Stories from Sunday, January 3, 2010

How was your Christmas? On the first day back to work, it's the first thing everyone says, the number one water-cooler opener, even eclipsing "Can you believe Natalie won Survivor?" and "What in the world happened to the Manning brothers last weekend?"...

Pam White Martin's words continued to run through my head for days after I interviewed her a couple of weeks ago. "In order to be blessed, you have to be a blessing," she said. Pam, a local nail technician, tries to live by this philosophy, but specifically, she was referring to a service project with which she got her students involved. ...

This month, relish® Magazine kicks off the new year with an abundance of recipes that will help you stick to those New Year's resolutions. Urging readers to "Lighten Up," the magazine, which will be included in your copy of the Times-Gazette Friday, Jan. 8, features lower calorie classic dishes...

On the track, they're ferocious animals determined to reach the finish line first. The lean, 80-pound creatures cover ground at upwards of 45 miles per hour and nothing will stop them until the 45-second race is over. But, off the track, it's another story...

A wrecker reported stolen from Ashland City was found behind a Shelbyville auto dealership Wednesday, police said. The wrecker, with towing equipment removed, had been at Victory Nissan, U.S. 231 North, since at least Monday, an employee told police...

Tonya Davis has announced her candidacy for Bedford County Trustee in the May 4 Democratic Primary. Davis, a Bedford County native, is a 1975 graduate of Central High School and a graduate of Murfressboro Barber College. Davis, an experienced business woman, has owned and operated her own business for over 30 years. She has the experience of running a business, including managing employees, state and federal tax preparation, various recordkeeping, bookkeeping and working with the public...

A total of five findings were highlighted in the state's annual audit of the county's books that was released this week, which noted problems with account balances and computer issues with the office of zoning and building inspections. The Comptroller of the Treasury for Tennessee released the nearly 300-page audit on Wednesday for the fiscal year ended on June 30, 2009...

In 1947, you couldn't get from Flat Creek to Shelbyville as quickly as you can now. The Internet hadn't even been thought of in the science fiction pulp magazines that were flooding the news stands, and many places still had a party line, so "conference" calling was a matter of bad manners, not good business...

ATLANTA -- The 2009 version of the Chik-fil-A Bowl had an, oh, so familiar look and feel for the Tennessee Volunteers. First, the Vols fell behind. Then, when it looked like momentum was swinging their way, bad breaks and depth concerns reappeared and kept them from catching up...

A flume collapse which inconvenienced drivers for weeks was the top local story of 2009, according to a panel of Times-Gazette staff members. Placing a close second was a mortgage fraud scheme that caused local residents to lose their homes...

It's that time of year again ... we've spent too much money on Christmas and we've also gained too much weight as a result of the overindulging that began back in November. How about a solution for both problems? You might find one in Peasant Soup, a recipe I came across by way of my friend, Mary Ann Davis. ...