Water Warriors
Volume
21
/ Issue 4
Cover Design Credit:
Lori DeatonCover Photography Credit:
Cindy Kunst
Though the state has cut back on various environmental initiatives and funding, each summer, the Franklin-based Land Trust for the Little Tennessee conducts biological monitoring in some 30 waterways, from the headwaters in north Georgia to Fontana Reservoir in North Carolina. The work's part of a network of organizations and volunteers -- WNC's water warriors.
arts
Smart bets: Yonder Mountain String Band
The Colorado-based jam-grass nomads of Yonder Mountain String Band log more than 100 live shows per year, so the musicians have to keep performances eclectic if only to preserve their…Smart bets: Town Mountain
Fans of Asheville quintet Town Mountain will be familiar with the concept of podorythmie — not because they are well-versed in French Canadian percussive techniques, but because it’s nearly impossible…Digging deep: DIG Festival showcases local and regional music
Downtown Independent Groove Festival (DIG to its friends) is making its third appearance on the Asheville music scene this weekend. It boasts two days of performances, eight downtown music venues…Smart bets: Fred Chappell
If cat art, cat videos or “What kind of a cat person are you” quizzes seem just a little bit hokey, what about feline-themed poetry? Former North Carolina Poet Laureate…Smart bets: The Tall Pines and Casey Driessen
“The Tall Pines are equal parts soul and twang, molasses and moonshine, sass and skill,” says NPR. Christmas Davis writes gritty swamp rock tunes, which his wife, vocalist Connie Lynn…Tashi Dorji’s new album blends cultures and subcultures
Tashi Dorji talks a lot about community — in terms of both Asheville’s punk scene and his interest in radical politics. Nonetheless, he’s releasing an album’s worth of eccentric solo…Solo searching: Floating Action returns with a hi(gher)-fi new album
“Quiet bros stick together,” is how local singer-songwriter and producer Seth Kauffman sums up working with musician Ray LaMontagne. Kauffman played guitar on LaMontagne’s recent, Dan Auerbach-produced Supernova and says…Big Love Festival celebrates over 150 independent local businesses and organizations
As Sunday, Aug. 24, approaches, don’t be alarmed if you see two people at Pack Square Park taking tape measures to sidewalks and other structures. It’s just Big Love Festival co-organizers…Balancing act: Q&A with novelist and attorney Kim Church
This weekend Asheville hosts Booktopia, an author-reader retreat. One of the authors at that Malaprop’s event will be Raleigh-based novelist Kim Church.food
Beer Scout: Hops to it
Blueberries, blackberries, raspberries: everyone has their favorite U-pick treat. However, Van Burnette of the Hop’n Blueberry Farm wants folks in the Asheville area to remember there is another crop…Small Bites: Mojo Kitchen and One Stop host music dinner series
Mojo Kitchen hosts a new dinner-and-music series, Universal Joint raises money for the Hominy Creek Greenway, the Asheville Food Swap gets ready to trade and Food Truck Fridays continues in…Local dollars, local food: Slow Money NC hosts Financing Our Foodshed Gathering
Carol Peppe Hewitt is a matchmaker of sorts. As cofounder of the North Carolina chapter of the international nonprofit organization Slow Money and author of Financing Our Foodshed: Growing Local…Blood of the grape: Asheville Wine & Food Festival spotlights local vintners
Asheville may be Beer City, but that’s not the only libation local residents enjoy. Consider the continuing success of the Asheville Wine & Food Festival. Now in its sixth year,…living
FEAST supplements the curriculum with garden-based education
Incorporating garden-based education with an emphasis on healthy eating into the regular curriculum is the goal of two in-school programs run by FEAST, an extension of Slow Foods Asheville. Funds…Making health care history: A Q&A with Dr. Robert Fields about the new Mission Health Partners network
The way we experience health care is changing. And regardless of your politics, not many would argue that there is room for improvement. Mission Health, in conjunction with MAHEC and…news
Safeguarding water quality: Amid drastic state budget cuts, volunteers pick up slack
Standing knee-deep in the Little Tennessee River, Haley Williams wears a broad smile as she and her classmates fill a bucket with temporarily stunned fish. “We’ve been waiting for this…GreenWorks interns raise environmental awareness in public housing
Through the organization’s Water Quality Internship Program, six interns are learning how to test water quality in local streams. But that’s only the beginning, as the interns will also work…opinion
Parking Gate
Letter references sad, offensive Internet meme
In a July 16 letter [“New Mural at Orbit DVD is Offensive,” July 16, Xpress], David Lynch criticized public art at Orbit DVD by applying the discerning website knowyourmeme.com. Lynch referenced…Plane Plan
Diversity not meaningful in terms of Asheville’s racial integration
It perplexed me to see diversity voted as the third-best reason to live in Asheville [“Best of WNC, Part One,” Aug. 6, Xpress]. This is not because I believe it…