News - Friday, May 15, 2015

A casual examination of the life of attorney Drew Reynolds will reveal a young man who has made well-considered and intelligent decisions. His recent purchase of his first home was a significant personal milestone, for example. Becoming a partner at Spears, Moore, Rebman & Williams at the beginning of 2014 was a landmark moment for him as an attorney. A closer analysis, however, reveals an interesting tidbit:

The Chattanooga Police Department held its Annual Awards Ceremony Tuesday at Chattanooga State Community College. The purpose of the event, which took place during National Police Week, was to honor the officers, civilian employees, and community members who went above and beyond the call of duty in 2014. 

Thursday, May 7 was a good night to take in a Chattanooga Lookouts game. Not only did local Realtors, builders, and mortgage bankers enjoy great food and time spent with colleagues and friends, but they also watched the Lookouts defeat the Jackson Generals 10-4. 

During the Great Recession, the National Association of Realtors analyzed that nearly 9.3 million homeowners underwent a foreclosure, a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure, or a short sale. After sitting out of the market for several years to rebuild their credit, these former homeowners are slowly coming back to the market looking for another chance at homeownership.

Filmmaker Amy Oppenheimer to speak

The Jewish Federation of Greater Chattanooga will host a luncheon featuring filmmaker Amy Oppenheimer on Tuesday, May 19 at noon at the Jewish Cultural Center, located at 5461 North Terrace Road. Oppenheimer is the director of “Faces of Israel” and an expert speaker on religion and state issues in Israel. RSVP by calling 493-0270 or rsvp@jewishchattanooga.com.

Like many people, you may enjoy investing. After all, it can be invigorating to put away money for your future, follow the performance of your investments and track the progress you’re making toward your long-term goals, such as a comfortable retirement. However, you might be less excited about doing estate planning, dreading the perceived time, effort and cost. Yet, you can make the entire process more manageable by breaking it up into specific tasks. 

Crye-Leike this week welcomed Gale Matthews to its Ooltewah office. Matthews has worked in the real estate industry for the past 33 years in various areas along the east coast.

“I have learned what works in real estate,” said Matthews. “I am eager to share my years of experience with my customers.”

Chattanooga’s downtown has an interesting history and equally interesting homes and buildings. In fact, there are 102 historic properties on the National Register. From the James Building to the Maclellan Building and the home of Chancellor T.M. McConnell, Chattanooga has a wide array of historical buildings that are well positioned for the future. 

On Tuesday, May 5, the Chattanooga City Council voted to provide Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise (CNE) with $100,000 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding to help low income homeowners make repairs to their home, and $15,000 in CDBG funding for pre-purchase counseling. A long standing partner with the City, CNE has provided over 3,800 homeowners with much needed repairs.

The new issue of TasteBuds, Chattanooga’s free guide to locally grown and raised foods, is hot off the presses. TasteBuds offers seasonal recipes and a listing of area farms and local-food related businesses.

Copies of the printed TasteBuds can be found downtown at multiple locations, including Chattanooga Outdoors, the Read House Historic Inn, Niedlov’s Breadworks, and Lupi’s Pizza, or by stopping by Crabtree Farms, located at 1000 East 30th Street. 

^“Hot Pursuit,” the new comedy starring Reese Witherspoon and Sofia Vergara, reeks of the kind of moviemaking-by-committee one finds at major studios when the executives are trying to replicate the success of another popular film.

A recent episode of “Inside Amy Schumer” parodies the 1957 Sidney Lumet movie “12 Angry Men.” A “jury” of dudes deliberate whether Schumer is “hot enough” to be on TV. Jeff Goldblum, John Hawkes, Paul Giamatti, Nick DiPaolo, and Kumail Nanjiani are spot-on with their mimicry of the original actors from the movie—Henry Fonda, Ed Begely, Lee J. Cobb, and others.

Cabela’s employee Tiffany Westbrook, a competitive archer, “cut the ribbon” to officially open the new store.

The Dumpmeister
Kay's Cooking Corner

Have you been lucky enough to see the “As Seen on TV” infomercials of the lady with her “dump cakes?” She can make every kind of meal you can imagine by dumping everything in one pot and baking it. My husband calls her “the dump-meister.”

Are We There Yet?

^“The end is near!” screamed the street corner prophet as I put my quarters in the parking meter in front of my favorite Chinese restaurant. Then I’d better look busy, I thought to myself, remembering a funny bumper sticker.

A simple cigar box
Read All About It

You never know how someone will interpret your intentions until they have to make a decision that can either put you in the driver’s seat or on the street walking. Over the past few days, the bank made just such a call on me that stopped everything, and it was over someone reading a name wrong.

Composting made easy (well, easier)
Do It Yourself

Do you compost? Rather, do you want to compost, but think it is too difficult? If so, then I am going to explain how easy and fun composting can be. Composting is one of the best economical things you can do for the yard. It is great for the environment and the result is nutrient-rich soil that surpasses any fertilizer you can buy.