Does it feel different to you too? It’s somethin’ in the air I think.

This week’s issue is about that small turn toward the door: Steppin’ back outside, gatherin’ around tables with your friends and neighbors, and remembering that community is something we choose to participate in, even when we’re absent from it for a hot minute.

Let’s ease into spring together, shall we?

As always, we’ve added a fresh track to this week’s issue purely for vibes as you read. Click the radio below before ya start reading if you wanna listen!

We ain’t playin’ when we tell y’all how much we enjoy Beehiiv, it’s what we use to talk to all our pals every single week! If you’re curious about yapping with yer friends (or your customers work too I suppose), then you should give Beehiiv a gander if you’re on the fence about sending emails for a hobby.

Even if ya don’t end up signin’ up, just clickin’ the ad throws $2.25 in the ol’ Chattynooga piggy bank, so thanks for at least takin’ a look!

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Got somethin’ cookin’ that the Scenic City oughta know about?

Tell us all about it with our new and improved events form, or just reply to this email with your event details and we’ll go from there!

What says Spring more than getting together with yer neighbors over a hot meal after the end of a crazy Winter? Nothin’, that’s what. Which is why we’re super-duper excited to announce our first of many pop-up events throughout North Chattanooga with Roundabout North Chatt, North Chattanooga’s newest community platform that’s built by locals (us) for locals (y’all).

Next Friday (March 13 for those with their calendars already out) from 5 – 7PM at the Soddy-Daisy Community Center on 190 Depot Street, we’re teaming up with our new friends at The Garden House for a good old-fashioned Community Potluck & Gathering.

While ya eat and get to know some new faces, you’ll also get a chance to learn how Roundabout North Chatt and The Garden House are working to serve North Chattanooga through intentional connection and putting community as the backbone.

If y’ain’t food motivated like Clementine’s dog Pickle, I’ll sweeten the pot even more for ya: The Garden House will have a free Pop-Up Pantry and Clothing Closet on-site. So if you need a little extra support, come grab what you need with no questions asked or judgement passed. Just neighbors bein’, well, neighbors! Everyone’s welcome, y’all.

RSVP and bring a dish to pass below, ‘cause we’d love to see your smilin’ face. If you can’t make it, not a problem! We’ve got a few more events between now and April for our official big Public Launch event that we’re plottin’ and scheming on, and will be revealed in due time, buds. You can also join Roundabout and see what we’re building right now if you’d like!

Can I tell ya somethin’ honest, friend?

February was good to us. We celebrated one whole year of this little porch, hugged necks and clinked coffee mugs with our pals at BeCaffeinated. We said “Can ya believe it?” about a hundred times (mostly because I still can’t).

And even still… I felt like I was kinda tucked into a soggy burrito when I came home.

I wasn’t sad or nothin’, it just felt like I’d built myself a little blanket fort in my own head and forgot to bring snacks to keep me sustained.

Winter has a way of doin’ that to me (and apparently many others) sometimes: The days get shorter than me, and the sky turns the color of dishwater. Even when good things are happenin’, I start movin’ slower on the inside. Quieter. A little more protective of my energy. If you follow us on our Instygram, you’ve probably seen we haven’t been postin’ cause of that.

It’s strange celebratin’ out loud while feelin’ reclusive underneath.

But here comes March, and the world just moves a little differently already with only two days in. And here’s what I’ve realized: steppin’ (back) into community takes courage.

I ain’t talkin’ standing up to a bully kind of courage, just small steps of bravery through your routine. To me, that feels like:

It’s easier to stay home sometimes and cheer from a distance, but good things don’t build themselves. Sometimes you have to be the one to pick up the hammer and start thwackin’ hard enough for others interests to be piqued and join in (or annoyed because it’s 10PM).

If Winter made you pull back a little too, that’s A-Okay. But maybe this is the season we open the door to the outside world together so it ain’t a little scary when ya have a friend to do it with.

Sometimes the bravest thing you can do ain’t startin’ somethin’ new, but getting back on the saddle of what’s normal for you again.

I can’t believe it, but it’s finally March! For the shortest month of the year, February sure felt long, didn’t it? But man oh man am I excited for March!!

March feels like a fresh start and so many great things happen in March! It’s Women’s History Month, which is one of my very favorite history months. Did you guys see the planetary parade the last couple of nights?? I saw THREE PLANETS AT ONCE, right from my backyard. Incredible. And tomorrow morning there’s gonna be a Blood Moon Eclipse… I don’t totally know what that is, but it sounds cool and if I can get my booty out of bed in the morning, I know it’s gonna look cool, too. 

What else… March Madness, of course, if you’re into that kind of thing (I’m not). Farmer’s Market Season finally kicks off again! Only five more days til the Chattanooga River Market opens and I, for one, am pumped.

We’ve also got the Ides of March, I think. We’re supposed to beware them, right? Side note: what the heck is an Ide? Why are we scared of March’s Ides specifically? Inquiring minds want to know. And of course, it’s the Season of the Leprechaun! I’m gonna find me a four leaf clover before St. Patrick’s Day. I could use a little luck.

Yep, March is looking peachy keen, jelly bean. I’m exhausted, but one of my unironically favorite poets, Sylvia Plath, said it best:

That’s the goal, folks. Get ready, Chattanooga, March is about to be amazing!

If winter tucked you in a little tighter than you meant to be, maybe this is your gentle nudge. Just try crackin’ the door open and let some of that sunlight in!

Come to the potluck and say hey, and bring the store-bought cookies if that’s whatcha got. Community has nothin’ to do with perfection, but showin’ up and making it our own together.

See you around town (or on Roundabout if not!) 🫶

— Bubby & Clementine