Spring is marked by the April Fool’s Festival.  The weekend of Friday April 1 begins with a downtown street dance Friday evening. Folks are encouraged to practice their best moves and show them off in the dance contest. Tomfoolery is king all day on Saturday with, that’s right, an outhouse race. Build an outhouse, put it on wheels and you may win a prize. Even if you lose, you win by strutting your creativity in the afternoon parade. Those who prefer fashion design and are avid about recycling have an opportunity to display their unique ability in the Trashion Show. If that outfit is definitely haute couture show it off at the evening’s Masquerade Ball!

Pearson’s Falls will be open and early spring flowers will be in bloom along the trails.  Pearson’s Falls is maintained by the Tryon Garden Club and provides visitors with the exquisite experience of a walk through a glen of falling water and mountain flora.

Equestrian events are on the calendar year round at the Foothills Equestrian Nature Center.  The premier annual event is a steeplechase sponsored by the Tryon Riding and Hunt Club.  This year the 65th Block House Steeplechase festivities will take place on April 23.  This is a long- standing, exciting and equestrian learning experience.

WNC Magazine compliments the “cosmopolitan convenience” of this small mountain town. The historic downtown area boasts many quality restaurants, shops, bookstores and galleries.  This Blue Ridge locale is home to a number of working artists and craftspeople.

In earlier years the Tryon area was well known for producing a fine quality of wine grapes. The industry has revived and now many local wineries offer select wine tastings and entertainment to enhance a mountain getaway.

Tryon, the Blue Ridge Mountains, and big city fun.

A look at a single month in the website’s calendar of events indicates a lively, ongoing participation in the arts.  Month by month the calendar lists activities music, literature, art and  workshops .  More information

The Jacksonville Center for the Arts is active year round with exhibits of a variety of artistic expression and performance.  Artists continue to be inspired by the scenic location and the local appreciation of what they create.  Floyd is home to a number of galleries and shops that celebrate many different art forms.  More information

For music lovers there are jams and jamborees.  The Floyd Country Store hosts music and dancing every Friday evening, and sometimes on Saturday night.  Floydfest is one of the best music festivals in the Blue Ridge Mountains.  Check out this year’s lineup on their website.

Bookworms find bookshops that keep up with the latest literature.  And for those who want to spend more time outdoors, the Blue Ridge Parkway is right nearby for a drive with spectacular views, camping opportunities and rustic relaxation.  It all goes on all the time in Floyd.

The items and packages that will be offered at auction consist of services and goods provided by locally owned businesses in charming small towns. Primarily, we will offer packages consisting of stays at wonderful B & Bs and inns in small towns in combination with fine dining at excellent local restaurants, tours of local wineries, tickets to dramatic performances at playhouses, rounds of golf, guided fishing outings, and the like.  In other auctions we will offer individual pieces of fine art, jewelry, pottery, and similar unique items built by small-town artisans.

The opening prices for the items at auction will be lower than the usual prices for the same items if they were purchased directly.  And, because the prices at Inverse Auctions go down, not up, as the auctions progress, your savings will also increase.

The financial transaction is conducted through PayPal, whose 128-bit SSL servers insure the highest level of online security and privacy possible.  An auction item may be purchased securely using any credit card or your PayPal account.  Read more about it here.

Please call or email his office today.

In the last Congress, Senator Burr (R-NC) was a lead sponsor of S. 1156, the Safe Routes to School Program Reauthorization Act. Senator Burr is currently considering whether to again take the lead introducing a bill supporting Safe Routes to School in the new Congress.

The federal Safe Routes to School program provides critical funding to help local schools and communities make it safer for more kids to walk and bicycle to and from schools. This funding is helping to reduce safety risks, get more kids active, and cut down on traffic congestion around schools. The Safe Routes to School bill is necessary to help sustain and expand this program.

Please take a few moments to contact Senator Burr’s office to thank him for his past leadership and encourage him to stand up for Safe Routes to School again. You can either call or email Senator Burr’s office—but time is of the essence, so please take five minutes to do this today!

Instructions for calling:

Dial (202) 224-3154 and tell the person that answers the phone you have a comment for the Senator.

• Tell the staff person that you live in North Carolina and that you very much appreciate Senator Burr’s past leadership on the Safe Routes to School bill, S1156, and hope he will again be a lead co-sponsor to help more kids be safe and active on the trip to school.
• Add your own personal touch by explaining in 1 sentence why Safe Routes to School matters to you.
• You may be asked for your name, and you will likely be asked for your zip code to verify you are a North Carolina resident.

Instructions for Emailing:

• Go to http://burr.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.ContactForm
• Fill out your contact information and select “transportation” as the issue
• Write a short message. Include a sentence or two about why Safe Routes to School matters to you.
• Make sure to also include the following ask: I thank Senator Burr for his past leadership on Safe Routes to School by being a lead co-sponsor on S. 1156. I urge you to again step forward and take the lead on re-introducing the Safe Routes to School bill in this Congress.

Please forward this message to other people in North Carolina. Thank you for acting today to support Safe Routes to School!

If you are not a North Carolina resident, please use this post as a general outline to contact your local Senator.

“Hillsborough is no ordinary, small, southern town”, is the declarative boast of the Alliance for Historic Hillsborough.  History, arts and culture are alive and flourishing in Hillsborough year round.

The Hillsborough Arts Council has been active in developing and supporting the arts locally for more than 20 years. In spring and summer on the last Friday of each month the town square comes alive with music, vendors and an Art Walk visiting downtown galleries, while sidewalk cafes provide food and drink to complement the festivities. Fall brings the annual Handmade Parade that rivals Macy’s, but with giant puppets created by the participants – some even on stilts- who take over Churton Street for the march and convene with observers to celebrate at the Burwell School, a local historic site. To brighten the winter months, the Arts Council presents Parlor Concerts, musical presentations that take place in some of the town’s historic homes.

The community history comes to life frequently during the year with Family History Days that re-create scenes from the Revolutionary War with reenactment and tours that highlight the period. Once the State capital, the town has a legacy of statesmen and heroes to celebrate.

There are walking tours throughout the year that begin at the Hillsborough Visitors Center which provides maps and historic information on homes and significant sites and sometimes a personal guide in period dress. The Halloween tours focus on the “haunting” aspects of town history and expand the fun to a “trick or treat” by all of the downtown merchants.

For more a more recent history experience, visitors and especially NASCAR enthusiasts, enjoy having a look at the Occoneechee Speedway Trail which includes one of the first two NASCAR tracks and is the only one remaining from the 1949 inaugural season.

Visitors find Hillsborough to be a friendly and welcoming place. It is home to a number of nationally recognized writers and artists who enjoy being a part of community activities. Visit a local bookshop and you may come away with an autographed copy of the work of a prize-winning author who just happened to stop by to say hello.

The Eno River flows peacefully through the town and adds to the beauty of its parks. A River Walk ushers visitors from the West End to the downtown area. Hillsborough is proud of its “walkable” nature and carefully maintains its very scenic environment.

The workday will begin at 9:00am and last until 3 or 4:00pm.  Folks are welcomed to work as long as they are able and leave when necessary.  Please meet up at 8:45 AM at the HOST parking area on Elizabeth Brady Road.  Please bring water and a bag lunch.  Tools will be provided.

A glance at the event calendar for September shows that there are a pile of interesting things to do in Smallwander towns in the Blue Ridge Mountains this weekend.

In North Carolina, Blowing Rock celebrates Railfan Weekend 2010.  Take a journey back in time with Tweetsie’s coal-fired locomotives. One train will re-create the historic era of the narrow-gauge East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad, and another will carry visitors on a wild west adventure. A weekend pass, which costs $48 for adult and $33 for children ages 3-12, is required. For more information, visit here.

A little further south, Saluda hosts the 2010 Town BBQ. Built on a tradition started by a local general store owner, the Saluda Town BBQ is held each September. For more, visit here.

In Virginia, Floyd hosts Music at the Pine.  George Penn Sr. and his Cream of the Crop Blues Band will be rocking the Pavilion with a mix of 60’s soul and blues.  Advance tickets  are $6 and are available at the Pine and the Republic of Floyd Emporium. Call the Pine at (540) 745-4482 for more information or visit here .

Marion is holding the 8th Annual Smyth County Patriot’s Day Commemoration, celebrating its Colonial past at Town Hall with live patriotic music, special guest speakers and a tribute to the troops, veterans and emergency service personnel. Admission is free. For more information, call (276) 783-4113 or visit here.

And, don’t forget that Appomattox, VA is the featured town this month.  Get a Smallwander Club card and receive 15% off at the Babcock House B & B.

The Hillsborough Arts Council presents the first annual Hillsborough Jazz Festival. The festival will take place on Saturday, September 25, 2010 at a very special venue…The historic Moorefields estate is an idyllic historic homestead on 84 beautiful acres just a few miles from Hillsborough, NC.  Find directions here.

This years theme is “celebrating Billy Strayhorn” to honor jazz legend, Billy Strayhorn. Strayhorn is best known for his successful collaboration with bandleader and composer Duke Ellington lasting nearly three decades. What is less well known is that he has family history in Hillsborough… Read more about Billy Strayhorn.

Here is the lineup:

12:00-12:30     Ed Moon Trio

12:35-1:00        Sawyer-Goldberg Jazz

1:10- 1:45         Laura Ridgeway

2:00-2:45          Magic of African Rhythms

3:00-3:45          Equinox

4:00-5:00          Lois Deloatch

5:00-6:00          John Brown Quintet

Jazz and You! workshop announcement!

The Hillsborough Arts Council is very pleased to be able to offer a unique opportunity for the community to take part in a Jazz workshop the morning before the Jazz festival!  Based on the Jazz for Young People Curriculum developed by Jazz at Lincoln Center, the primary goals of this lecture-demonstration are to share, teach, and celebrate jazz music!

Details and registration information are available here.

Admission

Save $5.00 per ticket by ordering in advance! Purchase tickets online here today. General admission is just $10.00 in advance and 15.00 at the door, with lawn seating. Parking is free.  You can also pick up tickets at the Sportsplex or at the Hillsborough Arts Council office in Hillsborough:

“MonkY Business” is the story of 5 monks desperate to keep their St. Bernard monastery from the hands of a land developer, with plans to convert it to “Bernie’s Casino Royale.”  With songs such as “Celibacy,” “The Mohair Rag,” “Satan’s Place,” and “My Brothers Keeper,” the Men in Brown rent a religious radio station (”WGOD-the Word of God…in Stereo!”) to conduct a radiothon fundraiser.  What unfolds is plenty of mayhem, mirth, and a miracle.

The cast of 5 male singers consists of Guy Winker (Abbott Costello), Mark Monaghan (Brother Brooks), Lavin Cuddihee (Brother Clarence), Jack Carruth (Brother Lee Love) and Pat T Peake (Brother Forte).

“Monky Business” opens Nov. 11 for 8 performances at the Tryon Little Theater Workshop, 516 S. Trade St. Tryon,NC 28782. Performances are 8pm Thursday through Saturday, and 3pm Sunday matinee.  Tickets go on sale at the TLT Workshop box office two weeks prior to opening.  Box office hours are 10am-1pm Monday through Saturday. Call (828) 859-2466 to leave a message or E-mail:  tryonlittletheater@gmail.com. Visit their web site at www.tltinfo.org

Season tickets for Tryon Little Theatre may be purchased for $55, a savings of $10 over individual ticket prices.  Other shows and performance dates are: “Welcome to Mitford” Sept 23-Oct 3, 2010, “Oliver” Feb 11-20,2011 and “Done to Death” April 28 to May 8, 201