There is just something cool about a water tower. Hernando, Mississippi has a cool one visible from…read morethe highway and a lovely landmark for this cool Mississippi community This is something that I don't see in the cities and these water towers are, at least to me, a slice of Americana.

West Memphis is in Arkansas, a short hop, skip and a jump from Memphis…read more There is a world of difference between the two neighboring communities. Memphis has the stunningly beautiful Rhodes campus, nicely upkept homes. It has strip malls, more development and appears to have lots of community pride.

This is the best walk we did in Memphis over our 5 active days. You should do it. To get to the…read moreparking place, however, put "WREG-TV News Channel 3" into google maps INSTEAD OF the bridge. It will take you right there (instead of to the industrial marine place on the south side of the bridge).

City of Memphis makes us sing the Blues, right Susan? If you need a vacation I'm recommending. You…read morecan't see the historic places for music and more unless you spend at least a long four day three night weekend. I may not get to Tennessee any time soon but my heart returned when I received this very cool postcard from my Sister in Spirit Susan R. We are spiritual family and I'm there wherever she travels. We had so much fun in Memphis. It's hard to sing the Blues when you're happy and grateful. Go to Memphis!!

Enjoyed a few days here, but the downtown area seems to be in a state of flux. So many boarded up…read morebuildings, but there does seem to be some revitalization going on. We stayed out by the Convention Center and rode a streetcar into town for $1. Glad to have that streetcar, because I wouldn't have been comfortable walking thru the town. Lots of panhandling going on. Loved the Peabody Hotel, thought Beale St. was a great disappointment. It was downright seedy, with security guards outside most of the shops. And most of the shops were just tourist junk, if you get my drift. Of course the best part of visiting Memphis to touring Graceland. Doing that right takes the better part of a day. Pretty much a "been there, done that." But glad I did.

I've lived in every municipality in Shelby County. Collierville has the absolute WORST city…read moreservices. I see a Police car patrol MAYBE once a month on our road; which is a city boundary. The garbage services are worse than that. They half way pick up piled up tree debris & I've had actual arguments with the recycling driver. His supervisor was no help. The roads are absolute garbage, for this to be tge wealthiest town in the county. I've even asked; in emails, for extra Police patrol; which would be ANY patrol at this point. I asked for help from engineering because our ditch floods and flows over into my yard. Instead of getting help I got an email saying to keep my easement clean. Even though the city charter says that they're responsible for ditches and flood water. After paying over $550K for our home and doubling my mortgage, I wish I'd just stayed in Arlington. Collierville is awful and not accountable for anything.

Really don't know why I haven't done check ins here in my little slice of of the world. I first…read morerode around this quaint little town with a realtor when looking to relocate in 1993, fell in love and have been here ever since. I guess I can start to doing check-is regularly. (smiles) There's so much to say about my adopted home of Collierville. I call it my adopted home because I was born in Ohio, grew up in NC and moved around the country from California to VA and PA before getting out of the Navy and settling down and having children in MA. I thought New England was going to be my 4ever home and I was there, in one place, for longer than anywhere else before. But alas it was not to be and when fate brought me back down south it all started by an offer for a morning gig at a new Memphis radio station & looking for a new house in little ol' Collierville.   It was relatively small back then in 1992 (approx 14,000) and that 1st ride through the wonderfully quaint and pristine town square was like driving right into an episode of Andy Griffith because it was like a ride into Mayberry. From the trains and whistle stop to the whiskey barrels set up for checkers in the boot and tackle shop, right down to a little bank the size of an outhouse, it was just all very charming. (Parade Magazine ranked the town square "Best Main Street" in America in 2014) I would soon discover that this town was home to excellent schools for my kids that, would later, have national championship cheerleaders and athletes with some of the finest teachers and administrators anywhere.  My kids, who grew in metro areas, would soon have their first puppy, their first bikes and even a pool in their very own backyard and more, pretty awesome!  The people of Colliervile had a great sense of community and civic pride and I got to know many of the police professionals, many who have federal certifications and have always been on the cutting edge in an effort to protect our not so little community and our firefighters and local business owners. I say not so little because the expansion has been pretty fast (currently over 50,000) with a new 800,000+ sq ft outdoor shopping center & Baptist Hospital and industry like Carrier & Pepsi, and a really big deal, the national headquarters for FedEx. There's been so many new businesses, houses, banks, restaurants, schools, many new churches and so much more with construction all around. Then there was the major highways, the first was the Nonconah (385) which connects the town to I-240/I-40 (a loop around Memphis) and later I-269 a Memphis beltway connecting the I-55 corridor in MS to the south & I-40 to the East. If that weren't enough Collierville will eventually become part of the I-69 hwy plan that integrates SR-385 & I-269 as part of the huge project linking Canada and Mexico. Wow! I make a big deal out of these roads because when I first arrived we were kind if isolated from the "big city" and all the highway systems It used to taket 45+ minutes just to get to Memphis on Poplar & just as long to get to I-40 via backroads to go east (Nashville), so growth has been relatively fast and big, but I digress. I'm happy to have been right here in Collierville for over twenty-five years which is, by far, longer than any of my previous homes. While I have lived in 12 different states, and visited 46 others, I am both happy and proud to call this little place my home.

I had a personal complaint against them regarding racial profiling for an unjust traffic stop. A…read morerepresentative called to make it right as I had a heart to heart conversation about the matter. I can tell they listened because I didn't see them out patrolling the area like thy used to. They actually listened. I'm grateful to God for that because sometimes that's all it takes to ease tensions and do better in life. Open dialogue to understand the other side's point of view is necessary to move forward.

Merry Christmas to the excellent men & women who serve the people of Collierville. May you all have…read morea safe, healthy, happy & blessed New Year!

On the corner of Park Street and West Street, sits a sign commemorating a part of the Mississippi…read moreBlues Trail. This sign remembers area musicians who helped solidify Memphis as an important part of the blues scene in the 1920's. I love discovering these markers that bring the past to life. The blues is a strictly American creation and this little pocket of America brought this music to what would not only be a major city in blues, but a city that would help create rock and roll.