Archived (29807)
Children categories
Anticipation
It’s nine o’clock and my 6-year-old is snug in her bed and sound asleep even though she’s been told it…
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Youth get a hands-on look at planning their future
By Jennifer Garlesky • Staff Writer Rachel Upchurch wants to protect the mountains that tower throughout Jackson County however; the…
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Familiar face, new challenges: After 17 years away, Jack Horton returns to manage a changing Macon County
By Jennifer Garlesky • Staff Writer Macon County welcomed its new County Manger Jack Horton back to Western North Carolina…
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Taking it to the street: Waynesville Public Art Commission seeks to promote cultural heritage with downtown art project
By Michael Beadle What would New York City be without its Statue of Liberty? Picture St. Louis without its Gateway…
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Coal, energy needs at center of first lieutenant governor debate
By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer Coal-fired power plants and renewable energies took center stage as topics at last Saturday’s…
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Is it unpatriotic to save the rebate?
Don’t you just love being an American. Just the mere mention of the word “recession” and the next thing you…
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The growing issue of elder abuse in WNC
The senior citizen population is growing in Western North Carolina, and with that increase comes the increasing potential for abuse,…
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A rowdy good time at some familiar stomping grounds
Reverend Horton Heat: Reverend Organdrum Maybe all that needs to be said is that somewhere around three and a half…
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It’s a dog’s life
A new book has been published that will be of particular interest to area hunters, outdoorsmen, and dog lovers. It…
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Go west yon hiker
A new hiking club has joined the ranks of an already burgeoning collection of trail trotters in WNC.
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Recommended diversions
“3:10 To Yuma” Russell Crowe as vicious murder Ben Wade and Christian Bale as Dan Evans, a farmer hired to…
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Long-term fix must be found for state’s mental health care woes
Perhaps it is going to take a complete fracturing of the mental health system before policymakers finally realize that North…
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Preserving tradition Non-profit grows plants for Cherokee artisans
By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer Not too long ago, the number of people who carried on the ancient Cherokee…
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Sylva rescinds resignation vote, re-hires Denton
By Jennifer Garlesky • Staff Writer Sylva’s search for a new town manager ended Jan. 17 after Town Manager Jay…
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Clean water for Racking Cove: Contentious water fund decision will provide Jackson residents with safe water
By Jennifer Garlesky • Staff Writer It’s been almost a year since Bonita Fox and her family have taken a…
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Public weighs in on future of U.S. 441
By Jennifer Garlesky • Staff Writer Progress on Jackson County’s corridor study for U.S. 441 is taking shape after three…
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Sales tax is most palatable way to meet HCC’s needs
Haywood Community College needs help, and the community that benefits from this beloved institution is going to step up. The…
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The peril of complacency
The Cult of the Amateur: How Today’s Internet is Killing Our Culture by Andrew Keen. Doubleday, 2007. $22.95 Web 2.0…
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Peace in the valley: Franklin photographer Bill Lea captures beauty and history of Cades Cove in new book
For nature photographer Bill Lea, Cades Cove is heaven on earth.
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Jim and Rhonda do it different
Jim Lauderdale: The Bluegrass Diaries If you recognize the name, little more needs to be said. Long one of the…
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Tis the season of politics and lies
The truth is that, at the state level, no one is giving Pat Smathers a chance to win in his…
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More than 150 attend Swain’s historic first MLK celebration
More than 150 people traveled from all over Western North Carolina to attend the first official Martin Luther King Jr.…
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Reward offered in Parkway bear killing
A driver on the Blue Ridge Parkway last November witnessed a group of hunters and their dogs corner a black…
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Recommended diversions
“No Country For Old Men” There’s a whole list of movies (films?) I’ve seen that I respected, on many levels…
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Oh, the glorious memory of boredom
George Bernard Shaw once said, “It’s a shame that youth is wasted on the young.” If that is true, then…
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Fundamental issues are ignored in immigration debate
By Marsha Crites • Guest Columnist She is very thin, about 6 years old, her hair is unkempt and her…
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North Shore Road proponents fear wilderness designation
By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer With a potential end to the North Shore Road saga looming, supporters of constructing…
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Right in the thick of it
Our southern mountains are old and relatively sedate when compared with the Himalayas, Rockies, and other “young” mountain ranges. But…
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The Naturalist's Corner
There she was when I got up around 6:30 this morning, the buttons from her blue jeans shining radiantly just…
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The Chattooga compromise: With solitude at stake, Chattooga recreation to be reined in
A long-awaited decision over paddling on the Upper Chattooga is expected within weeks by the National Forest Service.
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Music to their ears: Local students earn high marks in national performance competition
By Michael Beadle Watch out Broadway. Get Carnegie Hall ready.
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Wings of winter
Winter birding is often slow going. There is no chorus of rowdy and randy males singing lustily, and weather conditions…
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Dr. Elisha Mitchell
While scanning the shelves of a rare bookstore in Asheville several months ago, I happened upon a regional volume by…
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Body found in Macon in missing hiker case
Skeletal remains found in Macon County’s Nantahala National Forest Feb. 2 are those of an 80-year-old hiker who disappeared in…
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Living with a green state of mind: Western North Carolina residents take steps to reduce their carbon footprint
By Jennifer Garlesky • Staff Writer Living “green” is a way of life for Mark and Darcia Bondurant. The Haywood…
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Garden questions
By Jim Janke • Special to the Smoky Mountain News Editor’s note: This is the first of what will become…
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Final countdown to the Chattooga decision
There are nine scenarios on the table in the debate over whether paddling should be allowed on the Upper Chattooga.…
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Mountain roads cited as among the state’s most dangerous
By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer Driving a tractor-trailer in Haywood County or a motorcycle in Swain? Use caution. Both…
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Ordinance changes could lift floodplain development ban
By Jennifer Garlesky • Staff Writer Macon County residents will have the opportunity to weigh in on amendments to the…
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North Shore area won’t be designated a wilderness
By Rep. Heath Shuler After more than 60 years of contentious debate that has divided our community, we are finally…
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Letter writers take me to task twice in one week
Fair’s fair, so I’ll print an anonymous letter I received over the weekend. We usually don’t print anonymous submissions, but…
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Recommended diversions
Kindle In case you don’t know, the Kindle is Amazon’s answer to the paperless book. It’s a wireless, portable electronic…
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Bluegrass’ contemporary class
The term “contemporary bluegrass” is open to a ridiculous amount of interpretation. For some it signifies anything that strays even…
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Life chronicles
How To Make A Journal Of Your Life by D. Price. Ten Speed Press, $9.95. Ant Farm by Simon Rich.…
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This rodent won’t make it to the White House
PUNXSUTAWNEY, Penn. — A year from the day he announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for president, Punxsutawney Phil,…
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Counties need full-time economic development director
There’s not a one-size-fits-all model for how counties should promote economic development, but at the very least there should be…
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Business owners and their trash
By Jennifer Garlesky • Staff Writer Jackson County solid waste officials are cracking down on how businesses dispose of their…
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Swain chooses negotiators for North Shore settlement
By Jennifer Garlesky & Julia Merchant • Staff Writers Two Swain County employees will join representatives from the Department of…
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Forest Service should let boaters on the Chattooga
The U.S. Forest Service is about to release its opinion on whether to allow boating on the Chattooga River. It’s…
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Reverend C. T. Vivian sheds light on roots of Civil Rights movement
By Victoria McDonald • Guest Columnist Reverend C. T. Vivian is a living legend of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement.…
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