Portland, Tennessee Blog

Sickofitall, I hate to differ with you and I agree with some of your comments, but you have not seen/heard some of the hatred coming out of the mouths of some of the coaches you just mentioned. Do you have a son playing?

I don't have the answer for "What's wrong with
our football team", but, I do know that the sophomores playing, have earned their spots, and they have stats every week to back them up - I also realize that the Jr. and Fr. classes, as well, are
very versatile and talented, and I hope all three classes stay together, because good things will happen next year if they all work hard in off season. I am a little concerned about feedback
that I have received from a majority (95%) of the players about their negative attitude about COACH BEVER and them wanting him gone next year. I don't know what's up with that, but there is concern there as a parent. I know Coach Bever
is a very well grounded family man, and I personally thank him for his christian values as well, but I have listened to the players at recent functions, and I have just been numb over some of their remarks.
I am referring to 96% of the starters and kids that don't play as well. I am so thankful we just have this week left, because the players need to regroup during off season, and Coach Bever and Coach Curry need to do alot of regrouping and praying about their overall attitude with all the players. I believe in HARD DISCIPLINE, but I also know, from being a coach myself, that you can be their friend as well, and you can get more out of your players if you coach with "some humor" and compassion for the "good and bad" that they do (it's worked for Coach Hicks, Coach Brooks, Coach Bruce, Coach Childs, and Coach Powell - THANKS COACHES FOR A JOB WELL DONE)....I also know the team as a whole realizes there is no I IN TEAM. BUT, they have made comments about the same one player that has been placed on a pedistal, by some of the coaches, as the man, and they will tell you that it has hurt him instead of helped him. This is ashame when we have so much talent on the team and class unity as well. I just hope we don't
loose any players next year, because we have GREAT COACHES, AND GREAT RETURNING PLAYERS in ALL the classes , and we ALL need to reqroup as parents and fans and be more supportive for all our panthers... No doubt, the future looks brighter for our panthers, and with a little extra off season work, and some attitude adjustments (both coaches and players)
we should see a big turn around in 2008....

Whats up with Portland football????????????
How come we can't win a game??????????
Everybody knows the reason.We've just lost our homecoming game to Rossview and have a region game against Beech on Friday.Losing isn't what Portland foot ball is known for and guess what we are starting to be the sorrrrrrrriest team alive.It's not only the players on the field but the coaches on the sidelines.Our 2005 freshmen team went 7-2.Now they are junior boys that should get to play almost all of the time,right? Wrong!My older brother is a junior on the football team and freshmen and sophmors play over him.When he gets to play he makes an awesome tackle and the scout team does better in practice(by what my brother says) than the starters out on the field.
We need something fixed,but does anyone have the nerve to fix it??????????????????????????????

Don't let the "churched" get you down... for the most part,they are just doing what their pastors tell them to do...so as to stay in good standing in their group. Of course, it's hypocritical of them....for example the field trip to Jack Daniels ! What were they thinking ???

No different than these church people here who protest liquor by the drink in their own hometown, then go eat at those exact same type of establishments in our neigboring towns!!!!!!

If it is against your morals here, it should be against your morals elsewhere as well. If you are going to talk the talk people, walk it. No matter what town you are in......

I had a great laugh today. A friend of mine told me that she had traveled with a busload of people from one of the BAPTIST churches for a day of sight-seeing. Sound like harmless fun? Here's the punch line; they went to Lynchburg for a tour of the JACK DANIELS DISTILLERY!

As a person who is tired of the church-run decisions made in Portland, I really got a belly laugh on that one! Are you listening, Councilmen?

Tim - thank you for that information. Sorta thought it was something like that.

Tim - thank you for that information. Sorta thought it was something like that.

This is a bit of a sensitive subject with me, because I love me hometown, but oo often I hate the things that go on here.

You want to know why the city looks so tacky in places? There are two major reasons. First, there is no standardized land use plan. it has been talked about for decades. The planning commisssion has been "studying" it for almost ten years now. Without it, where businesses are located are left up solely to politics and whaever the planning commission wants to approve. there is no objectivity, or standard until we get one of those in place, and I tell ya... i am not holding my breath.

Second, everytime we get a codes person in here that wants to strictly enforce what few codes we do have to help the town look better, the powers that be get teed off and begin complaining to the Mayor and Aldermen who cave into political pressure and run the Codes person out of town.

Until we get these two things, especially a team of both Mayor and Aldermen willing to stand behind and support a Codes person, I don't see Portland's face changing much at all.

I have a suggestion for a new blog topic..."What are the places you eat at outside of Portland, and what draws you to these establishments?"

As far as the furniture store that has shoe polish writing all over, and junk around it, that tells you what kind of codes and requirements we have as a city. White House turned away Captain D's because they wouldn't change their color scheme, which by the way is TOO ridiculous, and we here in good ol' podunk Portland let people open businesses with shoe polish fronts....LOL!!!!

Judy.....you are so right. Portland needs to make the town or some part of it look festive for the fall holidays.....it'd be neat to have an Octoberfest here, wouldn't it ?

Thanks for the tip about Cheddars.....I'm looking forward to checking that out !!

ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST
I seen today that Beach House has gone out of business. Guess it was to be expected though with the new fitness/tanning place.

I sure wish something would get done with that so called furniture store next door, that place is looking like a junk yard. The shoe polish writing on the windows is one thing but the junk on the side the building is another.

I agree that Portland needs to dress up better, but the businesses aren't the only ones that should be doing a better job, how about our City, geesh when it's christmas if you blink you will miss the decorations.

Anyone been to CHEDARS Casual Dining Restaurant in Hendersonville, it's back by the new Super Wal-mart & Home Depot, Absolutely AWESOME, larg seating capacity, service is fantastic, food is ready lightning quick, and you will never leave there without a TO-GO box! The best around as far as I am concerned! and VERY reasonable priced! If you haven't been there you really need to give it a try. Oh yeah and there is a Caraba's opening soon right next door too!!

I used to try and do most of my shopping in Portland but I don't anymore. If the town is not going to vote on ways to bring revenue in why should I worry about where I shop. The solution to this problem has got to start at the top and work it's way down.

DebraP, it seems the only thing that works in this "no class" town is some fast foods and gas stations. Good luck if you try something else.

I drove to Franklin the other night to Burgers on the Square, great food by the way, and I really admired the town square. They had it fixed up with pumkins and flowers and it really looked nice. Where is the fall decorations in Portland? I really wish the business owners in this town would take a little pride in the way people see this town. It's "blue collar" but it could have a little "class" thrown in.

I agree....I do about 95% of my shopping in Franklin, and on Sundays, if I want a beer, I buy it at the Penny Saver or at the Orlinda Shell. Hey, the city council wants me to do so! I am more than happy to oblige!

Makes perfect sense for a neighboring town to advertise in the local papers.

DebraP - I know what your talkin about at Occasions, last spring I bought my daughter a Vera Bradley Purse... Ouch! $75. she was going thru a hard time and thought she needed something special, anyway, all the while I'm shoping the lady is peeking around every corner looking at me, kinda following me into each room, etc etc, my daughter gets the purse and thought she might like a different design (go figure) so she takes it back tags and all still on it, I paid by ck and am a registered customer in their computer where all sales are kept. All she wanted to do was exchange it, well what a fiasco that was, they refused to let her even go into the room with the purses, said it wasn't bought there, hello..... their tags are still on it! All of a sudden they can't find me in their computer so they can't find where I purchased. After argueing with this woman that treated her like crap she said forget it! I went back the next day and asked them to find my account on their computer, they did....... I said now what was the last Item I purchased, they said a $75. Vera Bradley bag, I said thank you, now you can take me off your customer list I will never step inside this door again and told them how they did my daughter over this purse. If you don't go in there in a poofy dress, Red Hat & white gloves like you're going to a tea party you get treated like a thief and they've gotten this bandits last dollar! Sorry I don't like speaking badly of our town businesses but this just isn't right.

I wonder what kind of business it would take to make it in Portland. I have thought about this alot because I would love to open a business here but I'm scared.

Any Suggestions??

Speaking of Occasions, I went in there one Christmas looking for Noah's Ark stuff for a present. I was treated like I was fixin' to shoplift something. Have never been back. Wouldn't pay their prices anyways.

The Leader even listed the Yard Sales in Franklin this week. Wonder why??

I too was extremely surprised at the advertisements in the Leader that were Franklin businesses, what the heck is up with that! I'm not buying a paper to see what is going on in KY, or who has what for sale up there. Maybe they should charge more for the Church directory which is a full page.... they'de make a killing, what was I thinking... that's probably free anyway!!

Yes I saw the quilters junction is going out of business, and B's Steak Out is closed, so who's next, Kelley's furniture went last month. The rest of the small retail stores don't have hoot to shop for, unless you want to pay out the nose at Occasions.

I think one of the reasons the Leader has so many ads from Franklin is because the company that owns them also owns a paper in Franklin, KY. Have you ever noticed all of the junk stories they put in the paper from Franklin.
I'm sorry but when I buy a Portland paper either the Progressive or the Leader I want to read stories about Portland or Sumner County or maybe a bill that one of our representives have worked on.
I guess I feel ripped off when I by the Leader because it usually is last weeks news that was in the Progressive.
The News Examiner is nothing but a joke, do they know where Portland is?

About tax dollars. given the choice of whether to pay 6% or 10% taxes..I think most people will choose the lesser tax. Porland is just at a disadvantage of being next to a lower tax state !

Given the option of having choices about what we buy or very little choice...I think most people will choose having many choices.

Saying that Portland does not want liquor sales I don't think is quite accurate....it's just that the church got their people to vote and the rest of the people sat back and didn't vote in large enough numbers. Apparently the church does not have that same influence on the newspapers or the radio station here. One of the sponsors of the Tim Coker show, when it was on the local station, was Burgers on the Square in Franklin, KY.....they have a very big bar in their restaurant !

Newspapers have to have money to stay in business...if the local businesses won't pay to advertise in the local paper, then they have to get ads from wherever. Do you think that The Leader should take an anti-out-of-town and anti-alcohol stand ? Is that what you are saying?

Portland is just goofy when it comes to this alcohol issue as far as I'm concerned. It's so much hypocrisy over one issue...and makes no sense to me at all...it's like if there were no alcohol, all the problems in Portland would be solved ! These same church people who don't want alcohol in their town....all patronize restaurants who serve it...so to me, it's just a lot of hypocrisy and acting self-righteous...and wanting to say..."oh OUR town doesn't have liqour"...well, that's all well and good...but does that make it any better town than Gallatin or Hendersonville or any other normal city ? I think Portland is just cutting off it's nose to spite it's face. Missing out on all those tax dollars at the same time they have a critical need for more tax revenue.

I too was distressed at the number of ads in this week's Leader from Franklin. But the question remains, who is left in Portland to actually buy advertising in the Leader? Quilter's Junction is going out of business; they didn't even last a year. The Ponderosa has been replaced by a Walgreens; how long before THAT new building is torn down and replaced by something else?

It's not all about liquor, although I believe that liquor sales would help. Its about the fact that the people of Portland support the businesses in Franklin, and as long as that continues, you'll be seeing more and more ads for Franklin businesses in the paper.

Portland seems to be moving towards Franklin, and Franklin is growing in the direction of Portland. How long will it be before we are just one town?

I am very confused. Council people, the mayor, citizens and even the local papers have had articles about this.....Keep our tax dollars in Portland and TN. So why is it when I open up the Portland Leader I see as many ads from Franklin and Bowling Green Ky as I see for Portland, White House, etc. I understand the advestising aspect of the paper, but come on. Can't the paper call on more business' around here to try and sell the ad?

Portland doesn't want liquor in this town but there have been ads in the Portland Leader for liquor stores.

So this is telling me, go on spend your money in KY.. We don't want certain things in our town but it's OK to go else where to buy it.

I just don't understand.