On my flight home today, I saw a little US Airways blurb on several cities. US Airways loves to promote its hub cities. One of these, of course, is Charlotte. And what did our favorite airline tell us is the big attraction for us in the drag Queen City? Why, NASCAR, man-made-white-water rafting and fine dining, of course... Just picture those unique Charlotte institutions of... Uhm... Nevermind, it was Ruth's Chris and Hard Rock Cafe. Where was I?

"Import Substitution" was a term not originated by Jane Jacobs, but she crystalized it in her book "Cities and the Wealth of Nations", in which she posits that in order to thrive in deep time, cities must convince the world of their unique value and place in that world. They must make themselves relevant in the face of their competing city economies, and intercity trade is only effective when different cities specialize in different things which give meaning to their isolation.

"Our downtown is attracting lots of Young Professionals"

"We are focusing downtown development on attracting new Bars and Restaurants"

"We need to focus on bringing in Upscale Bars and Restaurants, Bistros and Boutiques, and High-End Shopping so that our city attracts more Young Professionals"

Thus spouts the city manager or planning bureaucrat as he prepares his jingos to launch into 2008.

OK - the headline is meant to be sensationalist - the real meat of this entry is about the fact that encouraging people to "get out and move" is not going to achieve the objective of slimming down the population unless we look deeper at the causes for our fatness. I think there is a strong correlation between the per-capita concentration of gyms in a city or region, and that place's prevalence of obesity. I have absolutely no objective statistics to back this up, just my own subjective and anecdotal observations.

They're going to tear down Moore School on Knollwood Street. Funny thing is no one seems to care, even here in presevation-minded Winston-Salem? How can this be, you ask?

How indeed? 

A very good and timely article appeared today in the Journal, dedicated to the regional intercity transit system for the Triad, PART. The reason I display the graph below (courtesy of TRAC) is that the article in today's paper included a noteworthy quote from a UNCC Geography professor, calling the $2.4 Million that various Triad municipalities spend on this system "just another form of government largesse".

Does your neighborhood feel urban? Take the test! 

Think you live in an "urban" environment? Well, you do - if all of the following can be performed, without a car, at 9AM on a Saturday...

Fairly new as of this review, Don Leo's on first glance is your average suburban Mexican joint geared mainly toward middle-class white southerners. I don't always go for these places since they tend to have oversized portions, bland ingredients, and not enough Spanish on the menu. Don Leo's, however, pleasantly surprised me.

The first time I visited Upper Crust, I was so angry that I left without my food. Subsequent visits have convinced me I probably shouldn't have bothered visiting to begin with. I hate to write a universally bad review, really, but that's what this is gonna be.

K&W started as a restaurant in downtown Winston-Salem in 1937. Today, there are 33 cafeterias in the Carolinas, Virginia, and West Virginia. At a time when cafeteria chains in other parts of the country are struggling (or are mere memories), K&W is actually thriving and opening new locations. Contrary to the stereotype of an establishment full of blue-haired ladies waiting patiently in line, you actually see young families, college students, and more here.

I'm a son of the Carolinas. I was born in Greensboro, and lived withing a hundred miles of there until I was twenty-eight years old. Then, I spent thirteen years in California before moving back. Fortunately, I'm bilungual: I'm pretty equally conversant in both Western English and Southern English. I can even speak a few words of Yankee when required. Thus, I can write these columns without facing quite so much of the "We don't care how you did it back in (insert non-Southern place name)" hostility. Maybe.