David Attenborough narrates in a hushed voice:
Yes, this is an inferior plot device designed to get me through Sunday - an archive shot of a wonderful machine in all its chrome-and-pipe glory from this summer on Market Square.
This is a very forthright photo of one of the open rail cars of the Three Rivers Rambler, a restored steam locomotive that gives excursion trips from the waterfront at Volunteer Landing to the confluence of the Holston and French Broad Rivers where they join to form the Tennessee River. The trip is about 11 miles up and down the countryside and rivers and lasts ninety minutes. It's been years since I've taken the trip, but I can recommend it highly for some very beautiful East Tennessee scenery.
At lunchtime yesterday, I went out to do my duty and save the ailing economy by visiting the Big Box Electronics Store to buy a case for my camera. I couldn't find one that was appropriate (meaning I couldn't find one in leopard print), so if the economy collapses with a stupendous crash, you can blame me. 
It looks like just another day at a construction site. But this construction site affects hundreds of thousands of people every day. You are looking at Interstate 40, a major east-west artery across the country. One mile of I-40 by downtown Knoxville has been completely closed for reconstruction and won't open again until 2009. The project is called SmartFix, but many people around here call it something rude. Traffic has been routed to the I-640 bypass around Knoxville. The project will widen the Interstate and eliminate the dangerous left-hand merge from downtown onto the highway. 
It's another last minute Sky Watch Friday. At the antique car show last Sunday, I noticed the shiny reflective hood (bonnet for my UK visitors) of this 50s Ford raised up so we could admire the mighty engine inside. While others were doing just that, I was admiring the reflection of the sun behind clouds, and the Tennessee Theater marquee. But the hood was so big, I couldn't fit it all in the photo.
It's the 50th anniversary of Thunder Road, the 1958 film starring Robert Mitchum that's about moonshiners running their illegal product in the mountains of Kentucky and Tennessee. Yesterday Gay Street was closed for a reenactment of the dramatic car chase scene from the movie, and I had a front row spot to grab a photo of the vintage 50s cars speeding toward us. Don't worry, they slowed down well before they got near the crowd. There was also a vintage car show in front of the Tennessee Theater, where the movie was being shown, and James Mitchum, Robert's son, came and talked to the crowd about the movie.
Just sayin'.
It's Honda Hoot weekend, and I promised you motorcycles. But where could they be? The sign said Bike Night, but I didn't see any bikes. I wandered down to the Ships-a-Hoot party on the waterfront. I saw lots of bikers. I even saw Elvis. But no bikes.
I asked Elvis, "Where are all the bikes?" He said " Down at the end of Lonely Street at the Heartbreak Hotel." "Uh, thanks." I could see I was on my own for this one. So I wandered around downtown on my fruitless search. Groups of cycles would buzz by - three down one street, then four down another street, always too fast for my camera. I felt like Monsieur la Vache chasing his swarm of Vespas, just out of reach...until I finally spotted and snapped this little group.
But you know, Elvis was right - many cycles were at the hotel, safely resting after a long ride on the Dragon at Deals Gap in the Smokies (318 curves in 11 miles!).
The moral of this tale? Don't count your Hondas before they Hoot.
The Time Warp Tea Room is not your mother's tea room - unless she rides or races vintage motorcycles. Located on North Central Avenue, in the part of the Old North Knoxville neighborhood that used to be known as Happy Hollow, the Time Warp is cycle friendly. Forget the white linen tablecloths, bone china, and cucumber sandwiches that come with most tea rooms. The Time Warp is decked out in vintage motorcycle memorabilia and serves a mean bowl of chili, not to mention a great cup of coffee or (gasp!) tea. There is often live music on weekends, like the night I took this photo: if you peer into the window, you can see local wordsmith Jack Rentfro at the microphone. It's a fun place to hang out, even if you don't own or ride cycles, and I expect the Honda Hoot folks will be congragating there this weekend.
This is the most unusual doorway in Knoxville. Built in the 1890s for the residence and medical office of a Dr. S. M. Miller, this structure is commonly referred to as the Keyhole Building for the distinctive keyhole shaped entryway you see here. From the 1940s to the 1980s, the Keyhole Building was bought and occupied by Knoxville Business College. After the college moved to another facility, the building, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, stood boarded up and neglected until just a few years ago when a local development group rehabbed the three story structure into condominiums, which sold very quickly.
Every time I see this phrase on a mirror, I think of that scene in Jurassic Park where they see the tyrannosaurus in their rear view mirror, and it's gaining on them, and then I just start to giggle. Not to worry, the only things to see in this mirror are some blurry trees on Market Square.
Here's one more picture from the vintage motorcycle show yesterday. This was the only Vespa on display. I couldn't get a shot that I liked of the whole scooter, so I'm showing you a close up again. I like the lettering of the Vespa logo, and the faint reflection of the TVA towers underneath the logo.
The Time Warp Vintage Motorcycle Club of Knoxville had a great display on Market Square today. There were 50s, 60s, and 70s models of Ducati, Triumph, Harley Davidson, and Suzuki cycles (plus one lone baby blue Vespa). I took lots of shots, but I like this close-up: a reflection in shiny chrome of mom showing her toddler the finer points of motorcycles.
While driving to work, I got behind this truck at the stoplight. I just can't figure out what the cargo is - plastic fencing? wire? I have not a clue. Anyone care to speculate? It sure made for a psychedelic image; glad I had my camera along for the ride.
Every Thursday, the city closes Union Avenue for the Sundown in the City concert on Market Square. This street then becomes the (unofficial but popular) parking area for motorcycles. I like how they line up so neatly. Are any of you motorcycle enthusiasts?
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