Monday’s here, and so are we pals!

Well howdy, friends — Happy Indigenous Peoples’ Day! The air’s got that little nip that makes your porch tea steam just right, the leaves are crunchin’ like potato chips under our boots, and the ghosts around town are finally clockin’ in for their busiest time of year.

This week, we’re wanderin’ through the cozy corners and slightly spooky spots of Chattanooga. Where the lanterns glow, the storytellers stir, and the ghouls aren’t the only ones with good company. Whether you’re huntin’ for a fall festival, a friendly fright, or just an excuse to sip cider on your porch, we’ve got you covered like a quilt at a bonfire.

Pull up a chair, light that pumpkin candle, and let’s swap some stories ‘bout what’s happenin’ around our haunted little hometown.

Today's Issue Includes:

• This week's Front Porch Partner: 1440 Media

• Hand-Picked Community Spotlight: Hooray for HES & McKamey!

• Hand-Picked Community Spotlight: Hooray for HES & McKamey!

• A Yap Session with The Ghoul Next Door — Bubby Meets the Brains Behind the Green Eyes Festival!

• Clementine’s Corner: Birthday Week Wisdom

• Wrap Up

Make sure ya crank up the tunes while ya listen for the full experience!

In partnership with

This week’s Front Porch Partner: Haus

This week’s Front Porch Partner is Haus! These pardners help keep the porch lights on ‘round here! Every click on this ad (yep, even if ya don’t sign up) tosses a little change in the Chattynooga tip jar ($2.25 to be exact), helpin’ us keep tellin’ local stories, sharin’ smiles, and stayin’ ad-free everywhere else!

So go on, give it a click below and consider it a high-five for good company and good community.

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What’s Goin’ On in the Scenic City?

Community

• Chattanooga Library’s Pop-Up Library Tour
  Tuesday, 10/14 @ John A. Patten Community Center | 1–4PM
  Poppy the Mobile Library is rollin’ your way! Swing by for storytime, crafts, and library goodies — check out books, sign up for a card, and bring the kiddos for a cozy afternoon of reading and play.
  🚌 Ms. Frizzle Could Never

• Make Your Own Artist Trading Cards
  Thursday, 10/16 @ And Then Books | 5–7PM
  A creative throwback inspired by the Swiss art movement that started in 1997! Make, trade, and collect your very own mini works of art. No experience needed, just your imagination.
  🃏 Get crafty, card-by-card

• Magic of Literacy
  Saturday, 10/18 @ Chattanooga Choo Choo | 11AM–5PM
  Grab your wands and reading glasses for Chattanooga’s most enchanting family event! Explore book genres, meet magical characters, and let every kid leave with a free book. Hosted by Moms for Social Justice, this spellbinding celebration brings stories to life.
  🪄 Discover the Magic of Reading

Music & Entertainment

• Paint & Sip with Brush Hour Parties
  Tuesday, 10/14 @ Hoptown Southside | 6–9PM
  Unwind with a brush in one hand and a beverage in the other at this Halloween-themed paint night. Whether you’re flyin’ solo or bringin’ a pal, you’ll leave with your own spooky lil’ masterpiece.
  🖌️ Sip, Paint, Repeat

• Ruddle’s Bread & Book at Diagon Alley
  Wednesday–Saturday, 10/15–10/18 | 8AM–4PM Sunday, 10/19 | 8AM–2PM
  A week-long Harry Potter celebration featuring literary trivia, themed treats, a magical read-a-thon, and a costume contest on Saturday at 3PM. No tickets, no Muggles — just pure wizardin’ fun.
  🧙🏻‍♂️ Wingardium let’s-have-fun-iosa (terrible pun I’m sorry)

• Murder Mystery After Sunset
  Multiple Dates @ 625 Georgia Ave | 7PM
  When the sun dips below the mountains, the hunt begins. Follow clues, solve puzzles, and explore downtown Chattanooga while uncovering a thrilling murder mystery. Great for date night, friend groups, or your inner detective.
  🕵🏻 Solve the Mystery with Friends

• Disney on Ice: Mickey’s Search Party
  Thursday–Sunday, 10/16–10/19 @ UTC McKenzie Arena | Showtimes vary
  Join Mickey, Minnie, and the gang for an ice-skating spectacular packed with magic, music, and nostalgia. Perfect for families, Disney lovers, and anyone who could use a sprinkle of pixie dust.
  ⛸️Watch a Mouse Ice Skate!

Outdoors ‘n’ (Spooky) Stuff

• Dread Hollow Haunted House
  Thu–Sun, Oct 16–19 @ 321 Browns Ferry Rd | 7PM–11PM
  If you dare, wander through Chattanooga’s creepiest haunted attraction—packed with scares, storylines, and escape-room twists. Not for the faint of heart!
  👻 Face Yer Fears

• Chattanooga Apple Festival
  Oct. 18 – 19 @ Camp Jordan | 10AM – 4PM
  Get your fall fix with apples, crafts, live music, and local vendors galore. Whether you’re after a caramel apple or a handmade mug to sip cider from, this festival’s got you covered.
  🍎 Go bananas (for apples)

• Between the Bridges Arts Festival
  Saturday–Sunday, 10/18–10/19 @ Coolidge Park | 10AM–5PM
  Over 50 local artists and makers take over Coolidge Park for a weekend of color, creativity, and clay. Potters Alley, live demos, and art for days —because bridges ain’t the only things connecting us.
  🌉 Wander the Wonder

Got somethin’ cookin’ that the Scenic City oughta know about? Wanna talk about how cool your weekend was? Tell us all about it! We’d love to yap it up and holler all about it from the porch! Just reply to this message, or send a separate one to [email protected]!

Hand-Picked Community Spotlight: Hooray for HES & McKamey!

Heya, Clementine here! I’m sure y’all remember a few weeks ago, I got a puppy! Y’all helped me name him Pickle. And since I’ve gotten Pickle, my life has gotten so much happier.

Last week, I saw some of the happiest pet news I’ve seen in a while: between McKamey and the Humane Education Society of Chattanooga (HES for short), 117 animals found furever homes during the Mars Global Adoption Weekend! That’s 65 from McKamey, 52 from HES, and about a million tail wags and happy purrs across Chattanooga. Pickle says that’s 117 new reasons to smile this week!

Thanks for all you do, McKamey and HES. Y’all are the real MVPs!

A Yap Session with The Ghoul Next Door — Bubby Meets the Brains Behind the Green Eyes Festival!

If apparitions have ears, ya best believe this particular specter’s were burnin’ after mentionin’ it in last Monday’s issue. That said, I just got back from Chickamauga, Georgia, and I sware swear the air down there hums like it’s holdin’ secrets. Ya blink too long and might just see a pair of green googly eyes peekin’ from the woods. Don’t panic though: that’s just ‘ole Green Eyes, the town’s favorite ghost, who’s now got his very own festival thanks to a fella named Nate Tucker.

I caught up with Nate at the gawrgeous Walker Theatre downtown thinkin’ we’d chat about hauntings and comparin’ notes on our favorite cryptids, but somehow we ended up talkin’ about hope, hometowns, and how weirdness can be embraced to create a space for everyone to enjoy local culture.

Sometimes ya gotta leave to miss it

Nate grew up in Chickamauga, the kinda place where your neighbor knows your dog’s birthday, but didn’t have a whole lotta opportunity for him to grow. “As a kid, I just wanted out,” he told me.

That small-town love mixed with a little road-trip magic is what started it all. In 2023, Nate and his buddies drove to West Virginia for the Mothman Festival: 20,000 folks in costumes, eatin’ funnel cakes, and celebratin’ their local cryptid like a moth divin’ head first into the nearest light source. “It was weird in the best way,” he said. “I thought, why can’t we do it?”

Somewhere between the mountains and the battlefield, Green Eyes got his invitation to the party. Who doesn’t wanna whole party about ‘em, anyways?

Who (or What) Is Green Eyes?

Fer the uninitiated, Green Eyes is the ghostly ghoul said to roam the Chickamauga Battlefield. Some say he’s a fallen soldier, others swear he’s somethin’ older. Nate just grins and says, “He’s a ghoul, and that’s plenty.”

That’s the beauty of the mystery, as everyone’s got an idea of what he looks like. At the festival, you’ll see every possible version: spooky sketches, to a life-sized fuzzy mascot that’s more “give-me-a-hug” than “run-for-your-life.” It’s the perfect blend of eerie and endearin’ (or as Nate calls it, spooky, not scary.)

A Little Weird Sure Goes a Long Way

What Nate really wanted was community. “I was a weird kid in the South,” he chuckled. “I wanted a space where folks like that felt welcome.”

The Green Eyes Festival is a love letter to the creative, the curious, and the folks who never quite fit the mold. It’s got live bands, folklore talks, cryptid art, handmade crafts, and more friendly ghosts than you can shake a flashlight at. “We just want people to feel like they belong here,” Nate said. “This is our kind of weird.”

Come See the Glow Yerself (plus a T-Shirt Giveaway!)

Last year, a little festival about a local legend brought a whole town together. This year, it’s glowin’ even brighter for year number two this weekend! It just goes to show that sometimes, all it takes is one good ghost story (and maybe some extra kettle corn) to remind folks how special home really is.

Catch this year’s Green Eyes Festival in downtown Chickamauga on Saturday, October 18th from 10 AM to 6 PM (Pro tip: direct your GPS to Droop Scoops — their local ice cream shop — and you’ll land smack dab in the middle of it.) You’ll find local food, music, folklore, and maybe even a flash of green in the trees.

If ya wanna learn more before ya go, or follow along from afar if ya can’t make it this year, visit greeneyesfestival.com or follow @greeneyesfestival on yer favorite social platform!

Lastly, we’ve gotta fun surprise! Nate was mighty kind enough to share some of the T-Shirts they made for last year’s festival with our awesome readers (that’s you!) We’ve only gotta limited quantity, so if ya want one, just fill this little form below and we’ll be in touch:

Clementine’s Corner: Birthday Week Wisdom

Alright, I’ve got big news for y’all today: My birthday is this week! 🎊 

As I prepare for the annual festival of me, I’ve been thinking about all the lessons I’ve learned so far. Don’t ask how old I’m turning, it doesn’t matter… besides, I’ve been told I’m wise beyond my years. So listen up, folks, and ya just might learn a thing or two from lil old Clemmie.

1. Tell people you like ‘em. Tell people you love ‘em. Tell people your favorite thing about ‘em and tell ‘em often! It’s fun to make people happy for no reason at all.

2. No matter how bad your day’s been, a puppy snuggle makes it better. Every single time.

3. A good laugh or a good cry are the best medicine. That’s just a medical fact.

4. Not everyone’s gonna like you, and that’s okay. Not everyone likes MoonPies, and those things are perfect.

5. Sometimes, the best thing you can do is build yourself a bridge and get over it.

6. If you can’t remember how long it’s been in the fridge, DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES eat it. Trust me on this.

7. Why are you trying so hard to fit in when you were born to stand out? (Okay, I stole this from an old movie my mom likes, but I like it so it’s going in the list).

8. Don’t be the guy who honks at the guy blocking the Chick-fil-A drive-thru line. That guy’s the worst.

I think the biggest thing I’ve learned in my some odd years is that I sure don’t know everything. But it’s kinda fun figuring it all out.

If you quit learning, you quit living, and Chattanooga, I am just getting started!

Looks like it’s time to head out, friends.

As the moon starts to dip and the porch lights flicker low, we hope this issue brought you a little warmth (and maybe one good goosebump). Chattanooga’s full of stories this time of year — some whispered by ghosts, some told by neighbors, and some just waitin’ for you to stumble upon ‘em.

Keep your porch light on for the trick-or-treaters, your heart open for the folks who stop by, and your eyes peeled for the magic hidin’ in plain sight.

‘Til next time: stay cozy, stay curious, and remember that around here, even the ghosts are friendly.

— Bubby & Clementine