Ordering some item from a company like Amazon — a smock, a special coffee, cotton swabs, whatever — is quick, simple and easy. You place the order, and two or three days later, the package appears on your front porch. The same ease and speed apply when ordering your groceries from Walmart or the local food mart. You make a list, tap a key, arrive at the delivery time, put the groceries in the car and brush your hands off as a job well done. 

Count me among those who are proud that Jackson County has two fully accessible certified forest therapy trails, two of only 21 worldwide with that particular certification. 

One is a mile-long paved track along the Tuckasegee River near Webster and Cullowhee. The other is the unpaved lower portion of the Pinnacle Park.

The National Park Service (NPS) reminds visitors to slow down and enjoy the views in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Over the next month, park rangers in cooperation with partner agencies will conduct increased traffic safety enforcement throughout the park.

It started as a ripple softly lapping against my back as I pulled into the driveway of our quiet mountain cove. The roar of the interstates and swarms of fellow travelers behind me after the 1,300-mile sojourn to Lake Erie and back. I made it. Breathe.