The concept of a magic pill has always held a sort of magnetic attraction.
A magic pill to make you happy. A magic pill to make you sleep. A magic pill to make all the pain disappear. A magic pill to make you thin while you feast at the buffet.
It’s not a magic pill, but there’s a new method to melt fat off your body at Namaste OB/GYM. It's called Cool Sculpting and I guess freezing fat off your body would be a more appropriate term.
It works like this. The Cool Sculpting machine attaches to the part of your body where you’d like to attack fat. This can be the chin, belly, love handles, thighs – anywhere there’s stubborn fat you’d like to remove.
The Cool Sculpting machine will make that area so incredibly cold, 11 degrees below Celsius, it will kill the fat cells. As the fat cells die, they will disperse and leave through your lymphatic system over the next eight to 12 weeks.
“If you can squeeze it, we can freeze it,” said Cool Sculpting representative Deb Doyle, who was at the Namaste office Friday conducting training. “This is more than a treatment. It’s transformative. Once the fat is gone, it’s gone for good.”
Deb said Cool Sculpting has received clearance from the FDA and has gained global appeal with some 3.5 million treatments worldwide. She said Cool Sculpting has been used by a number of stars, including Sports Illustrated swimsuit model Molly Sims.
The treatment doesn’t involve needles, blood, or anesthesia. It usually takes about 35 minutes and you can return to work that same day. Deb says Cool Sculpting is popular with men and women of all ages.
Namaste owner Dr. Dawnmarie Riley made the financial commitment to buy a Cool Sculpting machine for her office on Omni Drive near the hospital. It’s part of her push to offer cosmetic options that haven’t been available previously in this area.
Several Namaste employees are undergoing training on proper Cool Sculpting procedures over the next two weeks. Free consultation appointments are being accepted beginning the Tuesday after Memorial Day, which is May 31.
The free consultation will give curiosity seekers the chance to learn much more about Cool Sculpting and its effectiveness. Namaste also offers other cosmetic options like Botox and facial fillers, along with hormone pellet therapy to boost testosterone or estrogen levels. The number to call is 815-8800.
If you’d like to improve your appearance without the burden of dieting or exercise, Cool Sculpting could be just what the doctor ordered. It’s not a magic pill, but it sounds close.

First National Banks on expansion

First National Bank continues to expand its footprint and reach frontiers beyond Warren County. That’s why it recently changed its name to First National Bank of Middle Tennessee to reflect its broader scope.
First National will be adding a second full-service bank in Murfreesboro, bank president and CEO Pieter van Vuuren has announced. The bank has purchased property on Memorial Boulevard across the street from the VA Hospital and is expected to start construction within the next 60 days. The estimated opening date is February 2017.
“Our bank is extremely excited to start the construction on another full-service branch in Murfreesboro,” said van Vuuren. “The Rutherford County area is a fast-growing community and the opportunities in this county supplement the strong roots and performance we have in Warren County. Over the last eight years we have grown our bank branch, mortgage department and title company and we believe the time is right to add an additional location.”
Van Vuuren also said, “Our bank will continue to evaluate every market we serve, which includes Warren, Rutherford, Bedford and Williamson counties for opportunities in order to keep growing and expanding our franchise.”
First National currently has five full-service locations in Warren County, one full-service branch and a loan production office in Rutherford County, a mortgage office and a title company in Rutherford County, a loan production office in Shelbyville, and a loan production office in Spring Hill.
First National Bank has long been a bedrock in the Warren County community. It’s great to see the bank spreading its wings and flying to the rich pastureland of Murfreesboro.

New welcome lady in town

When a new resident moves to town, it’s a friendly gesture to roll out the welcome wagon and make them feel at home. For years, Judy Gribble has handled this task as the representative for our Community Greeting Service.
However, Judy has decided to step down and there’s a new lady on the block ready to give new Warren County residents a welcoming handshake and a goodie bag filled with free merchandise. She is Cathy McNulty.
“This has been a great job for me and I feel privileged to have worked for Community Greeting Service for more than 10 years,” said Judy. “I’ve met so many new people and I’ve always encouraged them to be a part of us, not apart from us. They’re all strangers to me when I meet them and they’re all so thrilled to get so many nice gifts. It’s a goodwill thing for the businesses which participate.”
The goodie bags include a wide assortment of gifts, most notably a free subscription to the Southern Standard. There are also free restaurant meals, free karate lessons, free facials and massages, free tickets to Cumberland Caverns, and much more.
“It’s like Christmas,” said Judy.
When I asked Judy about the residents who are moving into this area, she said the majority are retired. She said the other main reason people locate here, she has found, is to be closer to family members. She said medical professionals working at the hospital or local doctors’ offices are other people who frequently move into town.
Cathy will take over the job as community greeter June 1. She is new to town herself, having moved here recently from Chicago.
When I asked her what brought her here, Cathy said a combination of the factors Judy mentioned. Her husband retired and they wanted to be closer to family members.
Judy is no stranger to this line of work as she spent 15 years doing exactly this type of thing in the Chicagoland area.
“Of all the people I met up there, there was only a handful I ever saw again,” said Cathy. “That’s one of the things I think I’ll like about this job. In a town this size, I’ll probably see them again so this will be a nice way for me to become entrenched in the community.”
Judy says she’s been looking to find a replacement for around six months and believes Cathy will be a perfect fit. If you’d like to get in touch with Cathy, her number is (630) 235-1220.

New tenant for old bakery

There's a new business going into the old Main Street Bakery spot across from Park Theater. Sally Clark is in the process of opening a restaurant there called Park Café and Desserts. Shes hoping to be open in early June.
“I want to spruce it up a bit and put my stamp on it so it’s going to take a little while to get everything done I want to get done,” said Sally. “There’s some vent work being done and I’m getting some new appliances, a new oven, and I’ll be looking to do some painting. There’s a lot to do.”
Sally says she’s going to make homemade desserts and all her food will be made from scratch. She said she’ll have a special menu for diabetics.
“I don’t think anyone will have any reason to fuss about the food,” said Sally. “It’s going to be homestyle cooking.”
Sally says she will probably mirror the Main Street Bakery hours initially and be open for breakfast and lunch. With Park Theater shows bringing a number of people downtown in the evenings, she said she might modify her hours as needed down the road.
I'll provide more information as Park Café and Desserts gets closer to opening. I wanted to provide this initial report so folks who notice activity in that building know what's on the way.

BBQ with explosive taste

McMinnville postmaster Brent Nunley has decided on a different type of delivery, that being great-tasting barbecue. Brent and his wife Janet have purchased a large food trailer and opened TNT Barbeque. They made their local debut last weekend at the fairgrounds in conjunction with the Back to The Strip Car Show.
“We completely sold out, which is a good thing,” said Brent, who was only left with a few bags of chips. “We went through 36 pounds of pork and eight pounds of chicken. We really didn’t know what kind of crowd to expect for this event, but the crowd was pretty good.”
If you didn’t get a chance to see Brent and Janet at the car show, don’t fret. They will be setting up their food trailer the first Saturday of every month at Super Rama beginning in June. They will also be set up on other Saturdays in Mt. Leo in front of the old Smith Brothers Barbershop.
Brent said the Smokin’ in McMinnville BBQ Cookoff is what got him and his dad started in this line of work five years ago. They enjoyed the local event so much they started traveling and doing more competitions. While Brent said that’s a neat way to spend a weekend, it’s also expensive.
“With those competitions, there’s a lot of money going out,” said Brent. “And unless you win, there’s not much money coming in.”
Janet said their occasional competitions didn’t give them enough practice to run with the BBQ big dogs.
“It’s hard to beat the people who are doing this week in and week out,” said Janet.
Brent comes from a long line of talented cooks as his grandmother, Bea Stoner, operated Stoner’s Drive In during the 1950s in Irving College. “She made the best hamburger around,” said Brent.
If you’d like to try TNT Barbecue, look for it on Saturdays beginning in June.

Amish selling in Jacksboro

I received a call last week from a kind lady in Jacksboro who wanted to tell me all about the Amish merchants who are selling goods six days a week in the Jacksboro area.
This nice lady said she wanted to get the word out about the Amish and all of their merchandise because they aren’t much for publicity or getting their picture taken.
She said there are a number of Amish families selling all types of things including produce, lawn furniture, indoor furniture, baked goods, hats, and deer stands. She said they do upholstery work and shoe horses.
If you’re interested in this type of thing, she said the Amish presence is heavy in Jacksboro, which is between Morrison and Centertown on Highway 287. She said there are Amish families selling goods on Ivy Bluff Trail, Smoot Road, Pettigap Road, and Berthie Owens Road.
I’ve been asked from time to time to write feature stories on the Amish families which have made their way to Warren County and have experienced no success with this endeavor. They are very friendly in conversation until I identify myself as being with the local newspaper. That’s when they scatter.
If you’d like to help these families earn a living and survive, they are available Monday thru Saturday. They do not work on Sunday. There are a number of signs in Jacksboro to point you in the right direction if you make the trip.

That’s all folks

Phone in business tips at 473-2191.