I hope your week’s started off with somethin' that got yer body or brain movin’: whether that’s a cup of your favorite coffee, a hunka clay, or just grippin’ the steerin' wheel while ya told that DANG SUV TO GET OUTTA THE STINKIN’ WAY ‘CAUSE YA GOT THINGS TO DO… just some uh, hypothetical examples.

We're two weeks deep into Hope on the Porch 2026 now, and we've been fillin' in that blank together all month long of Hope is ____. This week my answer's makin' somethin', even when it ain't gonna be yer best work. You’d be surprised what comes out of that suck the next time you try makin’!

Oh an’, by the way, Clementine’s off this week. Somethin’ ‘bout, “Gotta go to New Orleans to watch people play instruments in funny costumes and eat beignets,” or something like that… I only caught half of what she was sayin’ on our phone call earlier. So it’s just you an’ me today, buckaroo!

This week’s tune comes straight from our collaborative Hope on the Porch Spotify playlist (and one of my faves 🫶 ). Click the link below before ya start reading if you wanna listen, and add a couple songs to the playlist for us to throw in for next week 👀 A warnin’ to the wise: it’s a screamer this week!

This one's for the grown-ups, so Meemaw did the reviewin' for me… She’ll tell ya after her nap. Either way, supporting CBDistillery supports Chattynooga and our Hope on the Porch Fundraising Campaign! CBDistillery, the porch is yours!

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Clothing Swap, hosted by Swap Don't Shop Chatt
Thursday, September 17 @ The Commons at The Signal | 5:00 - 8:00 PM

Bring a bag of clean clothes ya don't wear no more, take home a bag of clothes ya do. That's the whole deal, and it's free (a $5 donation's suggested if you're able). This round's got a brand-new kids' swap from 5-6, the general swap at 6, and a makers' upcycling hour at 7 where local artists dig through what's left to turn it into somethin' brand new.

👕 One neighbor's castoff is another's treasure

Adventure Days at the Chattanooga Zoo
Sunday, September 20 @ Chattanooga Zoo | 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Got a library card and a young'un eighteen or under? That card's a zoo ticket on Sunday. The Chattanooga Public Library's teamed up with the Zoo for hands-on activities all day long, plus a librarian readin' story time at 11 and again at noon. Just bring the card on up to the ticket booth.

🦒 Your library card's gotta wild side

Cultures In Concert at the Chattanooga Market
Sunday, September 20 @ First Horizon Pavilion | 11:00 AM - 4:00 PM

The Chattanooga Market’s got an extra helpin' of the whole wide world. Live music spannin' continents plus an international food court full of bold bites, and all your usual local vendors right where ya left 'em. You can travel the globe without ever leavin' the Southside!

🌍 Passport not required

Improv Open House at Plant Bar
Wednesday, September 16 @ Plant Bar | 6:00 PM

Ever wanted to try improv but figured you'd be terrible at it? Good news, pal: bein' terrible at it is the entry fee and everybody pays it. Improv Chattanooga and The Chattery are throwin' open the doors at Plant Bar for adults of any age to drop in, watch, or hop up and try. Free to attend, donations welcome.

🎭 Yes, and… just show up

This Land is Your Land: A Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration
Thursday, September 17 @ Chattanooga Theatre Centre | 7:00 PM

The Pop-Up Project and La Paz Chattanooga are fillin' the Theatre Centre with dance, music, spoken word, and visual storytellin' that honors Latin, Hispanic, and Indigenous neighbors and the histories they carry. They’ll also have an immersive lobby hour with live dancers, activity tables, an’ sweet treats before the main event.

💃 This land was made for tu y yo

Oops! All Kings at Barking Legs Theater
Sunday, September 20 @ Barking Legs Theater | Doors 8:00 PM

A King of Drag Season 2 watch party at 9, followed by an all-drag-king showcase at 10 featurin' local performers. Fifteen bucks gets ya in, and bring cash to tip the royalty!

👑 Long live the kings

Golden Harvest Half Marathon & 5k/10k
Sunday, September 20 @ Tennessee Riverpark | 8:00 AM

A hometown-themed run with a distance for everybody who enjoys runnin’ for a hobby: half marathon, 10k, 5k, one mile, and even a kids' dash. Chip timing, pacers, a designer shirt, a finisher medal, and treats waitin' at the end. Kids 12 and under run the 5k/10k for $17.

🍂 Fall into the finish line

Collab Coffee Ride: Velo to Craven's with SORBA Chattanooga
Sunday, September 20 @ Velo Coffee Roasters | 10:00 AM

A mellow social ride up the Guild Trail to Craven's House means 16 miles of pavement and gravel with about 900 feet of climbin' in it. Litespeed'll be on site with their new titanium hardtail for demos. Their words, and I love 'em: all bikes and bodies welcome.

☕ Pedal now, sip later

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Ya might’ve met Caleigh Bird through our neighbors over on Roundabout. She and her husband Alan are the hands behind Forest & Fern, making art inspired by the outdoors. This Saturday, she’s bringing that creativity to Studio Ours—and saving you a spot at the print table.

Caleigh’s put a lot of heart into making this a day to support the folks who make our town a little more colorful. Come give ‘er first faire some neighborly love (an’ bring a pal who takes sweater weather as seriously as we do). 🍂

I was six when I made Meemaw a pinch pot, and I reckon I did more peenchin’ than pottin’. Looked like a biscuit somebody sat on. But I carried it into her kitchen proud as anything, and she cleared a spot for it right there on the windowsill.

She puts her rings in it before she does the dishes. Even when i’ve made her far nicer things since, that little pot still has the windowsill.

I been thinkin’ about it lately because making things hasn’t come easy these past few weeks. I’ll sit down with an idea, and before I’ve even started, there’s that little voice: Maybe wait until you can do it better Bubby! Clementine can smoke ya at that already, why even try it? It sounds sensible enough. Trouble is, I’ve let it talk me out of whole afternoons ‘fore I could even get outta bed.

Meemaw ain’t know any of this when I ambushed her at the sink the other day with my usual array of questions. I just picked up the pot and asked why she still kept it here after all these years.

“Sugar, ya made that for me,” she sputtered out while her eyes rolled behind her thick-rimmed glasses, like I’d asked why she kept her own front door. Then, she fessed up with the real reason, “When I look at it, I remember a bucktoothed lil’ critter boltin’ through the kitchen from Kindergarten with both hands wrapped around it like ya just found Elvis’s fanger in the backyard. I don’t give a dangit if it looks good. I love it ‘cause ya love me enough to make me somethin',”

I jokinly rolled my eyes back at her in reply while stiflin’ a grin and plopped my head on her tummy for one of Meemaw’s world-famous bear hugs, then skedaddled for the evening’s Bubby Bath.

Anyway, with Caleigh’s market comin’ up, I’ve been imagining folks at the print bar choosing a critter, trying something unfamiliar, and seeing what their own hands and noggin can make together. I hope they leave pleased with themselves, and that whatever they make gets worn enough to need a patch someday.

There’s hope in makin’ something. You give your time and care to an idea because you figure it might have a place in somebody’s day.

Maybe it’ll make ‘em smile for that particular day. Maybe it’ll hold their ear-jewels for years to come.

Don’t get me wrong, I still want the next thing I make to turn out even nicer! But y’ain’t ever gonna learn if y’ain’t ever gonna try in the beginning.

What have you been wanting to make, pal? Happy to be a soundin’ board to get you started, whether it’s connecting ya to resources or people to make it happen!

Well, uh… I told ya she was gone. I ain’t a liar, that’s for sure!

Welp, gotta get back to work on this stinkin’ science project. Meemaw don’t play when it comes to these animal presentations. Ya happen to know anyone with a Quokka that I can borrow? Eh, never hurts to ask.

Thanks for swingin’ by and stayin’ awhile, pal. Go enjoy the rest of your week. I’ll keep your spot warm, and we’ll catch up next week!

Until then, be good to yourself and make something a little dumb because ya can.

Bow Chicka Wow Wow,

— Bubby (and no Clementine)