Out Yonder

Posted in History & Culture on February 28th, 2010 by marklynn
Every now and then you run across something so beautiful and strange, you’re not sure how to describe it. Andrew Cutraro, a Washington, DC-based videographer and photographer, has created this etherial homage to Appalachia’s poor. Here’s how he captions it: “The uninsured working poor are revealed in Appalachia as they descend from the hills, out-of-body, to receive basic medical care.” Read More »


Tags: , , , , ,
Leave A Comment »

Cast Iron Cook-Off

Posted in Food on February 24th, 2010 by marklynn
Cast Iron Cook-Off
Back in January, West Virginia hosted the Cast Iron Cook-Off, which may be the tastiest day this side of Thanksgiving. Organizers describe it as “West Virginia’s culinary trade fair.” That seems like a sterile description for an event that features dishes like Butternut Squash Corndogs, Old School Vanilla Bean Waffles, and Sweet and Spicy Pork Rinds. Read More »


Tags: , , , , , , , ,
2 Comments »

Calling all Mountain Cougars

Posted in Outdoors & Travel on February 21st, 2010 by marklynn
Asheville’s Grove Park Inn might be a ninety-seven year old bastion of civility and leisure, but it gets a little naughty next weekend. It’s offering a getaway for older ladies who still know how to growl. The Sadie Hawkins Cougar City Weekend is custom designed for sexy seniors and their boy toys. Read More »


Tags: , , , , , , ,
Leave A Comment »

No Sweat for Rosa Parks

Posted in History & Culture on February 17th, 2010 by marklynn
I rode in the front of the Blue Bird school bus, usually within two seats of the driver, as close as I could get without being in her lap. I balanced a stack of books on my skinny right thigh, which dangled over my skinny left thigh, which was covered by paper thin corduroys, one of Mother’s Salvation Army finds. Read More »


Tags: , , , , , , , ,
1 Comment »

This Mob Did No Lynching

Posted in History & Culture on February 15th, 2010 by marklynn
This Mob Did No Lynching
In third grade, when we toured Fire Station Number 1 and visited the Mill Mountain Star, when we spent weeks studying Roanoke’s river and rail yard, the entire town’s history, our teachers mentioned nothing about the Smith lynching. How could they miss it? Crowd at Smith lynching It was a media event covered as far away as New York and a local horror that had as many as 5,000 witnesses, nearly a third of the town’s population at Read More »


Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
Leave A Comment »

Affrilachians and You

Posted in Art & Lit, History & Culture on February 11th, 2010 by marklynn
Affrilachians and You
Frank X Walker In Kentucky, they’ve coined the term Affrilachian. It originated with Frank “X” Walker, a local poet who looked at Appalachian culture and saw African Americans under-represented. Other artists have rallied around him, forming a collective of sorts. Sometimes their work is contemporary, as illustrated by Crystal Good’s recital of the poem “Dem Boyz” in the clip below. Read More »


Tags: , , , , , , ,
Leave A Comment »

Poontang Little

Posted in History & Culture, Music on February 7th, 2010 by marklynn
Poontang Little
Let’s get this out of the way. I’m as white as a bleached bath towel. Yes, I went to a predominantly black high school; and I worked in black led communities for years; and I have lifelong black friends; and I’m pretty sure that I have black cousins (though it’s tough to confirm a 150 year old extramarital affair,) but I’m no fool. I can’t represent the black experience, not in Appalachia or anywhere else. Read More »


Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
Leave A Comment »

Kentucky Samurai

Posted in Art & Lit on February 3rd, 2010 by Mark Lynn Ferguson
Kentucky Samurai
Photo Credit: G. P. Cooper Kentuckians beware! The Terrible Crickenburger Twins of Cabell County and the Disturbing Goat Man of Milton have sprung to life. Pinckney Benedict, author of the classic short story collection Town Smokes and co-founder of Tinker Mountain Writers’ Workshop, has birthed something new and wonderfully strange about your state. Kentucky Samurai is a graphic novel, the first few pages of which are featured in the late Read More »


Tags: , , , , , ,
Leave A Comment »