Is Easter Bunny still politically correct?
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Or maybe I?m getting my holidays confused. I think the pressure is to say Holiday Tree, not Christmas Tree.
We?re not supposed to dress up for Halloween because that?s a day that represents evil spirits. Is it still OK to say Santa Claus or is that off limits too?
As we sit down to our fine Easter dinners today, we should be thankful for the fine health standards we enjoy in this country. Most of us realize the food we?re served at restaurants might have been dropped on the floor, but at least it wasn?t dropped in the toilet.
Food inspectors in Kuwait City shut down a restaurant earlier this month after finding its bread dough stored in a commode. At least the restaurant owner can be praised for his honesty. Instead of making up a crazy tale, he told health officials the toilet was the best way to keep the dough fresh and moist.
After hearing that story, I think I?ll stick to cornbread.
As for other offbeat news, you can probably tell I?m going to give you an update about our local Papa John?s restaurant because there?s a large Papa John?s picture on this page. While I?m sure the Papa John? delivery guys have it tough, they can be thankful they don?t live in desolate Alaska where pizza is now delivered by plane. And yes you better leave the pilot a tip.
The pizza is a special treat for the eskimos who live in the village of Savoonga. Their usual diet consists of whale, walrus, reindeer and berries.
The business is called Airport Pizza and it?s a one-room operation that?s all kitchen. The business utilizes the services of Frontier Flying, which delivers the pizza for free ? provided its to a location that?s on one of its scheduled stops.
The result is pizzas can be delivered 170 miles away (and I don?t think they offer a 30-minute guarantee on that). A normal order might be for six reindeer sausage pizzas, which cost between $16 and $32 apiece depending on size.
I haven?t asked our local Papa John?s if they will deliver a pizza 170 miles away, but my guess is no.
And I leave you this week with a promotion for daredevil David Blaine, whose next stunt will have him living in a ?human aquarium? for a full week. He will end the stunt by attempting to hold his breath underwater longer than the record of 8 minutes, 58 seconds.
In the human aquarium, Blaine will float in an 8-foot acrylic sphere and receive nutrition through a tube. Blaine will enter the human aquarium May 1 and will leave in a live, two-hour ABC special May 8. I?ll send a bill to ABC for this advertising space.
Papa John?s almost ready to deliver
Ever since I reported our local Papa John?s would be reopening, I?ve received several inquiries about when that day will be. It is now my pleasure to tell you I have an answer (drum roll, please).
Our Papa John?s will reopen Monday, April 24. And I also have another date of importance to convey. Owner Kevin Holland tells me there will be a ?Meet the Managers Day? this coming Friday, April 21, from 4 to 7 p.m.
While you may or may not be interested in meeting the manager, you likely will be interested in getting free slices of pizza. People will also be able to register for door prizes.
?We?ve been coming along pretty good,? said Kevin, who said he?s hired 35 to 40 people and is still looking for a few drivers. ?If you know what this place looked like before, stop by and see it now. We?ve done a lot of work, done some landscaping and we?ve painted the building.?
Papa John?s treated seven area businesses, including the Standard, to a free lunch Friday. And I can vouch for the fact the pizza was delicious.
?We fed a few people and had a good trial run,? Kevin said Friday. ?I think we made about 100 pizzas today.?
In case you missed my previous announcement, the Papa John?s phone number will stay the same. Surprisingly, no one snatched up the easy-to-remember number, 473-9999.
FitnessWave rides into Warren County
David Harris thought about becoming a physical therapist when he graduated from UT with a degree in kineseology. Instead he worked for his dad?s local oil company for several years, moved to Charlotte, N.C., for a year, and now he?s back in town with a great new business.
It?s called FitnessWave and it?s a complete body testing center on wheels. The business offers true body fat testing by submerging under water, resting metabolic rate to determine how many calories your body burns a day, and a VO2 submax test to determine cardiovascular health.
?This type of equipment used to be confined to a university and the tests were expensive,? said David, who has opened the business with his wife, Kristy. ?What makes this business model work is the fact it?s mobile. I can take it anywhere in Tennessee.?
David says there?s so much more to fitness than simply controlling weight. He says two men can each weigh 175 pounds, but one can have high levels of body fat while the other has lean muscle mass. David can give you a true body fat analysis thanks to a 300-gallon tub aboard his truck.
Resting metabolic rate is important because everyone burns a different number of calories a day. By determining your individual metabolism and level of daily exercise, David can tell you exactly how many calories you should eat a day.
?Some people don?t think they can eat very much because they have a low metabolism, or they think they can eat a lot because they have a high metabolism,? said Kristy. ?And in a lot of cases that?s true.?
David was nice enough to let me try the cardiovascular fitness test, although I can?t sit here and brag about the results. There are all different types of scores such as excellent, above average, and good. My score fell into the category of ?lucky to be alive.?
It?s a neat test where you ride a stationary bike with a mask over your face while a machine evaluates your oxygen intake and heart rate. It measures how efficiently your body pulls oxygen from blood and converts it into energy.
The FitnessWave has already made a stop in Tullahoma and has plans to visit Murfreesboro and Knoxville. Here in town, David wants to visit Leland Northcutt?s gym and the Civic Center as starting points.
Any company that would like to make FitnessWave available to their employees can give David a call and he?ll set up a time where he can pull up in the parking lot. The phone number is 815-9283 and the Web site is www.getdunked.com.
More talk about developments on Harrison Ferry Mountain
In case you haven?t noticed, just about all talk of major business developments in Warren County have centered around Harrison Ferry Mountain. The only exception I can think of is the tire recycling plant and I don?t really feel like mentioning that subject right now.
While some of this talk about mountaintop developments is nothing more than rumors, some of it?s not as there are currently communities being built up there. An Indiana man who called me Friday morning says he too has million dollar plans for Harrison Ferry Mountain and claims to have the financial backing to do it.
John Michael Thomas tells me he has already selected architects for what will be a ?huge park? and community on some 2,500 acres. He says the project was initially scheduled for California, but because of soaring land and building costs in that state it will cost about $250 million less to put the project in Middle Tennessee. His current estimates have the development costing upwards of $750 million here. Where people get that kind of money I don?t know.
?Fall Creek Falls is a huge asset,? said Thomas. ?They are turning people away there each and every day because they don?t have the space.?
According to Thomas, he expects to close on the property in about a month. Thomas said once he owns the property, he would like to publicize more specific plans in Business Pulse. Only time will tell if this pans out.
McMinnville Post Office to stay open late
If you have yet to file your taxes, you are the king of procrastination. However, you are in luck if you plan to use the services of McMinnville Post Office, which is staying open until 7 p.m. Monday to help with last-minute filers.
This year the post office is designating the lobby collection as the official mailing point to receive the April 17 postmark. Postmaster Charles Bogle indicated that all tax mailings deposited in the lobby collection points by midnight April 17 will be postmarked with that date.
Tobacco Express coming to former barbershop
I told you last week I would give you the lowdown about what?s coming to the old Smith Brothers Barbershop on Beersheba Street. Turns out David Grace is opening another branch of Sparta Street Smoke Shop, only this store will be Mt. Leo Tobacco Express.
David is a nice guy and I?m glad he?s enjoying success. However, the editors of Business Pulse don?t like to promote the use of tobacco products. It?s that whole thing about chronic health problems.
I will tell you Mt. Leo Tobacco Express plans to open in early May. Because of space limitations, David is not going to offer food the way he does on Sparta Street. He did say every once in awhile he plans to cook BBQ and fry fish outside.
That?s all folks
My space is gone. Call 473-2191 with business news.