My Response to Peter Greenberg's new book where he makes fun of the Center of the Universe.

I feel sorry for Peter Greenberg, the man who chose to include my sweet town on his list of places not to visit, I really do. He obviously has no idea of the life that we lead here. He has never been to an Variety Show, or watched the Holiday Parade. He has never sat in the shade by the Ashland pool, or cheered for friends as they finish the Railroad Run. He will always be a passer-by, seeing the motels and gas stations on Rt. 54, but will never be one of us. I imagine him as a sad Charles Dickens character who stands outside a house on Virginia Street while the snow falls. He looks in at the laughing faces illuminated by a warm fire, and realizes that he will never be able to join the party. So let's not be mad at him, let's just feel sorry for him for a few minutes and then forget him. We have other things to think about.

11/6/08 Halloween, Train Day, Library Events, Is the Cow Catcher Open Yet?

Halloween in Ashland was wonderful, as expected. The air smelled of fallen leaves, and the costumed children ran ahead as their parents stopped to talk at each front porch. We loved the adult costumes as well, especially Ross Luck and his orange-sherbet three piece suit, and Sister Lori Foley!

On Friday, November 14 at 6:30 p.m., wear your pajamas and bring a favorite stuffed friend to a special evening Family Story time. Milk and cookies will be served, and this fun event is sponsored by the Friends of the Ashland Library.

Happy Birthday to Madison Brown who celebrated her 10th birthday on November 5th!

Our town will be busy this Saturday with the 6th Annual Train Day. This event has grown and grown over the years, and it’s amazing to see how many people from out-of-town attend! The events will begin at 9am and will be located mainly at the Library and the Hanover Arts and Activities Center. The Town Clock will be dedicated at 9:30 by the Train Station, and there will be free trolley rides all around town.

The Central Virginia Masterworks Chorale will present a holiday concert Sunday, December 7, at Duncan Memorial United Methodist Church, 201 Henry Street, Ashland.Performances will be at 2:30 pm and 7:00 pm and will feature Bach’s Magnificat in D and other seasonal selections, including “Coventry Carol” and Holst’s “Christmas Day.” Tickets are $15 and $10 for adults and $5 for students and children. They may be purchased in advance at Cross Brothers’ Grocery in Ashland or at the door prior to each performance. To reserve tickets, please call 804-798-3283.

The newest, greatly anticipated, restaurant will open November 7th. The Cow Catcher’s menu can be found at http://gesan.dyndns.org/menu. and looks like it has something for everyone. We hope that it’s a great place to hang out with friends.

Did you ever see the movie “Holiday Inn” with Bing Crosby and Fred Astair? Their old Inn was only open on Holidays, and Ashland is beginning to remind me of a Holiday Town. I think lots of people in the Richmond area view Ashland as the place to go when you want a small town experience. 4th of July, Halloween, Christmas- all times when we think of our childhood and gravitate to the sidewalks of a simpler time. While those visitors have to say goodbye eventually and watch Ashland slip away in their rear-view mirror, it is here everyday for us. We are Bing and Fred running the Inn, and the movie set is our backyard.

Call or email me with your Ashland news: 804-310-5320, ashlandnews@gmail.com. An archive of these columns can be found at http://ashlandnews.blogspot.com/. Have a beautiful week.

10/23/08 Ashland, Ashland, Center of the Universe

Well Ashland, you outdid yourself. Your 150th birthday party was one of the best, and certainly the largest birthday party that we’d ever attended. The food was great; the music inspiring, and the guest list was top-notch. You ordered up a beautiful fall day- chilly enough to keep us moving, but not cold enough to send us home. We had tears in our eyes as we watched children sing “Ashland, Ashland”, and we went to bed exhausted but smiling.

I could fill up this column with the names of people who helped put on that party, as it includes almost everyone on town and even many outside of town. Robert Lindgren, president of RMC, said “Have the party at my house”, and brought out his staff and students to help celebrate. How sweet of him to say that R-MC is just as proud to be a part of Ashland as Ashland is to have R-MC here.

Thank you Charles Hartgrove and all the Town employees who spent so many hours working towards that day. Thank you Town Council, Board of Supervisors, School Board, and Hanover County. Thank you CSX for lending a hand and coming to the party. Thank you to Lorie Foley and Kathy Abbot who smiled all day Saturday and then had to attend the funeral of their beloved uncle. Thank you to the marching bands of Patrick Henry, Hanover, Atlee and Lee-Davis High Schools who gave us goose-bumps with their thrilling sound. Thank you RMC Chorus whose beautiful song, “It Takes A Village”, reminded us of how lucky our kids are to grow up here. Thank you Nancy Cozart and AC Bruce for building that wonderful birthday cake sculpture. Thank you to the men and women who were up at 6am Saturday morning cleaning the streets and setting up tables and chairs. Thank you to everyone who came and ate cake. It was good to see you there.

Happy Anniversary to Carl and Cathy Sloppy who will celebrate their wedding anniversary on October 25th!

Happy Birthday to Dave Gilmore on October 21!

John M. Gandy’s Bedford Falls Book Fair will be open beginning October 27th through October 31, 8am to 3pm daily. This is a great Book Fair with titles for all ages - picture books, reference books, and all the newest and most popular chapter books. The prices are great and the fair benefits Gandy's library too!

Remember to stop by the Arts and Activities Center on your trick-or-treating rounds on Halloween! Call or email me with your Ashland news: 804-310-5320, ashlandnews@gmail.com. There is no place in the world that I would rather live. We are Ashland.

From 150

10/31/08 Halloween, Train Day, Public Transportation Survey

If you have a chance, you should go see our new town clock by the Train Station. It’s really beautiful and is keeping excellent time. It really fits the train station, but may lead people to believe that the trains travel on time. Come for the dedication on Saturday, November 8th at 9:30 am.

There are two fun programs coming to the Ashland Library. Local author and historian, Roseanne Shalf, will talk about the relationship between Ashland and its Railroad on Wednesday November 5 at 7:00 p.m. Refreshments will be served. Then on Friday, November 14 at 6:30 p.m., wear your pajamas and bring a favorite stuffed friend to a special evening Family Story time. Specifically, milk and cookies will be served. Both of these fun events are sponsored by the Friends of the Ashland Library.

Happy birthday to Hanover Education Foundation Director Robert C. Brown and Parker Marchetti who will both celebrate birthdays on Halloween! I know Parker had 3 candles on his cake, how many did you have, Mr. Brown?

It’s so exciting to hear about Randolph-Macon’s growth and future construction. Robert Lindgren has proven to be an incredible asset to the school and to our town. My congratulations to him on a job well done.

If you’re trick-or-treating on Halloween, remember to stop by the Hanover Arts and Activities Center for treats and some spooky music performed by the Hanover Concert Band. Last year, we felt like we were on a movie set, with ghosts and goblins running past, and the soundtrack drifting from the open doors of HAAC. This year they will be playing on the front lawn, so we should be able to hear them from several blocks away.

The Town website has a survey asking for your opinions on public transportation. Visit http://www.town.ashland.va.us/ and spend a few minutes letting the Town know your ideas about a public transportation system.

The Ashland Farmer’s Market will be open for one last Saturday! Don’t pass up the chance to buy local. It won’t return until April, 2009.

Happy Birthday to Kellan Morris who will turn 7 on November 2nd!

Train Day is coming on November 8th. From 9:30 to 4:00 pm, come downtown and enjoy free train rides, refreshments, children’s activities, and trolley rides. Events will be taking place at the Ashland Library and at the Hanover Arts and Activities Center. Call Train Town Toy & Hobby for more information (798-0330) or see the flyer on the community calendar on the town website- http://www.town.ashland.va.us/

Here’s a little lesson in Trick-or-Treating Etiquette. Do not ring the doorbell on a house with front porch lights turned off. Don’t be greedy- take only one piece of candy, and don’t ask for something different than what you’re given. Let smaller kids walk up the steps first. Don’t run, and for goodness sakes, STAY OFF THE TRACKS!!
Call or email me with your Ashland news: 804-310-5320, or ashlandnews@gmail.com. Happy Halloween!

9/16/08 Sesquicentennial, sesquicentennial, sesquicentennial!!!

I will start off by saying that I fully expect to see every one of you Saturday at Randolph-Macon. You’ll need to find your spot in the bleachers by noon at the latest. Charge your camera, eat a good breakfast, and prepare to be amazed at the months of planning that have brought this event to completion. (You might need some tissues, too.) If you see Rob Stiles, Lorie Foley, Sue Watson, or anyone else who appears to be directing things, please tell them “thank you”. I would bet that in Ashland, there are more hours spent volunteering per capita than any other town in the country. Hands down.

Editorial note: This column will be short. There is too much to do. Stay tuned for an in-depth discussion of the celebration next week.

Order your Ashland Yearbook now before the price goes up in November! When the yearbooks arrive in the spring, we all need to carry them with us wherever we go so we can sign each others. Seriously, I want to see people exchanging yearbooks at the Coffee & Tea, on the sidewalks, and while waiting in line at the post office. Go to http://www.ashland150.org/ to download the form. If you don’t have access to the web, please call Susan Tucker at 798-7123.

Happy Birthday to Elizabeth Tinsley Sloppy who will turn 1 year old on October 22nd!

Take advantage of this perfect weather and get outside! The Ashland Harvest 10K Run is Saturday, October 25th beginning at 9am from Carter Park, with the 5K Run/Walk beginning at 9:10 am. This race is organized by the Ashcake Women’s Club and is a fundraiser for the St. James Free-Clinic and ACES. Visit http://www.ashlandharvestrun.com/ for more details, or call Becky Pollard at 798-9341.

Do you know what you’re going to be for Halloween yet? Personally I think we should all dress up. Maybe we could coordinate and the whole town could dress up as another town. We could be Richmond. Can’t you see our town council dressed up as the City of Richmond’s town council?

Make sure you stop by the Hanover Arts and Activities Center during all of your trick-or-treating on Halloween! The Hanover Concert Band will be playing spooky music on the front lawn and there will be treats for everyone.

Call or email me with your Ashland news: 310-5320, ashlandnews@gmail.com. Happy Birthday Ashland! xoxo

10/9/08 Train Words Continued, Pumpkins to Eat and Throw, Birthdays all Around, Nice RMC Boys

Train-tinitus (n.) - An affliction suffered by Ashland residents when away from home for an extended period of time. Symptoms may include a high degree of agitation and a rash resembling tiny red cabooses (cabosii). Carole Rodman (Wendy Doyle’s mother) was kind enough to remind me of this malady, which I actually suffered from this summer. When we spent some time at a little town on the coast, my mind kept mistaking the horn of the ferry boat for the whistle of a train. They’re really pretty similar in tone and the captain seemed to hold the blast for the same length of time as the conductors. It was especially confusing in the early morning when it would wake me up and I would think that I was home in Ashland.

Carole recommends recording the sounds of passing trains at the depot and then listening to it several times while you’re away. I say just don’t leave.

Happy Birthday to Corinne Luck on October 8th! We all hope she had a beautiful day.

The weather right now is perfect for getting outside. The Ashland Harvest 10K Run is Saturday, October 25th beginning at 9am from Carter Park, with the 5K Run/Walk beginning at 9:10 am. This race is organized by the Ashcake Women’s Club and is a fundraiser for the St. James Free-Clinic and ACES. Visit http://www.ashlandharvestrun.com/ for more details, or call Becky Pollard at 798-9341.

Kiddie Kingdom had a wonderful birthday party this past weekend full of sweet treats, fun games, and alumnae. Can you believe that they've been taking care of Ashland's children for 40 years? That says a lot about the business they run and the quality of care that they give. Many happy returns!

A reverent happy birthday to Father Chris Haydinger, rector of St. Ann’s Catholic Church. We Catholics consider ourselves very lucky to have such a wonderful priest who not only guides us in the right direction, but always has free donuts on Sunday morning.

November 1st will be a fun day at the Ashland Farmer’s Market. They will be holding their annual Seed Swap as well as having live music and wonderful fall fruits and vegetables. The Saturday before Thanksgiving will be a special holiday market with lots of pumpkins, I’m sure. I wonder if that pumpkin ice cream is back at the Club Car?

Speaking of pumpkins, come throw one at the Ashwood

Gardens & Nursery’s 3rd Annual Pumpkin Chunk-A-Thon Saturday, November 1, 2008 from 10 AM-3 PM. The Chunk-A-Thon benefits Hanover Arc, a non-profit organization that provides services to adults and children with disabilities. A $5 donation includes a chance to catapult a pumpkin from a large wooden trebujet towards a target to win a prize. There will also be hot dogs, face painting, hayrides and a giant corn maze. Please call Hanover Arc @ 798-2400 or Ashwood Gardens & Nursery @ 798-2280 for more information.

Congratulations to the 2008 ODAC Champion Randolph-Macon Baseball team! We were out on the football field at Randolph-Macon the other afternoon while the kids practiced their songs for the 150 celebration. Susan Winkler, music teacher extraordinaire at Gandy, was directing the kids with her microphone, and behind them the baseball team was practicing. As the children started singing the Star-Spangled Banner, every single one of those ball players took off their caps, and stood facing those kids until the song was done. I don't think any of the kids noticed it because they were facing the other direction, but I hope all the parents in the stands saw it. It seems that R-MC not only turns out winners, but respectful citizens as well.

October 18th will be a beautiful day. There will be that clear, October sky above us, some leaves on the ground, and children running all over the Randolph-Macon campus. You’ll probably need to find someone to come over and let your dog out, as you might be gone all day. The ceremonies begin at 12:30 on the R-MC football field, and please remember to bring your camera. You will want to remember this day.

Call or email me with your Ashland news: 310-5320, ashlandnews@gmail.com. Have a wonderful weekend and rest up.

10/2/08 Train Words, Fall Races, Winning Yellow Jackets, and Countdown to October 18th

Darntrainagain (n.) 1. The name applied to a locomotive traveling through the Town of Ashland that in some way hampers or delays your current activity, such as driving to work. 2. A locomotive that interrupts your conversation or prevents your order from being taken at a restaurant.

A.C. Bruce gets an A+ for turning in his homework in a timely manner. That darntrainagain didn’t stop him! I still need a name for a trash train...

Friday, October 17th is Teen Movie Night at the Ashland Library. Come over at 6pm to grab a slice of pizza and enjoy the show. This evening is sponsored by the Friends of the Ashland Library.

Pet owners should check out the "Where’s Annie?" contest for a chance to win fun, dog-centric prizes. The H-P will post a photo of Town Engineer Ingrid Stenbjorn’s pooch, Annie, every two weeks as she visits each of the 11 bag-dispenser locations with her friend Kathryn. Contestants who spot the correct locale of each sign are entered into a drawing for prizes, donated by Ashland’s Fin and Feather store. There are ten signs located at various Ashland parks and along its trails: four locations in Carter Park (Center Street near Ashcake Road, Center Street north, Maple Street trail, Maple Street Shelter), DeJarnette Park, Pufferbelly Park, Railside Park, Railside Trail and two locations on Stony Run Trail (Center Street and South James Street). This contest is to encourage pet owners to use the plastic bags on the posts to pick up after their pets.
Congratulations to the Yellow Jackets who beat those Catholics this past Saturday with a score of 32-20! You don’t have to be an alumnae to enjoy a game at R-MC; it’s a great way to spend a fall afternoon. The boys will be out of town at W&L this coming weekend, but Women’s Field Hockey will at home against Wesley on Sunday, October 5th, at Noon. Sticks down, girls.

Not only do we find numerous ways to lend a hand in this town, but we often have fun while we're doing it. The 2008 Ashland CROP Walk for Hunger is this Saturday, October 4th, and is a 3 mile walk through town sponsored by The Slash Christian Church Disciple Women and Outreach Committee. Individuals or teams from Ashland and Central Hanover churches are invited to participate. 25% of all funds raised will stay in the community, and be given to ACES to help stock their pantry. If you or your group would like to participate, please contact Gary Stadnick at 798-4419.

The Ashland Harvest 10K Run is Saturday, October 25th beginning at 9am from Carter Park, with the 5K Run/Walk begining at 9:10 am. This race is organized by the Ashcake Women’s Club and is a fundraiser for the St. James Free-Clinic and ACES. Visit http://www.ashlandharvestrun.com/ for more details, or call Becky Pollard at 798-9341.

You have been given an extension on the chance to buy an Ashland Yearbook at the early bird price of $55. Visit http://www.ashland150.com/, and go to the Yearbook section to print out an order form and send it to Susan Tucker by October 31st. You spent all that time writing up your family story, have you not bought your copy yet? These books will be beautiful, and they will give us a valuable snapshot of our town. And I’m having fun thinking of all the things I can write in your yearbooks.

Make sure your Trick-or-Treating plans include a stop at the Hanover Arts and Activities Center. The Hanover Concert Band will be playing their wonderful, spooky music- outside this year- plus there will be treats and a costume contest.

THE ASHLAND 150 CELEBRATION IS LESS THAN THREE WEEKS AWAY. That’s all I’m going to say.

Call or email me with your Ashland news: 310-5320, ashlandnews@gmail.com. You can find an archive of these columns at http://www.ashlandnews.blogspot.com/. Have a beautiful weekend.