Life

Playing pawn, queen, king for a day

Two students sat across each other, faces intent. They concentrated on the black and white pieces in front of them, thinking of future strategy - thinking of chess. Every Thursday at 9 p.m., the Virginia Chess Club members hone their game in the Newcomb Hall basement, where the checkered floor resembles their chess boards. Second-year College student Christy Hobough founded the club just last spring. "I sent out an e-mail at the beginning of second semester [of last year] and I got a lot of responses," Hobough said.

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Camping out for diversity Those tents on the Lawn aren't part of a reenactment of "The Blair Witch Project." Tonight students and faculty members plan to come together for the October Camp Poetry Reading, an event organized by Advocates for Diversity in Education to show support for diversity at the University.

Please hold while we shift you to another line: adventures in telecommunications

My phone number is 923-3620. If you need to reach me, that's the number to call. Don't waste your time dialing 923-3271.

Former University coach Blount hits courts once more

Although it has been more than a decade since Renee Blount, a former University assistant women's tennis coach, last graced the grass courts of Wimbledon, tennis is still very much a part of her life.

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Teaching for a better tomorrow

After the latest wave of suburban school shootings, which left many students and teachers wounded or dead, some teachers no doubt have contemplated early retirement.

Catching ultimate fever

Football wasn't the only game being played two weeks ago against Wake Forest. Current students, alumni and local residents came together at half time to share with spectators the unique sport of ultimate frisbee. The half-time show, arranged by Shelby Young, third-year Education School graduate student and former Virginia Women's Ultimate Club team captain, featured a brief look into a typical ultimate game.

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Patient places You've got an emergency, you have to go to student health and luckily enough you have a roommate who can drive you there.

Annoyed with Floyd, hurt by Gert: Blame it on the rain

I regret to bring to your attention yet another severe problem with this country, which everyone from our pathetic federal government down to Prez Casteen has completely ignored and would seem to have us believe does not even exist: Rain.

Catching ultimate fever

Football wasn't the only game being played two weeks ago against Wake Forest. Current students, alumni and local residents came together at half time to share with spectators the unique sport of ultimate frisbee. The half-time show, arranged by Shelby Young, third-year Education School graduate student and former Virginia Women's Ultimate Club team captain, featured a brief look into a typical ultimate game.

Open air dining makes Sal's stand-out spot downtown

When Sal's Caffé Italia owner Giuseppe Finazzo moved his restaurant 14 years ago, he thought the Downtown Mall would be the perfect spot to serve pizza and offer outdoor dining. "I liked the place and there was no pizza on the mall," Finazzo said.

Hopping 'Grandfather'

Although swing dancing has gained popularity in recent years, due in part to Gap ads that feature khaki-sporting dancers and the rise of youth swing dance clubs, no one is more familiar with the roots of this genre of dance than the Grandfather of swing himself - Frankie Manning. Manning, a small but spry 85-year-old man wearing soft black dancing shoes, made a guest appearance in the Newcomb Hall Ballroom Wednesday in front of several hundred students and area fans.

Hokie hunting: it's turkey season

The signs are everywhere: "Friends Don't Let Friends Go to Tech" T-shirts, pins with a big red "X"s printed over the word "Tech," shot glasses with a mark at the top labeled "U.Va." and a mark in the middle labeled "Tech." It's that time of the year again, when all Wahoos take a break from school work to see the pinnacle of intrastate rivalry - the Hokie-'Hoo football game. Indeed, a quick walk through Mincer's (or even a die-hard University fan's room) will reveal a plethora of paraphernalia denouncing all things Tech.

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Remembering Gandhi University students will celebrate the 130th anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi's birth tomorrow through three service projects. "He was a great leader and a big promoter of unity," said Shruti Chandra, a third-year Engineering student and president of the Indian Students' Association.

Foods of All Nations brings ethnic foods to town

Foods of All Nations, a store that boasts a full line of grocery items and a vast selection of exotic fare from countless international countries, will celebrate its 46th year serving the Charlottesville community Sunday. Among the events planned for the second annual "Foods Cruise" from 11 a.m.

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"There's something about flying" Just when we thought we've heard about all the possibilities of the Internet, something else pops up ... This time, that something else is a pop band called "There's something about flying." The band is comprised of five musicians.

Culture blooms at Farmers Market

With varied and colorful stalls all around, a booth full of fresh flowers stands next to a woodcarver's display of handmade clocks and ornaments.

Baby, can I drive your car?

I need a car. I have tried for years to deny the obvious, bumming rides off friends and convincing myself that I'm a healthier, stronger person because of my vehicular disability.

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Dog-gone it! Members of the University community hoping to sample some solar-cooked hot dogs today will have to wait.

A Wahoo walk through time

Over 100 years ago, the University had a different face: In the Civil War era, upon hearing that Fort Sumter had surrendered in 1861, students in the Southern Guard broke into the Rotunda at night and, climbing along the dome, grasping a lightning rod, hung a hand-sewn Confederate flag. Sixteen years later, Brooks Hall, home today to the anthropology department and various studio art classes, served as a natural history museum -- complete with a dinosaur skeleton and a Siberian mammoth. University history has sparked plenty of debate among scholars and students alike, but a new book adds pictures to the University's storied past.