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Rehearsing...Smoke Stack Song...Show Tonight

BILL BLOG

Tuesday August 12, 2025 

 

Tuesday morning is rolling in, and it’s bringing some rain with it. Today’s high in Nashville will be 88.

 

YESTERDAY

I had a double header Monday that started with rehearsal with Victoria Venier of my “Hits & Grins” trio.



(And despite what she will tell you, I was NOT asleep.)

The two of us wrote a song a few months back that Victoria wants to sing as a duet at the upcoming Gatlinburg Songwriters Festival this weekend.



We got the song worked out, and had time to catch up on each other’s busy lives. We’ll see how our song goes over this weekend.

 

SMOKE SONG

Yesterday afternoon I got together with Caroline Owens and Thomm Jutz to write an idea that Caroline had after she saw this out her window while driving in east Tennessee last week.



 

We texted back and forth some ideas, and by the time we got together yesterday, most of "Factory Smoke was written…at least lyrically. Thomm came up with a great melody for what turned to be kind of a “dark” bluegrass song. A lot of those kinds of songs are sung in that genre, and now we’ve added another. Always a pleasure to write with these very talented folks.



SONG OF THE DAY

Yesterday, bluegrass artist Lori King, who lives in Iowa, sent me a copy of a song that I wrote with Adam Pope, “Tennessee Breeze,” that she just recorded for her new project with her Junction 63 band. It sounds terrific, but it won’t be released for a couple of months or so. Today, I’ll share another song that she recorded that I wrote, this one with Becky Buller and Tim Stafford titled “Mercy of a Train”.



 

HEALTH NOTES

Experts say eating less sugar may help reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s by as much as 43%.

 

A one-size-fits-all pancreatic cancer vaccine has shown promise in an early trial. The vaccine doesn’t prevent cancer from happening in the first place, but an early-phase trial found it could reduce the odds of recurrence.

 

A woman’s snoring was a symptom of a rare form of cancer, and doctors warn not to ignore it. Olfactory neuroblastoma is a rare cancer that develops in the upper part of the nasal cavity, and can cause snoring.

 

HERE’S YOUR SIGN



Hey, but who couldn’t use the milk?

 

BEST STATES TO LIVE IN

According to WalletHub, the best states to live in are Massachusetts, followed by Idaho, New Jersey, Wisconsin, and then Minnesota. Factors include healthcare, education, and the cost of living, among others.

 

The WORST state to live in?  According to Wallet Hub, that would be New Mexico, followed by Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, and then Alaska.

 

MORE AI NEWS

A woman just got engaged to her AI boyfriend, and she claims, “I know what I’m doing”. Nobody has seen the engagement ring yet.

 

Meanwhile, AI talent comes with a 30% salary premium, and employees are quick to hire as they know the price for great AI talent will go up…and up. All those kids who learned to code? Might want to pivot and take AI training.

 

SPEAKING OF THE FUTURE

Elon Musk’s Boring Company started digging here in Nashville yesterday.



 

There will be an underground loop that will take drivers from downtown Nashville, all the way out to our airport, in hopes of relieving the constant traffic backups we have. By the time it’s finished, I’m sure we’ll be able to hop into self-driving vehicles to get us to the airport through the tunnel.



 

WHY DID IT HAVE TO BE SNAKES

A Florida man has now caught 87 invasive pythons down there, and that earned him a $1,000 bonus from the state, as Florida is encouraging snake wranglers to help the state get rid of them. Since the year 2,000, 19,000 of those huge snakes have been removed.

Between the Gators and the Snakes…I think I would avoid living near the water.

 

ATTRACTIVE

In a new study, women listed the most attractive hobbies for a man. Number one is, they like a guy who cracks open a book. That’s followed by painting, writing, photography, and hiking.

 

Well, I can take a picture, I most definitely write, and I hike a little. My painting needs a little work…



 

TODAY’S HEADLINE

Wife Doesn’t Want Her Husband To Go To A Bachelor Party In Another Country While She’s 38 Weeks Pregnant. (Gosh...how narrow minded can a woman be!)

 

TODAY

I’m writing with Irish native Clare Cunningham who has an idea she wants to tackle.


 

 

Then this evening at 6 pm, I’ll be playing a songwriter show at the Listening Room Café here in Nashville with these three talented songwriters.



 

Should be fun.

 

Have a great Tuesday!

 

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