Archive for May, 2005

Dredging The ICW

Tuesday, May 24th, 2005

Many of the inlets, channels and ports along the coast of North Carolina are rapidly filling with sand. Dredging sand from those areas is expensive, and North Carolina has long relied on the federal government to pay for most of the cost. This year, for the second year in a row, President Bush’s budget contains no funds for dredging North Carolina’s shallow waterways. Host Melinda Penkava leads a conversation about the politics and economics of dredging. Guests include: Gareth McGrath, reporter for the Wilmington Star News; Jim Leutze, Chair of the Congressional Coastal/Waterway Advisory and Action Committee; J.D. Brown, Director of Sea Rescue, Ocean Isle Beach; and Orrin Pilkey, professor emeritus of geology at Duke University. (59:00)

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North Carolina Flora

Monday, May 23rd, 2005

It’s spring, and North Carolina’s fields, forests, and roadways are again flush with greenery. But which plants are native and should be nurtured, and which ones are invasive and worthy of being uprooted? Host Melinda Penkava talks with Carol Ann McCormack, assistant curator of the Herbarium at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Dale Suiter, endangered species biologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; and Larry Mellichamp, professor of bilogy at UNC-Charlotte. Listener Call-In. (59:00)

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Jan DeBlieu/Secession/Christine Kane

Friday, May 20th, 2005

Year of the Comets: When writer Jan DeBlieu’s husband became clinically depressed, she took solace in spending hours staring up at the stars. Her reveries turned into a serious study of astronomy and the workings of the universe. Host Melinda Penkava talks with Jan DeBlieu about her book, ‘Year of the Comets: A Journey from Sadness to the Stars’ (Avalon/2005). (32:00)

North Carolina Secession: On May 20, 1861, North Carolina issued a proclamation that read: “… the union now subsisting between the State of North Carolina and the other States, under the title of the United States of America, is hereby dissolved.” The secession propelled North Carolina into the Civil War, and over the course of the next four years 40,000 North Carolinians died. Host Melinda Penkava speaks with Civil War historian Fred Kiger on the anniversary of North Carolina’s secession from the United States. (10:00)

Christine Kane: Asheville singer/songwriter Christine Kane on reflects on the power of songs. Her latest CD is called “Right Outta Nowhere.” Visit her website at christinekane.com.

Jan DeBlieu
Secession
Christine Kane

Leg. Update/Charlie Poole/Carousel/Review

Thursday, May 19th, 2005

Legislative Update: Host Melinda Penkava speaks with North Carolina Public Radio – WUNC’s Laura Leslie about the latest happenings in state politics, including the vote this weekend to elect a new Republican Party state leader. (12:00)

You Ain’t Talkin’ To Me: Charlie Poole’s recording career spanned just five years before he died in 1931, but his three-finger banjo-picking style and the songs he re-wrote for string bands live on today. The North Carolina musician is considered by many to be the grandfather of bluegrass music. Host Melinda Penkava talks with Poole biographer Kinny Rorrer; and Henry Sopoznik, producer of the Poole anthology released this week (“You Ain’t Talkin’ To Me: Charlie Poole and the Roots of Country Music” / Sony 2005). (20:00)

Carousel: Host Melinda Penkava talks with Benjamin Haass, an amateur hobbyist who specializes in the fixing of mechanical musical devices, including the carousel in Raleigh’s Pullen Park. (12:00)

Review: Mike Munger reviews the Burning Coal Theater Company’s production of “Accidental Death of an Anarchist.” The play runs through May 22nd at Peace College in Raleigh. (5:00)

Leg. Update
Charlie Poole
Carousel
Review

Real Estate Industry

Wednesday, May 18th, 2005

Across the country and in North Carolina, the housing market is hot. Homes that once took months to sell can now be off the market in days. With the fast pace, and the rise of on-line listings and brokers, some sellers and buyers are choosing not to use the services of traditional real estate agents. Host Melinda Penkava leads a conversation about the state of the real estate industry in North Carolina. Guests include: Tim Kent, executive vice president of the North Carolina Association of Realtors. Listener Call In. (59:00)

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