Corey Smith will perform Saturday night at The Signal.LISA DENTON: Barry, I saw Carla Pritchard of Chattanooga Presents the other night at the grocery store, and she was telling me about two things: 1) Ice on the Landing is coming to a close, and 2) how good her mother's pot roast is.
BARRY COURTER: The checkout line at the grocery is a good place to get news tips. Did you get the recipe?
LISA: No recipe, but I'm hoping we can just finagle an invitation. What I do know is that today is the last day for public skating at the ice rink in the Chattanooga Choo Choo gardens. Unless, of course, you are competing in skillet curling, which will determine a winner Tuesday evening.
BARRY: I don't know who conceived of the skillet curling tournament idea, but it's gold. The finals will be from 5 to 10 p.m. and, of course, Lodge Manufacturing from down the road in South Pittsburg will be awarding prizes. I might have to try it next year. I'm pretty good with a broom.
LISA: The Olympic sport is oddball enough, but this "Southern take," as they're calling it, might be even odder. In regular curling, you slide a 42-pound stone on the ice toward a target area while two players sweep the ice in front of the stone to keep it moving in a straight line. In skillet curling, you slide Lodge cast-iron skillets across the ice, and the target is a bacon press.
I'm not sure they sweep the ice in skillet curling, though, so you might have to work on your other skills.
Lisa Denton and Barry Courter
BARRY: I understand no skill(et) is required, which is right up my alley. I don't know the full history of curling, but if it wasn't invented as a drinking game by people who were well into their cups, I would be stunned.
A couple of other events this week worth mentioning are the Overland Express show at Songbirds South on Friday, and the Corey Smith show at The Signal on Saturday. I talked with Rick Williams of Overland last week, and he is back performing with them after a break and they have been writing new material.
Smith is a Chattanooga favorite who draws a huge crowd every time he returns to town.
LISA: And the series of Winter Workshops continues Thursday at Outdoor Chattanooga. This week's topic is "Map & Compass" to help you find your way in the wilderness. I tend not to wander off the trail when I'm on one, but it's good information. It reminds me how much I love the compass in my car, Hocus Focus. Sometimes I go down the road watching it change with the slightest variation in the road: South. Southwest. South. Southwest. South. South. South. Southeast! You get the idea.
BARRY: You really need to get out more and interact with people.
Get event details every Thursday in ChattanoogaNow or online anytime at www.ChattanoogaNow.com.
Contact Lisa Denton at ldenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6281. Contact Barry Courter at bcourter@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6354.