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Featured

CAUGHT ON FILM

Film Spotlight: Johnny Awful

by Margot C. Lester
It’s an artistical mash-up tailor-made for our fair city: a movie about a garage band.

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Featured Food

HOP LINE: Tis the Saison


by Evan Crouch
It’s a real treat to step outside this time of year. Sweet floral aromas waft through the evening breeze. Vibrant colors abound.

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Featured Food

TASTE OF THE TOWN


Saffron
Upon entering Saffron, one is immediately transported out of Chapel Hill, surrounded by brightly colored, detailed décor more like what one would find in an Indian palace than in an East 54 restaurant.

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Arts & Music

ART NOTES: In the Galleries

Daniel Essig’s “Amber,” on display at Eno Gallery

FRANK will showcase the work of the gallery’s 22 member artists with its 2nd Annual Member Spotlight this month. The program offers each member artist additional exhibit space to present a more complete and representative body of work.

In Saxapahaw, Murry Handler’s gestural abstract paintings and filmy figural works on paper are on display at Saxapahaw Art Gallery March 2-31.

Also this month, “Cellular Obscura – The Cellphone Photographs of Shawn Rocco” is on display at the Ackland Museum Store through April 7. Rocco, an award-winning staff photojournalist, produced the work for the exhibit using a Motorola E815 cell phone camera.

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Featured

Communicating

Phil Blank

Part of the newspaper-editing job involves sorting through an increasingly clogged email inbox to separate the clutter from the stuff that we believe Citizen readers might be interested in.

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Featured

FAUNA: The Day Shift

by Mary Parker Sonis

Mary Parker Sonis

Evening time at the creek belongs to the barred owl. By 4:30 p.m., the barred owl has awakened from its afternoon rest and is generally perched low over the creek, actively hunting for crayfish and amphibians.

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almanac

ROSS’S ALMANAC For March 2012

Compiled by Kirk Ross

I’m as restless as a willow in a windstorm
I’m as jumpy as a puppet on a spring

– Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II

Here in the Piedmont, we’ve spent a good part of this winter with the title to the song featuring the above lyrics in mind: It Might As Well Be Spring. We’ve seen a handful of “springs” this winter, but the season doesn’t officially arrive until 1:14 a.m. on March 20.

A little winter weather may still be lurking in the weeks ahead, but it’s been one of the mildest years since, well, two years ago. The lack of severe weather has led to some odd displays of longing from people who ordinarily would be the first to panic at the sight of a flake or two. The desire for a snow day has been so strong that the small blast of winter weather we had late last month was greeted with the same kind of wonder and awe usually found among Floridians. And the dusting we got – up to a full half-inch in places – yielded several variations, dutifully posted on Twitter and Facebook, of miniature snowpeople. Maybe in March we’ll see enough of a winter surprise to allow for the construction of the full-sized variety, but don’t bet the ranch on it.

March 1 – Sunrise: 6:45 a.m.; Sunset: 6:11 p.m.
March 31 – Sunrise: 7:03 a.m.; Sunset: 7:37 p.m.

First Quarter – March 1 Full Moon – March 8
Last Quarter – March 14 New Moon — March 22

The Full Moon in March is known as the Lenten Moon, Worm Moon, Death Moon, Sugar Moon, Crust Moon, Sap Moon and Chaste Moon.

Planets & Stars: Jupiter makes its descent from the evening sky this month while Mercury rises to join Saturn and Mars. Venus continues to rule the mornings.

March is Poetry Month, National Craft Month, Irish American Heritage Month, Women’s History Month, Music in Schools Month and National Frozen Food Month.

Significant Dates
• March 1 is National Pig Day
• National Anthem Day and If Pets Had Thumbs Day is March 3
• March 6 is Dentists Day
• March 11 is Johnny Appleseed Day
• 3.14 is National Pi Day
• The Ides of March is March 15
• Freedom of Information Day is March 16
• St. Patrick’s Day is March 17
• International Earth Day and the Vernal Equinox are on March 20
• National Goof Off Day is March 22

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Arts & Music

SPOTLIGHT: Cults

The indie-pop band Cults will bring their melodic sound to Cat’s Cradle on Sunday, March 4.
Whether you’re in the mood to dance your shoes off or just nod along to the contagious rhythms, this will be the best show to top off your week. Vocalists Madeline Follin and Brian Oblivion harmonize so well you are sure to get goosebumps. Their catchy tunes are well balanced with melancholic lyrics that will simultaneously chill and warm your heart. Be there early – you’ll probably fall in love.
Tickets are $15 in advance and $17 the day of the show. Doors open at 8 p.m. and the show starts at 9.

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Featured

Reading always helps

by Vicky Dickson

I’ve often thought that the ability to read is one of the things I’d most hate to lose.

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Featured The Eater

A few items about seafood and barbecue

by Kirk Ross

Seafood
Last week, North Carolina Sea Grant and Saltwater Connections put together a Local Catch Summit to help the state’s nascent local catch networks learn better ways to get their message out.

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Featured Food

HOP LINE: Beware the Ides of March

(unless they come bearing beer)
By Andy Dodson
Before the modern advent of Spring Break, the 31 days of March contained only one holiday centered on excess: the 17th.