Stories from Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Roguishly disheveled hair. Check. Black tuxedo t-shirt. Check. Million dollar smile that makes the ladies swoon--complete with glistening fangs and enough blood it looks like I've slaughtered a small mammal. Check, check, and check. I may not sparkle, but I am one smooth vampire...

Have you ever come across a dead body on the road? Well, I have, and I was scared out of my wits. It all started on Friday, October 13, 2018. I was walking home on Skyview Road when I saw a chilling sight. There was a dead body in the middle of the road! I screamed as loud as a trucker's horn!...

I knew it would come. There was no escaping. I thought I could outsmart it. I was wrong. Weeks earlier I heard that the wraith would come for my family. When I ran home to tell them, I was too late. They were gone. Since then, all I could do was run and hide, praying it wouldn't find me. I had been all over the hill country, staying in almost every household that would have me. I would never stay for more than a night, because if I did, I might put innocent people's lives at risk...

Local talents were on display Friday and Saturday night as the Relay for Life "Strength in Numbers" team put on the production Music 'N Memories. Despite some electrical issues during the production's opening moments, the performances soon sounded off--some characters reacting to the loss of power with impromptu dialogue and reactions...

A former employee of Calsonic (now CalsonicKansei) and Century Mold in Shelbyville is one of the founders of the fastest-growing company in Tennessee and the seventh-fastest-growing company in the nation, according to Inc. magazine. Inc. released its annual Inc. 5,000 list in August, and recognized some of the top firms with an awards ceremony earlier this month in Washington...

This month's Seasonal Eating presentation at the University of Tennessee Extension on Midland Road had a Halloween theme -- but that doesn't always have to mean sweets, as Whitney Danhof explained. A creative touch can theme savory dishes for the holiday, especially those that are already appropriate to fall...

Once again, the entries in the Times-Gazette's annual ghost story and spooky drawing contest have delighted and frightened us with their creativity Suza Murata, 10, won the spooky drawing contest with an imaginative haunted house, including not only ghosts but carnivorous plants reminiscent of the one in "Little Shop of Horrors." There's also a witch, a spider, and a hand emerging from the grave, and the house itself has a menacing visage...

If you are going to go into business for yourself, who better to trust than a member of your family? That's the concept behind Two Sisters Travel Company, which opened up in July at 2529 Highway 41A South. Lisa Armstrong, a Certified Travel Counselor, has worked in the business for 20 years at Celebration Travel, and had been wanting "for quite a while to go out and do my own thing."...

Cancer patients will soon be able to spend much less time dealing with radiation treatments with the addition of the latest medical technology in Tullahoma. By the start of 2014, Community Cancer Care in Tullahoma will have the Trilogy system on site -- used for treating cancer with image-guided radiotherapy and radiosurgery...

The Middle Tennessee Business Networking group heard from renowned motivational speaker Steve Thorne last week. Looking to improve your business? Below are a few tips to get started...

It's beginning to look a lot like a crafty Christmas season. Several Christmas craft fairs are on the horizon: the second Walking for the Angels Christmas Village and Horse Show on Saturday, Nov. 2 the Unionville Volunteer Fire Department's Ladies Auxiliary Christmas Craft Village on Saturday, Nov. 9; and the Bedford County Fair Christmas Village on Saturday, Nov. 23...

A man suddenly entered a vehicle and robbed the driver of $450 on Union Street early Friday night, Shelbyville police were told. The victim said she was exiting a parking lot when the man appeared and demanded her money and jewelry. He ran toward Horseshoe Drive after being given the cash, she told police...

Back in the days when point-and-shoot digital cameras were really taking off, my pastor at the time called me. He was thinking of buying a camera for his daughter and asked me for some general tips of what to look for. I told him about megapixels -- more megapixels means a higher resolution, which means you can blow the photo up to a larger size. ...

Michael Swift rides his four-wheel off-road vehicle in a previous event. Swift will compete solo in the 922-mile Baja 1000 race next month in Ensenada, Mexico. Michael Swift of Shelbyville, who races four-wheel off-road vehicles, will compete solo in the grueling, 922-mile Baja 1000 race next month in Ensenada, Mexico...

Authorities statewide are continuing taking steps to help curb the number of traffic fatalities in Tennessee. As of Oct. 17, there have been 800 people killed on Tennessee roadways in 2013 -- the same number of fatalities this same time last year. However, in Bedford County, there have been 14 fatal accidents so far this year, compared to just five at the same time in 2012...

Gun ownership may be a constitutional right, but gun safety is a responsibility, one instructor says. "It is the most unsafe when it is not in your possession," said Rick Gann, owner of Defensive Options Strategies and a corporal with the Bedford County Sheriff's Office who trains police in gun use...

Bedford County participates in a national pet rescue program that has resulted in saving more than 2,000 local dogs and puppies over a five-year period. The PetSmart Charities Rescue Waggin' program transported 2,046 dogs and puppies to new homes between 2008 and August of this year, said Christina Tucker, director of Bedford County Animal Control...

Hoping to win their second game of the 2013 season, the Cascade Middle Lady Champions tipped off against the Moore County Raiderettes on Tuesday night in Wartrace. Although the Lady Champs kept it close after the first half, Moore County hit its stride in the second half and pulled away for the 34-17 win...

For three quarters on Tuesday night, the Moore County Raiders were able to mobilize an effective offense against the Cascade Champions. Even though the game's scoring pace ground to a screeching halt in the fourth quarter, Moore County had built enough of a lead through the previous three quarters to claim the 43-33 win over the Champions...

The Community Middle Viqueens rode a 14-point, fourth-quarter rally to claim a 39-37 win over cross-county rival Liberty on Monday night to keep their undefeated season alive. The Viqueens spread the attack in the fourth quarter and rallied past the Lady Patriots, outscoring the visitors 14-7 in the final frame...

The Liberty Patriots just had too many weapons for the Community Vikings to contain. Liberty was able to find offensive success throughout the lineup in a 41-28 victory over the Community Vikings on Monday night. Though the first quarter was a seesaw affair, a scoreless second quarter for the Purple and Gold proved to be the undoing for the home team...

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- A mid-game adjustment was key to the Minnesota Wild earning two points Tuesday night. Moved to the top line, Justin Fontaine scored late in the second period, Josh Harding stopped 16 shots for his first shutout of the season and the Wild beat the Nashville Predators 2-0...

The bounty had reached $9,000 and those wanting to collect converged in an alley near the Los Santos freeway. I was late to the bullet festival, and as I exited my vehicle, the sound of automatic weapons fire and screaming from civilians filled the air...

Siblings Seth Owens (13), Dakota Owens (10), Jasmine Owens (9) and Brooklyn Owens (7) are conducting a coat drive for families in need through Oct. 31. The children came up with the idea on their own. If you have used outerwear in good condition, call the children's mother, Angela Bomar, at 931-580-3687 for pickup...

The Rev. Emmanuel Conduah recently visited the Shelbyville area to attend the St. William Catholic Church Festival, staying with his adopted American family, Tom, Luci and Lloyd Taylor. Conduah is from Ghana, Africa, where he is a priest and a school teacher. He took time during his recent trip to visit two local schools, Liberty School and Learning Way Elementary...

Bedford County Financial Management Committee, meeting Tuesday evening, approved routine budget amendments for several county budgets, including the county general fund, the highway department and the school system. Mid-year budget amendments shift money between accounts, or free up money from fund balances, to account for revenues and/or expenses that weren't anticipated when the original budget was drafted...

Bedford County Board of Commissioners' courthouse and county property viewed conceptual drawings Tuesday night for an ambitious plan to build a jail and justice center. County zoning director Chris White, who had been asked to research jail sites, has proposed a short list of three sites, but the most ambitious -- and the one upon which the conceptual drawing was based -- would be a few blocks east of the courthouse square...

In games like Tuesday night's Shelbyville-Oakland clash, it's unfair a team goes home with a loss. They played to a 3-3 tie at the end of regulation but Oakland's Lady Patriots came out on top, scoring a goal in the second overtime period in the Region 4-AAA semifinals...

The 48th Annual Semmes-McKenzie Lions Bowl freshmen football game will be played on Thursday at Wilkins Stadium in Tullahoma. This year's bowl will be a doubleheader, featuring four of the top freshmen football teams in the mid-state area. The first game will start at 6 p.m. when the Murfreesboro Riverdale Warriors play the Mount Juliette Golden Bears. The second game will begin at 8 p.m. and feature the Franklin County Rebels and the Shelbyville Golden Eagles...

Erich Kyle Kosel, 41, of Jonesboro, Ind., died Saturday, Oct. 19, 2013, in Marion, Ind. He was the brother of Janice Boshers of Shelbyville. Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m.Saturday, Oct. 26 =at Westview Wesleyan Church in Jonesboro with the Rev. Jim Sexton officiating. Burial, at a later time, will be at Marion National Cemetery. Visitation will be held from 4 -- 8 p.m. Friday at Needham-Storey-Wampner Funeral Service, Gas City, Ind.