Day: April 5, 2011
Om is where the heart is
Asheville is gaining recognition as one of the hippest yoga towns in the country. Locals see the threads woven throughout their day — from the ubiquitous Om-symbol bumper stickers to the checkout clerk who greets you with “Namaste” to your co-worker’s reminder to “take a deep breath” when you’re feeling stressed. This is not surprising, … Read more
Green Scene: Clearing the air?
Warm weather means gardens growing, breezes blowing … and daily email alerts from the N.C. Division of Air Quality (see box, “Airin’ Out”). Worse yet, poor air-quality days — usually associated more with summer — are now occurring earlier in the year, according to the experts assembled at a March 30 press conference at the … Read more
WNC Wellness review
Asheville thrives as regional center of integrative medicine "People from across the country now travel to attend Asheville's herbal medicine and massage schools, something economic development groups want to promote, along with the city's abundance of alternative medicine practitioners." — [Asheville Citizen-Times] UNCA Health and Wellness Department loses activity classes, faculty "More studying and less … Read more
The Mountain Xpress Poetry Prize finalists
The finalists in the 2011 Mountain Xpress Poetry Prize are: • James Cox, “By the Lake in Northern Michigan” • James Davis, “Sourwood” • John Eells, “Sleep And Dreams” • Jessica Claire Newton, “Two Weeks Deep Into the Dirty Laundry” • Randal Pride, “Coal Palace” • Andrew Procyk, “Life and Death” • Jesse S. Rice-Evans, “Taking A … Read more
Rhyme and reason
"I write poetry to stay current with myself. I read poetry to stay current with the world," says local poet, Asheville Wordfest organizer and Blue Ridge Parkway poet laureate Laura Hope-Gill. It's her motto, as a writer, but it's also an especially poignant dictum: Lately, Hope-Gill has been writing poetry about Japan and its recent … Read more
Small Bites
A decade of daily bread Ten years ago, West Asheville was a very different place. While it wasn't exactly a tumbleweed-filled ghost town, there was no U-Joint, Admiral or Desoto. The West End Bakery, however, put down its roots in a spot that would eventually become a social hub for the community — an anchor … Read more
Say “cheese”
Western North Carolinians may not don foam cheese hats at Tourists’ games, but we’re a cheese-loving and cheese-making region all the same. That’s why Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project is putting the focus on local farmstead cheese this month in its Get Local initiative, which brings together farmers, chefs and community members to celebrate a single … Read more
A dizzying odyssey
John Crutchfield always felt like he had to write by the rules. Restriction was second nature. But in 2003, he decided to throw out those rules and play around with his words and imagination, letting a story and the flow of language lead him to where an experienced, educated poet had not fully ventured. The … Read more
