In the winter of ’68, in a drafty motel room in Port Huron, Mich., Anne Murray and I had a brief, doomed affair to the soundtrack of border-bound freight trucks rattling through the frigid dark beyond our desperate door. And I am a better man for it — though Anne, soon to become a world-famous … Read more
Getting to the Center for Craft, Creativity & Design means following an unassuming two-lane on the outskirts of Hendersonville. It’s a typical winding mountain road, skirted with thick growths of trees. Were it not for the signs, in fact, the place would be easy to miss, sitting as it does behind a small ridge, its … Read more
You probably know the story by heart: There’s a Christmas party, a mysterious uncle appears with a bag of gifts, and Clara gets a toy Nutcracker that her bratty brother promptly breaks. Then, in a through-the-looking-glass twist, the Christmas tree grows — as do the resident rodents — and the Nutcracker doll comes to life … Read more
Autumn brings with it brightly colored leaves, a chill in the air, and longer evenings offering plenty of time to curl up with a good book. But before falling back on an all-too-familiar name or taking potluck with some total unknown, why not check out instead one of the many local and regional authors whose … Read more
Front-row reviews What: Tell Us the Truth tour Where: The Orange Peel When: Saturday, Nov. 15 Hours after the Tell Us the Truth tour had moved on, its celebrity performers had headed back out on the road, and the crowd from the halls of the Asheville Community Resource Center had dispersed into the chilly downtown … Read more
A Nov. 17 gathering in downtown Asheville’s Public Works Building had all the conflict and passion of an old-time town hall meeting as city residents came together to hear about — and comment on — redevelopment plans for the South Pack Square area. The packed public meeting began with a presentation by representatives of the … Read more
EDNEYVILLE — A few years ago, Anthony Owens was just as worried as many other local apple growers. The orchard that had been his family’s rock for more than 30 years was looking more and more as if it might tumble out from under him. Gerber Products Co. had closed its Arden plant in 1998 … Read more
“Either we open the box and finish the job, or we put the box back under the tree.” — outgoing Council member Brian Peterson For want of some answers, a project was postponed. After years of preparations, a redevelopment plan for downtown Asheville’s Eagle Street neighborhood seemed poised to move forward. But at City Council’s … Read more
West Asheville in a nutshell When I heard about the west Asheville slogan contest sponsored by the Haywood Road Corridor Committee, I walked around the office soliciting ideas. Here are some of the slogans my co-workers came up with: “How the west is one,” “Baptists, bakers and good coffee makers,” “Asheville’s Five Points,” and “It’s … Read more
