There may not be such a thing as a free lunch — as Dylan observed, “It may be the devil, it may be the Lord, you’ve got to serve somebody” — but, where music is concerned, there are free resources, and the public library is a good place to start. No matter what your preferred … Read more
Great, I thought: Here I am in downtown Asheville on a Saturday before the scheduled elections; why not vote now? I’ll even get a paper ballot! But after walking into the Board of Elections, I quickly learned that paper ballots are only an option for absentee voters. Arghh! Guess I’ll just have to trust those … Read more
Let’s try jailing hypocrisy addicts With all too familiar pain, I read Brian Postelle’s excellent expose revealing our new police chief’s priority to be drug enforcement [“In His Own Words,” Jan. 12]. Chief Hogan will focus mainly on the drug-using poor. Their already enormous burdens will be doubled by this increased harassment, incarceration and violence. … Read more
Road food For the 450 homebound or elderly folks who subscribe to Meals on Wheels, the daily arrival of a warm, balanced lunch can literally be the high point of the day. When this writer volunteered as a delivery driver for a few years, every interaction brightened my days. And right now, MOW is desperately … Read more
The Asheville City Council’s whirlwind March 8 formal session blew through the Council chamber in less than an hour. But when the dust cleared, a number of projects and initiatives had been nudged along. Most of the points on Council’s consent agenda (a cluster of separate, noncontroversial items that’s typically approved on a single vote) … Read more
“Ask a librarian for assistance.” To regular patrons of the Asheville-Buncombe Library System, this faintly ominous warning may be all too familiar: It’s the message you get when you’re searching the computerized catalog and the item you select is missing in action. In the past six months, this reporter has encountered such a prompt about … Read more
WestFest calling: WestFest, the annual festival that takes over Haywood Road in West Asheville with merriment, music and good eats, is seeking food and craft vendors for this year’s celebration, which will run from noon-7 p.m. on Saturday, April 3. For a registration form, visit www.ashevillewestfest.org or www.onhaywood.com, or stop by one of two Haywood … Read more
Flavor: German, Northern Italian and otherAmbiance: Nice, like an upscale, German-themed Cracker BarrelService: Professional and charming Stepping inside the Black Forest Restaurant in Skyland, I sensed that this establishment is burdened with a bit of an identity crisis. My Picky Companion and I were greeted warmly by a casually dressed hostess, while waitresses bustled about … Read more
