Abrams Falls + Elijah Oliver Place + The Sinks + Tuckaleechee Caverns (Great Smoky Mtns. – Day 6)

The goal on our 6th day in the Great Smoky Mountains was to do the hike to Abrams Falls (our final waterfall hike of the trip). We hit the road early with Emily helping with filming (after some quick training). We made a quick pitstop at The Sinks. Then we got to the hike via …

Deano’s 2020 Movie Award

Each year I select my favorite movie of the year. When I’m done with a year the winner is crowned with the highly coveted “Deano’s First Place, Far Out, Fantastic, Favorite, Fine Film Award”. I watched 24 of the films released in 2020 (of those I really enjoyed 7). The “Deano’s First Place, Far Out, …

1 Year Lifting Weights: My Progress And What I’ve Learned

A year ago, I decided to start lifting weights.  I’m assessing where I’m at right now, what I’ve learned this year, and what my goals are for the coming year. This is where I’m at now:   Start (12/6/19) Now (12/12/20) Workouts 0 73 Body Weight 173 (@ 5’ 9”) 190 (@ 5’ 9”) Squat …

Hiking Cades Cove – Full Time-lapse (Great Smoky Mountains – Day 5)

14 miles…hiking…not driving…not biking (although we tried).  I time-lapsed this very peaceful hike (all 14 miles in 12 minutes).  Every time I’ve ever been on the Cades Cove Loop (in the Great Smoky Mountains) it has been a bumper to bumper traffic jam.  They close it to auto traffic on Wednesdays during some parts of …

Cedars of Lebanon State Park

We took our 5th RV trip to Cedars of Lebanon State Park in September.  We hiked almost all the trails in this state park (6 trails in 2 days).  There are so many things to see along the way.  There are caves, sinkholes, rock formations, and more cedar trees growing in the thin, rocky soil …

I’m Uncomfortably Long Assets!

A person I follow on Twitter recently noted that he was ‘irresponsibly long’ Bitcoin.  This concept stuck with me because it reminded me of how I currently feel about my investment portfolio.  I do not believe I am irresponsibly long anything but I definitely feel like I am uncomfortably long everything.  I believe that the …

Hiking To Rainbow Falls + Laurel Falls + Foothills Parkway (Great Smoky Mountains – Day 4)

We spent the 4th day of our Great Smoky Mountain National Park trip hiking to Rainbow Falls! I cannot say enough good things about this hike.  We hiked six waterfalls on our 8 days in the park and this one was, by far, my favorite.  Later in the afternoon, we hiked to Laurel Falls (which …

Taking My John Deere To An Antique Tractor Show

For the first time in a couple of decades, I took my John Deere to an antique tractor show.  This was my first solo effort without my grandfather at the helm.  It was fun and brought back lots of fond memories from my younger years.  I even got Emily to come and learn to drive …

Hiking To Grotto Falls + Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail + Ogle Farm (Great Smoky Mountains – Day 3)

We waited out the rain on our third day in the Great Smoky Mountains to hike to Grotto Falls. Before going, we fueled up at Crockett’s 1875 Breakfast Camp (very good). Then we headed towards the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail. On the way, we stopped for a quick (and unexpected) hike at Ogle’s Farm. …