Bonnaroo approacheth

If it is June in Coffee County then it must be time for the Bonnaroo music festival.

This coming week, tens of thousands of people will be traveling from all over the world to spend a week in Manchester. From a musical perspective, Manchester will be the center of the universe as some of the biggest acts in music come to play here.

The flavor of our community will change quite a bit in the next few days. Some of us will see things we probably haven't seen in a long time, and this will likely be in both good and bad ways.

If events unfold like they have in previous years, merchants should expect to enjoy a busy and profitable week.

My guess is the Wal-Mart parking lot will be packed with cars that have license plates from most of the states in the country. If you think I'm kidding, just spend a few minutes driving around the parking lot and see for yourself.

As a life long Manchester resident, my prayer is that the week will unfold peacefully. A lot of people will be coming to our little town, and we must be willing to help our guests whenever necessary.

Whether we like it or not, the perception of Manchester that outsiders have will largely be shaped by how we handle this event. In addition to our local media, state and national media will visit here, and how we receive them will play a big role in what our town's reputation will be.

Of course, there are negative aspects to this event. With a crowd this big coming, there will be lots of drug and alcohol abuse. Deaths have occurred in the past because of this, and we can only pray that that will not happen again.

Additionally, the general inconvenience of the event will affect us local residents. We can expect to wait a little longer in line whenever we go to buy groceries or gasoline.

I'm interested to see how this event will impact the price of gas. Obviously, prices have rocketed off the charts in the last few months, but will the increased demand for gas caused by Bonnaroo result in even higher prices here locally?

I sure hope not, but it wouldn't surprise me if we were to see a spike in prices. After all, greater demand drives higher prices.

Despite these inconveniences, the event has come a long way in regards to how it impacts local residents. The first year was a fiasco in terms of traffic control as cars were backed up for miles on the interstate for many hours.

However, event organizers and local officials are to be commended for dramatic improvements in getting people into the site in an efficient manner. Traffic has been a real breeze the last couple of years when compared to the first year. I'm sure there will be some problems. When so many people converge on a relatively small place, all the planning in the world will not be able to snuff out every issue.

Basically, the impact of this event on us is still pretty much the same as in previous years.

The bottom line is it is like most situations in life -- it is what you make of it. The masses are coming whether a person likes it or not.

So, as a community, our goal should be to do whatever it takes to make this event unfold as smoothly as possible. By doing this, we will greatly aid our local officials and event organizers.