Damn… things are slow, aren’t they?
August 16th, 2006 by Atomictumor
So, I’m finding a distinct lack of things to post about. Actually, seems like theres a lack of things to TALK about.
My thinking is that its post election blues, but I’m not sure why that’d be the case. However, looking through all of the local blogs, we all seem to be suffering from the same thing. Interesting.
I started doing this blogging thing late into the game, not even a year ago (almost a year ago… we’re gonna have a party, but Eaves is in charge of that…), and at the time the only online game in town that I knew of was the one on the Oak Ridger Forums. Today we’ve got 4 Oak Ridge centric blogs (that I know of, if there are more, please lemme know), and probably a half dozen Anderson County blogs, along with the old OR forums crib. Most of the AC ones are political, and purely political blogs are, in my eyes, kinda boring, and sometimes just downright weird.
By god, I think we’re getting ourselves an online community.
And thats damn good. Oak Ridge, is, to me, an example of what an American city COULD be. Its got a small town, comfortable feel, but enough amenities to where you really don’t have to leave town if you don’t want to. Traffic’s not that bad. Kids can ride bikes to where they’re going. Highschoolers can meet up with classmates at the park for a massive game of frisbee, or they can head to see a movie (with cheaper matinee prices than Knoxville theaters, woot). Theres a local pizza shop with great atmosphere (and overpriced, somewhat bland pizza, alas), a slowly growing local shop scene, and almost a counterculture (if you mention the skater kids).
Its the perfect town. Yeah, we can bitch about the schools, and the politicians, but all in all, its damn good livin.
Problem is, its in the shadow of Knoxville.
Knoxville, to me, is like an old broken Vegas showgirl. She had plenty of chances to hit it big, and failed at each one. Hell, the last World Fair (which used to mean something, read Devil in the White City) was in Knoxville, and the town doesn’t give a damn anymore. It is trying to do a downtown explosion in the same vein as Chattanooga’s downtown rebirth in the ’90s, but just can’t seem to get it right. All of the factors are there, they’re just not mixing.
Its the home of a massive college, but gets few cultural events (concerts, showings, unique stores). Its like a southern Des Moines. The Simpsons completely called it right.
And, unfortunately, its the town that Oak Ridge orbits, although it does its best not to notice. It seems that Anderson County, and Oak Ridge news rarely makes the paper. The paper advertises Blount County, and Maryville, almost as if it is part of the metro area, but you have to dig a bit to find anything about Oak Ridge other than the occasional news about the labs, or the high school football team.
Do I have a point? Probably not. Its been that kind of week, tho, and I feel like picking a fight with K-Town. Bring it…
August 16th, 2006 at 8:12 am
“It seems that Anderson County, and Oak Ridge news rarely makes the paper.”
I agree completely. I think that the News-Sentinel did a great disservice to their Anderson County subscribers by eliminating the Anderson Co section from the Sunday newspaper. When we did subscribe, it was just the weekend editions, and I always enjoyed Bob Fowler’s take on things.
August 16th, 2006 at 8:13 am
Oh yeah, I do have one thought about the party, but you may not like it. It involves bland, overpriced pizza.
August 16th, 2006 at 8:32 am
Hey, thats a great idea! Maybe we’s can have overpriced domestic beer while we’re at it!
No, seriously, that is a pretty damn good idea…. we’d have to do it sometime when there’s not a lotta business.
August 16th, 2006 at 8:38 am
AT, I thought we were boycotting them since they screwed us over for the pizzas for WB.
August 16th, 2006 at 8:38 am
I’m not opposed to a weekend lunch, or even a weeknight thing. Let’s definitely avoid it on a Friday or Saturday night, though.
August 16th, 2006 at 8:40 am
Barley’s would be a lot more fun, if it weren’t all the way in Knoxville. Then we could play pool, be loud and drink really good beer.
August 16th, 2006 at 8:46 am
Oh, right, I forgot about that. Yeah, Big Ed’s goes back on their word, so thats not what we wanna do. Barley’s sounds nice, but dunno about the K town thing. Anybody else have an opinion?
August 16th, 2006 at 8:47 am
I agree that it would be a lot more fun, but isn’t that catering to the old broken Vegas showgirl? We certainly don’t have to do Big Ed’s, but I’d personally rather stay around here.
August 16th, 2006 at 8:48 am
GAC, that’s an ironic suggestion given the post. Heh, It’d be a shame if we couldn’t celebrate our o.r. blog…in o.r.
August 16th, 2006 at 8:49 am
Actually, call me a weenie, but I’m willing to give Big Ed’s a second chance. I like the pizza, and it’s one of the few eating establishments in OR that actually has an atmosphere.
August 16th, 2006 at 8:49 am
Missus, aren’t you supposed to be working???
August 16th, 2006 at 8:52 am
Hush yourself.
August 16th, 2006 at 8:55 am
Yeah yeah yeah, it’s in Knoxville, that old whore.
I was just thinking out loud. Too bad there’s not something like that in OR.
There just aren’t any really good places in OR to do something like this. I mean, if we actually get people other than us four (plus children) then we need to have it in a place with room to move about. Ruby Tuesday or something of that ilk just wouldn’t work.
I’d totally be up for having it at our place, but for the cat situation. Mrs, if I cleaned really, really good and vacuumed all the cat hair off the couch and locked them in a seperate room, would you still have a reaction?
August 16th, 2006 at 8:58 am
I’d rather not have it at our place.
August 16th, 2006 at 8:59 am
I honestly don’t know how I’d react to the cats. I can always just go outside if I have a problem.
I think that there are benefits to going somewhere public, like a restaurant, and that there are also benefits to having it at someone’s house. I’d like to hear what other folks have to say.
August 16th, 2006 at 9:00 am
You don’t want to see the Missus after cat hair gets her…
August 16th, 2006 at 9:07 am
Any particular reason, AT?
Here, we could be (pretty much) as loud as we wanted to be. We could drink whatever beer we want to, at vastly cheaper prices than anywhere else. We are guaranteed good food, instead of a crap-shoot where not everyone’s going to be happy with what they get. We have a room full of toys and shelves full of movies to entertain the kids instead of constantly telling them to sit down, eat your food, quit being so loud, etc.
Don’t get me wrong. I like to idea of going somewhere, too, I just don’t think OR has a lot to offer.
August 16th, 2006 at 9:07 am
I’m game for Big Ed’s.
However… is there any reason why we couldn’t drag a grill to one of our magnificent parks? Fire laws, perhaps?
August 16th, 2006 at 9:08 am
I don’t want to subject Mrs to cats, though. I saw her sneezing fit just being around that one blanket at the pic-a-nic. And I wouldn’t want to relegate you to my backyard, either, Mrs.
August 16th, 2006 at 9:23 am
I’m not sure if we could have a grill at a park or not, but beer is definitely verboten.
Of course, I guess we don’t have to have beer…
August 16th, 2006 at 9:47 am
There was a World’s Fair in New Orleans in 1984. That was the last US participation. In 2002, the USA had its membership in the Bureau of International Expositions (BIE - the sanctioning body of the World’s Fair) withdrawn due to non-allocation of funds by Congress. The US quietly becomes more egocentric and disconnected from the world. I know I as a citizen did not realize until today that we, as a country, no longer participate in the World’s Fair which dates back to 1851. Way to be world leader!
August 16th, 2006 at 9:52 am
We’d just be spanked by the national healthcare-havin’, ethnically diverse (and cool with it), technologically superior for’ners.
Bah. BAH I SAY!
August 16th, 2006 at 9:52 am
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August 16th, 2006 at 10:30 am
Actually, lets take the discussion to Dougs house, because he has nicer drapes, and, as I said, we’ve degenerated into beer talk here.
The idea of a fair really interests me, and I said why over there, so, there you go.
August 16th, 2006 at 10:37 am
AT, when was the last time you were in market square, aside from sundown in the city?
August 16th, 2006 at 10:53 am
Market Square, ain’t that the place where several of the establishments are in jeopardy due some bozo’s pot and money laundering schemes?
Seems K-town just can’t keep from shooting itself in the foot.
August 16th, 2006 at 11:08 am
It’s been several years since we’ve really gone and had a good look around, mojo. I sure like me some Bliss, even if I can’t afford anything in there.
You can talk about the (supposed) vitality of Market Square, and the $400,000 lofts for sale in the area, but I have a hard time seeing Knoxville being able to support that kind of market for long.
Downtown, at least.
August 16th, 2006 at 11:38 am
Yeah, and its a drop in the bucket. So a block of the city is vitalized? I agree, whats going on on Gay street is a start, but its taken SO LONG just to get that straighened out, while just down the road, during that time, the Old City has withered up and died. Its no good.
Knoxville can’t get its shit together long enough to make a plan and stuck with it. I think its a curse.
August 16th, 2006 at 1:47 pm
It’s true that both the old city and particularly the strip have suffered from the vitality on market square, but it is an entirely different place than ten years ago. Perhaps the strip should die. Aside from sunspot there’s not another place there that I care to frequent. Sure it’s got the gas station where most of the football team gets arrested but as far as atmosphere of any sort the strip as a whole ain’t got it.
I doubt that anytime soon, market square will suffer at all. It now has that several level garage that is free after 6pm weekdays and all day on the weekend. Gay Street has alot going on too… WDVX, Sapphire, downtown brewery, mast store, the theater that’s in the post. What ever is going on down there is getting bigger and so many have invested in it I don’t think there will be much, if any, any decline in the coming decade. They had plans to put a bus station on state street, but now they can’t do that because of increased land cost. The city, if not already, will soon be milking the cash cow in the area largely because, unlike the strip areas to the west, the infrastructure is already in place.
Concerning the West’s, they appear to be screwed, but the (financially assisted?) hard work that they exerted in getting those businesses off the ground has already been done. The ball is rolling with good momentum. Two of their four businesses on the square are the among the most interesting places in Knoxville, Oodles and World Grotto, and I can’t see some entrepreneur passing up the opportunity to buy any of those four places from the government at cut throat prices if they are confiscated.
Oak Ridge has been in a rut since that mall was built and the land off edgemore was acquired. Knoxville has been since the advent of suburbia, and has made recent mistakes (cough, cough, convention center) but is turning it around. Oak Ridge may be able to do the same. Outside of the revitalized CBD, Knoxville remains a scruffy city, none the less.
N.B. For those who’ve spawned, there are numerous fountains for the kiddies in the north end of the fair park, they’ve become quite popular as free kidutainment.
August 16th, 2006 at 1:55 pm
Still doesn’t change my opinion, man, too little too late. Yes, there have been groups of individuals who have been responsible for making Gay Street and Market Square better, but it still isn’t up to par of what you see in Nashville or Chattanooga. Leagues away from Asheville. Knoxville should have that kinda vibe, by rights, but just doesn’t.
August 16th, 2006 at 1:57 pm
What about that new place, 80 East Pub & Grille? I don’t know if it’s “family friendly” enough for those with single-digit ages though. My kids are teens, and they don’t often deign to be seen in public with the ‘rents, so it’s been a long while since I judged a place for kid-worthiness.
Oh, and I guess you could list me as an Oak Ridge blogger now … I’m still digging my way through massive piles of boxes and getting my house somewhat in order, but I do have some thoughts on the old hometown from the perspective of growing up here, moving away, then coming back … it’s weird, man. Stay tuned.
August 16th, 2006 at 2:31 pm
Man, to hell with that place. We wrote something about it a while ago, but I’m too lazy to dig it up.
August 16th, 2006 at 2:38 pm
Lissa, from all appearance (having looked at their menu) 80 East is a “pub” in name only. Their menu is somewhat fancy and expensive. When we went by there shortly after it opened, they had yet to acquire their beer license. It’s hoity-toity looking inside (perhaps they hadn’t been able to change decor since they purchased it), not at all what you would consider a true pub to be.
Although, you can decide for yourself. If I’m not mistaken, they’re having a grand-opening of the pub on Friday evening, with free hors douerves (however you spell it) and music.
August 23rd, 2006 at 2:32 pm
Don’t forget Oak Ridge has a well-established and quality community theatre (and no, I’m not biased!) ;)
I’ve lived in Knoxville my whole life and find myself visiting Oak Ridge fairly frequently between musical directing job at the Playhouse, my kids’ involvement in the show choir and rehearsals for my band. I feel your pain about the lack of things to do in Oak Ridge, but don’t take it out on my hometown! :)
“Mudhole? Slimy? My home this is!”
August 23rd, 2006 at 8:25 pm
Thats a great point. Yeah, the Playhouse is an underappreciated gem.
Y’know, there are worse towns, it just seems like Knoxville is the kid that doesn’t live up to potential.
August 24th, 2006 at 2:35 pm
Hey this is the USA, land of lack of culture to call our own, and too enslaved to create it. Knoxville does have the blackbox theater. I do regret missing Hedwig and the angry inch.
In other news, that no one is sure to care about, I sat next to the knoxville’s own mayor, probably governor one day, and family today at the blue plate special. I never expected to see that guy there. Hell, I even scooted over so he could have a seat, don’t i deserve some kind of political scratch on the back for that? “Maybe a get out of a parking ticket free pass?” The group there, the everybodyfields, who is playing at blue cats tonight with the Avett Brothers, was great. Unfortunately the ticket price always keeps me out of Blue Cats. That and the atmosphere is equivalent to a bathroom stall. Well, a bathroom stall with a booze, I guess that’s better.
Yeah, the playhouse is a great asset to Oak Ridge. But has anyone been there recently?
August 24th, 2006 at 2:42 pm
I think MastaG saw a play there last year… Jack and the Beanstalk, or something similar.
I’m sorry to say I haven’t been there since… middle school, maybe? We’re uncultured swine.
August 25th, 2006 at 9:24 am
Well, everyone come see “The King and I” this fall, I’ll be the guy at the piano.
mojofilter - did you see “Jacques Brel” last year at the Black Box? I played for that one, too.
August 25th, 2006 at 9:28 am
Barry, does Bruce Borin still do shows at the Playhouse? GAC and I made our stage debut a few years ago in one of his shows for Roane State.
August 30th, 2006 at 12:03 am
I think he may do things there from time to time - I’ve never met him or worked with him that I recall, but I hear his name mentioned either there or other venues every once in a while.