News - Friday, March 7, 2014

At the end of office hours on Friday, March 7, Chief Deputy Clerk & Master Judy Hillyer will shut down her computer, turn off her light, and close and lock her door for the last time after more than 35 years of service to Hamilton County. She says the decision to retire after working for three clerk & masters and five chancellors since 1978 was easy.

Four Chambliss & Bahner attorneys on Tuesday, March 4 presented a course titled “What every real estate broker needs to know about commissions, contracts, and title insurance” to Southeast Tennessee Chapter of the Certified Commercial Investment Members. Presented by Chambliss attorneys (L-R) Kirby Yost, Rachel Edwards, Michael Stewart, and Mike St. Charles, the course covered two hours of TREC approved educational material. The instructors also discussed new cases affecting the liability of owners and developers. Pictured with the attorneys at the Greater Chattanooga Association of Realtors, where the course was taught, is Jelena Butler, 2014 CCIM president. (David Laprad)

Peter H. Bloom, flutes and piccolo, and Mary Jane Rupert, harp, have performed together for 20 years, appearing in venues across the globe, with recent performances in New Zealand, Australia, Thailand, and the United States. Performing as Duo 2, they have garnered consistent acclaim for creative programming and compelling performances. Bloom and Rupert are known especially as champions of American music.

Many people who like problem solving usually tackle a tough crossword, or maybe Sudoku. 

Mark Norris opted for politics.

“I like serving people as well as finding solutions to problems, so that led me to the legal profession,” says Norris, who currently serves as state Senate Majority Leader, and represents District 32 in West Tennessee. 

Would you know State Sen. Bo Watson if you saw a photograph of him? What about Monica Lewinski? Chattanoogans last week scored high in man-on-the-street pop quizzes in which students from a government and politics class at Girls Preparatory School showed passersby pictures of current elected officials and celebrities, and asked them to identify as many as they could. “The theory,” said their teacher, Linda Moss Mines, “is that people are more familiar with movies stars and musicians than they are their lawmakers. We’re here testing that.” While few people recognized Lewinski given the years since she made headlines, nearly everyone identified Sen. Bob Corker. (David Laprad)

On March 8, we observe International Women’s Day, a celebration of women’s economic, political and social achievements. Yet women everywhere still face challenges — and here in the United States, one of their biggest challenges may be to gain the resources they need to enjoy a comfortable retirement. So, if you’re a woman, what steps should you take to make progress toward this goal? 

The Chattanooga Area Brain Injury Association (CABIA) is pleased to announce that Chris Nowinski, sports and entertainment figure, author, and activist, will be speaking at its annual fundraiser – The Many Faces of Brain Injury - on March 27 at The Mill, located at 1601 Gulf Street in Chattanooga, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

The Rotary Club of Chattanooga-Hamilton Place recently presented a check for four scholarships at $1,000 each per semester to Chattanooga State Technical Community College. Pictured are, l-r, Club President Cynthia Rhodes, Kevin Beirne with the club’s community services committee, Tammy Sawyers, Chattanooga State Foundation Director of Development, accepting the check on behalf of Chattanooga State Technical Community College. (David Laprad)

I’m sure I’ve told the story in this column about how Patti brought home a Shih Tzu. She came across the dog during a home visit with a family for whom she was serving as an attorney ad litem. In short, they told her they were taking him to the pound, and she brought him home. I’ve known Patti for 27 years, and that’s pretty much the same way every animal that has come into our home got there. Chase has been in the James home for close to a decade. That means he is the all-time leader in terms of the length of stay.

Sometimes, if you’re in the right mood, a movie that’s only halfway decent will hit the spot, like a fast food burger. Last week, “Non-Stop” hit the spot for me.

“Non-Stop” pairs actor Liam Neeson with “Unknown” director Jaume Collet-Serra. Like that movie, it places the aging but strong and agile Neeson in a situation that requires both his brains and his brawn. This time out, he’s a federal air marshal with a sketchy personal life on a transatlantic flight that takes a turn toward the deadly.

There is a very special place in the ocean – a beautiful, far-away location that audiences can discover and explore together when “Journey to the South Pacific 3D” hits the giant screen at the Tennessee Aquarium IMAX Theater beginning Friday, March 7.

Some news from the frozen wastelands. 

A woman recently bought a car specifically for revenge motives. June Ann Blocker lives in Kentucky. Maybe she is a football fan, or for that matter, a hoops rooter who just couldn’t stomach back-to-back losses to the Razorbacks and then the Gamecocks. Wrong, what happened was she had it in for some former bosses at a Kroger store where she worked. So she goes out and buys a 2006 Lincoln and smashes it into the front of the store. No one was seriously hurt.

I love Little Debbie Pecan Spins. I usually have a stash of them somewhere – in either my car, my camera bag, or the pantry at home. They are one of my all-time favorites snacks, and I will be really heartbroken if Little Debbie ever decides to quit selling these little gems.

The Greater Chattanooga Association of REALTORS has contributed $10,000 to Thrive 2055, a regional project inspiring long-term, collaborative planning across 16 counties in Alabama, Georgia, and Tennessee. The Association represents five of those counties — Hamilton and Sequatchie counties in Tennessee, and Catoosa, Dade, and Walker counties in Georgia. Its support underscores the critical role the housing industry will play as the region’s population grows by 38 percent during the next 40 years.

Chattanoogans took advantage of the nice weather last weekend and came out in droves to attend the 48th Tri-State Home Show, hosted by the Chattanooga Home Builders Association of Greater Chattanooga. Visitors scoured more than 450 vendor booths for ideas on every facet of owning a home, from building one from the ground up, to remodeling, to doing repairs. The Friday-through-Sunday event packed the showroom floor at the Chattanooga Convention Center.   

The impact of social media is the basis of this column. because of social media, we’re less than the Kevin Bacon theory of six degrees of separation from one another. Facebook alone has redefined how we communicate. Coupled with Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and so on, we’re more connected now to information and each other than ever before. Not a fan of social media? Too bad, because the rest of the world is. Let’s take a look at some Facebook facts and figures that will blow you mind.

OK movie-buffs, this one is for you! Below, I have given you movie quotes and a selection of movies. See if you know which quote goes to which movie. Have fun!

1. In an Academy Award winning film from the 1950s, who says “As for me, I’m just a slave, a living slave?” William Holden in “The Bridge on the River Kwai”; Richard Burton in “The Robe”; Charlton Heston in “Ben Hur”; Robert Taylor in “Quo Vadis.”

“I wanna live

with a cinnamon girl

I could be happy

the rest of my life

With a cinnamon girl.”

“Cinnamon Girl” by Neil Young

Most people my age know and love the much loved song quoted above. “Cinnamon Girl,” the closest our generation ever came to Hip Hop, was one of our favorites.

At the pretrial conference, big-city lawyer Wade Lanier does an “evidence dump.” His witness list includes 45 people not previously disclosed in discovery. Local lawyer Jake Brigance moves for a continuance. Lanier says that with two weeks remaining before trial, there’s plenty of time for Jake to call these folks. Judge Reuben Attlee denies the motion. What will Jake do?