Seen surfing: Progressive Dems, Henry James on the Biltmore Estate, HipTranquilChick visits and more

Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

1

Here’s some of what I’ve been seen surfing lately:

Buncombe County Progressive Dems report

I haven’t seen the Dancewater blog before, but it offers a good update on a meeting of local Dems:

We had some further discussions about the upcoming primary in May and what direction we might take from here. A couple of people felt that Jim Neal (running for US Senate) was a good candidate and that it might be worthwhile to support him.

We had a short discussion on the possibility of seeking an endorsement from Progressive Democrats of America for Neal, and while members attending today supported that, we are not sure that Neal would want an endorsement.

We also discussed candidates for Governor and Lt. Governor. Dan Bassey and Pat Smathers are candidates for Lt. Governor and both are felt to be progressive candidates that are worthwhile supporting. There are also candidates for County Commissioner, with Holly Jones being a progressive that is worthy of our support. No decisions were made on what future actions the Progressive Democrats of Buncombe County might take, and our next meeting is April 8th at 7 PM at North Asheville Library.

Henry James on the Biltmore Estate: ‘Strange, colossal heart-breaking house’

This blog covering the New York art scene included a neat post about what Henry James wrote to Edith Wharton re: the Biltmore:

A friend gave us passes to Biltmore Estate, the French chateau that George Vanderbilt chose to build in Asheville. How unlikely it was that Vanderbilt would build here — in some remote mountain town, only newly reachable by train, far from friends and family — never occurred to me until I was researching Henry James’ and Edith Wharton’s stays at the estate for an article I wrote several years back. Here is James in a letter to Wharton:

We are 2,500 feet in the air; the cold, the climate, is well nigh all the ‘company’ in the strange, colossal heart-breaking house; & the desolation & discomfort of the whole thing — whole scene — are, in spite of the mitigating millions everywhere expressed, indescribable. … It’s, in effect, like a gorgeous practical joke — but at one’s own expense, after all, if one has to live in solitude in these league-long marble halls.

Journey to Asheville

And HipTranquilChick says she’s coming to visit:

getting all packed up for my journey to yoga south in charlotte and asheville yoga in (you guessed it!) . . . asheville! i’ll be leading a few workshops, sleeping, reading, catching up on some projects, and hope for a drive through the smoky mountains after sunday’s workshop. such a beautiful part of the country! riding in the car puts me to sleep like a baby so i plan to curl up in the back seat with pug, a chenille blanket, pillows, earplugs, a good book (probably setting the table by my new BFF danny meyer), my laptop and planner pad, and an eyepillow. a true haven with all these must-haves!
i hope you have exciting and restorative weekend plans ahead of you. don’t forget the practice of loving-kindness . . . especially toward yourself! xo

Ever-expanding Apollo Flame

Finally, I found this Winston-Salem Journal story about how one of my favorite Asheville restaurants is expanding into Winston:

Apollo Flame Restaurant opened last week at 150 Hanes Mill Road, an offshoot of the two Apollo Flame Bistros in Asheville.

Chris Pappas, who co-owns the Asheville locations with other family members, is the sole owner of the new restaurant.

Apollo Flame serves a combination of Greek and Italian food. The menu includes pizzas, pastas, salads and subs. It also includes a Big Fat Greek Platter of lamb, chicken, meatballs, Greek salad, pita and tzatziki sauce for $7.95. A large cheese pizza costs $9.75. Most subs cost $5.85 for a small and $6.65 for a large.