alternative flight path

Owners Jane and Daniel Dhul explain how the design of this Frank...

Tue, 07 Jun 2011 16:37:05 -0400

Owners Jane and Daniel Dhul explain how the design of this Frank Lloyd Wright home makes it so special. The home is currently on sale in Virginia Beach for only the second time since it was built. Read the story.

Mary Lynch’s dad loved nice things, but with 11 children...

Mon, 06 Jun 2011 10:46:04 -0400

Mary Lynch’s dad loved nice things, but with 11 children to send to college, he couldn’t afford to buy expensive items for himself. So with one of her first real paychecks, Lynch bought her father a cardigan sweater from Jacob Reed’s Sons, an upscale men’s store in Philadelphia. She was 18.

Her dad was thrilled, and he treasured the gift for 50 years. He wore it on special occasions - birthdays, Sunday dinners, graduation parties - even though he had newer ones in his closet. After each occasion, he’d fold the garment carefully and return it to its place in a drawer.

Lynch’s dad died in January at age 90.

“All my brothers and sisters knew ‘the sweater,’ so there was no question who would inherit it,” says Lynch, who lives in Virginia Beach.

The gift she bought her father years ago will always be special to her, she says.

“It represents a grateful man, a humble man, and the love between a father and daughter.”

Read what else people have kept for sentimental value

We’re sure there’s a perfect beach for you in...

Fri, 03 Jun 2011 16:00:39 -0400

We’re sure there’s a perfect beach for you in Hampton Roads. You just had to find it. To make it easier, here’s our tongue-in-cheek guide to local beaches. See it bigger.

Portsmouth master gardener Deb Hasse, center, talks with Amy...

Wed, 25 May 2011 13:27:15 -0400

Portsmouth master gardener Deb Hasse, center, talks with Amy Cooper of Farm Chicks Produce at the Portsmouth Farmer’s Market earlier this month. Meanwhile, actor Eric Price, left, portrays Col. William Crawford. The market sits in the shadows of Portsmouth’s 1846 courthouse. (Steve Earley | The Virginian-Pilot)

This is the fourth in our series of farmers market reviews. Check out the others:
Get Earthy at Five Points Community Market
Williamsburg Farmers Market has plenty to tempt already
Virginia Beach Farmers Market offers a wealth of good things

"High school kids have spent their entire lives being told what to do. We tell them to do all those..."

Wed, 18 May 2011 18:04:02 -0400

“High school kids have spent their entire lives being told what to do. We tell them to do all those other things, but we rarely if ever tell them to think about coming back home after college. We are quick to say that Virginia is for lovers, but we never say that we’d love it if you lived here.”

- From “Getting local graduates to settle here is a tall order” by Mike Gruss

Ranjeeta Masand at the counter of the 7-Eleven she owns on...

Tue, 17 May 2011 14:30:33 -0400

Ranjeeta Masand at the counter of the 7-Eleven she owns on Hampton Boulevard. Ranjeeta was a leading lady during her Bollywood career in the 1970s and 1980s. She’s recently been asked to return to the screen in a sequel to a movie she starred in years ago. (Bill Tiernan | The Virginian-Pilot)

Read her story: “From Bollywood to Big Gulps … and back” by Mike Gruss

"My shadow on the wall revealed the truth in black and light: I can’t dance. I have developed a..."

Tue, 08 Mar 2011 13:43:48 -0500

“

My shadow on the wall revealed the truth in black and light: I can’t dance.

I have developed a rhythm deficiency.

As I cleaned my living room, music shuffled on the stereo. One cut, Slave’s 1979 funk evergreen “Just a Touch of Love,” pumped through the speakers, with its stomping beat and hips-seducing bass line. I tossed the Swiffer aside and surrendered to the groove. I was in a zone, wearing my “funk face”: furrowed brow and bottom lip tucked in. My forehead shone with sweat. In my mind, I was a star “Soul Train” dancer.

Then I spun around and faced the wall.

I noticed a figure shaped like me. The arms flailed wildly, almost like Kermit the Frog’s as he ran from Miss Piggy. This form on the wall was off beat, pumping and jerking like a man gone mad. Was it dancing to the same song? Would you call that dancing?

”

- From “Countdown to Lame: Am I missing a step … or never had it?” by Rashod Ollison

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss

Tue, 01 Mar 2011 14:58:18 -0500

Tomorrow would be the birthday of Theodore Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, who died in 1991. Local libraries are hosting an array of activities to commemorate the day. In his honor, we wrote a little poem.

Happy birthday to you, Seuss!

You cat in a hat!

If I ran the zoo

I would bring it to you

along with two fish

and a dozen large Sneetches

to have ice cream and cake

on our fine sandy beaches

with your books about eyeses and noses and feetses.

We would give you some presents!

Some wrappings! Some boxes!

We’d invite Horton, Thidwick

and Foxes in Soxes!

We would serve many treats

such as green eggs and ham

with Cindy Lou Who’s

homemade strawberry jam.

The Lorax would swim

in the ocean with jellies,

while the Grinch would wear

flip-flops and gather pink shellies.

We know you are gone,

but your birthday’s still very

much fun to observe

at the Norfolk library.

Or anywhere, really, for a girl or a boy

with places to go, and life to enjoy.

Find the poem and see more about the events.

Fushia Deville puts the final touches on her makeup before...

Thu, 10 Feb 2011 11:02:23 -0500

Fushia Deville puts the final touches on her makeup before performing at Croc’s 19th Street Bistro. Deville is one of the drag queens that perform at the restaurant twice a month. Each brunch lasts about 90 minutes and features four performers. (Hyunsoo Leo Kim | The Virginian-Pilot)

Read more about “Drag Yourself to Brunch” in this weeks Pulse cover story.

In the deep of winter, the lack of color can make for a...

Tue, 01 Feb 2011 15:40:45 -0500

In the deep of winter, the lack of color can make for a depressing landscape. Recently we set out to defy gloom and find the colors that still exist in our community. Check out the photo essay.

Pictured here: Just west of the ocean sits a speck of summer bathed in yellow and robin’s-egg blue. • In The Lemon Cabana store in Virginia Beach, sunlight sets a gold vase aglow. A silken dragonfly alights on a throw pillow. Roomy armchairs are covered in pastel blue. In one corner, a lampshade blooms from a bold green flower stem. • Owner Julie Fancher says, “We call it our happy place.” – Lorraine Eaton

See more pictures and read more in our photo essay.

Attendees at a community pep rally, including Girl Scout Troop...

Fri, 21 Jan 2011 10:58:28 -0500

Attendees at a community pep rally, including Girl Scout Troop 54 members, from left, Cadence Gilbert, Trinity Morgan and Aleea Saylor, get loud in support of the TV show “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” on Thursday night at the Virginia Beach Convention Center. The Emmy Award-winning reality show is coming to Hampton Roads for the first time to rebuild a home for a family. (Vicki Cronis-Nohe | The Virginian-Pilot)

From ‘Extreme Makeover: Home Edition’ rallies support in Virginia Beach

If you saw the front page of the Flavor section today, you may...

Wed, 19 Jan 2011 15:43:00 -0500

If you saw the front page of the Flavor section today, you may have noticed that instead of the usual fonts and graphics, the entire background of the page was a cake. Here’s a behind the scenes look as Chef Steven Ciccone decorates the cake.

Be sure to check out our Q&A with the Cake Boss, who’s coming to Hampton Roads this March to give a decorating demonstration.

Hear The Virginian-Pilot’s photographers talk about their...

Mon, 03 Jan 2011 14:57:00 -0500

Hear The Virginian-Pilot’s photographers talk about their favorite photograph of the year in this interactive. You’ll be surprised by some of the stories — and hopefully inspired to get out there with a camera yourself!

The view through the lens: Photos of the year 2010

ABOVE: A student at a school in Maser-e-Sharif, Balkh province, Afghanistan. Social scientists are trying new methods to win the trust of citizens of the war-torn country. (Hyunsoo Leo Kim | The Virginian-Pilot)

Remembering: Some gifts just can’t be wrapped

Mon, 20 Dec 2010 15:27:20 -0500

Remembering: Some gifts just can’t be wrapped:

Feature’s editor Jim Haag remembers a Christmas gift from when he was 10 years old. The best gifts, can’t always be wrapped…

“I wanted to put only one thing on my list: the electric football game, complete with a two-tiered stadium, that cost $21.99. But Mom insisted I give my sister options, so I put it first and hoped that she wouldn’t overlook the obvious.”

Stephen Crook, 10, of Portsmouth, watches a snowball fall that...

Mon, 13 Dec 2010 11:41:33 -0500

Stephen Crook, 10, of Portsmouth, watches a snowball fall that he tossed in the air as other snow flakes drop around him on Monday, Dec. 13, 2010. “It’s really pretty,” Crook said, “Especially around Christmas time.” (Ross Taylor | The Virginian-Pilot)

Find more snow pictures on this PilotOnline.com weather story and on our Facebook page.

Louis Cruz, 89, and Robbie Robbins, 86, both Navy veterans who...

Thu, 09 Dec 2010 10:24:00 -0500

Louis Cruz, 89, and Robbie Robbins, 86, both Navy veterans who served in World War II, have been working out together for almost 25 years. They recently logged their 700th mile swimming together. (Video by Brian Clark | The Virginian-Pilot)

From For Navy vets - 24 years of friendship and fitness by Corinne Reilly

Paul Krendl blows fake snow, derived from paper, around...

Tue, 07 Dec 2010 14:15:00 -0500

Paul Krendl blows fake snow, derived from paper, around Peninsula Town Center in Hampton. With Mother Nature proving undependable, some business prefer to go with the fake white stuff. (Photo by Preston Gannaway | The Virginian-Pilot)

It snows in Hampton every Friday.

Not from the sky. From a machine. It blows a papery white powder all over the Town Square area of Peninsula Town Center. It started the weekend before Thanksgiving and will continue until Christmas.

From “Fake snow creates a white Christmas on schedule” by Carolyn Shapiro

"In the fake FarmVille, you can walk robotically among your square plots of brown earth, plant..."

Tue, 30 Nov 2010 12:01:00 -0500

“

In the fake FarmVille, you can walk robotically among your square plots of brown earth, plant raspberries that grow in two hours and tick off your Facebook friends with constant updates about the brown mystery eggs found on your farm.

In our Farmville, you can buy Amish furniture and sink into Civil War and civil rights history after a three-hour drive from Norfolk.

”

- From “Farmville on Facebook versus Farmville, Va.” by Denise Watson Batts and Jim Haag.

In her homeland, Jinan Hussein worked as an interpreter for...

Mon, 22 Nov 2010 13:02:00 -0500

In her homeland, Jinan Hussein worked as an interpreter for American journalists covering the war. This month, through a special refugee program, she immigrated to Hampton Roads with her brother Mushtaq. Read the first in an occasional series chronicling their journey. (Photo by Bill Tiernan | The Virginian-Pilot)

From “Jinan’s journey from Iraq to Hampton Roads” by Corinne Reilly

When Chief Petty Officer Mike Beane returned from six months in...

Fri, 19 Nov 2010 12:03:00 -0500

When Chief Petty Officer Mike Beane returned from six months in Iraq, he was greeted by his daughter Savannah who walked toward him using leg braces and a walker. Born with spina bifida, doctors were uncertain if she’d ever be able to walk. Beane lowered his sunglasses, wiping away tears. “My daughter can walk.” (Photo by Ross Taylor | The Virginian-Pilot)

From “Girl surprises Dad with new skills after his return from Iraq” by Marjon Rostami