“A four bedroom house on a cul-de-sac in Cary for less than $90,000? Are you kidding me?” “No.” “Is your house built on a toxic waste dump or something?” “No.” “What’s wrong with it?” “Not one thing. We will show you the home inspection report. It’s an incredibly nice house. We have loved it.” The […]
Beth Livingston
Posted inGuides
Kudos and Complaints
When asked to list the pros and cons of living in The Creamery, our interviewees had these things to say. Kudos: Taking the trolley to the Warehouse District and Moore Square, especially for “First Fridays” (with gallery openings and live entertainment) Historic preservation of the older buildings while updating them for modern use Friendly, energetic […]
Posted inGuides
It’s Not New York, But …
In the early ’90s, I lived in Raleigh at 610 Willard Place. Willard is a block-long side street bordered by Boylan and Glenwood avenues, respectively, to the west and east, and by Hillsborough Street to the south. My only neighbors were a small catering business next door (under whose back deck a homeless man slept), […]
Posted inNews
Home of the brave
Heroes are in back in fashion and that’s good. Saving people from burning skyscrapers, fighting terrorists–these are worthy deeds. But for the last couple of years, I’ve been privileged to spend time every week with a different kind of hero, a quiet kind of hero. She’s the bravest person I’ve ever met. Because she would […]
Posted inNews
Rubbermaid ready
At least twice since Sept. 11, we have been warned of “credible” evidence pointing to another attack and have been asked to go to the highest state of alert. What, exactly, should we do in response to these sorts of warnings? My friend Izzie, who is an Army wife in Fayetteville and uses her EMT […]
Posted inGuides
Thinking Outside the Box
Tucked away in the bland suburbs of North Raleigh, at the foot of a quiet cul-de-sac, lives a woman who is cheerfully plotting the overthrow of a paradigm. She aims to reinvent what we value in home design, and make no mistake: Her ultimate goal is to help topple the bloated, impersonal, environmentally irresponsible lifestyle […]
Posted inGuides
Not the Same Old Scrap
Chances are that your garden is your playground: a place to unwind, putter, and let your heart be light. Gardening can be a hit-or-miss endeavor, however. A sudden cold snap can dash all hopes of early tomatoes. Water restrictions can shrivel the watermelons. Aphids, nematodes and things that go munch in the night all take […]
Posted inArt
Wild Woods
Unless you like camping in winter, now would be the best time to read Sallie Bissell’s debut novel. You will want to devour this heart-stopping tale in plenty of time to recover before you spend your next night in the woods. What Jaws did for innocent days at the beach, In the Forest of Harm […]
Posted inNews
Love for leaf
The controversy over how much Big Tobacco knew, when they knew it and to what extent they are responsible for the disease and deaths of countless souls rages on, fought by better minds than mine. But I watch with interest and a great deal of empathy. On the one hand, give me a break–cigarette smoking […]
Posted inNews
Freaks, geeks and shoes with leaks
I usually avoid the IBM-Glaxo-Wellcome-Nortel speedways, but the other day, I took a shortcut through the heart of Research Triangle Park and ran smack into an epiphany. I was headed to Raleigh to gather with my writers group for dinner and to hear a guest author read from his latest novel. I’d taken this particular […]
