January 2010 arrived shrouded in cold with more on the way, but in our hometown the weather failed to slow traffic along Highway 25/70 as I-40 east remains closed at least until late February.

Industry remained idle during the Christmas and New Years holidays so there wasn't much demand for natural gas, said Jefferson-Cocke County Utility District Manager Tommy Bible. He advises folks to brace for temperatures "much below normal" for the first two weeks in Jan. Utility forecasts show highs only near freezing and lows in the teens for much of the time.

Before we travel on to some interesting folks I visited, lets finish our talk with Jeff Cody at Rocky Top Grafix who is set for 2010 sign business and will also help us promote businesses and services at our cockecountymarketplace.com. I'll introduce you to some of those people now on our Website like the new Norton's Music Mart, Chris and Tonya Norton, operators. There's also a new barber in town and individual-owned businesses growing, despite the lack of sunshine.

If you need to promote through signs you will find that sign size is only limited by the length and width of where you want to place or hang them. There was a three-by-twenty-foot vinyl banner that was placed on the cable crossing East Broadway between the Plain Talk and Lynn Allen's. I think Tim Grooms of Motel 6 had something to do with the sign to help direct tourist traffic detoured by the I-40 slide to businesses hurt by the near-vacant I-40. Jeff and Missy have done a lot of signage to boost local benefits such as Relay for Life, March of Dimes or the street festivals.

About three years ago, Jeff got into the trophy business and his first order was 500 trophies to be used for a car show. He got hooked up with NOPI Motor sports and did trophies for many national shows. Another thing you will see at the shop and find out about Jeff is his keen sense of humor. Above the counter are three signs related to the infamous cockfighting raids in the county that brought in federal agents. Some FBI agents thought these items were unique; Jeff sold more than a dozen. He produced a T-shirt with the cockfighting "priceless" theme and has sold these to folks as far away as California. A photo of the famous T-shirt appeared in the Knoxville News-Sentinel. Eventually, more than 1,000 were sold even Gov. Phil Bredesen got one, said Jeff.

Let me tell you a little more about Missy, whose family name is Farmer from a town not far northeast of Abington, Virginia-Marion. They met at West End Baptist Church and Got married Dec. 20, 2008. Jeff and Missy live in Carson Springs at a home formerly owned by the Dollar family. She has two children by a prior marriage: Mallory, a junior at CCHS, and Andrew. Likewise, Jeff has a son by his first marriage. Chuck Cody, born in 1986, teaches at Gallatin High School. I asked how a Virginia girl ended up in Newport, and she explained that she and her former husband moved here many years ago.

At 46, Jeff is the oldest member of the Rocky Top Grafix team and the youngest is Bella, four. She is a smart but tiny rat terrier that has been known to scoot her empty water bowl to Jeff or Missy for them to fill it. I saw Mallory at the shop but don't know if she has an interest in art and design. Missy has learned many of the print techniques and in addition does accounting and customer service. It's a good match, they argue at work and leave it there, said Jeff.

With many businesses shrinking and hurting because of the recently-ended recession, the Codys' business faired well. People always like sports and recreation and a lot of trophies, uniforms, and signs go to this interest area. Signs as part of marketing and advertising are basic and always in demand. It also doesn't hurt that the upcoming 2010 elections will bring a lot of new sign and button business because of candidates.

In plain talk the end of the year brings things we expect and other changes as unexpected as the turning of the weather.

You Know This Celebrity

A bit of news came our way when winter arrived that inspired this chat we are about to share, one that is more enjoyable, if you happen to like animals, particularly dogs. Some of my best friends are dogs. Kim Gregg sent an e-mail explaining a chance meeting she and husband Paul Gregg had several weeks ago while traveling in southern California, a place you might like to be this week. At first I tried to figure out if I knew this Lincoln Avenue couple and decided perhaps not. What immediately caught my attention was the photo Kim sent of her getting a close-up with the Dog Whisperer, Cesar Milan. I am one of his big fans because of the training, expertise, and friendly personality that comes across on TV. Kim said he is just like that in person, warm, glad to offer his time and advice. Paul got to meet a giant stuffed spotted dog. The Greggs had initially gone to Los Angeles and also visited Beverly Hills, Huntington Beach, and Catalina. While in the area for their second wedding anniversary, they saw a flyer promoting the North Shore Animal League's "Tour for Life," featuring Cesar. So they drove over and joined hundreds of others at the event and met Cesar, who gave Kim advice on her pet grooming as he has an online training program. "We are great fans of Cesar's and admire his unique ability to communicate with dogs," she said. When I talked with Kim and shared some e-mail, I quickly remembered that we met a couple years ago at the Newport Animal Shelter. She was the director and her name at the time was Kim Grimmette. I made her photo with volunteers preparing for a Rolling Rescue mission to find homes for stray and abandoned dogs. She resigned about 2007 and opened her at-home business, The Grooming House, and also married Paul that Sept. to live at his Second Street home behind the Lutheran Church off Lincoln Ave. I learned a lot about his family and Eastport and got some old photos to give to Duay O'Neil for interesting future "Pages from the Past" articles you will read about in the Plain Talk.

Let me tell you about Kim before exploring the Gregg family and some interesting connections we made during our visit at their unique home the last week in Dec. As an aside, the same day in the morning I dropped by the ET Coffee Shop for a morning blend, cookie and to say "hello" to Beverly Myers. A husky working fellow who was familiar to me had just got his cup and was leaving. He is Ricky "Rat" Evans, whose late wife, the former Kay James, was Beverly's sister. His name will come up again here.

Kim has lived in Morristown and Newport for the past dozen years but is from the small coal town in West Virginia of Man. However, she was born in Michigan, moved to Morristown to be near her parents and attend Walters State Community College. Dad, Archie Caldwell returned to Man, and Mom, Peggy Caldwell, is deceased. Kim was director of the Hamblen animal shelter several years. Why is it that most of the people who move here come from Michigan? She always had animals around. Her son, Ricky Grimmitte, is a security guard at the local ConAgra plant. Kim worked at various jobs during her life, including with the US government, library assistant, real estate sales, studying animal science at colleges, and then the animal shelter. She met Paul at First Christian Church, Morristown, but had already decided she would never marry anyone from Newport. "Never say 'never' again," I reminded her. I don't know where and when along the way she picked up her interest in pet grooming, but she had a roomful of eager animals waiting, including a fat rabbit. I saw Faye Fish's dog, Coco, and the Greggs' pet. Jack was in the front yard wearing his neckerchief when we left their home to walk to the Grooming House next door. The Jack Russell showed up in the neighborhood several years ago and took up living in the bed of Paul's truck and stayed. Jack is popular with neighbors Mike Kyker, Bob and Hazel Walker to name a few who feed him from time to time.

When Kim first gave me a little information about Paul and his family, I was intrigued and decided to visit. That Monday there was a ladder leading up to the front of the Gregg home and newly shingled roof. Paul explained that Wormy Evans and his crew had just finished the job on the steep roof. About 30 years ago when Paul built the house over a period of years, Evans' father shingled the roof along with his boys. The house reflects Paul's individual care for detail and craftsmanship. He did get some tips from master carpenter Cy Owens. The door to the house is made out of two extremely wide chestnut planks. The mantel is black Italian marble, a soda counter top piece from the old Nelson Bales Drug Store. You may remember rubbing your elbows on it.

 His father, the late Oscar Paul Gregg, and his brother, Beecher, ran a garage across East Broadway from where the Plain Talk was located before 1968. Willie Greene now owns the building housing his Newport Printing & Office Supplies. Young Paul, who was born Oscar Paul Gregg Jr., and rearranged his name later, had an interesting career with the postal service. He retired in 1990 so I must have bumped into him over the years, when he delivered Newport routes along with Aaron O'Dell, Gump Lewis, Paul O'Dell, Glenmore Smith, and Tug Sutton. The late and famous Postmaster Paul Penland hired Paul about 1960. During an interruption in work, he served in the military during the Vietnam War and now manages his rental property and loafs around the house he built. I asked if he knew my old friend, Hugh L. Gregg of Eastport, and, yes, they are double first cousins. I was sorry to learn that Hugh has been in poor health at age 75. Paul told me a humorous story about young Hugh that I will share in a future column.

Life Along Second Street

You don't have to be an old timer to remember Oscar Gregg, one of three brothers who were experts at auto repairs, and anything electric or mechanical. He was also somewhat of an inventor. The brothers also included Ted, who worked at the garage, a very large and long building that spanned from facing the Plain Talk and its rear doors facing the railroad tracks and next to Ruble's clothing shop. On other side along East Broadway were other landmarks, Theo Parrott's service station and the Sinclair station. The fourth brother was Jess and their sister was Leoto. Oscar was the son of Andrew Gregg, a train conductor who was killed in an accident in 1906 at age 36. He had been married to Mary Kendrict of Greeneville. Oscar married Endora Finchum, whose family came from the Indian Creek community in Jefferson County. Her father, John Finchum, ran the Stokely Brothers farm before he and wife, Dorcus, moved to Iowa. Paul said there is one surviving sister from that clan, Louise Pack.

If you turn up Lincoln Ave. at Brock's Market, you will see Beecher Style's house on the right. Just behind it is where Oscar and parents lived. Oscar married and moved to Filbert and Second where Oscar and Endora made their home during the Great Depression. There were many interesting details that Paul had learned of the neighborhood, such as why Second Street is so wide: It was planned for city hall off Filbert. He showed me the location in his front yard where Frank Strickler's parents house stood many decades ago. George Shepherd's signature is on the deed from D.L. Jones and Lillie Duncan to the Greggs. Their first child, Anna Jean, was born in 1929 and Paul 20 years later. Paul showed me a yellowed Plain Talk from November 1949. Now get this, on the front page was a short note of the birth on Nov. 7 of little Oscar at Mims Clinic. When he turned 60 this fall, he had a surprise visit during a big party at City Park. One of his Vietnam military friends from Clearwater, Florida, arrived to share in the celebration. I also made a connection to an old friend, the late Walter Shell Jr., who I got to know at Rhyne Lumber Company, when I helped with their advertising in the Plain Talk. Walter married Anna Jean and they lived at the 620 Second Street home. It was here that their son, Donnie, was born. I saw an interesting two four-generation families photo made at the First Christian Church and Donnie was a tot. Our chat about Junior Shell also brought back some sad memories because of his suffering from emphysema. He was a big smoker as was Paul's father, who died rather young.

If you think about this era of the 1930s through the 1950s you can see it was a time of America's auto industry explosive growth. Just look around Newport and the number of auto dealerships and garages reflect this atmosphere. Stokely Brothers cannery remained the center of industry and anchored Eastport and dozens walked or drive down Lincoln Ave. to work. Endora was one of those who answered the whistle call

Paul has one child, a daughter, Amy, who is married to Ernest Ogle of Gatlinburg. They live in Sevierville where she works for Smoky Mountain Spa. Thanks to her, Paul has two grandchildren, Aaron and Allison.