Knox-Chatt-Knox-Chatt-Chatt -Memp -Knox

This fall I had about a month and half of non-stop intrastate travels for work and leisure that took me to Knoxville three times and then to the Chattanooga area three times as well!! 

10/16 - My pal, Toney, and I went to see the new sci-fi sequel, Tron: Ares, tonight at our local Roxy Theaters (recliners!).  I thought it was a pretty good film with nice throwbacks to the original, a good story and a nice set-up for another sequel in the future. 

10/17 - I had another new long-weekend dog-sitting gig in Gallatin this weekend.   A nice and easy job and best of all their house is near the Vui's Kitchen!!  YUMMM!!  I ordered my dinner from there tonight via Uber Eats!

10/18 - It was a tough Saturday cloaked in failure as NSC, UT and the Preds all lost.  Even my online poker was mostly a bust.  But I had a nice place to watch the sadness and good companionship with Macey and Chloe, and some good beer with a pint can/crowler of Johnson City Brewing's Blackberry IPA which was tart and interesting.  I got it on my last visit up that way.  And then a very good NEIPA from Art History Brewing (IL) called Boating Party from my last BeerBox.com order.  

10/19 - I have another stint on the road for work in Knoxville and Chattanooga next week, so I drove to K-town today for an early start there tomorrow and stayed at a nice Courtyard by Marriott hotel downtown. It is in walking distance of Pretentious Beer Company where I enjoyed their new Dubbel Bubble Butt Belgium-style lager (photo above) and their also new NEIPA called Brewz II Men.  
I also got another delivered lunch from Vui's Kitchen in Gallatin before I left there.  

10/20 - After a morning fair at UT, I had the rest of the day to myself in Knoxville and went to check out the Ijams Nature Center on the banks of the Tennessee River just east of downtown.  What a cool place!  I really enjoyed the boardwalk that clings to the cliffs of the river.  Not a lot of wildlife stirring, but I did see a nice little school of bluegill swimming near the shore.  I also checked out Mead's Quarry nearby where pink marble was provided for many local and national buildings including the National Gallery of Art. 
I had lunch at Abridged Beer Company on the company dime, and a pint of their excellent Oktoberfest on mine.   

10/21 - I drove to Harriman today for another fair after staying overnight in the Lenoir City area at a nice Fairfield Inn (more points!!).  I stopped for lunch on the way back home for the night at Father Tom's Pub in Cookeville where I had a tasty lunch (an excellent pesto turkey wrap) on CU's dime and a pint of the excellent porter from West Sixth Brewing (Lexington) called Pay It Forward! on mine.  
I am making the miles go by easier this week with a new audiobook I bought called "Heaven and Hell" from Don Felder, a former and early member of The Eagles.  This should be an interesting contrast to the fantastic show by The Eagles (sans Felder) that I saw last week at the Sphere in Vegas.  I also plan to see Mr. Felder live at the end of the week in Nashville (see below).  

 10/22 - I drove over to Monterey today for a high school lunchroom visit and then drove on down to Chattanooga and stayed at another Fairfield Inn (points!) in the Lookout Mountain area for another fair there tomorrow. On the way down, I stopped at Happy Trails Brewing for a tasty sausage hoagie lunch on the CU dime and a couple of pints on mine.  I started with their own delicious The King's Peanut Butter Banana Brown Ale (photo above), and then from a guest tap, the excellent farmhouse ale from nearby Calfkiller Brewing called Dobra Sosna.  Tell me another industry where competitors have each other's products available?? Craft beer brewing is THE BEST!! 

In the hotel room tonight, I won a small NLCP turbo tournament on Global vs. just eight other players for an ROI of just over 400%.  BUT MY BIG SCORE of the night came next with a 3rd place finish in a nutty hyper-turbo NLHE mystery bounty tournament vs. 112 other players where I scored two huge bounties which actually gave me the most money won in the tournament overall.  I also satellited into this crazy foray for just 55 cents, so my ROI I believe is a personal record at just over  29,000%!!!  Yep, I paid in 55 cents and cashed out $150 and still have a positive bankroll from when I started tonight.  WOW! A night to remember when the bad beats and coolers come raining down. 

10/23 - Hey, look who's in first place (at least this week) in the bragging-rights-only fantasy football league at work!
After a morning school visit in Chattanooga today, I headed back home via the long way and stopped in Dayton at Monkey Town Brewing for lunch on CU (tasty Cajun fish tacos!), and a couple of brews on my dime.  I started with their decent DIPA called Parkin' Lot Pimpin' and their very nice märzen called Don't Ruin My Lederhosen.  

10/24 - I had my work rental car for another day today and a half remote day to play with, so I headed to downtown Nashville to catch a free Q and A and short performance by Don Felder at The Gibson Garage.  This was a nice bookend to seeing The Eagles recently in Vegas and then listening to Don's audiobook about his life story and long time with the band.  The dude looks good for 78 and despite a few technical glitches with the music, he sounded great as well.  
Afterwards, I killed some time while rush hour was going on at Hops and Crafts nearby where I kicked the keg on the DIPA called Get Comfortable from Creature Comforts Brewing (GA) collaborating with Stepping Stone Brewing out of Denmark.  It was a pretty good free half pint!   Next up was the excellent NEPA called Juice Jorts from Maplewood Brewing (Chicago).  I finished with the delightful märzen Festbier from Barrique Brewing here in Nashville.  I also had an excellent large spicy tuna sushi roll at Wild Wasabi in Cummins Station for dinner.  

10/25 - Ashlee got us backstage VIP access and front row seats to see Johnnyswim tonight at the new music venue in downtown Nashville called The Pinnacle.  It was a great time.  The craft beer there was outrageous in price, but they did have one I had not had:  the very good Jackalope Hazy NEIPA from Jackalope Brewing here in town.  

10/26 - My friend, Toney, and I attended the SOLD-OUT Duke at UT college basketball televised exhibition game tonight at the Food City Center/Thompson-Boling Arena on the UT campus in Knoxville.  My Duke boys got the 83-76 win, and it was a great atmosphere.  We stayed overnight at a nearby Courtyard by Marriott nearby for free with points that I had accumulated thanks to work!  Before the game, we ate dinner at Double Dogs Sports Bar and Restaurant in Knoxville where I had a tasty and local Schulz Brau (Brewing) Oktoberfest 2025.

10/28 - I was headed to Chattanooga again for work today and for an overnight stay at my favorite Townplace Suites in Hixson (more points!).  Mondays can be challenging for craft beer hunters since a lot of places are closed, but I happened up on a relatively new place in Cookeville that did the trick for lunch.  Drake's is a chain restaurant that boasts 20 beer taps, so I had checked it out and was pleased with the result.  My California Cobb salad with seared salmon was excellent and I had a pint of their decent Drake's All-American Lager made for them by Sweetwater Brewing in Atlanta.  This won't be my last visit here I can say without much doubt! 

At the hotel room tonight, I finished 14th in a $1 buy-in NLHE mystery bounty tournament on Global Poker with $500 guaranteed.   And with only 304 other opponents there was a nice overlay.  I hit one big mystery bounty for 1,900% ROI and then a total collection of 3,100 % ROI with five total knockouts! 

10/29 - On my drive home from the Chattanooga area today I stopped at Monkey Town Brewing in Dayton again for lunch.  I had the fantastic Philly cheesesteak sandwich to eat along with a pint of their banger TNEIPA called Put in Reverse, Terry!

10/30 - I made the final table, finishing 6th, tonight on Global Poker in the play-money Breast Cancer Awareness Month Giveback NLHE Tournament vs. a surprising 274 other players.  I hope maybe to get some swag for making the final table, but that's not for sure.  Either way, it was a good deep run and it's nice to see them give some recognition for this important cause.   

11/1 -I was back to the Chattanooga area again this weekend for my annual crazy-sister weekend.  I booked us a cabin in the Reliance, TN, area in the Cherokee National Forest.  On the way to the cabin, we stopped at (the new to me) Tellico Brewing Company in Tellico Plains, TN.  I have to give it to my overly religious sister, Melinda, for never giving me much flack about my love of craft beer.  In fact, she will even imbibe with me!  We each had a pint of their very nice märzen (photo above). I also picked up a couple crowlers for consumption at the cabin over the weekend.  We also had a nice snack of bone-in wings and fries from next door at the Peach Tree Grill.  

I chose the cabin due to it being close to Bald River Falls which Melinda could see without much effort near the road.  It was good to see this beauty again as well.  It's been well over 20 years since I was here last.  In the last few years, they've done a nice job putting in a big, new viewing deck as well.  We got lucky as well that autumn was running a little late this year and this first weekend of November looks to be the peak of leaf-peeping.  

I also got my first visit to Baby Falls on the Tellico River which is nearby.   

We had a nice cabin rented at Starr Mountain Retreat that was really "in the woods" including gecko visitors inside the cabin on both days!   At the cabin tonight, I cracked open the crowler of Scotch/wee heavy ale from Tellico Brewing called Skuddy Scott.  I thought it was top-notch! 

I got a nice Hyundai Sonata rental car from Enterprise and only had to pay for one day of three thanks to points accumulated through work.  It did a good job handling the tight quarters between trees and basic off-roading it took to get close to the cabin.  

11/2 - My bed up in the attic accessed by ladder only was comfy and I slept well both nights nestled among the trees.  This is a view out my second-floor window. 

We got pretty lucky with weather also.  We had a great visit after breakfast along the Cherohala Skyway today before some rain set in for the late afternoon.   The photo above is from the Turkey Creek Overlook (elevation: 2,630').   Speaking of breakfast, we had a fantastic one this morning at The Blue Line Grill in nearby Coker Creek.  We also found small Towee Falls which is roadside on private property, but woefully uncared for and managed, making it tough to get a good picture.  
Back at the cabin as the rain fell outside this late afternoon, I enjoyed my second crowler from Tellico Brewing: their German pilsner called Fodderstack.  

11/3 - I had a remote day at work today which gave us time to get checked out of the cabin this morning and then get Melinda home with a fun stop at Buc-ee's in Crossville (her first visit to one).   After dropping her off, I went a few miles down the road and privately visited my mom on her birthday.  I do everything I do for Melinda only for my mom because I know it would make her happy that someone is sort of watching out for her.  I miss ya so much, Mom.  Happy Birthday. 
 

11/4:  I finally got to go see the new Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere movie at our local Roxy Theaters (recliners!) tonight, for Bargain Tuesday with my friends, Todd and Kelly.  I thought it was fantastic!  Like, buy-it-in-the-future fantastic! 

Ashlee was goofing around with AI today and created this "Coach Rob" pic.  I definitely look like I just yelled "Sloppy!  Run it again!!"  And, for the record, I am also still in first place in my work fantasy football league and tied for first in record (second in points) in the BFFFL, so that tracks!! 

11/5 - Well, they finally cranked out the October issue of the Ante Up Online Magazine (yes, I know it's already November), and my monthly column took up two full pages!! It looks pretty great!  

And it included my first published photo in the magazine as well! 

11/6 - I went to see the ho-hum Preds tonight vs. the Philadelphia Flyers with a group from work.  At least the tickets were cheap.  As feared, the Preds, after jumping out to a quick 1-0 lead, floundered for the rest of the game and lost 3-1 (the third goal was an empty netter by Philly).  Well at least the food and beer (no new ones) at Teddy's Tavern before the game was good as was the Jeni's Ice Cream after.  

11/8 - And....we went home...womp, womp.  I attended a little NSC watch party at East Nashville Brew Works - Wilson County tonight with some friends from work.  Unfortunately, the Boys in Gold didn't show up on the field and got trounced by Miami 4-0 to woefully bow out of the MLS playoffs.  At least my beer was good.  I had their excellent Fresh Hopped East Bank IPA and their smooth and sweet It's a Pumpkin Thing ale along with some tasty pizza for dinner.  

11/9 - I won a small buy-in turbo NLHE bounty tournament on Global Poker today vs. 168 other players with seven knockouts for a total ROI of over 3,200%!! 

11/11 - I went to see the new sci-fi flick, Predator: Badlands at our local Roxy Theaters (recliners!) tonight for Bargain Tuesdays. The reviews and trailer looked good for this one and the fact the lovely Elle Fanning (a Hollywood Babe Mt. Rushmore honorable mention) was in it, only made it more appealing.  I thought it was outstanding!  I mean the best ever of the entire series!  I think sequels coming as well! 

11/14 - I don't usually report on 11th place finishes vs. just 66 other players, but I satellited into this one for a ticket worth 500% ROI on Global Poker tonight.  And then with four 100% ROI knockouts along with cashing, I turned the original satellite buy-in into 1,000% ROI which my bankroll really needed after a week or so of drowning horribly on the river.  And, of course, I finished 11th due to a rivered flush by my heads-up opponent.  Typical!   

11/15 - I went to see New Mexico State U vs. the ho-hum UT Vols today for homecoming in Neyland Stadium in Knoxville with my pal (and season-ticket holder), Toney.  I didn't really care about the game since UT has already squandered any chance at a national title this season, but I did commit to it a while back and I haven't been to a game there yet this season.  At least the weather was mild.  And the smoke-gray uniforms and helmets are pretty bad-ass.  

The Vols took care of business with a less-than-decisive effort of 42-9.  They are going to need to play much better to win the last two games of the season and get a good bowl game.  We shall see.  The real highlights of the day were my food choices.  We stopped at Buc-ee's in Crossville coming and going and I had great snacks each time.  We also had a late lunch at the Double Dogs sports bar in Knoxville where I had their tasty flank steak.  I took two beers with me from the fridge stash for the road trip. They needed to be drank before we head out on our almost three-week international trip.  First up was the seasonal Maibock from Johnson City Brewing that I picked up there a while back on a work trip.  It was excellent.  I also had the very good pale ale called Chilly Water from Tighthead Brewing (IL) from my last BeerBox.com order.  

11/16 - We went to The Trailer Park for lunch today.  It's the new food truck court and bar off of Hwy. 109.  I was not thoroughly impressed since some of the food trucks on site weren't even open and the tap list was mostly a bunch of been-there-drank-that stuff.  I did find one new-to-me brew, the decent Daydream pilsner from Soul and Spirits Brewing out in Memphis. 
We ambled over next door afterwards to the East Nashville Beer Works - Wilson County where I had a couple of theirs that I had not had before.  First up was the solid All American ReCZECH pilsner, and then the very nice (and back in production evidently) Fire of the Century red ale. 

11/17 - I went to see the new sci-fi flick, Predator: Badlands AGAIN at our local Roxy Theaters (recliners!) tonight, because it was so good; and my pal, Toney, wanted to see it and couldn't last week; and I had two free tickets thanks to my points membership there at the theater.  And because Elle Fanning is still a babe...even as half a robot. 

11/19 - I got a small buy-in NLHE turbo bounty tournament win today on Global Poker vs. 109 other players.  With my 11 knockouts (all of which came after we got in the money) I got a total ROI of just over 2,900%!!  More padding for the bankroll!
I got second in the same type of tournament later in the day vs. 65 other players with four KO's for an ROI of 1,600%.  This combo allowed me to cash out $50!! 

(Editor's note:  I got an email today while playing that second tournament stating that the real money play on Global Poker is being suspended here in pearl-clutching Tennessee as of the first of the year.  That's really sucks.  But I can piss away all the money I want on sports betting and the lottery.  I'm also currently in an email argument with GP regarding my last series tournament win (3 friggin' months ago) where I never got a trophy or any swag.  Bastardos!! ) 

I finished off the night with a small buy-in turbo NLCP win on Global Poker vs. 15 other players for an ROI just under 700%!  I also got my money back on PokerStars with a second-place finish vs. 4 others.  Gotta keep the other poker Rob happy to keep offering up those games on PokerStars once Global goes bye-bye for real money.