Day: May 1, 2012
A short line between different cultures
What is home? Is it a place you belong because of the color of your skin, or the beliefs you hold dear? Home is where the poetry is at this year’s Asheville Wordfest, a five-year-old celebration of the power of emotive words delivered passionately in spoken format. The free, five-day festival will let listeners partake … Read more
More than meatloaf
A train, laden with coal, pulls slowly past Knife & Fork restaurant in Spruce Pine, N.C., following the banks of the glistening Toe River. It’s early Sunday morning and, in the kitchen, Nate Allen is punching a biscuit cutter into the dimpled surface of a thick sheet of dough with one hand while answering the … Read more
Skateboarding is a crime (for now)
Since 1965, skateboarding (and rollerskating) in downtown Asheville has been illegal. But that long ban might soon come to an end. At its April 24 meeting, City Council voted 5-1 to direct staff to draft rules for legal skateboarding on downtown roadways. (Mayor Terry Bellamy, who's running for Congress, was absent for a third-straight meeting.) … Read more
Where’s the Weird?
I don't like what you've been doing with “News of the Weird.” Sometimes you don't run it at all. Other times, you cut it down in size. I notice you don't mess with the sensationally superstitious astrology column or “Asheville Disclaimer” which, at its absolute best, barely rises to the level of faintly amusing. It … Read more
Dear Asheville, we still love you
In a do-it-yourself city comes a festival that celebrates the do-it-yourself spirit. “Big Love Fest: Unchained and Independent” sort of sounds like an indie film. It’s actually an indie festival that wraps a big hug around Asheville’s independent businesses. The free festival, with two stages for bands, showcases the city’s vast network of entrepreneurs, musicians, … Read more
