June ABODE: Got cash? The lowdown on buying a house loan-free

(File photo) Buying a home with cash. The phrase evokes images of lugging a large suitcase stuffed with bills to closing. What does it really mean and what’s involved? Buying with cash means the buyer has the money available to purchase the house outright; he or she doesn’t have to secure financing from a lender […]

June ABODE: Tracey Love’s pared-down Greenwood retreat

(Photo by Andrea Hubbell) A year ago, Tracey Love and her boyfriend, Bridge, decided to buy a Greenwood farmhouse that was built in 1925. “It was a lifestyle change for sure; it was a commitment. Friends that drive out treat it as if it’s so remote, so rural—when in fact I’m five minutes from Crozet, […]

All Zinc-ed up: The five-year-old restaurant finds its groove

We lingered long after we should have. Tables had been cleared, the swoosh of the dishwasher had replaced the sound of sizzling proteins, and the bar was quiet, apart from the occasional clink of ice in a shift drink. Still, after a meal like the one we’d had at Zinc, we felt an unspoken urge […]

Small Bites: This week's restaurant news

Friday night vines Enjoy a Friday night off the town and in the country when Blenheim Vineyards gets “on the bandwagon.” It’s staying open late this Friday from 6-9pm with live music, spicy sausage from Babes in the Wood, and plenty of winemaker Kirsty Harmon’s vino. Advance tickets cost $10 and include a glass of […]

Small Bites: This week's restaurant news

 “Wine” down for the weekend If you’re the tailgating type, there’s still fun to be had out of your trunk in the summertime. At Stinson Vineyards, Thursday nights from 6 to 9pm through Labor Day are Tailgate Thursdays. It’ll have its wines chilled, its grills fired up, and live music set up so that all […]

Urban outdoors: Charlottesville Triathlon Club makes multi-sport training easy

Wet and wild: The Charlottesville Triathlon Club offers weekly swimming practices. (Courtesy CTC) If you’ve ever dreamed of fighting the vicious headwinds of Kona at the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii, the Charlottesville Triathlon Club can put you on the right road. As multidisciplinary competitions, triathlons usually combine running, biking, and swimming, and the amount […]

Herb-a-licious: Your guide to herby dishes around town

Once relegated to a scattering around the rim of the plate, herbs have come a long way—especially in this season when fresh ones flourish. Find them on area restaurant menus—from cocktails to desserts—and get herby with it. Prime your palate with Tempo’s strawberry basil martini made with freshly muddled strawberries and basil leaves, a squeeze […]

Mogwai matures and fosters its conundrum

The Scottish band Mogwai debuted in the mid-’90s with a handful of albums and EPs of anthemic experimental rock, characterized by gorgeous, hypnotic guitar lines that would continue for minutes on end before exploding into lengthy crescendos of crushing intensity