by Tracy Davis photographs by Juli Leonard In days of yore, traveling minstrels made their way from one town to the next, sharing their tunes on the village green. Today, many minstrel types have set aside lutes and lyres in…
by Tony Avent illustration by Ippy Patterson At one time or another, most gardeners have grown African violets, or saintpaulia hybrids. Back in the disco era, we of a certain age also indulged in trying to grow their more challenging…
by Allie Higgins photographs by Geoff Wood John McHugh never imagined he would drive the train at Pullen Park; he was too busy clowning around. That started early, at Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Clown College, back in 1978….
by Betty Adcock Sacred Harp Singers, Georgia, 1930s If their voices were visible entities flying from the deep south’s fading churches, startled from the throats of an earlier century by hope revived, they would be birds. Ordinary starlings. Or swifts…
by Luther H. Hodges Jr. After a recent period of personal upheaval, retired North Carolina Democratic politician and banker Luther H. Hodges Jr., 76, sought solace and insight in adventure: a walking safari in Africa. Unplugged and surrounded by the…
by Scott Huler The dozen or so healthy oak trees standing in a line in the secret park along the Pigeon House Branch north of Peace Street look to be about 40 years old, which means the oaks, which…
Here’s a thought. A little bar-hopping in a great bar town just might do you good. After all, bars are in business for one reason: to make you happy. And if I learned one thing in the exhaustive investigative research…
by Allie Higgins photograph by Missy McLamb Raleigh craftsmen Matthew Cronheim and Justin Johnson are putting an unexpected twist on a summer classic: the porch swing. Stacked, slotted, and strung, their handmade Harris Swing makes for a cool glide on a…
by Liza Roberts photographs by Lissa Gotwals When Broadway star Lauren Kennedy was growing up in Raleigh, she put in her time doing wholesome-kid things like catching salamanders in the creek near her house, and playing games like freeze tag with her…
by Ann Brooke Raynal photographs by Juli Leonard As drivers whiz down I-40, heading into Raleigh, a glance to the right will reveal a green swath, vivid evidence that the region’s agricultural roots are alive and well. Thanks to miles of farmland…
by Andrea Wiegl photographs by Juli Leonard Summer is a time for backyard cook-outs, July Fourth picnics, and patio parties. It’s also when Southern cooks turn to their go-to sources for party food. If that’s a cookbook, it is likely a…
by Liza Roberts photographs by Nick Pironio Some people build beach houses or mountain houses to get away from it all. Tina Shanahan built a barn. Home to two mares and a filly, the custom barn is the realization of a dream Shanahan,…
illustrations by Laura Frankstone One of the largest and most diverse collections of plants that thrive in the Southeast can be found at Raleigh’s J.C. Raulston Arboretum. This meandering, 10-acre research garden, planted with more than 5,000 different kinds of…
by Amber Nimocks photographs by Tim Lytvinenko Edge Barnes has always been “in beta,” long before always being “in beta” was cool. “If there’s not something new going on, there’s something wrong,” he says. It might seem incongruous for a gray-bearded potter…