August 23, 2007

renewal and rebirth

I'm glad to see activity in the group. I even learned something in reading Scott's posts. I didn't know Blue Moon Lagoon was in the neighborhood.

I'm eager to learn more about the RUN steering committee.

I'm sorry to learn of Keri's move out of the neighborhood - hopefully, like me, she'll stay nominally active as a former resident.

I hope the start of the school year is going well for all the schools in the area, and I hope that everyone is finding a way to be involved in the education of our future generation. Perhaps RUN already has a group for the Hands On Nashville Day (www.hon.org) in support of MNPS locations throughout the district.

August 15, 2007

Scott's Blog - Global Warming Hits the Nations!

another post by Scott Gillihan--a RUN resident who lives near West Park...

I have a couple apple trees in my backyard that I’ve tended for several years. It’s been a tough year for those trees, as it has been all over the region. My apple trees usually are in full bloom on April 15, tax day. This year they bloomed early because of the mild winter only to be bit hard by a late frost. Now those trees, and all of us, are suffering through the worse drought and heat wave in memory.

The effects of this heat are everywhere. From the smaller tomatoes at the community garden to the parched Maple trees in front of St. Luke’s to the trickle that used to be Richland Creek. It’s a global problem, but it hits very close to home. And I believe it’s only going to get worse as we keep putting our coal mines in the atmosphere.

There are two courses of action we must take. First, let’s make a real effort to cut to amount of electricity and gasoline that we consume. Remember to recycle, reduce and reuse.

Secondly, we should try to look ahead and plant trees and bushes that are more heat tolerant. I’m an amateur naturalist, and I’ve seen how my hibiscus, a tropical plant, is surviving much better that my viburnum which is better suited for northern climates. I’ve seen a lot of “trash trees” like sumac and elms thrive, while the pines are suffering.

It will take a lot of work to plant and care for the fauna of the changing climate, but it’s better than watching the trees burn without a fire.

August 14, 2007

RUN Election Results

At the August RUN Neighborhood Association Meeting, officer elections were held. Here are the new officers for the neighborhood association:

President : Mr. Billy Walls
VP, Robertson Area : Ms. Cynthia Black
VP, Urbandale Area : Mr. James Bradford
VP, Nations Area : Ms. Gina Ruff
Secretary : Mr. Scott Gillihan
Treasurer : Ms. Norma Hand
Steering Committee : Mr. David Wascher
Steering Committee : Ms. Bernadette Ash

Congratulations to all!

Scott's Blog - A Trip to the American Market

another post by Scott Gillihan--a RUN resident who lives near West Park...

If you are looking for a fun night out do what the wife and I did recently, and head down to the Blue Moon Lagoon and the American Market right here in West Nashville.

Now the Blue Moon Lagoon is a new restaurant and bar down at Rock Harbor Marina. We parked on Basswood, not wanting to pay for valet parking, and walked down to a floating restaurant right at the harbor. It was a Friday night and the place was packed. While we didn’t eat, the food looked good and the beer was cold. We stood on the rail and watched the expensive yachts come and go. The new owners, including George Strait’s manager, have put a lot of money in the place. They have a waterfall over a little bluff with a neon sign in the background. It was all very pleasant.

After a while, the opulence got a bit tiresome. The band wasn’t very good and the clientele seemed kind of snobbish. I didn’t see any locals there. I did notice that all the customers were white, and the bus boys brown and all the cooks were black.

On the way home, we stopped at the American Market on Robertson Road. Now the American Market is a seedy dirty little place with bars on the windows and garish beer and cigarette signs. They sell pipes labeled “for tobacco only” and scales “for jewelry only.” I made my purchase from an East Indian before he waited on a tipsy Mexican buying lottery tickets.

On the way out I noticed a family, Mom Dad and two small kids sitting on the hood of their old Delta 88. They were just kind of hanging out. Now why would anyone spend their Friday nights in a dirty greasy parking lot? Were they homeless…or did they just come here for fun?

Boy a lot can change in a mile or so. Welcome to West Nashville in the 21st century.

August 8, 2007

Night Out Against Crime

I'm sorry I missed the festivities at C&S this year. I was apparently overly busy at Oakland Acres in Madison.

I was very disappointed with the Tennessean coverage. The article is about Edgehill with the photo of Sylvan Park.

Any comments about RUN's event, or the countywide celebrations?

August 3, 2007

election comments?

Now that the election is over, I'd appreciate whatever reactions anyone cares to share about the district race, vice mayor's race, or Tim Garrett's victory in the at-large race.

The politicking is still going on for four at-large positions and the mayor's race, so please refrain from commenting about those in this public forum.

Thanks.