News - Friday, January 10, 2014

By noon most days, Hamilton County Juvenile Court Judge Robert Philyaw has already seen the worst of humanity. As he rules on cases ranging from child neglect to juvenile delinquency, he encounters things he calls “discouraging and troubling” – a 12-year-old charged with attempted first-degree murder; a 13-year-old being tried for armed robbery; a devastated widower who chose the deep end of a bottle over caring for his children. In each case, he strives not to punish the person but to set him or her on a better path.

US Navy Sailor Emily Payne, a native of Chattanooga, Tenn., applies lubricating agent to a main diaphragm before installing it onto a P-3 Orion aircraft’s reduction gear box on Tuesday, January 7. Payne is attached to the Aircraft Intermediate Maintenance Department Misawa, a tenant command at Naval Air Facility Misawa in Japan. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Erin Devenberg)

John B. Phillips has re-joined Miller & Martin’s Labor & Employment Department.

Prior to re-joining Miller & Martin, Phillips was the senior vice president and general counsel for CraftWorks Restaurants & Breweries. His career also led him to be vice president and deputy general counsel for Coca-Cola Enterprises. Additionally, Phillips served as managing partner of Miller & Martin from 1997-2002.

Aricia Gallaher has joined Chambliss, Bahner & Stophel as marketing and business development director.   She will focus her efforts on expanding firm awareness, building client relationships, and seeking new business opportunities to support growth.

When Patti and I first bought the house that serves as the base of operation for the James Law Firm, I had a long list of things that needed to be done to the house before I could comfortably do business there. One of the things at the top of the list was the removal of a light switch cover on the back porch. It’s in the shape of a house, features a bird, and has the words “Home Tweet Home” written on it. I noticed it the first time we looked at the office, and I hated it immediately. I could not wait to remove it. Eight years later, it’s still there, and I still hate it.

Tennessee Bar Association President and Sevierville lawyer Cindy Wyrick today announced the association’s Fourth Annual YouTube Video Contest to encourage middle and high school students to explore how laws are made, amended and repealed. Titled “There Ought to be a Law,” the contest challenges students to create a three-minute video that discusses an issue they would like to see addressed through the legislative process.

Sugar... Ah, honey, honey,

You are my candy girl,

And you’ve got me wanting you…

(“Sugar Sugar” by The Archies)

Sugar. It’s the sweetness of life – the nectar of the gods. I have a major sweet tooth. And my waistline shows it.

Cheddar’s, a national casual dining cafe, opened its first Chattanooga location in December. It’s my pleasure, after two visits, to answer your questions about the restaurant. If you’re hungry and don’t feel like reading this entire column, go. You’ll find something you’ll enjoy.

It happened this week:

The polar vortex expressed itself way down into and beyond the land of cotton. It was 21 degrees Tuesday morning in Destin, one of my favorite, and usually tropical, places. 

But worse in the Windy City, where my nieces, Annie and Abby live. Wind chills were 40 below on that same day. KM and I were watching the news Monday night, and some kid in Minnesota stood at his back door with one of those giant water guns and he sprayed it onto his back deck. The stream crystallized in midair. Baby, it’s cold outside.

It’s a new year. I think it’s time for learning some new cooking terms – in a manner of speaking. The more advanced our modern day cooking and terminology becomes, the farther away we get from what our ancestors dished up. So this is a glimpse of the past. But don’t think this will be boring, or something you’ve heard before.

Jimmy and Barbara Tawater of Northgate Title Escrow in Hixson are under the impression that closings are supposed to be simple. Perhaps they missed the memo about how nothing in real estate is designed to be easy.

Yet their marketing materials make a bold and audacious claim: “We make closings simple.”

Winter storms that coat everything in layers of luminous ice leave a beautiful but dangerous calling card. We know ice-covered trees are susceptible to breakage from the added weight. But if you take a look around your yard, how do you know which of your trees are more likely to give in to the devastation of ice layers? 

Lately, the U.S. has suffered through some really cold weather, and some areas have seen the coldest weather ever recorded. It has been chilly in parts that don’t get chilly, and freezing in parts that don’t normally freeze. This brings me to this week’s puzzle. How much do you know about cold weather? I mean really cold weather?

Nothing could describe the beauty of good relationships better than a funeral.

WHAT???

Bear with me.

Today, we mourned the loss of a dear friend I’ll call “Bob.” Bob was 64 and truly lived out his life as only he could: he loved people, especially kids, his smirk was infectious, his jokes were terrible (but we laughed anyway), he was generous to a fault, and he always saw the good in people.

Here’s “The Wolf of Wall Street” in a nutshell (skip to paragraph three to avoid spoilers):

“Man discovers a way to get rich quick. Man spends millions on prostitutes and drugs. Man is convicted of several crimes. Man rats on his associates to reduce his sentence. Roll credits.”