| Title |
Excerpt |
Author |
Date |
| Seen and not herd |
Sid the Sloth from this summer's Ice Age 3 made his off-screen debut as a tiny figurine in McDonald's Happy Meals; now he's appearing, for a much chillier price, on seasonal hoodies. And more than three years after he zoomed out of theaters, Lightning McQueen, the star of Pixar's Cars,… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
11/04/09 |
| Outdoors: Warm fur, cold heart |
Winter's coming, and it's wise to watch your back. Twice this fall, while descending the 22 stone steps from our house's front door to the street-side parking space, I've narrowly missed being bonked in the head by whizzing acorns. Squirrels are letting the nuts fly from the safety of the… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
10/28/09 |
| The fondant files |
Deceptively pretty mass-produced desserts have done a great job raising diners' expectations — but they've also corroded their sugar-coated instincts. In the late 1980s, a certain ubiquitous restaurant-supply company started hawking fully loaded cheesecakes and candy-stuccoed tortes. Remember Snickers Pie? It looked great under glass: Every mathematically pre-sliced piece was… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
10/21/09 |
| Outdoors: Snap judgments |
In between talk of apertures and shutter speeds, biodiversity photographer Kevin FitzPatrick drops an astounding fact: The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, celebrating its 75th birthday this year, harbors an estimated 100,000 undiscovered plant and animal species. Through his work with the Discover Life in America program, FitzPatrick has helped… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
09/30/09 |
| The Dirt: Fruit of their labors |
I recently cured a possible case of walking pneumonia by downing a quarter-cup of apple-cider vinegar, diluted in 16 ounces of water. My husband, son and I were taking a day drive to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, a trip I refused to miss because of any ailment. So… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
09/02/09 |
| Cool indeed |
Those super-ambitious parents who want their youngsters to bring back a little culture from Bele Chere are bound to appreciate the theme of this year's kids' corner — "Passport to Asheville: Arts, Animals, and Atmosphere." But 2009's most drastic alteration may prove to be the surest crowd pleaser: indoor bathrooms!… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
07/15/09 |
| The lovin' spoonful |
Hungry festival-hoppers aren't likely to suffer too badly from the slight reduction of food offerings at this year's Bele Chere. After all, when you have Hillbilly Funnel Cakes, what more do you need? The booth that disgorges those indispensable, deep-fried delights — who knew it had an official name? —… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
07/15/09 |
| Bele Chere Sunday music feature: Love from above (well, sort of) |
On stage, Brother Joscephus' tent-revival accent and cool-cat persona might trick fans into thinking he was raised in blues bastion Memphis or swampy New Orleans. But in a recent phone interview, Bro Jo's real-life counterpart, David Mendelsohn, showed his big-city roots in a burst of sarcastic wit. "When I was… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
07/15/09 |
| Streamlining Bele Chere |
With refreshing candor, Diane Ruggiero admits what everyone already knows: that residents tend to flee in droves during the city's biggest event of the year. "You always hear how locals leave during the festival," says Asheville's Superintendent of Cultural Arts. "Well, this year some people might not have the money… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
07/15/09 |
| Paint it black (or red, or blue) |
City of Asheville Event Specialist Kristin Perez is in charge of all Bele Chere vendors. But she expresses special enthusiasm for the festival's high-art portion, Arts Park — particularly this year's addition of various live demonstrations that will include pottery throwing, action painting and jewelry making. "It raises the excitement… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
07/15/09 |
| The Dirt: Winging it |
Cheap beer and chain saws are a troubling combination. I haven't been able to enjoy sitting on our back deck since my husband, Scott, acquired his latest outdoor toy. A winged cap: Scott Bianchi's head proved as good a spot as any for a butterfly to take a break. Photo… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
07/15/09 |
| Outdoors: Against the current |
Sure, the French Broad boasts good length, big parks, a fun name and zealous environmental defenders — not to mention its putative status as the world’s third-oldest river. But besides it and the wily Swannanoa (carver of historic valleys and deceptively sleepy flooder of gift shops), the Southern Appalachians are… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
07/01/09 |
| An orchid by any other name |
It’s my Phalaenopsis and I’ll cry if I want to. I never asked for this orchid, but I figure I better document its life while I still can. At the moment, it sports five absurdly gorgeous blooms, an orderly row of tight buds, and stems staked with what look like… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
06/17/09 |
| Cultivating consciousness |
At first, the effect is incongruous—like seeing puppies for sale in a bookstore. Replacing a full row of booths inside Neo Burrito, an army of potted tomato plants now spreads its leaves under the spaceship glow of a hydroponics table. Going green: Neo Burrito’s Zak Yancey has turned part of… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
06/03/09 |
| Justice served |
Famed hoop dancer Eddie Swimmer last year became the first Cherokee director of “Unto These Hills,” the Qualla Boundary’s outdoor drama—still popular at age 60. And over at Tribal Grounds Coffee, another Eastern Band tribal member, Natalie Smith, is likewise blending integrity with theatrics. Well grounded: Tribal Grounds’ new location,… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
05/27/09 |
| The Dirt: Local horticulturist stands up for predatory plants |
Hollywood has degraded the fascinating Venus flytrap, turning it into a silly monster. Consider the bloodsucking Audrey II in the macabre 1986 musical Little Shop of Horrors. Or Cleopatra, the prey-strangling pet of Addams Family matriarch Morticia. Sticking around: This sundew lies in wait for its insect prey. Upon landing,… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
04/22/09 |
| Hearing is believing |
It took two years for Ed Subkis to snag StoryCorps for a local residency—a long time, considering how ripe Asheville is for such an endeavor. The Airstream cometh: At long last, NPR’s popular StoryCorps program rolls into Asheville. The mobile storytelling booth will be parked in front of WCQS for… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
03/25/09 |
| Summer camps |
Kids used to return home from summer camp with little more than mosquito bites and bad folk songs bouncing through their heads. But the experience has grown considerably more sophisticated. Many local camps emphasize themes: writing, herbalism, stagecraft, robotics. Kids who attend the vastly eclectic array of Asheville-area programs will… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
03/25/09 |
| Spring Break is just around the corner—here’s a sample of camp offerings |
• Asheville Arts Center grabs the limelight this year with two spring-break performance camps. “Once Upon a Time ...” is an exploration of fairy tales old and new for young ones age 2-6, and “Lights, Camera, Action!”, for kids 6-15, teaches movie-making from script to screen. Both programs will be… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
03/25/09 |
| The Dirt: Getting your goat |
Powerful, potentially harmful herbicides like clorpyralid are not only creepy, they’re downright déclassé. An infinitely kinder and hipper form of kudzu control is Marvin, a veteran weed eater from Wells Farm in Horse Shoe. Kudzu? What kudzu? In two weeks, Ron Searcy’s weed-eating goats munched through most of the overgrowth… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
03/18/09 |
| Poor’s Flower Center |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| Your House of Flowers |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| The Extended Garden |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| Blossoms at Biltmore Park |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| Kara Jonze Floral Design and Flower Farm |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| Merrimon Florist |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| An English Flower Cottage |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| Rose Petals Floral Creations |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| Gudger’s Flowers |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| A Floral Affair by Swannanoa Flowers |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| South Forest Flowers |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| Flower Gallery |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| Bloomin’ Art |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| Kaylynne’s Briar Patch Florist |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| Middlemount Flowers |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| The Gardener’s Cottage |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| Shady Grove Flowers |
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Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/18/09 |
| A pearl of a prospect |
When times are lean, both people and products have to work twice as hard. Anyone whose parents or grandparents survived the Great Depression has heard examples of this protean creed: cardboard shirt inserts that were turned into shoe soles, scraps of tinfoil re-used for a decade. Hop to it: The… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/11/09 |
| Doing the wild thing |
I miss Marlin Perkins and his softly instructional nature shows. But Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom and the like have become as endangered as the Rameshwaram Parachute Spider or the Borneo pygmy elephant. Long gone is a serene, omniscient host like Perkins, cozily narrating the love moves of tawny African… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
02/11/09 |
| Have yourself a merry little recession |
Vintage-culture queen Suzie Millions doesn’t care for inflatable rooftop snowmen. But she won’t say ugly things about this latest, homogenous trend in holiday decor. Instead, she quips gently: “I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings.” Courtesy Lark Books. Millions’ handsome tome, The Complete Book of Retro Crafts: Collecting, Displaying &… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
12/03/08 |
| Outdoors: Small wonders |
My son’s passion for heavy equipment is rivaled only by his recent desire to be playing outdoors at all times. They tell me the dumper obsession is a common phase among toddler boys, who seem to have it mysteriously hard-wired into their little bodies. For 2-year-old Beau, “dumper” is a… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
11/19/08 |
| Outdoors: Spooky outdoor spots |
Any old ghost can haunt a house—and some don’t require even that much real estate. I lived in one West Asheville apartment for six years, despite a thick, uneasy presence. If you stood at the kitchen sink for any length of time, you found yourself whipping your head around in… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
10/29/08 |
| Gallery to go |
In a city blessed with more artists than spaces to show their work, repurposing restaurants to double as galleries makes sense. Stephen Lange has fashioned a career displaying his figurative watercolor paintings and collage wall hangings inside local businesses, including Ananda Hair Studio and a slew of local eateries. Would… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
10/22/08 |
| The Dirt: Sweet deal |
Sorghum syrup once flowed like creek water in the Southern Appalachians, and there are signs that this ultimate “slow food” may be flowing again. With help from the state, several local farmers have revved up production of the rich, old-fashioned syrup (sometimes called sorghum molasses). An old-fashioned juicer: This well-worn,… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
10/15/08 |
| Rise ‘n Shine Café |
Flavor: Breakfast favorites from local sources Ambiance: Diner in organic clothing Price: $1.25-$7.75 Where: 640 Merrimon Ave. (Merrimon Square) Contact: 254-4122 or http://www.risenshinecafe.com Hours: 7:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Mon-Sat; 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Sun Know where your food comes from. Such is the rallying cry that unites locavores and the restaurants that… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
10/01/08 |
| Outdoors: Stings and slithers |
It’s dry, it’s fall, the flowers are almost gone. And the bees want meat. Correction We had to shorten Jeff Ashton’s Outdoors column, “A Little Trout With Your Drought,” last week due to space constraints, and it resulted in distortions of the author’s meaning. For example, Ashton points out that… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
09/17/08 |
| The Dirt: Barrel fever |
Keeping up with the Joneses also typically means keeping up with the latest trends. It used to be that only folks who spent a lot of time digging in the dirt wore Crocs. Today, almost every major brand of footwear offers a version of the chunky rubber shoe, and almost… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
08/27/08 |
| Featured events |
Roots of Rhythm Drumming Tent A good beat always brings Bele Chere-goers back. Here’s proof: The thundering popularity of the Roots of Rhythm Drumming Tent—presented this year by Asheville native Larry McDowell—made festival coordinators decide to expand the hours and the size of this interactive attraction. Among those coordinators is… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
07/24/08 |
| No rules, just (what feels) right |
Like capri-length pants, the “ladies first” edict is always stylish, in my opinion. This should hold true in any restaurant, whether its tables are set with plastic forks or with crystal goblets. But today’s emphasis on trendy atmosphere and table flipping often trumps the classic rules of service. Seeking to… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
05/14/08 |
| Food with a view |
Outdoor patios may be a fair-weather rage in Asheville, with culinary ratings that go sky-high, but their proximity to sometimes stupid-busy traffic tends to keep them off lists devoted to scenic mountain-area dining. Such a list follows here, although it is by no means exhaustive: Pre-emptive apologies go out to… |
Melanie M. Bianchi |
05/07/08 |
