Observer Columns
Fallen Young Champ Hooked Fishing World | Aug. 3, 1995
A rookie fisherman wins the Bassmaster Classic at High Rock Lake near Greensboro. He never gets a chance to defend the title.
Cold Rain. Dead Car. A Lovely Day | Nov. 7, 2004
A woman’s car dies in a traffic lane at the mall on a miserable day… and what happens next.
The Hunley 8, The Charleston 9 | April 18, 2004
A gathering of the Polite Confederacy… and a reminder of what’s forgotten.
Harmony of Past, Future | Aug. 30, 2006
Listening to New Orleans, a year after Katrina.
Here Comes the Bride, and One Lucky Guy | July 11, 1998
Still hard to believe she married me.
A Beautiful Find | Nov. 16, 2003
Davidson College math professor John Swallow looks at a problem no one has ever solved… and decides to solve it.
Michael Kelley’s Obstacle Course, Part One | Nov. 9, 2003
Michael Kelley, horribly injured in a military accident, tries to become a Charlotte cop – and faces an immense physical challenge.
Michael Kelley’s Obstacle Course, Part Two | Nov. 10, 2003
Michael Kelley faces the obstacle course – the barrier between the man he is now and the man he wants to be.
Su-prrr Day | Feb. 1, 2004
Do sports matter? Something to think about as the Carolina Panthers play in their first (and so far, only) Super Bowl.
Strength, Spirit Summoned, but Sorrow Still too Heavy to Lift Long | April 18, 2007
The day after, at Virginia Tech.
A Picture Speaks | Sept. 2, 2007
Dorothy Counts integrated the Charlotte schools in 1957. Fifty years later, a photo of that moment echoes through her life – and the lives of the white students who surrounded her.
OTHER STORIES
Don’t Mess with Venus | Garden & Gun, November 2008
A profile of Laura Gadd, protector of a North Carolina treasure: the endangered Venus flytrap.
Andrew Young: Those Who Burn for Justice Should Respect Torch | ESPN.com, April 8, 2008
Andrew Young – who has deep roots in the civil-rights movement & the Olympics – talks about Olympic torch protests before Beijing Games.
Chevy Van |2008
My contribution to the very cool book “Making Notes: Music of the Carolinas.”