents and community groups. Through a distinguished track record, Nash has proved to be the friend East Nashvillians want to stand beside them in tough times, and he feels the same way about them. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Working together, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve made tremendous progress and hopefully weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll see that progress continue,â&#x20AC;? he says.

Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t Be a Victim!

Easy ways to protect yourself from crime Â&#x2021; 6HFXUH \RXU KRPH /RFN DOO GRRUV DQG ZLQGRZV Â&#x2021; ,GHQWLI\ YDOXDEOH LWHPV .HHS D OLVW RI VHULDO QXPEHUV Â&#x2021; :DWFK RXW IRU \RXU QHLJKERUV 'RQ¡W EH DIUDLG WR UHSRUW VRPHWKLQJ RXW RI WKH RUGLQDU\ Â&#x2021; /RFN \RXU YHKLFOH /RFN \RXU ODSWRS *36 L3RG RU RWKHU YDOXDEOHV LQ WKH WUXQN RU JORYH FRPSDUWPHQW Â&#x2021; 'RQ¡W OHDYH \RXU FDU XQDWWHQGHG ZKLOH LW ZDUPV XS

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