This must be the place
 

This must be the place

The stewardess handed me a cold Heineken.  The skyline of Boston in the distance, the beauty of a city I…
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2014: Arts & Entertainment in Review
 

2014: Arts & Entertainment in Review

Another one is in the books.  With each passing year, I find myself digging ever deeper into what it truly…
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Time to eschew meat products
 

Time to eschew meat products

To the Editor: It’s time for New Year’s resolutions, particularly those about our health. Although gun violence remains the leading…
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Time for appointed tax collector in Haywood
 

Time for appointed tax collector in Haywood

To the Editor: As we approach the year 2015, I appeal to the decision makers of Haywood County to take…
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The only lesson may be that there is no lesson
 

The only lesson may be that there is no lesson

One of my wife’s childhood friends lives near Wilmington. Her daughter, a senior at Appalachian State, died last week in…
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Major tool manufacturers attracted to SCC student’s patented invention
 

Major tool manufacturers attracted to SCC student’s patented invention

Southwestern Community College student Stanley Kingsberry has landed a patent for his invention of a magnetic wrench system. Though offers…
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Crash course Numbers up in Jackson for alcohol-related crashes
 

Crash course Numbers up in Jackson for alcohol-related crashes

Alcohol-related traffic accidents are on the rise in Jackson County, with rates outstripping those of both North Carolina as a…
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2014: Newsworthy award winners
 

2014: Newsworthy award winners

2014 is all but in the rearview mirror now, and all the stories reported over the last 12 months are…
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Canary Coalition works to help WNC
 

Canary Coalition works to help WNC

By Thomas Crowe • Guest Columnist In case you didn't know it, right here in our midst we have a gem…
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Somehow, I was meant to be right here
 

Somehow, I was meant to be right here

By Laura Amour • Guest Columnist “The mountains attract seekers.” That comment was made by a cherished friend that I have…
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Lonely this Christmas? Hire an old-time hermit
 

Lonely this Christmas? Hire an old-time hermit

Serendipity: an aptitude for making significant discoveries by accident. I have always loved that word, and I have had numerous…
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All are welcome at Pigeon Center
 

All are welcome at Pigeon Center

To the Editor: An article in the Dec. 17-23 issue of The Smoky Mountain News states that the Pigeon Center…
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Real vs. fake facts, and knowing the difference
 

Real vs. fake facts, and knowing the difference

To the Editor: Denying facts because they conflict with a belief is a survival tactic for the human race. We…
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Board games – most of the time – are a fun holiday tradition
 

Board games – most of the time – are a fun holiday tradition

We’re all at home, on vacation at last. Ella Fitzgerald is wishing us a swinging Christmas, as she does every…
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Golden poster-bird
 

Golden poster-bird

It seems like the golden-winged warbler (GWWA) has become the non-game poster bird for everything from clearcuts to shelterwood cuts…
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Sounds in the night
 

Sounds in the night

By Burt Kornegay • Contributing writer It was around 10:30 p.m., just as we were going to bed, when my wife…
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Nantahala Brewing supports the A.T.
 

Nantahala Brewing supports the A.T.

Nantahala Brewing Company in Bryson City celebrated the Christmas season with a generous donation to Friends of the Great Smoky…
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Forest Service wins public engagement awards
 

Forest Service wins public engagement awards

U.S. Forest Service employees in North Carolina recently received a handful of awards for their work in 2014, including a…
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Women-only ski lessons launch in January
 

Women-only ski lessons launch in January

A six-session program aimed at female skiers and snowboarders will begin on Wednesday, Jan. 7, at Cataloochee Ski Area in…
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Land trust adds to wildlife corridor in Jackson County
 

Land trust adds to wildlife corridor in Jackson County

A new conservation easement in Jackson County will provide a critical wildlife corridor, connecting three other easements and located less…
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Seasonal road closures begin in national forest
 

Seasonal road closures begin in national forest

Seasonal road closures are starting to kick in for the U.S. Forest Service.  In the Appalachian Ranger District of Pisgah…
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Christmas on the Chimney: Claus gears up for Christmas, spreads the joy of climbing
 

Christmas on the Chimney: Claus gears up for Christmas, spreads the joy of climbing

It was still a couple weeks till Christmas, but Santa Claus already had his boots shined and suit cleaned in…
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The best things come in the smallest packages
 

The best things come in the smallest packages

Looking up at the old chimney, William “Gene” Gibson still wonders how Santa Claus ever managed to fit in it.…
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A renewed appreciation for ‘The Great Gatsby’
 

A renewed appreciation for ‘The Great Gatsby’

In 1977 I fell in love with F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. That was a year of deep reading…
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WCU assists with Cherokee documentary
 

WCU assists with Cherokee documentary

Two Western Carolina University faculty members assisted on a recently released award-winning film that chronicles efforts to revitalize the Cherokee…
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Foxworthy to bring laughs to Harrah’s
 

Foxworthy to bring laughs to Harrah’s

Superstar comedian Jeff Foxworthy will hit the stage at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 3 at Harrah’s Cherokee. Foxworthy is one of…
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‘Mean Mary’ brings folk-rock to Waynesville
 

‘Mean Mary’ brings folk-rock to Waynesville

Singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist “Mean Mary” James will perform at 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 3, at The Classic Wine Seller in…
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This must be the place
 

This must be the place

In a beloved mountain town already filled with great restaurants, cafes, breweries and independent businesses, Sylva recently became home to…
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Pisgah High students get inspired by real author
 

Pisgah High students get inspired by real author

Dr. Donna Glee Williams, author and fellow at the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching in Cullowhee, recently…
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Mom with deployed son leads card drive
 

Mom with deployed son leads card drive

A Christmas card drive on the campus of Western Carolina University netted more than 4,000 cards for soldiers stationed overseas.…
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Canton uses crowdsourcing to improve playground
 

Canton uses crowdsourcing to improve playground

With a focus on improving recreation options for residents with limited funding, the town of Canton is using crowdsourcing methods…
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Canton moves forward with pool project
 

Canton moves forward with pool project

The town of Canton is moving forward with plans to upgrade its public swimming pool after interviewing several design consultants…
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Macon requests funding for Cherokee gravesite memorial
 

Macon requests funding for Cherokee gravesite memorial

Plans to memorialize a Cherokee gravesite found earlier this year in the midst of construction for a new baseball tournament…
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Cherokee cuts the ribbon on $26 million justice center, tribe’s first jail
 

Cherokee cuts the ribbon on $26 million justice center, tribe’s first jail

It’s not every day that the scent of barbecue meatballs wafts through the open doors of a jail filled with…
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Planning board discusses noise ordinance for Macon
 

Planning board discusses noise ordinance for Macon

Two residents shared their horror story experiences dealing with nuisance neighbors during a Dec. 18 Macon County Planning Board meeting. …
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New animal shelter gains traction in Haywood
 

New animal shelter gains traction in Haywood

A movement to build a new animal shelter in Haywood County is in the early conceptual stages. Animal lovers say…
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Park officials consider banning outside firewood
 

Park officials consider banning outside firewood

In an effort to protect the Great Smoky Mountains National Park forest from disease-carrying pests, park officials have proposed a…
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Home helps women transition to independent life after prison, substance abuse
 

Home helps women transition to independent life after prison, substance abuse

The future was looking increasingly frightening to 54-year-old Anita as she got to the end of her six-year prison sentence. …
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Council excludes media from tribal meeting
 

Council excludes media from tribal meeting

Though Cherokee Tribal Council meetings are broadcast live online and through tribal television — as well as recorded on DVDs…
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Questions continue about Cherokee council raises
 

Questions continue about Cherokee council raises

Editor’s note: Cherokee Tribal Police would not allow Smoky Mountain News Staff Writer Holly Kays entry into the Cherokee Tribal…
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Shouldering the cost of Haywood’s old landfill contamination
 

Shouldering the cost of Haywood’s old landfill contamination

Underground contamination leaching from an old, closed-down landfill in Haywood County will cost millions to clean up, a burden homeowners…
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Jackson considers renovations for service centers
 

Jackson considers renovations for service centers

The large, cavernous room at the heart of Jackson County’s Community Services Center doesn’t see much action these days. It’s…
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Mistletoe’s link to romance goes way back
 

Mistletoe’s link to romance goes way back

The custom of decorating with mistletoe goes back to the ceremonials of the Druids. It is a reminder of the…
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Hunger initiative to build bridges with local agriculture
 

Hunger initiative to build bridges with local agriculture

A $10,000 grant will go toward building up food banks in Western North Carolina in partnership with agribusiness.  The award,…
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Permaculture school launches in Asheville
 

Permaculture school launches in Asheville

A 12-week permaculture school in Asheville will launch in 2015, teaching students how to create landscapes that maintain the health…
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Comment call for red wolf rules
 

Comment call for red wolf rules

A series of three public hearings in January will take public input on the future of protection for the reintroduced…
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Internships for Smokies fans
 

Internships for Smokies fans

Five summer internship positions are available for undergraduates looking to get involved with Discover Life in America’s mission to learn…
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Alum Cave Trail restoration to close trail in 2015
 

Alum Cave Trail restoration to close trail in 2015

Just after putting the final touches on the Chimney Tops Trail this month, the Trails Forever program in Great Smoky…
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Congressional act could expand National Parks
 

Congressional act could expand National Parks

The National Parks System could see its largest expansion in decades after bipartisan legislation in Washington, D.C. was introduced proposing…
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Aquatic invaders found in Macon County
 

Aquatic invaders found in Macon County

For the first time, gill lice have been found in brook trout in the Southern Appalachians. The parasitic crustaceans are…
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