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From Hollywood to Dollywood
After being home for the Holidays, The Bartender examines
the differences between his current residence in L.A., and his childhood
home
KNOXVILLE, TN – The song, despite its connection to a sports
team of somewhat dubious achievements, is right.
Rocky Top WILL always be "home, sweet home, to me."
I am often asked by my relatives what life is like in L.A. and how
it compares to Knoxville, a lovely mid-size Tennessee town in the Southeastern
United States. They are radically different, yet it's pretty easy to
tell the two apart. Really, all you have to do is look at the surroundings.
In Knoxville, everything is structured around family, kids and the
home. Just check out at all the shopping centers (strip malls in L.A.-speak)
here. Knoxville has strip malls like L.A. has surf shops.
The crowds at the electronic stores are ridiculous. It seems that the
ideal life here consists of a nice brick house loaded with a big-screen
TV and video games, a car and an SUV and a couple of kids, all accented
by several church activities. In L.A., the lanscape is comprised of
boutique shops, nice restaurants, nail salons or, in the case of the
beach cities, liquor stores.
There are lots of churches are in Knoxville – one every couple
of blocks, in fact. Most of them are quite impressive – big lawns,
steeples, huge parking lots – which signifies tremendous support
from their loyal congregation.
Then there are the strollers. These mobile baby carries are EVERYWHERE.
Knoxville has more strollers than California has waves. They are propelled
by people of all ages, including many who appear to be fresh out of
college. The University of Tennessee must give them out as parting gifts
after graduation.
In L.A., about the only strollers you see are at Disneyland (and mornings
on the beachside Strand. Then they disappear like the Tennessee Vols).
Kids? Forget about it. Parents in California are so irresponsible, they
let their children play largely on their own. Parents like to spend
their time with other parents. Let the kids hang with the kids, they
believe.
Schools and churches? We have them all right, but they are hidden better
than the kids. They are located well off the main streets or otherwise
overshadowed by other buildings. They just don't stand out like they
do in Knoxville.
If I still lived in Knoxville – no telling what I would be doing
to support myself if I did – I would probably be living this kind
of existence. I would likely be married to some blonde from Knoxville
(Bearden grad, maybe Farragut, perhaps even my alma mater West, but
certainly one with professional aspirations of her own), own a cozy
home, an SUV, plus a couple of strollers. I would probably even have
season passes to Dollywood (yes, there is such a place. It's an amusement
park owned by East Tennessee native Dolly Parton). It would all be perfect
– good family, close to home, coach baseball in the summers and
attend church each and every Sunday.
But all the while, I would be looking over my shoulder just the same.
I would be wondering what it would be like to visit other places in
the world. Experience other cultures. What's it like in Europe? Is Southern
California really all sunshine and beach life? What if I had ever moved
there?
That desire to explore is why I relocated. I've been fortunate enough
to see some of those faraway places and even live in one of the world's
greatest cities. It would be nice to be able to do it all – combine
family with this enriching experience – but just like we do with
our paycheck, we must also budget our time.
While I was home for the holidays, I did some true East Tennessee activities.
For one, the famly took me to the nearby Great Smokey Mountains. It's
always good to go there. I find the small streams filled with the little
round rocks quite beautiful. I spent a couple of days with mom and dad
and was later joined by my sister and her two boys (ages 8 and 11).
Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge have changed quite a bit since my youth.
But it was neat to see some places are just as I remembered from my
high school days: The Old Mill (now serving kuntry breakfast!), go-karts,
the Village shops and, yes, Hillbilly Golf. One good riddance is Lum's,
absolutely the worst restaurant ever in these parts. I used to call
it "Lumps."
The Gatlinburg Aquarium was great (I always wanted to go on one of
those moving tubes with sharks swimming all around) and we once again
all enjoyed the Christmas show at the Louise Mandrell's Theater. Dollywood,
too, was entertaining. I just wish it had been about 20 degrees warmer
at night so we could have taken more time to look at the Christmas lights.
It wasn't just me; we ALL wish it had been 20 degrees warmer!
As we were headed to Gatlinburg, my dad said that all this activity
was part of my Christmas gift. He then added an apology, saying this
could hardly compare to the excitement of life in L.A. He's right, of
course, except that he got it backward. My life in L.A. cannot compare
to time like this spent with my family.
That's because there is nothing more satisfying than having a good
family and being able to spend time with them. It's not as much as I
would like, but I do treasure every moment.
Good 'ol Rocky Top!
The Bartender can be reached at bartender@pubclub.com
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