Buttermilk & Molasses

Not As Classy as Nutzy

If the new RVA News Richmond Class of 2010 Superlatives face-off is any indication, no one in Richmond has anything on our newest mascot – Nutzy the Flying Squirrel is running strong in multiple categories in the online news site's latest love affair with Richmond. Having said that, it's sort of nice to be running a close second to a dive-bombing, acorn hoarder.

Voting in the contest – a good-natured attempt to highlight some people and places that make Richmond interesting – end on Monday, June 5, so cast your votes now. I've been nominated for "most likely to succeed", "cutest couple" (with the much cuter Nikole Sarvay) and "most spirited".

MPW Brings the Heart and the Soul to News

The Times-Dispatch runs Michael Paul Williams' acceptance speech for the acclaimed George Mason Award from the Virginia chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. The TD columnist puts his work in perspective, but he also illustrates how much Richmond has changed in the 28 years since he first wandered into the newsroom:

Along the way, without trying terribly hard, I infuriated people. This was during a time when readers actually sat down and took time to write snail mail. Some of my letter writers actually cut out alphabet letters and pictures that gave their angry missives the appearance of a ransom note. One reader loved to clip my column and scrawl barnyard epithets on it, before this era when the Internet has taken the effort out of hate. Other folks dialed in their slurs and threats.

But here, I’m guilty of sensationalizing. There’s always the other side of the story. For 18 years, I have been the beneficiary of an outpouring of support and affection from all segments of the community. The positives — my engagement with readers, the support of my colleagues, a Nieman Fellowship at Harvard with journalists from all over the world — have far outweighed the negatives. Each day brings validation that what I do — what we all do as journalists — has meaning.

I recently wrote an article proposing a Richmond monuments tour to put our statues — particularly those on Monument Avenue — in their proper historical context. One response made me particularly happy, not so much because he agreed with me but because it showed that people, in such a rigidly polarized society, are always capable of change.

The caller described himself as “A black Afro American, 76 years old.” Regarding the Confederate monuments, he said: “I never looked at it or thought that way. I was one of those who were adamant about tearing them down .¤.¤. but it has a history. I commend you for your vision and your thoughtfulness.”

Trying to change minds, or at least have people weigh their opinions through my written challenge, became my calling.

He also speaks about the many challenges facing his profession, and leaves his audience (and readers) with solid advice:

Our fundamental calling is to afflict the comfortable and to comfort the afflicted. This is the gospel of journalism. It’s a religion America will always need.

Amen, Mike. Congratulations. And thanks.

Snag A Little Taste of A CSA

You can't turn around in Richmond without bumping into a farmers market or CSA (community supported agriculture programs where you buy shares of a farm's crop). That's a good thing.

But as many people know, buying into a CSA requires a chunk of cash at the beginning of the harvest season – and sometimes that can be a struggle for folks. That's what makes the Frog Bottom Farm "trial offer" a great deal – for $60 you get a half-share for four weeks (that's $15 a week for math-impaired readers).

The fine folks at the Richmond Food Collective have more details, including what you might find in a half-share basket. Good stuff, that's what!

The Rebirth of Richmond's Parks

Give Doug Wilder some credit – the arrival of Richmond's new director of parks and recreation under Wilder's tenure as mayor has resulted in huge changes. Huge, positive changes.

Ed Slipek does what he does best in the latest Style Weekly – uses words to walk readers visually through an urban landscape. In this case, an urban landscape that has a deciduous grid.

Two of Richmond’s sprawling, old school pleasure parks, Byrd and Forest Hill, are so entwined in Richmond’s verdant terrain that lots of us pass these familiar haunts on a regular basis without acknowledging what a tonic they provide our frayed nerves and frenzied days. But occasional, unexpected changes at these taken-for-granted precincts smack us in the face: We see things afresh and with renewed appreciation.

Recent enhancements at Byrd Park, our city’s largest greensward, and Forest Hill Park on the South Side prompt such a jolt. Byrd Park’s Fountain Lake has received a welcome amenity with a handsome new brick concession structure while the lake at Forest Hill Park has recently returned to, well, lake status after being swamplike for far too long. Bottom line: Summer in the city is better this year.

In addition to casting a critical (but overwhelmingly positive) eye on how both parks have been given a new lease on life, Slipek also educates readers. Who knew, for starters, that Byrd Park was cobbled together over decades!?

The lakes were just one feature of an ambitious and long-range development plan that city engineer Wilfred E. Cutshaw doggedly maneuvered through City Hall from 1873 to 1907 that made Byrd Park, at 300 acres, Richmond’s largest public open space. Like Manhattan’s 700-acre Central Park, it offers a broad range of activities — including passive natural areas, athletic playing fields and a highly programmed cultural line-up of exhibitions, theater, dance and music.

Who Needs Pro Baseball When You Have the Spartans?

Style Weekly's Scott Bass penned an excellent – and inspiring – story this week on North Richmond's own Field of Dreams.

The boys in gray-and-yellow uniforms are chanting, soaking up the mayhem on a sticky sweet summer night at Hotchkiss Field on Brookland Park Boulevard, in the city’s North Side. The hanging faces and tears have evaporated, the cruel justice of the men in blue a distant memory. The weight of the night, the pressure of a championship game, the screaming and fussing from parents and grandparents, has lifted. Dozens of people line the fence and dugout, their fingers curling through the chain links, while the Mosby Spartans, ages 8 through 10, huddle on the edge of the outfield near third base.

Summer Little League is hardly remarkable. It’s near impossible not to run into boys in polyester pants and cleats on nights like this — in the parks, at the McDonald’s, at the corner gas station, the grocery store. The inner city, however, is different. Somewhere along the way baseball lost its place, gave way to basketball and football, dreams of becoming the next Kobe, the next T.O. But there’s a buzz at Hotchkiss, an understanding that something bigger has taken hold on this particular June night.

Go read the whole piece. Better yet, go pick up a print copy and look at the photos.

Vote for Richmond's Prom Queen, Slackers!

In one of the more genius, and least publicized, attempts to get its readers engaged in an ear-burning, ego-crushing, out-of-control return to high school, RVA News launched its RVA Class of 2010 contest several weeks ago.

Voters had a chance to select local favorites for a variety of superlative posts, such as:

• Cutest Couple: Richmond’s got all kinds of adorable power couples. Who is the MOST adorablest?

• Biggest Gossip: Sure, the word ‘gossip’ sounds somewhat negative, but there are some people in this town who are ALWAYS in the know. Who do you go to when you want all the gory details?
  
  
• Most Spirited: Who is totally, head-over-heels in love with Richmond and will do whatever it takes to make it wonderful?

Oh, and Prom Queen and Prom King.

I'm holding out for Kevin Clay at Gay RVA to win both of those last two categories. Because he's that good.

RVA News should release results this week. Then there will be a final vote off!

Cupcakes on the Lake

The best news of the summer has got to be the expansion of one of Richmond's more hidden gems (established 1924, people). Sally Bell's Kitchen now boasts two locations from which to dole out its Smithfield ham sandwiches, deviled eggs and amazing cupcakes – its original Grace Street location near VCU and the new concession stand overlooking Fountain Lake at Byrd Park.

"Nothing Ever Happens on My Blog" explains why you should be excited. In a word – cupcakes.

Carrying home one dozen of Sally Bell’s cupcakes in their cute and classic boxes is actually a little-known workout. Those suckers have some weight to ‘em.

It used to be that Richmonders had to hit up Sally Bell’s during the week or else we’d be sad all weekend, but in an exciting new development, Sally Bell’s is taking over concessions at The Landing at Fountain Lake in Byrd Park. Tuesday through Sunday they’ll be serving their typical menu and some extras like ice cream, hot dogs and the like for the pedal boat set. Call (804) 204-1501 or see the menu here. Total yum. One of the best public/private partnerships in the city ever! Cupcakes can cure all sorts of society’s ills, except obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure.

Shopping at the Grocer's Farm

What if every grocery store had its own farm? That's the question I saw circulating on Twitter this week after the Times-Dispatch and RVA News both reported on the Richmond branch of Whole Foods Market planting its own one-acre vegetable patch in Short Pump.

It's not too far-fetched – Ukrop's started, in part, on the local produce available near its first store on Hull Street. (From the company history: "Jacquelin cooked lunch for the employees, and Joe frequently lent a hand to neighboring farmers, closing the store when the demands of harvest season required his help.")

Leaving aside the practicalities behind a farm-per-store model of sustainable agriculture, I think the Whole Foods model is awesome. Yes, awesome.

It not only provides produce for the store's prepared foods (and ultimately, it's hoped, its produce shelves), but a one-acre farm next to a chain grocery store on the most commercialized section of West Broad Street will stand out, speak volumes and perhaps entice more families to explore local produce – or, better yet, grow their own.

Here are some details from RVA News:

“The Village Garden” took about six months to complete and will supply fresh and seasonal produce to be sold in-store and incorporated into prepared dishes and salad bar options, according to Whole Foods Market Team Leader, Joey Herndon.

“This is really a dream come true for Whole Foods Market — to have a community garden of this size and scope right here in our own back yard,” Herndon said. “Many of our stores have helped fund and build gardens in their communities, but our Short Pump store is proud to have the first on-site community garden of any Whole Foods Market in the country.”

The one acre space will offer classes and workshops on a weekly basis to teach local residents and school children about eating locally, all-natural growing practices, and living a healthier lifestyle, Herdon said. Area residents will also be able to rent plots for personal use, and a portion of the food grown in the garden will be donated to the Central Virginia Foodbank.

Eating Right with Miss Organic

When we go to the South of the James Farmers Market on Saturdays, my daughter is always excited to see "Miss Organic" – Amy Hicks of Amy's Organic Garden. (Heck, we're all excited to see Amy – especially when she's hawking her Sungold tomatoes!)

It was nice to see Amy's smiling face in the Times-Dispatch this week in a Q&A about organic foods. She shared the informational space with Megan Neal of Ellwood Thompson's Market.

Weigh In: Week Five of Garden Wars!

A couple of months ago, there was some lively trash talking taking place on Twitter between @scottpharr, @rsmartt and myself – about who was going to have bigger (and better) tomatoes this year.

And, thus, an idea was born.

Each week – for the last five weeks, and for as long as our gardens can be sustained in this God-awful heat – the three of us submit photos for a weekly feature at RVA News. Garden Wars is supposed to feature photos of that week's harvest, one glamour shot of a plant or vegetable, and a photo of our equally adorable children in the garden environment. (Sometimes, we break the rules – tossing cute children and cute dogs into the mix...)

As of last week, the race remains close. Scott Pharr is in the lead with two victories, while Ryan Smartt and I each have won a single week. This week – Week Five – has Ryan and I neck-and-neck.

So, go check out this week's Garden Wars and help break the deadlock! (Vote in the comments section at RVA News.)