Good morning, RVA! Itâs 66 °F, and itâs hot again. Expect highs near 90 °F, maybe a slight cooldown tomorrow, and then more warmer weather over the weekend. Will it ever rain again? No one knows!
Water cooler
For the last couple of years, the James River Association and Art on Wheels (the cubey, guerrilla bus-stop bench folks!) have worked with the Department of Public Utilities to paint stormwater drains in an effort to raise awareness of river pollution. Youâve probably seen these painted drains scattered around the city, and they do a nice job of making whatâs basically a sewer drain into something interesting to look atâwhile also reminding you not to throw your garbage into the river. This year theyâre working with Richmond Public Libraries to paint Ripple the Library Otter (you knew we had a library mascot and that it was an otter, right?) on seven drains at three libraries. You can see the design and exact locations in this PDF. The Public Art Commission will consider this plan at their meeting today, 4:30 PM, in the 5th Floor Conference Room of City Hall.
Ali Rockett at the Richmond Times-Dispatch says that Richmond Balletâs Maggie Small and Fernando Sabino will both retireâSmall this weekend and Sabino this coming spring. Back when I helped run an online news magazine, one of our favorite things in town to cover was the Richmond Ballet, especially Small and Sabino. Along with VCU basketball, the Ballet is one of the regionâs best cultural exportsâtwo things that punch above their weight and shake off those small-town vibes. Donât get me wrong: Small-town vibes are great, and are part of the reason we all live here, but, dang, when you see a thing thatâs Objectively Really Good, thatâs something else. So, if youâre like, âI thought ballet was about sugar plum fairies and loud, unhappy children at the Carpenter Theatre,â I want to suggest that you check out some of the Studio Series performances. They are usually beautiful and amazing in a way thatâs hard to describe, and you will not be disappointed. Tickets are available for Studio One (November 5thâ10th), if you can swing the cost.
The Virginia Mercuryâs Jeff Raines has an interesting story about Virginiaâs coal country turning to rock climbing to bring in that tourism cash. Is that realistic? I have no idea, but folks out there are motivated to do something: The article quotes a recent Weldon Cooper study that says the region will lose 13% of their population by 2040. Yikes.
Speaking of the Virginia Mercury, theyâve snagged another reporter from the RTD. Graham Moomaw, who currently covers Virginia politics for the paper and keeps us all informed during the General Assembly sessions, will start at the Mercury on October 8th. Donât worry, he says heâll still cover the Virginia statehouse, which, whew. That a nonprofit news organization continues to grow and hire talented reporters is great news for all of us. Now, Iâm excited to see who will end up taking Moomawâs place at the RTD.
Marc Cheatham at the Cheats Movement reminds me that the Beyond Containment Dialogue Series kicks off this Friday from 2:00â5:00 PM at VUUâs Claude G. Perkins Living and Learning Center. Iâll let Marc give you the details: âBeyond Containment is a project out of the Commonwealth Attorneyâs office that explores the root causes of criminal activity. In an attempt to further this discussion, they are pulling together policymakers, elected officials, community members, basically, anyone who wants to participate to be apart of the dialogue.â Check out the full report and an interview with the previous Commonwealthâs Attorney over on the aforelinked Cheats Movement page.
Reminder: That super legit panel on eviction is tonight at 5:00 PM. This is a great opportunity to hear incredibly smart people talk about an incredibly pressing problem for the region.
This morningâs longread
What I Learned in a Year of Weeknight Cooking
This article, which made me aware of the Five Weeknight Dishes email, gives me hope.
I donât believe in meal planning, and I think itâs kind of mean to suggest that people do it,â she said. âI think it takes a certain kind of super-organized person.â Ms. Perry is far from alone in loathing meal planning (too regimented, too unlikely to yield something you might actually want to eat that night). And Iâve become convinced, despite all the meal-planning literature on the internet and in cookbooks, that itâs too difficult to manage and not really how most people put dinner on the table: The plan falls apart by Thursday, if you even last that long. Disciplined, long-term, die-hard meal planners must exist out there, but Iâm not sure I know any of them personally. I think itâs far saner to loosely pick a few recipes for the week ahead, shop accordingly and keep your pantry stocked as a backup. Inevitably you will not make at least one of those recipes, and that is no big deal; just be sure to find a way to use up or freeze anything perishable.
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