In the Spirit: Baby, Bye, Bye, Bye 2021!

“I don’t want to make it tough but I’ve had enough and it ain’t no lie, Baby bye bye bye…”, who else is ready to say farewell to 2021 and hello to 2022? Me, me!!! Time zones and traditions may differ, but NYE celebrations will be ringing in our New Year all around the world. […]

Grandpa Larry: How I Quit Smoking.

So, here is how I stopped smoking. I started when I was fourteen and smoked around a pack a day for twenty two years. The end of this enduring time began when my wife and I had a meaningful conversation with a young man who asked us if we knew why we smoked. We both […]

History Unraveled: Stenciling Historic Settings at North House!

In the early 1800s stenciling was the way to go if you wanted to decorate your walls and floors.  Wallpapering was new and expensive, while stenciling was easy to do and not a cost-prohibitive venture. Many patterns can be traced back to colonial New England. That being said, stenciled walls were therefore, all the rage.  […]

B-Sides & Badlands’ Album Review: Death & The Thrill of Living

Sometimes the dead keep coming back,” opines Kristian Montgomery. “Soul for Soul” anchors his latest studio record, Prince of Poverty, released earlier this year and billed under Kristian Montgomery & the Winterkill Band. His lyrical barbs scatter like glass shards through a hypnotic rock static, permitting his voice to play tug of war with pulsing […]

Wild & Willowful: Kindness, A Classic.

For most of us, the new year represents some sort of new beginning. It’s a time where we get to reflect back on the year that has passed so that we can positively and excitedly move into the future.  Every year, I make new resolutions of goals and challenges that I want to meet in […]

WV Artist on Display: Jamie Lester, West Virginia Sculptor

Get to know Jamie Lester, an American sculptor working in bronze, ceramics, and steel. He’s also a painter working in watercolor and oil; and a composer working with guitar, mandolin and voice. Lester is based in Morgantown and graduated from WVU in 1997 with a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts. After graduating, he formed Lester Sculpture, […]

B-Sides & Badlands: The Kind Thieves Stir Up a Snowstorm

It’s guaranteed to be a damn good time!” hollers Colby Elswick. It’s a promise well-kept – as the Kind Thieves lead guitarist and vocalist lets loose over a funkadelic guitar, sticky with groove and ambition. The opening track “Children of the Sun” primes the listener for the musical feast that is the band’s most recent […]