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Sewage discharge and spills is poised to get worst. Most of us have swim in the river, but in years past it has been less and less, at one time Natchez Trace site in Colbert County was full of people swimming in it, but times have change since people are becoming more inform of the dangers of it and there are not as many people anylonger who swims in the good old Tennessee River, this was an article written back in 04/14/2004 http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_49275.asp don't drink the water if you swim.
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Yah, it's nasty to think about, but I'm not going to get all germophobic and live my life less enjoyable.

I did hear they've cured Aids in people with a new 3 month treatment recently in Germany I believe. Though I'm not going to become promiscous either way. Hepatitis is also treatable if not curable if I'm not mistaken. Medical technology has come a long way with a lot of things.

Not sure how contagious those things are diluted in a river. I'd be more worried of picking up a public phone myself.

*holds her antibacterial close*
quote:
Originally posted by bluesman *:
Have you ever wonder that the person beside you urines in the water could be affected by aids, hepatitis, i.e. Don't sound to safe to me and you are taking a sipe of that water. Ohooooo, and just think you can past that on to one of your family members.


Same for a public pool too. Ewww.....
Hi Y'all,

I learn to swim in the old swimming pool at Spring Park in Tuscumbia --- and in 1954, my friend, Roy Green, and I swam the Tennessee River from Whipperwill Hollow to the Florence side and back. Roy passed away about two years ago, and I will turn 70 in about two weeks. So, I guess we survived okay.

Personally, I would worry more about eating in restaurants; especially fast food restaurants. Have you ever noticed how many of their employees take a toilet break and do not even wet their hands before returning to work? And you worry about the Tennessee River?

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill Gray
Alabama bred,
California fed,
America blessed!
I can't answer for all restaurants and their employees, but it may not be as it seems to customers from time to time. I put myself through college the second time by working at two steakhouses, so I know how they functioned.

1. Public restrooms often don't have hot water, or at least not as hot as the back of the house.

2. Each station in the back of the house has its own sink and many employees return there to wash.

3. These back of the house lavatories often are operated by foot pedals (Just like in Pre-Op), so they are really cleaner than those in the public section.

Hope that allays some fears of dining out.
quote:
Originally posted by Taciturn:
quote:
Originally posted by bluesman *:
Have you ever wonder that the person beside you urines in the water could be affected by aids, hepatitis, i.e. Don't sound to safe to me and you are taking a sipe of that water. Ohooooo, and just think you can past that on to one of your family members.



Except a public pool has chlorine in it, and it is SUPPOSED to kill HIV and Hepititus on contact... but who knows?

Same for a public pool too. Ewww.....
quote:
Originally posted by Bill Gray:
Hi Y'all,

I learn to swim in the old swimming pool at Spring Park in Tuscumbia --- and in 1954, my friend, Roy Green, and I swam the Tennessee River from Whipperwill Hollow to the Florence side and back. Roy passed away about two years ago, and I will turn 70 in about two weeks. So, I guess we survived okay.

Personally, I would worry more about eating in restaurants; especially fast food restaurants. Have you ever noticed how many of their employees take a toilet break and do not even wet their hands before returning to work? And you worry about the Tennessee River?

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill Gray
Alabama bred,
California fed,
America blessed!



THAT coupled with the fact that the majority of our fast food restaurants serve burgers with "beef" from New Zealand and Australia.... heck fire, even THEY cannot buy AMERICAN beef... something wrong with this picture?
quote:
Originally posted by Bill Gray:
Hi Y'all,

I learn to swim in the old swimming pool at Spring Park in Tuscumbia --- and in 1954, my friend, Roy Green, and I swam the Tennessee River from Whipperwill Hollow to the Florence side and back. Roy passed away about two years ago, and I will turn 70 in about two weeks. So, I guess we survived okay.

Personally, I would worry more about eating in restaurants; especially fast food restaurants. Have you ever noticed how many of their employees take a toilet break and do not even wet their hands before returning to work? And you worry about the Tennessee River?

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill Gray
Alabama bred,
California fed,
America blessed!



Bill Gray, I remember that pool VERY well... Our parents used to take us over there on the weekends, ... and a lot of the time, it was green instead of clear, lol...but we didn't care, we were kids!!! lol

A LOT has been learned since then, and of course that was LONG before AIDS, ...
quote:
Bill Gray, I remember that pool VERY well... Our parents used to take us over there on the weekends, ... and a lot of the time, it was green instead of clear, lol...but we didn't care, we were kids!!! lol


My husband was a lifeguard there in the late 50's. I remember him mentioning the green water.
And he, too, did the whipporwhill hollow and back swim.
quote:
Originally posted by (aka)PuckerupFrog:
quote:
Bill Gray, I remember that pool VERY well... Our parents used to take us over there on the weekends, ... and a lot of the time, it was green instead of clear, lol...but we didn't care, we were kids!!! lol


My husband was a lifeguard there in the late 50's. I remember him mentioning the green water.
And he, too, did the whipporwhill hollow and back swim.



Wow, small world huh? Smiler
I still swim in the river, but with some modifications. Abtou 30 years ago, after swimming in Pickwick, both my eyes got red, hurt/itched, and swelled up= thought they were going to pop out of my head.
Went to the doc who said it was allergy, gave me a shot of dacadron (sp) and some benedryl, and some salve.
I did get all right fairly soon, but every since, if I get that water in my eyes, I have that problem, so now I wear swim goggles if I am swimming, on my waverunner, or anything that could cause water to get in my eyes. I look goofy, but , what the heck.
However, I NEVER go swimming in the river during "Dog Days".
I would rather not know and just enjoy it. But for most of the time , the river is flowing and the ratio of water to whatever is in there is huge. So when I'm out there just burning up..over the side I go to cool off Razzer Just think about all the things we did and ate when were little kids and we're all still around to tell those stories. Back then it seemed that eviromental issues wasn't the top subject as it is today that or I was just a kid and didn't listen or watch any news..just the Looney Tunes after school. And 30+ yrs later, I'm still here to write this..
Many other rivers are a lot nastier than ours.

You absolutely cannot get HIV from swimming in the river unless you had sexual intercourse with an infected person while swimming in the river (or shared a needle or otherwise came in direct contact with an HIV+ person's blood).

There is a small risk of some types of hepatitis and other illnesses in a pool, especially if someone carrying the germs has trouble controlling their bodily functions and the pool's not well treated chemically.

I swim in the river. But I'm not eating fish out of it!
quote:
Originally posted by excelman:
I still swim in the river, but with some modifications. Abtou 30 years ago, after swimming in Pickwick, both my eyes got red, hurt/itched, and swelled up= thought they were going to pop out of my head.
Went to the doc who said it was allergy, gave me a shot of dacadron (sp) and some benedryl, and some salve.
I did get all right fairly soon, but every since, if I get that water in my eyes, I have that problem, so now I wear swim goggles if I am swimming, on my waverunner, or anything that could cause water to get in my eyes. I look goofy, but , what the heck.
However, I NEVER go swimming in the river during "Dog Days".



After anyone takes the amount of bacteria in the River, plus the rate of flow down to Pickwick, and do all the factoring, the PPM would probably not be enough to make anyone real sick, just a little bit, like excelman is talking about.

But even with that, I just cannot bring myself to get in the river anymore... it just isn't "MY" thing... I prefer pools...
quote:
Originally posted by unclegus:
Would it surprise you to know that Muscle Shoals, Florence and Sheffield gets their water supply from the Tennessee river?


No, it don't surprise me, I knew that, BUT they treat it, then they re-treat it before pumping it to the homes... THAT is the kicker.

Did anyone know that tap water is healthier than bottled water? A lot of people cannot believe that, but it is true... tap water has minerals in it that bottled water don't, and the vast majority of bottled water on the market is tap water with alka seltzer in it, lol.
quote:
Did anyone know that tap water is healthier than bottled water? A lot of people cannot believe that, but it is true... tap water has minerals in it that bottled water don't, and the vast majority of bottled water on the market is tap water with alka seltzer in it, lol.



I have been touting that for quite a while.
And there are certain health regulations for tap water, but not for bottled water.
I save my drink bottles and refill them with tap water.

Andy Rooney did a piece about the same thing the other night. Said the water cooler at work has water that is filtered, cold, taste just as good and is free, but he's never seen anyone drink from it. Instead that walk around with $2.00 bottles.
quote:
Originally posted by (aka)PuckerupFrog:
quote:
Did anyone know that tap water is healthier than bottled water? A lot of people cannot believe that, but it is true... tap water has minerals in it that bottled water don't, and the vast majority of bottled water on the market is tap water with alka seltzer in it, lol.



I have been touting that for quite a while.
And there are certain health regulations for tap water, but not for bottled water.
I save my drink bottles and refill them with tap water.

Andy Rooney did a piece about the same thing the other night. Said the water cooler at work has water that is filtered, cold, taste just as good and is free, but he's never seen anyone drink from it. Instead that walk around with $2.00 bottles.


Tap water has minerals in it that bottled water doesn't... it also has chemicals in it too, to kill the bacteria.. but so does bottled water... there was one company in California that had UNACCEPTABLE levels of arsenic in their bottled water (some was OK, but they had too much)... and somewhere up north they fined them for using TAP water with about 1/8th of an Alka Seltzer put into it and sold it as REAL SPRING WATER...

Bottled water, UNLESS you know the makers, are just rip off artists according to the news... they KNOW people are going to buy it, all they have to do is MAKE the bottles and lids, the rest is pure profit.

Which is WHY, PPM of bacteria, the Tn River is probably OK to swim in, but like Nash said, take a bath shortly afterwards. McFarland has bathrooms to wash up in.
quote:
Originally posted by Kindred_Spirit:
[.



I
Tap water has minerals in it that bottled water doesn't... it also has chemicals in it too, to kill the bacteria.. but so does bottled water... there was one company in California that had UNACCEPTABLE levels of arsenic in their bottled water (some was OK, but they had too much)... and somewhere up north they fined them for using TAP water with about 1/8th of an Alka Seltzer put into it and sold it as REAL SPRING WATER...

Bottled water, UNLESS you know the makers, are just rip off artists according to the news... they KNOW people are going to buy it, all they have to do is MAKE the bottles and lids, the rest is pure profit.

Which is WHY, PPM of bacteria, the Tn River is probably OK to swim in, but like Nash said, take a bath shortly afterwards. McFarland has bathrooms to wash up in.
[/QUOTE]

Did you know that Gail Norton (Interior Department) was on her way to a meeting to argue for her boss (Bush) that Arsnic in drinking water was ok, on the morning of 9/11 .
Bush was fighting for the mining companies interest to continue polluting the drinking water of some Western Cities and allow even higher levels in the water.
9/11 caused the meeting to be canceled, and our country went in another direction.
The issue to legally allow more arsnic in drinking water was dropped.
Eeker
Hi Kindred,

Not sure what Roy Green did for a living; I left home in 1955 to join the Air Force. Roy graduated from SHS in 1954 and had a brother, Wayne, who graduated from SHS in 1957. As the old song goes, "Those were the days, my friend; we thought they'd never end" --- but, we keep the memories in our hearts and they grow sweeter day by day. I may live in California; but, my heart has never completely left Alabama.

To FirenzeVeritas,

Yes, I have been told that before. My response has always been that, if for no other reason that public relations --- it is a good idea for a restaurant employee to allow patrons to see him/her wash their hands when in the bathroom. Then, go to their stations and wash where it is more sterile. Why do you think they always have signs posted: Wash your hands before leaving bathroom.

One evening, some years ago, my wife, Dory, and I went to a very nice restaurant in Laguna Beach, California, for dinner. We chose this restaurant because we could sit on the sidewalk patio and watch people walking by the shops and beach as we ate. After ordering, I went to the restroom. While washing my hands, a kitchen employee came out of one of the toilet stalls, walked right past me without washing, and walked into the kitchen and back to work. I went back to my table, got my wife, and left --- immediately --- and have never been to that restaurant again. Good public relations, such as letting a customer see the employee wash his hands, would have retained me as a customer. Bad public relations, such as seeing a man who had obviously had a bowel movement leave the bathroom without washing his hands and return to the kitchen to work --- lost my business forever. Which is better?

And, more to the point, what would you have done if you had been in my place that evening?

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill Gray
Alabama bred,
California fed,
America blessed!
billdory@pacbell.net
quote:
Originally posted by Bill Gray:
Hi Kindred,

Not sure what Roy Green did for a living; I left home in 1955 to join the Air Force. Roy graduated from SHS in 1954 and had a brother, Wayne, who graduated from SHS in 1957. As the old song goes, "Those were the days, my friend; we thought they'd never end" --- but, we keep the memories in our hearts and they grow sweeter day by day. I may live in California; but, my heart has never completely left Alabama.

To FirenzeVeritas,

Yes, I have been told that before. My response has always been that, if for no other reason that public relations --- it is a good idea for a restaurant employee to allow patrons to see him/her wash their hands when in the bathroom. Then, go to their stations and wash where it is more sterile. Why do you think they always have signs posted: Wash your hands before leaving bathroom.

One evening, some years ago, my wife, Dory, and I went to a very nice restaurant in Laguna Beach, California, for dinner. We chose this restaurant because we could sit on the sidewalk patio and watch people walking by the shops and beach as we ate. After ordering, I went to the restroom. While washing my hands, a kitchen employee came out of one of the toilet stalls, walked right past me without washing, and walked into the kitchen and back to work. I went back to my table, got my wife, and left --- immediately --- and have never been to that restaurant again. Good public relations, such as letting a customer see the employee wash his hands, would have retained me as a customer. Bad public relations, such as seeing a man who had obviously had a bowel movement leave the bathroom without washing his hands and return to the kitchen to work --- lost my business forever. Which is better?

And, more to the point, what would you have done if you had been in my place that evening?

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill Gray
Alabama bred,
California fed,
America blessed!
billdory@pacbell.net



Very interesting reply, Bill... Thanks!!! And I agree with you so much about washing of the hands,.... to see kitchen help NOT doing it turns my stomach!!!

Nice to see you on the forums!!!
Hi Kindred_Spirit and PuckerupFrog,

Funny, now that you mentioned it, I do remember the "green" water. But, at that time of my young life --- who noticed such things. Heck, I used to go down to some creeks that would be brown as mud, because they were muddy. I guess, in my young life, I swallowed enough "green" water and "muddy" water to float a battleship --- yet, I am still alive and kicking, and knocking on that old "70" door in a couple of weeks.

Yet, today, if everything isn't sterile and germ-free --- oh, God help us! In 1959, I worked for a computer company, Burroughs Corporation, in Pasadena. We were good friends with a young couple from North Carolina who had a new baby. No one could get within two feet of that baby without the mother going into a panic. I often wondered if that child grew up healthy, or so susceptible to germs, that anyone within two miles sneezing would give her a cold.

As I slowly walk toward the big 70 --- my memories of my childhood in Alabama become ever more precious. Does anyone remember Morris Auto in Tuscumbia, with the black and white tiles on the outside? About 1940, I lived with my aunt just down the hill, toward Spring Park, from Morris --- and, at three years of age, used to walk there and attempt to con the men out of a Coke from the machine.

At Spring Park, there was a sandstone covered tennis court where my cousin, Christine and her friend played tennis. In the park beside the sandstone structure, every Sunday my cousins, Eddie Byrd and Brent Hardin, would take my brother, Bob, me, and other young boys, to play tag football.

My brother, Bob, and I played on the Green Hornets and Blue Devils pee-wee football teams. I later played for the Red Rockets and Silver Jets pee-wee football teams.

Life was sweet then; but, life is sweet now. What we must always do is to keep a bowl of the good old memories in our mental cupboard to add sweetening to life --- but, live for today; for there is so much to live for today. God has given us so many blessings that we could spend full time just counting them.

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill Gray <billdory@pacbell.net>
Alabama bred,
California fed,
America blessed!
I just thought I would say I went to a fast food in Muscle Shoals a couple of month ago, and my husband saw the guy handling the fries put his finger in his mouth then put his hand back in the fries. my husband made his complant, but nothing was done about it. when we want to go to that resturant we go to the one in tuscumbia or florence

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