Moore’s code

In its first weekend of wide release, Fahrenheit 9/11 took in $21.8 million on just 868 screens, making it the highest-grossing documentary opening in history. The movie did equally well in red and blue states where a not-so-silent civil war is raging over America’s representation under the Bushies. While U.S. citizens fret over a terrorist […]

Putting greener

Q: Ace: I heard that the Keswick Hall golf course, bastion of the bourgeoisie (and better), was recently lauded for being environmentally sustainable. “Environmental” and “sustainable” are not the first two words that spring to mind when it comes to golf, so Ace me this: How can a golf course be “green” in more ways […]

Charlottesville 20

Bankers, experimentalists, runners, bike cops, tortilla experts and many other avowed individuals who choose this place above all others to ply their trades, promote their ideas and otherwise stir up the creative brew that we call home and that others lately are calling No. 1. We don’t really need Frommer’s, Outside or anyone else to […]

Space oddity

Q: Ace: When I go to Wal-Mart I try to park as close as possible, as would any good American. But I am kept from doing so due to the number of reserved spaces. For the handicapped and pregnant women, I understand. Wal-Mart, however, also reserves parking spaces for the police. Oh, Ace of all […]

Cheap Tricks Lose the Wallet

Recent studies suggest that, in accordance with customary local belief, the world does indeed revolve around Charlottesville. We’re not too big, not too small; not too wholesome, not too seedy; not too hot, not too cold. In the words of Outside magazine, Charlottesville is one of those “dream towns that have it all.” Only one […]

Rover makes it safe at home

Q: Ace: With a serial rapist still on the prowl and some recent intrusions into homes where women were sleeping, our sense of safety is shaken. Can you tell me, did any of these women have dogs, or if dogs even make a difference in situations when it’s Man against Woman and her Beast?—Germanna Shepherd […]

How low can you go?

“I flunked,” Marybeth Wagner jokes as she checks out the nutrition facts on a bag of her favorite cookies, Pepperidge Farms’ Double-Chocolate Milanos, finding that they contain more than 20 grams of fat per serving—far more than the three grams or less she’s shooting for. Wagner and her two daughters are checking the nutrition facts […]

Trash talking

Q: My mind’s a little foggy these days, but if my memory serves me true, I believe that the upscale housing development of Mill Creek out on Avon Street Extended is located on what was once a city dump. With prices soaring for a Mill Creek home, say these poor folks aren’t getting royally duped!—Miss […]

Politics as unusual

There has never been a shortage of partisanship in presidential campaigns, as each party spends millions of dollars to support its nominee and rally its base. Yet while both sides have actively supported their candidates in recent years, there hasn’t been a lot of excitement.    Wake Us When It’s Over is the title of Jack […]

Stumper thumper

Q: Ace, a little bird told me the City recently chopped down the last two trees at Court Square. I understand that Charlottesville aspires to achieve a semblance of metropolitan chic, but does that mean our innocent trees must suffer?—Tré Hugger A: C’est vrai, Monsieur Hugger. A couple weeks ago, as part of the Court […]