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Top attractions in Knoxville, Tennessee: Ijams Nature Center and downtown Knoxville

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  Ijams Nature Center, Knoxville, TN The last time my wife and I visited the city of Knoxville, Tennessee was in October 2003.  We were getting ready to leave the rat race of New York behind for the perceived paradise of Hawaii, which would come the following month. We were excited for that move, a new chapter in our lives.  Before leaving the “mainland”, we wanted to make sure we see more of it, before leaving.  To that end, we really tried our best that same year. First, it was the 3 week long west coast road trip, going from New York City to Colorado and back.  It was followed by this 10 day long trip that would take us to Knoxville, Memphis, then to New Orleans.   Knoxville was more a layover destination on our second road trip that October.  We stayed just one night, on our way over to Memphis.  We knew we needed to rest up to break up the trip, as the driving distance from New York City to Memphis is over 1100 miles. Knoxville seemed like a...
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3 year anniversary of our Pomeranian Toby’s passing: A journey of FIRE (financial independence retire early) movement…

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  Toby at Pittsburgh, PA (2021) Unknown: “When someone you love becomes a memory, the memory becomes a treasure.” The month of March marks the third anniversary of our beloved fur baby Toby’s passing.  It is really true what people say about passing of a loved one: Time heals . What is not always true is this, that we tend to eventually forget everyone and everything over time.  While most of it might apply, we found out that it isn’t the case when it comes to your truly loved ones, like your family, and your pets.   Prior to raising our first fur baby, I personally wouldn’t have believed that a dog would succeed in opening my sometimes jaded, and at times cold and indifferent heart.  I mean, a dog can’t even carry on deep conversations with us, right? How could a thing that couldn’t speak, communicate with us on such a deep level?  Well, I found out that communication and forming an unbreakable bond doesn’t require speech.  Animals live perfectly hap...
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Two nights/three days in Helen, Georgia: One of the most popular destinations in the state of Georgia

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  Helen, Georgia  Near where my wife and I lived, we used to visit a German inspired town called Stoutburg Village , about 60 miles west of Philadelphia.  It is a cute village with German inspired homes, a town square, and several shops/restaurants scattered around it. We always got a kick out of visiting that place, as it reminded us of our visit to Germany a long time ago, in a galaxy far far away.  We loved seeing the 3 story Bavarian homes and the walkable streets with coffee shops, bakery, diner, and retail shops, which reminded us of Germany. We must’ve visited the place several times during our time we lived in Pennsylvania.  We took our family and friends there as one of our must visit places near our home.  Everyone got a kick out of seeing a village seemingly right out of Germany right there in the middle of Pennsylvania. We still have fond memories of the village, and always wondered if we can find another like it somewhere else in the country. ...
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