Chances are you’ve never heard of Mr. Moon.

Which is a shame, because Mr. Moon is a golden god – in the realm of sports mascots, anyway, which is a group as eclectic as the contestants in a Miss America pageant. The difference is that, being a generally higher-I.Q. bunch, the mascots would likely be able to cobble together more coherent proposals for world peace.

The Asheville Tourists, a single-A  baseball team in North Carolina, are lucky enough to call Mr. Moon their own. His head looks more or less the way you would expect it to – it’s a giant moon, of course – with a vaguely creepy, sexual predator-type smile, and a blue cap cocked jauntily askew somewhere atop the Sea of Tranquility.

That a team called the Tourists boasts a giant moon-headed freak for a mascot doesn’t make a whole lot of sense; the moon has never been a tourist, and if it ever becomes one, then humanity’s days are probably numbered. In that event, you can be assured of three things: families will embrace each other sorrowfully on their front lawns as they gather to watch the collision; kooky religious groups will drink lots of Kool-Aid while wearing funny

Article source: http://www.journaltribune.com/articles/2013/09/21/columnist/doc523c569e06263745760570.txt If you need a cheap air ticket, hotel or rental car please visit http://www.airticket.com

This weekend has gone to the dogs in Asheville!

On Saturday, Sept. 21 (yes, I am biased about this one) the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area will host Play Along the Parkway Day as part of the parkway Heritage Weekend.

I will meet with people and their dogs at 9 a.m. on Saturday for a short hike along the Mountains-to-Sea Trail, starting at the Parkway Visitor Center. This is the building at Milepost 384, near the intersection with U.S. 74 A (it’s 2 miles south of the Folk Art Center).

This is free! And the Asheville Humane Society’s Hiking Hounds will be there, too, so you can meet a potential new family member! Click here for today’s story:

Then on Sunday, Sept. 22, is the second annual Dog Day Afternoon Festival at Carrier Park on Amboy Road in Asheville to celebrate all things canine, and support local dog rescue organizations. 

The Asheville Humane Society and Brother Wolf Animal Rescue will be in attendance with large adoption areas showcasing dogs ready for adoption in hopes of matching these would-be pets with a loving foster or forever home. 

The event starts at 11:30

Article source: http://blogs2.citizen-times.com/outdoors/2013/09/20/get-the-dogs-out-in-asheville/ If you need a cheap air ticket, hotel or rental car please visit http://www.airticket.com

A century after Flagstaff’s downtown merchants lived in apartments over their stores, mixed-use development is returning to the city in a big way.

A 23,550 square-foot REI store selling recreational equipment will be located at Aspen Place at the Sawmill at the corner of Lone Tree Road and Butler Avenue. Part of the latest phase of development at the shopping center, the store will be near downtown Flagstaff and Northern Arizona University.

Above it will be built 222 luxury apartments. And on either side will be 35,000 more square feet of retail space.

REI alone promises to hire 50 people, but at least one local sporting equipment retailer questions the need for another national chain store in Flagstaff.

$2 BILLION RETAIL CO-OP

According to Elaine Averitt, planning development manager for the city of Flagstaff, the site plan on the 1.43-acre site was approved on May 30 and construction began in August.

REI will be joining Cultured, Pita Jungle, and Some Burros as part of Phoenix-based RED Development’s efforts to make Aspen Place at the Sawmill a “lively and comfortable shopping and dining experience that complements the northern Arizona lifestyle.”

“We’re confident in creating a balanced mix of local and national retailers to serve the needs of the

Article source: http://azdailysun.com/news/local/rei-and-more/article_bfe0a1c0-21c4-11e3-9940-001a4bcf887a.html If you need a cheap air ticket, hotel or rental car please visit http://www.airticket.com

Next Tuesday, Sept. 24, Asheville City Council will consider an overhaul of the city’s agricultural ordinances to allow for growing more food in more places. Council will also contemplate making official inquiries into partnering with private organizations to find an event to replace Bele Chere.

The overhaul of the city’s agricultural rules is part of an ongoing process, pushed especially over the last few years by the Asheville-Buncombe Food Policy Council, to try to create more opportunities for Ashevilleans in various neighborhoods to grow or buy their own fresh food. In 2009, city government relaxed rules on keeping some animals, including chickens and bees, within city limits. Last year, Council increased the number of places allowed to hold fresh food markets.

The new rules would allow urban agriculture across the city, while setting restrictions on the size of storage or other related structures as well as urban farmers opening market stalls or similar businesses.

Council will also consider inquiring about possible partners for a late July event to replace the recently-departed Bele Chere. As

Article source: http://www.mountainx.com/article/52892/Asheville-City-Council-preview-Of-food-and-festivals If you need a cheap air ticket, hotel or rental car please visit http://www.airticket.com

Real Deals

Flip, shop and save on specials from your favorite retailers in Asheville, NC 28802

GET DEALS NOW

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The Transylvania Community Arts Council is proud to present its newest art show entitled A Collaborative Exhibit – two or more artist working together to create new artwork. This art exhibit will be on display at the TC Arts Council Gallery from September 20 – October 11. Tammy Hopkins, executive director of the TC Arts Council said, “It has been a lot of fun to watch artists growing and challenging themselves by working outside of their norm.”

Erin Keane member of Number 7 Arts collaborated with several local artists to create new pieces of artwork. She said, “Working with other artists was inspiring and invigorating. The innovation, brainstorming, problem solving, and researching required for our projects expanded my creativity and knowledge base, and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know these artists on a new level. Our collaborations stretched me in different directions and there are already spin-off projects in the works. Put two artists together and you get triple, quadruple the amount of ideas!”

Artists who have collaborated together for this exhibit include: Ann DerGara Sue Hershey; Kato Fred Guggenheim; Sue Grier Erin Keane; John Hilliard Jill Cutler; Sue Hershey Erin Keane; Patricia Dennis

Article source: http://www.mountainx.com/article/52875/Artists-collaborate-in-new-Brevard-exhibit If you need a cheap air ticket, hotel or rental car please visit http://www.airticket.com

LEXINGTON, S.C. — When they learned that a Powerball ticket worth $400 million had been sold at a gas station across the road, workers at Econ-O-Bug Termite and Pest Control said they had a few big, wishful dreams. But they didn’t have the prized ticket in their hands, so they came to work as usual Thursday in their yellow bug-battling vans.

“I sure didn’t win it,” said Jason Vannest, 32, of Lexington. He looked wistfully out the window at the buzz of activity at the Murphy USA gas station. “I’d be on vacation if I had, that’s for sure.”

Colleague Eddie Terrell chimed in that he had his destination all picked out, even though he wasn’t the winner in Wednesday night’s drawing of the fourth-largest prize in Powerball history.

“I’d be on a flight to Ireland right now,” said Terrell, 50. He said he purchased his Powerball ticket at another store, but he was still curious. “I just want to know who won it,” he said.

But the winner didn’t attend Thursday’s news conference at the gas station, and his or her identity remained a mystery even to lottery officials.

“We

Article source: http://www.citizen-times.com/viewart/20130919/NEWS/309190101/-400M-winning-Powerball-ticket-sold-SC If you need a cheap air ticket, hotel or rental car please visit http://www.airticket.com