Earthy celebratio­ns

In the Asheville area, Earth Day isn’t just a one-day affair. The 39-year-old tradition falls on Wednesday, April 22, this year, but related events start this weekend and continue for more than a week, promising a bounty of workshops, presentations, kids’ stuff, enviro tips and more. The big picture: Second-grader Noah Sulzman was the grand […]

The Green Scene

These are names that only a congressional bill sponsor could love: the Tracing and Recalling Agricultural Contamination Everywhere Act, the Food and Drug Administration Globalization Act, the Food Safety and Tracking Improvement Act, and the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009. Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, a Democrat, has sponsored the latter bill, which has […]

Sugar Beet Cafe

By Jonathan Welch Flavor: American Food 101 Ambiance: Bustling diner, degreased and organic Price: $6-$9 Where: 1185 Charlotte Hwy. #B, Fairview Contact: 628-0094 Hours: Wed-Fri, 7:30 a.m.-3 p.m.; Sat-Sun, 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Food writing isn’t exactly a science, but there are a few rules that seem to make the whole rigmarole work: Don’t make a […]

Local farms could be in jeopardy

I just learned about H.R. 875, a disturbing bill that has been introduced in Congress, and I want to make sure everyone knows about it. This bill is called the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009. I encourage everyone to go investigate this bill. As far as I can tell, it has very little to […]

The Green Scene

Perhaps you can’t quite picture a farmers’ market hosted by the local hospital, but to Molly Nicholie, it’s a perfectly green combination. Such a partnership is just one possibility raised by the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project’s Farm to Hospital program. The pilot project seeks to play matchmaker, linking local farmers looking to build their customer […]

More than just a festival: LEAF reaches out

LEAF International started on Jennifer Pickering‘s vacation. While staying on Bequia in the Grenadines, the executive director of the popular Black Mountain-based Lake Eden Arts Festival walked into the Caribbean island’s high school for underperforming youth and asked about its steel-drum program. The instruments, known as “pans,” are part of the island’s music tradition, but […]

The eye of the storm: Hearts With Hands

While many international aid organizations focus long-term efforts and energies on a specific population or location, Hearts With Hands’ work is determined by the disaster du jour. From hurricanes to tsunamis, the group turns its attention wherever the latest large-scale crisis has erupted. Healing touch: Dr. Maureen McLaughlin-Grant examines a patient at the Hearts With […]

Any reason for the season—the other new year

Once, when Asheville-based musician Andy Pond passed through customs into the Montego Bay airport, a member of the Mento band (which greets tourists) noticed his banjo case. “Going to Jamaica with a musical instrument makes people treat you differently,” Pond says. He suddenly found himself picking along with the band, welcoming fellow tourists—including the cast […]

That’s saying a lot

What can you say about 2008? Plenty. The past year provided no shortage of notable quotes, fueled by the struggles and successes that made headlines week by week in Mountain Xpress and every day at mountainx.com. Consider just a smattering of the hot topics that filled our Web and print pages: the 30th annual Bele […]

The big bang

Whether it’s champagne corks popping, fireworks exploding or midnight smooching, there are plenty of sparks to ignite your 2009. Xpress offers this roundup of festive events, ranging from the frenetic to the sublime. Your mission: Dig out your best noisemaker and silly hat and get ready to herald in the New Year. All events listed […]

Small Bites

Holiday Markets: Even Santa’s staffers are locally grown at the Asheville City Market, where Silverbelle the rein-goat is greeting holiday shoppers in search of handcrafted honeys, molasses, jams, jellies, pickles, soaps, salves and lotions. “The bustle of markets really captures the spirit of the holidays,” writes Mike McCreary, manager of the Asheville City Market, one […]

Hands-on approach

In relationships, close quarters can build strong bonds or fierce resentments. Think of spouses co-owning a business or siblings sharing a bedroom. At the Clayspace Co-op, a working ceramics studio in Asheville’s River Arts District, the six members manage to cohabitate with relative ease. Awake at the wheel: Heather Tinnaro, the newest member of Clayspace, […]