It will be the site of 12 medal finals this February, but Richmond's Olympic Oval has already won gold in one event: on October 9th, it was awarded top honors for a sports or leisure structure from the Institution of Structural Engineers, beating out Wimbledon, the Copenhagen Zoo's Elephant House, and another Olympic venue, Beijing's Birds Nest. The Richmond Oval won largely on the strength of sustainability, including a 2 hectare roof built out of salvaged lumber from the Mountain Pine Beetle infestation. [more inside]
posted by mannequito on Oct 26, 2009 - 33 comments

"We were having dinner about four months ago and I was showing Clelia some pictures I'd taken in the air, and she said, 'Oh, that's so beautiful. I want to do that,'" Ben said. Easier said than done when you're 95. [more inside]
posted by emelenjr on Jun 30, 2009 - 9 comments

In 1958, Ezra Pound, after being released from a mental hospital, became a foreign correspondent for the Richmond News Leader. All but one of his dispatches were deemed unprintable by the editor and the one that was printed ran as a letter to the editor. The Virginia Quarterly Review has put scans of the dispatches up on their site. [more inside]
posted by Kattullus on Apr 11, 2008 - 44 comments

According to the recently published book The Fortune Cookie Chronicles, the best Chinese restaurant outside China is Zen Fine Chinese Cuisine, tucked away on the second floor of a mall along a section of Richmond, BC (a Vancouver suburb) that's known by the Chinese community as Eat Street. [more inside]
posted by myopicman on Mar 11, 2008 - 22 comments

Last Saturday, a woman and her four-year-old son climbed a fence to get a closer look at two black bears in the care of the non-profit Maymont Foundation. Bear bites boy.
posted by emelenjr on Feb 25, 2006 - 54 comments

Turdzilla wants YOU. Think you've got what it takes? The "conceptualist" behind GWAR (w/sound and also likely to be NSFW after a click or two) is seeking musicians to perform the music on Turdzilla's CD.
posted by emelenjr on Sep 11, 2005 - 12 comments

Apple iBook sale in Richmond, VA, turned violent today when people began to fight over the $50, four-year-old used machines on sale by Henrico County School System. One woman urinated on herself instead of losing her place in line. Others were shoved to the ground, and one man tried to drive his car into the crowd.

"I took my [metal folding] chair here and I threw it over my shoulder and I went, 'Bam,"' the 20-year-old said nonchalantly, his eyes glued to the screen of his new iBook, as he tapped away on the keyboard at a testing station. "They were getting in front of me and I was there a lot earlier than them, so I thought that it was just," he said.
posted by NotMyselfRightNow on Aug 16, 2005 - 109 comments

Civil War Richmond: an online research project designed to collect documents, photographs, and maps pertaining to Richmond, Virginia, during the Civil War.
posted by breezeway on Apr 22, 2005 - 8 comments

Senior Cranky Hates the Irish, Porn, Nascar, Cats, People Magazine, and Snow, to name a few.
posted by john m on Dec 20, 2004 - 9 comments

"If the Sons of Confederate Veterans can't oppose a statue of President Lincoln, we can't do anything," said Bragdon Bowling, Virginia division commander of the Sons of Confederate Veterans. He then added, "You don't build monuments to conquerors."

Ah, life in the modern South... it is so nice to see how far we've come, eh?
posted by grabbingsand on Apr 6, 2003 - 68 comments

Virginia is for Snipers. The owner of a Richmond, Virginia vintage clothing store has created T-Shirts with large red targets on the back and a play on the "Virginia is for Lovers" tourism slogan on the front. The clothing store owner has displayed a track record of being a little off kilter...
posted by machaus on Oct 22, 2002 - 37 comments

Peaceful co-existence with the animal kingdom, example #240. At a local boat ramp in the Richmond, VA suburbs, there is a problem with black vultures causing damage to cars. The buzzards are being attracted by trash and food scraps being left by fishermen cleaning their catch. The birds are scratching trucks and cars, crapping wherever they please (the nerve!), and ripping out the rubber from windshield wipers. What does Chesterfield County decide to do about it? They hired the U.S. Department of Agriculture's wildlife services program to eradicate the entire flock.
posted by machaus on Aug 21, 2002 - 29 comments

Richmond, VA dropping the ball... Richmond, VA dropping the ball...Bball game b/w UVA & Mich. State cancelled last night due to slippery circumstances.
posted by Miyagi on Nov 30, 2001 - 2 comments