[MHGinTN]

One of your finest, John ... and somewhat poetic to boot! But I am reminded of the smell in Tuscaloosa, AL, of the paper mills. I once asked a resident what that smelled like ... he replied that it smelled like homes and cars and college educations. I didn't embarrass myself further.

[chronic_loser]

I remember the stench in Tuscaloosa when there as a college student. One freshman night in Paty hall I walked out in the hall and literally had to squint to see the other end of the hall, the paper mill was so bad.

Had forgotten all about that till just now. I used to go out to run and would wind up retching sometimes.

An interesting aside on the plant came when the owner (an elderly lady) was confronted with some demand or other by the union. She told them point blank that the plant was marginally profitable and that she would shut it down if they persisted. They responded "you can't shut it down! We will sue!" Things went on, they did not back down and one morning the a.m. shift was met at the gate by armed guards and a note that said "I am in Europe. You can forward any lawsuits or questions through my attorney." My understanding is that it never fired back up.