Profiles
Franklin Rodeo still bucking
The rodeo may not be as old as wrestling, but the modern versions of both sports are similar: You'll see men battling beasts, high drama and low comedy, headlocks, falls, ropes, gaudy costumes...both are entertainment for the whole family, and at the rodeo, you don't have to be the Clampett family.
A festival on the cutting edge
Come each spring, thousands of people in Middle Tennessee fervently look forward to the past. The 23rd annual Tennessee Renaissance Festival, running every weekend this month plus Memorial Day, will take place in Triune, just a catapult's throw from Nashville but centuries removed, for the occasion, from the hurly-burly of modern life.
The thrill of the chase
After 50 years, Henry Hooker remembers the romance and the thrill of the chase, as if it were yesterday.
"Whilst I was courting her in 1955, Alice took me (fox) hunting for the first time...The sky was luminous blue, the grass was emerald green, the horses full of run, hounds gay and keen," Hooker writes. "I viewed a fox which I still see in my fancy...The longer I hunt the more I understood Mason Houghland's advice: 'The time to be happy is now, the place to be happy is here, the way to be happy is to hunt the fox.' Good hunting and keep a tight seat."
Jeans & Jewels spawns coats and shoes
A fundraising gala to be held this month in Franklin for just the third year has already become a jewel of the community. The Jeans & Jewels Charity Extravaganza, the principal annual fundraiser for The Junior Auxiliary of Franklin, is set for Saturday, April 26, from 7 to 11 p.m. in Building 8 at The Factory in Franklin.
Wig party rules
Losing one’s hair is an experience that can be attended with all sorts of other losses – loss of dignity, loss of confidence, loss of sociability – that can turn out to be more devastating than the original loss. At a store in Franklin, those undergoing these travails can shop for a solution to the hair loss – a wig – while finding something to help assuage the others – laughter.
Doula worth her weight in moola
If the word doula is Greek to you, then you're smarter than you thought you were. Doula comes from the Greek word for the most important servant in an ancient Greek household, the woman who helped the lady of the house through childbearing. Doulas are still in our midst, and one local doula has made it her mission to illuminate people about the age-old art while bringing it to bear in modern Middle Tennessee households.
They will help you get it together
United we stand, divided we fall-fall out of shape, onto the couch and into bad habits. That could be the rallying cry of a personal fitness training studio in Franklin that believes that the bond between client and trainer is a crucial element in the pursuit of physical well-being.
Give your ghastly garage a makeover
If you've been thinking of cleaning out your garage once the weather turns nice but find the prospect too utterly overwhelming, why not just forget the whole thing-and get a totally new garage instead?
A benefit with heart
Getting right to the heart of the matter in order to address some of society's most pressing problems, while encouraging people to open their hearts, has long been the way of the United Way. HeART to Heart, a benefit for United Way of Williamson County (UWWC) and its 35 partner agencies, will be held Friday, February 8 in Jamison Hall at The Factory of Franklin.
Beauty is more than skin-deep
“A joyful heart makes a fair face,” the saying goes and that could be the motto of an aesthetic and wellness center now embarking on its second decade of helping people celebrate the beauty within them so that the beauty outside can shine.
Getting fit just a walk away
If your resolutions for the new year include an ambitious program of walking, you can put your best foot forward at a series of events initiated by the Williamson County Health Council. The Council is coordinating a free program for Williamson County residents called Walk Across Williamson.
Speed and sound converge at celebration
Speed and sound will be the heady ingredients of a cocktail once again lovingly concocted to toast the new year in Middle Tennessee. The Third Annual Sprint Sound & Speed, presented by SunTrust, will bring together stars of country music and NASCAR, and the fans of both, for a weekend (Jan. 11-12) of autograph, storytelling and question-and-answer sessions, a charitable auction of racing and entertainment memorabilia, a preview of NASCAR Sprint Cup show cars, and a celebration-capping country concert (8-11 p.m. Sat.) starring Alan Jackson and featuring special guest Taylor Swift, Jason Michael Carroll and The Wrights.
Digital revolution has new leader
In the wake of the Internet explosion and the astounding technological advances of the last several years, a Middle Tennessee company is bringing digital democracy to the retail marketplace. 1Stopdigital is a studio/store offering an array of digital services, from high-definition video recording and a demo studio to electronic catalogues and brochures, on a walk-in and quick-delivery basis.
Books mark the way for Franklin couple
A landmark is a prominent point on the land serving as a guide to travelers on a road or those at sea; of all our cultural landmarks, the bookstore is the most unheralded and under siege. A Franklin couple, having found a mooring and an ideal livelihood in one of the town's most prominent buildings, is making a stand for books, "the treasured wealth of the world," as Thoreau called them, "and the fit inheritance of generations and nations."
See Franklin on foot, from underneath
The past leaves its footprints on the sands of time, to paraphrase the poet, and we the living can sometimes follow in those timeless tracks. Franklin on Foot offers visitors to that lovely city a look beneath its quaint and charming Victorian facade – and those that look may get caught with mouths agape.
Take off to see the Wizard
A Middle Tennessee entrepreneur, through the wizardry of computer-generated animation and special effects, can make every child a movie star – with no agents, no auditions and no rehearsals involved – and all for the price of a family's night out at the Cineplex.
A la carte menu brings clients to table
A local real-estate entrepreneur has whipped up an elegant concoction of services for homebuyers and sellers that trims the fat from traditional courses – and that may turn out to be the greatest thing since sliced bread.
Envy massage recipients no more
A Middle Tennessee entrepreneur with a military background has entered the fight to win the hearts, minds, and weary bodies of consumers, with a massage facility that's the envy of the rank-and-file of salons and spas everywhere.
TCBY turns 25 with flair
In a culture where sweet shops come and go like so many sugar-laden varieties of cereal or candy, one franchise, built upon the rock of "The Country's Best Yogurt," has stood the test of time. TCBY is celebrating its 25th birthday this year and is, like any 25-year-old, full of life and the creative spirit.
Viva NashVegas, where rhinestone reigns
"Eat more rhinestones" will one day have all the promotional pizzazz of "Take a bite out of the Big Apple," if a Nashville-based – sorry, NashVegas-based – musician and entrepreneur has his way.
Birds have gotta eat, and they have got the goods
About 20 years ago, Marcia Neiman found herself with an empty nest, but instead of brooding overlong she set about devoting her life to birds of a different feather. Her business, Wild Birds Unlimited, with three Middle Tennessee locations, sells seed, supplies and gifts, and offers expert advice for free, to those who love birds, those "ethereal minstrels…pilgrims of the sky."
Stars shine on Dyer every night
"The stars are God's dreams, thoughts remembered in the silence of the night." – Henry David Thoreau.
Franklin Trolleys rolls onward and upward
F. Scott Fitzgerald said there are no second acts in American life, a remark disproved by Mr. T, George Foreman – and the trolley. The Franklin Trolleys, the city of Franklin’s four-year old public transportation system, has been a popular local revival of an American tradition; this Spring, having moved into new headquarters and preparing to expand its service areas, the trolley is flourishing in Franklin.
Arena is ice's cream of the crop
If NHL hockey is the cake on Middle Tennessee's dinner table, a splendid, state-of-the-art, multipurpose arena in Franklin is the icing. The Southern Ice Arena, appropriately situated in Cool Springs, is not only the premier ice-skating facility in the state and one of the finest in the South, but it offers a variety of other entertaining activities to warm the hearts of even those prone to give the cold shoulder to ice-related sports.
Relief for concerned pet owners
Dogs and cats can often be picky eaters, which shows how smart they are. A series of recent pet food recalls, in the wake of the deaths of dogs and cats caused by contaminated food, is leading more and more pet owners to become the choosy ones.
Vintage business reaping fruits of labors
"It's Getting Better All the Time" was a big hit for Kix Brooks, and that refrain could be the rallying cry at Brooks' corking new enterprise, Arrington Vineyards & Winery. The country music star is one of three owners of the operation that's been years in the making and is now beginning to flourish in the fabulous and resplendent hills east of Franklin.
New Bar-B-Cutie is a beauty
In pictures of the original Bar-B-Cutie, signs outside advertised 24-hour service and Coca-Cola in a bottle for a nickel, and there are carhops outfitted like airline hostesses. The President in those early years was Eisenhower, a man who knew better than to meddle in the affairs of the government and preferred to play golf instead.
Guard against 'dentity' theft
Ever come out to the parking lot from shopping in the mall to find that some dingbat has put a ding in your car door? Sure you have. Then you take it into the shop and the ding-dong there tells you it'll set you back several hundred dollars and several days for a repair job? A snow job, is more like it.
Chronicles of the county at Archives & Museum
Real history is not the story of "mankind" but the numberless stories of different aspects of human life, and the real historian is a reporter, looking backwards. At the Williamson County Archives and Museum, visitors can find a genuine history of the region, detailed in documents and displays, photographs and books, and brought to life by a presiding spirit, an historian passionate about the stories in the background of the textbook history.
Carpet Den goes for the green
For years, Carpet Den has turned other flooring dealers green with envy, but now the company is going green itself. With a 30-year history of leadership and innovation in the industry, Carpet Den is again taking the initiative, this time in environmental responsibility, by offering eco-friendly products and implementing in-house measures to help preserve this, our one and only planet.
Library growth speaks volumes
"Man, lots of times I wish I could just start back in school, from about the sixth grade. Man, I'd be the last one out of that library every night." – Malcolm X. A library can change a life. It can kindle a lifelong love affair with books, and though the Good Book says that there is no end to the making of books and that much devotion to them is wearisome to the flesh, that's just one man's opinion. In books is the record of all that man has done and said, and if, as they say, history repeats itself, then it is incumbent on every man, woman and child to have a familiarity with the public library.
We do redo is company credo
"Klaatu borada nikto" was the magic phrase used to stop the rampaging robot in the movie The Day the Earth Stood Still. For Franklin entrepreneur Mitzi Maynard and her staff, "Redo – your place – our help" is the mantra that can put an end to the rampaging house or office decorating doldrums.
Aspiring artists major in becoming major
Fish gotta swim, birds gotta fly, and at one educational facility in Franklin students not only work on what comes naturally but learn to spread their wings so that they'll never feel like fish out of water.
School is in session - for lunch only
By Paul Erland
Bill Colbert has been in high school for four years already, and it doesn't look like he's going to get out any time soon.
Down a lazy river 
By Paul Erland
There's a light that shines on the Harpeth River as it winds through Kingston Springs, and it's not the spirit of Montgomery Bell. It's the light of hospitality and love for the land and the water, and it shines brightly even through the fog.
Relaxation is the rule of thumb
By OnePaper staff
Every day in the course of her business, Gina Nuenke tries to keep people under her thumb, and almost all of them like it.
Owl's Hill breaks loose this summer
By Terry A. Thorp
If you think nobody understands you, consider the owl. Through history and across cultures, owls have been feared and worshiped, loathed and admired, considered wise and foolish, linked with witchcraft and medicine, birth and death. Owl's Hill Nature Sanctuary in Brentwood offers visitors the opportunity to see and understand the owls, and the array of other species, that inhabit the 160 acres of verdant territory in northwestern Williamson County.
Mine eyes have seen the glory
By Paul Erland
The eyes are the windows of the soul, it's been said, and as far as one ocular expert in Franklin is concerned, eyewear should be the mirror of the personality. Dr. James Tilley owns CharacterEYES Eyecare and Optical in downtown Franklin, in an historical building where he's making no small contribution to the modern-day history of eyeglasses as fashion statements.
Corralling the spirit of harmony
By Paul Erland
"A horse is worth more than riches," is an old Spanish proverb, and at a farm near Franklin a lifelong horse lover is striving single-handedly to protect and preserve this inestimable treasure. The James Hughes Iron Horse Ranch Equine Sanctuary and Youth Mentoring program is a long name for a simple yet glorious mission - to promote the understanding that leads to harmony between beings.
Woody's has goodies for smokes and suds lovers
By Paul Erland
If the man who said, "What this country needs is a good five-cent cigar" were alive today, he might say instead, "Never mind the price, what this country needs is a place to smoke."
Merridee's they roll along
By Paul Erland
The origin of the word "bread" is unknown, but the genealogy of the bread that built Franklin's favorite bakery is rooted in Swedish tradition and involves multiple generations and the passing of the torch from one family to another. Merridee's Breadbasket, in the heart of downtown Franklin, has opened its wide arms to the community for 35 years and the community has responded in kind, surrendering to its earthy and elemental charms as a child buries her head in her grandmother's apron.
Now is the time to RSVP
By Shannon Gilbert
With the approach of the holiday season, the spirit of giving can inspire many civic-minded individuals to open up their day planner and include time for community service.
Many people choose to volunteer through the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP). RSVP, a Senior Corps program of the Corporation for National and Community Service sponsored by Senior Citizens, Inc., places adults 55 and older into meaningful, intergenerational volunteer
Getting a boot out of exercise
A "boot camp" in Franklin is offering everyone the opportunity to shape up without shipping out, with instruction provided not by a leathery and large-lunged drill sergeant but by the reigning Mrs. Bikini Universe, to boot.